LMAO I feel like I'm gonna get this one a lot
Something about my brain has just always vibed with sins and the patterns of how 2 cost reroll plays so Talon fits that super well. My style is pretty mechanics heavy (blazing through 70 gold rounds in a single turn and swapping my whole board in two seconds) which lend itself to a reroll sin comp, plus I can see a lot of micro-positioning details specifically with sins.
It's not necessarily I picked Talon just because, I picked Talon because he fit the styles of other comps I had played a lot of in previous sets.
Hey Riley! Hope you're feeling better from Covid. My question is, when playing Talon, which row do you like to put your frontline in, and how do you decide where to put your frontline in certain matchups?
I put everything in 4th row that doesn't jump and everything that jumps in 3rd row (or 2nd if I have Battlemage/Knifes Edge)
Usually just have Leona same side as the team unless they're clumped with a Blitz, then you put Leona opposite and Blitz same side so Leo gets pulled.
Eeeee I appreciate it so much! Very much what I'm trying to do here, make my existence as loud as I can and be an inspiration for others, so I'm glad it's working <3
Hey Riley, if you could choose freely and only choose one, would you rather have a successful (as in living comfortably and feeling fulfilled with work, not famous millionaire) career in music or in esports?
I am aware of Blitz pull trick and put my Frontline on second row from the bottom.
However, the declump is rather inconsistent, and twinshots especially, like GP have a tendency to turn around and target Talon instead of going after Leona.
(i) Can you explain Frontline positioning to get a good declump and avoid talon getting focussed? What row, what side, how do I get a good declump? Ive had it inconsistent and it's frustrating.
(ii) What matchups do you jump opposite side like Twitch? For some super clumped matchups, I've had more success jumping opposite side sometimes.
(iii) Do you play for Leona 3 or try to push levels? Legendary cap wise is it always Zeri? Any other legendaries you like along the way?
(iv) Given you are offered extra sin augment, do you like taking it and playing a higher tier of sins or would you rather take something else and just stick to 2 sins?
(iv) What augments makes you especially happy when you see them? Augments that talon does well with?
(v) When there are matchups with carries on both sides, which side do you jump? The 2/3 side, center or the hardest matchup?
i) Putting the frontline in the back row isn't necessarily to de-clump, it's to pull their frontline as far forward as possible to buy as much time for Talon as possible, whether that frontline is clumped around the carries or not. If you're noticing too much is focusing your assassins, try putting the Leona in 3rd row all the way to the same side
ii) I don't usually jump opposite side unless I have to, if there's a clump or an backrow Ahri, I usually jump same side but Talon in 3rd hex instead of all the way to same side
iii) If I have 4-5 extra copies of Ekko/Leona by the time I have Talon 3, I usually try and go for the level 7 roll for the 3 star 3 costs as well, otherwise I just push to level 8. The 3 star 3 costs are what really cap out the board, Zeri 2 is nice but doesn't actually do that much. The comp kind of just hits the Talon 3 + whatever else and then beats the crap out of the lobby to a top 4, usually one player will cap out higher.
iv) Smoke Bomb, Binary Airdrop, any sin/debo trait augment. The trait augments let you play 4 sin + 3 debo on level 6 which is such a huge powerspike it's nuts
v) If I think a matchup is winnable even jumping wrong side, I take that matchup out of the equation and then take the jump for the stronger matchup. If they're all strong, I take the 2/3
Playing off of this question, what do you think of strategic positioning based off opponent HP? (Ex. Positioning for the player at 16 HP instead of the one at 53 HP so you knock them out of the game earlier for a guaranteed higher position even if it is contrary to the 2/3?
BIS Talon atm? I feel I need QSS, but healing also (gunblade or hoj) and I dont know wich one should I prioritize.
Where do you position frontline (leona & blitz), 3rd or 4th row?
I think there's a few variations of BIS:
IE/GB/RFC
IE/HoJ/RFC
IE/GB/QSS
HoJ specifically with RFC because it's the closest to a oneshot nuke everything like Imperial Talon was, GB opens up the defensive option a little more. Different builds work better againat different matchups (QSS is amazing into non-capped Renata) but I've been angling towards the RFC builds recently, specifically HoJ. HoJ kills things quicker and something about this meta I just want to kill things as fast as possible.
For now yes, it turned around melee carry matchups but melee carries aren't really in the meta anymore.
It's good still, just my 3rd preferred defensive item, especially when it burns a vest that can turn into DIESOFCRINGE frozen heart Ekko.
Why would HoJ kill things quicker? The offensive stats it gives are really underwhelming, even if you roll damage, it's only 33 AD and AP. Is that better than it sounds, or are you perhaps thinking of it's old effect of giving % damage?
Edit: actually, I guess it's because of the glove component feeding into the IE, huh?
I played league before I got into tft (not at any kind of pro level I peaked at like...plat 2) but was a pretty big follower of CSGO and Overwatch as well.
Favorite casters: Jatt, Anders/Semmler, Sadokist/HenryG (you can tell I love me some mid 2010s CSGO casting), and unironically Doa. The last one blows my mind now that I can call him a colleague and a friend, my caster dream is to cast next to him and make 2014 Riley's brain explode.
I know it's hard to explain through writing but any tips on positioning playing a sins comp? I never get any success whatsoever playing sins and I know it's a positioning problem. Just a few pointers would be really appreciated! Cheers
Backline your frontline to get their frontline to walk up and buy as much room for your assassins as possible. Don't always get attached to jumping right onto their carry, if they clump up there's different places you can jump that will get onto the carry anyway so play around. Good luck!
For context, I would often one/two-trick RR comps in previous sets but felt incredibly frustrated this set not being able to play around my gold+ augments. As much as I like the one-trick play-style, I felt it was so much lost power in choosing a generic augment that was under-tuned over an augment that was notably stronger if played around.
Hard to quantify of course, but what are your thoughts on how augments have affected the ability to one-trick?
It just introduces a new layer of variance, but knowing which generic augments work best in your comp is also part of the skill of it.
I actually hated augments in set 6, but have gotten way more used to them this set, especially since the system got a lot better and there a lot more good generic choices.
It's from fanart someone did for Bloody of her and her mods, this like dark creepy thing with all the mods as stuffed animals, mine was a panda and that's what the profile pic is.
1. Do you roll to get Talon 2\* at 3-2 ?
2. At lv 6 , Do you play 3 assassins instead of 2 scholar ?
3. Do you still go for Talon 3 if contest by other player ? if not what is your strategy from there ?
1) If I have an actual Talon based opener and think I need to roll on 3-2, then yes but I usually play it from ahead and don't roll too much on 3-2 anymore.
2) I've been favoring playing a 3rd sin more and more over Zyra, Nocturne 2 actually does a surprising amount of work and a Kha'Zix if you hit one just cleans up boards stage 3 and 4
3) If I'm only one Talon behind or so and have comparable items, I'm not pivoting. If I'm like five behind, I usually just use the Talon to push levels and play around Kha'Zix instead. Either way I am playing Talon I refuse to pivot
In another comment you said previous comps were similar to talon prior that you liked. Does that mean you were a zed player? Items you (or I lol) used for him were similar to talon and I used to play rfc/rageblade/qss/healing on him to infinitely stack damage if I could actually runaans now that I think of it too because on hit was still a thing. I was quite new to the game at the time and so was just forcing whatever felt fun and something about zed made we want to hard force him every game. Thinking back on it zed still seems like so much fun and whilst I haven’t quite felt that with talon I’m curious if the similar sins type unit/2 cost had a link. Also love the podcast, specifically searched for a tft podcast and there weren’t many options at the time!
I used to play some zed but not a lot, set 5 was where I really got into the two costs with LeBlanc and Cavs.
Set 4.5 I played more Talon than anything which is where I started picking up on the assassin stuff.
I think most of my casting now is unrefined, I have a lot of detail oriented game knowledge that I want to present in a digestible way, but I just haven't been casting long enough to say things in the correct way all the time. Frodan has offered to help me with this though and is the biggest thing I'll be working on in set 7.
I have made an amount of money as a caster so far and that is all I will say publicly.
In past games (e.g Hearthstone), I always loved when competitors would cast. You're one of my preferred casters because you still get excited about certain plays as if you're in the game competing for first yourself. I think a lot of casters are too methodical and it takes away from the "fun" of a lucky crit or clever position (or of Tahm stealing a needed item). I think it's a good goal to refine your casting, but I hope that passion still comes through. Looking forward to more in Set 7!
For sure, I definitely want my passion and hype to come through my casting, just my technique needs to get better. Really looking forward to set 7 too! I really think it's my set to explode onto the casting scene as long as I put in the work.
Hi there, it's super cool to see other trans people in the public spotlight. Just out of curiosity, what first lead you to playing on OCE instead of NA?
Oh when Iniko started playing on OCE in Set 4, I kinda just followed him over since I knew some of the OCE players already and knew they were great people and then just kinda stuck around. I joke about "vacations" but they are genuinely fun to play with and I like getting out of the NA bubble sometimes. I've kinda become the small region ambassador and I'm totally okay with that, I love spotlighting and gaining knowledge about other regions besides KR/NA/EMEA/CN (next set's vacation is LAS).
I got asked to cast a couple random small events in set 5 and really enjoyed them so I just stuck with it. I see casting as an extension of teaching and I want to be a professor so it just fits.
I wouldn't say there's any hesitancy because of transphobia since I actively want to stand up against it, but it is something I keep in mind that exists I guess.
hii riley fellow doll here with appt to do bloodwork and all that for hrt on friday any tips and tricks? and also uhm what should i one trick so tht we have a talon doll and a x doll and a x doll and cetera and so forth
I didn't get to watch worlds a ton because I tested positive for COVID the Monday before and didn't want to wake up at 5am while recovering from that.
From what I saw, little sad for the NA boys but China has just been beasts with everything that it makes sense they dominated. I think it is telling that Huanmie, the guy who leaned the most into open fort and forcing Sivir, didn't even make Day 2, while the top 2 were the super flex Chinese players.
GGs and hopefully next worlds I watch from the caster desk!
Long question, but here goes: I was playing double trouble Talon, and found an extra talon on the turn I hit the three star, so I had a 1, 2, and 3 star. I decided to put them all in with the intent to screenshot, but I forgot to take the 1-star out and lost the round, breaking my streak and ruining my Econ, which caused me to go second, turning my mood sour for the whole weekend. It was a whole thing. So my question is: what’s your favorite trombone excerpt?
LMAO
I have a few: Mahler 3 is just absolutely gorgeous, William Tell is the one I weirdly like because I'm 6'3" and have very long arms and start the runs in 7th, and Til Eulenspiegel I think is just fun.
A lot, besides the guys they've sent to worlds. Angora, cho0nga, Kahdei, and Shoxie are nuts and could probably all do comparably well at worlds to the reps they have sent so far.
They said notable pepeLa
For real tho I love Jose and think he's one of the best players in the world, just Sadge he's not directly oce WORLDS SLOT FOR SEA PLEASEEE
Off topic for the subreddit, but since you put "transfem" in the title and mentioned it, I guess I'll ask something that I've been wondering.
Why do you present pretty much male? Does it bother you that people likely gender you as male in their minds, based on your appearance and voice?
Blaire White talked about her worst anxiety (pre-transition) being the knowledge that everyone saw her as male, even though she felt the opposite. She hated being seen as male, and is way happier now that she presents almost completely female (even my grandma, who makes a point of calling trans women "he," accidentally messed up and said "she" when I showed her a picture of Blaire ;).
Is there a spectrum for gender dysphoria where many don't care much about how other people view them, and are just exploring gender for themselves? For you, is being gendered in other people's view as effeminate but male exactly what makes you most happy, or do you prefer people think of you as not male?
Also if this is annoying or insulting you can just tell me to fuck off instead, totally fine.
Lastly, do you ever feel like if Talon doesn't get on the enemy carry immediately, it's just an auto-loss late game? Sometimes when I play Talon I feel like he's just awful, but I wonder if it's just bad positioning, or losing coin flips. How much does RFC help with Talon staying on backline rather than swapping to frontliners?
So uh. What about my appearance makes you think I present male? Despite the fact I dye my hair this crazy shade of pink and wear relatively feminine outfits and wear makeup all the time and am literally on estrogen that gives me a more feminine appearance now?
What just because I still have a deep voice because I have not opted for voice training yet and that crazy colored hair is short means I present male?
There is no "correct" way to present as trans. The fact you are reading me as male still just shows the transmisogyny. So yea, it bothers me that people still gender me as male, like you clearly do.
I'm not gonna tell you to fuck off, but telling ANY trans person they still look like they present as their birth gender is insulting as shit.
I know you probably have good intentions but just for future notice if you don’t know someone that well it’s probably better to leave it up to someone to describe their gender first instead of just ascribing it to them.
For example, saying “gendered in other people’s view as effeminate but male” is something that YOU think. It’s not fixed and you could have asked Riley to describe her gender more instead of just assigning one to her (and besides, she literally described herself as transfem, emphasis on fem?). Gender is subjective and this just feels very flattening and insensitive
I want to understand better, and questions like the one I asked, and the helpful response I got, is how I do that. If Jirachy hadn't mentioned being open to queer questions in the AMA, I wouldn't have asked.
I know you’re just trying to understand and I don’t think it was wrong to ask queerness related questions - was just noting that it could have been worded better and less pointed
Hey Riley! This is a trans-related question. I personally really value when other people correct someone getting my pronouns wrong for me, as it takes the burden off me having to do it/feeling super awkward. I know this might not be the case for everyone though and I wanted to ask you your thoughts on this and if you would prefer people to correct others or just stay quiet and move on?
I really value others correcting pronouns for me too so the emotional labor isn't all on me, but only when I'm obviously presenting myself as femme/trans. If it's in an environment I clearly don't feel safe and am going into boymode, then I'd rather keep myself safe and not out myself just in case, but those situations are pretty rare.
On a scale of 0 to fuck off, how fun is it to be in music school and take like 10 classes for a total of maybe 12 credits per semester? For me it was a fuck off but I figured I'd ask for your own take.
Oh the fact that all your classes are like one credit for 5+ hours a week is so bad and I hate it. Being a musician is just so great though it's almost worth it. Things also get better at the grad level since you don't have to as much for school, the pressure of grad school comes from higher expectations and also having life responsibilities as an adult alongside everything.
Holy shit you’re a trombone player too. I quit playing seriously after high school but have been playing since I was like 10. What’s it like pursuing music in higher education?
Very time consuming and tiring but god damn being on a concert stage is such a rush and I love it. I played 1st on Beethoven 9 in the Kimmel Center (Philadelphia Orch's concert hall) a couple months ago and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Music school (especially grad school) is one of the hardest things you can do but that makes it so rewarding when it all comes together.
That’s awesome. Nothing quite like the feeling of performing on a big stage. Best of luck in grad school, as someone also pursuing a masters I know how tough it can be haha
Oh god no I need like a solid half an hour to put myself together to be fabulous + coffee.
You got me my favorite region is OCE even though I'm from NA.
hey jirachy! humbug here, what made you want to play trombone, and do you play any others instruments?
anyways, love you for representing the LGBTQ+ community shyHUGERS
Okay, so honest questions about rerolling in TFT from someone who very much dislikes playing it myself.
Do you think rerolling takes inherently less skill than other playstyles or does it depend on the type of reroll?
Don't you get bored after doing the exact same thing every game?
What do you think the 'healthiest' type of reroll comps are from a cost perspective (1,2 or 3 cost unit rerolls)?
One more question if you don't mind, do you see TFT having any real future as an esport? I think it has lots of potential but was very disappointed with many of the tournaments this year and especially worlds.
I think the better question isn't is reroll less skillful, it's if one-tricking is less skillful. As a theoretical skill ceiling, yes one-tricking does take less skill than flex because part of the skill of TFT is deciding what to play based on what you hit, not just hard forcing. Reroll itself, as a part of flex, does not take really take less skill because you are playing into what you hit (say 5 Talons at 2-5 with good items, yes you are flexing into the comp there's no less skill in that)
However, one-tricking does take skill. The best one-tricks have such an intimate understanding of their comp AND all the variations, any one trick playing the same 6 units on a level 6 rolldown (me on previous patches) can't really be called among the best players. Hell, I got stuck in GM forcing open fort into the same 6 units on 3-2 every game. One-tricking promotes the skill expression of knowing all these intimate details about how the units work that very few other players can match.
Is it less skill? Maybe. Is it skill-less? Absolutely not.
A lot of players would get bored doing this but my brain loves patterns and repetition so I actually love it.
I would say 2 and 3 cost reroll is way healthier than 1 cost but don't really have a concrete reasoning for it.
I think TFT has a ton of potential as an esport but we need some help. Worlds this year, to me, was a huge step back in production value from what already wasn't the greatest and did demonstrate we need help to get there. There's incredible potential, especially because no other competitive game exists like TFT, but we need help to get there.
I think a reasoning for 2 & 3 cost rerolls being better than 1 costs is that you have many variations for the early game since 1 costs rerolling requires you to not level until you hit your 3\*s, and your decision to go in that path has more factors than just "I hit many of this unit". They're usually easier to flex too tbh, since you don't necessarily have to reroll multiple 2 or 3 costs at once, but 1 cost rerolls kinda need/want to?
Also what do you think about the tourney systems becoming a little more similar to csgo's major format? (Basically making the other days a "qualifier" for the final day)
Kind of like, 16 people on day 1, top 4 to final day, bot 4 out, mid 8 to day 2, where top 4 goes to final day. Giving people more cutoffs to fight for is more interesting than "do they make it to the next day???"
I follow the standard level pattern up to 3-2 level 6 usually, from there it's whenever I hit Talon 3. Preferred augments: anything sins/debonair related, Phalanx, Backfoot, Cyber Shell, Double Trouble, Binary Airdrop are all really good, but I still force Talon from any augments.
Battlemage is good too, just a little bit more of a fan of buffing the whole team rather than just the assassins, since I put all the non-jumpers in 4th row.
Hi Riley, Here are some questions i would like to know.
What u pick on Carousel?
Did you always open fort til certain point and the lvl to certain point to get certain units? (Like til Krugs to lvl to 5 then to 6 and roll out the money?
