Twisted Treeline is now live - Get your LoL on!

Riot games, maker of League of Legends, has finally released the new map "Twisted Treeline" into live match making. Featuring team's of 3 instead of the classic 5 this map is all about coordination and fast action.

I had the chance to play a dozen or so games so far on the new map now that it is live, and I must say it has made me completely rethink my approach towards the game. With a shorter game time players have less time to collect gold for items, so champions who work great with little to no gold really shine.

Increasing the distance between the first turrets also creates a sense of tension whenever you start pushing. In the old 5 on 5 map, Summoners Rift, you were always able to retreat back to your turret during the early game if you got into trouble. On Twisted Treeline however the increased distance means you are much more susceptible to getting killed early on.

The other obvious change is the player count. With team sized effectively halved, you need more than double the amount of coordination with your team. The champions players choose is even more important in this mode, as you need to create team synergy with less players.

All in all I find Twisted Treeline has given League of Legends a shot of adrenaline straight into the heart as it has created its own meta game, complete with strategies and tactics to match.

A few pointers I have learned while playing;

• Do not cross the center of the map alone. The lanes are soooo close together that it is very easy to jump lanes and setup a gank. Press as a group of 3 or pay the consequences.
  
• Champions that require tons of gold and items to become effective do not fair as well on TT as they do on SR. Veiger especially is a poor choice for this map as he requires both items as well as massive creep kills to bump up his AP.
• Semi Tank champions seem to be the best choices, Mordekaiser, Shen, Mundo all fair well on TT.
• Coordinate with your team and keep the dragon under control, TT is such a fast mode that the jungle is 2x as important. Instead of pushing the enemy turret alone go into the jungle and farm some neutrals.

Time permitting I will try to get some videos uploaded later on.

Until then head on over the the League of Legends sign up page and give the new map a whirl, or if you already have an account add me in game and we can play later on!

In game name - Etyn