TFT Set 13 Guide: How to Play Academy

Teamfight Tactics (TFT) enters a new era with Set 13: Into the Arcane, brimming with thematic content tied to the world of Piltover, Zaun, and beloved characters from the acclaimed Arcane series. One of the most talked-about traits in this set is Academy, introducing a fresh spin on item-centric mechanics, new champion synergies, and novel ways to think about your economy. This guide explores everything you need to know about Academy—from how the sponsored item system works to which champions and augments make it thrive, plus sample compositions that show how to dominate your lobbies. If you’re aiming to harness Arcane’s academic spirit in your next TFT match, you’re in the right place!

The Academy trait is all about item synergy, reliable scaling, and flexible champion choices that make your team compositions both potent and consistent. With champions like Lux, Leona, Ezreal, Heimerdinger, and Jayce leading the way, players can exploit sponsored items to gain crucial in-game advantages. In the paragraphs below, we’ll dive into the trait mechanics, examine the champions individually, explore synergy with Augments, and provide tips on forging unstoppable teams. Whether you’re a seasoned strategist or a newcomer curious about Arcane-lore-based synergy, let’s dissect the ins and outs of Academy.

Understanding the Academy Trait

At its core, Academy revolves around a special system: “sponsored” items. In TFT, item RNG plays a big part in how you adapt your builds. Academy, however, steadies that variance by guaranteeing up to three unique sponsored items each game. This means that if you have a strong Academy presence, you don’t have to rely solely on random PvE drops—your synergy is effectively giving you a mini item engine.

Copies of these sponsored items don’t just function like normal items; they also carry an inherent synergy bonus:

• All Allies: Gain bonus max Health and Damage Amplification (the latter typically translates to dealing extra damage on abilities or attacks).
• Academy Champions: Holding a sponsored item doubles these synergy benefits, and they also gain an additional 5% extra power. Essentially, if an Academy champion is wearing a sponsored item, they’re even stronger than normal synergy would suggest.

The trait breakpoints are as follows:

• (3) Academy: 2% Health and Damage Amp; 1 sponsored item
• (4) Academy: 3% Health and Damage Amp; 1 sponsored item
• (5) Academy: 4% Health and Damage Amp; 1 sponsored item
• (6) Academy: 8% Health and Damage Amp

Notably, while you gain a single sponsored item from levels (3) to (5), you don’t receive additional items after that. At 6 Academy, you jump to a bigger Health and Damage Amp jump (8% from 4%), but no new sponsored item. For many players, (5) Academy is the sweet spot to enjoy a blend of decent synergy bonuses plus the sponsored item, without sacrificing your entire board to chase 6.

In Set 13’s Arcane-themed storyline, the premise is that Heimerdinger and Jayce’s advanced research within Piltover’s academies has produced these special items. Lore-lovers can appreciate the role each champion plays in forging or testing these new tools, though from a gameplay angle it just means you have a new dimension for item distribution.

Ultimately, Academy’s gameplay identity revolves around item synergy, letting you craft or combine items more reliably, and guaranteeing you can pass out a unique item or two for key carries or frontline units. A big portion of playing Academy effectively is deciding who should hold the sponsored items, and which champion best benefits from double synergy if you’re going deep in the Academy trait.

The Champions: Academy Roster

Academy Champions:

• Lux (1g) – Sorcerer
• Leona (2g) – Sentinel
• Ezreal (3g) – Rebel, Artillerist
• Heimerdinger (4g) – Visionary
• Jayce (5g) – Form Swapper

Each champion covers a different cost bracket, so it’s feasible to pick them up over the course of the entire match. Let’s break them down in detail:

Lux (1g) — Academy + Sorcerer

Lux remains a staple early-game utility unit, offering a small shield to an ally with the lowest health, then firing a power-enhanced auto-attack that deals bonus magic damage. The synergy with Sorcerer means she scales well with AP. Within Academy, she can hold a sponsored item for double synergy benefits, though she might not always be your final carry. She’s cheap, so you can star her up quickly in early game, mitigating damage from enemy boards while supporting your main damage-dealers.

Recommended Use:

• If you want an early defensive pivot, Lux’s shield helps stall fights, letting you maintain HP and pivot into bigger upgrades later.
• Sometimes building blue buff or Spear of Shojin on Lux can keep frequent shielding, bridging your mid-game until Heimer or Jayce appear.

