Warding 101: Defensive Lane Warding

Welcome to the first part of a long series for warding in League of Legends on Summoner's Rift. I know there are a ton of guides for warding, but I wanted to create a guide for low rated players or those who are new to the warding scene. I also want to dispel a few myths by getting to young warders and inform them that it is not only the Support'sSupport is a type of champion with skills that benefit allies like heals and shields. Since they don't farm minions, they tend to itemize 5 gold per 10 items like Philosopher's Stone early and auras like Aegis of the Legion or Shurelia's Reverie later. job to buy wards. Since this is a guide for new players, jargon will have hover over tool-tips containing definitions.

This first guide will cover basic defensive warding for the laning phaseThis is the first main phase of the game. It is the time from which players reach their respective lanes and begin farming to when players begin to roam around the map as a team.. So without further ado, here is a map of Summoner's Rift with the wards for each team numbered for their explanations below:



Blue Team

#1 - This bottom lane ward is used to thwart enemy Jungler'sJungler is a player who opted to clear neutral creeps instead of playing in a lane. Junglers are responsible for ganking lanes and distributing the neutral buffs to the appropriate players. trying to gankA gank is a surprise attack on a player or group of players. Ganks usually come from or happen in the jungle. by running through the far bush. It can also be used offensively to harass the enemy if they try to use that bush for cover. One advanced use for this ward is for a team mate with the teleport summoner spell to gank. This ward should be purchased by the Support or Ranged CarryA Ranged Carry is a champion that specializes in attacking from a distance without using skills. They tend to itemize Attack Damage, Attack Speed, Armor Penetration, and Life Steal. player.

#2 - This bottom lane ward is used to spot the enemy Jungler or mid lane trying to gank through the river. It also serves a dual purpose of catching attempts to kill the Dragon for global gold. This ward should also be purchased by the Support or Ranged Carry.

Q: When should the Ranged Carry buy wards?
A: Usually the Support buys the large majority of the wards for bottom lane, but if the Ranged Carry has a little extra gold after buying items purchasing a ward or two will help the Support get ahead on aura items. Help them help you. Ranged Carries can also buy the item Wriggle's Lantern which gives them a free ward every few minutes with all of the stats one would need to dominate the bottom lane. While the Ranged Carry requires the most itemization of all of the roles in the game, 75 gold spent now and then will help you stay alive so you can live to farm another day and prevent the enemy from getting their hands on a free 300 gold from your death.

#3 - This mid lane ward is used to catch the enemy Jungler attempting a gank mid or invadingInvading is an advanced technique common among the top 5% of players that involves entering the enemy jungle and stealing camps in an attempt to hinder the enemy jungler. the Red Buff side of the allied jungle. Proper placement of this ward can see some distance northeast into the bush, as this is a popular spot for players to hide. This ward should be purchased by the player occupying the mid lane.

#4 - This mid lane ward is used to catch the enemy Jungler attempting to gank mid. When properly placed it can even catch the enemy Jungler killing their wraiths. When bot lane players see that the Jungler is far away, they can be freely aggressive without fear of consequences. This ward can also spot the enemy jungler trying to invade the Blue Buff side of the allied jungle. Keep in mind that this ward does not cover much if any of the river so mid lane players must keep an eye on ward #5 as well. If the top lane player on your team refuses to ward, you may need to place the ward at purple team's $4 spot. This ward should be purchased by the Jungler.

#5 - This top lane ward is used to catch the enemy Jungler attempting to gank top. This ward is placed far away because top lane players must run very far to get back to the safety of their tower without any support to help them stay alive. Since this ward does not cover any of the river, top lane players must keep an eye on ward #4. This ward should obviously be purchased by the top lane player.

Purple Team

#1 - This ward serves the same purpose as blue team's ward #1.

#2 - This bottom lane ward is used to spot the enemy Jungler attempting to gank bot. Purple team may also use blue team's ward #2 spot for Dragon control and to catch the enemy mid trying to gank through the river. For this reason, purple team is at a slight disadvantage when it comes to warding bottom lane. If you are killing the minions faster than your opponent and are close to their tower, you can ward both teams' #2 spots and forsake #1, because you have vision of all entrances to the far bush. If you opponents are pushing harder you may only need to ward blue team's #2. As on blue team, these two wards should be purchased by the Support and Ranged Carry.

#3 - This ward serves the same purpose as blue team's ward #4 and should be purchased by the Jungler.

#4 - This ward serves the same purpose as the blue team's ward #3 and should be purchased by the mid lane player.

#5 - This ward serves the same purpose as blue team's ward #5 with the added bonus of keeping an eye on The Baron Nashor if you place it down far enough.

Keep in mind that wards do not always need to go in the same places, but these general areas cover all of the basics for having a safe lane. Expert use of wards is what separates bad players from decent players, and is one of the first steps towards consistently winning your games but keep in mind that if you don't pay attention to your wards on the minimap then you may as well not even buy any. So I end with this entertaining song about map awareness: