TFT Patch Notes 16.4: Fast 9 Returns, New Augments & Meta Shake-Up

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TFT Patch Notes 16.4 brings a “tightening” style update: early‑game odds and XP are adjusted to open more viable lines, 3‑cost rerolls are helped, level 9 is made more reachable again, and several econ Augments are toned down so three‑star 4‑costs aren’t the default high‑elo win condition.

The devs describe this as a mid‑set tuning patch that aims to keep multiple paths to top 4 open instead of one or two solved trees.

Below is a structured rundown, rewritten around the keyword TFT Patch Notes 16.4 while keeping the content faithful to the notes you provided.

TFT Patch Notes 16.4 Updates

Level Roll Odds & XP

• Level 7 shop odds are shifted to make 3‑cost lines more reliable and less punishing to roll for.

  • Level 7 cost odds:

    • Before: 19/30/40/10/1% (1/2/3/4/5‑cost)

    • Now: 16/30/43/10/1%
      → More consistent access to 3‑costs at 7, which makes “stabilize on 7 then go 8” a more realistic plan.

• Level 8 → 9 XP requirement rolled back (but not all the way to the fast‑9 meta), to make going 9 competitive with staying 8 plus 3‑star 4‑costs.

  • XP from 8–9: 76 ⇒ 68

Unlock Conditions

• Kennen is made easier to unlock for Yordle reroll:

  • Kennen unlock: 8-star levels ⇒ 7-star levels.

• Tahm Kench (Bilgewater Serpent stack condition) is reined in, now that Bilgewater isn’t dominating elite lobbies:

  • Tahm Kench unlock: 500 Serpents ⇒ 450 Serpents.

Traits – TFT Patch Notes 16.4

• Ionia – Path of Blades

  • Additional attack chance: 30/35/40% ⇒ 30/38/45%.
    → Going past Ionia (3) feels more rewarding instead of “why did I bother?”.

• Gunslinger

  • Attack Damage: 20/35% ⇒ 22/40%.
    → Makes (4) Gunslinger worth fielding even if one unit is basically just holding a slot.

• Piltover Modules

  • (2) Blast Shield: 20% max HP shield ⇒ 18%.

  • (2) Tuned Oscillator: 25% bonus ⇒ 28%.

  • (2) Overclocked Capacitor: 22% ⇒ 25%.

  • (4) Acceleration Gate: 40% mana refund ⇒ 35%.

  • (4) Gigantification Ray Health: 23% ⇒ 28%.

  • (4) Kinetic Barrier resists: 60/20 ⇒ 65/30.
    → Overall, weaker “easy” defensive option, stronger scaling, and more interesting module choices.

Units – Tier 1 & 2

Tier 1

• Jhin – slightly undertuned after the 16.3 mini‑rework.

  • Ability damage: 135/200/300% AD ⇒ 145/215/325% AD.

• Sona – 1‑cost reroll that stalls too consistently via healing.

  • Heal: 40/50/80/110% AP ⇒ 30/40/65/100% AP.

Tier 2

• Bard – reroll carry is still too weak at higher levels.

  • Ability damage: 120/170/240/320% AP ⇒ 130/185/255/325% AP.

• Tristana – rarely 3‑starred or itemized.

  • Ability damage: 250/375/565% AD ⇒ 250/375/600% AD (3‑star buff).

• Xin Zhao – 3‑star scaling buff, focused on healing.

  • Heal: 95/135/170/245% AP ⇒ 105/145/200/280% AP.

Units – Tier 3

• Darius

  • Bugfix: fixed scenarios where he stopped casting after executing.

  • Bleed duration: 4s ⇒ 5s (more time to trigger execute).

  • Bleed DPS: 15/25/40% AD ⇒ 12/18/30% AD (compensation nerf).

• Draven – the “bro” gets simple baseline power.

  • Base AD: 53 ⇒ 58.

• Gwen – general buff.

  • Primary damage: 45/68/105% AP ⇒ 50/75/120% AP.

  • Secondary damage: 20/30/50% AP ⇒ 25/35/60% AP.

• Jinx

  • Bugfix: fixed lost attacks during spell, which was costing ~30% DPS.

