Here's a comprehensive guide to the controls in League of Legends (LoL) for new players.
Understanding and mastering these controls will significantly enhance your gameplay experience in League of Legends. Remember, practice makes perfect, so spend some time in practice tool or bot games to get comfortable with these controls before jumping into PvP matches. |
Basic Controls:
•Move: Left-click on the terrain where you want your champion to go.
•Attack: Right-click on an enemy to automatically attack with your default attack.
•Use Abilities:
•Q, W, E, R: These are the hotkeys to use your champion's abilities. Each champion has four abilities:
•Q: Ability 1
•W: Ability 2
•E: Ability 3
•R: Ultimate ability (often has a longer cooldown and is more powerful).
•Item Activation: Use 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (or mouse buttons if configured) to activate items in your inventory. Items with active effects will have a golden border when available for use.
Advanced Controls:
•Smart Casting: Pressing Shift + Q/W/E/R or setting it up in the options can toggle smart casting, which automatically casts the ability at the cursor's location without needing a second click.
•Range Indicators: Hold down Alt before casting to see the range of an ability before you use it.
•Attack Move: Press A then click on the ground where you think enemies might appear. This is useful for last-hitting minions or engaging enemies when they're out of sight.
Level Up Abilities:
•Ctrl + Q/W/E/R: Levels up the corresponding ability automatically when you have a level-up point available.
Camera Control:
•Spacebar: Centers the camera on your champion.
•Mouse Wheel or Edge Panning: Move your mouse to the edges of the screen to pan the camera, or use the mouse wheel if set.
•Y, Z: These keys zoom the camera in and out.
Chat Commands:
•Enter: Open chat.
•Shift + Enter: Open team chat only.
•/all: Prefix for messages to all players in the game.
•/mute [player name]: Mute a player's chat.
•/ignore [player name]: Mute both chat and pings from a player.
Pinging:
•G: Default ping for assistance.
•Ctrl + G: Danger ping.
•Alt + G: On my way ping.
•V: Vision ping to alert your team about possible vision (wards).
Other Useful Controls:
Shop:
•P: Opens the shop.
•Shift + Click on an item in the shop to buy it instantly if you have enough gold.
•Ctrl + Click on an item in the shop to sell it from your inventory.
Inventory Management:
•Drag and Drop items between inventory slots or onto the champion's portrait to use them.
Scoreboard:
•Tab: Toggle the in-game scoreboard to view stats, items, and gold for all players.
Emotes:
•Ctrl + 1/2/3/4: Use emotes if unlocked and equipped during champion select or in the collection tab.
Customization:
Most of these controls can be customized in the game settings under the "Hotkeys" tab. Here, you can change key bindings to suit your playstyle better, including setting up quick-cast for abilities, toggling camera lock, and more. Also see: Customization Guide to League of Legends
Tips for Mastering Controls: 
Here are some tips for configuring controls and settings in League of Legends to enhance your gameplay experience:
Customize Keybindings:
•Smart Cast: Enable smart cast (self-cast for heals/shields) for quicker ability use. You can set abilities to smart cast or normal cast based on your playstyle.
•Smart Cast: Press the button to cast where your cursor is.
•Normal Cast: Press and hold, move cursor to aim, then release to cast.
•Item Actives: Bind active items to keys like 1-4 for quick access during fights.
•Ward Placement: Customize a key for ward placement if you play supportive roles.
•Camera Controls: Use 'Y' for locking the camera on your champion or 'Spacebar' to center it; adjust if these don't suit you.
Attack Move Click:
Enable 'Attack Move Click' under 'Game' settings. This allows you to right-click to attack the nearest enemy, useful for kiting.
Champion Abilities:
Consider what feels natural for your hand position. Some players swap Q and E if they find it more comfortable.
Interface Settings:
Adjust 'Show Attack Radius' for your champion to better understand your range during combat.
Cursor Settings:
Change the cursor size and color if you need better visibility during hectic fights.
Graphics Settings:
•Performance vs. Quality: Adjust settings to balance between visual quality and performance. Lower settings can help maintain high FPS during team fights.
•FXAA/Supersample: Turn down if you face performance issues.
•Character Quality: Can be lowered without significantly impacting gameplay if needed.
Audio Settings:
•Sound Volume: Keep a balance or mute other players' voice chat if it distracts you, but don't miss out on game sounds which are crucial for awareness.
•Enable Voicelines: Turn on champion voicelines for more immersive gameplay and potential tactical advantage by hearing enemy cues.
Gameplay Settings:
•Timestamps: Enable timestamps on chat for better communication tracking.
•Colourblind Mode: If applicable, use this to distinguish between UI elements more easily.
•Show/Hide Tips: Disable tips if you find them distracting.
Interface:
•Minimap Size: Increase the minimap size for better awareness.
•Hud Scale: Adjust the HUD scale for comfort, especially if you have a larger screen.
•Scoreboard: Set a key to toggle the scoreboard for quick glances without losing focus on the action.
Replay System:
If you use the replay system to review your games, ensure it's set up correctly under 'Replay' settings.
Network:
•Optimize: Ensure 'Optimize Network for Game While Playing' is turned on to reduce lag.
More Advanced Tips:
•Quick Cast Indicator: For abilities that require precise aiming, enable the quick cast indicator to see where the ability will land before casting.
•Level Up Abilities: Set a key to level up abilities automatically or bind individual keys for each ability to upgrade them during gameplay without opening the skill menu.
•Targeting Preferences: Under 'Game' settings, you can adjust how your champion targets enemies in combat. 'Prioritize Lowest Health' can be useful for finishing off enemies quickly.
•Ping System: Understand and use the ping system effectively. Customize your ping wheel for quick communication.
•Save Profiles: If you play multiple champions with vastly different playstyles, save different control profiles for each.
•Experiment: Don't be afraid to experiment with settings. What works for one player might not work for another due to different playstyles or hardware.
Remember, the key is to find what works for you. League of Legends offers a lot of customization, so take the time to adjust settings until you feel comfortable. As you play, you might find new tweaks to make based on your evolving understanding of the game. |
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