Targeting

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Targeting input refers to the information relevant to casting active abilities in League of Legends, specified by the cursor's position. If an ability does not have any active components, and only has passive components, it is considered a passive ability. Most innate abilities are passive abilities.

There are 6 major targeting types used on the wiki, based on the targeting types used in the game files: Auto, Direction, Location, Proximity, Unit, and Vector.

Auto-targeted

Auto-targeting is a targeting paradigm for abilities that do not require any targeting input from the user upon activation; instead, they, as their name suggests, automatically select one or more valid targets in range or a valid area of effect when they are activated.

Auto-targeted abilities include any self-buffing abilities, point blank aoe abilities, and other abilities that are automatically targeted at the location of the caster.

Point blank auto-targeted abilities that do not affect the user such as Death Lotus are distinct from the typical point blank area of effect spell in that they cannot be cast while no valid targets are in range.

List of Abilities

Direction-targeted

Direction-targeting is a targeting paradigm in that specifies that abilities using it require an input direction to be used. The term skillshot is often used to refer to projectile-based direction-targeted abilities, such as Ezreal's Mystic Shot.

Where this targeting type is differentiated from ground-targeting is that these abilities interact with the entire length of the ability's range, rather than a specified destination within range. Most direction-targeted abilities have effects the travel along a line of effect (in the case of projectiles and dashes), and these may interact with each applicable unit hit (referred to as pass-through effects) or with only the first unit hit (collision effects). However, some direction-targeted abilities will affect the entire area at once (predominantly cones). A direction-targeted ability does not need to originate from the caster, as with the case of Orianna's Command Attack. Whether or not a direction-targeted ability deals area of effect (such as Lissandra's Ice Shard) does not affect the targeting classification.

Direction-targeted abilities are divided into subsets based on the scope of the area of effect they occupy. Almost all direction-targeted abilities are of a linear (rectangular, the ones often referred to as skill shots) or conic shape with the only known exceptions Diana's Crescent Strike, which is curved, and Galio's Winds of War, which is ring-shaped. A few abilities may be combinations of both where two or more linear skillshots are combined to form a cone, such as Ashe's Volley.

List of Abilities

Location-targeted

Location-targeting is a targeting paradigm which requires abilities utilizing it to specify a target location within range before being used, with the crux of the spell centering at this location.

Overwhelmingly, abilities using this targeting type have a circular area of effect around the point, with the few exceptions being wall-type spells (such as Jinx's Flame Chompers! and Karthus' Wall of Pain), vector-targeted spells ( Rumble's The Equalizer, Taliyah's Seismic Shove, and Viktor's Death Ray) and certain blink abilities (which do not have an area of effect).

List of Abilities

Proximity-targeted

Proximity-targeted active abilities require at least one valid target to be nearby to be cast. These abilities can be used to detect whether valid targets are nearby, but not visible.

List of Abilities

Unit-targeted

Unit-targeting is the most basic targeting paradigm an ability can have. Abilities using this targeting type require a valid target to be cast on within range, which means having sight of the target is also necessary. What constitutes a 'valid' target varies from spell to spell; this list has been separated into subsets depending on what the spell can be used on, with several abilities belonging to more than one group.

Certain unit-targeted spells should not be confused as having the alternate targeting paradigm auto-targeting. Abilities listed here can have the caster as one of the potential valid targets, but not the only valid target. Casting unit-targeted spells on the caster requires the caster to be selected, unless cast using self-cast keybindings.

Uniquely, Janna's Eye of the Storm is the only unit-targeted-exclusive ability that can function on allied turrets. Terrain-targeted abilities can target turrets as well and unlike location-targeted abilities cannot be cast without selecting a unit. Hence they are being listed as subcategory of unit-targeting.

List of Abilities

Vector-targeted

Vector-targeted abilities have cast effects that occur in a direction from a specified location. Vector-targeted abilities are similar to direction-targeted abilities, but vector-targeted abilities use an arbitrary location as a reference instead of a unit. This location is specified on the first cast similar to using location-targeting. The direction of the ability is specified on the second cast similar to using direction-targeting.

Quick cast allows the ground-targeted component to be specified on-press, and the direction-targeting component to be specified on-release.

List of Abilities

Passive Abilities

Passive abilities are abilities with no active components. Proximity-targeted passive abilities require a valid target to be nearby in order take effect (within ability range).