Kayn’s Rise to Power
In patch 14.12, Kayn and the Reaper system received a significant buff from Riot. Specifically, Kayn’s base Attack Damage was increased by 5 points, and the bleed damage duration of the Reaper system was reduced by 1 second (total damage remains unchanged). This has greatly enhanced Kayn’s burst damage potential and the effectiveness of the Reaper system.
Furthermore, the recent TFT meta has returned to favoring backline carries (both magical and physical). As a result, the Reaper system has become a highly effective counter, as Yone, Kha’Zix, and to some extent, Kayn all possess the ability to attack the backline. Combined with the previous buff from Riot, Kayn – Reaper has risen to be among the top team compositions in the current TFT.
According to statistics from the specialized site Tactics.tools, the Kayn – Reaper composition currently boasts a 58.6% top 4 placement rate. In fact, the top 1 win rate for this composition is also impressively high at 12.9% in the current patch. These figures demonstrate that Kayn – Reaper is an exceptionally effective ranking strategy at the end of the season.
Building the Kayn – Reaper Composition
At the beginning of the game, players should aim to maintain health and build the longest winning streak possible. This is because the Reaper composition requires a significant amount of gold to upgrade, making early resource accumulation crucial. Therefore, strong early-game units like Darius, Yasuo, or Neeko will be very suitable choices. Darius will serve as the main source of damage and will hold items for Kayn or Yone later on.
By level 7, players should stop purchasing experience for 2-3 rounds to reroll for upgrading 2-3 gold units. If players manage to acquire multiple Yone during the reroll, they can easily transition to using this unit as the primary carry. Essentially, the itemization for Yone and Kayn is quite similar, so players can adapt if the game allows.
In the case of only having enough Yone to upgrade to 2 stars, players should consider leveling up to 8 and searching for Kayn. Additionally, investing in Brawlers will be important to ensure the team’s durability. Galio is an extremely valuable unit in this composition as it can provide a lot of shields for the Reaper units. If players have the opportunity to level up to 9, Wukong will be a necessary addition as it brings some Attack Damage and attack speed from the Celestial tribe.
Items and Augments
With a large amount of damage available, Bloodthirster is the “signature item” for both Kayn and Yone to ensure their survivability. Additionally, Cloak of Shadows or Sterak’s Claw are also very strong at increasing the tankiness of the Reaper units. If facing opponents with very strong tanks, players should consider crafting a Green Bow for Yone or Kayn to take down enemies more effectively.
Regarding Augment choices, upgrades granting the Reaper Emblem should be prioritized. Sylas is considered an excellent champion to hold the Reaper Emblem as its base damage is also very good. Moreover, the Reaper Soul Harvest core is an upgrade players should obtain as soon as possible when utilizing this composition. Other upgrades like Central Theory and Small but Mighty are also powerful Augments that players should aim to acquire.