Teamfight Tactics patch 14.16 notes

AUGUST 20TH

With our B-patch which goes live on the 20th of August at noon PT, we’ll be addressing the top-most end of our overperformers. Prioritizing damage nerfs here should also slow down combat pacing, the speed at which fights finish, ever-so-slightly.

As sort of a spoiler for our next patch, 14.17, expect to see a focus on buffs for champions/strategies that are making more Mayhem than Magic for your LP. More on that next week!

TRAITS

Portal (3) has proven to be a swift portal through the early game, with the trait’s power providing high impact, especially in its base damage when one star low-cost units have smaller Health pools to begin with.

Vanguard has been somewhat of a secret backbone to a variety of comps. We’re going lighter here, especially with our focus on nerfing damage to slow combat pacing, but the trait’s prevalence was enough to merit a small nerf.

That power differential between Pyro 4 and 5 is very wide. This isn’t great since Pyro 5 is pretty easy to hit: all you need is a Spatula, a bow, and a champion willing to commit arson. On TFT we’re doing our part to prevent a wildfire in the meta, so we’re turning down the heat for Pyro 5.

• Portal 3: Portal Bomb base damage: 135 ⇒ 90
• Vanguard Shield: 18/35/50% HP ⇒ 18/30/50% HP
• Pyro Execute threshold: 12/12/12/18% HP ⇒ 12/12/12/15% HP
• Pyro AS: 12/25/45/70% ⇒ 12/25/45/60%

CHAMPIONS

Ahri doesn’t actually care if you’re a tank. She’s still going to 2-shot you—which might be okay, if she was a 5-cost, but alas, not even this trickster can charm her way out of a substantial nerf.

Nilah and Fiora have Warrior comps on the rise. While not as popular as Pyro or Ahri, we’re tracking a steady rise in success for this comp and are proactively shipping damage nerfs to the two. For Fiora we’re going a bit heavier as her kit brings a ton of synergistic value with Durability (damage reduction), Omnivamp (from Warrior), and correct itemization (Bloodthirster).

• Ahri Ability True Damage: 100/150/230% AP ⇒ 90/135/210% AP
• Ahri Passive Bonus AP: 30% ⇒ 15%
• Nilah AD: 55 ⇒ 50
• Fiora Ability damage: 180/180/360% AD ⇒ 160/160/360% AD
• Fiora Ability split damage: 350/350/700% AD + 40/60/300% AP ⇒ 320/320/700% AD + 40/60/300% AP
• Nasus Ability damage: 20% HP ⇒ 15% HP

AUGMENTS

Despite the occasional low-roll, Flexible is our best-performing Augment by a large margin. Even with removing one full Emblem, it will likely remain strong. At this point, it’s my duty to let you know that the occasional low-roll was a game that I had and took 8th with the Augment—I’m also being told that I must admit to this being a so-called user error, as the Augment is far too strong to merit a debate around it’s nerf.

Originally defined by James Watt in the 18th century, horsepower is the measurement used to compare the power of engines to the work done by horses. One horsepower is the equivalent of the power needed to lift 550 pounds, one foot in one second, but High Horsepower is the equivalent of gaining 10+ LP (top four), per game, almost every game.

• Flexible: Emblems next 3 stages ⇒ Next 2 stages
• High Horsepower (Lillia) Bonus AS: 150% ⇒ 125%
• High Horsepower (Lillia) Ability damage: 300% ⇒ 275%
• Molten Caramel (Rumble) Ability damage: 200% ⇒ 190%

PORTALS

We’ve found a bug with Treasure Armory where it can occasionally not give you anything, so we’re disabling it until we can fix it.

• Treasure Armory has been disabled

GOLEMS

Golem-related Augments have been overperforming as a whole thanks to the punch this rocky pal packs.

• Golem AD: 65 ⇒ 55
• Golem Health: 600 ⇒ 550
• Golem Ability damage: 335/500/750% AP ⇒ 300/480/750% AP

Large, like how these changes should affect the current meta.

TRAITS

Most of our traits have had somewhat viable comps to slot in, with a few exceptions.

We’re giving Faerie a significant buff for the Queenguard’s Armor (available at Faerie 6) with a much smaller buff which sees a bit more play mostly due to the powerful champions in the trait.

Preserver has proven consistently strong as a late-game flex board enabler. We’re happy with how the trait can be mixed and matched to make a few different outputs, but think it’s a bit too strong—especially as we nerf some of our overperforming meta-comps. The nerf we’re shipping here is intended to be a nerf to the healing, while the Mana gain aspect stays neutral as we fix an issue with the trait’s manalock.

• Blaster Damage Amp: 8/15/30% ⇒ 12/25/45%
• Blaster Damage Amp after cast: 25/45/90% ⇒ 25/50/90%
• Faerie Crown damage amp: 25/35/40/75% ⇒ 25/40/45/75%
• Faerie (6) Queenguard’s Armor Healing/shielding power: 30% ⇒ 35%
• Faerie Queenguard’s Armor Health: 100 ⇒ 150
• Faerie Queenguard’s Armor Healing from Queen damage: 12% ⇒ 15%
• Frost AP/AD: 15/30/45/75% ⇒ 16/35/50/80%
• Preserver Healing: 2.5/4.5/7/10% HP ⇒ 2/4/6/9% HP
• Preserver Mana gain: 3/5/8/12% ⇒ 3/5/7/11%
• Preserver ticks while a unit is manalocked will now grant that mana after the manalock ends.
• Scholar Mana per attack: 3/5/10 ⇒ 3/6/12
• Warrior Damage Amp: 10/18/25% ⇒ 10/20/30%
• Warrior Omnivamp: 10/18/25% ⇒ 10/20/30%

UNITS: TIER 1

Seraphine’s Sharp Note ability has been falling flat. By reducing her max mana she’ll up her BPM by casting faster.

• Seraphine Mana: 10/70 ⇒ 10/60
• Soraka Ability damage: 180/270/405% AP ⇒ 195/290/440% AP
• Warwick Ability damage: 50% AD ⇒ 55/55/65% AD

UNITS: TIER 2

2-costs were the big winner of our release patch, crowding out most other comps with a few exceptions. We’re taking a wide pass on the tier in general, giving substantial buffs to 2-costs that didn’t really succeed even when they were quite easy to hit (when multiple players are playing 2-costs strategies it makes it easier to find less popular 2-costs).

Ahri has been unable to find a place as a reroll carry even with her bonus AP passive. Upping her ratio just a tad should be a significant jump for an itemized Ahri.

Kassadin deals a copious amount of damage, absorbs just as much, and then sustains to full by the time his Bloodthirster shield pops. He’s providing far too much value on both fronts, so we're bringing down the power of both, but hitting his shield more to keep his damage-carry identity intact.

Okay, this Syndra section is going to get technical. Syndra was released far too strong, making the S-tier the Syndra tier. Her power remained high even after we nerfed her with an A-patch (done the day before the set goes live), with her most successful builds being purely attack speed focused (plus Spear of Shojin). Attack Speed is so strong on her because her current cast animation time takes 1.5 seconds, but she’s able to start attacking .3 seconds into the animation. We’re adjusting her attack lockout, so she’ll now have to wait 1 full second before resuming her basic attacks. This, alongside a nerf to her ability’s damage and the bonus damage of the additional rifts, should keep her power ceiling in check.

