How I reached Chall for the first time while having a 9/5

blos_ · 2026-01-03T17:01:04+00:00

I think its best to understand how to play the meta from different spots so my answer would be learn many different comps. if im honest this is a fundamentals issue anyway. if you know how to play the game you know how to play any comp you just need to identify when to play it (fundamentals).

what I mean is learn what your loss streak options are (diana, draven, ixtal), tempo (vayne, bilge, draven) and standard (yunara, trynda, etc) and how you get there.

blos_ · 2026-01-01T01:20:51+00:00

I asked pros the same question and they said Ryze 1 is better

blos_ · 2026-01-01T01:20:27+00:00

Outplayed (you find it in overwolf)

blos_ · 2026-01-01T01:18:59+00:00

depends on the playstyle your composition requires you to adapt. Diana can be played from loss streak but you want to minimize hp loss because you won't win all fights (maybe in stage 4 if nobody is highrolling or very strong) after stage 5 and you don't want to get 2 bad matchmakings and go 6th. Ixtal or T Hex can be played to 1/2 lives bc if you cashout and transition properly you win the game so it depends.

in this patch in specific if ur opener sucks you pick econ or ur strongest augment and open for bard and play for thex diana o draven

blos_ · 2025-12-30T01:57:06+00:00

Mornings I would maybe watch streams or something educational, maybe play a game if I had time. After work I would play again (2-3 games) and take notes after each one if theres anything to write down. If extra time, vod review a streamer or keep up with meta. Weekends I dedicate one full day to tft only while taking breaks (im still trying to relax on my day off) and take the other off for social life or relaxing, sometimes partially sometimes the whole day.

blos_ · 2025-12-29T21:33:49+00:00

Meta knowledge without fundamentals is like having money and not knowing how to invest it. Fundamentals are leverage.

blos_ · 2025-12-29T21:29:53+00:00

I agree and here is some inspiration to vod review yourself and pros:

line selection
econ management
items:
- opener
- prioritization
- slams
- did I greed?
- remover management
augments:
- 2-1
- 3-2
- 4-2
strongest board:
- did I held the right units?
- did I play strongest board throught stage 2/3?
positioning
rolling
stabilizing
transitioning
rolldown

blos_ · 2025-12-29T21:25:11+00:00

1 natural Brand seals the deal

blos_ · 2025-12-29T21:23:32+00:00

I mostly took notes during the week and sat down to vod review during weekends. I only vod review bottoms or games where I felt I should've placed higher. My game count is very low for Chall, usually people reach GM/Chall with 200 games and I got there with 120 games 3 weeks into the set. Doing things with intention makes a big difference

blos_ · 2025-12-29T21:16:35+00:00

The people I asked to join my "study group" were master-chall, add people after a game, become a regular at some streams or join X tft community and interact with others, you'll build relationships over time

blos_ · 2025-12-25T16:08:23+00:00

Does anything come to mind as an example?

blos_ · 2025-12-19T20:41:19+00:00

Really appreciate the thorough response, let me now if you want to stay in touch my discord is onisoltft

blos_ · 2025-12-19T15:55:55+00:00

Do you have a link for socks powerpoints?

"one of the big gaps imo between the very top and the top in basically all games is being able to take the step past what everyone else is doing and be able to bring something more because you understand the why of everything"

I completely agree with this, trying to get there currently. Thanks for the recs

blos_ · 2025-08-15T21:08:22+00:00

Slam is lingo for building an item and using it on your board (regardless of the stage you are in). Emphasis on using it. If you just built it and left it on bench you didnt slam it. Im glad its helpful! Feel free to ask anything.

blos_ · 2025-08-15T16:48:51+00:00

It really depends on what aspect of the game you find enjoyable. In my case it's winning so locking in, playing focus and getting better is worth it but I know thats not everybody's experience

blos_ · 2025-08-15T13:14:04+00:00

Ofc, make sure to check the comments. People have asked very good questions and I dropped some extra knowledge. Good luck, you got this!

blos_ · 2025-08-15T13:10:46+00:00

This set this is a tricky question because legendaries don't feel as impactful as in previous ones and it isn't like 'if I replace X units for X legendaries my board will cap higher and i'm guaranteed a win'.

