With Set 5.5 one week underway, there have been a lot of familiar faces popping up in games as well as some new ones. While the game as a whole feels a lot more flexible and dynamic than the previous set, there are some certain units belonging to a particular trait that keep popping up in team comps. Without further adieu, here are some of the best team comps to climb the ranked ladder with in the TFT patch 11.15 tier list!
S Tier: Will Top 4 Almost Always/ Can Win the Lobby
Revenant ApheliosÂ
Aphelios has been set 5.5’s premiere attack damage carry, especially since he was not touched in the recent B patch. This comp surrounds him with the revenant trio, who will be popping up in a lot of these comps, and other extremely durable frontline units to maximize his output.
Carry itemization:Â Aphelios will need some form of damage amplification and an attack speed booster. The best option for damage would be Deathblade since his AOE ability deals a percent bonus based off of his AD, but Infinity Edge works as well. Guinsoo’s Rageblade is essential for building up Aphelios’ DPS, but Runaan’s Hurricane is a solid backup in case the rod is being particularly evasive or if the player is bleeding out. The third item can be pretty flexible, but Bloodthirster is the safest option for healing insurance. Some flex options can be Spear of Sojin for more ability casts, Hand of Justice for a balance of healing and damage and Guardian’s Angel as a defensive option.
Radiant Items:Â Radiant Deathblade, Guinsoo’s and Bloodthirster are amazing radiant item options for Aphelios and would be the three go-to offensive radiant items for this comp. If the offered Radiant Items are lacking in offensive power, Radiant Bramble Vest, Gargoyle’s Stoneplate, and Redemption are good options for Rell, who is the best designated tank for the comp. Some good flex options are Radiant Morellonomicon for Volibear or a Radiant Zeke’s Herald for the backline.
The Undead AssassinsÂ
Nocturne makes his triumphant return to the top of tier lists as a vertical threat, taking full advantage of the revenant trait’s insanely powerful units and maxing out his damage output with six assassins. The blender will need to be three-starred for this comp to survive in the late game, so make sure to slow-roll at levels 7 or 8. An assassin emblem will also be needed to reach 6 assassins.
Carry itemization:Â The crit combo of Infinity Edge and Last Whisperer are best for Nocturne, as these will maximize his damage with the assassin trait’s crit chance increase and damage bonus. Runaan’s Hurricane will provide AOE damage, as Nocturne is really the only reliable damage-dealer in this comp. If Runaan’s is not an option, then Guinsoo’s is a great backup as the Revenant units will stall out the fight to increase Nocturne’s attack speed.
Radiant Items:Â The Radiant counterparts of Nocturne’s items are good options, but Runaan’s Hurricane is by far and away the most optimal, as the bolts can critically strike and deal 110% of nocturne’s attacks. If this isn’t an option, then items like Radiant Frozen Heart or Sunfire Cape are good for Pyke while he travels across the map dealing out debuffs. Radiant ZZ’rot portal is good for taking aggro off of the small frontline, and Radiant Trap Claw’s spell shields will allow the assassins to kill off some enemy backline units without being interrupted.
Can’t Find the Spatula Item?:Â If the assassin trait is not found, swapping out Kha’zix for an Invoker will help those utility units like Volibear and Ivern get their abilities off faster for more disruption.
Lucian’s BodyguardsÂ
This comp serves to protect Lucian with a strong frontline and utility that would be lacking with a full sentinels team, and allows for a second late game carry option in Gwen to cut down those pesky late game tanks.
Carry itemization:Â Items for Lucian can be pretty flexible and vary due to his flurry of shots scaling with AP and AP, and the number of his shots scaling with attack speed. His first item should be a damage amplifier, and since his scaling leans towards AD, items like Infinity Edge and Deathblade are preferred. Last Whisperer is also great since his shots apply on-hit effects, so one of them is bound to break their armor down. The second and third items are particularly flexible. Doubling up on Hand of Justice can be viable for a balance of increased healing and damage, Bloodthirster is always a safe option, and Guinsoo’s rageblade will multiply his damage exponentially the longer a fight drags on. The Infinity Edge and Last Whisper combo is also always reliable for melting frontlines in the blink of an eye.
Gwen’s items are more for utility ands sustain since her ability already shreds resistances and deals percent max health damage. Hextech Gunblade is great for healing, QSS will allow her to snip freely, and Archangel’s Staff acts as a damage amplification for those particularly beefy targets. Blue Buff is a good third item to let her cast off cooldown, and any leftover AP items are good to toss onto her as well.
Radiant Items: Since Lucian is so flexible with his itemization, Galio will be the best candidate for a defensive Radiant item, as he will be the dedicated tank of the team. Radiant Gargoyle’s stoneplate synergizes well with his ability, and Radiant Warmog’s, Bramble Vest or even Dragon’s Claw are all good for stalling out fights and letting Lucian and Gwen do their thing.
Nightbringer YasuoÂ
Yasuo heads another RFC-Runaan’s combo-style comp to take advantage of the Nightbringer trait and some utility-based units to deal out damage. This is another slow-roll comp that will require Yasuo to be three-starred to survive the late game.