• Ahri Ability magic damage: 135/200/280% AP ⇒ 140/210/325% AP
• Ahri Ability true damage: 90/135/210% AP ⇒ 100/150/230% AP
• Galio Ability damage reduction: 15/20/25% AP ⇒ 20/25/30% AP
• Kassadin Ability stacking damage: 35/50/80% AP ⇒ 30/45/70% AP
• Kassadin Ability shield: 300/335/370% AP ⇒ 260/285/310% AP
• Kog’Maw Ability damage: 290/300/325% AD ⇒ 280/280/290% AD
• Shyvana Ability damage: 35/50/75% AP + 1.5% HP ⇒ 45/65/100% AP + 1% HP

• Item class changed from Magic Tank to Magic Fighter

• Syndra Ability total cast time: 0.3 seconds ⇒ 1 second (read the context for details)
• Syndra Ability bonus rift damage: 35% ⇒ 30%
• Syndra Ability damage: 225/340/520% AP ⇒ 205/310/480% AP
• Syndra Ability adjacent damage: 110/170/260% AP ⇒ 100/150/235% AP

UNITS: TIER 3

Katarina is our worst-performing and least-played (sorry Rayditz) 3-cost carry, so we’re giving her lots of love. You may also notice that we have buffs to the Faerie/Warrior verticals and be thinking, wow, that’s a lot of buffs, but keep in mind that those buffs are strictly for the 4+ trait breakpoints which are pretty hard to hit both of while 3 starring your Katarina. That being said, an extra Emblem could spell a faerly potent combo, so don’t sleep on these buffs!

• Katarina Ability damage: 160/240/365% AP ⇒ 175/260/420% AP

UNITS: TIER 4

Karma is our most successful 4-cost, she consistently does much more damage than expected, is able to apply Wounds/Burns with Red Buff or Morellonomicon to an entire team, and can heal her pals when an enemy dies. That’s a bit too much, so we’re removing her healing utility as she’s succeeding as a carry without it.

What looks to be a small buff is actually 10 times the power, as Ryze fires 10 bolts (more with Attack Speed).

• Karma Ability no longer heals adjacent allies when an enemy dies.
• Ryze Ability damage: 80/120/300% AP ⇒ 85/130/300% AP
• Varus ability cast time: 2.5 seconds ⇒ 1.5 seconds

UNITS: TIER 5

Despite her traits and comps performing well, Briar’s been unable to carry fights like we’d want from a 5-cost with an ability titled Certain Death.

• Briar AD: 60 ⇒ 65

AUGMENTS: REMOVED

We’ve got a lot of Augment changes this time around, so we’re dividing this section up into four.

Arcane Conduit and Draconic Mastery were two trait-linked Augments that were just too difficult (and weak) to pull off. Even with considerable buffs they’d still require too specific of a setup to find success.

On The House was quite weak, but it’s not in a position where buffing the gold for starring a unit up would work, as it creates a play pattern where you just buy all the 1-costs to star them up over and over.

• The following Augments have been removed: Arcane Conduit, Draconic Mastery, On the House

AUGMENTS: SILVER

Ones Twos Three gives a bit more gold value than our framework for Silver Augments allows. We’re cutting down one 1-cost to prevent the Silver Augment space from power creeping at the cost of an aesthetic tooltip—sorry.

Restart Mission is far too risky for the payoff, so we’re adding another 2-star 2-cost to the restart!

• Beggars Can Be Choosers Gold: 4 ⇒ 7
• Find Your Center bonus health: 10% ⇒ 15%
• Find Your Center is no longer offered on 2-1.
• Item Collector I Health per item: 10 ⇒ 5
• Keepers I Shield: 175 ⇒ 160
• Ones Twos Three 1-cost champions: 3 ⇒ 2
• Restart Mission Number of 2-star 2-costs: 2 ⇒ 3
• Restart Mission now properly states that champions are removed rather than sold.
• Row Rejuvenation I Base omnivamp: 7% ⇒ 8%

AUGMENTS: GOLD

We’ve reworked Endless Hunt—which wasn’t performing well as it was dependent on takedowns—to Hunting Frenzy, which will allow Hunters to do more hunting, making the Augment’s power floor much higher, while also giving it more flavor.

