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How to Play Top Lane in League of Legends (March 2024)

Here is our guide on how to play Top Lane in League of Legends.

How to Play Top Lane in League of Legends

How to Play Top Lane in League of Legends

The top lane is one of the lanes that can influence the carry potential of the game. This is because top laners are usually champions that are very durable, full of tenacity, and very hard to kill. So, knowing how to play this lane will provide you with a decent result and you’ll be able to climb the ladder easily. With that being said, you need to know how to properly play on the top lane. So, stick with us until the end of this guide, as we’ll help you gain more knowledge about the top lane.

How to Play Top Lane in League of Legends

It’s a lane that is very often isolated, and plays that include other teammates don’t usually happen over on this lane. However, it doesn’t mean that the top laners cannot influence the game at all. This is why they have Teleport, an ability that not only enables them to go back to their lane quicker but to transfer to another lane and help in a skirmish or objective takedown. So, here are our tips on how to be a better top-laner!

Correct Champion Selection is Vital

You have probably known this for the entirety of your top-laning experience, but the champion selection has a major implication on how the game will end. It is very important to know which champion you’ll pick against the enemy top-laner because most of the time you’ll be 1v1 against them. Therefore, having a champion that would outmaneuver the enemy in this view is a very important matter.

Unlike other champions, summoner spells on champions that are played on Top are mostly the same with very few variations. That’s why we’ve mentioned above that Teleport is probably the most utilized spell as a top laner. However, some champions may not use Flash as frequently as others. Take Tryndamere as an example, his E allows him to “spin” through walls, something that Flash enables him to do too.

Top Heroes for Solo Top Lane

These champions are currently considered to be god tier for top lane in patch 12.12.

  • Dr. Mundo
  • Garen
  • Wukong
  • Quinn
  • Nasus
  • Sett
  • Shen
  • Mordekaiser
  • Kayle
  • Darius
  • SwainS
  • Singed
  • Fiora
  • Lillia
  • Ornn

Learn How to Properly Trade in the Lane

Since you’ll spend most of your time here, on this deserted place called “top lane”, you have to learn how to gain an advantage over the enemy top laner. This will be done by trading, a process in which you try to deal as much damage to the enemy laner while taking as little damage as possible. In the early stages of the game, huge importance is put on the nature of the champion. For example, ranged champions tend to do damage much easier than melee ones. However, a huge part is played by the abilities too, so most champions that have ranged abilities are very good at trading in the lane.

The best way to trade on the top lane is when the enemy’s abilities are on cooldown if the enemy is dependent on its abilities to do damage. Another way is to monitor the minions’ wave, and if you cleaned it more effectively than your enemy, making a trade on him would result in a very good outcome for you. And all of this time, you need to pay attention to your farm. Landing 1-2 shots on the enemy top laner isn’t worth sacrificing 3-4 minions that are on low HP, especially the cannon ones.

Secure Vision of Your Lane

It’s true that the top lane is mostly played 1v1 due to the nature of the lane itself, but that doesn’t mean that ganks won’t happen at all. If the enemy jungler takes down the Rift Herald, it’s most likely that the gank on the top lane will happen and the Herald will be called upon that lane. If you die on this gank and your turret gets destroyed, then you’ve just lost the laning phase in just two moves. This is why you need to learn how to keep the vision of your lane on a high level.

One of the ways to do this is to constantly have wards in your inventory. Warding Totem shouldn’t be replaced at all, and if you are able to place Vision Ward either in the tri-bush or in the other bushes around the river. That way, not only you’ll have a vision of the lane, but you’ll also be able to inhibit their vision thanks to the nature of Vision Ward. Plus, you’ll always have a place that you can teleport to when you’ll be back for items, and if your jungler is nearby, organizing a play just when you teleport yourself to the Top lane would be the best outcome!

Farming is the Most Important Thing!

Basically, a huge percentage of your laning phase goes to farming. A small percentage goes to making plays regarding the killing of the enemy top laner or helping your jungler around Rift Herald. This is why farming is the #1 choice for your gold income, and you should never underestimate how important it is to you. Because it’s a solo lane, you don’t get to share the gold with anyone, and every minion counts. This is why you shouldn’t focus too much on the kills or trading shots with the enemy top laner if it involves you risking the farm.

Sometimes you’ll find yourself alone on the top lane, and your enemy will be recalling items. If the enemy doesn’t have teleport available, his arriving back to the lane could be a slow process. This is when you’d want to “freeze” the lane. Freezing is a process in which you stand in front of the enemy minion wave, allowing them to build up and try to only last hit the minions without damaging them previously.

Naturally, this has to be done outside of your turret range, and you need to hold the enemy wave until you receive your minion wave. If you push the lane, you’ll allow your minions to crash into the enemy turret and you’ll make it harder for the enemy to last-hit them due to the turret shots. 

We hope that our guide has helped you in becoming a better top-laner in League. More importantly, we hope that you’ll apply our advice in your next game, and see the difference they will make in the outcome of the laning phase! 

Interested in more LoL content? Check out League of Legends: How to Climb the Ranked Ladder.

League of Legends can be played on PC for free.