Difference between gold and diamond+ TFT players

Welcome to  our article regarding the differences between TFT gold and diamond and higher ranked players. Our TFT Coaches  created a list of skills that are required to climb to the highest ranks. Become a better player by following up the ideas behind it!

Understanding how to position your units is a crucial skill in TFT, as many rounds are decided not by the raw strength of each player’s team comp, but by their positioning choices. A lower ranked TFT player might position his units according to a guide, or to his instincts, and it might lead to his demise. Positioning is often the main difference between gold and diamond Teamfight Tactics players.

A diamond and higher ranked TFT player will:

• Understand the neccesity of protecting his carries from the enemy infiltrators, for example by placing them closer to the front.
• Notice different range on different units. For example in Set 3 and 3.5 units such  as Thresh have the range of 420 – which equals exactly two hexes. That means that you usually want to place them on the second row, allowing them to attack right away. In Thresh case it causes him to apply Mana-reaver debuff before the enemy cast.
• Know that most positional changes should be made at the last possible moment before the round begins, to avoid the enemy following your positional changes with their zephyrs, blitzcranks or infiltrators.
• Understand how important it is to change the position of his units when playing against a big AoE ultimate, such as Set 3 Cho’gath or Fizz, to avoid his entire team getting caught in it.

When and how to level, when and how to roll, the difference between hyperrolling, slowrolling, the importance of keeping streaks – those are aspects of the game that might seem unobvious to a gold player, but need to be fully understood on the way to the higher ranks.

A diamond+ TFT understands:

• When to slowroll (which is the act of rolling above 50, while keeping your economy up), and when to hyperroll (which is the strategy of staying low level and spending all your gold to get 3 stars). Being mindful about rolling is one of the big differences between lower ranked and higher ranked player in TFT.
• That early game lose streaking might prove more beneficial than ‘ping-ponging’ between wins and losses. Sometimes he will sell potentially important units to keep his gold  up there, while not shying away from spending the gold when needed to continue the winstreak.
• The rule of trying to level on rounds where the XP left is divisible by 4. A great player also understands when to break the rule.
• Understands that if everyone in the lobby spend a lot of gold (ex. after a PvE round) he might have to do the same, to counteract everyone rising in strength.

A lot of the games in TFT follow a certain pattern, and if you play a lot while paying attention you will quickly notice those patterns. That’s what Diamond, Master and Challenger TFT players do, allowing them to quickly make decisions.

Example patterns:

• You notice that players around you have a powerful board at 2-1. They’ve gotten 2 stars and many items to start the game off, while all you’ve gotten is three cost units and gold. You have no chance of beating them. Sounds familiar? Sell enough units to reach the gold milestone (10/20) and lose streak for a bit. Using health as a resource  purposefuly can be the difference between low and high elo player.
• You have the possibility of starting with units that work well together. Let’s say it’s 2-1 (Set 3) and you have Leona, Lucian, Fiora and Graves on the bench. It will always be a mistake not to level up aggressively when you have a strong start, as winstreaking not only allows you to get more gold over time, but also helps you eliminate the enemies earlier.

Let us know what distinct patterns you can find in your  own games in the comment section, that you will find at the bottom of this article!

Lower ranked players tend to not know how to recover from a tough start. They are less likely to know how to consistently land in the Top4 than TFT diamond and above players. A consistent player should be able to stay away from the last two spots of the lobby at all costs. The difference between gold and diamond often comes from the latter being able to avoid placing eight for the most part.

A diamond+ TFT Player knows:

• How to assess whether they can afford being greedy to score the first or the second place, or whether he  should all in to “stop the bleeding” allowing him to place fourth or fifth.
• Understands that playing the best items might not be the best route, because sometimes they need to be stronger ASAP, not later in the game. That allows them to keep  up streaks and/or survive until the later stages of the game thanks to their suboptimal items.

A good player can play a comp well, a great player knows when to pivot into another comp or change his entire game plan depending on the lobby and the items/units he’s getting. Understanding how to adapt during a TFT game is often the difference between gold and diamond players.

A Diamond rank and better Teamfight Tactics player will:

• Pivot to a entirely different team composition if his planned one is already being played by the other players in the lobby
• Play and understand all  the best meta comps at given time. TFT is a game of knowledge, not mechanical skill!
• Adapt  his gameplan to his items, as items are usually what dictate what might work or not.
• Decide on his final composition based on what the RNG gives him, not at the beginning. It’s never too late to pivot!

This one is tricky. A gold player knows how to follow a guide, understands how to build a strong late game composition. A great TFT player from diamond, master or challenger knows how to play the strongest possible board at given time from start to beginning, often playing unobvious, weird team compositions.

Why and how the best TFT players play the strongest boards:

• Great players understand that winstreaking is the most optimal way to win in a game, therefore they can strategically spend most of their gold to level up and add a powerful unit, even if it might be sold later anyway. Example: Leveling up after Krugs to add a synergy booster (Ex. Ezreal in Cybernetics Set3) just to make sure your board is the strongest possible.
• A winning player understands that his early or mid game board does not have to reflect the state of his late game board. It’s okay to play units that have no way of staying in your composition in the late game. Set 3 example: Using powerful vanguards in the mid game in a composition that has no place for them later.
• A TFT diamond and better players know that certain units are powerful enough to be kept even though they do not provide any synergies. It applies especially to early two stars, that  can often be kept all the way until level 7 or so.

A player from the  higher TFT divisions understands the value of scouting, while Gold players usually undervalue it. Scouting has many benefits, some being more or less obvious. One thing is certain though – it’s nearly impossible to reach the highest divisions without Teamfight  Tactics scouting, and it can be the difference between gold and diamond players.

Scouting in TFT, why diamond+ players value it so much?:

• There’s a  limited amount of each champion in the lobby, so scouting allows you to see if three or two starring a unit is even mathemathically possible. Example: There’s only 10 copies of each 5 cost unit in a game. If 8 copies of a certain unit are already played by others, there’s literally no chance for you to two star it.
• It allows the scouting player to position accordingly, having the enemy zephyrs, blitzcranks and back-jumpers in mind.
• A great player can understand that in the late game one lucky carousel item might give his enemy a gigantic powerup. Knowing this, the player can counter the enemy on the carousel by taking away the powerful item from his opponent.
• Scouting can dictate the entire game plan. Set 3 example: If you start the game with two starred Jarvan IV and Xayah units, you might be inclined to hyperroll them and get them three starred. If you notice that might be someone’s else gameplan too, you might both end up holding hands to top 7-8, unless you’re extremely lucky. A smart player will change his strategy and level up instead.

For players willing to improve their TFT skills, we recommend checking out our TFT Coach  offer— a one-on-one coaching session with a Professional TFT Coach can be a great way of unlocking your true potential. Let us know what you believe are the differences between the lower and higher ranks in TFT in the comments below!

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