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Set 18 · Day 10 · patch 18.1d

Meta Check

• The D-patch (Aug 31–Sep 1) flattened the board — no true S-tier bully left. Launch bullies (Ahri/Blossom, Cassiopeia, Master Yi) got hit; Amumu, Soraka, Draven, Elder Dragon & Lux buffed and are the new value picks. Very flex-heavy right now.

Busted Right Now

• Solar Kayle reroll — the week's darling. Robinsongz & Dishsoap both spamming "Double Flickerblade / Lightspeed / infinite attack-speed Kayle" (Kayle = 2-cost Solar/Rapidfire). Flickerblade stacking makes her melt boards — "should NOT be allowed."
• 10 Riftbeast — Robinsongz "absolutely busted," K3Soju dropped a full "Riftbeasts Masterclass." Vertical RB into Elder Dragon still cracked even after the carry nerf.
• Master Yi reroll — K3Soju "BROKEN with artifacts" (Sep 2), even through the D-patch resist nerf.
• Elder Dragon Fast 9 — TFTAcademy's marquee flex (5-cost Dragon; AP or Draven-AD variant, Draven buffed in D-patch).

Falling Off

• Ahri / Blossom (4-cost) & Cassiopeia — both hit hard by the D-patch; the launch AP bullies are off the top.

Tips & Nuggets

• Lose-streaking is live tech — Robinsongz: "I'm the Lose Streak King of Set 18 (Rank 1 POV)." Streak down for econ, spike into Riftbeast/reroll.
• Econ augments early for flex; save trait-specific augments for stage 4 once you've committed.

New from Favorites

• Robinsongz (Rank 1 NA) — "Double Flickerblade Kayle Attacks at LIGHT SPEED!" + "10 Riftbeast Is Absolutely Busted!!"
• K3Soju — "So Master Yi Reroll is BROKEN With Artifacts…" + "The Riftbeasts Masterclass."
• Dishsoap — "Double Flickerblade Kayle MELTS Everything!" + "You Can Hit This Wisp Every Game…" (Sep 3).

️ Patch Watch

• 18.2 lands Sep 10 (~1 wk out). No official notes/preview yet — expect the rundown a day or two prior.

Reddit RSS 429'd on all feeds tonight — no thread signal this run.

Meta Check — Set 18 Day 9 (post-18.1 D-patch) • D-patch (~Aug 30–Sep 1) hit the launch bullies: Ahri (Invoker/Blossom), Cassiopeia, Master Yi, Riftbeast carry all nerfed. Result per TFTAcademy: no S-tier right now — meta flattened into a wide A-tier. 18.2 lands Sep 10.

Strong Right Now (A-tier, live stats) • Soraka Flex / Malphite carry — most stable top comp post-patch (Soraka got buffed). • Solar Kayle — Robinsongz: "Lightspeed Kayle build should NOT be allowed." Portable Forge line. • Master Yi Adaptor Reroll — survived the resist nerf; K3Soju: "BROKEN with artifacts." Still a top reroll. • Invoker Nidalee (Sivir) — flagged as rising on stats, BUT streamers skeptical post-nerf ("Ni got nerfed… might be a fraud comp"). Trust your lobby, not the tier list.

Falling Off • Ahri Blossom / Invoker — the D-patch nerf visibly cooled it ("they nerfed Ari, is Blossom still good?"). • Defender Cassiopeia — ability dmg cut, declining performance. • Elderwood Executioners (Draven) — falling in popularity on aggregate… (but see below — Robinsongz disagrees).

Tips & Nuggets • Reroll is the set-defining playstyle — Robinsongz: reroll comps are "busted this entire set 'cause you roll a charm every single turn." Charm gold→item conversion rewards greed/econ lines. • Draven Fast 9 — Robinsongz "new Fast-9 BEAST" masterclass; Draven was buffed. Stats say Elderwood Draven's popularity is down, but the fast-9 Draven line is a real ceiling play. • 10 Riftbeast still highrolls ("absolutely busted") even after the carry nerf — greed vertical, weak early / runs lobbies late. • Chatter on overtuned units: Ezreal "overtuned," Rakan "broken," Lux "busted," Pebbles "busted" with the right buff. Position carries opposite Kha'zix (assassin one-shot complaints trending on Reddit).

Latest from Favorites (yt-dlp dates unavailable — newest RSS uploads) • Robinsongz — "Draven Is the New Fast 9 BEAST" · "Lightspeed Kayle Should NOT Be Allowed" · "10 Riftbeast Is Busted" · "Elder Dragon → Brawler" · "Caitlyn Reroll is BROKEN" • K3Soju — "Master Yi Reroll is BROKEN With Artifacts" · "This Comp is Too Strong To Be This Easy to Play" • Dishsoap — no fresh upload surfaced this window.

Reddit Signal (RSS only — scores unavailable) • Warwick fell off hard — PBE "demon" now ~4.81 avg even at 3★ w/ items; community asking what happened. • Kha'zix debate — one-shotting carries feels miserable; counterplay = positioning only. • "Most balanced launch ever?" — The Rolldown (w/ Toddy) framing Set 18 as the smoothest launch patch in a while. • Evergreen: reroll-vs-fast-8 confusion thread near top of CompetitiveTFT.

