We all know the horrors of League of Legends solo queue. The rage quitters, the people who can’t take responsibility, and the downright rude people. We’ve all had bad games, and we’ve all been in bad moods. So today, let’s take a few minutes to learn how to stop raging before it even starts.

It’s difficult. You’re having a bad game. You give up first blood. Then it comes out, somebody on your team says “gg team sucks”. Now, the easiest way to deal with this is to just hit the ignore button immediately. You don’t have to deal with that person's attitude if you don’t want to. The game can continue in a peaceful manner. However some people, like myself, like to be able to communicate with the team.

So what are some alternatives to ignoring everyone that’s flaming? To figure it out, let’s take this back to the beginning. I would try to start every champion select with a friendly greeting. If you fight in champion select, the whole game is going to go downhill immediately. First impressions are key, even if you’re only spending 40 minutes together. Start off with a friendly “Hey everybody!” then discuss roles, champions, etc. I can promise almost everybody will be in a better mood from this. Next, in game, shoot out a “good luck and have fun!” in all chat. This makes both your team and the enemy team much happier.

A great way to boost morale in game is to try to make friends with the other players. You might only be with these people for 40 minutes, but the better you get along with your team, the better everybody will do and the more fun you will have. If somebody makes a good play, let them know. Take any chances you can to give compliments to people, no matter what team they are on.

Everybody gets on tilt. It happens. Losing games is very frustrating, especially when you lose more than one in a row. But losing happens and getting upset about losing doesn’t help anything. My suggestion to you would be this: if you lose two games in a row, take a break. Play some bots or go have a snack. Playing while frustrated will most likely not help your gameplay. Another option is to find a duo queue partner that you get along with and trust. Having somebody with you that you know will do well and who will not get mad can seriously improve game play. And, additionally, if you both have a good attitude, it will be very easy to improve the morale of your teammates.

Solo queue rage exists at all levels of play, even challenger. I talked to Waylon “Aniratak” Jones, a popular D1/Challenger streamer, about how he manages to keep his, and other people’s, spirits up in game. Aniratak is known throughout the community for his friendliness and good attitude in game. I asked him what he does to avoid getting mad in soloqueue. He said: “I focus on improving myself, if top or bot feeds and there was nothing I could do to help then there is no reason to get upset, all it means is that I need to try harder to carry the game.”

Sometimes it isn’t you that is getting mad. Sometimes the problem is other people. What do you do when other people are getting mad at you? Aniratak tells us how he handles other people getting upset at him. “Either mute them or take a deep breath, admit that I messed up and try to do better. Whatever happens I make sure not to get into an argument, because that will just bring down the spirit of the entire team. Most often if they're being unreasonable I'll just mute them though.”

So, long story short, use the ignore button if you need to, but most importantly, be kind to others from the moment you get into champion select. Everybody is there for the same reason, to win and have fun. Your attitude can change the attitude of others, for better or for worse. Good attitudes and teamwork is what wins games.

Good luck, summoners!