Valorant, a free-to-play competitive shooter developed by Riot Games, allows players to define their role in the game not just with the agents they choose, but with the weapons they purchase. Although the standard rifles like the Vandal and Phantom are good all-around weapons, they lack the potential that a sniper rifle may have in the right hands. With this guide, players will learn how to tap into that potential and best approach the sniper playstyle.
Valorant is the most recent addition to the competitive shooter genre, created by the same developers as League of Legends. Although the game has more of a graphical resemblance to Overwatch, its gameplay is much closer to that of Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege and Counter Strike: Global Offensive. In Valorant the competitive game mode consists of two teams, attacking and defending, battling to a best of 24 rounds in elimination-style combat. The attacking side must either eliminate the entire enemy team to win the round or successfully plant and defend an explosive called a spike till it explodes. The spike however can only be planted at select sites that the defending team protects. In games similar to Valorant, one of the most effective ways to protect one of these sites - or attack it - is to hold a faraway angle with a powerful long-range rifle, and Valorant is no different. Stay tuned to learn how to bring your sniping play-style to the next level.
The Right Agent for Sniping in Valorant
The first step to any good sniper loadout is picking the right Agent at the start of the match. Technically, any Agent can purchase a sniper rifle if they have enough credits, but that doesn't mean their abilities will synergize well with the weapon. If players intend to take on a sniping role for their team, the best Agents to choose from include: Jett, Sage, Sova, and Omen.
Jett's abilities may seem counter-intuitive to the sniping role at first, but her movement abilities can be a great asset to those who want to snipe aggressively. Her Tailwind and Updraft abilities are essential for getting to aggressive angles quickly. Having a Jett Tailwind to a forward position and set up her sniper scope on a popular angle is extremely effective. Jett's Tailwind moves too fast for the enemy to anticipate her position and then, before they even know it, the enemy has already walked into Jett's sniper scope. Jett can also use Updraft to gain access to high-up positioning on boxes and other tall objects. This gives Jett another advantage as enemy players likely won't check vertical positions as frequently as they will check spots on the ground. Jett's Cloudburst also comes in handy when Jett needs to fall back from an aggressive position and must provide herself some cover. Lastly, her Bladestorm ability can equip her to handle multiple enemies at the same and get really aggressive around corners or in small areas. Sniping with Jett is all about surprising your opponent by being in unexpected angles and repositioning quickly.
If players want to take on a more supporting role as a sniper, Sage will suit their fancy. Her first ability is a throwable Orb that explodes on the ground and slows enemies for a brief duration. If Sage manages to land this Orb in front of a group of stampeding enemies, she can impact their movement enough to get multiple sniper shots off. Her second ability allows her to conjure a large solid wall in close proximity. Similar to Jett's updraft, Sage can position this wall to rise from directly beneath her so she can snipe enemies from an elevated position. Like Jett's Cloudburst, she can also use the wall to block off busy chokepoints and find a better position. Her Healing Orb is essential to team play as she can heal her teammates who get a little too up close and personal with the enemy. Lastly, she can also resurrect fallen teammates when her Ultimate is available. This compliments her support sniper playstyle because it's hard to engage multiple enemies at once with a bolt-action rifle. Resurrecting a teammate with an Assault Rifle or SMG who can spray down multiple enemies will be much more efficient than trying to take them all on.
Sova is a good choice for snipers who like to collect intel for their team. Sova's Owl Drone and Recon Bolt can collect information on where enemies may be charging in from so Sova can line up his scope for just the right angle. His Shock Bolt and Hunter's Fury help Sova provide damage support for his team even while he is behind cover or if the enemy is behind cover. This can compliment a backline sniper play-style because it allows Sova to help his team even when his sniping angle is blocked off or under fire.