Augment takes captured today: 0 new — today's transcripts re-surfaced the Aug-25 launch-guide VOD already in the KB (no net-new verdicts).

Set 18 Day 8 — live meta, and the 18.1 D-patch just reshuffled the top.

Meta Check Open, diverse meta. Data pegs Riftbeast (Reroll/Sentinel) as the strongest comp (~4.03 avg place, 50k+ games). Ahri (Blossom / Invoker + Ahri-Morgana fast 8), Vanguard Aphelios, Draven Fast 9, Cassiopeia Defender, Kayle Solar reroll, and Caitlyn reroll all live — BUT last night's balance patch reshuffles this (below).

Busted Right Now • Riftbeast (vertical 10 + reroll) — #1 data comp. Robinsongz: "10 Riftbeast is absolutely busted." (⚠️ Cinderling carry got AD + ability nerf in D-patch — watch if it holds.) • Kayle Solar reroll (2-cost Solar/Rapidfire) — Robinsongz: "should NOT be allowed"; flicker-blade Kayle insane. • Veigar 1-cost AP reroll — "one-shots tanks," Manazane → Dawncore. • Draven Fast 9 — buffed last night; Robinsongz "the new Fast 9 beast."

Falling Off (18.1 D-patch nerfs, Aug 31) • Ahri 450/675 → 425/640 AP + Morgana mana nerf — the fast-8 Ahri-Morgana king got tapped. • Cassiopeia 440/660/1050 → 400/600/950 (still consistent, just less). • Master Yi defenses 60 → 55 (Adaptor reroll); Flora Fatalis also hit.

⬆️ Buffed / Rising • Draven (AS 0.8→0.85, mana 120→110), Elder Dragon (AD 115→125), Amumu (tank+heal), Soraka, Lux (dmg up, but Lunar amp 10%→8%).

Patch Watch 18.1 D-patch is LIVE (balance Aug 31 / bug+QoL fixes Sep 1). No 18.2 yet — it's dated Sep 10.

Tips & Nuggets • Cursed Crown = trap in reroll — anti-econ; Robinsongz: "good in Disneyland, not in real lobbies." • Rengar positioning is the top Reddit pain point — he dives backline regardless of side; try moving your tank back / carries mid-back.

New from Robinsongz (fav) 10 Riftbeast Busted • Lightspeed Kayle • Veigar One-Shots Tanks • Draven New Fast-9 Beast • "Only Guide You Need for Set 18 Launch." K3Soju & Dishsoap: no fresh Set 18 upload surfaced this pull — skipped stale Set 17 content.

Augment takes captured today: 1 new — Cursed Crown (trap in reroll lines).

Meta Check

One week into Enchanted Wilds and the meta has clear outliers. Live data (MetaTFT/op.gg) top board: Defender/Flora Fatalis Cass, Solar Kayle reroll, Draven fast-9, Riftbeast→Elder Dragon. Reroll is strong ALL set — you roll a charm every turn.

Busted Right Now

• Riftbeast → Elder Dragon — highest top-4 in the data, but hard to hit + heavily contested. Pebbles carry > Cinderling; Lamabeak artifact → Elder Dragon. (Robinsongz "10 Riftbeast Busted")
• Solar/Rapidfire Kayle reroll — elite top-4 line; weak until 3-stars, then snowballs. (Kayle = 2-cost Solar/Rapidfire)
• Defender Cassiopeia (6 Defender + Flora Fatalis + Spellweaver) — the safest S-tier; Archangel's/Blue Buff/Gunblade Cass.
• Draven fast-9 — Robinsongz: "new fast-9 beast." Core: Alistar/Ezreal/Nar → Kennen/Draven/Amumu/Maokai/Ivern; Draven BiS ≈ Guinsoo/Kraken/glove.
• Caitlyn reroll — Robinsongz "absolutely broken"; reroll comps busted all set.

Tips & Nuggets

• Every reroll turn also rolls a charm/wisp — reroll EV is high all set (Robinsongz).
• Blossom Ahri "Spirit Bomb" (6 Blackthorn sac-hex + 6 Spellweaver) still a live flex AP line — Spear of Shojin + Void Staff on Ahri.
• Elder-Dragon-Brawler flex: Adaptor Fay Tristana = best side traits (Robinsongz).

New from Robinsongz (fav)

• "10 Riftbeast Is Absolutely Busted" — highroll ceiling, play only if open.
• "Draven Is the New Fast 9 BEAST" — fast-9 masterclass (core above).
• "This New Caitlyn Reroll Comp is BROKEN" — reroll strong all set.

K3Soju + Dishsoap: no fresh Set 18 uploads in tonight's pull — skipped rather than pass stale takes.

Patch Watch

• 18.1 D-patch just dropped (~Aug 30) — first real balance touch since launch (18.1b/c were bug-only). Change list not yet aggregated on MetaTFT/tactics.tools; Reddit "D-Patch incoming" + "18.1 D Patch Notes" confirm it landed. Expect the launch outliers (Riftbeast, Kayle/Solar, Defender) to be the targets — confirm in-client. 18.2 (first full balance patch) still not dated.
• Robinsongz on NA Challenger grind — no new ladder milestone in tonight's pull.

