Overview
TFT Set 16: Lore & Legends has revived the Fast 9 tempo in a way that we haven't seen in multiple sets now. This has always been a viable strategy but in this set, it's become the predominant way to win games thanks to the following reasons:
Leveling from 8 to 9 is cheaper now
You take less damage on Stage 4 -> sacking the entire stage saves you 5 total HP compared to before, which can often buy you another life.
The Unlockables mechanics means this set has more 4 and 5 cost units to play around than ever -- especially units that either do not have synergies or are not reliant on their synergies to be effective
So when do you play Fast 9?
Save as much money and HP as possible on Stage 2 and 3.
If you cannot make money OR save HP, then you do not have a spot to play Fast 9. Money can come from augments, traits (like Yordles, Bilgewater, and Ionia) or from the encounter (Scuttle Crab, Tahm Kench). You can further make more money by win streaking or lose streaking.
If you are losing early (<30 hp by Stage 4), you need to be able to hit 9 on 4-2 with 50G to be able to play this line.
If you are win streaking early (>80hp by Stage 4), you can wait longer before all-inning. The goal is to be level 9 with 50+ gold. It becomes more important to reach this threshold fast if other people are doing the same thing (and thus contesting your units).
It's really bad to force Level 9 boards if you are in the middle ground with HP and gold. Just play a Level 8 comp instead!
Here's the general tempo:
Stage | Level |
|---|---|
2-1 | Level to 4 |
2-5 | Level to 5 |
3-2 | Level to 6 |
3-5 | Level to 7 if you can make 30+ gold and are not on a lose streak |
4-2 | Level to 8 This is also the first interval you can level to 9 if it's a high econ game. You don't want to push level 9 unless you can make ~40+ gold, though. |
4-5 | This is the next common interval for pushing to 9. |
4-7 | This is the neutral round. I recommend pushing to 9 here often because you typically need multiple turns to transition your board. |
5-1 and 5-2 | Generally the last acceptable rounds to transition, though sometimes people greed to even 5-5 if their HP allows it. You're typically only going to transition here if you were able to win streak the early game. |
General Tips and Knowhow
The transition is difficult even for Challenger level players. You need to be able to identify which units are important to hit and which ones are not! For example, if you want to play Azir on your board but you don't want to put any items on him, then it's a bad idea to upgrade him (15 total gold) before upgrading the units that DO carry your items (like Annie and Lucian).
Lower cost units with good traits (typically defensive or utility-oriented like Defender and Piltover) are great to keep on the board during the initial transition. You'll often even keep them for the entirety of the game. Being able to play a 2 or 3 cost unit on your board helps you save money for your carries.
Order of operations is rolling -> replace key units -> items last. You can still place items on your units as the fight begins (or even after it has started). The best thing to do is to stop rolling with around 5 seconds left so you can quickly scout opponents and then slam your items after that. Realistically, though, you likely won't be able to scout, but you still want to take the last 5 seconds of the prep round to properly position your board.
If you are a slower player (nothing wrong with that), it can be prudent to roll during fights. No point in making econ if you are going to die with the next turn anyway!
