Riot Games recently announced new League of Legends smurfing rules aimed at reducing unfair matchmaking experiences. Smurfing, where high-ranked players use low-ranked accounts, has long frustrated newcomers and casual players. With the new system, Riot focuses on identifying smurf accounts early and pushing them into higher-ranked lobbies faster through accelerated LP gains and rank skips.
Two weeks ago, Riot published a developer blog and released a video outlining their approach. These changes are connected to the earlier Wazda announcement and emphasize prioritizing fairer matches for new and less experienced players. While Riot acknowledges smurfing cannot be entirely eliminated, their updated policy targets harmful cases directly impacting game quality.
Pentilus Ban and Community Backlash
The debate escalated after a high-elo player with a peak of 2,000 LP, was banned for 30 days. He posted a screenshot showing an undefeated 40-0 smurf account in low Platinum. Many accused them of buying the account due to its starting point in Iron, despite Pentilus claiming they personally leveled it using bot matches.
A Riot dev responsible for in-game behavioral policies, responded directly and confirmed that Pentilus’ accounts were penalized for rank manipulation. Riot added this as a reportable category in June, which now includes LP refunds for players impacted by manipulated matches.
Defining Rank Manipulation and Gray Areas
Riot clarified that rank manipulation includes activities like:
-
Boosting – having someone else play on your account to increase rank.
-
Hitchhiking – queuing with boosters for easier climbs.
-
Botted Accounts – buying or using automated accounts.
However, Riot acknowledges there are gray areas. For example, players often create alternate accounts to practice new champions or roles, which are not being targeted under current enforcement. Multiple accounts remain common, especially among high-ranked players, making absolute enforcement complicated.
This challenge becomes even more complex when considering content creators and educational streamers. For instance, creators like Kira regularly play on low-ELO accounts to demonstrate strategies for silver and gold players. While this benefits viewers, it also impacts actual lower-ranked players who must compete against far more skilled opponents.
Riot’s Enforcement and Community Impact
The League of Legends smurfing rules aim to balance fairness without punishing harmless alternate accounts. Riot’s system uses player reports and automated detection to identify problematic accounts, penalizing offenders while refunding affected players’ LP losses.
While most players welcome these steps, questions remain about where Riot will draw the line between intentional rank manipulation and casual secondary accounts. The inclusion of educational creators, content farming, and new-player matchmaking suggests this policy will continue evolving. Until Riot provides more clarity, bans like Pentilus’ are likely to fuel further debate within the community.
The League of Legends smurfing rules are only the start of Riot’s broader efforts to improve player experiences. Developers have stated that future updates may introduce clearer communication around enforcement, including detailed explanations for bans and penalties. Riot is also expected to test expanded LP protection in matches affected by suspected smurfing or boosting, which could make climbing less punishing for regular players.
However, balancing fair matchmaking with flexibility for content creators and alt accounts remains challenging. With constant community feedback, Riot will likely continue refining its approach. Smurfing isn’t disappearing overnight, but the conversation around fairness has just begun.