Set 18 Enchanted Wilds, Day 6 live. First week still settling — no real balance patch yet (18.1b/18.1c were bug-fix only). AP flex and reroll are both eating.

Meta Check

• S-tier: Blossom Ahri (4-cost AP, fast-8) and Defender Cassiopeia (uncontested 3-cost reroll) are the two strongest lines on MetaTFT / TFT Academy right now.
• A-tier: Riftbeast Reroll (Cinderling/Pebbles), Solar Kayle, Adaptor Reroll (Master Yi), Moon Fire Aphelios, Draven/Dragon Fast 9, Flora Malphite.

Busted Right Now

• Trait Ladder (prismatic) — still un-nerfed at launch. Dishsoap has two videos on it ("just so unethical… is the first tournament ruined?"); Robinsongz watched two opponents win lobbies off it on 8/30. Top nerf candidate for 18.2.
• Riftbeast vertical / Pebbles — Robinsongz "10 Riftbeast is absolutely busted"; calls Pebbles overtuned for sure and Cinderling doing 5k "just not balanced." 10–11 Riftbeast is a real fast-9 out.
• Dark Ritual augment — makes 3 Coven count as a Prismatic trait in the top-tier Cassiopeia/Coven shell. Dishsoap: "riot pls fix." Landing in an S-tier comp.

Tips & Nuggets

• 1-cost Veigar reroll — Robinsongz: Manazane → Dawncore for perma-cast; one-shots tanks. 4★ Veigar is the highroll ceiling (1-cost, so hittable), not required. Pairs Rek'Sai + Kabuko + Malphite front, Blackthorn sac-hex on the carry.
• 5-cost pivots — Reddit consensus: change lanes for Draven if you have AD items online; Ashe damage is sneaky-strong (no gold print but hits); early Ivern/Maokai worth flexing toward.

New Videos from Favorites

• Robinsongz (grinding NA Challenger climb — Diamond 1 as of 8/31) → 10 Riftbeast busted + 4-Star Veigar one-shots tanks.
• Dishsoap → Infinite Attack Speed Kayle (Solar/Rapidfire, 8/31), Dark Ritual → 3 Coven prismatic (8/30).
• K3Soju → Learning AP Flex on the new set; Earliest Warpath cashout ever.

Patch / News

• 18.2 not shipped or dated yet — first real balance patch still pending. Trait Ladder, Riftbeast reroll, and Coven/Dark Ritual all remain un-nerfed.
• TFT added bots to placement games this set (new-player smoothing). Bug watch: Titan's Resolve sometimes not granting unstoppable (reported on Reddit).

TFT Daily — 2026-08-29 · Set 18 Enchanted Wilds, Day 5

Meta Check — A week in, live stats settle on AP/Spellweaver flex + Coven up top, with fast-9 flex and reroll lines close behind. Both playstyles viable. S-tier: Ahri–Morgana (AP/Coven), Coven Cassiopeia, Elderwood Aphelios, Draven Fast 9, Executioner Sett. A-tier: Solar Kayle reroll, Flex Malphite, Invoker Nidalee, Dragon Fast 9.

Busted Right Now • Trait Ladder (prismatic aug) — still un-nerfed after both C-patches. Dishsoap's 2nd video in 3 days: "most broken," fears it'll "ruin the first tournament." Stop at ~12 traits (already won), don't greed 14. • Riftbeast/Gromp reroll — K3Soju: "legit broken, why not play this every game?" • AP flex — K3Soju on Blue Buff→Nashor's/Rabadon's/Void: "everything's just broken." • Coven Cassiopeia + Dark Ritual — Dishsoap: aug got a big buff, 3 Coven = Prismatic trait (~100 AP cashout).

Reversal — PBE called Draven "worst 5-cost"; live stats now have Draven Fast 9 at S-tier. Trust current numbers over PBE reads.

Tips — Itemize your strongest 2★ first (frontline item on 2★ frontliner > backline item on 1★). AP flex core: Blue Buff + Nashor's + Rabadon's + Void.

Favorites • Robinsongz (grinding NA Chall today) — "This Veigar Can One-Shot TANKS" (8/28): Veigar reroll deletes frontlines; flagged Elise "broken." • K3Soju — Riftbeast/Gromp reroll (8/27) + AP Flex (8/28) + Warpath cashout (8/29, "is Kennen broken?"). • Dishsoap — 2x Trait Ladder (8/27, 8/29) + Dark Ritual Coven (8/28). • Setsuko (channel 404) & Mortdog (sabbatical): no fresh uploads.

Patch — 18.1b (8/27) + 18.1c (today) are bug/stability C-patches, NO balance. Double Up re-enabled, Forge A Friend disabled, Rengar/Soul Awakening/placement fixes. No Wisp nerf — first real balance is 18.2.

Aug takes captured: 1 new (Trait Ladder, Dishsoap 8/29).

