How to Give Up First Blood and Still Survive Your Team

Rumble had been having a hell of a time up here in top lane. That spider kept throwing some sort of acid, or maybe poison, onto Tristy and it wasn't going well. He was having to keep focusing on retaining a shield of scrap metal around him at all times to avoid losing the lane outright. However, Elise was out of pots and he was just getting started, still having 6 on his person, so it was time to turn up the heat. Rumble pressed forward on the controls and chased after Elise, roasting her so that she was going to have to retreat. Even though he had taken a brunt of the assualt, he'd be able to...

*clop*... *clop*... *clop*.. *clop*.. *clop*. *clop*

Rumble turned around to see a centaur dash through him and instantly blew up Tristy's power core. He was flung in the air and all he could say to his team was, "Well... ****". A woman's voice carried over the forest, shouting "First Blood!"

"Damnit Rumble... ward up"...

Hello, my name is Rampant Idiocy. Today, I'm going to talk about another stressful situation you might find yourself in, which is giving up first blood to the enemy team. I hope that this will help you, and your team, regain their composure and keep playing for the win. 

The Importance of First Blood

First Blood has an interesting effect on the game, as it really changes the cadence of the lane it was given up in. The person who got First Blood pretty much placed himself a small item in front of his lane opponent, as he is allowed to not only free farm, but he can push his lane and deny his opponent the gold from the minions that die to the tower. As this is true, when you give First Blood up, unless you can reciprocate with a DoT such as Ignite, you have put yourself behind. 

Secondly, it's a major morale hit for the team that just lost First Blood. Unlike later deaths, which they might brush off, the audible aspect of First Blood reminds them that one of their teammates just gave up the first death of the game. Since they cannot always be watching that teammate, they might assume anything from bad luck, to a good enemy gank, to the dead person being incompetent. 

Finally, it can serve as a catalyst for those that are more... aggressive... to blow up and set off on you. This is much more damaging than the other two, as he can become a devisive force across the other team. You just primed him to be the rampaging lawnmower of a jerk he's going to be to the rest of your team.

If Teemo scored first blood, the morale penalty to your team is doubled.

Counteracting the Loss of Lane

This is possibly the easiest of the three to compensate for. While you may be behind, you can play safely to ensure that you at least remain relevant in the game. You need to spend money on wards, not only for the river, but for potential entries behind your turret that allow a dive. Now, in different lanes, the first blood has different effects. It's really least damaging to the jungler. While he does fall behind the other jungler, as long as he is able to protect his source of income with the aid of his teammates, he should be able to recover fine. In bottom lane, it similarly has a lesser effect. Since the purpose of the lane is to farm up as much as possible, you aren't in as much conflict. Setting wards up in river and in tri/behind bushes and freezing the lane will allow you to recover. In middle lane, it's damaging, but you are always able to return the short distance to your turret and farm some jungle camps to get back into the game.

It's probably most damning in top lane, as it is incredibly prone to snowballing. A death in this lane means that the opponent gains complete control over the tempo of the lane, and means your jungler needs to be more active in the top portions of the jungle. Even though you might ward, with a hard enough engage, they will be able to kill you with no recompense. So, in this case you need to make a decision: Are you going to give up your tower if you fall behind? A kill is worth around 20 minions, so if you fall behind in cs and in kills, you're a lot farther behind than you might think. The person will attempt to zone you and pressure your turret. You should respond by taking wolves/golems if your jungler allows it and not be afraid to use abilities to farm from range.

Whatever failure in lane you have, you can still right the ship through cautious play and a calm attitude. However, the next thing you need to start doing is...

Counteracting the Loss in Morale

Having first blood scored against your team always sucks. It starts to chip away at the confidence you have in your teammates, and might start ringing some alarm bells that this game is already over. So, when you're the one killed for first blood, you need to realize that all of your teammates are feeling a bit uneasy, especially if they didn't see the death. If you died due to an early invasion or a failed gank, that's one thing; your teammates feel equally at fault. But if you die alone in middle to Akali, pre-level six, quite a few of your temmates are going to start questioning whether you're going to be able to handle your lane. You need to assure your teammates that you're going to be fine, but make it clear that you're going to need help to catch up with your lane opponent. 

The later the first blood comes in the game, the less of a morale hit it becomes. Eventually, people expect someone to die, and they're not going to huff too much about you dying if it's the first death at 16 minutes. However, whatever the time is, you need to be tactful with your teammates. 

