General Guide by Cyrilgar

Introduction

FULL GUIDE TITLE:

Plan B Through Z: Making the Most of a Bad Decision and Building on the Fly (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Try to Win a Seemingly Unwinnable Match)

This guide is a work in progress, and is very much still under construction. What I hope to accomplish in writing this guide is giving a quick reference tool to anyone who has been caught off-guard in either champion selection, the start of a match, or half-way through.
We've all seen it happen; the system lags when you're choosing a champion, and you either choose a champion you weren't wanting to select, you can't change your masteries in time, or you've locked in the wrong rune page. You've started jungling only to have the enemy team catch you off-sides and put your path at a disadvantage. The other team decided to test a new meta, and instead of an ADC/Support bot, you're left facing a brutal tank and a jungler who is babysitting the lane. You're supporting and your ADC disconnects, leaving you to control bottom lane solo as a champion who deals little damage and has very little health.
God forbid, someone insta-locks Tryndamere despite Top and ADC being called.

Most people when they're faced with such situations just throw in the towel. Whatever outlook they had before the match started, whatever agency or morale they had when they started searching for a game, they've given up. Now, I'll be the first to admit I've done this; everyone has from time to time. Some situations (as will be detailed later on) cannot be helped, and no amount of wisdom, initiative, or skill will save some matches. Sometimes, it's easier to cut your losses and surrender at 20:00.

But, you're not here to learn how to surrender. You're here to learn how to deal with those unfortunate situations we all come up against in that adventure called "playing with randoms". You're here to learn how to be a leader when everyone else is running for the hills. You're here because you still see a glimmer of hope in a match where it seems like you'll almost certainly lose.

You're here because, despite it all, you have the gumption to TRY against adversity.

By the time I've finished with this guide, hopefully I'll have been able to explain how this is possible. More than that, I hope that you'll be able to use what you learn here to win the next match you thought for sure you'd lose; that you'll keep your head, take a step back from the situation, reassess, and realize HOW to come out on top through it all.

Much of what you find here will probably be TL/DR, so I will do my best to summarize each chapter and section as they come up. You came here to read a guide, not Moby ****. Feel free to check each chapter for a section called "TLAS (The Long and Short)" for a quick reference of the chapter described above it.

Good luck, Summoners. See you on the Fields of Justice.

Runes

Masteries

Items