Following Twisted Fate being the first champion to join the original 50-strong Teamfight Tactics roster a few weeks ago, Riot Games will soon add a brand new Origin and as well as more champions. They additionally confirmed Teamfight Tactics will become a permanent part of League’s various game modes.
The latest Origin is called Hextech, and it provides a way for cunning players to deal with item-heavy carries. When two Hextech are on the board, two random items will be disabled on the enemy side at the beginning of combat and will last for the entire duration of the fight. When four Hextech champions are in play, however, that number goes up to four for a game-changing boost. The four champions with the Hextech origin all hail from Piltover, as Camille, Jayce, Vi and Jinx launch onto the Convergence.
Camille appears to be one of the strongest champions in the game right off the bat, as her ability will root and deal bonus damage to the enemy she’s currently attacking but also direct any allies within range to also attack them. This is the first example of control over champions’ internal AI and will allow savvy players to deal with threats before they can do much damage. If equipped with a Youmuu’s Ghostblade and a Spear of Shojin, a strong Camille can leap to the backline, stop enemy carries from getting in range and then ensure her own carries can unload their own damage and remove them for a fight. Camille also has Blademaster synergy, and for her 1-cost she could also open up an early Blademaster triplet alongside Shen and Fiora.
Another low-cost unit that opens up earlier access to synergy is the new two gold Hextech Shapeshifter, Jayce. Alongside Nidalee and Elise, he will get a boost of health in order to unleash his ability. It’s a combination of his knockback and his ranged ability, as on full mana he’ll knock away his current target and convert to ranged, subsequently gaining maximum attack speed briefly. It allows him to clear away the frontline to open up access to the backline and his low cost means you’ll be able to get him on the carousel and make short work of early compositions.
The theme of dealing with the backline continues with Vi. A Brawler that costs three gold, her ability, Assault and Battery, behaves much like her ultimate in regular League. She will target the furthest enemy and fly towards them, knocking aside any target in the way but then knocking up the target upon landing. Vi can easily fill the niche in the Brawler class, with Rek’Sai currently looking a little underpowered, full synergy can still be attained but now with added utility. A Warwick – Blitzcrank – Volibear – Vi core can simultaneously deal with frontline but also wipe away enemy carries whilst retaining a massive health bonus.
The last champion is Jinx, and her ramping ability could rival Draven as the game’s perennial carry. Named Get Excited after her League passive, her attack speed increases after every takedown and she’ll also unload Fishbones, her rocket launcher, for area-of-effect damage on her auto-attacks. With the Gunslinger synergy, multiple AoE attacks in the space of a few seconds can explode any composition. Her strength is gated behind her four gold cost so will only pose a threat later into the game, but with a few items she could be a whole lot of trouble. The Hextech Origin could give her priority in fights, being able to disable enemy items while unloading with items all of her own. Gunslingers now have early and late game strength, and the Blademaster – Gunslinger strategy just got a whole lot scarier.
Hextech is a phenomenal way to deal with enemies who throw everything on a single champion, and could effectively nullify a huge portion of an enemy’s strategy. For example, players running the Demon Bear strategy could fall victim to Hextech disabling the Demon synergy item and other items keeping him alive. Invulnerable frontlines utilizing Thornmail and Warmog’s Armor could quickly fall apart all thanks to a few champions that can easily slot into already strong strategies. It’s a clever way to deal with the rampant item RNG without removing it, and it means that players can now also adapt on the fly with a couple of cheap champions. The new champions will be on the PBE soon and expect it to become a staple of the Teamfight Tactics metagame.
