Climbing the Ranks: How to Transition from Solo to Duo Queue in LoL

Whether you’re playing solo or duo, League of Legends is a game that relies heavily on team coordination and group work. It’s important to have someone you can trust in your team during ranked play that can give you in-game advantages. The transition from solo queues to duo queues in LoL can help you win more games and climb the ranks more effectively.

Playing Solo

LoL’s ranked games in the solo queues will always have players who are better and worse than you. That’s how competitive gaming works. Its MMR (matchmaking rating) system works with an Elo-based rating mechanic that pits players with similar skill levels against each other. Most newer and lower-ranked players stick with solo queues as they’re still learning the fundamentals of the game and its champions.

While playing solo you’re on your own while playing with random players. This includes dealing with a team of four teammates who may or may not play LoL with a winning strategy. Some players are known to be toxic trolls who diminish the LoL’s entertainment value. It’s because of players like these that make the transition to duo queues more appealing.

Playing Duo

One key benefit of playing duo queues is finding a player you trust that’s at least as good as you. The two of you will have better odds of working in a team environment that produces winning results. It’s even better when your duo queues are with a friend who enjoys LoL as much as you do. Even if the two of you are paired up with three bad teammates, you can still work together to make it work. You’ll encounter less toxic players as the system matches you with fewer random people.

Another advantage of playing duo queue over solo is officially accessing voice chat. In solo, it’s difficult to communicate with your team outside of pings through typing. While in duo, you can talk to each other without needing a keyboard. This is even better when facing another team that isn’t using voice communication to coordinate against you.

Maximizing Duo Queue Benefits

Ideally, you want a duo partner who handles a different role than you. You two can benefit by sticking with the roles you’re comfortable with as they work off each other with their different abilities and skill sets. One of the biggest mistakes duo queue players make is assuming they must adjust their playstyle to match their partner. What you want to pull off in a duo queue is to have roles that complement each other.

You also want to find a duo partner that’s at least as good as you. You also want to work with someone who keeps a cool head. LoL can be intensely competitive and it's easy to lose focus when you allow frustration to get the best of you. The value of friendship should always outweigh the desire to win. The moment you put the desire to win ahead of the goal of having fun, you lose friendships and become a toxic influence people would rather avoid.

As fun as it can be to play with your best friend, it may not be wise to team with them if you’re playing ranked duo queue mode. If you’re intensely competitive, find a partner who shares your passion but isn’t as close to you personally. It will reduce the risk of potentially losing a good friend that’s more valuable than a game. This is especially true if you’re better skilled than your friend and have achieved a higher rank. The last thing you want is to lose valuable LP (League Points) and find yourself descending the ranks instead of ascending. Ideally, you want to find a good and reliable duo queue partner so you two can win games together without frustration.

This doesn’t mean you can’t become friends. It also doesn’t mean you should never play with your friends. It boils down to where your priorities are as a LoL player. If you’re confident you and your best friend can play duo queue without getting into arguments and compromising your relationship, then do it.

Duo Queue: Working with Premades

There are some premades where most of them rely on the Jungler. Since Junglers play a key role in securing objectives and helping out each lane on the map, it’s obvious why they’re one of the most versatile. Roles that usually duo with the Jungler are solo laners since they can often visit their lane. The Jungler also comes in handy as an avoidance from random players on your team who won’t work with you and your duo queue partner.

Another popular premade in the duo queue is the bottom lane. This is ideal for two players who complement each other’s playstyles. It’s a better alternative than going solo and finding a teammate whose playstyle is contradictory.

Duo queues to avoid are Top Lane with ADC and Top Lane with Support as there’ll be minimum impact to help each other throughout the lane phase. Something like this is best avoided when you and your duo queue partner understand the champions you work with. This not only applies to Top Lane but Mid and Bottom. If your partner is picking a champion that can be easily countered, pick an alternative. You two can switch later on if you’re in a position to do so.

Duo Queue: Working with Others

One of the biggest transitions from playing solo to duo queue is working more directly with at least one other player. Communicating with others and working more directly with them is a must. Even as a solo player, communication is key if you want to succeed, especially in ranked games. In duo queue mode, communication is even more crucial as you two should be working as the ultimate tag team in every game you play.

Before teaming up with someone in the duo queue, scout their Summoner Profile match history to learn more about your new partner. This will help you size up what kind of player they are. You want someone communicative, level-headed, and reliable. On the same note, they’ll also expect this from you.

Most LoL gamers are straightforward. If you’re going into duo queues with hopes someone will carry you, you’ll be disappointed. You need to be able to pull your weight. You’re working as a team so treat your partner as if you’re in their shoes. They’ll be expecting the same thing from you.

Don’t Be Shy

As mentioned previously, communication is key. Although this should be important for solo players, it’s even more so when playing duo queue. It’s not just “you” anymore. You’re now working with a partner. Equal partners talk to each other constantly to ensure they’re on the same page. Most failed marriages and relationships are always blamed on lack of communication. This also applies to gaming and real-life experiences. If people learned to speak up more and listen to reason the world as we know it would be a better one to live in.

As important as it is to talk to your partner, it’s equally important to listen. You two aren’t always going to agree on everything. Just remember what you two set out to achieve as a team. It shouldn’t replace what you want but don’t exalt yourself above your partner as this is a recipe for disaster.

LoL has access for you and your partner to use voice comms. Other clients such as Discord also have this. It’s not used nearly enough by gamers and it’s why so many of them never rise above mediocrity. Before playing a duo queue game, during it, and afterward, always communicate with your partner. This is especially true when setting up important in-game moves or escaping disaster.

Using voice comms is more effective than typing on the keyboard. You need to be focused on the game. Typing is a distraction while voice communication can help maintain your game-related objectives. Voice communication is vital when you two play duo queue mode in the Bottom lane. You can inform each other when wards are being placed. You can also ask for help to block something for you as you let them know what you’re doing.

Solo vs. Duo

Solo queue is ideal for players who want to play on their own. However, if struggling to climb LoL’s ranked ladder, they’re missing out on the benefits of transitioning to duo queue. Of course, this means they’d have to come out of their bubble and learn to communicate and work with others.

There is the option to hire a professional boosting service like Eloboost24. However, if the player refuses to learn even from this experience, their progress will be limited. They’ll stagnate until boredom or frustration wins over and they quit LoL altogether. This is a common mistake many inexperienced gamers make when hiring a boosting service. All the work is done for them but they fail to learn from their booster’s effort. As a result, it’s a short-term benefit at best.

Duo queue is perfect for players who want to maximize their potential within LoL’s ranking system. This allows learning from other like-minded players who are (preferably) at the same level as they are. Sometimes, this is where players will hire a quality boosting or coaching service to help them achieve their LoL-related goals. This is common practice among players who can’t find the ideal partner to duo queue with so they can advance.

Among the best boosting and coaching experiences, players will admit they reaped the most benefits while in duo queue mode. Boosters and coaches work with their partners to do more than just win important LoL games. They show them how to capitalize on the strengths of LoL’s game mechanics to their advantage. This is, by far, the best method for competitive gamers to maximize their LoL potential.