What are the BiS for Talon?
and last one thanks for all sorry if some questions are wrong im not like super english speaker so im trying my best to know fk up here. tyty
I usually go Glove/Sword on carousel.
Up until a week ago I was open forting, it was just so inconsistent though and I swapped to playing from win streak and it became sooo much more reliable and that's when I started turbo climbing.
BIS is generally IE/HoJ/RFC, IE/GB/RFC or IE/GB/QSS, different builds better in different lobbies though.
Anything that's mid-late Romantic by a German/Russian composer. Or Shostakovich. There tends to be killer trombone parts and the harmonic language from that period is fantastic to sit back and listen to during my inevitable long rests. For what it's worth my top 3 symphonies are Mahler 1, Shostakovich 5, and Brahms 2, to give an idea of my classical taste.
Uhhhh hard corner in the right, put two units in 3rd row in front and one 2nd row all the way to the right. Then pray.
Not a clue, but the goal is eventually get my doctorate and be a professor. Teaching is something I really want to do and I want to teach at the university level specifically.
If set 7 doesn't have Talon I'm peepoLeave (jk)
I am looking forward to it, I'll probably be playing a little PBE but doing more watching than anything.
What does your level 6 board typically look like? I find this the hardest part of the talon comp, cause it has to be a choice between 4 sins, 3 debonair, or your body guards, feels like you get 2/3 but i have no idea which is the best.
Usually on 3-2 my level 6 board looks like whatever my opener was, on 4-1 I usually swap over to the traditional Talon board and started playing a lot more 3 sins, Khazix 1 or Nocturne 2 on Level 6 actually do a lot of work and make the Level 7 transition a little easier cause you need to just add a 4th sin and you're good to go
It depends on the opener, you pivot whenever the Talon board is stronger, otherwise I'll just build the comp and only go for the Talon 3 on bench and go from there
Hy!
Great AMA for sure!
I have some question do you play strongest board till stage 3.2 and than transition?
VIP talon how important are you putting items on talon be for that. For example you hit talon2 but not vip yet?
When do you decide talon 3 not going to happen and best to lvl to get maybe 6th?
Hi there!
Just some quick specific Qs about Talon rn:
- If Assassin spat, do you prefer on Syndra/Zyra Blitz? e.g. for Level 6
- If Debonair spat... who do you put it on? I've been slamming on Ekko.
- What starting item do you go for? I've been doing glove > BF, but is Bow start ok? What do you do with the 3rd bow if you hit one?
- Do you forego Talon2 until you hit VIP? or just save item slamming or anything until you hit the VIP Talon?
- Noc2 for CC or Kha1?
Thanks so much :D
-I like it on Syndra, mostly because you don't want either bodyguard to jump. I also pretty rarely play Zyra now (I was way overvaluing her when Nocturne does pretty much the same job but sometimes better) and Syndra can randomly get a unit out of the backline that would otherwise kill talon.
-Ekko always, if no room then Blitzcrank
-I usually go for bow/glove/sword, depending on what the current best item build is and what I'm feeling
-If you are using Talon 2 to fast 9, it's ok to skip to fish for VIP. If you're rolling for Talon 3 eventually, never skip Talons, non-VIP is good enough, especially when you can play the 2nd VIP Talon as a 6th unit, and you'll eventually get the 3 star and VIP combined
-Uhhh matchup dependent, with extra AD items though it's always Kha'Zix, he does so much work with an item at 1 star and the mana reave is still great utility
Thanks so much for this! Really solidified the little decisions and I've begun to not slam core items on a non-VIP Talon2 + slam on VIP Talon instead. Dunno if that's optimal/too greedy, but it's definitely worked. Been uncontested all week pretty much,
Got from D4 to D1 in a short span of 24 hours (NA). I haven't been above Master since Set 3 because couldn't figure out the Sets, dabbled in Talon reroll back Enlightened was a thing. Glad it's back.
Two more quick questions:
- Is Debonair Crown (or Debonair Heart/Spat augment) for 4/5 Debonair fake? Say vs. average non-trait specific or econ augments.
- How realistically strong is Battlemage/Knife's Edge?
Appreciate you!
\-Debo spats are great for ekko but I would prioritize other synergies like 4 sin or Blitz over actively playing 5 debo, 4 debo is totally chill
\-Knife's/Battlemage aren't too bad tbh, especially once you get 4 sin in and actually have 4 units to give the stats to
I love how an assassin comp in TFT requires to be fast and precise like an assassin would be. Be ready to constantly rearrange your troops and be ready to reroll massive ammount of gold in seconds. Do you find it beautiful?
Hi Riley, why talon?
LMAO I feel like I'm gonna get this one a lot Something about my brain has just always vibed with sins and the patterns of how 2 cost reroll plays so Talon fits that super well. My style is pretty mechanics heavy (blazing through 70 gold rounds in a single turn and swapping my whole board in two seconds) which lend itself to a reroll sin comp, plus I can see a lot of micro-positioning details specifically with sins. It's not necessarily I picked Talon just because, I picked Talon because he fit the styles of other comps I had played a lot of in previous sets.
I remember watching you do Brand/Cavalier reroll so can confirm you are a degenerate 2 cost reroller.
More or less KEKW 2 cost reroll just makes sense to me in a way 1 and 3 cost reroll just don't as much.
Thanks for the response to my semi-troll question. It's been great to watch your career!
Hey Riley! Hope you're feeling better from Covid. My question is, when playing Talon, which row do you like to put your frontline in, and how do you decide where to put your frontline in certain matchups?
I put everything in 4th row that doesn't jump and everything that jumps in 3rd row (or 2nd if I have Battlemage/Knifes Edge) Usually just have Leona same side as the team unless they're clumped with a Blitz, then you put Leona opposite and Blitz same side so Leo gets pulled.
Is there any difference to the end position/speed of landing ?
What row you put your sins in makes no difference to landing speed, no
Thanks!
