Map Specific Lane Assignments

by Alebeard - 5 years ago

In last week’s article, we covered the basic concepts behind lane assignments, and why simply dividing evenly between lanes may not be the best strategy. We also discussed how proper opening lane assignments can be strongly influenced by which map you are playing.

This week, we will identify the “standard” lane assignments for each individual map, as well as the rational behind it. We will also talk about reasons why you might chose not to go with the standard strategy.

Keep in mind, that these are only suggested guidelines, and not set in stone mandates. Also remember that these concepts apply primarily to the beginning of the game. As your team reaches higher levels, the focus will shift from laning to more team fights and pushing. Don’t be that guy who is blindly pushing a lane at level 12, while your team is engages in a major team fight somewhere else.

Cursed Hollow

This is your standard three lane map, and a great example of how proper lane assignments can be dictated by the map mechanics. Since the Objective on this map can spawn in a variety of locations, your team should deploy themselves primarily in the middle lane. The ideal breakdown on this map would be 1-3-1, which means one player in the top lane/three players in the middle lane/one player in the bottom lane. By positioning yourself like this, you are guaranteed to be able to quickly get four Heroes to any Objective, regardless of where it spawns. If you go with an unbalanced rotation like 1-1-3 (1 top/1 mid/3 bot) your team will be very slow to react when a Tribute spawns at the top of the map. As a result, it rarely makes sense to stray from the 1-3-1 strategy. It is also why you should have your tank and healer in the middle lane, so that they are able to get there first no matter where the Tribute spawns. Don’t forget to return to your original lane as soon as the Tribute is secured, unless your team is capturing mercenary camps. Once the Curse strikes the enemy team, you have a decision to make. Are you better off to push as a group or to split up and push multiple lanes at the same time? Either answer can be correct, it just depends on the situation. Use your best judgement.

Haunted Mines

The trick to this two lane map is to determine which lane your golem will push, and then overload that lane. If he pushes top, you will want to go 4-1. If he pushes bottom, you should go 1-4. The reason for this is that if your team wins, it will most be because your golem has reached the core. Any additional push you can create in that lane just speeds up the process. It is very rare for winning pushes to come from the opposite lane, but you still need someone there to gather experience. More details on this map, including how to determine which lane your golem will push, can be found in this article.

Dragon Shire

On this three lane map, the default lane assignment is typically 1-1-3. Since this Objective of this map involves controlling three different locations, one near each lane, you might be wondering why you would want to put the majority of your team in the bottom lane? The answer to this question involves the layout of the map, specifically the mercenary camps. In addition to allowing you to secure one of the Shrines, the bottom lane also gives your team easy access to three mercenary camps. The bottom lane is also less obscured by bushes, so your team won’t be as susceptible to ganks as they would be in the other lanes. The trick on this map is to attack the bottom lane strongly from the very beginning. Consider assigning two Heroes who are good at pushing, as well as a healer to this lane. If you can advance your minions onto the enemy side of the map, it will be much easier to see if they are making a move for the Shrine. Once you safely control the bottom Shrine, you can leave one Hero in the lane to soak experience, and while the other two begin to capture these nearby camps. Since your team has three Heroes in or around the bottom lane, it is very likely in that you will end up controlling the bottom Shrine, while the other team controls the top. The mercenary camps are what will allow you to break this stalemate. If the opposing team rotates strongly to defend against the mercenaries, your team can easily take control of the top Shrine, and spawn a Dragon Knight. If they elect not to defend, the extra push generated by these mercs will end up giving your team an experience advantage, which will eventually allow you to overwhelm your opponents. As long as you control one Shrine, and have an experience advantage, you can afford to stay patient. Since the person in the middle lane is most likely going to be the one controlling the Dragon Knight, you want to make sure they have the ability to survive once the Dragon Knight is defeated. This means a Hero who is tough to kill, like most warriors, or someone with a good escape, like Sylvanas, Tassadar, or Zeratul.

Blackheart’s Bay

This is technically a three lane map, but it has it’s own distinct style of play. Since the lanes are so open and interconnected, there is much more roaming between lanes on this map than on most others. Combine that with the need to collect and turn in coins, and the result is a map with much more focus on team fighting, and less focus on strict laning. There are a few different ways that you can deploy your team in the beginning, but I prefer to start with 1-2-2 and transition into 1-1-3. The top lane is quite far from where the chests spawn, which is why it is best to not have more than one Hero in that lane. The first chests spawn 50 seconds into the game, so almost immediately you will need to leave your lanes to gather coins. This is why we want to start with two Heroes in both the middle and bottom lanes, to contest for these initial chests. Once the first set of chests have been emptied, one Hero from the middle lane should rotate down to the bottom. Much like on Dragon Shire, having three Heroes in bottom lane allows us to generate a strong push, while also capitalizing on the numerous mercenary and treasure camps in the area. Unlike Dragon Shire, this map requires a lot of rotation, so you cannot simply focus on pushing the bottom lane and expect to win. This map can be very snowbally, so the key is to get an advantage early and keep the pressure on. These bottom mercenary camps can be the start of this pressure. Think of your team like a swarm of hungry locust. Once you get ahead, you can buzz all around the map creating threat after threat that your opponent will be forced to deal with. Just like locust, you are stronger in a group. The laning phase on this map is very short, so after level 10 (and very often even sooner) you should usually be stay together. Teams that travel solo, or in pairs, on this map are usually the teams that lose.