Carry itemization: There’s no way around it: Rapidfire Cannon and Runaan’s Hurricane are absolutely essential for Yasuo to carry, as this comp is vertical, and there won’t be enough items to optimally itemize both him and Aphelios. RFC is important to keep Yasuo out of harm’s way and Runaan’s will apply Yasuo’s on-hit effect from his ability. Yasuo’s third item can be flexible, but it’s best if it is some sort of damage amplification. Jeweled Gauntlet gives Yasuo the chance to crit on the bleed procs from his ability, Hextech Gunblade will heal him from the immense amount of damage he’s dealing out, and Hand of Justice would give a nice balance between both damage and healing.
Radiant Items:Â This is a comp where offensive Radiant Items are necessary, since all of the eggs are going in one Yasuo-shaped basket. Obviously, Radiant RFC and Runaan’s are the best options, as they will not only relieve the player of finding those coveted bows, but amplify Yasuo’s safety and damage output. Radiant Hand of Justice is probably the best third-item Radiant option, as the benefits will both increase his damage and sustainability.
Bill Gates 2.0Â
With Set 5.5 adding a 4-cost Dragconic unit, 5 Dragconic has become extremely more assessible in the earlier stages of the game. This comp utilizes the money and units earned from Dragconic to reach levels 8 and 9 faster than the rest of the lobby and transition into a 5-cost board with Heimerdinger as the main carry, and Revenant and Abomination units to back him up. Any leftover items can be given to the abomination units to have a strong disrupter and secondary damage dealer in Sion.
Carry itemization:Â One of the advantages of Dragconic is that Heimerdinger, Zyra and Ashe all share similar components and full items that bring out their full potential. Zyra and Ashe will be used as primary carries until Heimerdinger is found, so good items for all three would be Spear of Sojin, Archangel’s Staff, Jeweled Gauntlet, Hand of Justice, and even Guinsoo’s Rageblade. The only absolutely necessary item out of these would be Spear of Sojin since all three of these units have extremely high mana costs. The rest of these items can be used to yield positive results.
Radiant Items: Any of the above items’ mentioned Radiant counterparts are great options, but two that stand out above the rest would be Spear of Sojin and Hand of Justice, since those lend the most utility to an already extremely strong 5-cost unit. A debuff Radiant item such as Frozen Heart or Sunfire Cape for Sion is also a good strategy as he will be charging to the backline upon spawn.
A Tier: Likely Top 4/ Can Win if Optimally Built
Kayle Wall 2.0
While losing the Verdant trait in the transition to Set 5.5 was tragic, Kayle’s pure strength and her ability’s amazing synergy with tanky frontlines still makes her a carry threat. This comp surrounds Kayle with Knights to protect her while she cycles through her Ascension bonuses to deal more damage as the fight drags on.
Carry Itemization:Â Since Kayle’s ascensions are time-based and bonuses are granted after a certain number of auto-attacks, Guinsoo’s Rageblade is essential for her to deal out damage from the hail of swords and gain the damage immunity from every 15th attack. Guardian’s Angel is the best defensive item for her, as she will resurrect with any previous ascension stacks she’s built up still in tact. The third item should preferably be Hand of Justice as it amps both her physical auto attacks and magic damage from her ascension. An alternative to HoJ would be Hextech Gunblade to heal from her AOE damage.
Radiant Items:Â Radiant Hand of Justice would probably be the most sought-after Radiant item for this comp, as it favors auto-attack based units like Kayle heavily. A defensive radiant item for Galio would also be very helpful to stall out the enemy team while Kayle mows them down. Galio’s best Radiant item options are Gargoyle’s Stoneplate, Bramble Vest and Warmog’s Armor.
Dawnbringer Karma
This Set 5 classic returns as one of the only viable magic damage-based comps. This team focuses on combining the Dawnbringer and Revenant traits to create a hard-to-kill frontline for Karma while she deals out soulflares to the enemy team.
Carry Itemization: The Skeleton for Karma’s item slots requires one mana item and one magic damage item. Blue Buff slightly takes the edge over Spear of Sojin as her ability reduces her mana down to 10 after some casts, meaning that she will be casting off of cooldown later in the fight. Spear of Sojin is still a good secondary option though as it synergizes well with the Invoker trait bonus. Jeweled Gauntlet synergizes better with Karma’s constant casting than Rabadon’s Deathcap, although again, both are viable for increasing her damage output.
The last item can be a flex depending on the other players’ boards and what’s at disposal. Infinity Edge is a great combo with Jeweled Guantlet, Hextech Gunblade will help especially against enemies with more backline access, and even Hand of Justice can be worked with.
Radiant Items:Â As this comp is more vertical and focuses on maxing out one trait, Karma will be the biggest benefactor of the Radiant Item. Both Radiant mana items are great options for her as well as both Jeweled Gauntlet and Deathcap. Hand of Justice and Hextech Gunblade are also good for some increased sustain.
