After the events of Worlds and how the final game went, it reminded me of how most fights over objectives go in my games. Objectives are there to change games or to help you steamroll through the enemy team, so fights over them are very important and can be a big point of the mid- to late-game. Sometimes knowing when to fight and when to just take the objective is the most important part, but there are a lot of factors to consider when taking objectives and when you're fighting for one.

The Other Game Modes

Siege, Joust and Clash all have their own objectives in the jungle and these are great places to get a grasp on getting key objectives to help your push on a smaller scale. Obviously, all provide different buffs to the team i.e. the Bull Demon King stop teams turtling in Joust (Let's face it we all do it and know it's annoying to face). It's a small buff (4% HP5 and 2% MP5) considering how powerful the Fire Giant buff is with its added power and tower damage but it’s a good little place to understand when to claim an objective and when to use it as bait. An example of this is if you know the enemy Isis has her ult you don't want to start FG or Gold Fury as she can secure, so this is a good time to bait them in and try to catch the Isis out or get her ult down. The less secure they have on the map when you start the objective the better.

Each map also provides different access points into the objectives. In Joust, the Bull Demon King is shoved in his own little corner, and you could play a whole game without seeing or going into the pit. In Siege, the Juggernaut is in a semi open area in the middle of the map with many different angles for teams to come in on (no one comes from the sides of it really... or do they?!). Finally, in Clash, Apophis is in a very open area in the middle of the map to encourage team fights over him; he also grants more stats the further into the game you are, a little like the Fire Giant. These maps can show you different ways to claim an objective and fight over them in different conditions, from the open areas of Clash to the secluded and somewhat cramped areas of Joust.

Zoning and Its Benefits

Zoning is great, so do it. If you do it already, do it more. Zoning the enemy team is so important, unless there is no one to zone – in which case, well done, you did a thing! The best gods to zone with are big bruisers with a load of CC. A word of warning though - don’t have both your Warrior and Guardian zoning in the early to mid-parts of the game unless you're baiting in the enemy team, as it'll be harder for the rest of the team to burst down the objective quickly and get out without dying if they're a squishy mage tanking a Fire Giant. It's why communication is key, as that way everyone knows whether you're setting up for a bait or if the Cabrakan is just zoning to be a pain.





Communication Wins Games

If you don't manage to get that ideal deicide, you will need to know what the plan is if the enemy team is still alive. Are you baiting them in to the Fire Giant pit? Or are you forcing a fight at Gold Fury because their mid doesn't have ult? It's key to these fights that everyone knows what they are doing. It may seem obvious but I've seen the Hunter just chilling in the backline taking an age on Gold while we're trying to take on a 4v5 because he didn't hear the call. Even communicating when you're trying to steal an objective is key. If your Janus has ult and you know they're on Fire, that information can allow your team to collapse on the objective. Same way, if half your team's ultimates are down, you need to know so you can tell if the enemy team will be trying to bait you into the objective (still send someone in to try steal it though - you never know, you may sneak one away).

Warding Is Key

Ah, the good old part about warding. Hey, I know I'm writing about warding again, but until I play a match and I'm not top of wards placed, I will keep stressing their importance. Wards will give you a better understanding of if the five man grouping at Gold Fury is a bait or they are bursting it down. The ward coverage around objectives is a key battle you'll see all game and yes, I know Sentry Wards are 120 gold and that seems a lot more than a standard ward, but it's worth getting your team to buy them as it will mean you can get the best coverage over Fire and Gold. I mean, if you see the Sentry go down in the FG pit and you saw two or three enemies over it before it went down, you may want to go there and figure out what's happening. Even warding just below the pit to find out if anyone is on zone duty will give you enough information on what is going on around it. Basically, wards are great. Get wards as they win games. Okay? Okay, good.

Hopefully this will allow you to have stronger objective control during your games and make sure you don't give away cheap and easy steals for the enemy team.

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