Hello Summoners!

Fighting against a full team while you have an AFK (or two) is ridiculous. Yet, despite the odds, you do have a probability of winning the game (25%). My last game only a few minutes ago is proof to that statement.

*User Names are not shown, due to possible policy/privacy violations and me not asking permission for their names to be used in this guide*

WINNING TEAM
Jarvan IV 7/4/22 17.7k Gold 230 CS (ME)
Renekton 5/13/16 13k Gold 172 CS
Rammus 5/1/5 9.4k gold 48 CS(AFK)
Fizz 18/8/11 16.5k gold 140 CS
Jayce 9/9/13 13.7k gold 153 CS

LOSING TEAM
Draven 9/8/12 15.4k Gold 245 CS
Amumu 4/9/19 12.7k Gold 128 CS
KogMaw 10/11/9 12.4k Gold 151CS
Renekton 3/8/11 12k Gold 241 CS
Ryze 8/8/13 12.4k Gold 147 CS

- AFK TEAMMATE - WHAT TO DO -

When you realize you have an AFK team-member, you should identify what role(s) the AFK Champion fills. (In our case, Rammus was our tank). Once you have identified what role the AFK has left, quickly designate one of your remaining team-members to fill in the role. Becuase both Jarvan IV and Renekton were offtanks, Rammus's position was covered.

Roles such as jungling and support are very hard to fill, becuase they usually require special skills and Summoner Spells to perform normally. In these two roles, you don't have to substitute one of your team-members. Doing so either takes a champion from bot or top lane.

More Specifically, it is really hard to devote one entire teammate to support. This is why in a case of an AFK teammate that EVERYONE buy wards and at least one multi-target item.

- NEGATING AN ENEMY TEAM-MEMBER -

Whenever you have an AFK teammate, you know that fighting a 4v5 teamfight is against your favor. That is why you must NEGATE (Taking items to counter the other) one of the opposing team-members.

For example, because Amumu's Curse of the Sad Mummy is his keystone stun and teamfight skill, Renekton, Jayce and Jarvan IV all took Tenacity Items to help null the impact of a 1200 Diameter stun.

Negating is effective, because you are essentially taking one enemy out of the picture.

- TACTIC: SURROUND AND ELIMINATE -

This Tactic was proposed by the player that played Jayce. Essentially, the entire team attacks an isolated group of enemies that number below 4. By surrounding the enemy, you are dishing damage from all sides of the battlefield. Once you successfully eliminate one or two enemies, quickly retreat to avoid prompting a team-fight where the other enemy team-mates enter the fray fresh.

- TACTIC: PUSH BOT -

Although the title betrays the purpose of explaining this tactic, you might want to consider the following points:

• Pushing Bot allows you to bully the bottom carry/ support
• Pushing Bot into the enemy base while the enemy team is taking Baron is a great method of putting pressure. They will either chose to finnish off Baron or call off the hit and return to bot lane to confront your team. The enemy team won't have enough time to run to bot lane after Baron without you taking an additional turret/inhibitor. Thus, they must recall, leaving you a time barrier of about 4 seconds to retreat.
• Pushing Bot also decreases the "Sphere of Influence" of the enemy team. As long as the enemy team has turrets in bot lane, they will always have a safe haven to launch Dragon kills. If you push bot lane hard, the enemy team will have to undertake a huge risk leaving thier safe zones under turrets.

- TACTIC: BAIT / BACKDOOR

When the enemy team gathers before your turret, have one of your teammates with good pushing abilities backdoor. The enemy team has to choose to continue pushing or back off and hunt your other teammate. Have the teammate recall 3 seconds after a enemy teammate breaks off from his assaulting team. Have the teammate recall in 2 seconds if the enemy teammate has a movement steroid boost. That gives the teammate enough time to put more damage out and recall safely in the time barrier.

On the defending team's part, resist the temptation to start an full engagement. Use skirmish/harass tactics to keep the enemy off your turret. If they do dive in, pull back with a safe distance between you and the closest enemy. While doing so, keep their attention to your team by dealing damage with ranged abilities. If you do so, you are buying enough time for your backdoor team-mate to continue his push.

