How to Actually Climb in League of Legends

📅 Last Updated: September 26, 2025 | Patch 25.19

After coaching over 200 players and analyzing thousands of games, I’ve noticed something. Most climbing guides tell you obvious stuff like “CS better” or “die less.” Cool story. But nobody explains HOW to actually do it, or why you’re still hardstuck after watching every ProGuides video.

Here’s what actually works in Season 2025.

The brutal truth about your rank

You’re not stuck because of bad teammates. Yeah, I said it.

Riot’s matchmaking gives both teams roughly equal chances to win. Your teammates are statistically as bad as the enemy team. The only constant in your games? You. If you’re better than your current rank, you’ll climb. It just takes more games than you think.

Games needed to reach your true rank (with 55% winrate):

• Iron to Bronze: ~30 games
• Bronze to Silver: ~50 games
• Silver to Gold: ~75 games
• Gold to Platinum: ~100 games
• Platinum to Diamond: ~150 games

Most players give up after 20 games. That’s why they stay hardstuck.

Pick these champions or stay hardstuck

Forget what pros play. Forget what’s “meta” in Worlds. Here’s what actually climbs in solo queue:

Role	Champion	Why It Works	Winrate
Top	Garen	Stat-checks everyone below Diamond	53.2%
Jungle	Warwick	Impossible to mess up, strong at all stages	54.1%
Mid	Annie	One combo = one kill, easy CS	52.8%
ADC	Miss Fortune	Press R to win teamfights	52.5%
Support	Blitzcrank	One hook = one win	51.9%

“But these champs are boring!”

You know what’s more boring? Being hardstuck for 3 years playing Yasuo.

The 30-30-40 rule nobody talks about

Here’s a reality check that’ll save your mental:

• 30% of games are auto-wins (enemy team mental booms, AFKs, or ints)
• 30% of games are auto-losses (your team does the same)
• 40% of games YOU decide the outcome

Stop trying to carry the 30% auto-loss games. You can’t. Focus on recognizing which games you can impact and try-hard those. The rest? Go next with your mental intact.

CS like you’re getting paid for it

Everyone says “farm better” but nobody explains how. Here’s the actual breakdown:

Minimum CS targets by 10 minutes:

• Bronze: 50 CS
• Silver: 60 CS
• Gold: 70 CS
• Platinum: 80 CS
• Diamond+: 90 CS

Can’t hit these numbers? Load up Practice Tool, pick your main, and last-hit for 10 minutes straight. No abilities, no items. Do this once before your first ranked game every day. I’m serious.

After two weeks, your muscle memory will be so good you’ll CS without thinking. That’s an extra 1,000 gold per game just from farming properly.

Mute all is unironically OP

The fastest way to climb isn’t learning wave management or jungle tracking. It’s typing /mute all at the start of every game.

Your jungler won’t gank your lane because you flamed them. Your ADC won’t int because you question marked their death. You won’t tilt because someone called you boosted. You’ll actually focus on the game instead of typing essays about why it’s jungle diff.

Pings are enough for communication below Masters. Everything else is just ego.

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The one-trick secret

Playing 50 different champions keeps you hardstuck. Here’s why:

You need roughly 50 games to learn a champion’s basics, 100 games to understand matchups, and 200+ games to master them. Playing a different champ every game means you’re always at game 1.

Pick ONE champion. Play only that champion. Dodge if it’s banned. Yeah, you’ll lose some LP from dodging. But you’ll gain way more from actually knowing your champion’s limits.

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Ward here or lose

Warding isn’t about dropping 20 wards randomly. It’s about 3-4 wards in the right spots:

Always ward these spots:

1. Pixel brush in river (mid lane)
2. Tri-bush (if you’re on weak side)
3. Enemy jungle buff at 1:00 before it spawns
4. Dragon/Baron 60 seconds before spawn

One good ward prevents three deaths. Three prevented deaths wins games. It’s that simple.

When to fight, when to farm

Below Diamond, players fight constantly for no reason. Here’s your new rulebook:

ONLY fight when:

• You have number advantage (5v4, 4v3, etc.)
• Enemy uses key ultimate (no Malphite ult = free fight)
• You’re stronger (more items/levels)
• Fighting over actual objectives (not raptors at 35 minutes)

ALWAYS farm when:

• No objectives are up
• Teams are even
• You don’t know where enemies are
• You’re behind

The average Silver game has 60+ kills. The average Challenger game has 30. Think about that.

Stop doing these 5 things immediately

1. Chasing Singed (or any low HP enemy into unwarded jungle)
2. Starting Baron without jungler
3. Backing with 1300 gold when you need 1400 for your item
4. Fighting level 1 when you’re playing a scaling champ
5. Typing after dying – you’re already dead, don’t tilt your team too

Each of these mistakes costs you games. Stop them and you’ll instantly climb half a division.

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The climbing mental checklist

Before queuing up, ask yourself:

✓ Am I tilted from last game? (If yes, take a break)
✓ Can I play my one-trick? (If not, dodge)
✓ Will I /mute all? (The answer should be yes)
✓ Do I have 45 minutes uninterrupted? (Don’t start if you don’t)

Four “yes” answers = queue up. Anything else = do something else.

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Your climbing game plan

Here’s exactly what to do starting today:

Week 1-2: Pick your one-trick, practice CS in tool daily, /mute all every game

Week 3-4: Focus only on not dying (KDA over everything), ward those 4 key spots always

Week 5-6: Start tracking enemy summoner spells, only fight with advantage

Week 7-8: Review your deaths after each game, identify patterns

After 8 weeks following this, you’ll climb at least one full division. Guaranteed.

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Frequently Asked Questions