Leona (2g) — Academy + Sentinel

Leona is a frontline specialist who buffs her own durability for a brief period and then deals magic damage around her. The Sentinel trait helps define her as a tank with synergy potential for other Sentinel units. In Academy comps, she can equip sponsored items that suit tanking or synergy-based defenses.

Recommended Use:

• Early tank if you want a stable frontline. She can hold items like Sunfire Cape, Bramble Vest, or Gargoyle Stoneplate.
• In the mid or late game, you might replace her with a stronger tank if you don’t plan to push 5 Academy or incorporate Sentinel synergy. But she’s solid if you do want that synergy bridging to bigger plans.

Ezreal (3g) — Academy + Rebel + Artillerist

Ezreal unleashes skill shots dealing physical damage in a line, with extra damage to the primary target. The dual-trait nature (Rebel, Artillerist) grants synergy with teams focusing on AD or AoE poke.

Why Ezreal Matters in Academy:

• He can serve as a mid-game carry if you’re waiting for Heimerdinger (4g) or Jayce (5g). With solid itemization, Ezreal can hold Infinity Edge, Last Whisper, or other AD/AS items, especially with the item advantage from Academy synergy.
• He adds valuable poke from the back row, particularly if your comp lacks consistent ranged damage early on.

Some players use Ezreal primarily as an item holder for sponsored items, bridging to a final carry. Others build a synergy around Rebels or Artillerists if they appear in the shop.

Heimerdinger (4g) — Academy + Visionary

Heimerdinger can be your central carry in Academy, especially once you secure him mid or late game. He tosses missiles at random enemies, dealing magic damage. With each cast, he adds an extra missile, leading to ramping AoE potential.

Heimerdinger’s Strengths:

• RNG Targeting: Can snipe crucial backline carries. The random factor might feel inconsistent, but it often results in major threat removal if you’re lucky or you position cunningly.
• Great with AP Items: Blue Buff, Archangel’s Staff, and Rabadon’s Deathcap can convert him into a monster. Sponsors from Academy amplify his damage even more.
• Visionary Trait: Pairing him with certain allies capitalizes on decreased mana cost or synergy expansions, letting him cast more frequently. He’s perfect as a star champion for synergy combos that revolve around repeated spell casts.

Heimerdinger excels in compositions that revolve around magical damage. If you choose him as your main carry, ensure you secure decent frontline (Leona or otherwise) and crowd control so he can freely launch missiles.

Jayce (5g) — Academy + Form Swapper

Jayce sits at the pinnacle of Academy, with a flexible kit that changes form based on his position:

• Front Rows (Melee Form): He sets up a Hextech Forge, creating a shield for nearby allies. Afterward, he strikes enemies, dealing AoE physical damage.
• Back Rows (Ranged Form): He knocks an enemy through a Hexgate, dealing significant physical damage to the target and any foes in the path, effectively adding huge pickoff potential or crowd control.

This adaptability helps him fill multiple roles, either reinforcing your front line or dealing lethal poke from the backline. As a 5-cost, Jayce typically works best 2-starred with strong items.

Academy Synergy: With a sponsored item, he gains double synergy bonuses + an extra 5% damage from Academy. If you can push 5 Academy, Jayce and Heimerdinger can form a formidable duo: Jayce stands front row to shield allies, while Heimer unleashes missiles from behind. Or, you can keep Jayce in the back row if you need a ranged carry approach.

Itemization:

• Front Row Jayce: Defensive items like Sunfire Cape, Titan’s Resolve, or Guardian Angel. Possibly Death’s Dance if you want some AD sustain.
• Back Row Jayce: Offensive builds revolve around AD, possibly Infinity Edge, Bloodthirster, or Rapid Firecannon to enhance his big knock-backs.

Overall, Jayce cements your late-game Academy synergy, adding a robust or carry-oriented dimension that’s flexible for pivoting based on your chosen strategy.

