Perhaps among the clans and traits in Teamfight Tactics season 6, the Challenger clan has been the “unluckiest” one as it has been nerfed by Riot Games multiple times. Not only has the effect of the Challenger trait itself been diminished, but many key champions like Kai’Sa, Yone, and somewhat Samira have also been nerfed in the first half of season 6. Yet, in the current version 12.2, the Challenger lineup boasts an astonishing 58.2% top 4 placement rate. So what is the reason behind this dominance despite the nerfs?
First, we need to mention perhaps the most important change in patch 12.2, which is the reduction of the appearance rate of 5-cost champions at level 8. This makes lineups that rely on 5-cost units extremely weak as the probability of obtaining key pieces is significantly lower than before. As a result, lineups that do not depend on 5-cost champions will be favored since they are not affected by this change.
Looking at the aforementioned 6 Challenger lineup, we can easily recognize that it does not use any 5-cost champions. The two highest-cost units are only Yone and Fiora, both valued at 4 gold. This allows players to apply a reroll strategy very early to upgrade their lineup at levels 6-7, preserving health and gold to push to level 8 later. By utilizing extremely strong mid-game champions like Talon or Swain, you will never have to worry about lacking damage.
Not stopping there, the Challenger lineup also proves to be an incredibly strong team comp in snowballing during combat rounds and punishing “greedy” players very effectively. Remember that Riot’s increase in the appearance rate of 5-cost champions at level 9 has led many gamers to aim for this level to use as many powerful units as possible. Consequently, the Challenger team can easily defeat the “fast 9” strategy as players must conserve gold and cannot spend money to upgrade their lineups.
Additionally, Fiora has received relatively strong buffs in recent patches, which has allowed the Challenger lineup to become quite powerful quickly. This is a highly effective way to eliminate enemy tanks without spending too many resources. In fact, you can equip any damage-increasing items for Fiora, and this unit will still provide a tremendous amount of damage.
In summary, with the nerf to the appearance rate of 5-cost champions at level 8, lineups like Challenger that do not rely on these expensive units have become significantly stronger. A tip for building this lineup is to stop a few rounds at levels 6 or 7 to reroll to see if you can upgrade Swain or Samira to 3 stars. If you can do this, reaching the top 4 will be incredibly easy for players.