Bushra Griffith
In League of Legends, players often debate the best strategies for gaining an advantage over their opponents, especially in lower-ranked elo games. One such strategy, known as cheese, involves exploiting common weaknesses of lower-elo players, such as poor vision control, lack of game knowledge, or inability to detect danger. While some consider it a cheap tactic, others view it as a valid strategy to gain an edge. A common cheese strategy is to focus on early game objectives like the Dragon or Drake, which can provide significant bonuses and increase the chances of victory. This has led to the question: is the cheese Drake strategy the best approach for low-elo players to climb the ranked ladder?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Strategy | "We have Blitzcrank, let's invade" |
| How it works | Tell your team to buy fast in champion select and then sprint to the enemy's blue |
| Beeline for the enemy blue through the mid lane or cross the river and get your support to explorer ward the middle river bush | |
| If you don't catch anyone, ward it and back out | |
| Benefits | Works surprisingly often in solo queue |
| Risks | Could be dangerous, especially against an aware support |
| Other Strategies | Ward bait, proxying, pushing, baiting the enemy, hiding in the bushes |
| Champions | Tryndamere, Twitch, Teemo, Lux, Pantheon, Shen, Annie, Graves, Jax, Kalista, Blitzcrank |
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What You'll Learn
Baiting the enemy
The Ward Bait: This classic strategy involves placing a ward in a visible spot for the enemy support, such as on top of a pink ward. You then position your allies nearby, so when the enemy comes to clear the ward, you can ambush them. While simple, it is effective even in higher elos. Be cautious of counter ward baits, as smarter opponents may bring backup.
Invasion Tactics: A common low-elo strategy is invading the enemy jungle at the start of the game, rushing to their blue buff, and warding it. This strategy relies on speed and coordination, as you want to reach their blue buff before the enemy jungler notices. Make sure to have your support ward the river bush on the way to avoid being spotted. If it backfires, just laugh it off and move on to the next cheese tactic!
Level Advantage: In the laning phase, you can gain a level advantage by pushing the lane slightly. This allows you to reach level 2 before your opponent and use your level, skill, health, and damage advantage to 'all-in' them. Be careful not to push too hard, as they may back off completely. Red pots can enhance this strategy by providing extra AD and health.
Bush Ambush: A simple yet effective strategy is to stand in a bush and wait for an enemy to facecheck it. This strategy has been used since before the ADC/Support bot lane meta. You can also place wards in nearby bushes and wait for enemies to walk towards objectives, luring them into an ambush.
Proxying: Proxying is a tactic where you pressure the enemy by drawing their attention to yourself, relieving pressure from your teammates elsewhere on the map. While it has been slightly nerfed in recent patches, it can still be effective against certain champions, like Shen, due to their low dueling potential and wave clear.
Remember, cheesing relies on exploiting your opponents' inability to detect danger, using the element of surprise, and taking advantage of their lack of game knowledge. By combining these baiting strategies with effective use of wards and map awareness, you can gain a significant advantage in low elo games.
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Hiding in bushes
The Ward Bait: This tactic involves placing a ward in a visible location, typically near a bush, anticipating that the enemy will send someone to clear it. As the enemy approaches, you and your allies can ambush them, resulting in an easy pick. This strategy relies on predicting your opponent's response to the ward and capitalizing on their lack of awareness.
Invasion Tactics: When invading the enemy's jungle, coordinating with your team to move swiftly and taking advantage of bushes for cover can be highly effective. For example, when invading the enemy's blue buff, crossing the river and having your support ward the middle river bush ensures stealth. This approach prevents the enemy from spotting you and allows for a surprise attack or strategic warding.
Ambushing Around Objectives: Placing wards near objectives, such as Dragon or Baron, and hiding in nearby bushes is a powerful tactic. By baiting enemies into attacking the ward, you can quickly engage and eliminate them before they reach the objective. This strategy is particularly effective against low elo players who tend to be more aggressive and susceptible to ambushes.
Surprise Attacks: Hiding in bushes along common paths or in lane can create opportunities for surprise attacks on unsuspecting enemies. This tactic relies on abusing your opponents' inability to detect danger and their lack of map awareness. By remaining hidden, you can choose opportune moments to strike, catching them off guard and gaining an advantage in lane or during a team fight.
It's important to note that while hiding in bushes can be effective, it should be used in conjunction with other strategies and adapted to the specific game state and opponent behavior.
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Dragon fights
Some players argue that the only objective more important than Drake is Nexus. Getting the Drake early or denying it to the enemy team for as long as possible is crucial. However, others disagree, stating that Drakes are not that important and that towers, especially the mid tower, are more crucial. They argue that getting the mid tower opens up the game significantly.
If you are in the early game, herald is a good alternative to Dragon. This is because you can work towards getting the first turret and earning a lot of plate gold. You can also farm to get your ultimate or a full jungle item power spike.
There are several strategies or "cheese" tactics you can employ to gain an advantage in Dragon fights. One such strategy is "fishing", which involves getting picks before objectives using vision control. You can place a ward at the entrance to the Dragon from the blue buff and stand around the corner in the river. This way, the enemy won't see you until it's too late. Another strategy is to use a control ward or a blue trinket. You can place the ward in the open near the entrance to the Dragon, luring the enemy to auto-attack the ward, and then taking them out with a well-timed combo.
