TFT Arcanist Build Beginner's Guide

Arcanists offer a very generic, easy to play, straightforward but strong mage playstyle. The basic idea around this Arcanist build is to keep acquiring Arcanist units and building up the Arcanist trait synergy as much as you can. Since this playstyle doesn't require any specific strategies, all you'll need to do is focus on a healthy economy while keeping up with levels and upgrading all the units that you can. In this Teamfight Tactics Arcanist Build Guide we'll showcase the most popular beginner-friendly TFT Arcanist build and how to play it throughout the early, mid and late game, which are the best Hextech Augments for this build, as well as how to gear and position your units.

OTHER POPULAR BUILDS

Academy • Chemtech • Innovator • Scrap Enforcers • Challenger • Syndicate • Bruiser • Yordle • Imperial Colossus • Mutant • Clockwork Sniper

Arcanist Synergy Bonus

Arcanists increase the Ability Power of the units in your team composition.

2 → Your entire team gains 20% Ability Power
4 → Your entire team gains 20% Ability Power, Arcanists gain 45%
6 → Your entire team gains 50% Ability Power
8 → Your entire team gains 125% Ability Power.

Best Arcanist Build

• Twisted Fate
  • Twisted Fate throws 3 cards in a cone that deal magic damage to each enemy they pass through.
• Swain
  • Swain unleashes piercing bolts of eldritch power in a cone towards his target, dealing magic damage to enemies within and healing Swain for each enemy hit.
• Malzahar
  • Malzahar infects the mind of the closest unafflicted target, dealing magic damage over 8 seconds and reducing the Magic Resist of enemies by 40%. If an afflicted target dies, Malefic Visions spreads to the nearest unafflicted targets with the remaining duration.
• Vex
  • Vex shields herself against damage over 4 seconds. When the shield expires, it deals magic damage to all enemies within 2 hexes, and an additional damage if it wasn't destroyed. If it was destroyed, Personal Space becomes 25% stronger this combat. This effect can stack.
• Janna
  • Janna summons a Monsoon, knocking back nearby enemies and stunning them. The Monsoon heals your team over 3 seconds.
• Lux
  • After gathering energy, Lux fires a beam towards the farthest enemy target, dealing magic damage. If she kills a unit with her beam, she gains 30 mana.
• Viktor
  • Viktor summons multiple singularities to fire death rays that cut across the battlefield in a line and melt enemy defenses. To enemies caught in its path, death rays deal magic damage, destroy % of any remaining shields, and reduce Armor for 6 seconds.
• Yuumi
  • At the start of combat, Yuumi attaches herself to the nearest ally, or the the lowest Health ally after being unattached for 2 seconds. Attaching to an ally grants them a shield equal to 60% of Yuumi's maximum Health. Yuumi detaches if the shield breaks. While attached, Yuumi is untargetable and cannot attack, but gains 5 Mana per second, and 10 Mana whenever the ally attacks.
  • Yuumi and her book Book detach and then launch waves toward the farthest enemy, each dealing magic damage and stunning enemies for 1 seconds. She then attaches to the nearest ally.

Arcanist Team Comp Guide

Early Game

Most of the Arcanist units are very high tier units, so we're going to be forced to play a very basic early-game composition and then look into leveling up & transitioning into Arcanists during the mid game. Darius, Twisted Fate, Blitzcrank, Vex and Zyra offer a decent early comp that will allow you to save up on Gold, get a healthy economy going in order to be level six by stage 3-2. These five units will grant you Syndicate-three, Arcanist-two and Bodyguard-two bonuses.

Mid Game

During the middle game (around level six) you'll start to transition into Arcanists by swapping out Darius, Blitzcrank and Zyra with Swain, Malzahar and Janna/Lux. This will provide your team with five Arcanists and ideally, you'll want to have a Book of Trait for the sixth Arcanist or a Hextech Augment that provides the team with one additional Arcanist. Keep on leveling up and try to get to level eight by stage 5-1 as you'll need it to roll for the rest of the team.

Late Game

Lux is the main carry of the Arcanist team composition and if you've not acquired her during middle game, this is your last chance. Along with her, you'll want to get Viktor and Yuumi as these complete the Arcanist Build. What's great about it is the fact that you can get a +1 Arcanist Augment and +1 Arcanist Item (turn Yuumi into Arcanist, or use Ziggs) or +2 Arcanist Augment in order to turn the build into a [8] Arcanist synergy. Having eight Arcanists makes the units scale incredibly and allow them to dish out insane amounts of damage.

Recommended Items & Hextech Augments

Lux → Blue Buff, Infinity Edge, Jeweled Gauntlet.
Vex → Gargoyle Stoneplate, Warmog's Armor, Titan Resolve/Dragon's Claw.
Viktor → Infinity Edge, Jeweled Gauntlet, Spear of Shojin.

The most powerful Hextech Augments for this build would of course be the +Arcanist ones, but some great ones are also the ones which provide your team with bonus stats or burn & damage the enemy team as well as debuff them.

Unit Positioning

The main thing that this build lacks is a real tank. While we do make the Vex a tank using items, in some cases you won't have items to do so and without them the build has barely any front line. Nonetheless, Vex and Swain are supported by Yuumi on the front line, with Janna being in the back with the rest of the carries.