For nearly the entire history of League of Legends, Level 18 was the hard cap. Didn't matter if you were 300 CS Nasus or a fed Jax — once you hit 18, that was it. Your base stats stopped growing. Everyone knew the rules.
Season 16 changed the rules.
Top laners who complete their role quest now have their level cap raised to 20. Two extra levels. Two extra sets of base stat growth. And a 12.5% XP acceleration that makes you hit those levels faster than anyone else on the map.
If you play top lane and you're not thinking about this every single game, you're leaving free stats on the table.
What Level 20 Actually Gives You
Every level in League gives you base stat growth — HP, armor, AD, attack speed. The exact numbers vary by champion, but on average, each level is worth roughly 300-400 gold in raw stats. Two extra levels means 600-800 gold of free stats that no other role can access.
But it's not just the stats. It's the level advantage.
In a typical 25-minute game, your ADC is Level 13-14. Your mid laner is Level 14-15. You, the top laner with XP acceleration, are Level 18-19. That's a 4-5 level gap over the bot lane. In a side lane 1v1 against the enemy ADC who rotated to catch a wave? They literally cannot fight you. The base stat difference is too large.
The math is simple: A Level 20 champion has roughly 15-20% more base HP, armor, and AD than a Level 18 champion of the same type. Against a Level 15 ADC, that gap is closer to 30%. You are playing a different game.
How the Top Lane Quest Works
The quest requires 1200 points. You earn them by:
- Killing minions (+1 per CS, +2 in top lane)
- Taking turret plates (+20, or +40 in top lane)
- Destroying turrets (+25, or +50 in top lane)
- Champion takedowns (+15)
- Epic monster takedowns (+30)
- Passive generation starting at 1:05 (+1 per 3 seconds, increased to +8 per 5 seconds near top lane)
The in-lane bonuses are massive. Plates in top lane give double points. Turret kills in top lane give double points. Riot is screaming at you: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIGHT.
Once you complete the quest, you get:
- Level cap raised to 20
- +600 XP immediately
- 12.5% increased future XP gain
- A free Unleashed Teleport (7-min cooldown) if you didn't take TP
- If you DID take TP, it upgrades to grant a 30% max HP shield on arrival
That free TP is the cherry on top. You can take Ignite + Flash for lane dominance, complete your quest, and then have TP for map plays anyway. Best of both worlds.
The Champions That Break Level 20
Not every top laner benefits equally from Level 20. Champions with strong base stat scaling or abilities that scale with levels get way more out of it.
🪓 Darius — The Quest Speedrunner
Darius wants to fight from Level 1. His passive bleeds stack quest points through champion damage trades, and his kill pressure means he's taking plates and solo kills early. A good Darius completes the quest by 12-13 minutes.
At Level 20, Darius's base AD is absurd. His passive bleed scales with AD, his R scales with AD. He becomes a stat-check monster that most champions physically cannot duel. Add the free TP and he can split push a side lane, force 2 people to answer him, then TP to the teamfight anyway.
⚔️ Camille — The Roaming Threat
Camille's true damage on Q2 scales with her AD, which scales with levels. Level 20 Camille's Q2 chunks for an absurd percentage of the target's HP. She was already one of the best split pushers in the game — now she's unkillable in the side lane.
The free TP is perfect for her playstyle. Take Ignite for lane kill pressure, complete the quest, then use TP to flank teamfights with your hookshot from fog of war. Terrifying.
🗡️ Jax — The Late Game Insurance
Jax scales harder with levels than almost any other champion. His passive attack speed, his base stats, his R resistances — everything gets better with levels. Level 20 Jax with 3 items feels like Level 18 Jax with 4 items.
He's not the fastest quest completer because he doesn't bully lane as hard as Darius early. But once he finishes the quest and starts accelerating toward 20, the game is on a timer. Nobody can match him in the side lane.
Renekton — The Early Game Bully
Renekton is the other quest speedrunner. His empowered W chunks for massive damage in trades, and his natural lane dominance means he's taking plates early. He can realistically complete the quest by 11-12 minutes with a solo kill and 3 plates.
The issue with Renekton has always been falling off late. Level 20 helps with that. The extra base stats keep him relevant longer, and the free TP means he can split push without sacrificing map presence. He's gone from "win lane lose game" to "win lane, stay relevant."
The Split Push Meta Shift
Level 20 has fundamentally changed how top lane works. Before Season 16, grouping for teamfights was usually the right call after laning phase. Now? Staying in a side lane and farming toward Level 20 is often the better play.
Here's why: every second you spend grouped with your team, you're sharing XP. Every second you spend solo in a side lane, you're getting full XP plus the 12.5% acceleration bonus. The fastest path to Level 20 is to stay in a side lane, catch every wave, and take jungle camps between waves.
The split push formula: Complete quest → stay in side lane → hit Level 20 → force 2+ enemies to answer you → your team takes objectives 4v3. If they don't send 2 people, you take towers. If they send 3, your team takes Baron. It's a lose-lose for the enemy.
Champions like Tryndamere, Fiora, and Yorick were already good split pushers. With Level 20, they're oppressive. A Level 20 Fiora with 3 items can 1v2 most combinations of champions. The enemy team has to respect the side lane or lose their base.
When NOT to Chase Level 20
Level 20 is strong, but it's not always the right play. If your team is getting destroyed in 4v5 fights while you farm a side lane, the extra levels won't matter because the game will be over before you hit 20.
The rule of thumb: if your team can hold 4v4 or 4v5 without you, split push and accelerate. If your team is losing fights and needs you, group. Level 20 is a win condition, not a guarantee.
Also, don't grief your jungler by taking all their camps. Yes, Krugs and Gromp give good XP. But if your jungler falls behind because you're eating their resources, you're trading one advantage for a disadvantage elsewhere. Take camps when your jungler is on the opposite side of the map. Don't be that top laner.
Level 20 on a Smurf
If you're playing on a smurf in Gold or Platinum, Level 20 is your free win condition. Lower-elo players don't understand the quest system yet. They don't take plates. They don't trade aggressively. They'll complete their quest at 20 minutes while you finish yours at 12.
That 8-minute head start on XP acceleration means you'll be Level 19-20 while the enemy top is Level 16-17. At that point, you can literally 1v2 their top laner and jungler. The stat gap is too large for them to overcome with skill alone.
Lock in Darius or Renekton. Take Ignite. Kill your laner at Level 3. Take 3 plates. Complete quest by 12 minutes. Split push until Level 20. Run at their team. Game over.
Check your hidden MMR to see where you stand, or read the full role quests breakdown for every role's quest details.
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