6 min read
How vision score is calculated, the per-role targets that actually matter, and the three timing rules that determine where wards go.

CHAMPION LENS
Thresh
Lee Sin
Ahri
Jinx
ShenMost players treat vision as "the support's problem." But a large fraction of stuck Silver-to-Gold games are lost to non-support roles refusing to participate in vision at all. Here's how vision score is calculated, what to aim for at each role, and the timing rules that distinguish wards-placed-anywhere from wards-that-actually-mattered.
Vision score sums:
Time your placed wards spent alive on the map
Enemy wards destroyed (fixed value per kill)
Control ward uptime
The key insight: placing wards isn't enough. Four stealth wards placed in your own jungle that get killed in a minute give you nearly nothing. One control ward in drake pit that lives four minutes is enormous.
30-minute benchmarks:
Under 40: rough — wards are dying instantly or you didn't place them
40–60: solid Gold
60–80: Plat-and-above behavior
80+: top of Master
Support target per game: 5+ control wards bought, 8+ enemy wards killed. Hitting both numbers naturally pushes vision score above 60.
Standard range is 35–50. Three habits get you there: ward the entrance to the lane you're ganking, control-ward objectives 90 seconds early, kill the wards in the enemy jungle on the way through.
The single highest-impact ward is the one before a gank. Walking into a lane without enemy jungle vision means you either die to the counter-gank or watch the enemy escape with summoners up. Gank success rate roughly doubles when that one ward is in.
Most laners ignore vision; they shouldn't. Solo lane target is 20–35. Mid in particular sits in the middle of the map and has a vision responsibility on the river.
Targets:
6–10 stealth wards in side rivers
At least 1 control ward (around tower-dive windows)
3–5 enemy wards killed
ADC is the role most likely to ward zero times in a game. Target: 20–30.
Where it counts:
Bot lane brushes when the enemy jungler is near
Drake-pit control ward (don't leave that to support alone)
A control ward at your own feet before late-game fights
90 seconds before an objective: control wards go in early. 30 seconds before drake is too late — the fight has already started.
Just before recall: drop wards in the brushes around your lane before backing. You return safely.
When enemy jungler is unknown: ward the river before extending. Always.
The JSON has enough vision data for solid self-review:
Compared to expectations for my role, which of placement, denial (wards killed), or control wards was the biggest gap this game?
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