- TACTIC: BATTLEFIELD CONTROL -

Fighting a 4v5 is playing against the number advantage. By placing wards in key paths essential to ganks, you are increasing the amount of map awareness. Moreover, the wards that you place in the enemy jungle alert you to hidden enemies trying to secure a buff or preparing a gank.

For more information on Battlefields.....search 101 Guide: Team-fights

- TACTIC: ITEM CHOICE -

• Randuin's Omen - AOE Debuff that levels the playing field
• IONIC SPARK - Essential to Attack Speed Champs that have massive attack speed boosts. Allows you to spread out damage without specifally repositioning yourself in a teamfight
• Shyrelias Reverie - Mass Escape Option, Great for Hit and Runs
• Locket of the Iron Solari - Although underated, the additional shield is great vs AOE ults
• Guardian's Angel - Insures that your team won't fight a 3v5. In addition, multiple champions that have this will increase the effectiveness of your team.

- TACTIC: EARLY GAME GOALS -

Early Game, the focus isn't exactly kills, but farming to your full potential. It is also where designating a teammate is crucial.

- TACTIC: MID GAME GOALS -

In Mid-Game, try to focus on taking down turrets. Between the choice of hunting down a weak enemy or taking a turret, choose the turret. By putting a number advantage in your turrets, you are decreasing the enemy's sphere of influence while improving your own.

- TACTIC - LATE GAME GOALS -

In late game, 4v 5 teamfights are especially lethal. That is why you need plan your fights accordingly. Fighting a bland 4v5 is suicidal. Fighting a 3 v 5 without fully committing while your attack speed teammate shreds enemy turrets is smart.

- TACTIC - DO NOT PROLONG SKIRMISHES -

Prolonging skirmishes is stupid. You are essentially sticking to one area of the map while the enemy gathers it's forces to ambush you.



For general team-fight tactics, search 101 Guide

omg so much reading...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

GP/5's are also a very smart thing to pick up. It guarantees you a late game faster than others, at the expense of a weak early. By stacking these, even if you fall behind due to the lack of a team mate, you have a reliable gold income.

I've actually won games as corki(WHEN I WAS ZONE TO HELL) in both rank and normals with gp10's following up into basic ie and pd. It sucks at first,but then snowballs you into a beast if the game lasts

Good guide.
The only thing I can think to add: Don't surrender at 20:00 because of an afker, especially if you're ahead in kills and farm. Had this happen. Glad you posted this, hope more people try harder 4v5.

Excellent guide, I won a 4v5 with the enemy miss fortune having over 10 kills in the first 8 min, and raised to 20 after the first 15-20. With the afk being bad enough, i found out our jungler decided to bring his brand new friends in with him, they had never even played a game before. Which gave miss fortune all of her kills. i kind of figured it would have been over seeing as her kills this early was insane, but we built thornmail's and ended up winning team fights. They were pretty much killing themselves on us. The advance was a little slow, only one or two of us surviving the team fights to push. but we eventually push mid to the inhibitor and got one more ace later on to give us the time to finish the game.

Great Point, Gp5 items do help. Yet i find that rushing to fill designated roles is a higher priority than picking GP5 items such as Heart of Gold, Philosophers Stone, etc.

In my point of view, GP5 is a last resort if you are going against a zone control lane

In addition to what Reimie said, surrendering at 20:00 just becuase you have a AFK teammember is bad logic. Instead, look to your Champions and see if they are late game or mid game. Too many 4v5 situations were surrendered, even though their late game capability was far greater than the other team.

Amazing play, can you tell everyone else specifically what you did to win?

In addition, if you have champions such as Yorick, Shaco, Tryndamere, Mordekaiser, Zilean etc, you are essentially fighting a 5v5. These champions bring more units to the playing field. If you can, you might even kill the enemy's carry with Mordekaiser's ult, then clone it with Yorick's Ult.

Combo Teams have a higher probability of winning a 4v5. Try to see if any abilities stack upon each other.

(Example: Talon + Ashe + Nunu = Massive Passive Procts for Talon = Great AOE damage with TALON"S ULT.)