AFK stands for "Away From Keyboard" in League of Legends. It refers to when a player is not physically present at their computer or has stepped away temporarily, causing their champion to stand idle in-game. Players going AFK can have a significant negative impact on their team. But why do they go AFK?
Reasons why players go AFK in LoL
There are lots of reasons why players go AFK in League of Legends, however - those are the most relevant reasons why this happens!
- Internet Connection Issues - If a player's internet cuts out or they lag excessively, they may get disconnected from the game unintentionally. Their champion will remain stationary until the player can reconnect
- Real Life Interruptions - Something in the real world like an emergency, a distraction, or commitment may pull the player away from the game temporarily. This could be anything from a phone call to dinner being ready.
- Tilt or Frustration - Sometimes players get so frustrated with how a match is going that they give up and stop playing actively. Going AFK can be seen as a form of "giving up" on the match when angrily tilted.
- Intentional Leaving - In rare cases, players may decide to purposely go AFK to troll their team by making the match unfair. However, this behavior is bannable if done frequently.
What happens when someone goes AFK?
When a player goes AFK, their champion stays motionless in the last spot they were active.
They will not: earn gold, gain experience, use abilities, attack, or take any actions. An AFK player is still vulnerable and can be killed by the enemy team. The player's team is at a huge disadvantage trying to win a 4v5.
Going AFK is generally considered very rude and selfish in League. It ruins the competitive integrity of a match and hampers the experience for teammates. Players are expected to commit the full game length barring emergencies. There are penalties for chronic AFKing, including bans, low priority queues, and LP losses.
Can you get banned from staying AFK?
You cannot get banned but you’ll get queue-lockout, meaning that you will be unable to queue. The first penalty is only a 1-minute delay before you can queue up for your next match. However, with each additional offense, the penalties become more severe, ramping up to a 24-hour ban from playing any matches after 4 leaves.
Subsequent infractions result in queue lockouts lasting multiple days or even weeks. After finishing the lockout period, you will still start back at the 15-minute delay tier before working your way back up.
The increasing duration of the lockouts is intended to deter players from ruining games by leaving or idling. The penalties reset after a certain period without further offenses. But chronic early leavers or AFK players may face permanent bans if the behavior persists.
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