TFT CODEX

Riftbeast Aphelios & Elder Dragon

Also called Elder Dragon Aphelios Fast 9 · Riftbeast Fast 9

Fast 9Carried by Elder Dragon & ApheliosA Teamfight Tactics Set 18 comp, measured on patch 18.5 ranked games.

Difficulty Easy None of the difficulty signals we could measure apply (2 of 4 measured)

Updated 21 Oct 2026, 10:18 UTC · ranked games, last 7 days, Diamond+ · Patch 18.5

Too few games to grade in Diamond+: 57 in the last 7 days, and its numbers start at 400. All ranks shows what we measured.

Which version?

Five comps play Riftbeast around Aphelios. They share the two below; the units only one of them plays tell you which one you are on.

Every version plays
DianaAphelios
You are here
No tier yetRiftbeast Aphelios & Elder Dragon
— avg— top 457 gamesFast 9
Carried by Elder Dragon & Aphelios
Only this one plays
VarusAmumuElder Dragonor Ezreal

Ranked games, last 7 days, Diamond+. A dashed portrait is a flex slot: many of its games play another unit there.

No tier yet fewer than 400 games this week   Not graded played too rarely to grade

When

  • #4.12 with one other31% of games
  • #4.49 with two or more61% of games

Others on Elder Dragon or Aphelios in the lobby, over 180 games of this patch at all ranks.

Level plan

  1. Stage 5 Lv 8.6 measured
  2. Stage 6 Lv 9.2 measured

Carries

Elder Dragon 3★ on 0% of boards

Infinity EdgeSterak's GageHand Of Justice Infinity Edge, Sterak's Gage, Hand Of Justice

Aphelios 3★ on 1% of boards

Guinsoo's RagebladeKraken's FuryInfinity Edge Guinsoo's Rageblade, Kraken's Fury, Infinity Edge

Elder Dragon

Game plan

How it’s played
Fast 9 Players of this comp who go out in stage 6 are level 9.2 on average.
Roll
Level 9 around 5-1: about 33 rolls (66 gold) to 2-star Elder Dragon; about 54 if three copies of each are on other boards. model
Contested?
Others holding Elder Dragon / Aphelios: 1 other: #4.12 · 2+ others: #4.49
Pace
Level when its players go out — stage 5: 8.6 · stage 6: 9.2
Vs its level
Finishes at level 9.0 on average. Boards at its levels average 3.68 across every comp; this one averages 4.65, 0.97 worse. Level is partly how a game went and partly the plan, so this is context, not a grade.

Open in Builder

Final board

The whole board at level 9, where most of its games end, drawn from its games at all ranks over the last 14 days. A dashed slot is one its games fill differently; an open one, no unit holds on a quarter of them.

The Night Arena: an obsidian TFT board lit in gold
★★
★★
★★
★★
★★
★★
★★

Positions are our rule, by attack range: melee in front, ranged behind, the most-itemed carries in the back corners. Riot's match data has none.

5Elder Dragontakes 2 team slots★★
  • Infinity Edge
  • Sterak's Gage
  • Hand Of Justice
carry
5Taric★
4Amumu★★
  • Gargoyle Stoneplate
  • Warmog's Armor
  • Spirit Visage
4Aphelios★★
  • Guinsoo's Rageblade
  • Kraken's Fury
  • Infinity Edge
carry
4Sentinel★★
  • Protector's Vow
  • Gargoyle Stoneplate
3Diana★★
1Varus★★
4Ezrealflex

Paste it into the game’s Team Planner to have these champions marked in your shop.

Stage by stage

What to do at each stage, from the numbers below: stages 2 and 3 are our plan, 4 to 6 the level its players were measured at.

Stage 5 Level 9 measured

Its players average 8.6 when they go out in stage 5.

Stage 6 Level 9 measured

Its players average 9.2 when they go out in stage 6.

Its games end around round 5-7 on average, with 5 gold left.

Contested?

How this comp placed by how many of the other seven players in the lobby held Elder Dragon or Aphelios, over 180 games of this patch at all ranks. We keep all eight boards of every game, so this is measured, not guessed; part of the gap is the lobby itself, so read it as how it placed, not only why.

Others holding itAvg PlaceShare of games
1 other player#4.1231%
2 or more#4.4961%

Questions

What people search for about this comp, answered from the numbers on this page.

How do you play Riftbeast Aphelios & Elder Dragon in TFT Set 18?

