TFT Beginner Guide Part 3: How to Find Your Comp

Step 2: Early Game Champions

In the early game (which is, to me, the first two stages of the game), you really won’t know what comp you are going to go. A good time to have your comp “locked” in would be at the end of the third stage.

Because you don’t have a comp you’re aiming for in those first two stages, your goal is to buy as many units as possible to get 2-star units. These 2-star units are insanely powerful early based on their raw stats and how hard they are to get.

This means they can win you early PvP rounds, which gets you more gold to spend on more units down the line. Always play your 2-star units in these early rounds, even if it comes at the expense of losing a trait synergy on your board.

When buying, prioritize buying the lowest-cost units first and selling the highest-cost units first. This maximizes your board space early since low-cost units are more common and can be leveled to 2-star easier than the 2 or 3g units.

However, you should also keep those two or three comps that you were planning to go in the back of your mind and look to buy units that will fit into any one of them. For instance, if we’re planning to go one of the three comps listed above and have a choice between buying a Yasuo or Zoe, we should buy Yasuo even though Zoe is a lower-cost because Yasuo would fit into one of those comps and Zoe would not. Apply this to your logic for selling too (you would typically sell the higher-cost Yasuo first, but if you need space sell Zoe first).

Please note that this does NOT apply to 2-star units since you should generally keep them as long as possible. In addition, getting two copies of the same 1g unit is better than one copy of a 2g unit, since you’re theoretically one round from getting a 2-star unit which is so valuable early.

While you’re buying up all these units, pay special attention to which units are coming up a lot in the shop and which ones are not. Are you getting a lot of Leonas and Fioras early? That might be a good sign to go Cybernetic.

On the other hand, if you’re not seeing any Lucians, but you see a lot of Mordekaisers, keep Dark Star as an option because Lucian is one of the mid game carries on a Cybernetic comp. You don’t have to commit to either right away, but keep your options open.

If you’re getting a lot of units that don’t go into any potential comp (let’s say you get a ton of early Zoes and Caitlyns), don’t fret. Just keep leveling them up to 2-stars, put them out there, and be patient.