Another "cheese" strategy is to push your lane just enough so that you hit level 2 before your opponent, giving you an advantage in terms of level, skill, health, and damage. With this strategy, you want to push fast enough to gain an advantage but not so fast that you scare your opponent off. Additionally, most players in lower elos struggle with last hitting under their tower, so pushing them under can reduce their CS and gold acquisition.
Overall, Dragon fights in low elo can be unpredictable, and it is important to consider whether to focus on dragons or other objectives. While some players emphasize the importance of getting Drake early, others suggest prioritizing towers, especially the mid tower. Employing "cheese" strategies like "fishing" or pushing your lane to gain a level advantage can help you gain an edge in Dragon fights.
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Vision control
- Ward Baiting: Placing wards in strategic locations can be an effective way to bait enemies into unfavorable situations. This strategy involves placing a ward in a visible spot, such as on top of an enemy ward, and having allies nearby to ambush them when they attempt to clear it. This tactic can be employed near objectives like Dragon or Baron to catch enemies off guard.
- Bush Ambushes: Taking advantage of bushes to set up ambushes is a classic strategy. By placing wards to clear enemy vision and ensuring your own visibility, you can surprise unsuspecting enemies. This is particularly effective in low elo, where players tend to struggle with vision control.
- Vision Wards: Utilizing control wards, also known as pink wards, can be crucial for vision control. Placing these wards in key locations, such as near objectives or in bushes, can grant your team valuable information while denying the enemy team's vision.
- Invading Enemy Jungle: Invading the enemy jungle early in the game, particularly targeting their buffs, can throw off their game plan. However, proper vision and caution are necessary to avoid counterplays. Using wards to gain early vision of the enemy jungler's pathing can help time your invade effectively.
- Split-Pushing and Map Awareness: While vision control is important, it is also crucial to understand that splitting off from your team in low elo can be detrimental. Grouping with your team and making strategic decisions together can lead to more successful outcomes. Map awareness and proper warding can help you track enemy movements and make informed decisions.
- Champion Abilities and Cooldowns: Understanding the abilities and cooldowns of your champion is essential for effective vision control. Champions with strong burst damage or crowd control abilities can excel in ambushing enemies from bushes or during ward bait strategies. Additionally, keeping track of enemy cooldowns can help you identify opportune moments to strike.
In conclusion, vision control plays a significant role in executing cheese strategies in low-elo games. By utilizing ward baiting, bush ambushes, vision wards, and strategic invading, you can gain an advantage over your opponents. However, it is also important to consider the limitations of vision control in low elo and adapt your strategy accordingly, focusing on basic fundamentals and map awareness.
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Champions with 1-shot potential
While there are no specific strategies labelled as "cheese drake", some general strategies for low-elo games are to focus on getting early dragons and denying them from the enemy team. However, some players argue that dragons are not as important as towers, especially the mid tower. This is because taking down the mid tower opens up the game and provides more strategic options.
As for champions with one-shot potential, here are some that are commonly mentioned:
- Jhin: Jhin has the ability to one-shot enemies from a long distance and has a powerful ultimate that can eliminate enemies with a single bullet. He also gains a movement speed buff every time he critically hits an enemy.
- Lee Sin: While Lee Sin is known for being a difficult champion to play, he has the potential to one-shot enemies with proper skill usage.
- Garen and Sett: Both Garen and Sett are popular choices for their potent abilities and high damage output.
- Veigar, Nunu, Cho'Gath, and Camille: These champions were mentioned by players as having strong one-shot abilities, although opinions vary on their effectiveness.
- Rengar: Rengar's empowered Q ability can deal significant damage late in the game, potentially one-shotting enemies.
- Elise: Elise is a powerful AP jungler with a variety of skins that enhance her humanoid and spider forms.
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Frequently asked questions
Here are some low elo cheese strategies:
- Ward bait: Place a ward where the enemy support can see it and have allies nearby when they come to clear it.
- Stand in a bush and wait for an enemy to face check it.
- If you have Blitzcrank, invade the enemy blue buff at the start of the game.
- Push your lane a tiny bit so that you can hit level 2 first and use your level, skill, health, and damage advantage to 'all-in' your opponent.
- Play champions with strong early games like Tryndamere top or Teemo top.
Some good low elo strategies include:
- Focusing on taking towers instead of only focusing on drakes.
- Getting Herald and working towards taking the first turret to get a lot of gold.
- Playing for bot lane as early as possible and giving the enemy team the first kill to get a decent advantage.
- Using vision control to get picks before objectives.
Some good champions for low elo players include:
- Lux: Good for punishing the enemy team's lack of vision control and for one-shotting enemies with her ultimate.
- Tryndamere: Strong enough to kill most champions at level 1/2 and can surprise enemies by spinning through minions to gain level 2 faster.
- Twitch: Strong in the early game and invisible repositioning can catch enemies off guard.
- Gragas: Can constantly Q for farm and damage, and enemies can't engage on you since you can just E and walk away.
Some good low elo jungle strategies include:
- Playing champions like Graves or Jax, who can be more independent of their macro decisions.
- Focusing on getting early game pressure and taking objectives like Ocean Drake or red buff.
- Using proxy Singed to force the enemy team's attention and relieve pressure elsewhere on the map.
While taking drakes can be an important objective in low elo, it is not the only strategy to focus on. It is important to adapt your strategy based on the game state and your team composition. However, some strategies that can be effective in low elo include combining drake control with strong early game champions and cheese strategies to get an advantage over your opponents.
