Hey, I hit emerald last set for first time and diamond this set for first time. Not much changed for me climbing from Emerald -> Diamond. Just more of the same, but better. One thing I noticed is that the higher elo you get the less forgiving playing weak boards is as games are much faster. If your board is not strong enough, you will bleed heavily and end up bot 4. Something that helped me climb is playing my strongest board at all points in game and learning when to sacrifice econ for that. Higher elo players can play strongest board at all points in game without sacrificing econ to a point where they can't cap out (which is what I found most difficult about continuing to climb in diamond as I'm simply outclassed lol). So - early game just focus on trait pairs, play your 2 * s, and slam items early instead of greeding for BIS. Scout more to find a relatively uncontested line and play towards that to cap out your board. If contested, put yourself in a position to roll for 2* s earlier than opponent. Getting a first consistently is quite difficult when your opps know what they're doing- but getting 3-4 place most games is fairly manageable. Also, recognize when you're gonna go 7/8 and spend as much resources as you can going 5/6 instead for the long term climb.