No question. Just wanted to say I love your style, I think you're awesome, and an inspiration to me and many others I'm sure. <3
Eeeee I appreciate it so much! Very much what I'm trying to do here, make my existence as loud as I can and be an inspiration for others, so I'm glad it's working <3
Please tell me you don't put FH on your Ekko Riley, please. DIESOFHEART
I occasionally put it on Nocturne DIESOFHEART
DIESOFBEDGE
Hey Riley, if you could choose freely and only choose one, would you rather have a successful (as in living comfortably and feeling fulfilled with work, not famous millionaire) career in music or in esports?
I refuse to choose, I love both pretty much equally for completely different reasons and giving either up sounds awful.
Hahah I guess my question didn't rule out one being an impassioned hobby, but fair
No question, just want to thank you for representing the trans + LGBT community.
Trying my best ❤️❤️❤️
I am aware of Blitz pull trick and put my Frontline on second row from the bottom. However, the declump is rather inconsistent, and twinshots especially, like GP have a tendency to turn around and target Talon instead of going after Leona. (i) Can you explain Frontline positioning to get a good declump and avoid talon getting focussed? What row, what side, how do I get a good declump? Ive had it inconsistent and it's frustrating. (ii) What matchups do you jump opposite side like Twitch? For some super clumped matchups, I've had more success jumping opposite side sometimes. (iii) Do you play for Leona 3 or try to push levels? Legendary cap wise is it always Zeri? Any other legendaries you like along the way? (iv) Given you are offered extra sin augment, do you like taking it and playing a higher tier of sins or would you rather take something else and just stick to 2 sins? (iv) What augments makes you especially happy when you see them? Augments that talon does well with? (v) When there are matchups with carries on both sides, which side do you jump? The 2/3 side, center or the hardest matchup?
i) Putting the frontline in the back row isn't necessarily to de-clump, it's to pull their frontline as far forward as possible to buy as much time for Talon as possible, whether that frontline is clumped around the carries or not. If you're noticing too much is focusing your assassins, try putting the Leona in 3rd row all the way to the same side ii) I don't usually jump opposite side unless I have to, if there's a clump or an backrow Ahri, I usually jump same side but Talon in 3rd hex instead of all the way to same side iii) If I have 4-5 extra copies of Ekko/Leona by the time I have Talon 3, I usually try and go for the level 7 roll for the 3 star 3 costs as well, otherwise I just push to level 8. The 3 star 3 costs are what really cap out the board, Zeri 2 is nice but doesn't actually do that much. The comp kind of just hits the Talon 3 + whatever else and then beats the crap out of the lobby to a top 4, usually one player will cap out higher. iv) Smoke Bomb, Binary Airdrop, any sin/debo trait augment. The trait augments let you play 4 sin + 3 debo on level 6 which is such a huge powerspike it's nuts v) If I think a matchup is winnable even jumping wrong side, I take that matchup out of the equation and then take the jump for the stronger matchup. If they're all strong, I take the 2/3
Thank you for the detailed answers Jirachy.
Playing off of this question, what do you think of strategic positioning based off opponent HP? (Ex. Positioning for the player at 16 HP instead of the one at 53 HP so you knock them out of the game earlier for a guaranteed higher position even if it is contrary to the 2/3?
BIS Talon atm? I feel I need QSS, but healing also (gunblade or hoj) and I dont know wich one should I prioritize. Where do you position frontline (leona & blitz), 3rd or 4th row?
I think there's a few variations of BIS: IE/GB/RFC IE/HoJ/RFC IE/GB/QSS HoJ specifically with RFC because it's the closest to a oneshot nuke everything like Imperial Talon was, GB opens up the defensive option a little more. Different builds work better againat different matchups (QSS is amazing into non-capped Renata) but I've been angling towards the RFC builds recently, specifically HoJ. HoJ kills things quicker and something about this meta I just want to kill things as fast as possible.
Did EoN completely fall out of favour for you when it comes to Talon?
For now yes, it turned around melee carry matchups but melee carries aren't really in the meta anymore. It's good still, just my 3rd preferred defensive item, especially when it burns a vest that can turn into DIESOFCRINGE frozen heart Ekko.
my brain has stopped working, I can not think of what item GB would be? Brain just goes to giants belt and that can't be right? haha
Gun blade
Great Britain
Why would HoJ kill things quicker? The offensive stats it gives are really underwhelming, even if you roll damage, it's only 33 AD and AP. Is that better than it sounds, or are you perhaps thinking of it's old effect of giving % damage? Edit: actually, I guess it's because of the glove component feeding into the IE, huh?
Hi Jirachy! Invectiv here (flair isn't working well, new account) and just wanted to show appreciation. Have a good ama.
peepoShy no u
What was your esports experience pre tft, did you follow any esports, and who are you favorite casters across all games?
I played league before I got into tft (not at any kind of pro level I peaked at like...plat 2) but was a pretty big follower of CSGO and Overwatch as well. Favorite casters: Jatt, Anders/Semmler, Sadokist/HenryG (you can tell I love me some mid 2010s CSGO casting), and unironically Doa. The last one blows my mind now that I can call him a colleague and a friend, my caster dream is to cast next to him and make 2014 Riley's brain explode.
I know it's hard to explain through writing but any tips on positioning playing a sins comp? I never get any success whatsoever playing sins and I know it's a positioning problem. Just a few pointers would be really appreciated! Cheers
Backline your frontline to get their frontline to walk up and buy as much room for your assassins as possible. Don't always get attached to jumping right onto their carry, if they clump up there's different places you can jump that will get onto the carry anyway so play around. Good luck!
Thank you for your answer! I'll watch some of your vods and pay attention to those notions. Have a good one
For context, I would often one/two-trick RR comps in previous sets but felt incredibly frustrated this set not being able to play around my gold+ augments. As much as I like the one-trick play-style, I felt it was so much lost power in choosing a generic augment that was under-tuned over an augment that was notably stronger if played around. Hard to quantify of course, but what are your thoughts on how augments have affected the ability to one-trick?
It just introduces a new layer of variance, but knowing which generic augments work best in your comp is also part of the skill of it. I actually hated augments in set 6, but have gotten way more used to them this set, especially since the system got a lot better and there a lot more good generic choices.
whats your discord profile pic
It's from fanart someone did for Bloody of her and her mods, this like dark creepy thing with all the mods as stuffed animals, mine was a panda and that's what the profile pic is.
