User blog:Deshiba/Solo Queue: Against the meta.

Hello fellow summoners,

Today I wanted to take the time to share with you a little of my experience in Solo Queue. Especially pertaining unorthodox picks and the fellow summoners reactions to these picks.

Too Long, my lazy ass has nothing better to do, but I still want to bitch about it
TL;DR: Try thinking outside of the box sometimes, just because something isn't meta, you've never seen it done before OR you've never seen done properly, doesn't mean it's absolutely bad. Keep an open mind and think about different champs in roles that you don't expect, they might actually work out quit well.

Champ Select
So I've just entered a match trough the cycle of various inactive players and queue dodgers and have found a team that actually wants to play together. Me being the polite little shit that I am start by noting: "I main Support, Jungle secondary. I'd prefer to stick to these roles." Which earns me credit in the eyes of the various kill hungry carry machines out there, no need for names, you know who you are!

Picks and bans get done and three out of five players have selected their champs, everyone his happy, there have been some counter picks that make the team warm within comfort zones. This is when the unthinkable happens, as the looking glass to paradise gets shattered. The enemy picks up and  at the same time.

Take your target, fire at will
All hell breaks loose as the team cries in unison "Y U NO BAN THRESH, OMG NOOB-PICKER". The flame continues and starts tearing at the strong band we had formed, before we even enter the game. "But, I have an answer" I tell my team, "If you'd be so kind as to take, or , I think we have a shot to win this lane."

As the team calms down a bit at my confidence at savaging this seemingly lost situation, I scheme and plot to softly land what is probably in their eyes going to be "betrayal". As my ADC locks in his comforted I turn around and utter to my team: "Trust me" On this final note, I go ahead and I pick  locking in milliseconds after.
 * The sound of guns cocking fill the air, as the firing squad takes aim to execute me for my crime*

The point of no return
After surviving 20 seconds of illegible chat due to flame galore, we survive and actually enter loading screen, yielding a composition that isn't half bad; Okey so half bad was an understatement, this team-comp is pretty flipping awesome in my book, as you have a shipload of cc and protection...
 * in TOP
 * in MID
 * as JUNGLE
 * as ADC
 * as SUPPORT

Especially against the opposing team that is sporting a hefty team-comp themselves, featuring: Which in it's own right, should do pretty well when butting heads vs any team out there.
 * in TOP
 * in MID
 * as JUNGLE
 * as ADC
 * as SUPPORT

Game Start
After the first 60 seconds of the game, I've commenced muting nearly all my allies due to a continuation of illegible chat at the hands of flame. As much as I love reading what is the highest form of creativity of some people... (About how my life has more use serving as a fertilizer for various plants that would surely die after being defiled by consuming my essence, or just straight out calling my remains a weedkiller) ... It's not going to do anything for the game at hand, which I prefer to win.

This is where it gets interesting, as lo and behold, we... We're actually having the upper hand. Garen is winning the trades and out-sustaining the Wukong. Oriana is doing a stellar job at dodging Lux her skill shots and landing her own, while not winning, still securing a creep lead of 1 creep per wave. And in BOT? Well, we're slowly but surely winning and zoning, just the sheer poke is proving to much. As even when Thresh landed his hook, when he went in, he got so much damage to his already dwindling health-pool, that he had to flash out to save his very life.

As the league turns
By the time we reach level 6, Nautilus has properly ganked top and secured first blood with Garen shouting out DEMACIA as he plunges his floating sword into the proper monkey, due to a brilliant purchase of a. But aside from that, not much has changed, Oriana's farm is still steadily growing and bottom lane is still poke/zoning the opponent with devious poke and positioning.

But suddenly something changes, as the opponents start pushing, playing aggressively where as before they took it lying down because of close shaves in the death department. "Varus, I smell a J4, he reeks. Get ready to turn." As we slowly fall back to their push, J4 tries to sneak in lane from behind their tower into the lane bush, which is warded (nice try J4).

GO TIME
And then it happened, suddenly Galio turned back applying on himself, instantly getting hit by  into the. As the comes falling from the sky and  gets laid down, hope is lost for the Valiant Defender as death seems imminent.

But then!? A miracle? As a small gap between CC is formed by a tardy the opportunity to flash arises, as the Galio instantly takes the chance, but whats this, HE FLASHES IN!? Calm down dear readers, as the trump card is revealed. Our hero Galio is now in a position to lay down actually taunting all 3 foes in the lane. Meanwhile Varus is no dufus and knows this is DO or DIE. He Flashes after Galio and picks off Draven as fast as he can, dropping him before the 2 seconds of the taunt are even done. With the burst of the taunt ending he easily follows up on Thresh for the double kill.

As our heroes try to return from the battle field, Jarvan IV has different plans. Determined to not let his foes escape this skirmish unscathed he takes the herculean leap and catches the scoundrels with his, with no chance at escape he brings down the Galio. In doing so taking damage from the Varus resulting in him Flashing out of his ult and running for the hills...

.. With a on his heels, rooting him in place barely in range of Varus his auto attacks from within the cataclysm. He falls, while Varus is still stuck within the confines of his prison. Falling back as soon as the terrain has calmed down, content with a turn around triple kill 3 for 1 exchange, Instantly fed Attack Damage Carry.

Victory
After this one moment in time, Nautilus started camping mid, raking up the kills together with Oriana, so she got just as fed as our ADC, in the end winning the game when the opponent surrendered at 20 against an ADC with 13 kills an APC with 8 and a Garen with 5 Against their 1 pick up on the Galio Support.

In the ending screen I demuted all my previous flamers and they admitted that the Galio was a worthy Support, though reluctantly as he is still not meta.

The moral of this story would be, to never, EVER, dismiss something off hand just because you don't think it will work. When playing ranked and someone picks up something you don't expect, please don't flip out.

Sincerely yours, A, , , and  support player.