We all know that League of Legends is an incredibly popular title. At the end of the day, we've stuck with it for over a decade because of its replayability and how often it iterates and adapts to keep its gameplay fresh and exciting.
Even after thousands of hours of gameplay, there’s always something new to explore: a new mechanic, an underground strategy, or an exotic playstyle.
If you take a step back and look at League’s evolution over the years, you'll see that much of what defines it has been shaped by the community, not the developer. Consider, for example, the introduction of the jungle role, leading to the 1 top, 1 mid, 1 jungler, and 2 bot lane setup, leashing, the meta, lingo, and terminology.
This is important to point out, especially as we’ll be addressing an often overlooked aspect of the game: communication.
League is undeniably complex, and the player base does its best to simplify and streamline all aspects of the game—not just for new player accessibility but also to enhance overall team coordination and efficiency during matches.
This is how terms like “SS,” “FF,” “Camp,” and “Diff” came to be. We’ll explain one of them now in a way that helps you understand the community's thought process and, hopefully, get you on the same page as your teammates.
The term SS denotes either “Missing” or “Stay Safe,” and it conveys one message: an enemy can’t be seen on the map, so be careful and play safe.
It’s often accompanied by the “?” ping (conspicuously called the “Enemy Missing” ping). While this ping is often used to say “What the heck are you doing?” if it’s not being spammed, don’t flame your midlaner—he might just be warning you about a potential roam from the enemy Zed.
“Why not just use the ping then?” you may ask. Well, for one, pings weren’t part of the game until around 2013. For the first few seasons, players had to come up with a quick term instead of typing “Hey guys, I think Talon might be going bot, so be careful” each time an enemy dipped into the fog of war. Time is your most important asset in League, and wasting it typing in chat to warn your teammates (who will ignore it anyway, let’s be realistic) puts you at an immediate disadvantage.
Now, a simple “SS” in the chat accompanied by a “?” ping should be enough to warn your team about incoming danger without costing you time and focus. This also eliminates any excuses they might have for not paying attention and dying to a roam.
Keep this term in your arsenal, as communication is arguably one of the most critical factors in winning a game! You can be the most mechanically skilled player, but if you can’t effectively convey your strategy to your team and get them on the same page, you’re essentially playing a 1v5 game. That in-game chat can be used for more than just flaming… right?
Don’t stack the odds against you—be the shot caller and guide your team to victory!
