League of Legends Guide: 10 Tips to Improve Your Warding

6. Change Your Warding Based on the Game State

Unfortunately, this League of Legends guide is not foolproof. Where and how you ward, even which trinkets you hold, changes based on the state of a given game.

For instance, if you are ahead you generally want to focus more on vision denial than placing vision, because the enemy team can easily get caught when checking into the dark jungle. More control wards and sweepers are generally adviseable over blue and yellow totems because you know where the enemy is.

Alternatively, when you’re behind you need to prioritize getting vision in your jungle over denial. Because your team has presumably lost outer towers and the enemy is stronger than you, you need to have that advance warning if someone on the other team is looking to camp a brush. More yellow and blue wards are advised here because you cannot control your jungle and do not know if the enemy is in there.

7. Ward Ahead of the Objective

One big mistake I often see is players trying to drop their vision right as they’re starting an objective like dragon or Baron. By that point, though, it may be too late as the enemy could already be in position to contest you.

A better action is to drop your vision about a minute to 30 seconds before the objective spawns. This not only allows you to get that advance warning of where the enemy is, it also gives you time to clear any vision they put down, making them have to check in blindly.

8. Ward During Fights

An underrated tip that hardly anyone uses, it was important to include this in the League of Legends guide on warding. If, during a fight, you are near brush, just go ahead and drop a ward in there.

The biggest benefit is that it prevents the enemy team from dipping in there to drop vision (which could prevent you or your ADC from getting off another auto attack). Something most don’t consider is that is the enemy is attack-moving dropping the ward can cause them to hit the ward and not one of your teammates.

9. Check with Skillshots to Get Vision

How many times have you seen your squishy support just walk into a brush where three people are already sitting and die? It doesn’t matter if you were trying to get vision down if you immediately get blown up the second after you drop the ward.

A better method is to throw any skillshots you can into brush you will either place vision in or have to walk through on your way to placing vision. The skillshot should reveal any players hit by it, so you’ll know if it’s safe to advance.

Another alternative is to place vision over walls so you can get some vision, even if it’s not the ideal placement. If you have no skillshots, try to go ward with a teammate and let who ever is tankier and/or has disengage go first. Finally, if you must ward alone, make sure you know where you will flash/dash to if it turns out the enemy is sitting in that brush.

10. Avoid the “Knew It” Wards

Sometimes in game, you’ll have a sense that there’s someone in that brush nearby. Maybe the enemy laner is playing differently or you just have a weird feeling. When you go to drop a ward, you see that, yep, the enemy was sitting there and kills you. That is what is called a “knew it” ward because you’re saying “I knew they were there” as you stare at the black screen.

You need to train yourself to start thinking of those knew it ward spots as the death traps they are. If you can, check the brush or area with a skillshot. If you can’t just assume that there is someone in there and position to avoid the gank that might be coming your way.

Use wards to see when an enemy is coming, rather than if he is already there. If you’re checking to see if an enemy already is there, you’re better off just avoiding the risk.