Fortune Favors the Bold was favoring even the not-so-bold, so we’re reducing the output for the 8-10 loss cashout while strengthening the even riskier cashouts.

For the rest of this list, expect the worst-performing Augments (shoutout to Clockwork Accelerator and High Horsepower) to get buffed, and the overperforming ones to be taken down

We’re making some adjustments to the buffs the Eldritch summon gets with School Mascot that will result in a net nerf for the Augment. Your summon will no longer be crowned with a Deathcap and will instead have slightly better stats. This should make Eldritch 3 stronger, while 5 and 7 should be net weaker.

• Avenge the Fallen Bonus stats: 15 ⇒ 18
• Built Different II is now exclusive with Two Tanky
• Caramelized Comforts (Sugarcraft) Health per item component: 50 ⇒ 60
• Caramelized Comforts (Sugarcraft) Gold drop chance per item component: 8% ⇒ 10%
• Clockwork Accelerator Buff frequency: Every 4 seconds ⇒ Every 3 seconds
• Endless Hunt (Hunter) has been renamed to “Hunting Frenzy”
• Hunting Frenzy (Hunter) REWORKED: Your Hunters execute enemies below 12% health and gain 10% Attack Speed. Gain a Twitch and a Kog'Maw.
• Eternal Growth+ Immediate health gain: 100 ⇒ 60
• Explosive Growth+ XP gain per round: 10 ⇒ 11
• Fast Forward AS gain: 25% ⇒ 40%
• Fortune Favors the Bold: 8-10 loss cashout nerfed by ~10%
• Fortune Favors the Bold: Some 13-14 loss cashouts improved.
• Flexible Bonus emblems: Every Stage start ⇒ Start of the next 3 stages
• High Horsepower Bonus AS: 100% ⇒ 150%
• High Horsepower Ability Damage Amp: 235% ⇒ 300%
• Higher Education (Scholar) Mana spend: 100 ⇒ 80
• Higher Education (Scholar) AS: 10% ⇒ 12%
• Item Collector II Health per item: 15 ⇒ 10
• Keepers II Shield: 260 ⇒ 240
• Molten Caramel (Rumble) Ability Damage Amp: 190% ⇒ 200%
• Molten Caramel (Rumble) Omnivamp: 15% ⇒ 20%
• Pilfer Gold Granted: 4 ⇒ 0
• Practice Partners (Mage) Mana gain: 4 ⇒ 5
• Press the Attack (Multistriker) Damage: 5.5% HP ⇒ 5% HP
• Row Rejuvenation II Base Omnivamp: 9% ⇒ 10%
• School Mascot (Eldritch): No longer has Rabadon’s Deathcap at 5 and 7 Eldritch.
• School Mascot (Eldritch) Bonus Health: 5% ⇒ 10%
• School Mascot (Eldritch) Bonus Ability Power: 10 ⇒ 30
• Spellblades Damage: 175% AP ⇒ 150% AP
• Support Golem I is no longer offered on 2-1.
• Sweet Tooth (Nunu) Bonus Health: 200 ⇒ 100
• Three’s a Crowd Bonus Health: 66 ⇒ 75
• Trait Tracker is now exclusive with Flexible.
• Two Healthy Bonus Health: 90 ⇒ 80
• Witchy Wallop (Poppy) Damage: 80% ⇒ 85%
• Witchy Wallop (Poppy) Time between Wallops reduced from 0.25s ⇒ 0.15s
• Worth the Wait I Round delay: 4 ⇒ 2

AUGMENTS: PRISMATIC

We’re giving our worst performing Augment, What the Forge, a HUGE buff in an attempt to save one of our most fun Augments from being relegated to set removal.

With the power of reroll and our changes to make free rerolls persist between rounds, Prismatic Ticket has been too free a ticket to your desired 3-stars. We’re nerfing the freebies chance, but preventing it from being offered on 4-2, when it feels awkward as you’ve typically locked in your leveling/reroll strategy.

