Last week, I tackled a very important topic: Last Hitting. This time, I will discuss Control Wards, specifically the difference between control and stealth/totem wards, how to use them, and where to place them.
CONTROL WARDS VS. STEALTH/TOTEM WARDS
Stealth/Totem Wards are accessible from either the Warding Totem trinket or the upgraded Support items. Totem Wards lasts 90–120 seconds, while Stealth Wards lasts 150 seconds. They are also Stealthed so they are untargetable by enemy champions. You will most likely destroy it using a Control Ward or an Oracle Lens.
Control Wards cost 75 gold, and it lasts until it’s killed. To make the best out of these, you want them up for at least 3 minutes. They can also detect Stealthed traps and wards (also turn off those wards). The downside is that they’re visible the entire time.
WHY USE CONTROL WARDS?
Control Wards are ideal for maintaining the constant vision of an area. Also, they could be more effective over Stealth/Totem Wards if you know where to place them. You can see an entire area or make your lane immune to ganks for a long time if you know where to place them.
Control Wards are also excellent at denying enemy vision or detecting Camouflaged champions.
WHERE TO PLACE CONTROL WARDS
Control wards are visible the entire time, so knowing where you should place them is essential. The following are the most effective areas to do so:
These two spots are excellent spots for Control Wards for the following reasons:
First, nobody usually walks through those bushes. No matter where the enemy jungler comes from, they rarely go through those bushes. These wards typically last 10–20 minutes, as they don’t pass by those bushes.
Second, you can always spot the enemy jungler when he is on that side of the jungle and knows where he is going. This allows your laners to decide whether to play passively or aggressively.
Decent spots for your Control Wards are:
These spots are decent because they often last for 3 minutes or more, making them a valuable purchase. They also provide a lot of vision for your team, making it much harder for the enemy to gank you.
TIPS & TRICKS
A neat trick you can do is that if you’re facing an enemy Evelynn, you can place your Control Ward in a safe place. First, place your Control Ward over a wall near the bush. Then, you put a Stealth/Totem Ward in the bush, inside the Control Ward’s vision.
This turns your Stealth/Totem Ward into an invisible Control Ward! It’ll help you spot Evelynn before she sneaks up on you, and she’ll have no idea.
You can also use your Control Ward as bait. First, you must ensure you’re well hidden (in a bush, for example). Afterward, place a Control Ward in the middle of the lane. When minions walk past it, it will give the enemy a vision of the ward. This makes the enemy walk towards it and try to kill it. But when they do, you kill him. GGEZ.
WARDING ETIQUETTE
Before following what’s written here, there are general rules you must follow.
- Do we have control?
There is no point in placing a Control Ward down somewhere when they can quickly clear it. It’s a waste of 75 gold. You always want to ensure that it lasts for at least 3 minutes wherever you put it.
- ALWAYS have a Control Ward
If you leave the base with more than 75 gold and you haven’t bought a Control Ward or have one out on the map, you have failed.
- Control Wards are OP. Use them.
There’s a reason why you can only place one Control Ward on the map at a single time, so you have to use them.
That’s all for today; I hope you have learned something from this article. Good luck on the rift!