Meta Check (Day 4) Being called one of the most balanced launches ever — reroll, fast-8 flex, and fast-9 lines all viable at once. K3Soju: "a lot of stuff wins," not the usual same-comp-goes-1-2-3. The real gripe is the Unreal client (HP bars, FPS, crashes), not balance — Robinsongz thinks they "launched Unreal too early."

Busted Right Now • Defender Cassiopeia (3-cost reroll) — strongest uncontested reroll in the stats (MetaTFT/TFT Academy) • Blossom Sett — default fast-8 flex, holds AD or AP • Veigar reroll (1-cost Blackthorn/Sprykin/Spellweaver) — Robinsongz "one-shots TANKS," stacked 51+ AP; wants Rek'Sai 3 + Kobuko, Void Staff/Blue Buff/Rabadon • Trait Ladder augment — Dishsoap: "always take it," still un-nerfed at launch; cash out 12+ traits and you've already won

Falling Off • Ahri (4-cost) — nerfed; Robinsongz questioning if Blossom-Ahri still holds • Sivir — K3Soju: "legit terrible" without Ashe online • Primal (item) — Dishsoap: "really bad, crafting it is almost always a mistake"

Tips & Nuggets • Rakan (1-cost) frontline reads "broken" per both Robinsongz & K3Soju — great sac-for-stats piece + Kayle-reroll enabler • AP flex (Azir/Zyra/Soraka) is K3Soju's default: Executioner + Void Staff on Zyra, Void + Rabadon on Soraka • Coven Cassiopeia shell wants Morgana + Sentinel + Mogul's Mail; the Dark Ritual augment got a big buff — now genuinely good (Dishsoap)

New from Favorites • Robinsongz (Aug 28) — "This Veigar Can One Shot TANKS" → 1-cost Veigar hyper-reroll, absurd AP stacking, Rek'Sai/Kobuko core; also flags "they nerfed Ari" • K3Soju (Aug 27-28) — AP flex Azir/Zyra/Soraka; set feels balanced; Sivir bad without Ashe • Dishsoap (Aug 27-28) — "always take Trait Ladder"; Coven Cassiopeia with the buffed Dark Ritual

Patch / News • 18.1c C-patch LIVE today — ~20 bug/stability fixes, Double Up re-enabled, Forge A Friend augment temporarily disabled (wasn't reliably granting a 3-star), friendship-cannon permanent-item exploit fixed • 18.1b (Aug 27) fixed memory leaks + a Soul Awakening true-damage bug • ⚠️ No Wisp-specific nerf shipped in the B or C patch — both were bug/stability only, Wisp econ intact. Real balance changes land in 18.2

Augment takes captured today: 2 — Trait Ladder (live un-nerfed confirm), Dark Ritual (new file, buffed → good in Coven)

Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" — Day 2, LIVE meta (patch 18.1)

Meta Check

Set 18 is live and settling fast. Early live data (MetaTFT) says it's a flexible, 4-cost-heavy meta — get to 8/9 and slam a strong board. Azir/Mamabeak Summoners were already hotfix-nerfed (were the busted day-1 line). B-patch lands Aug 27 for performance/client issues.

Busted Right Now

• Elderwood Aphelios (fast 9) — S-tier on MetaTFT, ~2.98 avg over 45k games. Cleanest ladder line.
• Blossom Sett (fast 8, ~3.08) + Blossom Ahri/Ash L9 — Robinsongz panel: "really strong right now."
• Defender Cassiopeia (L7 reroll, ~3.05) — S-tier; Executioner emblem BiS.
• Pebbles / Rift Beast reroll (1-cost Pebbles → 3★) — Robinsongz: "busted," goes infinite on casts; Radiant Blue Buff. Kale reroll "so broken" but needs econ.
• Caitlyn + Elise reroll — Caitlyn got nerfed but Robinsongz still rates the line playable/strong.

Falling Off / Nerfed

• Rengar (Hunter/Heated Rivalry) — nerfed "by a lot" post-launch; pre-launch Rengar hype now stale.
• Summoners (Azir/Mamabeak) — hotfixed down from OP.

Tips & Nuggets

• Wisp/charm 0-gold trick (r/CompetitiveTFT): keep gold at 0 while rolling to fish the charm that upgrades a 4-cost → 5-cost; most consistent with 5 Spirit Blossom. Warping the meta toward 3★ 4-costs. Strong but abusable — expect a patch.
• Econ augments early are almost always right at set launch — buys flexibility while the meta's still forming.

Streamer Takes

• Robinsongz — "The Only Guide You Need For the New Set 18 Launch!" (Aug 25) + live ranked today. Top reads: Blossom L9, Pebbles/Kale reroll, Caitlyn reroll. Augment MVPs: Future Win, Lead Forge, Item Extraction (buffed to 4 components), Class Cannons, Blaze.
• K3Soju — only Set 18 post-launch upload is a game VOD ("My First Game… Was a Mess," Aug 26), no tier list yet.
• Dishsoap — no post-launch upload; latest is Aug 23 Hunter Rengar (pre-launch, now stale after the Rengar nerf).

