Have you mastered wave management, taken charge of tracking, and refined your farming strategy? Now you’ve armed yourself with a solid set of skills, you’re probably looking for ways to up the ante when playing League of Legends. If you’re itching to take on a new challenge, Draft Pick is definitely worth considering. A staple of professional tournaments and ranked play, this game mode sees players take turns picking their preferred champions. To up the ante and balance the odds, players can also choose to ban certain champions outright.
Still new to League of Legends? Perhaps you’re struggling to wrap your head around the concept of drafting or need some tips on how to turn it to your advantage. Below, you’ll find everything you need to know.
An Introduction to Draft Pick
Drafting in League of Legends is relatively straightforward. Drafting begins with banning. Each team is allowed to ban a set number of champions, with neither team allowed to pick any of those relegated to the banned list. Banning requires careful consideration and has a major impact on games themselves. If you’re thinking strategically, look to ban champions that pose the biggest threat to your planned line-up. You can also choose to ban overpowered champions that you think might prove a general risk. Although banned lists vary from game to game, champions like Blitzcrank, Smolder, and Zed are regular fixtures of Solo Queue banned lists.
Once banning is taken care of, players then need to make their picks. Although players can choose the same champion in other game modes, in Draft Pick, champions can only be selected once. This means that there’s no chance of two Taliyahs going toe-to-toe or a balanced bust-up between a pair of Pykes. Champion selection is turn-based, with picking alternating between teams. The process can be a nail-biting one for players eager to nab their favorite champion, but certainly adds an air of strategy to the proceedings.