Lesson 4 of 6 · 5 min
Recall Timing
When you go back matters more than what you buy. A good recall costs nothing; a bad one costs a wave, a 
and your tempo.
// What you will be able to do
- Recognise the two moments when a recall is free
- Explain what 'tempo' means in concrete gold terms
- Stop recalling on low health as a reflex
New players recall when their health bar looks scary. Good players recall when the wave says they can. Those are completely different triggers, and the gap between them is worth several hundred gold a game.
The cost of a bad recall is easy to underestimate because it does not appear anywhere on the scoreboard. Recall on a wave that is sitting in the middle of the lane and you lose a wave walking back, roughly 105–165g, plus whatever plates the enemy takes with the free shove. Do that four times in a game and you have donated an item.
| Trigger | Verdict |
|---|---|
| Wave just crashed into their | Best: free, and the bounce comes back to you |
| Wave slow-pushing into your | Good: nothing dies while you are away |
| You just hit an item threshold and the wave is neutral | Acceptable: pay the wave, buy the spike |
| Low health, wave in the middle of the lane | Bad: you pay the wave and they get the shove |
| Bored / nothing happening | Worst: a recall with no purchase behind it |
Low health feels like an emergency, so you back. The wave is mid-lane, the enemy shoves it in, takes two plates, and recalls on the crash, arriving back in lane before you with more gold.
The fix
If you are low but not in danger, push the wave to the first and recall on the crash. If you are actually in danger, that is a positioning problem, not a recall problem, cover it with the next lesson on vision.
7:40. You are at 30% health with 1,100 gold. Your wave is three minions strong and slowly pushing toward the enemy . The enemy laner is at full health and has just recalled.
- You: 30% health, 1,100g
- Enemy: full health, recalled 5 seconds ago
- Wave: slowly pushing toward their turret, will crash in ~15s
- No enemy jungler seen for 30s
There is a second, sharper version of this idea called tempo. Tempo is the answer to: 'who gets back to lane first, and with what?' Two players recall at the same moment. One crashed the wave and buys a completed item; the other backed off a mid-lane wave and buys a component. The first player returns to a bouncing wave with an item spike. The second returns to a wave already crashing into their own , behind on items. Nothing on the scoreboard changed, and the lane just tilted.
- Where is the wave, and where will it be in 15 seconds?
- Can I afford something that actually changes a fight, or am I buying a
and walking back for no reason? - If I leave now, what does my opponent get for free?
What is the actual cost of recalling with the wave sitting in the middle of the lane?