Reddit Hot Take

"Riot vibecoded the update & it shows" — big thread ripping the new Unreal client (perf, tiny models, hitboxes, lag). Community split; B-patch Aug 27 targets it.

Day 1 of the new set. Ladder is wide open — LP moves fastest in the first two weeks. Tier lists will be obsolete by the weekend, so play what you know and take econ early.

Meta Check (day-1 signal, low confidence) • New mechanic: Wisps/Charms — meta is very tempo-heavy, roll for a charm most turns. • PBE power picks (Rivals, Riftbeast, Rapidfire Xayah) carried into launch; watch for a fast hotfix if any overperform on live data.

Day-1 Comps to Try • Cass Defenders — dpei's #1 release-day pick. 6 Defender frontline stalls for Cassiopeia (Spellweaver 3-cost) infinite-casting/poison; Gunblade + Adaptive Helm; duo 4/5-cost AP carry at lvl 8. Augment priority ECON > COMBAT > ITEMS. Scout early — hard to pivot, don't play contested. • Rivals (Rengar + Kha'Zix) — the un-nerfed PBE "cheat code" augment. Field both, share mana/heal, big tempo. Rengar first for items. "Infernal Kha'Zix" now a tracked comp. • Rapidfire Xayah — flagged "completely busted" early; ramps AS hard. • Riftbeast + Elder Dragon — 7 RB + Elder alpha-mark execute; Elder eats 2 slots, +2 Riftbeast. • Simple lines: dpei also likes Riftbeasts fast-9 and Solar Reroll (2-cost RR) for new players.

⚠️ Trap Watch • Coven cashout (Broseph: "The Coven Trap Is Ruining Your Games") — it's an early win-streak trait (~180 cashout), but greeding it with a weak mid-game board tanks you. • Combat charms are mostly traps — default to never buying them unless it's a super-cheap tailorable item. Reroll charms are the likeliest traps. Stage 4 has good econ charms — be greedy for those.

Nuggets • Always take the 2-gold / 1-roll charm; on 3-2 roll once just to see the next charm. (Broseph) • Take econ augments early at set launch — buys flexibility while the meta is unsolved.

New Videos • Broseph — Set 18 coaching flood: Coven Trap, Underrolling for Wisps, Charms/Augments/Roll Timings, Find YOUR Best Comps. • Wasianiverson — Executioner Flex Fast 9. • ⚠️ Robinsongz (your fave), K3Soju & Dishsoap didn't return parseable launch-day uploads this run — chasing their day-1 tier lists tomorrow.

️ Data note • CommunityDragon mirror hasn't flipped yet — PBE endpoint still shows 74 TFT18 shells (null cost), LIVE endpoint shows 0 TFT18 records. That's CDN mirror lag, not a launch delay; the live client has the real set.

Augment takes captured today: 1 (Rivals — launch status, un-nerfed power pick heading into live)

Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" LAUNCH — going live tonight, Aug 25 ~00:00 PDT / 09:00 CEST (patch 18.1). First set on the new engine (why PBE ran 4 weeks). As of 9pm CT it's hours away — not live yet. (Content-farm sites saying Aug 26 are wrong; r/CompetitiveTFT megathread is authoritative.)

Launch balance state (the lead) • Final pre-launch "A-Patch" (8/24 PBE) is bugfix-only — 2 real spell fixes: Azir (3-cost) & Mama Beak (3-cost Riftbeast). Dev: "variety of comps appearing every day," a few more fixes targeted before launch. • No separate 18.1 launch balance notes have dropped yet → the marquee PBE power picks enter launch essentially UN-nerfed.

Power picks entering launch (PBE-grounded — meta will move fast) • Trait Ladder (prismatic) — 14 traits = 300 Masterwork Upgrades ≈ auto-win; hittable at lvl 9 with no highroll via Kha'Zix (a 5-trait unit once fully evolved). Two top creators call it broken. • Rivals (silver) — field Rengar + Kha'Zix together; shared mana/heal + free copies on take. Robinsongz + Dishsoap both "cheat code." Itemize Rengar first. • 6-Brawler Elder Dragon (5c) vertical / Riftbeast (Pebbles 1c) — read strong all PBE.

Day-1 plan (aggregator + PBE, low-confidence) • Don't force. Learn the 7 Wisps/charms (1 buyable per round, rightmost slot every other shop). Take econ augments early while you learn. • Comps to watch: Xayah/Fae early, Blackthorn Ahri, Draven Fast-9, Caitlyn reroll (all Robinsongz).

️ CDragon flip watch • PBE: 74 TFT18 records, 0 with real cost (still shells). Live endpoint: 0 TFT18 records. No flip yet → not wired to the live CDN. Did NOT ping MAIN (correct — launch is hours away). Re-check primed for the flip.

New video — Broseph "How Top Players Think About Augments" (conceptual; valuing augments in the new set). Majors haven't dropped launch tier lists yet — expect the flood tomorrow.

Reddit: RSS 429'd on 3/4 feeds; only megathreads + the 8/24 patch post. No extra signal.

Augment takes captured today: 0 (only new video was conceptual; day-1 tier lists land tomorrow).

