Month: July 2017

LoL: My Journey to Gold

Not too long ago I finally had my victory on the fields of justice by being promoted to Gold V, something I have wanted since starting my ranked journey. It is also the completion of said journey. I just thought I would share some of thoughts along the way.

 I am a Bot lane main but probably close to 99% of the games I played were at Support, which is my favourite position anyway. I find it the role that can best set a team up for success. Whatever lane you aren’t in can feed, but with Support I found that I was predominantly focused on the game as a whole.

In the void that having to cs left me, I had my time free to watch the minimap to call every missing player and every time the enemy jungler appeared. Transitioning out of laning phase, I would ping waves that pushed beyond halfway and try and herd the suicidal lemmings of SoloQ to take objectives and snowball a game to victory.

This is all fine in theory, but the nature of SoloQ is that between the feeders and afker’s and games you just get smashed in, there is roughly 30% of games you simply cannot win. It was about accepting those losses without allowing them to tilt me and focus on the games where a victory is possible. Also in those losses, to not change your game or champion, my highest win rate was with Morgana, the temptation to change to a champion I’m worse at after a loss or two really was tempting but would have only increased the likelihood of mistakes and more losses.

One thing I have found about Silver is that people do not know how to win. Or rather, they know the theory but are unable to remember and act upon it in the heat of the moment. The temptation to chase kills and tower dive almost always overwhelms the need to gather the unpushed wave so we can take towers and inhibs, fill their jungle with wards, back and go to Baron.

I will not be trying to grind my way through Gold to Diamond. The nature of the ranked system means you are punished for so many things that are out of your own personal control. I never really understood why my personal MMR falls when I lose a 4v5 because someone AFK’s.

League of Legends is probably my favourite game. League of Legends played with 4 friends over Discord is a beautiful game. SoloQ however is far more like counselling children to not give up or be mean to each other.

Good Luck of the Fields of Battle.

Rugby Union: End of the Lions Series

Lions 15 – 15 New Zealand

Lions 2017 Series Tied

Two facts that on the surface seem dull and boring, especially in a sport so driven by results and one in which a draw is so unusual. That game was one of the most nerve wracking games I can remember watching, the closest parallel being Wales vs France in the World Cup Semi Final. The match truly had a World Cup Final feel to it, watching the two best teams in the world throw everything they had at one another.
Once the final whistle blew there was an unease about how to feel, but in that atmosphere emerged a celebration of rugby itself, of sportsmanship and of the Lions as a concept. The sight of Kieran Read and Sam Warburton holding the trophy aloft, and both teams sat together, a mix of black and red shirts, provided an advertisement for Rugby that will last in the memory.
Some have questioned the Lions as a concept, I’m not really sure why with the 2009 Lions coming agonisingly close to victory (My Father still has not forgiven Ronan O’Gara). Then the fantastic series in Australia leading to the Lions roaring to victory in dramatic fashion, to now. The 2017 Lions had been together for a matter of weeks, and they have drawn a three test series with the New Zealand All Blacks.
The Lions had no right to perform so well, they are a group of fantastic players, plucked from their international structures and combinations and asked to perform together against the most dominant sporting team in history.
A quick final point, there were numerous articles about how Scotland is under-represented in the Lions. My own opinion is the Lions has to remain the best of the home nations. Stuart Hogg would have been a major figure in the test side had he not been injured but aside from that Scotland is not good enough. The Lions will not continue to achieve greatness if the concept is marred by quotas from each nation.