  • Ability damage tuned to keep early forms neutral, 3‑star stronger:

    • Damage: 65/100/155% AD ⇒ 50/75/125% AD.

Units – Tier 4

• Ambessa (Noxus carry)

  • New: Slam deals 40/40/100% bonus damage to tanks.

  • Reset damage: 100% ⇒ 80%.
    → Less generic one‑shot machine, more targeted tank buster, with Noxus vertical made healthier (Draven/Darius/Ambessa all viable carriers).

• Lissandra

  • Compensation buff, anticipating nerfs to Freljord + Disruptor synergy after bugfix:

  • Primary damage: 275/415% AP ⇒ 315/475% AP.

• Rift Herald – Void frontline toned down.

  • Health gain: 350/450 ⇒ 300/425.

• Yunara – still too reliable as a 4‑cost carry.

  • Ability attack speed scaling: 75% AP ⇒ 65% AP.

Units – Tier 5

• Aatrox – pushes Omnivamp fantasy, especially at 1‑star.

  • Omnivamp → AD conversion: 100% ⇒ 150%.

  • Ability damage: 95/200% AD ⇒ 95/185% AD (small 2‑star nerf).

• Aurelion Sol – easier 1‑star stacking, upgrades spread out.

  • Star Forger bonus stardust: 20/33% ⇒ 25/30%.

  • Stardust thresholds:

    • Bonus true damage: 475 ⇒ 550.

    • Meteor upgrade: 750 ⇒ 800.

    • Black Hole upgrade: 1543 ⇒ 1444 (easier).

• Ornn

  • Extra HP: 250/450 ⇒ 350/600.

  • Chill duration: 3s ⇒ 5s.

• Sylas

  • Cataclysm damage: 100/180% AP ⇒ 120/200% AP.

  • Demacian Justice execute damage: 670/1000 ⇒ 700/1050.

• T‑Hex & HexMech augments

  • Ability damage: 145/250% AD ⇒ 160/265% AD.

  • Missile damage: 25% of primary ⇒ 20%.

  • Damage falloff: 25%/target (max 75%) ⇒ 35% (max 80%).

  • HexMech Fighter: +15/25/40% AD ⇒ +20/30/40%.

  • HexMech Marksman: +10/18/30% damage amp ⇒ 12/20/30%.

  • HexMech Tank: 15/25/40% Omnivamp ⇒ 20/30/40%.

  • HexMech Assassin: 30/60/100% crit ⇒ 40/70/100%.

Core, Radiant, and Ornn Items

Core

• Gargoyle’s Stoneplate: Armor/MR 25 ⇒ 30.

• Nashor’s Tooth: AP 20 ⇒ 18.

• Warmog’s Armor: max Health 15% ⇒ 18%.

Radiant

• Radiant Gargoyle’s: Armor/MR 50 ⇒ 60.

• Radiant Nashor’s Tooth: AP 40 ⇒ 35.

• Radiant Warmog’s: max Health 33% ⇒ 36%.

Artifacts (Ornn Items)

• Aegis of Dusk: HP 200 ⇒ 300.

• Aegis of Dawn: HP 200 ⇒ 300.

• Hullcrusher Armor/MR: 50 ⇒ 60.

• Mogul’s Mail: gold every 12s ⇒ every 11s.

• Sniper’s Focus:

  • New: +3 mana gen.

  • AD & AP: 25% ⇒ 20%.

Augments – TFT Patch Notes 16.4

New / Reworked

• Gilded Steel (Gold, 4‑2 only)

  • Gain 3 non‑Tank 5‑cost champions.

  • If you field a 5‑cost, your 1–4‑cost units gain 8% Durability.

  • Championship Augment to celebrate K.O. Coliseum 2025 winner – WithoutYou.

• Trials of Twilight II (Prismatic, 2‑1 only)

  • Gain 2 Xin Zhaos and a Bloodthirster.

  • Xin Zhao becomes an Attack Fighter.

  • After 5 combats while Xin is 3‑star, unlock Zaahen.

  • At the start of the next 3 stages, gain a Lesser Champion Duplicator.

• The World Runes – re‑enabled and redesigned as an econ / Ryze unlock engine:

  • Gain 2 random Region emblems.

  • Gain 2 XP every player combat, or 4 XP if you have 4+ Region traits active.

