One week ago, Patch 9.17 was shipped to Teamfight Tactics with a load of meta-changing nerfs and buffs. For the first time since the game was initially released, we had no micro-patch this week meaning the current meta shouldn't evolve that much until Patch 9.18 cycle to the live servers.
Do you feel lost because of how fast the meta evolving? Well, don't worry because we got your back covered. Best champions and compositions, items to prioritize, decisions and rotation — everything you need to know about the current Teamfight Tactics meta is in this dedicated article!
Best Compositions
Demon is the new Brawler.
You might have noticed that Evelynn is currently one of the best champions — if not the best — of the current meta. She's one incredible damage dealer, however here overall strength also comes from her Trait. Yeah, you heard it well: Demons are the current kings of the Convergence. Whether they're paired with Sorcerers, Elementalists, Shapeshifters or even Knights, Demons are dominating.
After several reworks, they finally found their place in the meta, and in a fashion way to the previous patch and the Brawler Trait, the Demon Trait is currently the spine of most compositions.
- Elise and Swain are both Shapeshifters and Demons, meaning you can easily build a Demon/Shapeshifter composition if you find Elise early. Since Swain is also an Imperial, you can also pair him with a Darius — thus allowing your composition to include strong Knights such as Poppy, Sejuani or Kayle.
- Since Brand is an Elementalist, you can easily build a composition that will thrive in early and mid-game thanks to the power brought by the Golem. Keep in mind that Kennen is one of the best Tier 3 units of the game, especially when he carries a Morellonomicon.
- Yes, Morgana is a Sorcerer, but that's almost irrelevant. Her ability is the only thing that really matters since it allows you to have a central damage dealer that can also CC if she survives. Also, she gets the mana burn from the Demon trait which makes them especially versatile.
- Aatrox is completely overpowered. Do you want to instantly delete your opponents' champions in one massive Dragoon-style jump? Well, this champion is made for you.
Demons are good not only because of their incredibly polyvalent trait but also because they're quite strong champions individually.
Long live the Shapeshifters!
Except for Elise and Swain, all Shapeshifters were recently buffed and most of them had their mana cost reduced. Yeah, this sounds like a nerf but it's not: keep in mind that a champion will automatically cast his ability when his mana reaches the breaking point — meaning that a smaller pool of mana actually means that your champion will proc his ability sooner.
Shapeshifters also benefit from the Demon trait, but the real game-changing feature was the addition of Pantheon. Shapeshifters compositions still rely on the massive damage input brought by Shyvana, however, you don't need anymore to fit an item less Aurelion Sol within your composition just to make sure your hyper-carry won't get one-shot by a Karthus.
Overall, Shapeshifters excel when they're paired with Guardians and the recent addition of Pantheon — who's also a Dragon — perfectly synergizes with Shyvana. Keep in mind that other Demon compositions or some Champions carrying Hush — the silence item — might become a real pain since they'll prevent your Shapeshifters from transforming.
Rangers are back!
Since Statikk Shiv nerf, Rangers have lost their luster. However, Patch 9.17 not only brought a buff to their trait but also increased the Attack Speed cap from 2.5 to 5. Yes, you heard it well, your Rangers can now attack five times in one second. Pretty brutal, isn't it?
Rangers still synergize well with Knights and Glacials, nothing really changed apart from the fact that you can now switch Braum for Pantheon. Having both Hush and Guinsoo's Rageblade on one of your Rangers — Ashe for instance — is often a guarantee that you'll easily reach the fourth place.
Kassassin for the win.
We thought Assassins were dying, gradually falling into the depths of our Tier List. Yes, Rengar is still a strong Champion but the Jungle Void composition isn't domination the meta as it previously was. Also, you might advocate that Evelynn is domination the Convergence, but her strength actually doesn't come from the fact she's an Assassin. However, one old composition is rising from the ashes: the Kassassin.
Within a Void Assassin composition, you can indeed give your Kassadin a Yoummu's Ghostblade, thus transforming him into an Assassin. Since the meta is currently flooded with glass canon carries such as Sorcerers or Shapeshifters, being able to drain their mana directly from the backline thanks to your now jumping Kassadin is definitely a super-strong strategy.
The only downside is that... you need a Spatula.
Best Champions
Items: Hextech Gunblade, Guardian Angel, Dragon's Claw
Evelynn is especially strong because of her execute-style ability: she will indeed multiply her damage by five if she casts it on a Champion that has less than 65% HP.
Equipped with an Hextech Gunblade, Evelynn has thus an incredible sustain while inflicting an incredible amount of damage.
The only way to counter her is either to burn her mana — thanks to the Demon trait or to Hush — or to stun her.
Items: Dragon's Claw, Warmog's, Bloodthirster
Without a doubt, Gnar's ability is one of the best — if not the best — AoE of the game: it inflicts good damages, can stun the entire enemy composition while destroying its positioning. Gnar is especially strong against Rangers since its ability allows you to push enemy Champions out of Kindred's ability.
Items: Hextech Gunblade, Warmog's, Guinsoo's Rageblade
Shyvana is a Dragon, meaning she synergizes with Pantheon to gain an 83% magic resistance. Within a meta flooded with Sorcerers and magical damage, this specific advantage makes her especially strong.
However, what makes Shyvana so powerful is her hyper-carry potential. If you build her properly, you will have one unkillable machine of war on your board, capable of single handling five units by herself.
Terrific.
Items: Spear of Shojin, Spear of Shojin, Warmog's
OR: Guinsoo's Rageblade, Warmog's, Guardian Angel
We already spent a good part of this article explaining how good was the Spartan. It's not only because of its ability — which is surely one peculiar skill — but also because he's a Tier 5 piece that can fit in most compositions.
Such versatility is enough to promote him immediately to the God Tier.
Item Tier List
In the current meta, the ability to 'silence' one of your opponent's champions is one massive counterplay. With a Hush, you can prevent Shapeshifter from transforming and Sorcerers from casting.
This item alone allows one of you carry to reach the 5 attacks per second cap without troubles. Most of the S Tier compositions that rely on hyper-carries absolutely need this item to optimize their damage output.
Within a meta centered around casters with a high damage ability, the possibility of making one of your Champions almost insensible to magical damage is definitely one of the best counterplay you can achieve.
Especially strong against Elementalists and Sorcerers, the Dragon's Claw gives so much sustain that it should be banned from the game.
Since it opens possibilities, Spatula is never a bad item. In the current meta, it's even stronger because it allows you to give to one of your carry a trait that he shouldn't have. Fancy a Demon Kayle, a Blademaster Jinx, a Sorcerer Swain?
Well, the Spatula is made for you.
As usual, there are a lot more compositions and strategies that will help you grind the ladder. Keep in mind that your best ally isn't a tier list nor a guide, but rather your ability to adapt...
Written by Julien "Imso" Hubert & Thomas "Calo" Sauzin. Translated & edited from French by Thomas "Calo" Sauzin.
Patches keep raining onto Teamfight Tactics! However, 9.17 has something else more: it introduces Pantheon! Check this out!