Ideal Augments for Academy

Augments in Set 13 can enhance champion traits, items, or synergy thresholds. Some Augments deliver universally strong bonuses, but a few specifically pair well with the Academy playstyle:

1. Academy Crest: Offers an Academy Emblem and a free Lux. This helps you hit synergy breakpoints earlier, especially if you’re missing one champion or prefer to slot in non-Academy frontliners. Great for ensuring you can get 5 Academy without having to roll down for every champion.
2. Academy Crown: Provides an Academy Emblem, a Hextech Gunblade, and a Lux. You instantly gain powerful healing synergy plus an extra synergy slot, making your board power spike sooner. Gunblade pairs nicely with Heimerdinger or Ezreal for sustaining your team.
3. Hextech Experiment: Academy champions holding sponsored items gain 30% bonus Ability Power and Attack Speed. Perfect for turning a champion like Heimer or Jayce into unstoppable powerhouses. The synergy with sponsored items doubles down, so expect your carry to have monstrous stats if you itemize them properly.
4. Study Hall: Grants 15% bonus Health and Ability Power for every champion holding a sponsored item. Another augment that rewards distributing sponsored items effectively, fueling a multi-carry approach or ensuring multiple frontliners benefit from the synergy.
5. Arcane Research: Grants extra mana generation for Academy champions, letting them cast faster. This is huge if you rely on Heimerdinger’s or Lux’s frequent spells to overwhelm enemies. It ensures consistent ability uptime across the board.
6. Brilliant Minds: Reduces Academy mana costs by 10%. Similar to Arcane Research but with a direct approach to spammability, letting your Heimer or Ezreal spam abilities to outpace enemies. If you want a high-AP-chaining team, combine this with an augment that yields extra AP or items, and you’ll see unstoppable casting sequences.

The main synergy uniting these Augments is their emphasis on item synergy or increased casting frequency—both crucial pillars for an Academy-based comp.

Sample Team Compositions

Let’s explore a few sample comps to demonstrate how Academy thrives, including stable frontlines, big-carry options, and synergy with other traits:

1. Heimerdinger Carry (5 Academy + 2 Visionary)

• Champions: Lux, Leona, Ezreal, Heimerdinger, Jayce, plus at least one more champion for frontline synergy or bridging other traits (like a random Guardian or Bruiser to protect Heimer). Optionally add a second Visionary champion if it’s available in the set.
• Core Items: Heimerdinger with Blue Buff or Spear of Shojin, Rabadon’s Deathcap, and one sponsored item (for double synergy). A tank item or two on Leona or Jayce front row (Sunfire, Warmog’s, etc.).
• Gameplay: You aim to get (5) Academy for the single sponsored item. Heimer is your primary damage source, casting missiles to decimate backline threats. Jayce can be front or back row depending on your need. If you have an augment like Arcane Research, it’s unstoppable in the late game.

2. Academy + Rebel Splash with Ezreal

• Champions: Ezreal, Lux, Leona (for frontline), plus 2 or 3 more Rebels to unlock a synergy for AoE or shield-based damage (depending on how Rebels function this set), plus a stable carry (like a 4-cost Rebel if available).
• Core Items: Ezreal can carry physical DPS items (Infinity Edge, Last Whisper), while your sponsored items might go to your primary frontliner or carry. Another synergy might revolve around a backline Rebel carry with items like Giant Slayer or Guinsoo’s Rageblade.
• Gameplay: This approach uses (3) or (4) Academy purely for synergy bonuses. If you get Academy Crest or Academy Crown, you can slot in 1 or 2 extra Rebels or other utility champions. The free sponsored item helps ensure you can place an item on Ezreal for double synergy, letting you build a strong mid-game advantage.

3. Jayce + Heimer “Double Carry” with Minimal Academy

• Champions: At least (3) Academy (Lux, Jayce, Heimer) plus a strong synergy from, say, Visionary or Sorcerer. You anchor your front row with Jayce or Leona, your midline with Heimer, and fill the rest with synergy champions that complement your items.
• Core Items: Jayce front row might want Guardian Angel, Warmog’s Armor, Titan’s Resolve. Heimer gets AP items. One sponsored item might go to Jayce, another to Heimer or a second carry champion. This partial Academy approach is flexible and economical if you’re not finding Ezreal or you prefer a narrower synergy path.
• Gameplay: This is a “best of both worlds” scenario, leveraging the extremely potent damage of Heimer and Jayce’s form-swapping utility. The synergy from just (3) Academy (2% Health and Damage Amp plus 1 sponsored item) can still feel impactful when combined with the rest of your roster’s power, especially if your augment or roll luck supports it.