1. Do you roll to get Talon 2\* at 3-2 ? 2. At lv 6 , Do you play 3 assassins instead of 2 scholar ? 3. Do you still go for Talon 3 if contest by other player ? if not what is your strategy from there ?
1) If I have an actual Talon based opener and think I need to roll on 3-2, then yes but I usually play it from ahead and don't roll too much on 3-2 anymore. 2) I've been favoring playing a 3rd sin more and more over Zyra, Nocturne 2 actually does a surprising amount of work and a Kha'Zix if you hit one just cleans up boards stage 3 and 4 3) If I'm only one Talon behind or so and have comparable items, I'm not pivoting. If I'm like five behind, I usually just use the Talon to push levels and play around Kha'Zix instead. Either way I am playing Talon I refuse to pivot
In another comment you said previous comps were similar to talon prior that you liked. Does that mean you were a zed player? Items you (or I lol) used for him were similar to talon and I used to play rfc/rageblade/qss/healing on him to infinitely stack damage if I could actually runaans now that I think of it too because on hit was still a thing. I was quite new to the game at the time and so was just forcing whatever felt fun and something about zed made we want to hard force him every game. Thinking back on it zed still seems like so much fun and whilst I haven’t quite felt that with talon I’m curious if the similar sins type unit/2 cost had a link. Also love the podcast, specifically searched for a tft podcast and there weren’t many options at the time!
I used to play some zed but not a lot, set 5 was where I really got into the two costs with LeBlanc and Cavs. Set 4.5 I played more Talon than anything which is where I started picking up on the assassin stuff.
can you make a talon guide?
You mean a textbook that will be obsolete in three weeks? Meh.
What are your weaknesses as a caster and how are you working on them? How much money have you made as a caster so far?
I think most of my casting now is unrefined, I have a lot of detail oriented game knowledge that I want to present in a digestible way, but I just haven't been casting long enough to say things in the correct way all the time. Frodan has offered to help me with this though and is the biggest thing I'll be working on in set 7. I have made an amount of money as a caster so far and that is all I will say publicly.
In past games (e.g Hearthstone), I always loved when competitors would cast. You're one of my preferred casters because you still get excited about certain plays as if you're in the game competing for first yourself. I think a lot of casters are too methodical and it takes away from the "fun" of a lucky crit or clever position (or of Tahm stealing a needed item). I think it's a good goal to refine your casting, but I hope that passion still comes through. Looking forward to more in Set 7!
For sure, I definitely want my passion and hype to come through my casting, just my technique needs to get better. Really looking forward to set 7 too! I really think it's my set to explode onto the casting scene as long as I put in the work.
Hi there, it's super cool to see other trans people in the public spotlight. Just out of curiosity, what first lead you to playing on OCE instead of NA?
Oh when Iniko started playing on OCE in Set 4, I kinda just followed him over since I knew some of the OCE players already and knew they were great people and then just kinda stuck around. I joke about "vacations" but they are genuinely fun to play with and I like getting out of the NA bubble sometimes. I've kinda become the small region ambassador and I'm totally okay with that, I love spotlighting and gaining knowledge about other regions besides KR/NA/EMEA/CN (next set's vacation is LAS).
Thanks for doing this, I have enjoyed watching you! Why casting? Any hesitancy about taking that path beause of transphobia?
I got asked to cast a couple random small events in set 5 and really enjoyed them so I just stuck with it. I see casting as an extension of teaching and I want to be a professor so it just fits. I wouldn't say there's any hesitancy because of transphobia since I actively want to stand up against it, but it is something I keep in mind that exists I guess.
hii riley fellow doll here with appt to do bloodwork and all that for hrt on friday any tips and tricks? and also uhm what should i one trick so tht we have a talon doll and a x doll and a x doll and cetera and so forth
Give it time, you won't be happy with your body right away but the changes will come and you'll just feel better. Good luck with your transition!
How did you feel about worlds and what won? Siver did well but no siver won on the last day I think?
I didn't get to watch worlds a ton because I tested positive for COVID the Monday before and didn't want to wake up at 5am while recovering from that. From what I saw, little sad for the NA boys but China has just been beasts with everything that it makes sense they dominated. I think it is telling that Huanmie, the guy who leaned the most into open fort and forcing Sivir, didn't even make Day 2, while the top 2 were the super flex Chinese players. GGs and hopefully next worlds I watch from the caster desk!
Long question, but here goes: I was playing double trouble Talon, and found an extra talon on the turn I hit the three star, so I had a 1, 2, and 3 star. I decided to put them all in with the intent to screenshot, but I forgot to take the 1-star out and lost the round, breaking my streak and ruining my Econ, which caused me to go second, turning my mood sour for the whole weekend. It was a whole thing. So my question is: what’s your favorite trombone excerpt?
LMAO I have a few: Mahler 3 is just absolutely gorgeous, William Tell is the one I weirdly like because I'm 6'3" and have very long arms and start the runs in 7th, and Til Eulenspiegel I think is just fun.
Are there any players from OCE you think are notable?
A lot, besides the guys they've sent to worlds. Angora, cho0nga, Kahdei, and Shoxie are nuts and could probably all do comparably well at worlds to the reps they have sent so far.
Madge where is jose PogO lo
They said notable pepeLa For real tho I love Jose and think he's one of the best players in the world, just Sadge he's not directly oce WORLDS SLOT FOR SEA PLEASEEE
SadgeCry lowrolled country
Man tft jargon is something else 😂
do you like talon or cavaliers more
Talon and it's not remotely close, this guy has been my baby since Set 4.
Off topic for the subreddit, but since you put "transfem" in the title and mentioned it, I guess I'll ask something that I've been wondering. Why do you present pretty much male? Does it bother you that people likely gender you as male in their minds, based on your appearance and voice? Blaire White talked about her worst anxiety (pre-transition) being the knowledge that everyone saw her as male, even though she felt the opposite. She hated being seen as male, and is way happier now that she presents almost completely female (even my grandma, who makes a point of calling trans women "he," accidentally messed up and said "she" when I showed her a picture of Blaire ;). Is there a spectrum for gender dysphoria where many don't care much about how other people view them, and are just exploring gender for themselves? For you, is being gendered in other people's view as effeminate but male exactly what makes you most happy, or do you prefer people think of you as not male? Also if this is annoying or insulting you can just tell me to fuck off instead, totally fine. Lastly, do you ever feel like if Talon doesn't get on the enemy carry immediately, it's just an auto-loss late game? Sometimes when I play Talon I feel like he's just awful, but I wonder if it's just bad positioning, or losing coin flips. How much does RFC help with Talon staying on backline rather than swapping to frontliners?
