Teamfighting & Map Pressure

An Overview of Menki and His Early-Game Strength

Menki is known as one of the most obnoxious assassins in the game. He excels at instantly deleting the enemy's squishy heroes, and his high damage makes him a major threat to the enemy backline.

He's an extremely powerful hero, especially from the early to mid game.

Tactical Cautions and Risks

A key trait of this hero is his all-or-nothing playstyle. Once you commit, his escape tools are limited, so you have to fully commit to the gank.

If the enemy survives the gank, Menki is left completely exposed. To maximize your impact on the match, it's important to close out the game quickly while you're in your strong window.

The Late Game and His Role as an Assassin

In the late game, his effectiveness tends to drop, especially against high-rank enemies who know how to deal with him. When playing Menki as an assassin, your main goal is to identify and eliminate the highest-priority threats on the enemy team.

This creates crucial space for your team to push forward and achieve their objectives. All in all, he's a fun hero to play, but he's described as a real pain to play against.

Introducing the Split Push Strategy and the Enemy Team's Traits

In this video, I break down the split push strategy. Taking the enemy team composition into account, I picked Milady.

The enemy has high damage in team fights, but they're weak when picked off one by one, and they're a very strong team when they move as a group.

Two Main Strategies for Victory

Against this kind of enemy composition, there are basically two options for winning. The first is to split the enemy up and take them down individually, or to ambush them and win with a numbers advantage.

The second is to run a split push strategy.

The Goal and Execution of Split Pushing

Your job is to split push a side lane and put pressure on the enemy. This easily draws them to you, letting your team take advantage of the now-divided enemy team and create a favorable situation.

Constant Lane Pressure

Keep pushing your lane and apply constant pressure on the enemy.

In the clash lane, prioritize control and survival over kills

What world-class clash lane players commit to is not forcing kills on the enemy. Rather than landing a combo to chase a 1v1 kill, they clear the minion waves cleanly to take lane control, and once they've built an advantage they back off instead of overchasing. The goal is to not die, and to keep holding the lane advantage.

By contrast, a player who spotted a squishy mage passing by and couldn't resist going for a full combo wasted their flash, got killed themselves, and nearly dragged their teammates down with them. Not going in even when a tempting target appears, that discipline is the foundation of strength.

Stack small objectives to start the snowball

The stronger the team, the more carefully they finish off small objectives like a minor jungle camp or a single cannon minion. When taking down a tower, this player deliberately waited for the cannon minion to be cleared by the tower before starting to hit it, forcing a full cannon minion's worth of advantage onto the opponent.

Each of these may look small on its own, but the gap snowballs faster than you'd expect. Across the whole match, the awareness to collect small camps and secure last hits directly translates into a difference in fundamental strength.

Only focus the same target as your team, and stay steady in clashes

The iron rule in a clash is to focus only the same target your teammates are focusing. Even when the signal to dive is given, this player first watches the tank stick onto the target, then commits to that same enemy, and never lets their eyes drift to someone else.

Don't rush in on your own; always wait on the flank of the formation and join the moment your team commits. Once you've dived in, disengage cleanly with your ultimate or a mobility skill. Don't stay behind alone trying to grind it out, and once the objective is taken, everyone leaves without lingering. This consistent focus is what makes clashes that don't fall apart.

Create a numbers advantage with teleport portals and rotations

The clash lane player never takes their eyes off the minimap. If the enemy moves to another lane by teleport, they immediately teleport to follow and defend the tower that would otherwise have been pushed in. Conversely, if one side is split-pushing another lane alone, teammates can always be teleported back into a clash whenever needed.

Using this mind game, there were also moments where they gathered numbers the instant the enemy pushed the lane out and landed a numbers-advantage dive. It's important to understand that portals are not just movement, but a powerful tool for creating a numbers advantage across the whole map.

Positioning around the Tyrant and side-lane map pressure

When taking the neutral objective Tyrant, first secure control of the bottom lane, then swing around to the far side of the Tyrant and lock in a position where no one can come steal it from the side. It's positioning that physically prevents the enemy's steal.