Key Nerfs / Adjustments to Strong Econ & Combat Augments

• Ascension: 60% damage after 15s ⇒ 45% after 12s.

• Artillery Barrage spell damage: 27/40/60/80% AP ⇒ 32/48/72/96% AP.

• Chaos Magic: temporarily disabled.

• Commerce Core:

  • Initial rerolls: 10 ⇒ 16.

  • Rerolls per turn: 4 ⇒ 2.

• Efficient Shopper: now also grants 4 gold.

• Epic Rolldown: rerolls 23 ⇒ 20.

• Flexible Team: team health bonus 20 ⇒ 40.

• Indecision I: 8g ⇒ 5g.

• Indecision II: 12g ⇒ 8g.

• Jeweled Lotus II: crit chance 35% ⇒ 25%.

• Living Forge: artifacts every 10 combats ⇒ every 9.

• Max Build: now gives 10 rerolls immediately; on 4‑5 and 6‑1, you also gain a Champion Duplicator.

• On a Roll: no longer offered on Stage 2‑1.

• ReinFOURcement: gold 12 ⇒ 5.

• Spirit of Redemption: heal 10% ⇒ 7.5%.

• Three Threes: gold 8 ⇒ 3.

• Twin Guardians: Armor/MR 40 ⇒ 50.

Small Changes & Bug Fixes

Smaller Unit / System Tweaks

• Fizz tooltip clarified to show he prioritizes non‑Tanks and Fighters.

• Galio ability can now crit properly.

• Ryze ability no longer fizzles if target dies mid‑flight.

Bug Fixes

• Disruptor damage amp no longer stacks incorrectly with Freljord’s amp.

• Bard no longer counts 6‑Piltover Invention as a 3‑star unit.

• Sunfire Cape tooltip typo fixed.

• Call to Chaos golden egg tooltip typo fixed.

• Gwen’s Scissors and Salvager no longer reset stacking items (Cappa Juice, Deadlier Blades, etc.).

• Deadlier Blades now correctly stacks when multiple Deathblades are equipped, without needing a new round.

• Kai’Sa and Orianna unlock conditions fixed in Tocker’s Trials.

• Various arena music and pedestal color issues fixed.

Festival of Beasts – Revival Tuning

Alongside the main TFT Patch Notes 16.4 changes, Festival of Beasts revival mode gets mostly buffs plus nerfs to two outliers:

Units

• Shyvana:

  • HP gain on cast: 30/35/40% ⇒ 15/20/25%.

  • Base HP: 800 ⇒ 700.

  • Base AD: 70 ⇒ 55.

• Vladimir damage: 350/475/725 ⇒ 350/525/790.

• Jarvan IV HP: 800 ⇒ 850.

• Kindred damage: 300/450/675 ⇒ 325/490/730.

• Olaf AS on cast: 150/175/350% ⇒ 140/165/340%.

• Zilean AS: 0.75 ⇒ 0.8.

• Azir damage: 300/500 ⇒ 350/550.

Traits

• Fortune (6): average loot up by about 3g.

• Keeper shields: 175/225/275/500 ⇒ 200/250/300/525.

• Cultist Galio AD: 50/75/115/150 ⇒ 50/85/115/150.

• Syphoner team Omnivamp: 10/25/50 ⇒ 15/30/60.

• Syphoners individual Omnivamp: 50/100/125 ⇒ 50/110/135.

Festival Bug Fixes

• Shyvana no longer chain‑casts with heavy mana regen.

• Lee Sin now properly drops gold with Malicious Monetization when he knocks a unit off the board.

• Pilfer now correctly grants a copy of the first enemy killed, not their gold value.

• Cluttered Mind no longer appears as a Year of the Horse opening encounter option.

If you want, I can turn this into a more “guide‑style” breakdown (e.g., “best comps after TFT Patch 16.4” or “what to play instead of Sona and Shyvana now”).

Disclaimer:

This article is based on official patch notes, developer commentary, community testing, and publicly available game data as of the release window for TFT Patch 16.4. Balance changes, augment behavior, and unit interactions may be adjusted in hotfixes or future updates by Riot Games. The content is provided for informational and gameplay guidance purposes only and is not officially endorsed by Riot Games or Teamfight Tactics.