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ARAM Tips & Tricks

TO INT OR NOT TO INT

That is the question.
Throughout this guide, we recommend inting with purpose in order to achieve an advantageous game state. It's worth noting that, against a good team, small mistakes and miscalculations will be punished. Eventually, you may reach a point where the enemy team is too far ahead in items or levels for you to make progress against them. This is the risk of over-inting.
If you are an ARAM newcomer, then it's better over-int than under-int. Understand that there is a risk, take the risk anyway, and then evaluate whether the risk was worth it. Over time, you will refine your game sense and be able to make better decisions in the moment.
If you are an ARAM veteran, then it's better to under-int than over-int. Recognize when the enemy team takes too large of a risk, then knock them off-balance and keep them off-balance by pushing aggressively and relentlessly. Note that this does not mean that you should completely avoid inting. Instead, pick your moments carefully and execute them with precision.
Now, let's explore the most common situations in which you may choose to int with purpose.

INT TO DELAY THE ENEMY

A few years ago, I was playing ARAMs with a premade group that consisted of both newcomers and veterans. Over the course of the games, we noticed a curious phenomenon.
When a newcomer was low on health and being chased by the enemy team, they would retreat toward our own tower in an attempt to survive. When a veteran was in the same situation, they would instead run toward the enemy nexus in order to delay the enemy team as long as possible. This exact pattern happened enough that we made a mini-game out of shouting "Int toward the enemy nexus!" whenever we found ourselves running for our lives. Let's analyze why this strategy is effective.
Suppose that you are going to die no matter what. In the following image, you are on the blue team, with the blue circles representing your towers. You are currently at Point X, and you have the choice of running to Point A or Point B before you are killed by the enemy champions. Which do you choose?
An annotated ARAM minimap where you are at point X in the middle of enemy territory. Point A and Point B are equidistant from you, with Point A close to your own tower and Point B close to the enemy nexus.
Remember the simple heuristic for decision-making in ARAM. You want to maximize damage to the enemy tower while minimizing damage to your own tower.
  • If you die at Point A, then the enemy team is already close to your tower. As such, they can immediately hit the tower and deal damage to it.
  • If you die at Point B, then the enemy team is far away from your tower. Before they can hit your tower, they must first close the distance to it.
Since Point B minimizes the damage to your tower, it's the preferrable option in this case. Ideally, you will waste enough time that your teammates are able to mount a robust defense while you respawn. When in doubt, int toward the enemy nexus.

INT TO CLEAR THE WAVE

Suppose that all of your teammates are dead, and you're the only thing standing between the enemy team and your tower. You can either temporarily retreat and wait for your teammates to respawn, or you can sacrifice yourself in order to clear a single wave. Which do you choose?
Again, according to the simple heuristic, you want to minimize the damage to your own tower. Even though you'll die in the process, it's preferrable to clear the minion wave since damage to towers is significantly reduced without minions nearby. Ideally, you can stall the enemy team's push long enough for your teammates to respawn.
Importantly, this means that you need to save all of your abilities in order to clear the wave. Often, newcomers will throw abilities at the enemy champions in an attempt to deter them or deal damage. This is ineffective. You will get a lot more value out of your abilities by using them on the minions to clear the wave.

INT TO PROTECT THE WAVE

Now, suppose that the entire enemy team is dead. You are free to push with your minion wave and hit the tower. You can either let the minions tank the turret, or you can preemptively enter the turret's range and take its aggro. Which do you choose?
Recall that damage to towers is significantly reduced without a minion wave. If you let all of the minions die to the tower, then your push is over and you will need to reset. This is a waste of a golden opportunity!
Instead, even though you'll die in the process, it's preferrable to tank the turret yourself. In doing so, you will extend the push for as long as possible and allow your team as a whole to maximize their damage to the enemy tower. Curiously, this means that a single minion's life can be more valuable than your own in ARAM. Protect the minions at all cost!

INT TO REMOVE THE ONLY DEFENDER

Let's consider the "Int to clear the wave" situation from above, but this time from the attackers' perspectives.
Suppose that you and your teammates are pushing up on the enemy tower with a minion wave. There is only a single defender between you and the tower. Using the logic from above, you know that their goal is to clear your minion wave, even if they have to sacrifice their life to do so. You can either allow them to clear the wave, or you can disrupt their plan by tanking their abilities and diving them under the turret. What do you do?
If possible, trade your own life to remove the defender. In many cases, you don't even need to kill them - you just need to scare them far enough back so that they can't clear the wave. This allows your teammates to push unobstructed, maximizing their damage dealt to the tower.
Note that this is also applicable when a recently respawned enemy champion takes a portal to get back to their tower. If you're already pushing the tower, then you can swarm the enemy as they exit the portal to remove them ASAP, extending your push.

INT TO BURN ENEMY RESOURCES

Suppose that your team is guaranteed to lose the next team fight, no matter what you do. How can you make the best of a bad situation?
Instead of committing to a full teamfight right away, consider starting an initial skirmish with the goal of drawing the enemy team into overcommitting their own resources. If you int convincingly, the enemy team may spend their big cooldown abilites in order to win the skirmish.
Once this happens, the rest of your team can disengage and stall until you to respawn. Now, your team can leverage the ability advantage to win a full teamfight and push down the enemy tower. Note that this strategy requires careful communication with your team. Let them know what you're planning so that they don't accidentally overcommit their own resources in the initial skirmish.

INT TO RESTORE HEALTH

Suppose that you barely survive a fight. Is it worth it to live with just a sliver of health?
Speaking from experience, I'm always relieved when an enemy with low health tenaciously holds onto their life. This means that they have essentially turned the game into a 4v5 in our favor. They're too scared to approach us, which means that we are free to bully the rest of their team and push their tower down.
Generally, if you find yourself low on health, look for opportunities to go out in a blaze of glory! If that's not possible, then just walk into the enemy team. This is similar to the "Int to burn enemy resources" situation above. You will respawn with full health, putting yourself in a better position to contribute to your team. As always, communicate with your team so that they don't get dragged into a full teamfight accidently.

INT TO BUY ITEMS

This is probably the most well-known reason to int in ARAM. Since you can only buy items when you respawn, it's often worthwhile to int so that you can spend the gold that you've accrued.
Importantly, if you have thousands of gold saved up, then you've likely overstayed your welcome and could have inted sooner. Money doesn't actually mean anything on its own. It only adds value once you spend it. Int early and often.
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© 2023 Flash Groudon | ARAM Macro was created under Riot Games' "Legal Jibber Jabber" policy using assets owned by Riot Games. Riot Games does not endorse or sponsor this project.