When you’re looking for a new combination in your Teamfight Tactics builds, sometimes it’s just more fun to try to play checkers while your opponent is playing chess. Sure, you could run Nobles/Knights, Dragons, or Glacials and try to win, but why not show your opponents that you’ve got some serious mojo instead?
I’ve selected five of my favorite builds that I’ve encountered, concocted, or witnessed on the Summoner’s Rift chessboard, emphasizing style over power. These builds may not net you loads of wins, but you'll look good using them.
Bullet Hell: The attacks of the many outweigh the attacks of the few
Though they aren’t the strongest units, both Gunslingers and Pirates can wreak some havoc if you set them up correctly. In this case, you want four Gunslingers for the bigger bonus (attacking all enemies in range). Pirates can help your economy (giving up to four gold every time you fight another player), and Gunslingers will give free multi-attacks to everyone in the synergy, most importantly to Graves.
Speaking of our key unit, the cigar-chewing gunman himself, you want him as high tier as possible. Pack his inventory with a Phantom Dancer (for both attack speed and survivability) and a Titanic Hydra (to give every one of his Gunslinger multi-attacking shots splash damage). The final item slot is yours to pick, but usually the best choices are items that give attack speed or health, a spatula item that gives Graves a key synergy with other units (Blademaster is amazing). Don’t forget to throw a tank in front, my favorite for this is Shen, since he helps get you to that Blademaster synergy.
The Tractor Pull: Blitzcrank makes friends
Everyone’s least favorite golden robot can become the most annoying robot since Claptrap if you don’t mind showering him with items. Start off equipping our key unit, Blitzcrank, with either a pair of Spear of Shojin or just one and a Yuumi (turning him into a Sorcerer) to guarantee that he’ll be using his ability as often as possible. The last slot is flexible, but I like Guinsoo’s Rageblade to help add some damage and scaling. For the rest of the composition, it’s good to have at least one other Brawler (Warwick is an easy pick), and maybe one other target for items, but make sure you have plenty of health and beef around your robot pal. You want to be pulling enemies right into the thick of a horrible mess, over and over.
Kassawin: the ultimate in mana-draining
Never a bad pick, Kassadin can actually be accelerated to a huge headache for your opponents with a few key items. Start out with Gunsoo’s Rageblade and then add in Runaan’s Hurricane and finish up with a Rapid Firecannon to seal the deal. Swinging on three people at once from range and draining all their mana to fuel your own shields should help keep him (and your team) alive. To stock his cupboards even more, fellow void resident Kha’Zix will also distract and eliminate backline threats, and Cho’Gath is a great pick for his area-CC, tanking, and filling out the void buff. Consider going for Sorcerers so you can add in Lulu and someone who can deal some area damage like Aurelion Sol or Ahri to get you some bonus ability damage.
The Pyke Express: giving Sonic a run for his money
Your goal with Pyke is to help him zip around the battlefield at top speed, stunning everyone and dealing damage while being unlikely for the AI to focus on. Double Spear of Shojin is the most important part of the build, and according to your own taste you can choose between Gunsoo’s Rageblade and Hextech Gunblade for the final item. Placing him up front to the extreme right or left is usually smart, so that he is likelier to jump to the sides of a typical enemy team and slash across them, but try to peek at your opponents to see what you might be up against before choosing.
To go along with Pyke, you have a lot of flexibility since he’s not particularly looking for synergy bonuses. I like something like a Shyvana or Gnar for another threat once they transform, and a Nidalee or Lulu can also be good to help keep him alive.
Ninja Deliverator: Kennen in enemy backlines in 30 milliseconds or less
With his AOE stun and damaging ability, Kennen can be an excellent choice. Frequently though, he’s a miss simply because he’s stuck in the wrong position when he wants to use his ability. Gear Kennen up with a Youmuu’s Ghostblade and he’ll be leaping into just the right spot. Usually you’re going to want to fit him with at least one Spear of Shojin, but the other slot can be a Rabadon’s Deathcap, a Morellonomicon, Hextech Gunblade, or Guinsoo’s Rageblade.
For synergy choices, Elementalists are great, and adding in Lisandra and Brand can give you some damage and a friendly golem to soak up damage. Fellow Assassins aren’t a bad idea either (but I’d avoid Akali since they’d both lose the Ninja synergy buff) since they can distract the enemy backline. If you do choose to go Elementalists, consider Glacial as well to pair with Lissandra for more stuns.
