TFT, or Teamfight Tactics, is a strategy game in the style of “Auto Chess” from Riot Games, the same producer of League of Legends. The game uses very different rules on PC and Android and iOS phones, but it’s not as complicated as it looks. Here’s how to play TFT.
What is TFT?
The TFT is an automatic battle game, so it is a representative of the game “Auto Chess”. The name comes from “Dota Auto Chess”, which is a modification of the game Dota 2, which later became its own game, Dota Underlords, in the same style.
Teamfight Tactics was born as an optional game mode for League of Legends, or LoL, released within the game itself in June 2019, for Windows and Mac.
Only in March 2020 did TFT become a separate game, available on Android and iOS phones – but still playable within League of Legends, on computers.
Today TFT is already an entity of its own, with its own updates, tournaments, news and, of course, gameplay. The account to access the two games, however, is the same.
Minimum requirements
To play TFT on the PC, you need to download and install League of Legends. So, in this case, the requirements are the same for both games.
Minimum requirements to play TFT:
- Windows 7
- 3Ghz processor
- 4GB memory
- 1GB graphics card compatible with Pixel Shader 2.0b
- 12GB of disk space
For mobile phones, the requirements are:
- Android 7.0 or iOS 9.0
- Devices with 1.5 GB of RAM
Any configuration higher than these is capable of running TFT in an acceptable way. For better performance, of course, just use better settings.
Same universe
One of TFT’s strengths is to set yourself in the same universe as League of Legends. This presents a familiar environment for those who play the other Riot game and, at the same time, serves to introduce the already rich world of heroes and villains to new users.
However, this does not mean that the two games “connected to each other”. Gameplay, levels, items and even the money spent between the two are not connected. Even the PC version, which works within League of Legends, shares only the recharges made with Riot Points to purchase additional ones.
Characters
TFT characters are divided into 13 classes. They are, with each representative character:
- Infiltrate: Kha’Zix, Kai’Sa, Shaco, Fizz and Ekko
- Detonator: Graves, Lucian, Ezreal, Jinx and Miss Fortune
- Mercenary: Miss Fortune and Gangplank
- Fighter: Malphite, Blitzcrank, Vi and Cho’Gath
- Vanguard: Leona, Poppy, Mordekaiser, Jayce and Wukong
- Daredevil: Ziggs and Rumble
- Protector: Jarvan IV, Rakan, Neeko and Xin Zhao
- Mystic: Lulu, Soraka, Sona and Karma
- Manamante: Thresh, Darius, Kassadin and Irelia
- Blade Master: Yasuo, Xayah, Fiora, Shen and Master Yi
- Sniper: Ashe, Jhin and Caitlyn
- Spaceship: Aurelion Sol
In addition, they are also divided into levels, or Tier , and origins. Each Tier level represents the cost in gold coins within the matches – we will get there to explain this aspect.
Tiers in TFT range from one to five, with different champion numbers between them. As already mentioned, the characters are the same as LoL, but they do not have the same abilities or evolutions as the sister game.
Thus, it is common to see names like Blitzcrank, Ezreal, Gnar, Jinx, Ashe, Jayce, among others. But expect to be surprised by visuals and blows in fights.
The origins, on the other hand, are a kind of “subclass”, which varies according to the chosen champion and serves to combine attacks and strategies. But, for those just starting out, it is not so necessary to focus on that.
How to play TFT
To play TFT it is necessary to assemble your team and position it on the board within the matches. As mentioned, it is a strategy game, but the gameplay is almost automatic – hence the “Auto Chess” genre.
Each match starts with eight players and, at the end, only one winner remains. Yes, there are elements of Battle Royale in TFT, but it is not the main one, so it is not possible to say that it is a game of this type.
The match starts with characters arranged in a circle, at random, so that players choose who they want to start the matches with. When someone takes a champion, he is unavailable to others, at least in this initial selection.
When the match starts, the player needs to place the champion on the board and then he fights automatically. The strategy is to know which champion to position in which position he will be.
The first three rounds of a match are against “minions”, which are monsters controlled by the computer. They are used to generate items, experience and gold for the player. The following are against other players and their respective champions.
As you win or lose, life can slow down. If you lose many times, you will be eliminated from the game. If you keep winning, you will remain at the top of the eight participants – everything depends on your performance.
When you win gold, buy other champions that appear in the store at the top of the screen, to form stronger, more varied teams with different strategies.
Items
Items within TFT behave similarly to what is seen in LoL, but can come to your team in two different ways:
- Defeating monsters controlled by the computer that appear between clashes
- Collecting characters in the selection circle that already come with items
Items are equipped in real time, just tap on one and drag to the desired champion. If you want to remove a champion’s item, you must “sell” the character during the match. The limit is three items per champion.
How to level up the champion
To raise the level of a TFT champion, you must have three copies of the same character. Buy equal copies of the character in the store between each game and accumulate them.
It is also possible to get copies of the champion in the initial selection circle or between rounds, when he appears.
Other tips
With this initial knowledge it is already possible to play TFT, at least start. The game has automatic gameplay within battles, so don’t worry too much about controls or too much technical information.
Train hard and enter normal matches without fear, before trying to increase your ranking. It is also always valid to study champion formation and what the best items work with each one.