LoL Ranks in Order, League Ranking System Distribution

LoL has been one of the world's most popular competitive games for years and years. The ranking system forces people to climb through the tiers, get better, play ranked games, and 'rank up' and finally achieve recognition on the ladder.

Understanding the League of Legends ranking system is essential regardless of whether you're a casual player or a seasoned competitor on your ranked climb. Now, let's explore the League of Legends ranking system in greater detail.

For players seeking an edge in the competitive scene, services like lol boost can help accelerate your journey.

League of Legends Ranks Tiers and Divisions

There are nine tiers and divisions within them for LoL ranks. Here’s the complete list of all the League of Legends ranks in ascending order:

• Iron
• Bronze
• Silver
• Gold
• Platinum
• Emerald
• Diamond
• Master
• GrandMaster
• Challenger

There are four divisions for each rank. Players can advance from Platinum IV through Platinum I, after which they will advance to the next tier.

Divisions are replaced with leaderboards starting from the Master tier and above, using the top performers on the ranked ladder as controls. The ranked split is reset periodically, and this system aims to target players who can prove their skills again.

Detailed Breakdown of LoL Ranks

Iron, Bronze, and Silver: The Beginner’s Journey

Most new players land these starting ranks after their placement games place them. Here, players don’t get too much into tip strategy, playing with good vision, and learning core mechanics like creep score and champion positioning; they focus on game knowledge.

Gold and Platinum: The Climb to Competency

The average rank for most competitive players is the gold rank. From here on out, you must be a killer at macro play and micro-managing objectives and champion synergy to make those higher LP gains and progress to a new tier.

Platinum rank requires refined skills and puts players in a much more competitive pool. Most players in this tier will begin devising strategies, such as focusing on grade range (S rank performance) for better post-game rewards.

Emerald and Diamond: Advanced Competitive Play

For instance, the Emerald rank is between Platinum and Diamond, giving better rank distribution. However, the performance in the game gets intensive when players get to the Diamond Lobby. In Diamond, players are good at gaming off past performance to stay consistent and avoid rank decay.

Diamond II and above are good starting points for ranked play. Such divisions require precision, adaptability, and persistence.

Master, GrandMaster, and Challenger: The Pinnacle of Skill

These are the highest divisions in the game, and the players playing here must be outstanding and adaptive. To climb higher to the Grand Master and Challenger tier, you need knowledge of multiple champions, good teamwork, and a high vision score.

Challenger players are the top 1000 best 0.01% in the player base and are on the challenger leaderboard.

To no surprise, Faker, the best mid-laner in the world, has achieved Challenger by the end of every season in the LoL ranking system from year to year.

While Faker may not be considered the best nowadays, he remains among the best in the competitive scene and the solo queue ladder (I will discuss this shortly).

How to Climb the LoL Ranked Ladder

The road to ranking up in League of Legends is tricky, but knowing how the mechanics of the League of Legends ranking system work makes it easier.

How League Points (LP) Work

You earn LP points after a win and lose LP points after a defeat; it's that simple. Your Matchmaking Rating (MMR) is most commonly known as elo, which is hidden.

Elo refers to MMR, and the LoL community has widely adopted this term; you'll see in every post about LoL that every player will mention Elo instead of MMR.

Having an elo higher than the average of your current rank will make you gain more LP per win and less per loss, which will help you to progress faster.

Promotion Series and Tier Advancement

To advance from one tier to the next, you’ll generally have to play three games out of five for a promotion stage to take effect.

Players will arrive in a promotion series once they reach 100 LP in Division I to advance to the next division. This happens when going from the fourth tier of a division to the first one.

Players on a winning streak can sometimes be immediately promoted and skip divisions with MMRs or Elo higher than the team's rank.

Unlocking LoL Ranked Matches

The new players cannot be jumped up directly into ranked play. To unlock ranked matches, they must:

1. Reach level 30.
2. Own at least 20 champions to ensure a balanced champion mastery pool.
3. Completing placement games to determine their starting rank and winning games will grant a higher rank.

Current Ranked Distribution in League of Legends

In LoL, the rank distribution implies that it represents the skill spread amongst the LoL player base. Most players are in the Silver and Gold ranks, and the majority don’t get above Master. The distribution also ensures that each rank signifies different skill levels and dedication.

For example:

• Iron to Silver: ~70% of the player base.
• Gold and Platinum: ~20% of players.
• Diamond and above: ~10% of the player base.

The Emerald rank is in a new league of its own. Riot Games introduced it to better accommodate the average high-kills skill group.

Understanding LoL MMR

If you play League of Legends, you are familiar with the LoL MMR. This invisible rating decides the quality of the teammates and opponents you’ll be playing against in matches.

It works on the Elo scale, after Arpad Elo’s system, where the players are ranked based on how they play against people of a similar level.

LP gains and losses are directly affected by MMR. Higher LP gains come from players above their rank (higher tier), and long, steep LP penalties for players under their rank (tier lower).

Some serious competitive players refrain from gaming the system by dodging the matches because their mid-year reset ranking is on the line.

Rank Decay Explained in League of Legends

Players at or above master rank fall prey to rank decay if they don’t play for extended periods. To prevent decay:

Players have to play games continuously.

Every time they play a game, their rank decay timer is reset.

This separate system of keeping each rank in check helps ensure the highest level competition in higher tiers.

Solo, Duo, and Flex Queues in LoL

League of Legends offers three ranked modes:

• Solo Queue Ladder is the most competitive mode, focusing on individual skill levels.
• Duo Queue: One partner, focusing on synergy and communication it allows.
• Flex Queue: Designed for full teams of competitive players who want to climb together.

Each mode operates on a separate system, with players earning unique ranks.

Same Champion and Team Dynamics

Effective climbing is also about climbing the same champion as they can now utilize their familiarity to perform better and with less variability.

But team composition does, too. If faced with other teams with superior synergy, gaps in strategy will immediately be highlighted.

High level decision making can be looked at through the skills learned in collaborative play. Doesn't mean it isn't interesting, however!

Conclusion

The League of Legends ranking system is a setup that will test any player's skill level. An understanding of how LoL ranks work, improved in game performance, and diligence will lead you down a fulfilling path towards the highest ranks.

Whatever your target is, for example, free rewards or Challenger, the competitive scene contains endless growth opportunities.