TFT: Riot Games Reveals First Set 3 Traits and Champions

With today’s /dev blog, Riot Games gave us a deeper glimpse into TFT Set 3’s Galaxies.

There is a lot of anticipation for TFT Set 3, as it will bring the new Galaxies mechanic of a unique ruleset for different games and it will be (likely) the first game on mobile. Today, Riot Games unveiled a new look at TFT Set 3, what will make Galaxies different from the Rise of the Elements, what champions will be coming in Set 3, and what the future holds for TFT!

Galaxies versus Elements

Riot Games stated that they learned some lessons during Set 2: Rise of the Elements on what makes a satisfying composition (ability to pivot to counter specific enemies or combine traits in unique ways) and what makes an unsatisfying composition (needing to go full six for a comp to be effective or a full six comp that wasn’t worth attempting). They also noted that they need to make sure “the compositions have satisfying carries with really satisfying spells.”

Right off the bat, I’m excited about this. Their first point about comps wanting to be more flexible both in whether you can pivot or shift around carries is fantastic.

In Set 2, you had the flexibility to add small complementary synergies like Mystic or Ocean that could buff up your whole team with only a few units. I’d expect to see more of these types of traits in Set 3.

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On the other hand, units like Kindred, Lux, and Qiyana were so powerful in Set 2 because you could either flex them into your comp based on the board or flex your comp around them based on what items and units you were getting. This indicates, to me, that we’ll see more carry units with flexible synergies in TFT Set 3, so you can plug carries into multiple types of comps.

New Units and New Synergies

Riot Games first gave us a look into a potential comps that we could run in Set 3 based on three new traits: Mech-Pilot, Cybernetic, and Star Guardian. While I could break down what makes each of these comps unique and how they might function together, Riot already took care of that in their /dev post. However, these comps and their description not only revealed info about these comps, but confirmed a bunch of champions, along with their synergies and likely abilities.

From the /dev post, here are the Origins and Classes that are almost certain to be in Set 3 and what we know about them:

• Star Guardian: 6 units. Grants mana to all Star Guardians every time one casts a spell. Spatula plus Tear of the Goddess will transform any unit into a Star Guardian.
• Sorcerer: 2/4/6 units. Grants all allies increased spell power.
• Vanguard: Unknown units, unknown trait. Likely some sort of tanky synergy like Wardens.
• Protector: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe some sort of shielding trait.
• Mystic: Unknown units. Potentially provides healing to the team.
• Cybernetic: 3/6 units. Cybernetic champions with an item equipped gain bonus health and AD.
• Mana-Reaver: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe some sort of mana-draining trait like Set 1’s Demon.
• Blademaster: 3/6 units. Blademasters have a chance on hit to attack two extra times.
• Celestial: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe some kind of rule-changing mechanic or they each have a unique ability to flex into other classes like Lux/Qiyana.
• Chrono: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe a kind of time-travel or reset mechanic.
• Rebel: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe a teleportation mechanic.
• Valkyrie: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe some sort of exo-skeleton ability or armor that they give to other units.
• Mech-Pilot: 3 units. At the start of combat, three Mech-Pilot champs are merged into a Super Mech until it dies.
• Demolitionist: 2 units. Demolitionist’s spells stun.
• Infiltrator: Unknown units, unknown trait. Maybe some sort of summoned unit/pet like a Summoner.

So right there we have 15 different traits. Right now, in Set 2, we have 27 different traits between Origins and Classes, so this list is likely not exhaustive.

However, the art and descriptions in the /dev post did confirm several units. Here are the champions Riot Games has confirmed will be coming to Set 3:

• Poppy (Star Guardian/Vanguard), 1g – Ability likely her Buckler, Steadfast Presence, or Heroic Charge.
• Zoe (Star Guardian/Sorcerer), 1g – Ability almost certainly her Sleepy Trouble Bubble.
• Leona (Cybernetic/Vanguard), 1g – Ability almost certainly her Eclipse.
• Fiora (Cybernetic/Blademaster), 1g – Ability likely her Lunge or Bladework.
• Xayah (Celestial/Blademaster), 1g – Ability likely her Double Daggers or Deadly Plumage.
• Ziggs (Rebel/Demolitionist), 1g – Ability almost certainly his Satchel Charge.
• Ahri (Star Guardian/Sorcerer), 2g – Ability almost certainly her Orb of Deception.
• Annie (Mech-Pilot/Sorcerer), 2g – Ability likely her Incinerate or Disintegrate.
• Shen (Chrono/Blademaster), 2g – Ability likely his Ki Barrier or Spirit’s Refuge.
• Yasuo (Rebel/Blademaster), 2g – Ability likely his Last Breath, Steel Tempest, or Sweeping Blade.
• Neeko (Star Guardian/Protector), 3g – Ability almost certainly her Tangle-Barbs.
• Syndra (Star Guardian/Sorcerer), 3g – Ability likely her Dark Sphere, Force of Will, or Unleash Power.
• Rumble (Mech Pilot/Demolitionist), 3g – Ability likely his Harpoon or Equalizer.
• Soraka (Star Guardian/Mystic), 4g – Ability almost certainly her Wish.
• Irelia (Cybernetic/Mana-Reaver/Blademaster), 4g – Ability likely her Bladesurge or Defiant Dance.
• Kayle (Valkyrie/Blademaster), 4g – Ability almost certainly based on her Divine Ascent.
• Fizz (Mech Pilot/Infiltrator), 4g – Ability almost certainly his Playful Trickster.

That gives us 17 champions confirmed for TFT Set 3. However, given that TFT Sets 1 and 2 had over 50 champions, that still leaves a lot of champions Riot Games hasn’t confirmed.

Now, they did mention one other champion, Vel’Koz, but they didn’t give any additional details. However, based on the information Riot Games did give us – namely the names of the synergies, the models for some of the champions within those synergies, and the unit requirements – I’m prepared to make an educated guess about some of the champions that we could see.

• Star Guardian: We have at least two Star Guardians from each of the three release batches except for the first, with only Poppy being among those in this synergy. As a result, I think we could very well see Jinx (Star Guardian/Demolitionist), Lulu (Star Guardian/Mystic), Lux (Star Guardian/Protector), or Janna (Star Guardian/Mystic) also being added.
• Cybernetic: These are all based off the PROJECT skins and we know we can have at least three more than the three already revealed since there is a possibility for 6 Cybernetic. There are a lot of PROJECT skins to choose from but I’ll throw out Warwick (Cybernetic/Protector), Pyke (Cybernetic/Infiltrator), Katarina (Cybernetic/Infiltrator), and Vayne (Cybernetic/Demolitionist) as possibilities.
• Celestial: This synergy is based on the Cosmic skin line, and Xayah is the only one confirmed. Unfortunately, none of the other Cosmic champs are confirmed, so we have a bunch to pick from. I’ll guess Rakan (Celestial/Mystic), Xin Zhao (Celestial/Blademaster), and Kassadin (Celestial/Mana-Reaver).
• Chrono: Shen is the only Chrono champion announced and his model appears to be Pulsefire Shen, so we’ll look to the Pulsefire champions for others to fill out this roster. For these I’ll guess Thresh (Chrono/Vanguard) and maybe Ezreal, Riven, and/or Caitlyn.
• Rebel: Odyssey Yasuo is the only unit revealed from this trait, so I’ll guess the other Odyssey champions will be the likely Rebels to join him. That means that Malphite (Rebel/Vanguard), Jinx (Rebel/Demolitionist), Kayn (Rebel/Infiltrator), and Sona (Rebel/Protector) could be coming as well.
• Valkyrie: Kayle is the teased Valkyrie and the art is based on her Aether Wing Kayle, meaning the Steel Valkyries (and possibly Dreadnova) will be among this class. That gives some good indications that Morgana (Valkyrie/Sorcerer) and maybe Miss Fortune and Kai’Sa will be added to TFT.
• Mech-Pilot: For this one, we got three champions – Rumble, Fizz, and Annie – all in their Super Galaxy skins. For this one, it’s possible Riot will only make it three units total and you need to get each of them to activate the passive. If not, though, we could see Gnar (Mech-Pilot/Demolitionist), Kindred (Mech-Pilot/Protector), or Nidalee (Mech-Pilot/Mystic).
• Battlecast: Finally, since Riot Games mentioned Vel’Koz, but didn’t feature his artwork, we’ll have to guess as to which skin line of his will be used to round out the class. While Arclight could be a possibility, it was already used in Set 2 so I think Battlecast is far more likely. That means champions like Skarner (Battlecast/Vanguard), Urgot (Battlecast/Demolitionist), Viktor (Battlecast/Sorcerer), or Xerath (Battlecast/Sorcerer) also could be on the way.

Riot Games promised to provide more info on TFT Set 3 in early March, so make sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more news!