Time to get educated!
LoL LP: What Is LP and How To Track It
If you're new to League of Legends and find yourself perplexed by all the talk about LP, you're not alone. Many players begin without a clear understanding, and we're here to assist you in deciphering the numerous acronyms in LoL.
LoL LP refers to League Points and they're crucial to your climb in League of Legends. Let's go over what they are and how they work.
LoL LP - What Is That Even?
First and foremost let's go over what LoL LP even is and what it stands for. As just mentioned LP stands for League Points and with these points you're able to move through the League of Legends ranked ladder.
By winning games you gain LP and by losing games you'll lose LP as well. Once you've earned 100 LP you'll generally be able to play a promotion series to see whether you move up a tier or you are stuck grinding in the current tier you're in.
| When Was LP Added to League of Legends? League Points (LP) were introduced to the League of Legends ranked system in Season 3. This change was implemented to provide a more transparent and competitive ranking system for players. |
How Does LoL LP Work?
LP can be gained and lost by simply playing League of Legends ranked games. But, it's important to note that you won't always gain and lose the same amount of LP, since the amount is dependent on your Matchmaking Rank (MMR).
LoL MMR Effect on LP Gain and Losses
MMR is another term you often hear people talk about in League of Legends. Unfortunately, this is not a visible statistic to players, but it is one of the most important aspects when it comes to matchmaking.
Basically, MMR reflects a player's true rank. If someone wins multiple games after one another, then their MMR will raise and they'll be put up against players with a similar, higher, MMR as well to keep games fair.
Now, MMR affects LP in a way that you can tell whether you played a game with a team of similar strength or one that is way above or below you, just by how much LP you either lose or win.
So, if you win about as much LP as you lose, then you know that your rank and MMR are pretty much even. Take a Silver player for example who practices a lot in normal games and then plays ranked, they'll gain more LP, because even though they're silver, their skill on Summoner's Rift might be higher and thus they get matched up with higher players.
Concrete Examples of LP and MMR Disparity
Since MMR is quite confusing, especially with regards to your LP we've added a few examples to help out.
Let's say you're in Silver III, but your MMR is at the level of a Gold II player. When you win a ranked game, the system recognizes the disparity between your current rank and your MMR.
As a result, you'll receive more LP for the victory than you would if your MMR and rank were closely aligned. This is because the system is trying to bring your rank closer to your actual skill level, which is reflected by your MMR.
So, if you were to win a game in this scenario, you might gain a significant amount of LP, possibly more than the standard LP gain for a player in Silver III. This allows you to climb the ranked ladder more quickly to reach a tier that aligns better with your skill level.
LP Tries To Catch UP To MMR
The gains and losses in LP come from your League Points wanting to catch up to your MMR ladder. Players will gain the same amount of MMR for every win and lose the same amount of MMR for every loss.
LP gains and losses however seem random and arbitrary, but in truth, the system tries to get you closer to your MMR. That's why if you're stuck in low elo even though your MMR from previous seasons is in high elo, you'll gain more LP for wins, because the system wants to get you as close to the MMR point you're at as possible.
Do You Lose Less LP If You Have an AFK Player On Your Team?
We all know it too well. Your mid lane Yone is feeding and getting mad at the jungler, then rage quits and goes AFK... all while you're trying to desperately claw your way out of Silver III. If that does happen to you and you lose the game, then don't worry you won't lose as much LP.
Riot has been good at detecting AFK players and they punish them with more LP losses, while the rest of the team affected by the AFK players loses less LP than they would for a normal loss.
Does Dodging LoL Games Increase LP Gains?
Dodging, though not something we recommend you do, can increase your LP gains. If you dodge your promotion series to another tier for example, you'll stay in your rank, continue to get better, which means your MMR continues to rise since MMR, as mentioned, only takes wins and losses into account.
So, if you stay in your tier, your MMR rises, then you will be gaining more LP for every single win, since your current rank is getting further and further away from your MMR rank.