• Anger Issues Armor/MR: 25 ⇒ 30
• Assassin’s Toolbox REWORKED: Now grants a Prowler’s Claw and an Infinity Edge immediately.
• At What Cost Bonus XP: 16 ⇒ 8
• Dark Alley Dealings Round delay: 5 ⇒ 3
• Giant and Mighty HP: 325 ⇒ 300
• Immovable Object Bonus effect: 70% ⇒ 60%
• Prismatic Ticket Free reroll chance: 50% ⇒ 45%
• Prismatic Ticket is no longer offered on 4-2.
• Support Golem II is no longer offered on 2-1.
• What the Forge Health per Artifact: 110 ⇒ 220

ITEMS

Dragon’s Claw is currently the strongest tank item, and it’s not just due to its position as a counter item to an AP meta. The item’s healing is currently so strong that it can become the sole sustain item for tanks, crowding out the likes of Redemption and treading dangerously close to Anima Visage. We want to retain the item’s value as a strong source of Magic Resistance to counter mage comps, while trimming the less visible and prolific power of its sustain.

• Dragon’s Claw Healing: 5% per 2s ⇒ 2.5% per 2s

ARTIFACTS, SUPPORT, AND RADIANT ITEMS

• Blacksmith’s Gloves Health: 300 ⇒ 200
• Mogul’s Mail Health: 200 ⇒ 150
• Needlessly Big Gem Damage Amp: 10% ⇒ 5%
• Needlessly Big Gem Max Damage Amp: 25% ⇒ 20%
• Dragon’s Will (Radiant) Max Health: 18% ⇒ 15%

CHARMS

In addition to introducing four new Charms, we’re also taking a pass on our existing Charms, ensuring that each one is worth the cost, and no Charm is unclickable, nor an instant click.

Copycat is an early-game Charm that can kickstart your econ if you position to maximize it, while Spawn Swarm is a late-game Charm that proves that scary bugs do lay eggs in your body that hatch upon death—but don’t worry, these bugs are friendly and fight for you (read: symbiotic not parasitic).

Ironclad Spirit and Mystic Spirit are callbacks to earlier sets' traits and provide temporary Armor or Magic Resistance, perfect for late-game scouts and quick reactions!

Gear Swap, which granted a temporary Magnetic Remover and a Reforger for 1 round was rarely useful. Best case scenario you could Reforge one of your components that didn’t fit your build—not that exciting. Tinker, which gives you a Reforger and a Remover to keep, on the other hand, was locked to only the late game. We’re unlocking Tinker, allowing it to appear from Stage 2 onward, and making it 0 gold to make the Charm more appealing and useful. Even if you don’t end up using it, at least it didn’t break the bank.

Lastly, we’ve opted to remove Desperate Plea, a Charm with the main use of cheating out just one extra placement. This has become a source of pain for players on the losing end of a round who didn’t hit the Charm. Additionally, the Charm has received largely negative feedback from our highest level of players, where the impact of one higher placement can make or break a tournament run. To my Challenger readers, we see you. To the lobby, I bought this during a round where three people got eliminated, sorry.

• NEW Charm: (Stage 2/3) Copycat - 1g - Get a 1-star copy of the first enemy unit to die next combat.
• NEW Charm: (Stage 5+) Spawn Swarm - 4g - Next combat: Your first two front-row units spawn a voidling after death.
• NEW Charm: (Stage 4+) Ironclad Spirit - 1g - Next combat: Your team gains 30 Armor.
• NEW Charm: (Stage 4+) Mystic Spirit - 1g - Next combat: Your team gains 30 Magic Resist.
• Backrow Star Cost: 5g ⇒ 2g
• Desperate Plea has been Removed.
• Enhance Cost: 2g ⇒ 1g
• Gear Swap Removed.
• Minor Gambit Gold for winning: 2 ⇒ 3
• Phantom Emblem Cost: 8g ⇒ 6g
• Shivinate is now offered on Stage 2/3 (was 3/4).
• Summon Dragon AD: 450 ⇒ 405
• The Star (Ascendant) Cost: 5g ⇒ 7g
• Tinker Cost: 1g ⇒ 0g
• Tinker is now offered from Stage 2 onward.
• Treasure Party Cost: 8g ⇒ 6g

Small, like the impact we expect these changes to have on the meta.