Fast 9. Players of this comp who go out in stage 6 are level 9.2 on average.

What items does Elder Dragon need?

On its final board Elder Dragon holds Infinity Edge, Sterak's Gage and Hand Of Justice.

Is Riftbeast Aphelios & Elder Dragon good in patch 18.5?

Not graded yet: 79 games at all ranks in the last 7 days, and a grade needs 400. Its average place over them is #4.54.

Is Riftbeast Aphelios & Elder Dragon contested?

Contest costs it little: with one other #4.12 (31% of games), with two or more #4.49 (61%), over 180 games of this patch at all ranks.

Items

The three items this comp’s carry was measured holding most often, the placement of the boards it held them on, and the difference against the comp’s own average. Every board of the family at all ranks over the last 14 days.

ChampionItemAvg Placevs compGames
Elder DragonInfinity Edge#3.74-0.8187
Elder DragonSterak's Gage#3.79-0.7538

Augments that fit

What each augment grants, set against what this comp measured: the same rule the overlay uses when it reads the three on offer. A measured line is the comp’s own placement at a trait level; a line by rule is a fact about the comp, such as the damage its carry is built for.

Levelling and economy

By ruleSuits this comp: it averages level 8.98, so levelling is the plan (178 boards)

Birthday PresentBuild A BudGoing LongGolden GambleGolden Gamble+Golden Gamble++Hard CommitHedge FundInvestment Strategy IILevel Up!Lucky GlovesLucky Gloves+
64 moreLuxury SubscriptionMoney MonsoonPrismatic DestinyPrismatic Destiny+Shimmerscale EssenceShopping SpreeThe Trait TreeThe Trait Tree+Urf's Grab BagAdvanced LoanAdvanced Loan+Big Grab BagBirthday ReunionBooster PackBooster Pack+Booster Pack++Clear MindCluttered MindConsuming FloraExclusive CustomizationExplosive GrowthExplosive Growth+Gold DestinyGold Destiny+Hard BargainHeroic Grab BagHeroic Grab Bag+Heroic Grab Bag++HustlerInfinity ProtectionInvestment Strategy ILate Game ScalingMalicious MonetizationMax BuildMoney HungryMoney Hungry+Patient StudyPilferSlammin'Slammin'+Solo LevelingSpeedy Double KillSpreading RootsSpreading Roots+The Golden DragonTime SkipCalled ShotCaretaker's AllyCognitive TaxCognitive Tax+ExpeditionFeeling LuckyGood For Something IIron AssetsKick StartKingslayerLate Game SpecialistOne, Two, Five!Pandora's BenchSilver DestinySilver Destiny+Silver Destiny++Silver SpoonYoung and Wild and Free

AD carry

By ruleSuits this carry: Elder Dragon is built for attack damage here (126 boards)

Baron's LairCoronationDeadlier BladesHold the LineSoul AwakeningCybernetic ImplantsDouble TroubleEarly LearningsEmbiggenNO SCOUT NO PIVOTTons of Stats!Focused Fire
1 moreStand United
Works against it: Not a reroll comp (15), Wrong damage type (3)

By ruleNot a reroll comp: it 3-stars a unit in under 10% of boards, averaging level 8.98 (178)

Commerce CoreInvested+Invested++Prismatic TicketUpward MobilityCalculated LossCognitive OverloadEpic RolldownEpochEpoch+Trade SectorTrade Sector+
3 moreCrafted CraftingPatience Is A VirtueRecombobulator

By ruleWrong damage type: Elder Dragon is built for attack damage here (126 boards)

Deadlier CapsDark RitualSeraphim's Staff

Riot’s match-v1 data does not report which augments a player took, so no augment has a number of its own on this page or anywhere else on the site. The augment reference lists what each one grants.

More about this comp

Traits

Active on the core board, with the next breakpoint the trait offers.

Riftbeast3next 5Vanguard3next 4Inferno2next 3Lunar2next 3Rapidfire2next 3Apex Predator1Emerald Aspect1

By bracket

Diamond, Master, Grandmaster and Challenger against the whole sample. Each board carries the tier of its own player where the sampler held it.

BracketGamesAvg PlaceTop 4 %Win %
Diamond+57#4.6550.9%1.8%
All ranks79#4.5451.9%2.5%

Trend

Avg Place on each of the last 7 days. The bars are scaled to the range shown, so the shape is the comparison and the figure under each bar is the day.

Also played

Families sharing at least 4 core units with this one — the same board taken a different way.