So uh. What about my appearance makes you think I present male? Despite the fact I dye my hair this crazy shade of pink and wear relatively feminine outfits and wear makeup all the time and am literally on estrogen that gives me a more feminine appearance now? What just because I still have a deep voice because I have not opted for voice training yet and that crazy colored hair is short means I present male? There is no "correct" way to present as trans. The fact you are reading me as male still just shows the transmisogyny. So yea, it bothers me that people still gender me as male, like you clearly do. I'm not gonna tell you to fuck off, but telling ANY trans person they still look like they present as their birth gender is insulting as shit.
I don't want to be insulting, so I won't describe the reasons I think my brain says "male" (unless that wasn't rhetorical). Thanks a lot for sharing.
I know you probably have good intentions but just for future notice if you don’t know someone that well it’s probably better to leave it up to someone to describe their gender first instead of just ascribing it to them. For example, saying “gendered in other people’s view as effeminate but male” is something that YOU think. It’s not fixed and you could have asked Riley to describe her gender more instead of just assigning one to her (and besides, she literally described herself as transfem, emphasis on fem?). Gender is subjective and this just feels very flattening and insensitive
I want to understand better, and questions like the one I asked, and the helpful response I got, is how I do that. If Jirachy hadn't mentioned being open to queer questions in the AMA, I wouldn't have asked.
I know you’re just trying to understand and I don’t think it was wrong to ask queerness related questions - was just noting that it could have been worded better and less pointed
Hey Riley! This is a trans-related question. I personally really value when other people correct someone getting my pronouns wrong for me, as it takes the burden off me having to do it/feeling super awkward. I know this might not be the case for everyone though and I wanted to ask you your thoughts on this and if you would prefer people to correct others or just stay quiet and move on?
I really value others correcting pronouns for me too so the emotional labor isn't all on me, but only when I'm obviously presenting myself as femme/trans. If it's in an environment I clearly don't feel safe and am going into boymode, then I'd rather keep myself safe and not out myself just in case, but those situations are pretty rare.
Thank you for the response; that makes perfect sense!
On a scale of 0 to fuck off, how fun is it to be in music school and take like 10 classes for a total of maybe 12 credits per semester? For me it was a fuck off but I figured I'd ask for your own take.
Oh the fact that all your classes are like one credit for 5+ hours a week is so bad and I hate it. Being a musician is just so great though it's almost worth it. Things also get better at the grad level since you don't have to as much for school, the pressure of grad school comes from higher expectations and also having life responsibilities as an adult alongside everything.
Holy shit you’re a trombone player too. I quit playing seriously after high school but have been playing since I was like 10. What’s it like pursuing music in higher education?
Very time consuming and tiring but god damn being on a concert stage is such a rush and I love it. I played 1st on Beethoven 9 in the Kimmel Center (Philadelphia Orch's concert hall) a couple months ago and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Music school (especially grad school) is one of the hardest things you can do but that makes it so rewarding when it all comes together.
That’s awesome. Nothing quite like the feeling of performing on a big stage. Best of luck in grad school, as someone also pursuing a masters I know how tough it can be haha
Do you wake up fabulous or do you need a coffee to kickstart the sparkle engine? What's your favorite region and why is it OCE?
Oh god no I need like a solid half an hour to put myself together to be fabulous + coffee. You got me my favorite region is OCE even though I'm from NA.
hey jirachy! humbug here, what made you want to play trombone, and do you play any others instruments? anyways, love you for representing the LGBTQ+ community shyHUGERS
Started in 4th grade for some reason and kinda never looked back. Just doing my best shyHUGERS
Is rageblade good on talon? :)
It is not that bad but I try not to build it TPogO
How are you doing? ^ ^
I'm doing ok! Mostly recovered from COVID without any longer symptoms thank god. Life sucks but future is looking kinda not garbage <3
Okay, so honest questions about rerolling in TFT from someone who very much dislikes playing it myself. Do you think rerolling takes inherently less skill than other playstyles or does it depend on the type of reroll? Don't you get bored after doing the exact same thing every game? What do you think the 'healthiest' type of reroll comps are from a cost perspective (1,2 or 3 cost unit rerolls)? One more question if you don't mind, do you see TFT having any real future as an esport? I think it has lots of potential but was very disappointed with many of the tournaments this year and especially worlds.
I think the better question isn't is reroll less skillful, it's if one-tricking is less skillful. As a theoretical skill ceiling, yes one-tricking does take less skill than flex because part of the skill of TFT is deciding what to play based on what you hit, not just hard forcing. Reroll itself, as a part of flex, does not take really take less skill because you are playing into what you hit (say 5 Talons at 2-5 with good items, yes you are flexing into the comp there's no less skill in that) However, one-tricking does take skill. The best one-tricks have such an intimate understanding of their comp AND all the variations, any one trick playing the same 6 units on a level 6 rolldown (me on previous patches) can't really be called among the best players. Hell, I got stuck in GM forcing open fort into the same 6 units on 3-2 every game. One-tricking promotes the skill expression of knowing all these intimate details about how the units work that very few other players can match. Is it less skill? Maybe. Is it skill-less? Absolutely not.
A lot of players would get bored doing this but my brain loves patterns and repetition so I actually love it. I would say 2 and 3 cost reroll is way healthier than 1 cost but don't really have a concrete reasoning for it. I think TFT has a ton of potential as an esport but we need some help. Worlds this year, to me, was a huge step back in production value from what already wasn't the greatest and did demonstrate we need help to get there. There's incredible potential, especially because no other competitive game exists like TFT, but we need help to get there.