LAUNCH EVE — Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" goes live TOMORROW, Tue Aug 25 (~00:00 PDT / 09:00 CEST) on patch 18.1. (Authoritative: r/CompetitiveTFT Day-26 megathread — ignore content-farm "Aug 26" dates.)

Launch-wiring check (CommunityDragon) • Set 18 champs still NOT wired up: 74 TFT18 records, 0 with real costs (all cost:null shells, day 26). The launch flip (costs/abilities populating) hasn't happened yet — expected imminently as Riot stages the live build. No false alarm.

Launch patch notes: NOT out yet • No 18.1 balance notes have dropped tonight. Only fresh datamine is a Set 17 Milio mana tweak (0/30→0/40) — that's the old set, ignore it. • So the big PBE power-picks head into launch un-nerfed / unconfirmed-touched: – Trait Ladder (prismatic): 14-trait tier ≈ infinite Masterwork Upgrades, reachable at lvl 9 with no highroll via Kha'Zix's 5-trait evolutions. Two top creators called it broken. Prime launch-day gut candidate. – Rivals (silver): field Rengar + Kha'Zix together for ~6g of tempo; Rengar-first items (Dishsoap: even max-evo Kha'Zix only matches Rengar's baseline). Top nerf candidate. • If a day-1 hotfix lands, check these two + the 6-Brawler Elder Dragon line first.

Day-1 power reads (from PBE — starting points, not gospel) • Reroll comps look busted "all set" — you roll for a Wisp every turn anyway, so reroll boards get compounding value (Robinsongz + Broseph agree). Reroll may beat fast-8/9 at launch. • Caitlyn reroll — Robinsongz "absolutely broken" (Caitlyn 2-cost + Sivir carries; Kraken + Last Whisper). • Xayah / Fae — flagged a top early comp across PBE tier sites (Xayah + Rakan + Shen frontline). Reliable fallback flex. • Draven Fast 9, Rengar (Rivals), Elder Dragon Brawler all remain talked-about lines.

Launch-day advice (community consensus) • Don't force a comp — day-1 tier lists are obsolete by the weekend. Learn the 7 Wisp types, play your opening, flex. (One Wisp buyable/round, rightmost slot every other shop.) • Melees are strong right now (Broseph) — "won't be forever." • Brambleback = AD/tank items, NOT AP — rod is a bad component on it.

New videos from favorites: none in the last 24h. Latest Set 18 uploads (Robinsongz Caitlyn reroll, Dishsoap Rengar build) were already covered — expect the launch-day flood tomorrow.

Reddit: quiet — RSS feeds rate-limited (429) again; only automod megathreads + a beginner Q. No fresh meta signal tonight.

Augment takes captured today: 0 new (no new creator/Reddit content since day 25).

Bottom line: Everything's staged for tomorrow. CDragon costs haven't flipped yet (normal), no launch notes yet — watch tomorrow AM for the live build + a possible day-1 hotfix. At launch: reroll boards + Wisp mastery + flexibility over forcing.

TFT Daily — Sat 2026-08-22 · Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" PBE Day 25 · ~2 days to launch (Aug 25, patch 18.1)

Launch Wiring Watch • CDragon: 74 TFT18 records, 0 with a real cost — still all shells (day 25). The launch flip (costs/abilities populating) hasn't happened yet; it's imminent, watching daily. • No new balance patch since 8/19. Dev's last-second window (~Aug 23–24) is still open — a Sunday/day-of patch is very possible. Trait Ladder / Rivals / 6-Brawler Elder Dragon still unconfirmed as touched.

Meta Check (launch-prep signal) • Reroll comps look busted for the whole set — Robinsongz: "reroll comps are going to be busted this entire set cuz you get to roll for a charm every single turn." Charm value compounds when you're already rolling → reroll boards out-cap lvl-8 boards. (Convergent w/ Broseph's "roll for a charm every round.")

Busted Right Now • Caitlyn reroll (Robinsongz, "absolutely broken") — Caitlyn (2-cost) + Sivir paired carries; Vi/Tristana/Rakan support. Items: Kraken + Last Whisper on Caitlyn, pass Last Whisper to Sivir. • Rengar (Rival) (Dishsoap) — Rengar > Kha'Zix as the carry: "even with max Kha'Zix upgrades, he's as good as Rengar is from the start." Itemize Rengar first (raw power, not just tempo); Kha'Zix's value = team buffs / trade-bot. Build reads NOT as nerf-bait. Components: Edge of Night, Black Cleaver, IE.

Tips & Nuggets • Trait Ladder solver dropped (traitladder.com, r/CompTFT) — 6 emblems can't reach rung 12 in 9 slots solo: Brawler, Coven, Elderwood, Flora Fatalis, Ravager, Sprykin → reforge them (rung 2 gives a guaranteed Reforger). Coven is worst (also misses rung 14). Kha'Zix at full evo (5 traits) is still the ceiling-bridger for rung 14.

From the Favorites • Robinsongz — "This New Caitlyn Reroll Comp is Absolutely BROKEN!!" → reroll-charm meta thesis + Caitlyn/Sivir line. • Dishsoap — "This Rengar Build Should Not Be Allowed…" → Rengar-first Rival carry read.