As you experiment, keep a close eye on your item usage. The real power of Academy lies in amplifying item synergy and letting you shape your late game. Always remain flexible. If you see an early Heimerdinger or a synergy augment for Academy, pivot quickly. If the set’s meta evolves to favor other traits, you can still incorporate (3) or (4) Academy for a single sponsored item that might tip key fights.

Strategy Tips for Academy Success

1. Identify your Carry Early: Whether it’s Heimerdinger or Ezreal, plan your item usage around them. If you suspect Heimer will appear later, you can hold items on a placeholder champion, then pivot once you find him.

2. Manage the Sponsored Items Effectively: At (5) Academy, you only get 1 sponsored item. Decide who benefits from double synergy the most. Putting it on your main carry usually yields maximum impact, but sometimes giving it to a tank champion that needs the extra HP can keep them alive for crucial seconds.

3. Expand Synergy Beyond Academy: Because Academy champions cross multiple sub-traits (Sorcerer, Sentinel, Rebel, Visionary, Form Swapper), you can add synergy webs. For instance, Leona’s Sentinel synergy pairs with other Sentinels for a front line. Heimerdinger’s Visionary synergy might incorporate additional synergy with cast-based traits or further augment-based combos.

4. Watch Your Econ for Jayce: Jayce is a 5-cost champion, so you want stable economy and HP until you can roll or level up. Overcommitting to synergy at level 6 or 7 might hamper your pivot to a 2-star Jayce. Balanced economy management is key.

5. Adapt to Augments: If you see Arcane Research, Brilliant Minds, or another synergy-boosting augment, go deeper into Academy. If you get an Augment for your secondary trait (like Rebel), you might do a 4 Academy / 4 Rebel combination. Let your augment choices guide you for bigger synergy payoffs.

6. Don’t Overfocus on 6 Academy: That extra synergy requires a spatula item or borderline forcing all Academy units plus an emblem. Without the bonus sponsored item, it might not be worth the board space if you can’t power-spike quickly. Usually, (5) Academy is enough for a stable power ceiling.

Closing Thoughts

TFT Set 13: Into the Arcane brings forth captivating concepts drawn from Piltover and Zaun, and Academy stands out with its item-focused approach. By guaranteeing sponsored items for synergy-based scaling, Academy ensures that item RNG no longer dictates your entire fate. If you’re a fan of methodical item usage, creative synergy webs, or champion combos that revolve around cunning item manipulations, Academy might be your go-to trait.

Whether you aim for a Heimerdinger missile-spam build or a Jayce-led frontline machine, the Academy champions offer variety in both style and trait crossovers. Relying on your own good sense of the meta, the correct augment picks, and distributing sponsored items effectively can transform your mid to late game into unstoppable momentum. The trait seamlessly merges with other high-damage or robust defensive lines, bridging the gap between pure AP or AD, frontlines or backlines, thanks to flexible champion sub-traits.

Key Takeaways:

• Push for (3) or (5) Academy for synergy-based sponsored item benefits, typically focusing on Heimerdinger or a suitable carry like Ezreal or Jayce.
• Leverage Augments like Academy Crest, Crown, or Hextech Experiment for maximum synergy expansions or item-based scaling. Arcane Research and Brilliant Minds further supercharge repeated spellcasts or synergy stats.
• Consider front row vs. back row Jayce usage carefully to tailor your team’s strategy—defense or offense. Meanwhile, don’t shy away from building a stable early board with Lux and Leona to preserve HP until your real star units arrive.
• If you see a synergy-laden pivot, combine Academy with Rebel or Sorcerer lines for potent carry potential. The multi-trait flexibility means you can adapt to whatever the shop or item drops hand you.

Equipped with this knowledge, you’re ready to explore the Academy trait with confidence. Whether you’re a synergy hoarder who loves new trait mechanics or a rank-climbing competitor seeking a reliable path to top 4, Academy stands as a well-rounded, fresh approach in TFT Set 13. By blending guaranteed item advantages, synergy-based scaling, and champion adaptability, you’ll find Academy teams equally fun and formidable. Good luck on the convergence, and may your Academy synergy lead you to first place!