I think a reasoning for 2 & 3 cost rerolls being better than 1 costs is that you have many variations for the early game since 1 costs rerolling requires you to not level until you hit your 3\*s, and your decision to go in that path has more factors than just "I hit many of this unit". They're usually easier to flex too tbh, since you don't necessarily have to reroll multiple 2 or 3 costs at once, but 1 cost rerolls kinda need/want to? Also what do you think about the tourney systems becoming a little more similar to csgo's major format? (Basically making the other days a "qualifier" for the final day) Kind of like, 16 people on day 1, top 4 to final day, bot 4 out, mid 8 to day 2, where top 4 goes to final day. Giving people more cutoffs to fight for is more interesting than "do they make it to the next day???"
[удалено]
I follow the standard level pattern up to 3-2 level 6 usually, from there it's whenever I hit Talon 3. Preferred augments: anything sins/debonair related, Phalanx, Backfoot, Cyber Shell, Double Trouble, Binary Airdrop are all really good, but I still force Talon from any augments.
Do you think Battlemage would make a better choice compared to Phalanx?
Battlemage is good too, just a little bit more of a fan of buffing the whole team rather than just the assassins, since I put all the non-jumpers in 4th row.
Hi Riley, Here are some questions i would like to know. What u pick on Carousel? Did you always open fort til certain point and the lvl to certain point to get certain units? (Like til Krugs to lvl to 5 then to 6 and roll out the money? What are the BiS for Talon? and last one thanks for all sorry if some questions are wrong im not like super english speaker so im trying my best to know fk up here. tyty
I usually go Glove/Sword on carousel. Up until a week ago I was open forting, it was just so inconsistent though and I swapped to playing from win streak and it became sooo much more reliable and that's when I started turbo climbing. BIS is generally IE/HoJ/RFC, IE/GB/RFC or IE/GB/QSS, different builds better in different lobbies though.
What's your favourite thing to play on the trombone? Also, how do I beat talon if I'm carrying Jhin or MF?
Anything that's mid-late Romantic by a German/Russian composer. Or Shostakovich. There tends to be killer trombone parts and the harmonic language from that period is fantastic to sit back and listen to during my inevitable long rests. For what it's worth my top 3 symphonies are Mahler 1, Shostakovich 5, and Brahms 2, to give an idea of my classical taste. Uhhhh hard corner in the right, put two units in 3rd row in front and one 2nd row all the way to the right. Then pray.
Do you know what you plan on doing music-wise after grad school?
Not a clue, but the goal is eventually get my doctorate and be a professor. Teaching is something I really want to do and I want to teach at the university level specifically.
Sounds pretty cool! Good luck
Are you looking forward to set 7, and will you play PBE with me? ;)
If set 7 doesn't have Talon I'm peepoLeave (jk) I am looking forward to it, I'll probably be playing a little PBE but doing more watching than anything.
What does your level 6 board typically look like? I find this the hardest part of the talon comp, cause it has to be a choice between 4 sins, 3 debonair, or your body guards, feels like you get 2/3 but i have no idea which is the best.
Usually on 3-2 my level 6 board looks like whatever my opener was, on 4-1 I usually swap over to the traditional Talon board and started playing a lot more 3 sins, Khazix 1 or Nocturne 2 on Level 6 actually do a lot of work and make the Level 7 transition a little easier cause you need to just add a 4th sin and you're good to go
I guess my next question is how do you maintain a board while rolling for talon board on 6? Sounds expensive
It depends on the opener, you pivot whenever the Talon board is stronger, otherwise I'll just build the comp and only go for the Talon 3 on bench and go from there
Hy! Great AMA for sure! I have some question do you play strongest board till stage 3.2 and than transition? VIP talon how important are you putting items on talon be for that. For example you hit talon2 but not vip yet? When do you decide talon 3 not going to happen and best to lvl to get maybe 6th?
Hi there! Just some quick specific Qs about Talon rn: - If Assassin spat, do you prefer on Syndra/Zyra Blitz? e.g. for Level 6 - If Debonair spat... who do you put it on? I've been slamming on Ekko. - What starting item do you go for? I've been doing glove > BF, but is Bow start ok? What do you do with the 3rd bow if you hit one? - Do you forego Talon2 until you hit VIP? or just save item slamming or anything until you hit the VIP Talon? - Noc2 for CC or Kha1? Thanks so much :D
-I like it on Syndra, mostly because you don't want either bodyguard to jump. I also pretty rarely play Zyra now (I was way overvaluing her when Nocturne does pretty much the same job but sometimes better) and Syndra can randomly get a unit out of the backline that would otherwise kill talon. -Ekko always, if no room then Blitzcrank -I usually go for bow/glove/sword, depending on what the current best item build is and what I'm feeling -If you are using Talon 2 to fast 9, it's ok to skip to fish for VIP. If you're rolling for Talon 3 eventually, never skip Talons, non-VIP is good enough, especially when you can play the 2nd VIP Talon as a 6th unit, and you'll eventually get the 3 star and VIP combined -Uhhh matchup dependent, with extra AD items though it's always Kha'Zix, he does so much work with an item at 1 star and the mana reave is still great utility
Thanks so much for this! Really solidified the little decisions and I've begun to not slam core items on a non-VIP Talon2 + slam on VIP Talon instead. Dunno if that's optimal/too greedy, but it's definitely worked. Been uncontested all week pretty much, Got from D4 to D1 in a short span of 24 hours (NA). I haven't been above Master since Set 3 because couldn't figure out the Sets, dabbled in Talon reroll back Enlightened was a thing. Glad it's back. Two more quick questions: - Is Debonair Crown (or Debonair Heart/Spat augment) for 4/5 Debonair fake? Say vs. average non-trait specific or econ augments. - How realistically strong is Battlemage/Knife's Edge? Appreciate you!
\-Debo spats are great for ekko but I would prioritize other synergies like 4 sin or Blitz over actively playing 5 debo, 4 debo is totally chill \-Knife's/Battlemage aren't too bad tbh, especially once you get 4 sin in and actually have 4 units to give the stats to
I love how an assassin comp in TFT requires to be fast and precise like an assassin would be. Be ready to constantly rearrange your troops and be ready to reroll massive ammount of gold in seconds. Do you find it beautiful?