With the Rise of the Elements set in Teamfight Tactics, players were introduced to a whole different experience then they were used to. After all, Brawlers are a little bit different than Berserkers.

Now that the set is a couple months old, players are finally starting to get a hang of the new classes and traits. However, many players are still struggling to adapt.

Although the meta has changed frequently so far in the set, some compositions have stood the test of time. Although these comps might not be the best at any given time, they are definitely strong enough to secure LP.

Here is part one of a three part series going over the top three compositions to help players climb in Teamfight Tactics

Part One: BERSERKERS

The newest composition on this list is Berserkers.

Before the composition was buffed in patch 9.24, Berserkers were not a comp worth building. However, because of the massive buff to the six Berserker synergy, it has cleaved its way into the meta. The best part? Its very straightforward and easy to play.

Items to look for and who to put them on.

Locket is an amazing item for the comp. Building it early lets you win streak easier and lose less health if weak. Locket is vital later in the game to keep your Berserkers healthy enough to by time for your main carry, Olaf, to wreck through enemy teams.

Zeke’s Herald is also good for the comp as it allows all your Berserkers to attack faster. The quicker they attack, the quicker they fire their abilities off. Olaf’s ability is arguably the best in the game, granting him increased attack speed, life steal, and immunity to crowd control. Any item that powers Olaf without wasting a slot on him is fantastic. Zeke’s and Locket do exactly that. Put these items on either Volibear, Mundo, or Sion as they all can benefit from the stats they provide.

Olaf items are critical to ensure wins in the late game. Rapid Fire Cannon is optimal on Olaf so he can keep distance while hacking away safely while his teammates tank the damage he would receive. The most important factor on why RFC is optimal is the fact that with the item, Olaf wont waste time trying to run in melee range to start swinging. Giving him the extra hex range guarantees Olaf will immediately swing after the initial Berserker jump. The attack speed is also a nice bonus as it allows Olaf to attack quicker.

Olaf loves mana so building items with mana are optimal as well. Since Olaf is also a Beserker, having the cleave ability means Olaf can apply on hit effects meaning debuff items are also great on Olaf. Luckily for him, the best debuff item in the game happens to give mana. Hush along with RFC create the optimal one two punch on Olaf that allows him to lockdown anyone in his path.

The third item slot is very flexible on Olaf. Keeping him alive is the number one priority so going defense is a good strategy. Items like Dragon Claw or Guardians Angel are viable third item slots along with healing items like Bloodthirster. Giving him more damage technically can keep him alive since eliminating the other team quickly makes it so Olaf cant die. Items like Infinity Edge and Death Blade are good options too. Or you can go with a mix of both with Hand of Justice which either gives you 50% increased damage at the start of the round or it gives you 40 health back on every hit. The item also provides mana on Olaf making HoJ a fantastic third item.

Berserkers in the early game

Early game the goal is collect every Berserker while maintaining as much health as possible. The ideal start at level three is to have Volibear and Ornn. This allows you to have an early power spike with the electric synergy as well as setting up your comp for mid game with Volibear who happens to be a Berserker.

Level four the goal is to have three Beserkers and Ornn or two Wardens and two Beserkers. Do not spend any gold rerolling until level six. Because of this, its more important to have random level two units than it is to have in level one Berserkers. A Leona that is two star is always better than a Renekton that is one star.

Either level to five right after the stage two carousel or level to five at Krugs. At level five look to have three Berserkers and two Wardens as this creates a very tanky line up especially if you can build Locket early. Throw your Olaf items like Hush or HoJ onto one of the wardens as they will be sold later on. One thing to consider putting in on level five is the Desert synergy. Since Renekton is Desert, activating this synergy only takes one more unit. Since you cant throw in six Beserkers on level five, this is a good time to throw in an Azir or Sivir to give you the extra armor shred which is a good way to win rounds at this point in the game. Azir and Sivir also hold Olaf items optimally.

Level to six at stage 3-2. At level six definitely look to throw in Desert if you have not already. The comp at this point in the game should be three Berserkers, two Wardens, and two Desert (with Renekton counting as both a Desert and a Berseker). Roll down your gold to about 30 to look for upgrades on your Wardens and Berserkers. If you end up finding an Kha’Zix you can use that as your second Desert unit.

If you find Olaf at this point, congratulations you are going win streaking. Throw in all six of your Berserkers and econ until level seven.

Berserkers in the late game

After wolves level to seven and roll down to find Olaf if not present already. At seven the comp should be six Berserkers and two Desert. Once the comp is in place with items, decide if going for level two Olaf is necessary to keep health up or if econing to level eight is safe. Every Berserker besides Olaf should be level two at this point.

The goal for level eight is add in the Poison synergy and drop the Desert synergy. Singed is one of the best units in the game who also benefits from the Locket shield. If Singed is found at level seven, consider spending gold leveling to eight to throw in Poison (Mundo, Singed, Twitch/Kog Maw).

At level eight the comp is capped. There is no real improvements to be made realistically. At this point every unit in the composition should be level two. Do not waste gold making any of the Berserkers level three as its almost never worth it. Look to make Singed level two and give him optimal items after your Olaf items are complete. Items like Morello, Warmogs, Dragon Claw, and Jeweled Gauntlet are optimal on him. Berserkers start to fall off in power the late the game goes on. Level two Singed gives the composition that little bit of extra power to secure top two instead of top four. Level two Singed is definitely a win condition next to Olaf.

Always scout the lobby to see if anyone else is playing the composition as it will affect whether or not it is optimal to roll at any given time. If there are multiple players playing Berserkers, consider saving gold to level to eight after finding a single Olaf instead of spending gold trying to hunt for level two Olaf at the same time as the other players.

If no one else is building Berserkers, Consider looking for level three Olaf. A level three Olaf will almost certainly win you the game no matter what. If uncontested, it will happen more times than players think. Also golden Olaf looks cool. Its easier to roll for level three Olaf at level nine. Consider leveling to nine to throw back in Desert or another level two Olaf while you hunt for the remaining Olaf’s.

Things of note

There are a couple of different variations of the comp but Poison Berserkers are definitely the best performing version of the comp by a wide margin. However, certain situations make going a different variation like Electric (Zed and Electric Lux instead of Singed and Twitch) a better choice. To be safe just build Poison though.

If a spatula drops, consider making the Berserker Axe item with glove and spatula. This allows for the possibility of adding both Poison and Desert on eight which is optimal (drop jax and put the Berserker axe onto either Kha’Zix or Twitch to make them a Berserker). The composition does not need spatula to win, do not waste time going for it unless it naturally comes to you.

Cloud Lux is a fantastic addition on level nine to give your Beserkers a little more time alive. She can also be an alternate win condition.

If you read this far, congratulations enjoy the climb. Thank’s for reading. Be on the look out for part two covering Ocean Mages in the near future.

Warren Younger (in game tag, LambdaD3lt4) is a two time Challenger player and three time GrandMaster who currently writes about TeamFight Tactics for The Game Haus. Follow him on twitter