Teamfight Tactics: How to get and use Star Shards TFT

In Teamfight Tactics, Little Legends represent the personification of the player on the battlefield as they convey their personality and flair with every strategic maneuver.

There are dozens of Tacticians in the game to fit every player’s preference ranging from cute whimsical creatures to fierce and formidable champions.

Regardless of your preference though, the way to unlock the true potential of your companion is by upgrading its appearance and effects, which cannot be performed without the coveted Star Shards.

Star Shards - the basics

What are Star Shards in TFT?

In Teamfight Tactics, Star Shards are a premium currency that can be used to level up your in-game Little Legend.

Your Little Legends can be upgraded with Star Shards two times after you initially unlock them and these upgrade tiers are represented through stars (eg. 2-star Featherknight)

Star shards are like TFT’s version of Orange Essence as they allow players to enhance the cosmetic features similar to how Orange Essence in League of Legends is used for upgrading skins and other items.

It is non-gameplay related and exclusive to Teamfight Tactics which means it doesn’t have any correlation with Riot Points or Blue Essence from your base League of Legends game.

What are Star Shards used for

Star Shards are used to level up your Little Legend from one tier to another, enhancing your Tactician’s overall appearance.

Little Legends can be upgraded up to tier 3 and apart from changing their looks, leveling them up also unlocks new and improved sound effects and animations that change their in-game behaviors.

That being said, certain Tacticians cannot be upgraded with Star Shards as they’re already treated as fully upgraded in-game.

This is the list of non-upgradable Little Legends in TFT:

• Victorious and Triumphant Little Legends
• Sprite Legends
• Birthday Runespirit

How to get Star Shards in TFT

Missions

Another way of obtaining free Star Shards in TFT is by completing missions that are tied to various in-game events through objectives.

If you want to acquire Star Shards through TFT missions, you should always keep an eye on your mission tab within the game client which will have a yellow notification pop-up when new missions are available.

Direct purchases

If you’re looking to acquire Star Shards immediately, you can do that by directly purchasing the currency in Riot’s store.

In the Star Shards section of the TFT store, you can find the currency available in several variations including bulk deals that provide you with additional Shards for larger purchases.

There are three variations that you can choose from depending on your budget:

Teamfight Tactics Battle Pass is the best way to obtain Star Shards for free as you receive this coveted currency several times as you progress through the tiers.

The free battle pass contains Star Shards on these tiers:

• Tier 4 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 14 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 17 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 26 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 31 - 50 Star Shards

The Battle Pass system is great for farming Star Shards as you’ll be able to receive up to 250 of them without needing to purchase the premium version.

That being said, the premium version of the Battle Pass that costs 1295RP (around 10$) provides you with an additional 200 Star Shards on three tiers, those being:

• Tier 6 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 10 - 50 Star Shards
• Tier 22 - 100 Star Shards

The only downside of this method of obtaining Star Shards is the fact that it is time-consuming, given that you’ll need to spend dozens of hours grinding the pass before reaping the rewards on the highest tiers.

Best way to spend Star Shards in TFT

There is no secret recipe or optimal route when it comes to spending Star Shards in TFT as it’s all up to personal preference.

Naturally, unless you’re looking to immediately purchase a new Little Legend, you’ll only be able to use your Star Shards on Tacticians you already own, which narrows down your choice by default.

Generally speaking, the best idea is to upgrade the Little Legend you like using the most as you’ll be giving it that extra touch of swag that might’ve been missing before.

Another crucial factor that plays a role in spending your Star Shards is the amount you currently own and are looking to spend.

Given that some upgrades on Little Legends cost more Star Shards than others based on their rarity, you might have to adapt your purchasing strategy if you can’t afford what you were hoping for.

How to upgrade a Little Legend in TFT

If you’ve collected enough Star Shards and you’re all set to upgrade your Little Legend to the next tier, follow these steps:

1. Enter the TFT lobby

• Press Play and choose Teamfight Tactics
• Create a TFT lobby, any mode will work

2. Select Tacticians and upgrade

• Once you’re in the lobby, select Tacticians 
• Find the Tactician you want to upgrade and select the upgrade level 

Star Shards upgrade prices in TFT

Depending on the rarity of the Little Legend you’re looking to upgrade, level-ups differ in price as higher rarity Tacticians demand more Star Shards before upgrading.

The pricing remains consistent across all upgrade tiers, which means upgrading a Little Legend from tier 2 to 3 will cost the same as progressing from tier 1 to 2.