How the upgrade system works in Teamfight Tactics.
On this page you’ll learn how to upgrade Champions in Teamfight Tactics, from 1 star to 2 star and 3 star levels.
If you’ve played much of Dota’s official or unofficial Auto Chess mods, then the concept of upgrading Champions in Teamfight Tactics shouldn’t be too hard to wrap your head around.
Chances are though that Riot’s own take on the autobattler genre has brought a great many new players to the scene, and some of these mechanics can be quite tricky to get your head around.
As you add more and more units to the game board in Teamfight Tactics, you’ll gradually find yourself running out of space.
When this happens, it can be better to upgrade your individual units so that they pack more defensive or offensive capabilities. You can do this by combining duplicates of the same Champion.
How to upgrade Champions
This is how you upgrade Champions in Teamfight Tactics:
- The first version of your Champion will have a rank of 1 star.
- When you purchase your third copy of that Champion, they’ll be combined and upgraded to a 2 star unit automatically
- If you have a total of three upgraded 2 star units, they’ll combine once again into a single 3 star unit
- This is as far as units can be upgraded in Teamfight Tactics
So, to get to the elusive – and incredibly strong – three star unit, you’ll need to gradually save units on your bench over the course of the match until you reach the required number.
If you’re saving units, it’s important to know when to give up on a dream and begin selling. If you’ve been hanging onto a unit for what seems like an age, and another simply hasn’t sprung up, it’s probably time to sell it. By keeping it on the bench, you’re only robbing yourself of space.
With this in mind, you’ll begin noticing certain units springing up in the shop more often than others. This is because the shop alters its selection based on what your opponents are building. For example, if everyone’s building “Tiny”, he’s less likely to appear in the shop.
Sometimes it’s worth taking a chance and purchasing these recurring units as your chances of combining them will be much greater later down the line. While everyone else fights to build the same type of team synergy and shoots themselves in the foot, you can begin creating a really strong team out of the “scraps”, so to speak. Flexibility is key!
Once you’ve hit max level in the late game, you’ll also want to save money and start re-rolling the shop to optimise the build you’ve got.
- 1. Tier List – Teamfight Tactics Tier List
- 2. How to Play – How to play Teamfight Tactics
- 3. Items – Teamfight Tactics: Items guide cheat sheet
- 4. Guide – Teamfight Tactics guide
- 5. Starting Strategies – Teamfight Tactics: Best starting strategies
- 6. Win More – Teamfight Tactics: How to win
Sounds a little bit fiddly, but it’s all a lot simpler in-game! If you’ve been confused about why certain units are vanishing or upgrading, that should at least explain what you’re seeing.
For more help playing the game, take a look at our Teamfight Tactics guide. We’ve also got a Teamfight Tactics Tier List which ranks all the Champions from best to worst, and will help you focus your developing strategy.
