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The Summoner's Guidebook: Supports are ruling League of Legends
I think Season 4 of League of Legends has been dominated by support play. Some of this is because there have been a number of really inspiring star support players at the pro level, and their brilliance is shining down a bit on us plebians. Although I think that the Season 4 jungle is still really messed up, the support role has really solidified in a good way. What do I mean by "good"? Supports still get less gold than other roles and don't generally rock huge K/D ratios. They're still the team's ward machines, as we talked a bit about last week. However, the support's overall game impact has increased dramatically. Supports get more gold than before; they are making plays, initiating fights, and making way more of an impact in those fights than they ever were before. There's no more need for a support who is an ult and ward bot; you can now tank, deal damage, or whatever mix of support you want.
The Summoner's Guidebook: The allure of new LoL champions
Picking new champions in League of Legends is akin to picking a role. There are a few major schools of thought: Either you pick a small number of characters and stand by them or you grab every new character that strikes your fancy. Of course, there's a middle road where you get a lot of characters but you still focus on getting new characters that add something to your roster. There's less of an opportunity cost with picking up a new character than there is with picking a new role. Learning a new champion takes some practice, but many of the things you learn while playing your new character are applicable to every character in the same role.
The Summoner's Guidebook: Working with your LoL lane partner
The duo lane is the most strategically interesting lane in League of Legends, but that also makes it complex to play. In a solo lane, you have to think about only your abilities and your opponent's. In a duo lane, the interplay between ADC/marksman and support makes every situation different. I've talked about playing ADC and support already. Both roles are vital, but whether you're the guy with the gun or you're putting the enemy on lockdown, working with your teammate is the most important thing you can do to win the game.
Ford's Driver Alert System keeps you in the right lane, recommends java on occasion
It ain't the first automaker to do so, but Ford's taking a step in the 'stay in your own lane!' direction with a new technology package for the Explorer. The Driver Alert System is slated to launch in early 2012, and it'll tout new lane keeping technologies, including a system that can help detect drowsy drivers. The goal here is to keep sleepyheads from destroying lives -- be it their own or others -- by suggesting that they pull over, rest and have a sip of coffee if they've been cruising along for an extended period of time. Furthermore, a camera setup will monitor one's lane position, and if they drift too far away from the straight and narrow, their steering wheel will vibrate. It all sounds good and well, but the fact that a AAA survey found that over 40 percent of Americans have "fallen asleep or nodded off while driving" makes 'staying at home' seem like the sensible choice.
