Summary
League of Legendsis one of the most successful games in the world, but the complexity of the MOBA genre means that the experience can be quite daunting for new players. Some of the first things that beginner players should aim to understand are the five roles, how they work, and what is expected from them within a game.
The five roles inLeague of Legendsare Top Lane, Jungle, Mid Lane, Bot Lane, and Support and at the start of the game, they populate the three lanes and the jungle, with the Support and Bot Laner forming a duo in bot.
Updated June 13, 2025 by Joe Grantham:As with anything in League of Legends, the different roles can be difficult to understand for new players. Thus, this list has been updated to include clear and concise information on the objectives of each role, the common champion types that can be found in these roles, as well as examples of beginner-friendly champions that are perfect for players trying out a new lane. Thankfully, while League is constantly evolving and updated with regular patches, the overall function of each role tends to stay the same.
Farming, Damage, Tanking, Flanking, and Split Pushing
Tanks, Juggernauts, Fighters, Mages, and Divers
Great Beginner Top Laners
Malphite, Garen, and Teemo
The top lane is one of the two solo lanes inLeague of Legendsand is perfect for players who enjoy a good old one-versus-one brawl. Because of its isolated nature, Top Laners generally want to go down two paths. The first is to try and generate massive leads with fighters and the second is to sit tight and then show up big on tanks in teamfights where they can soak damage and provide plenty of Crowd Control.
Top Laners will often take the Teleport summoner spell, which enables them to teleport across the map. This means that they can split push in a side lane on the opposite side of the map to where the next objective will be contested, and then TP at the right time, or find flanks. Thesebeginner tips for Top Laneare perfect for new players to the role.
Farming, Ganking, Damage, Protection, Smiting Objectives, and Vision Control
Tanks, Fighters, Divers, and Assassins
Great Beginner Junglers
Amumu, Vi, and Master Yi
Jungle is arguably the most unique role inLeague of Legendsas instead of heading to one of the three lanes, the Jungler clears neutral monsters in the jungle and looks to influence different areas of the map. One of the things that Junglers can do is gank lanes, or in other words, try and surprise an enemy laner and kill them with a numbers advantage.
The summoner spell Smite is absolutely essential for Junglers as it allows them to buy a jungle item and execute normal monsters as well as larger objectives such as Void Grubs, Rift Herald, Dragon, and Baron. Having Smite available for these objectives is vital for Junglers and is just one of manybeginner tips for Jungle inLeague of Legends.
Farming, Damage, Roaming, and Protecting Their Tower
Mages, Assassins, Marksmen, and Utility
Great Beginner Mid Laners
Annie, Fizz, and Galio
Mid Lane has always played a crucial role inLeague of Legends, as from its central position Mid Laners can influence the entire map if they want, or simply scale and be a major carry later on. With utility champions or assassins, players can look to farm their minions as quickly as possible and then rotate top or bot. As the shortest lane, mid is also safer for immobile mages who want to scale with both gold and solo experience. One of the goals in mid lane is to hold onto the tower for as long as possible because fallen mid lane towers open up the map for the enemy.
The mid lane does have one vital weakness though, as unlike top and bot, it has two open sides from which the enemy can gank. With this in mind, one of the manybeginner tips for Mid Lane inLeagueis to ward one side and then gravitate towards that side while laning.
Marksmen and Mages
Great Beginner Bot Laners
Ashe, Miss Fortune, and Ziggs
League of Legends’bot lane is home to a duo made up of the Bot Lane Carry and a Support, and while mages and other champions can be played, the Bot Laner is usually an Attack Damage Carry, more commonly known as an ADC. These marksmen often scale extremely well into the game when they have bought enough items, but they are often weak early and arevulnerable to assassinationand burst at all stages of the game.
The main aim of a bot laner is to get as much farm as possible in lane, and ideally enter the mid and late game stronger than their counterpart. In teamfights, ADCs should prioritize staying alive so that they can slowly whittle down the enemy’s frontline or any bigger threats who are in range. ADCs are also crucial for taking down large objectives like Towers, Dragons, and Baron as they will usually have the most DPS. New players looking to learn more about this role can check out thesebeginner tips for Bot Lane inLeague of Legends.
Protecting, Engaging, Roaming, and Warding
Enchanters, Engagers/Tanks, and Mages
Great Beginner Supports
Sona, Leona, and Lux
In the laning phase, the Support accompanies a carry in bot lane and helps them farm, stay safe and ideally get some kills too. Supports do not take farm for themselves and thus have a limited income, which their support item helps with. Support champions come in a variety of forms from enchanters who excel at healing, shielding, and otherwise keeping allies alive, to engage tanks who want to set up plays and everything in between.
Contrary to the belief of some Bot Lane Carries though, Supports do not exist primarily for them, but for the entire team. This means that Supports can look to roam during the laning phase, and if other allies are in better positions to carry, then helping them do so will be more beneficial. Additionally, even thoughevery team member has a responsibility to contribute towards vision, Supports have more access to wards from their support item and thus have the greatest responsibility for placing and destroying wards. Thesebeginner Support tips forLeague of Legendsshould help out players who are new to the role.