Don't let your first blood linger in the minds of your teammates, like Roku's did in the Ionia vs. Noxus match.

Accept the Blame 

You're allowed to express some frustration about being the first one to die in the game. It's a bit embarassing, and always frustrating. But you need to realize spamming "Darius OP" in chat isn't going to give your team any reassurance about your capabilities in top. In fact, this might make them think that you have already given up on your lane, and they're not going to be happy about it. Accept the fact that you dying, while it might not be your fault entirely, is definitely your responsibility to deal with. If someone calls you out for dying, accept that it was your fault, apologize, and say you'll do better next time. Hell, if you learned something about your lane opponent in the process of dying, or perhaps their jungler's position, tell your team about it. If you keep acting constructive, even after your death, your team is going to be reassured about your fate in lane.

Ask for Help

Just because it might seem desperate, don't hesitate to ask your teammates for help getting back into the game. Ask your jungler to make your lane opponent's life miserable, and take jungle camps if he allows it. Notice I said ask, not blame your jungler for him not being top/mid/bot enough. Junglers absolutely despise everything being made their fault, and they will respond positively if you treat them respectfully and will do as much as they can to help you. Heck, ask for other lanes to aid if they can. If you're getting abused in top lane, ask your bottom lane to push hard so they can relieve pressure or ask your mid laner if they'd consider a lane swap. Finally, if you ask and no one helps you, it doesn't give you a license to act like a jerk to the rest of your team. Just because you're behind doesn't neccesarily mean that they're ahead, and they might not be able to help you. Or they might be tunnel-visioned on what their goal is, but either way you don't get permission from their behavior to shut down.

Counteracting Setting a Player Off

Finally, you giving up first blood might set off someone. This guy has somehow been wronged by you being outplayed, and therefore he must defend his honor by verbally harassing you all game. This is not going to be an enjoyable experience for anyone involved.

A Small Tangent on Behavior

I take part in League's Tribunal system, which is the community system for policing bad behavior from the game. Part of this involves reading the cases of players that have been reported and seeing if and how they broke the Summoner's Code, the rules that are given to each player. However, the rules boil down to one simple line, given by Lyte and WookieCookie, "Don't be a jerk".

Oftentimes, when I read these cases, I see that the player reported had gone off on a player that was playing poorly and had decided that it wasn't acceptable that someone could have a bad game. These players continously rage and insult the player, but they're often not only affecting the poor player. By raging, they're single-handedly undermining their teams morale and destroying the lines of communication by filling up chat with hate. They will often drag their "grievances" out to all chat, where they will serenade your opponents with insults directed at the poor player and his mother. They irritate the other team, they destroy their own team, and they make a single player absolutely miserable. 

And why do they do this? I don't know. I don't understand why they don't have the self-control to stop themselves from flooding their chat with insults. I don't understand why they believe the internet gives them the right to ignore manners and good sportsmanship. However, we have to acknowledge that these players exist, and until we're able to eliminate them through Player Behavior Initiatives, they're going to have to be something we need to deal with.

Garen and Darius go over the finer points of team discussion.

Do Not Retaliate

When the player starts going at you for stuff outside your play, you're going to get flustered, you're going to get irritated, and you're going to want to return the favor. Do not fall for this trap. His entire goal is upset you, and you retaliating is just going to tell him that he succeeded, and he's going to be extremely pleased with himself. Outside that, while you're busy typing in response, you're not playing. You are already behind, so you cannot afford to be typing while your jungler is consistantly calling your mother names.

Look, we've all had to deal with these immature jerks who think that their anonymity has given them immunity to consequences. The best thing you can do in this situation is ignore them, and luckily Riot has given us the ability to ignore players. Once that happens you can play damage control.

Teamwork is Still King

Don't let the frustration of a jerk teammate make you swear off communicating. Keep doing what you can to get back into your lane and keep communicating with teammates. Don't let his vitriol taint your team more than it should, and keep working with your teammates. By not responding to him, but keeping the your communication with the rest of your team normal, you do two things. First, the rest of your team sees you as the mature person in the dispute, and they're much less likely to be instigated by your friendly team demagogue. Secondly, by continuing to play, you might actually calm down the person who initially got all flustered by the first blood. Still, don't forget to report him if he was raging earlier.

Conclusion

Giving up first blood is always a demoralizing event, but with these three steps you can counteract the negative after effects of the first death of the game. In conclusion, stay positive, never give up, and don't let someone else's rage poison your team. Keep playing, play cautious, and you'll overcome any poor play you made at the beginning of the game.