Guide
Having
established
some
knowledge of the map let’s have
a look at how different roles fit
in.
Within the current ‘meta’
(the word used to describe a
consensual way to play the
game across the player base) the
general set up of where players
go is:
Two in the long lane, one in the
middle lane, one in the short
lane, one player roaming the
jungle. The idea behind this is
to maximise the amount of gold
that each player can receive
(known as farming); there is a
limit to the amount of camps
and minions that can be killed
because the minions come in
waves and the jungle camps have
to wait to respawn after being
killed. Also, minions and jungle
camps provide a base amount
of gold and experience when
killed, which is split between the
players who damage the NPC,
and provide the greatest amount
of gold to the player that gets the
last hit on the minions before it
is killed. Making sure that you
get last hits on the minions in the
wave is a good idea to practise as
you gain the most gold possible.
A traditional, well-rounded team
composition would have a hunter
and a guardian in the long lane
(or duo lane), a mage in the mid
lane, a warrior in the short lane
(or solo lane) and an assassin in
the jungle. This is a simple set
up, and you are bound to find
differences from game to game,
however at the start of the game
a set up like this will be put into
common practise.
You may find yourself getting
frustrated by players who choose
to ignore this and go to different
places randomly, and as a
multiplayer game you can’t force
players to play in any certain
way, so the best thing to do is to
make sure everyone’s clear and
happy with what they’re doing in
the lobby of the game. During
this time in the lobby you need
to pick a role to play in the game
and state that in chat. Typically
it is a race to claim the positions
that you want to play, and quick
fingers help. If you are new,
however, I personally suggest
you play either position in the
Duo Lane, as you will be playing
alongside someone so will gain
experience from them and be
able to help each other, rather
than taking on a position of big
responsibility from the outset.
In the lobby your position (as in
the number of places from top
to bottom) state your ELO, the
calculation from your stats that
gives you a skill ranking, and
while this system is flawed, it is
a
nice way to see who may be good
to put in the more experienced
roles like Mid and Jungle.
Issue 1 • May 2014
16 • GameOn Smite Community Magazine