The short version
- 1A wave near your tower = safe farm; the enemy must walk far to bother you.
- 2Freeze: hold the wave in front of your tower by only landing last hits.
- 3Push when there's a reason: a tower, Roshan, or the enemy isn't in lane.
01Three Wave Positions
- Wave against the enemy tower — lots of pressure, but you're far from home and easy to gank.
- Wave in the middle — even; both sides can last hit.
- Wave near your tower — safer farm; the enemy has to walk far to bother you.
Carries usually want the wave slightly toward their own tower.
Coach's tips
- Wave too far forward with no ward? Assume the enemy is coming.
- A support's pull can bring the wave back toward your tower.
- A wave that piles up will push on its own — fix it before it's a problem.
02Freezing the Lane
To hold the wave near your tower:
- Land last hits only — don't hit creeps that aren't about to die.
- Deny your own creeps so the enemy side stays slightly bigger and the wave stays put.
- Stand a little behind so the enemy creeps aren't pulled forward with you.
An enemy who wants to bother you has to walk far from their tower — a great spot for your team to wait and strike.
Coach's tips
- A freeze is easiest when the enemy side has slightly more creeps.
- Don't use area skills on the wave if you want to freeze.
- An enemy walking up to break your freeze is a gank target.
03Pushing with a Purpose
Pushing the wave into the enemy tower isn't wrong, as long as there's a reason:
- You're leaving (rotating, Roshan, jungle) and don't want to lose the creeps.
- The enemy isn't in lane and the tower is there to take.
- Your team just won a fight.
Once a lane's barracks fall, your creeps in that lane become super creeps. When all the enemy barracks are gone, every creep becomes a mega creep — a push that's almost impossible to hold.
Coach's tips
- Push and leave — don't stand at the enemy tower without vision.
- After a won fight, push out every lane before farming again.
- Always carry a TP so you can get back fast when your lane is pressured.
What's your call?
Decide what you'd do, then open the answer.
You're the carry, the wave is on the enemy tower, and their offlaner and support have left the lane. What now?Show the answer
Back off and let the wave drift back to the middle or your tower. Enemies disappearing while your wave is too far forward is a classic gank setup.
Your team just won a fight in mid and the enemies are dead for another 30 seconds.Show the answer
Push the wave and take the tower. Without an objective, a won fight evaporates.
Try it next game
Try to freeze your lane for the first 5 minutes by last hitting only, and notice how often the enemy has to walk up.