A Brief Introduction to Flanking

Introduction:

It is every ADC’s worst nightmare when a team fight is about to begin and suddenly a champion like Shyvana or Eve shows up behind them and catches them off guard. This is an example of a correctly executed flank. Flanking is when a team surrounds their opponents from both the front and backsides. This article will cover both the merits and drawbacks of performing a flank approach.

Benefits:

Let’s first begin with the benefits of flanking (I mean who doesn’t like benefits right?). This maneuver can be conducted whether you are ahead or behind in gold. When a team is ahead in gold, this attack can be a game closer. Since the team is already ahead, performing a flank correctly can easily lead to an ace and open the map for objectives such as Baron or inhibitors. In the picture below, LMQ's Eve is in position to use her ultimate on TSM, catching TSM off guard and giving LMQ a huge advantage in this fight.

If your team is behind, a flank can be a last ditch effort to equalize the game. This attack targets the squishy champions such as the marksmen or the mid-laner and quickly takes them off the field. If their damage carrier is taken out, the fight will usually end favorably for the aggressors due to the significant difference in attack power. Also, the element of surprise and confusion creates an even more devastating effect on the enemy team. In the picture below, C9 is behind in gold, but a well-executed flank from An ‘Balls’ Van Le allows for C9 to quickly take out Dignitas’ backlines. This play was crucial for C9's huge comeback victory after being down in gold for the majority of the game.

Drawbacks:

Let’s move on and talk about the potential dangers of a flank. If a team is ahead and decides to use this maneuver, they are potentially putting themselves in a risky situation. Sending one man to go behind the enemy team is always very dangerous because if spotted, the enemy can quickly take out the flanker before the team fight even begins. This creates a 4v5, allowing the enemy to make strategic plays such as taking Baron or Turrets with their superior numbers. Even if the flanker does not die, a lot of resources will most likely be used to keep him alive, wasting crucial skills that could have been used to take out the enemy. Sometimes, important team fights are lost because ultimates were used for escaping rather than engaging.

If the losing team tries to flank as a last ditch effort to get back in the game, things can end badly. Since the team is behind, their stats will be inferior to their enemies. Performing the flank poorly will open the risk of getting aced by the other team. Generally, this happens when the flanker is too weak or squishy and is taken out within seconds upon flanking. This leads to an easy 4v5 battle for the opponents. Therefore, flanking should always be done with great caution. However, I would argue that flanking on the losing team has no drawbacks, seeing how they are already at a great disadvantage.

Conclusion:

I hope that this article has inspired some of you guys to try performing a flank next time for your team. Remember, if done correctly, this play can turn the game around or further your victory. On the other hand, if done poorly, this can lose the game for your team. Flanking like any other League of Legends mechanics takes practice and great amounts of communication! Thanks for reading and good luck on the field of Justice!