Mastering Yourself: Tips and Tricks for Sharpening Mechanics

Custom Game Drills

Ever wonder how Choi "inSec" In-seok revolutionized Lee Sin? Or perhaps how Hong "MadLife" Min-gi became the Thresh “God”? Although it would be unrealistic to master your champion at the level many great professionals do, there are some things you can do to become much more consistent while playing mechanically intensive champs.

Farming

This one should be a no-brainer. A few 20 minute custom games with the champion you wish to improve on is a very easy way to feel more comfortable farming and using their abilities. Try last hitting at the last possible moment to really get a sense for the mechanics of waiting for minions to die and creep aggro. You should try and play up to 20 of these games in a short period of time to truly see sustained benefits of this drill. Playing champs like Vlad or Soraka will also be more rewarding and helpful when playing those with better farming abilities. Mechanical champions such as Vayne and Yasuo also benefit from these drills as you become more familiar with their movements and animations.

Advanced Lee Sin Mechanics (Requires 2 people)

To follow in the footsteps of inSec, one must first start with the basics. Join a custom game with a friend who is also looking to improve their Lee Sin play. As Lee, there are a number of things you can do with a partner to develop and/or sharpen strong mechanics. Try running around in the jungle and attempting to land q’s while dodging your partner's on the other team. If you buy a Sightstone, you can try and ward hop as fast as possible over walls as well as in lane. After you have the basics down and hit Level 6, get your partner in the river. Try hitting your Q, connecting it, warding behind your opponent and Ulting them in one fluid motion. Buy boots and CDR to make this process faster. Continue to “inSec” your opponent until you feel comfortable performing the task on a moving target. You can also try the Lee Sin “Flash-kick” which requires one to kick an enemy and immediately flash behind them to send the opponent in the direction of your team.

Landing Hooks

Blitzcrank and Thresh are both champions that can make a huge difference in any game. Their hooks are certainly make or break, but not many people can hit them as consistently as many pros such as Madlife. You can improve your hook ability simply by entering a lone custom game with a bot. Go midlane, and focus on hooking the bot. If you miss the hook, you must suicide to the tower. This helps create a punishment for missed hooks. This can also be done with a partner similarly to how the Lee Sin players can practice. Try practicing for 20 minutes every day with these drills. You will be surprised by how much you improve.

By practicing champions in custom games, you are taking the first steps to becoming a better player. Although these drills are useful, nothing will beat the experience of playing a game against real competition. The more time and effort you put in, the sooner you shall see results!

 

Good Luck on the Rift!
-Conito