League of Legends: A Beginner's Guide to Summoner's Rift
By Barry on Apr 21st, 2025, 12:04
So, you've heard the whispers, seen the highlights, maybe even caught glimpses of the global phenomenon that is League of Legends. No wonder! It's one of the most popular games in the world, and a titan in the realm of esports, but stepping into this complex game for the first time can feel like trying to navigate a hurricane in a rowboat.
No need to worry, though, this beginner's guide to League of Legends is your first mate, designed to cut through the noise and get you playing League with confidence from the get-go.
PS: Looking for the ultimate way to improve? Our pro one-on-one League of Legends coaching is designed to help you improve fast! And for less than a coffee order, it's a no brainer.
At its heart, League of Legends pits two teams of five players against each other on a map called Summoner's Rift. The objective? Simple on paper, tricky in execution: destroy the enemy team's base centrepiece, the Nexus.
Standing between you and glory are waves of automated soldiers called minions, defensive turrets, and, of course, five enemy champions controlled by real players just like you.
The gameplay is a nice blend of strategy, offense, defence, and coordination. Think of it as high-stakes chess, but with spells, creatures, and a global audience.
The Summoner's Rift map is largely symmetrical, divided primarily into three distinct paths, known as lanes: the top lane (top), middle lane (mid), and bottom lane (bot). Each lane has a series of protective turrets that automatically attack approaching enemy champions and minions. Destroying these opens the path toward the enemy base.
Between these lanes lies the jungle, a wilderness filled with neutral monster camps. These camps provide gold and powerful temporary buffs when defeated, making controlling the jungle and its resources is important.
Crucially, the map also houses major objectives: Dragons, which spawn periodically and grant team-wide buffs, and Baron Nashor, whose defeat grants a strong temporary team-wide buff. Taking down the enemy Nexus on the opposite side of the map is the ultimate objective.
Before every game, each of the ten players selects a unique champion (champ). With over 140 champions (and counting!), the choice can seem daunting for a new player. However, once you've found one you like, things will feel a lot more comfortable.
Every champion boasts a unique set of four abilities (plus a passive one) and distinct strengths and weaknesses. Champions generally fall into roles influencing their standard lane assignment and team composition:
As a beginner, consider starting with champions known for straightforward mechanics. Garen (Top), Lux (Mid/Support), Ashe (ADC), or Morgana (Support) are often recommended. Play a champion that resonates with you, get a feel for their champion moves, and don't be afraid to experiment!
Forget rushing into fights immediately. The early game in League of Legends revolves around minions. These AI-controlled units continuously spawn from each team's Nexus and march down each lane, attacking enemy units they encounter.
Why care about these small fries? Gold and Experience. You gain experience passively and when enemy units die nearby, levelling up your champion and making their abilities stronger. More importantly, you earn gold primarily by landing the killing blow on enemy minions. This is referred to as "CSing" (Creep Score). This gold is crucial to buy items from the shop at your base, which dramatically increase your champion's stats and power.
The jungler has a unique role. Instead of farming minions in a lane, they battle neutral monster camps hidden within the jungle, while providing vision control. This provides them with gold, experience, and sometimes special buffs. A good jungler tracks the enemy jungler's movements, secures objectives like Dragons, and looks for opportunities to assist teammates by ganking unsuspecting laners.
However, be aware: the enemy jungler is trying to do the same to you! This threat of getting ganked adds another layer of strategy. Vision control, achieved by placing wards (invisible trinkets that reveal the surrounding area), is paramount to tracking movement and staying safe.
Before the match even begins, you select two Summoner Spells. These are powerful abilities independent of your chosen champion, operating on long cooldowns. Common choices include:
You also configure Runes pre-game. These provide subtle but important stat boosts and special effects tailored to your champion and playstyle. Understanding items and runes becomes more important as you learn the game, but don't stress too much about optimization when you first start, instead, just use the recommended pages.
Gold earned from minions, champion kills, assists, and objectives is spent in-game at the shop (accessible only at your base fountain). Buying items is how you customize and boost your champion's power throughout the game.
Items grant stats like Attack Damage (physical power), Ability Power (AP - magic power), armor, magic resist, health, movement speed, and more.
Building the right items against the enemy team composition and based on how the game is flowing is a key skill for any League of Legends player. Some items make you more tanky (harder to kill), while others maximize the damage you deal.
A typical League of Legends game flows through phases:
Team fights are chaotic ballets of abilities and success relies on positioning, focusing the right targets (usually high-damage, low-defense enemy champions first), protecting your own key players, and using abilities synergistically. Remember, League of Legends is a team game, so working with your teammates is non-negotiable.
Want to get better at League of Legends? Even as a beginner, focusing on fundamentals pays off:
Playing League of Legends is a journey. It's complex, it's demanding, but it's fun! This beginner's guide to league has laid the groundwork. Now, it's time to queue up, choose your champion you want to play, step onto the Rift, and start. Don't be discouraged by early losses; even high-level players started exactly where you are now. What champion are you thinking of trying first? Let us know! Good luck!