Also, in a clash, don't dive into the center; stand on the flank of the formation and keep applying pressure onto a tower in a different direction. If you can force the enemy to defend the center wave, that side becomes 5v4 and is easier to pry open. If you see you can't take it, don't force the play, and only go for it when you spot an opening. This judgment of when to pull back is another mark of a top-tier player.

Pick a clash laner for one of two purposes

You generally put a fighter or a tank in the clash lane. The reason is that this role fills one of two jobs: the "split-pusher" who pushes a different lane alone, or the "teamfight initiator" who starts fights. The split-pusher type chips away at a tower solo while teammates fight elsewhere, securing free objectives. The teamfight type initiates rather than runs, using strong CC (crowd control) and decent damage to focus down the enemy marksman or mage. Being aware of these two goals as you pick your hero is the starting point.

Split-pushing forces the enemy to commit two players

Even when your team is at a disadvantage in a teamfight, having one teammate split-pushing a different lane means the enemy can't just ignore it, because leaving it alone gets a tower taken down. But sending only one player to stop the split-pusher gets that player killed, so the enemy is forced to send at least two to defend. That reduces how many the enemy can bring to the teamfight, and even in a 4v5, if your team can hold, you can effectively turn it into an even or better fight. The essence of this role isn't creating an advantage by fighting directly, but drawing the enemy's attention to help your team indirectly.

Judge matchups by build, not by hero

You can make sense of lane matchups more easily by thinking in terms of build direction rather than memorizing hero names. A fighter stacked full of attack items is strong in teamfights, but can't win a 1v1 against a fighter who has stacked heavy defense. In a full-attack versus full-defense matchup, the tankier defensive build wins by tanking through the items. So instead of asking "how do I counter this specific hero," think in the broader frame of "match a defensive-focused fighter against an attack-focused clash laner," and it will apply even against opponents you're seeing for the first time.

Don't force damage into a tank you can't kill

An opponent who has stacked full defense into a tanky build can't be pushed over even by an attack-focused hero. Against this kind of opponent, don't try to 1v1; the correct play is to clear the minion wave quickly and move to another lane. Instead of stalling in your own lane, quickly go pressure the enemy mid or jungle laner and create your team's win somewhere else. However, if you're slow, your own tower gets chipped down by the time you go help and come back, so this play is easier to pull off the faster your hero's movement speed.

Create win conditions through timing and target selection

Even a hero strong in 1v1 has a timing when its true power comes out. Some types are fragile early and show unmatched 1v1 strength from mid game onward, so until then it's important not to overextend, to clear waves and play safe, and to stay alive until the time you get strong. Also, if you're stalled against a tank, don't fixate on a matchup you can't win; push the wave through and go hunt the enemy mage or marksman. The advantage gained by choosing targets you can kill ends up being a bigger contribution than the stalemate in your own lane.

Stay close to the minions and capitalize on the CC tank's opening

If your support tank has CC (crowd control) and helps clear minions early at level 1, your mid marksman or mage must never drift too far from the minion wave. If you're out of position, the moment the tank engages and locks someone down, your damage dealer is out of range and the opening you worked for goes to waste. In the video, an ally strays too far and the opening engage falls apart. The CC unit and the damage dealer need to sync their spacing from the very start of the game and hold a position that lets them immediately focus fire the instant a lockdown lands—this is a rule that applies across the board.

Engage only after checking your cooldown and your odds of landing it

When you engage as a CC tank, first confirm with your own eyes that your CC is actually up. The hero in the video leaves a circle under the feet of a target it has locked down, and it can't re-lock them until that circle disappears. Diving in while the circle is still there won't stop the enemy, and your allies' damage won't connect either. On top of that, even when your cooldown is up, the lockdown isn't guaranteed to land—it can miss. So build your engage on the assumption that there's no guarantee your CC will connect, and keep a retreat path open for when it whiffs. Not throwing out your ability in a panic and hitting nothing is the foundation of being an engage tank.