Augment takes captured today: 1 new take → rivals.md (Rengar > max-evo Kha'Zix, Dishsoap).

PBE — all subject to change before Aug 25 launch. Reddit RSS 429'd on 3/4 feeds (retried). K3Soju "most broken augment" vid excluded — it's Set 17 content.

Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" — PBE Day 24 · ~4 days to live (Aug 25, patch 18.1)

Launch Wiring Watch • CDragon: 74 TFT18 champ records present, but 0 have a real cost yet — all still cost:null / rarity:9 shells, no ability data. The "wired for launch" flip has NOT happened as of day 24. (No panic — normal to flip closer to release.) • No new balance patch since Aug 19. Dev's last-second window (~Aug 23–24, before 18.1 lock) is still open — watch for a final touch on Trait Ladder / Rivals / 6-Brawler Elder Dragon.

Meta Check (launch-prep, PBE — all still soft) • Melees are strong right now (Broseph) — expect it to shift post-launch. • Main carries this patch: Ahri, Aphelios, Brambleback, Ezreal, Morgana, Nidalee, Sivir, Soraka, Zyra. • External PBE tier sites flag Xayah (Fae) as a top early comp — Guinsoo's + Giant Slayer + Red Buff, Rakan + Shen front. (Aggregator read, unverified — but units check out for Set 18.)

Tips & Nuggets (Broseph coaching, fresh Set 18 VODs) • Coven is a LATE trait, not a mid-game one. The "trap" = running Coven with a weak mid-game board and dying before it spikes. Keep the rest of the board strong on 2-stars and survive into it. • Brambleback: do NOT build AP — Rod is a dead component on it ("no good items with rod"). It's an AD/tank-item carry. • Combat charms — be selective. Default is skip them unless it's an efficient one (the 1-gold tailorable temp-item charm is the clear keep). Slight walk-back from his earlier "just take combat charms." • Journeyman augment — game-winning specifically when it hands you a tank you were missing ("rip any tank, you win"); filler otherwise.

New from Favorites • Broseph — "The Coven Trap Is Ruining Your Games" → Coven timing + charm/augment reads (above). • Broseph — "How to Find YOUR Best Comps in Set 18" → build a 3–5 comp pool, identify the patch's strongest lines first. • (Robinsongz/K3Soju/Dishsoap/Wasian: no NEW Set 18 uploads in window — their recent drops are Set 17 and were filtered out.)

Reddit Chatter • No hero augments in Set 18? Community consensus: none of the classic hero augments — Rengar & Kha'Zix are trait-style augments instead. Structural shift if it holds. • "Riot on removing ALL stats in TFT" — stat-visibility debate heating up. • Recurring PBE gripe: player damage too high / pacing too fast.

Augment takes captured today: 1 new — Journeyman (situational: broken when it grants a needed tank).

Grounded vs CDragon PBE roster + Set 18 knowledge base. Everything is pre-live PBE and changing daily.

Meta Check — Set 18 launch prep • Meta reads stable into launch. The "final" light-touch PBE balance/augment pass landed 8/19; dev left a last-second-change window open for ~Aug 23–24. No new patch today. • Per Broseph (echoing Chinese tournament stats): reroll comps out-cap level-8 boards this patch — if you're not rerolling, Draven fast 9 is the flex alternative.

Busted / Strong Right Now • Charms — Broseph: "You should roll for a charm every round." 8–15% power for only 3–5 gold. Prioritize combat charms; take econ charms only if they feed your board. Single biggest tempo lever in Set 18. • Expedition (augment) — now a two-source "good": Broseph "above average, still really good — play it into a two-cost reroll comp"; Wasianiverson likes it into greedy Coven/reroll-flex (wants the board lined up, not a blind grab). • Blossom — still the marquee trait line (Ahri/Lux Blossom); Wasianiverson stacked double Executioner emblem on a Blossom board via loss-streak cashout.

Falling Off / Traps • Reroll augments = mostly traps (Broseph) — the all-2★-1-cost one is "very bad unless you're rerolling specifically for 1-cost." • Elder Dragon buff augment — Broseph: "honestly not that good, I would probably not take this." (Worth noting vs the 6-Brawler Elder Dragon nerf-watch.) • Residual Magic — "low B" generically, bad on 2-1; only scales if you're going 5 Blossom.

Tips & Nuggets • Roll for a charm nearly every round once your board's hit — but skip charm buys in spots where you're guaranteed to lose the pick (counterintuitively bad). — Broseph • Set 18 stat coverage is still thin — MetaTFT has the most usable data; tactics.tools/Set 18 is limited. — Broseph

New Videos from Favorites (Set 18 PBE) • Broseph — How to ACTUALLY Play Set 18: Charms, Augments & Roll Timings → the single best launch-prep watch; augment tiering + charm timings above. • Broseph — You're Probably Underrolling for Wisps → charm/wisp roll tech. • Wasianiverson — Double Executioner Emblem on my Blossom Board → Blossom loss-streak → cashout line. • Robinsongz — The Greatest Comeback of My TFT Career → Set 18 PBE VOD (trait ladder "broken," charm rolldowns). Entertainment, no new take. • (Excluded: several Dishsoap/K3Soju uploads were Set 17 live content — Asol, MF reroll, Anima — not Set 18.)