Garden of Terror

Another three lane map, this one is more traditional. Some consideration should be given to which side your team is playing from, as the large Terrors are slightly off center. The Terror on the top is ever so slightly closer to the blue side of the map, while the Terror on the bottom is slightly closer to the Red side of the map. The escape routes from the Terrors back to your base are also shorter if you chose the one closest to your base. While these differences are not drastic, they are worth considering when deciding on your initial lane assignments. As the Blue team, a 2-2-1 set up is typical. Red teams would naturally go 1-2-2. The advantage to going balanced is that it makes it tougher for the enemy to push you off of any given lane. It also allows you to adjust your lane assignments once you see what the enemy team has in mind. As I mentioned last week, whenever possible I prefer to overload one lane and try to generate a strong push. This is worth considering, but it requires the cooperation of your team. If you elect to go that route, the Blue team would go 3-1-1, while the Red team would use 1-1-3. Once the night phase begins, each team focuses primarily on grabbing seeds from whichever side is slightly closer to their base.

Sky Temple

Another three lane map, and this is a large one. Your initial lane choices are dictated by the fact that the first Temple phase happens at the 1:30 mark, and always at the top and middle locations. As a result, your best bet is a 2-2-1 division to start. Once the Temples activate, both two man groups should ride to the Temple closest to them. The Hero in the bottom lane usually rides up to assist, but it is not unheard of for him to stay in lane and soak experience. While you may start out trying to control both Temples, be prepared to adapt if necessary. Your goal is to definitely control one Temple, even if you have to abandon the other Temple to accomplish it. The worse thing that can happen is that you try to hold both Temples after it is no longer practical, and you end up losing both of them. Since controlling one Temple is the primary goal, starting out 3-1-1 is also a viable strategy, but again this requires your team to be on the same page. After the initial group of Temples is exhausted, players should go back to their original lanes. The bottom Temple will activate two minutes after the initial Temples were exhausted, so shortly before that time players should begin to rotate towards the bottom of the map. Since these first two rounds of Temples are on a strict timer, there is no excuse to be late. That means that two minutes after the first phase, you should be arriving at the bottom Temple, not getting ready to ride there. The Temple locations are random after the first two phases. Until you reach level 10, you should be in a lane unless there is a Temple spawning, or you are capturing a mercenary camp.

Tomb of the Spider Queen

Like the majority of the maps, this one is also three lanes, but it is one of the smallest maps in the game. Because the lanes are so close, this map features much more early roaming between lanes than the other maps. As a result, there is less focus on which lanes people start in, as long as there is someone in each lane. On this map you have to always be wary of surprise attacks from the enemy. If you are not careful, the enemy can show up as if out of no where, and immediately blow you up. While it can be tempting to employ the same strategy, remember that you need to get enemy kills to make it worth the potential lane experience you may be missing out on. Your team composition will have a big effect on dictating whether you should employ more of a traditional laning strategy, or go with a high movement, team fighting one.

Battlefield of Eternity

This is a two lane map, with a very large area in the center where the Objective spawns. The most effective strategy is usually to overload one lane by going either 4-1 or 1-4. Focus on strongly pushing the stacked lane The first Immortal phase occurs at the 1:45 mark. While most teams immediately rush to battle the Immortals, it can be quite helpful to continue to soak lane experience until your team reaches level 4. The best way to accomplish this is to have one Hero stay in each lane, while the other three go to defend your Immortal. Once your team reaches level 4, the entire team converges on the enemy Immortal. The additional strength this early level advantage gives you usually offsets the small head start the enemy team gets. The first Immortal is fairly weak, so if you are able to secure it you should usually push with it. As the game progresses, and the Immortal get stronger, you can consider split pushing the lane opposite the Immortal. As with most maps, in the early game you should return back to your initial lanes after the Objective is complete.

As I mentioned in the beginning, these are just guidelines. My goal is not to give you some rigid structure that you blindly follow each and every game. Instead, I want to teach you the different factors to consider so that you can decide where to best place your Hero. The reality is that if you are playing Quick Match your teammates often won’t be giving this same level of thought to where they start. As a result, you have to be ready to adapt. It doesn’t matter if you know the 100% optimal strategy for a map, if your team is committed to doing something else there is no sense fighting it. Figure out what they are doing, and use the information I have given you to figure out how to make the best of it. GLHF!