Short-range engage heroes rely on ambushes or Flash

If your main engage ability has short range and a slight delay before it activates, approaching head-on lets the enemy escape before it reaches them. In the video there's roughly a 1.5-second delay, described as an awkward weakness in the laning phase. Heroes like this need to close the gap quietly with an ambush from a bush, or use Flash to instantly cut the distance before firing. Standing still and swinging from out of range simply won't hit, so before you engage, always be aware of whether your CC can physically reach this particular enemy right now.

Leave the damage to the damage dealer and commit to CC and peeling

A CC tank with no damage shouldn't try to secure kills itself—its job is to lock the enemy down and let your marksman do the hitting. If you know your own damage is low, land the lockdown but don't overextend; just drag the enemy into range of your damage dealer. In the video, in a spot where they could have wiped the whole enemy team if the ally damage dealer had been nearby, the player judged their own damage was insufficient, avoided a reckless dive, and retreated. If there's no guarantee of a kill, pass on the engage—drawing that line is what keeps your allies safe.

When you can't engage, bank resources for the next clash

When there's no opening to engage, don't sit idle—collect whatever resources you can. If your mage has gone back to the jungle or clash lane to clear and there are minions no one is taking, grab them yourself to bank stacks for your abilities or items. But watch the minimap: if the ally who owns that resource comes back for it, back off and don't steal their share. And if you read that the enemy is about to start a clash around the Tyrant or the Overlord, rotate to join it. Not wasting your downtime and instead spending it preparing your next move pays off across the board.

When behind, avoid clashes and apply pressure with split pushing

Fighters and assassins who excel in 1v1s will get punished if they force their way into clashes while heavily behind, since gaps in range and mobility let the enemy kite them and attack one-sidedly, killing them before they can do anything. This is where split pushing shines: pushing a side lane alone. When the enemy groups up to push, you push the opposite lane by yourself. If only one enemy comes to stop you, a strong duelist won't go down easily. If two come to gank you, that leaves your team with a numbers advantage at the main fight. The core plan is to disrupt the enemy's tempo while dragging the game out toward the late game.

Read threats on the minimap and follow "show yourself when they show themselves"

While applying pressure with a split push, keeping your eyes on the minimap at all times is the top priority. Always confirm where the enemies dangerous to you are. The mantra is: push when the enemy is visible, hide when the enemy disappears. For example, if a threatening enemy is shown on the bottom side of the map, you can push the top lane without hesitation. Conversely, the moment an enemy vanishes off the map, immediately leave vision yourself and retreat to a safe position. Once the enemy reappears up top, clear the minion wave again, then rotate down to push. This vision mind game is the lifeline of split pushing.

Chip away at the enemy jungle to close the gold gap

During the macro tug-of-war, steal as many of the enemy's jungle monsters as you can while pushing. By accelerating your own farm and stealing the opponent's resources at the same time, you can gradually close the gold gap that has opened up. Think of split pushing not merely as taking towers, but as a fight over resources across the whole map. Keep pushing and pulling back to steadily narrow the deficit and recover from an early disadvantage.

Once the map stabilizes, prioritize neutral objectives to take control

Once you've stabilized the game with split pushing and clawed back even a slight lead, prioritize securing neutral objectives next. In most cases, taking the Tyrant first is recommended. The movement speed and damage buffs the Tyrant grants help you take control in clashes. After securing the objective, catch out poorly positioned enemies to create a numbers advantage and roll that straight into your next push. If there's no good catch available, don't force it; just steadily take towers and extend your lead.

Once ahead, close it out with fast tempo

Once you've created a numbers advantage, keep pressing that edge without letting up. Strip the map's resources quickly and take enemy towers back to back. Fast tempo is the key. The faster you push, the more the enemy panics, and a panicking opponent is prone to misjudgments. That makes it easier to catch them one by one, letting you keep attacking while always maintaining a numbers advantage. This flow completes the comeback from behind. Even without relying on fine mechanical skill, the foundation for turning a losing game around lies in this macro playbook.