️ Launch watch (5 days out) • CDragon: champion cost/ability metadata still not propagated (23rd day). Heads-up: the playbook's grep tft18 reads 0 because the data is cased TFT18 — the 74 roster shells (traits + art) are actually present; what's still missing is costs + abilities (all rarity placeholder, cost null). No MAIN ping — this isn't the launch-wiring flip yet. • Last-second balance patch window ~Aug 23–24 still open; Trait Ladder / Rivals / Elder Dragon touch status unconfirmed.

Augment takes captured today: 2 (Expedition — Broseph; Residual Magic — new file, Broseph)

LEAD — the augment balance pass DID drop today (8/19) • The "final" pre-launch PBE patch landed. But it's a light touch, not the big hammer. Dev framing (verbatim from the patch thread): "Smaller one today, with small buffs and Augment adjustments. The meta's been pretty stable the last week, so we're not overreacting to yesterday's medium-sized patch… we'll re-evaluate early next week to see if anything warrants a last-second balance change." • I could not extract the per-augment numeric change list — Reddit's API is blocked and tactics.tools/lolchess/metatft/mobalytics are JS pages that didn't render the list. So I cannot confirm whether Trait Ladder, Rivals (Kha'Zix+Rengar), or 6-Brawler Elder Dragon reroll were actually touched. • Net / 3-week watch resolution: the expected "big augment gut" did not materialize as a sweeping pass — this is a small-adjustment lock pass, with the door explicitly left open for a last-second change early next week (~Aug 23–24) before the Aug 25 live launch. Still watching.

Champion-metadata watch • CDragon tftchampions.json still 0 tft18 entries — Day 22. ~6 days to launch; populating is overdue but hasn't happened yet. No MAIN ping fired.

Tip of the night — Flip Frenzy wisp = always click it • Math PSA (Antonin__Dvorak, r/CompetitiveTFT): the coin is rigged in your favor — 1st flip 85% heads, 2nd 60%, 3rd+ 50%. Net EV +0.87g, and it stays positive at every gold value from 10–49. Only marginal at exact X0 (interest-break risk). Free gold — buy it every time.

Favorites • Thin night — no fresh 8/19 Set 18 analysis video. Robinsongz pull was all already-covered VODs (Draven Fast-9, Elder Dragon Brawler, Blackthorn Ahri, One-Shot Kha'Zix) plus a Hard Summer vlog + an influencer-wager video. K3Soju is on LoL Worlds/Regionals (not TFT). No new balance signal.

⚠️ Grounding note • tactics.tools datamine again surfaced only "Milio 0/30→0/40 mana" — that's a Set-17 PBE change, not Set 18. Excluded (same trap flagged 8/18).

Augment takes captured today: 0 new speaker verdicts (patch numeric list unverified). Updated patch-status on trait-ladder.md + rivals.md to log the 8/19 final-pass landing (light touch, specific changes unconfirmed) + the early-next-week last-second window.

Set 18 "Enchanted Wilds" PBE Day 21 — live Aug 25 (patch 18.1)

New PBE patch dropped (8/18)

• Devs say champs + most traits are "in a good spot for launch" and effectively locking. One more fine-tuning pass tomorrow (8/19) — Augments, some Traits, smaller changes — then release lock for 18.1.
• The augment balance pass the community has waited three weeks on is confirmed for tomorrow. Last realistic window for the Trait Ladder / Elder-Dragon-Brawler / Rivals nerfs.
• Biggest remaining dev concern isn't a unit — it's Artifacts + Emblems: "these systems benefit reroll more than higher-cost strategies, and depend a lot more on Augments." Expect the final pass to tug reroll power via artifact/emblem frequency + augments, not just raw unit stats.

Nerf watch — going into tomorrow's pass (all untouched as of 8/18)

• Trait Ladder (prismatic) — doubly-flagged "broken" (STheHero + Wasianiverson); 14-trait tier ≈ infinite Masterwork Upgrades = auto-win.
• 6-Brawler Elder Dragon reroll — over-tuned off Wisp tempo (Robinsongz).
• Rivals (Kha'Zix + Rengar) — 4-day "cheat code" consensus (Robinsongz + Dishsoap).

If the 8/19 notes don't hit these, they're launch-day power picks.

Champion metadata

CommunityDragon tftchampions.json still shows 0 tft18 entries on day 21 — costs/abilities still not merged with launch 7 days out. Should populate imminently.

Reddit / streams

Thin night. Reddit RSS mostly rate-limited (only automod threads + a Set-17 "pivot vs force a comp" philosophy question). Streamer feeds returned null upload dates and mostly already-covered early-August VODs — no reliably-fresh new Set 18 video to add. Standing reads unchanged: Fast-9 Draven flex is the macro; Blackthorn AP carries + Solar 3-star greed on the fringes.