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Blog entry by Phil Dowling

A Beginner’s Guide To VALORANT

The ultimate ability of a hero is charged with kills. The more kills an agent has, the quicker they charge their ultimate. Some abilities also have shorter cooldowns, making them spammier, while other abilities can only be used once a ro

Viper is fantastic for a brutal 9th rating, but hear me out. Her abilities, while useful, can be functionally replicated by those of other agents. Her Toxic Screen and Snake Bite abilities are very similar to Phoenix's; Her smokes can be replaced by Jett's, Omen's, or Brimstone's. Her Viper Pit is useful for spike plants, but can work against your team easily too. It is also impossible for enemies to die to the gas, leaving them at 1HP; If they see you first, you still may go d

The two heavy weapons in VALORANT are the Ares and Artstar csgo the Odin. These machine guns have huge ammo capacity compared to the other guns in the game. They can be used for stopping aggressive teams with the sheer firepower they can unleash. The downside to these guns is that they require a brief spin-up time before they shoot at the maximum rate of f

The Bucky is a pump-action shotgun with a low rate of fire and a wide spread pattern. This shotgun has a slow reload time and cannot penetrate walls, but its alternate fire can one-shot unarmored opponents in the mid-ra

At the start of each round, there's a buying phase during which players can spend credits earned in previous rounds to purchase weapons, armor and some special abilities. In order to earn credits, a player needs to earn kills during the ro

A classic double-barrel shotgun that can cause one-shot kills at close range, but is useless at distance. With only two shots before having to reload, you'd better hit your target. Interestingly, the Shorty is classified as a sidearm rather than a shotgun in VALORA

Due to the nature of Valorant's mechanics and system, there is a lot of room for teamwork within the game. Agent's abilities are purposefully designed to assist and support a player's team, but if you are not in communication with your team, then these abilities are almost usel

The core four of Sage, Cypher, Brimstone, and Breach dominated the event. Mostly every team ran this composition, choosing Sova for the fifth spot if they wanted more information, Omen if they wanted utility or a duelist (Pheonix, Raze, Jett) if they wanted more dam

Breach's abilities pack a massive punch. Even with slow actuation times, they have impressive range and can completely disorient opponents. He's one of those characters that I almost put up in the top 3, but his abilities are non-vital. Phoenix's flash ability seems to be a bit more versatile and athletic than Breach's, and while his ultimate is powerful and flashy, Brimstone's seems to have the edge with its killing po

Like Phoenix, Sage has the capability to reverse an enemy kill. Her ultimate ability can raise a nearby ally at full HP. Not much needs to be said about this – it's just plan good. You'd be hard-pressed to find a serious squad without a Sage pla

The trio of crashies, AZK and brax, along with CS:GO stars Tyler "Ska" Latham and Jonathan " EliGE " Jablonowski dominated their opposition this tournament, proving themselves worthy of being some of the first pro VALORANT players signed to a team. As the competitive scene becomes more and more clear, T1, along with their rivals Sentinels and Gen.G, are looking as though they may be the early teams to be b

There are currently three maps in the closed beta: Haven, Bind, and Split. The objectives and core gameplay elements are consistent throughout, and so the bottom line here is that players who want to become their best in VALORANT must learn them inside and out. Click here to visit blitz.gg, with highly detailed images of each map and the names of key areas. It won’t be of much use if someone calls for defense of B Door outside B-Box and another player has no idea where that

Here is where VALORANT deviates strongly in theme from CS:GO and ventures into Overwatch territory. Each character, known as an Agent, has their own backstory with abilities that border on the supernatural to match their personality. Phoenix, unsurprisingly, is all about fire and the potential ability to respawn when elimina

This means that Brax, Shroud, TimTheTatman, Dizzy, DrLupo, Trymacs, ONSCREEN, Summit1g, Hiko, Mendo, Skadoodle, Ninja, Ace, and many more are perfect to learn the top skills needed to become a VALORANT champ. These are but a few of the most well-known streamers, most of which were participating in the Twitch drops event regarding beta k

The most expensive sidearm, this revolver deals massive damage but is offset by its low ammo capacity and slow rate of fire. The Sheriff's recoil may be a bit hard to control, but being able to kill with one headshot at almost any range/armor level makes up for

Communication also allows for some sneaky plays within a match. Being able to ask a Brimstone to call in a sky smoke to hide where the spike is being planted gives your team a humongous advantage over a team of uncoordinated players. There are several abilities within the title that rely on a team's coordination, and without solid communication, they are almost usel