Volibear is going to be the dedicated tank of this comp, so any defensive or utility Radiant items will be going to him, as his tankiness and large AOE knock-up are great for disruption and drawing aggro. Morellonomicon, Guardian’s Angel and Warmog’s Armor are all solid candidates.
SkirmishersÂ
Another Set 5 comp that’s made a return is Skirmishers. Just like in Set 5, this comp revolves around Jax as the main carry. While Jax is a strong unit, just like Yasuo he will need the right items to gain LP, which is why this is another comp where bows will reign supreme.
Carry Itemization:Â Similar to Nightbringer Yasuo, This comp has a heavy hunger for bows. Both RFC and Runaan’s are essential for Jax to deal out AOE damage from a safe distance. Bloodthirster is the best third item option for the sustain, but Jax can also benefit from other auto-attack-based items like Hand of Justice and Last Whisper. Deathblade, Guardian’s Angel and QSS are also viable third item options.
In the very late game, Viego will start to become more relied on to win rounds, so it’s important to toss any leftovers onto him, as his backline access and the nature of his ability make him syenergize well with a lot of items.
Radiant Items:Â Radiant RFC or Runaan’s Hurricane are the best options for this comp, as this team focuses on making Jax the hyper carry, so he should be taking up as many resources as possible. Hand of Justice and even Giant’s Slayer can work but the attack speed items should always be prioritized for Jax.
If these items are not seen, then most radiant tank items should work for Rell. Kennen’s ability to zip around the map make him a good candidate for items like Frozen Heart, Morellonomicon and Sunfire Cape. Viego is also a good last resort as a secondary carry, so items like Hand of Justice or Spear of Sojin will benefit him greatly.
B Tier: Can Top 4/ probably won’t win lobbies without highroll
Brawler Riven
This next comp focuses on three-starring Riven as the primary carry, and Nunu as the primary tank. The Abomination and Brawlers act as a frontline to protect Riven while she deals out damage with RFC and Runaan’s Hurricane. It is also essential that Nunu gets the Dawnbringer trait to increase his tankiness and round out the synergy bonus.
Carry Itemization:Â Again, this is a bows comp, meaning that RFC and Runaan’s are essential for Riven to properly carry. The third item is a toss-up between Bloodthirster and Hand of Justice for sustain.
As for Nunu, while he does need the Dawnbringer trait, the other two items can be a little more flexible as long as they are tank items. Warmog’s Armor is probably the best option, as it synergizes well with his ability and the Brawler synergy bonus to make sure his chomp can one-shot a frontline unit or two. Other good items are Bramble Vest, Sunfire Cape and even Hextech Gunblade for some extra healing.
Radiant Items: Radiant Hand of Justice is probably the best offensive option for Riven if RFC and Runaan’s Hurricane are not available to select. Otherwise, going defensive is the best bet. Not only will Nunu benefit from something like Radiant Warmog’s Sunfire Cape, etc., but Sion will also have a chance to be holding this item as well.
In a pinch, getting something like a Radiant Frozen Heart or Ionic Spark just to give to one of the other Abomination units to ensure that Sion will pull that item every time is not a bad idea, either.
Can’t find the Spatula Item?:Â If it is not feasible to make Nunu a Dawnbringer, swapping out Nidalee for a Nocturne would increase the Revenant bonus and give a defensive boost to those already extremely powerful units.
Late Game Yordles
As opposed to other variations, this comp focuses less on three-starring as many Hellions as possible and more on hitting level 8 to find Teemo before health gets too low and using a Hellion spatula to max out the synergy. Tristana will be the main carry of this comp, while Teemo will come in to help out in the late game.
Carry Itemization:Â Given the 8 Hellion attack speed bonus, Lulu granting attack speed, and Tristana gaining bonus attack speed whenever she jumps, Guinsoo’s Rageblade would be a little auxiliary. Tristana would be better off focusing on attack damage with Deathblade and Bloodthirster for sustain. Runaan’s Hurricane is an amazing item for spreading the damage around while Tristana jumps to different parts of the board, so this is really the only essential item. Deathblade and Bloodthirster can be swapped out for the IE and LW combo, but the Bloodthirster is important for keeping Tristana alive, as she has been known to jump into some hairy situations. If Bloodthirster isn’t feasible, Hand of Justice is a great alternative.
Radiant Items:Â Radiant Runaan’s Hurricane, Bloodthirster, or Deathblade are all great options for Tristana. If those are not available, Kennen and Rell will be the main frontline of this comp, so Radiant Morellonomicon, Frozen Heart or Guardian’s Angel are amazing options for Kennen, and Radian Warmog’s, Bramble Vest or Ionic Spark are good for Rell. Radiant Zz’Rot Portal also synergizes well with the Hellions comp, as it adds one more faux unit for the enemy to defeat before they can get to Tristana.
Can’t Find the Spatula Item?:Â If 8 Hellions is not feasible, swap out the Poppy for a defensive flex like Mystic or a Knight. Some good unit options for the flex would be Qwen, Galio, Lux or Garen.