Principal Teamfight Tactics lead designer Stephen “Mortdog” Mortimer and lead balance Riot Statikk broke down successes and failures from the 11.4 patch on Mortdog’s weekly Post Mortem today.
For the first time since the launch of Set 4.5 Fates: Festival of Beasts, the meta feels healthy. Multiple top TFT builds are taking firsts in lobbies with the Fates World Championship just around the corner in April. Reaching a positive state in Set 4.5 wasn’t easy, with the team having disagreements over implementation. Despite differences of opinion, Mortdog and Statikk both confirmed via the Post Mortem today that no more major system or rework changes are planned to take place in Set 4.5.
From Chosen system changes and one-cost nerfs to unexpected buffs, here are the highlights from the Feb. 27 TFT Post Mortem.
System changes
Adjustments to Lucky Lanterns hit the mark, according to Mortdog and Statikk. Changes to the Chosen system were debated behind the scenes with both devs agreeing today that the system still feels “a little off.” It is unknown whether the team will continue to tweak the Chosen system for the remainder of Set 4.5.
Traits
Riot Statikk and Mortdog were in agreement regarding a majority of the TFT Patch 11.4 trait buffs and nerfs. Tweaking Galio was compared to balancing Mech in Set Three Galaxies, and both devs feel like Dragonsoul could get toned down just a notch. Duelists might see get some buffs in future patches, depending on the meta. It was agreed that Elderwood is “not in a good spot” despite the “changes being correct,” according to Mortdog.
Champions and items
One-cost champions were hit especially hard with Patch 11.4 due to the dominant reroll meta that formed out of 11.3. Some changes were good while others still need some work. Despite the large number of nerfs and buffs that took place in Patch 11.4, both devs feel like the TFT team is in a good position to focus on tweaking individual champions with smaller patches.
One-cost
- Diana: Diana had the highest win rate at stages three and four but falls off in the late game, according to Mortdog and Statikk.
- Fiora: Fiora’s recent nerf has put her in a good spot.
- Nasus: Mortdog admitted he pushed hard for nerfs that led to Nasus being one of the worst champions. The B-patch helped some but the champion still might need additional tweaking.
- Nidalee: Nidalee went from being the best champion to worst.
- Wukong: Champion is in a good spot.
- Yasuo: Both devs agreed there was a slight over-nerf to Yasuo that can be worked on in future patches.
Two-cost
- Braum: Buff did what the team wanted it to but maybe not enough at three-star.
- Nautilus: Fabled Shield Damage reduction was a good adjustment.
- Teemo- Teemo was a solid change that left the two-cost champion strong, but not overly strong.
- Zed: Both devs acknowledged that changes made it hard to play Zed, due to him being too synergistic with the item system, according to Statikk.
Three-cost
- Irelia: Change did nothing, according to Mortdog.
- Katarina: Lowering Katarina’s three-star power was a slam dunk, according to Mortdog, leaving her viable but not over-dominant.
- Kennen: Buff was good and has led to the emergence of a Keeper comp in the 11.4 meta.
- Neeko: Neeko has improved compared to previous patches, with perhaps too much power in the Fabled trait, according to the devs.
- Nunu: Both devs are happy with where Nunu is at regarding balance.
- Shyvana: Data supports that Shyvana is in a healthy spot, for now.
Four-cost
- Aatrox: Buffing one and two-star Aatrox was a “mistake,” according to Mortdog. The goal was to give Vanguard a strong AP carry but didn’t work out. The buff instead made Aatrox and Sejuani a “very powerful combo.”
- Aurelion Sol: Asol is in a good place.
- Cho’Gath: Unlike Aatrox and Sejuani, Cho’Gath doesn’t have a Brawler combo pairing that is on the same level.
- Kayle: Kayle is still one of the best four-cost carries—and should be, according to Mortdog.
- Morgana: Changes were solid.
- Olaf: Similar to Kayle, Mortdog said Olaf is where he should be now following the 11.4 B-patch. Statikk still feels Olaf is somewhat of an issue.
- Talon: Bug fix to Talon brought the champion and the Enlightenment comp back to life.
- Tryndamere: Quality-of-life changes improved Tryndamere to what he is supposed to be despite players calling for nerfs. The four-cost champion can still fall off in the late-game.
- Xayah: Despite a buff, Xayah remains the worst three-star carry at this time.
Five-cost
- Ornn Eternal Winter: The nerf was a step in the right direction but the item still needs to get toned down more.
- Ornn Manazane: Changes were healthy, making it an exciting item now.
- Yone: A buff to Yone was the correct move, with Blue Buff putting Yone in a spot he should be.
- Samira: The nerf to Samira didn’t resolve fundamental issues. Changes to Samira are planned to take place in Patch 11.5.
Items
- Deathblade: Mortdog is “not thrilled” about Deathblade being a better slam item over Infinity Edge.
- Gargoyle Stoneplate: The item is still not overpowered, but good, despite it returning to what it once was at the start of Set 4.5.
- Statikk Shiv: “Tying it to Crit has limited options,” according to Mortdog. For Statikk Shiv to work, though, it would likely need a component shift.
- Sunfire Cape: Changes to Sunfire Cape were positive, lowering its power levels within the early stages of the game.
- Quicksilver: A solid change.
Patch 11.5 is scheduled to release on March 3. Players can test out the small number of TFT changes expected to release with it via the PBE server.