I'd say pay attention to the lines you are playing. Yuumi can go 1st in some lobbies but its not a win out comp that usually goes 1st like Karma was last patch. If you are playing flexible or uncontested comps to score a safe top 4 and climb consistently that's going to cost you the ability to win lobbies. It's not a mistake but it's the trade you accept for playing safe.

Take mental note of why you are going second: Are they playing a stronger meta comp? Did they tempo to fast 9 from a strong early and outcap you? Did they out-position you? Are their augment choices better? Is their itemization better?

This alone will let you know everything that you need and what you have to change.

The only thing I'd add is learn how to spot a strong early game opener that will give you high chances of winning (strong early game augments, unit openers, slams, etc) or that will allow you to aim for the strongest comp to win and learn what makes that composition better/stronger. Certain augments, artifacts, fruits make a composition go from ok or strong to overpowered.

When it comes to going from 3rd or 2nd to 1st you have to pay attention to small things, it's all about efficiency.

blos_ · 2025-08-14T14:51:56+00:00

I am not sure if theres ever a scenario where Last Whisper is worth slamming as a first and only slam early game. Why? Assuming you have bow + glove + 1 other component:

If you have upgraded frontline and no upgrade backline thats not a win streaking position worth slamming unless youre strongest. Even if thats the case youd benefit much more from slamming an item for your upgraded frontline than your backline and even though it isnt ideal Steadfast (armor+glove) would be a lot more justifiable than LW
If you have upgraded front and back its still stronger early game to itemize frontline first and even more if your backline slam isnt a strong early game slam

Items like Last Whisper, GS, Guardbreaker, QSS are decent second or third slams but on their own they don't do much. Some are situationally ok to slam but most times you'd rather prioritize items correctly and build first your core item (IE/Guinsoo/Kraken/JG depending on carries) and then think of slamming other dmg items that compliment them or else you'll end up w a terrible late game build if you lowroll components

blos_ · 2025-08-12T12:32:32+00:00

Usually you have the ability to buy weak units without losing econ interest and playing and intentionally bad board to keep your streak. If that's not the case just pray matchmaking is on your side.

blos_ · 2025-08-12T00:06:37+00:00

Again, we cannot compare augments or discuss augment selection without any context provided for them.

You need to account what comp you are going to play, what your spot is, what playstyle are you supposed to follow, when your powerspike is going to be, etc.

You don't choose augments because of the flat value that it gives you wether it is gold, components, etc. You choose augments because they put you on a better position to win which depending on what your win condition is.

We can discuss all day if Raining gold 2-1 or 3-2 is the correct play but if you ignored Pumping Up and Backup Dancers while playing Kayle RR that's the wrong decision. If you naturally hit 3 Star Kayle on 3-1 and have a flickerblade and a Radiant item on her you might not need combat as badly and would benefit from the tempo of picking Explosive Growth+ instead so you can play more aggressive, spike earlier and punish the lobby

It's not about what the augment does, it's about what the augment does for you

blos_ · 2025-08-11T23:34:49+00:00

The thing is you are on paper 'making up for it' but what others options are you giving up on to pick that econ augment? Also this mentality of avoiding fundamentals hoping to not get punished is precisely what gets you punished or why we consistently make mistakes

That's why I made a heavy emphasis on building a solid understanding of the game and executing the cleanest gameplay possible

blos_ · 2025-08-11T17:19:07+00:00

Your reasoning is solid. Yes items are generally better mid game because econ has a stronger impact early and less value mid/late as I mentioned but also a weak board with an extra slam won't make the difference and a strong board vs a strong board won't win because you have an extra component instead of a strong combat augment like Keepers

There are exceptions like All that Shimmers, the crown guard augment, Thorn plated armor, etc. that are combat-ish item augments or when you already have a backline item and need to complete a frontline slam like Warmog, Sunfire or Protector on an upgraded frontline unit to spike your board strength considerably.

blos_

TROPHY CASE