TFT Set 11: Inkborn Fables teaser released!

The end of Teamfight Tactics (TFT) Set 10 is nearing. The competitive season caps off with the Remix Rumble Championship between March 1 and 3. Even before the Set 10 world champion is crowned, a teaser for the Set 11 has already dropped. TFT Set 11, named Inkborn Fables, will explore a theme of myths and fantasy.

As with all new sets, a new champion pool, set mechanic, combination of traits, augments, cosmetics, and Battle Passes all await in Set 11, Inkborn Fables.

Set 11 is expected to hit PBE servers two weeks before the official launch of the set. Players can look to try out Set 11 potentially as early as March 6.

Inkborn Fables officially releases onto live servers with patch 14.6 on March 20, 2024 for PC and mobile.

In a recent developer learnings article, lead designer Stephen "Mortdog" Mortimer detailed systems and mechanics that will debut, return, and be omitted from Set 11:

These are some systems that you are familiar with that will return in Set 11, Inkborn Fables.

The headliner mechanic made it a lot easier to 3-star units, regardless of cost. To combat this, the development team reduced bag sizes before the release of Set 10, also encouraging players to play uncontested lines.

Portals were first introduced in Set 9, Runeterra Reforged. Players would vote on where to travel to, tied to the regions of Runeterra, in replacement of the opening carousel. Traveling to a certain portal changed things like loot drops, positioning, the HP of your little legend, augment combinations, and more. This added a bit of uniqueness and variety to the way each game played out and returned in Set 10. This system is looking to be a mainstay in TFT, giving more player agency and replayability to TFT.

Here are some new additions to systems that will make their debut in Set 11.

The article mentions that the team is adding "over 20 more new artifacts that'll come at some point DURING" Set 11. Artifacts are a class of items that offer powerful uncraftable items not tied to item components.

Currently, the highest tier of loot drops is the gold orb. Gold orbs can contain rewards such as large amounts of gold, a spatula, and tome of traits. Set 11 will introduce a higher tier of loot drops, the Prismatic Orb. Tome of traits will be moved into this tier, and rewards such as the Masterwork Upgrades can drop from these orbs. Masterwork Upgrades allows players to upgrade a completed item into its radiant version.

Finally, these are a few systems that are, at the very least, temporarily retired for Set 11.

A defining mechanic of Set 9, legends allowed players to choose a certain playstyle tied to them before loading up a game. For example, choosing the Caitlyn legend guaranteed certain augment offerings throughout the game, notably Stars are Born at 2-1. The idea of this was to grant strong early game tempo for a player that enjoyed or wanted to take advantage of the playstyle. Throughout the entirety of the set, certain legends dominated competitive and ladder play, instead of providing the variety it would theoretically entail. This mechanic is still being iterated on and will not be returning in Set 11 either.

The ability to purchase a two-star unit and remove three copies of it from the pool has warped the game in a polarizing way. While one could argue it complements flex play, others point out the added variance it introduces. Regardless of your standpoint, the mechanic will not be returning to Set 11.

What Easter eggs did you spot in the teaser video? What systems are you most excited about leaving, returning, or being updated in Set 11?

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