With players finally able to play Teamfight Tactics, certain strategies and team compositions are coming forward. One of the more popular ones is centered around Glacial units. With this article, we will go over the core Glacial build, some other units to add to your composition, and how to beat a Glacial composition. TFT was also patched on July 1, so make sure you’re caught up on the new patch notes.
Glacial buff and units
The Glacial buff has three tiers to it. First, with 2 Glacial units, those units receive a 20 percent chance to stun an enemy unit with auto attacks. With 4 Glacial units, all four get the buff and the percentage goes up to 30. At 6 Glacial units, you receive the complete buff and the Glacial units have a 45 percent chance to stun with auto attacks. You currently need 6 Glacial units to get the maximum effect. They are:
- Braum – tier 2
- Lissandra – tier 2
- Ashe – tier 3
- Volibear – tier 3
- Sejuani – tier 4
- Anivia – tier 5
Running Glacial
The lowest tiered unit is tier 2, so you won’t have access to many Glacial units until the mid to late game. While it can be difficult to acquire all six units, it is possible to add Glacial to another unit. Combining the Spatula item with a Giant’s Belt will create a Frozen Mallet. This adds near infinite possibilities to your composition. The problem with needing more expensive units, though, lies in reaching the appropriate level and obtaining those units first. As of July 1, these are the drop rates and champion pools.
It is very likely to get the first and second Glacial buffs. It’s the last one that poses some issues. Getting Anivia can be difficult, and getting multiple is even harder. Having all 6 Glacial usually induces some rage from your opponents, as their units are constantly frozen and can’t contribute to the fight.
What works best?
Glacial is probably one of my favorite compositions in TFT. The amount of flexibility you have if you can get the Frozen Mallet is apparent. I usually want the Glacial buff more on back line units, so getting rangers like Vayne and Kindred will help supplement some protection.
Getting Leona can allow you to complete the Guardian buff, and adding either Brawlers or Knights will create a larger front line. Cho’gath’s ability and crowd control is good to add onto the cc carousel, which will keep many of your units safe. Another option, if you do have Anivia and Lissandra, is to have either Brand or Kennen receive the Elementalist buff. Having Daisy around to create another member of your front line is also nice to have.
How do you beat Glacial?
The age-old question of “how do I escape non-stop crowd control?” is usually answered by burst damage. Having Brand and other elementalists will give you a Daisy. That Daisy will act as a front line, and she can absorb stuns and damage. Spacing out your units to avoid large area of effect stuns from opponents like Sejuani, Cho’gath, or Leona will further help. Assassins that can reach the back line and get their ability off, which can prove detrimental to Glacial’s success. Battling Glacial is ultimately an odds game, and the more your opponent can auto attack, the more stuns they get off in the end. Having Kindred and Karthus does well because of the Phantom buff. Plus, the Karthus ult will hit all enemy units.
Final thoughts
I really like the Glacial build, and I like playing it. Some more frustrating units need a stun every now and then. I’m talking to you, double Spear of Shojin anything.
If you are looking for more Teamfight Tactics guides and information, check out more of our coverage of the game.
Published: Jul 3, 2019 12:00 pm