Thought: Taking Inhibitors

Yesterday TSM and M5 played an interesting game where TSM snagged two of M5's inhibitors while M5 was taking Baron. Generally that sort of trade is considered extremely favorable for the team that takes the inhibitors. In this case, however, I think taking those inhibitors played into M5's hands.

A key factor to keep in mind is that LoL, unlike DotA, does not reduce the value of creeps when inhibitors go down. Taking an inhibitor therefore makes it easier for your opponents to farm, as they don't have to worry about pushing the lane. Unless you can apply pressure or take objectives while the enemy farms your opponents can quickly farm their way back into the game.

M5 abused this principle to set up a favorable situation. They were already ahead when they took Baron and because Baron is worth twice as much as a tower they remained so even after losing two towers and inhibitors. However, because Baron was no longer on the map M5 had no need to do anything except farm creep waves. That's exactly what they did, and it hurt TSM considerably.

TSM was in a fairly unenviable position. They were at a disadvantage already, and with Baron buff on the enemy team any teamfighting would be risky. To top things off with Shen split-pushing any attempts to siege turrets would be dramatically less effective than normal. Essentially, all of TSM options were bad, and as a result M5 was able to extend their lead even further.

In the end, M5 won that game not in spite of losing two inhibitors but because of losing two inhibitors. It may only have worked because M5 was already ahead and had a champion like Shen to split-push without losing team fight presence, but they took Baron specifically because they knew the conditions were favorable. That is the power of thoughtfully considered team compositions.

I highlight this match not to suggest routinely sacrificing inhibitors, but to illustrate that taking inhibitors is not universally good. If your team is not in a position to make something happen when the enemy is sequestered in their base, taking an inhibitor puts your team at a disadvantage. When next you play think about that as you choose between objectives.