TRAITS

• Bastion Armor/MR: 15/40/65/110 ⇒ 15/40/70/120
• Chrono: Timestop from Chrono 4 is now resisted with CC immunity.

UNITS

Wukong has seen success in various Preserver comps, especially in specific regional metas, but he’s a bit weaker than we’d like as a super-flexible frontliner, so we’re giving him a light buff, only to his 1 and 2-star versions, which should make him an even better item holder.

• Jayce Ability damage: 425/425/450% AD + 40/60/90% AP ⇒ 425/425/475% AD + 40/60/90% AP
• Lillia Mana: 50/110 ⇒ 40/100
• Galio Ability damage reduction: 15/20/25% AP ⇒ 20/25/30% AP
• Wukong Ability shield: 330/440/550% AP ⇒ 380/460/550% AP
• Tahm Kench Health: 1050 ⇒ 1100

AUGMENTS

To most players, this Bastion Crown change is a buff, but for the Sweet Tooth (Nunu Champion Augment) enjoyers amongst us, this is an attack.

• Bastion Crown Champion Granted: Nunu ⇒ Shen
• Blaster Crown Champion Granted: Tristana ⇒ Ezreal
• Blossoming Lotus I/II no longer appear at Stage 2-1.
• Scholar Crown Champion Granted: Ahri ⇒ Bard
• Scholar Crown Item Granted: Guardbreaker ⇒ Spear of Shojin
• Vertically Inclined Damage Amp: 8/16% ⇒ 9/18%
• Vertically Inclined no longer appears at Stage 2-1.

HYPER ROLL

Dummies and Golems have provided too much value in Hyper Roll, and even with our Golem in the systems changes, we’re making an extra adjustment here to meet the needs of the game mode.

• Dummies and Golems level up one stage later.
• I’m the Carry Now Augment Golem stat multipliers adjusted to power up later.
• Frost Soldier bonus Health scaling is now lower in Hyper Roll: 200 ⇒ 110 per stage
• All That Shimmers/+ is no longer available in Hyper Roll.
• A Golden Quest is no longer available in Hyper Roll.
• An Upgraded Adventure is no longer available in Hyper Roll.

• Multiple Augments have had their descriptions updated to use the new Damage Amp stat.
• Fixed cases where Gwen could fail to cast and then be stuck for several seconds.
• Kalista no longer throws extra spears on her first attack each combat.
• Portal effects no longer miss when an allied Krug is the only unit alive.
• Too tiny: Two ranged units with Tiny But Deadly will no longer fail to attack each other.
• Placing Thief’s Gloves on a unit with a Champion Augment no longer removes the buff from them.
• Accomplice’s Gloves now correctly counts as 2.5 items for the purpose of strongest unit.
• The cat’s out of the bag: Yuumi can no longer spawn on the enemy side of the board and eat the unit in that slot.
• Yuumi now correctly attaches to a new unit on combat start if her host was sold.
• Fixed a bug where Frost statues could fail to spawn or spawn with incorrect health.
• Sneaky: The Assassinate Charm now properly shows a stealth effect on the unit that will leap during combat.
• The Bunch-o’-Belts Charm now properly makes champions larger when they’re equipped with the effect’s Giants Belts.
• The Overachievers portal will now properly show all charms a stage earlier than normally possible.
• Not sure if I’d label this one a fix, but it was a bug: In Hyper Roll, Scuttle Puddle scuttles on stage 8 are no longer massive.