A $10,000 prize pool and TFT Galaxies Championship | NA Finals spots are up for grabs in this Cloud9 tournament, so you’d better believe that each player is giving it their all! Today’s lineup is arguable one of the strongest, featuring four of the top 15 NA players. We will talk stats and observations, then briefly analyze standout boards.
| Lobby 1: Galactic Armory | Lobby 2: Regular | Lobby 3: Dwarf Planet | Lobby 4: Dwarf Planet | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 6 Cybernetic, Infiltrator Irelia + Thresh | 3 Rebel, Blaster/Brawler + Ekko, Fizz | 6 Blademaster + 2 Celestial/Protector | 4 Dark Star/Mystic |
| 2nd Place | 4 Dark Star | 4 Dark Star | 4 Star Guardian/Protector | 6 Sorcerer + Gangplank + Riven |
| 3rd Place | 6 Vanguard, 2 Mystic | 6 Cybernetic + Thresh, Urgot | 4 Dark Star | 4 Protector, Star Guardian |
| 4th Place | 4 Dark Star | 4 Battlecast, Blaster/Brawler | 4 Protector, 3 Star Guardian | 4 Dark Star |
The top 4 boards consisted of:
- 6 Dark Star comps
- 3 Star Guardian + Protector Jarvan comps
- 2 Cybernetic comps
- 2 Blaster/Brawler comps
- 1 Blademaster + Protector Jarvan comp
- 1 Vanguard Mystic comp
- 1 Sorcerer + Gangplank + Riven comp
Jarvan is your best friend.
Jarvan again appeared in over 60% of the Top 4 final compositions. With a single item (Bramble Vest/Warmog’s) he provides a strong front line and can be played in many comps.
In this tournament round he was played with:
- Dark Star
- Star Guardian/Sorcerer (Sorcerer trait makes his attack speed buff even stronger)
- Blademaster
So what are you waiting for! Grab your Warmog’s Jarvan and drop him into one of these comps.
Dark Star, Cybernetic, Blaster/Brawler, and Blademaster each won a lobby.
We are seeing more diversity in the winning comps. This is probably because everyone is playing Dark Star, so other comps are highly uncontested. Use this knowledge wisely.
JinxedJK won a lobby with 6 Blademaster and 2 Celestial/Protector.
He itemized Xayah and Irelia and threw in Celestial for that sweet lifesteal. Xayah Shredder comp for the early game, Irelia for the late game. If you reach level 9, you could throw in the Rebel trait with Yasuo, Yi, and Asol for extra power. Note the Jarvan smiling happily in the middle of his Blademaster friends.
Update: JinxedJK just posted his guide Shredder 2.0 here.
Vanguard Mystic a possible counter to Dark Star and Protector?
thatsPRIMAL managed to grab a 3rd place with a possible counter to Dark Star. The Armor from 6 Vanguard matches up well versus physical damage (Dark Star Jhin, Shaco) and Cassiopeia’s shield reduction ability counters Protector and Riven shields. We might see more of this in the future.
Unfortunately, he was beaten by Cybernetic with Irelia Infiltrator Spatula. He actually made it to the last round, but had a worse loss than the Dark Star comp of Kurumx. Yes, that is a Jarvan with Warmog’s.
Conclusion
Dark Stars are highly contested by pros and that has allowed other comps to sneak in a win. Uncontested comps are able to challenge Dark Star. Jarvan is still very nice. Syndra Blue Buff is also quite strong.
Today’s winner, Kurumx, is known for playing Dark Stars, he is also Top 13 on NA. Big congrats to him.
I want to give a big shout out to DoA and Frodan for being wonderfully insightful, and entertaining casters.