First of
all, I’d like to introduce myself to y’all. My name is Karim, I’m 18 years old
(almost 19), I’m Spanish and my main role in League of Legends is Support. My nickname is Sandarks.
I’m playing
in Platinum V, so all the content I share with you is for the moment limited to
my experience in the game since I started the ranked “solo que” in Silver V
until now, and to what I’ve seen of the professional stage.
As a support,
the main factor that may affect you in the Silver/Gold leagues is the fact that
your performance is related to the performance of the AD Carry (as long as his
performance is also related with yours). If you do not manage mentally properly
this situation, bad results can lead you to a bad interpretation of what
happened, and so to a frustration, which leads to not improving your game
because you aren’t focusing in what really matters: the Game.
If I had to
briefly describe the duo lane, I would say that basically consists in feeding
the AD Carry more than how you feed the rival ADC (and of course of maintaining
the level at the same pace of the game out of the Bot Lane). So, your job feeding
your ADC in the early levels is about allowing him to be in position to have a
decent farm. And in last instance there is the part of making the plays happen.
This can be done with the help of a gank, or with advantages gained from your
own skill or the pick of a strong champion in the early phase.
When does
this phase finish? It lasts until the end of the laning phase. When both teams
start to rotate players to shut down turrets and fight for the second drake,
your job is to move around the map for giving your mates the needed utility to
make the plays happen and to not allow the rival’s plays happen. Then, you
mainly have to maintain a balance between defending the carries of the team and
giving CC to your whole team.
The other
part of the support is the non-forgettable obligation of maintaining the vision
for your team, keep the control of the timings of neutral monsters (buffs,
dragons and barons) and also of the summoner spells!
So, as it seems obvious but not everybody does it, buy wards (yes It's necessary to say it, as I often see people playing support in ranked as Nidalees, Annies or Morganas buying full AP and basing their vision in their trinket), buy early boots (even if they aren't from mobility) and buy Aura or Active items such as Solaris, Mikaels, Randuin's (very in the late game), Talisman of Ascension, Face of the Mountain and Frost Queen's Claim.
This are the basis of being a Support, at least right now. Most of you will consider it too obvious because you already know it, but this is a starting point for every Support, because regardless of how good you are playing, you must know why you are doing what you are doing. Remember you don't need to make a lot of damage, that you must give utility and yes, it has great rewards even when a lot of people thinks it is really risked.
I hope that with that post you've understood the WHY of the Support Role, the fundamental 1st part of Sandark's Support Guide. Part 2 Here