Omen is another great choice for aggressive snipers as he can get to new positions quickly with his Shrouded Step and From The Shadows abilities. With Shrouded Step, Omen can change angles much like Jett can with her Tailwind except enemies will not be able to see Omen move to his next position since he teleports. From The Shadows is similar, but Omen can appear anywhere on the map which can be great for getting behind enemies or getting to the other site quickly. His Paranoia ability can also help make Omen a more aggressive sniper as he can throw a projectile that will reduce the vision range of all players it touches. Omen can toss this ability even through walls so he can blind enemies and get an aggressive peak with his sniper rifle before putting down his Dark Cover to obscure the enemy's vision even more.
The Marshal Vs The Operator in Valorant
In Valorant, the main sniper of choice is going to be the Operator. This is simply because the Operator does 150 damage to the body of an enemy even at 50 meters away, which is enough to kill an enemy with full health and heavy armor. The Marshal does have some merit as it has better hip-fire accuracy and a faster fire-rate than the Operator, but it will only one-shot an enemy player with a headshot. The Operator also has better functionality at longer ranges because it has two zoom levels as opposed to the Marshal's one. However, players shouldn't fully discount the Marshal because a high fire-rate in accurate hands can still make the gun very impactful. Players may also be tempted to buy the Marshal instead of saving for an operator since the Marshal only costs 1,100 credits while the Operator costs 4,500. Sniper players should save for the Operator because it is the only gun in the game which offers a one-shot to an enemy's center of mass at any range. This is vital for snipers who are looking down long hallways and need to quickly kill an enemy because the head hotbox is significantly smaller than the body hotbox. Buying the Operator is high-risk and high-reward but by staying tuned to this guide, players can learn how to reduce risk while gaining more opportunities at rewards.
Tips for Sniping and Positioning in Valorant
Now that you've chosen the right Agent and weapon for the sniping role, it is important to learn when to buy the rifles, how to use the rifles, and where to position yourself. As discussed earlier, the Operator is very expensive and can leave you broke if you purchase it and lose it. For this reason, try to only buy the operator when the rest of your team can also afford Assault Rifles or SMGs. This is because if you plan to play as a backline sniper, your team can provide better frontline support with ARs instead of pistols. Likewise, if retreating from an aggressive position, your team can provide better cover with better guns. If you find that your team cannot all afford to buy up, purchase a Vandal for a teammate and a Marshal for yourself, which still costs less than one Operator and leaves your team better equipped. A perhaps overlooked tip is to have a good secondary like the Frenzy, Spectre, or Shorty in case the fight gets too personal. The Operator may be expensive, but the few extra hundred credits for a secondary can be the difference between getting a kill and getting killed.
When learning how to use the sniper rifles in Valorant, keep these important tips in mind. First and foremost, the snipers will un-scope after firing a shot and will not automatically scope in again after resetting the bolt. This means players will have to choose to scope in after every shot, which can be kind of tedious. Secondly, the Operator has a very long pullout time in comparison to other weapons in the game. Therefore, make sure you are in a safe position when switching back to the Operator from your knife or secondary. Lastly, and most importantly, your sniper shot will only be accurate if you are standing completely still. Players will know when their shot is accurate due to a red dot that appears at the intersection of their crosshair while scoped in. This makes the sniper rifles much less suited to moving around and clearing corners. Instead, players will benefit from finding great positioning at faraway angles.
Good positioning revolves around the hallways and pathways that lead to important places on the map such as the middle or one of the sites. A good sniper player will post up to cover these chokepoints from as clever a position as possible. For aggressive snipers, this could mean as close to a chokepoint as possible in order to catch an enemy off guard. For backline snipers, players will want to hold the chokepoints from as far back as possible and will also want to try to put as much cover between them and the chokepoint as possible. Due to the zoom of your sniper scope, you'll be able to easily see an enemy player from far away, but an enemy player should have to first look past door frames, boxes, smokes, and walls to get a glimpse of you. Basically, obscure yourself as much as possible while keeping the enemy in clear view. Once you've killed an enemy from a position, consider finding a new one as that dead enemy has likely called you out to his teammate. This would be a good time to throw down a Cloudburst or put up a wall so the enemy can't see where you position yourself next. Overall, stay crafty and in cover to minimize risk and maximize the reward for the costly Operator.
Valorant is free to play and available for download now on PC.