Hello, Librarian Husky here! There’s a lot of things that you learn over time, but sometimes it takes way too long, and even still, there are some things that you never really learn. So here’s 20 big things that I wish I knew sooner in Valorant, starting with smoking in general.

The Power of Proper Smoke Placement

One thing that I didn’t really understand is how to stop enemies from brute-forcing their way onto a point. You throw a smoke on the Choke Points, and oftentimes people will go into it, pop out with all kinds of utility, and rush onto the site. I didn’t realize how powerful a smoke was when placed somewhere in the middle of the site or somewhere on-site. This adds immense pressure to the enemy trying to push because you could be in the smoke, around the smoke, or trying to pop out of the smoke with utility. There’s so many different things that can happen, which forces the enemy to actually split the site take into multiple sections, where they’re clearing the front of the site, clearing inside the smoke, and clearing the back of the site. It really breaks up that utility a lot and gives you a ton more options as a defender.

Understanding the Strength of Smokes

I didn’t really realize why this was so strong. At the beginning, these smokes felt random or purposeless, but as I started to learn more and more, and as I started to watch more and more pro play, I began to understand their true strategic value.

The Power of Sight Smokes in Valorant

I realized the power of these sight smokes and how they force the opponent to act in a very particular way that is to your advantage as a defender. That’s really a lot of what Valorant is—finding ways to put yourself in consistent advantages and force your opponent to act in a certain way.

Aim and Movement: The Key to Success

Number two is that aim is as much about movement as it is about mouse control. I always thought that I just needed to perfect the movement of my mouse, get the perfect mouse, perfect sensitivity, and practice every single day to optimize everything for amazing aim. But timing, correct strafing, and click timing with every single weapon are equally as important as mouse control in developing good aim. You have to split up your aim into multiple sections, considering timing, strafing, movement, and mastering every aspect of this. Otherwise, you’ll never be as good as the top aimers, even if your mouse control is perfect.

The Importance of Learning to Lurk with Your Team

One of the key lessons I wish I knew earlier was learning to lurk at the pace of your team. Everyone knows that lurking is one of the most powerful strategies in ranked play, but it’s easy to mess up. This often leads to feeling like lurking either works randomly or results in you getting caught and flamed by your team.

Matching the Pace of Your Lurk to Your Team

Here’s the trick I wish I had known: if your team is rushing every round, you need to find a way to match that pace in your lurk. This doesn’t always mean taking a fast fight, but you need to get into a position where you can either hear the enemy rotate and quickly relay that information to your team or find some other form of value.

Avoiding Common Lurking Mistakes

If you’re too fast, you’ll get isolated and won’t provide any useful info for your team. If you’re too slow, you’ll end up playing retake while your whole team is dead, and you’ll be easily isolated as enemies will deduce your position. It’s crucial to pay attention to what your team is doing and adjust your timing accordingly.

Mastering the Art of Passive Entry on Duelists

If you ever want to have successful lurks, another thing I wish I had learned earlier is the concept of Passive Entry on duelists. I often struggled with either entering too quickly and aggressively, like a maniac, which usually resulted in dying and feeding, or being too passive and waiting too long, causing frustration among my teammates. Finding the right balance is crucial.

Creating Openings Without Forcing a Fast Fight

One approach to balance this is by creating openings and opportunities for your team without forcing a fast fight. For example, as Jett, you could dash into your smoke on the point but not instantly peek or challenge. If you instantly challenge, you might either win or lose that fight, but losing it means all the space and entry you’ve created for your team becomes wasted.

The Value of Delaying the Fight

If you die instantly, the opponent can swing onto your teammates and potentially kill more of them. However, if you smoke again and delay, you maintain pressure on the opponent, effectively postponing the outcome of the fight. The key idea is to wait as long as possible so that when you do engage, the chances of success are higher, and your team can capitalize on the space you’ve created.

The Importance of Patience in High-Pressure Situations

It’s okay if you lose the fight because your team is right there, ready to trade you, and they can walk onto the site at the same time. Your opponent is then stuck between a rock and a hard place, waiting for you to pop out and for your team to push the choke. They hope you’ll peek and fight immediately, but by being patient and passive, you put even more pressure on them.

The Benefits of Limit Testing

Number five is that Limit Testing is a speedrun to becoming a lot better. Often, Limit Testing starts as trolling. The idea behind it is to go above and beyond, playing aggressively and challenging difficult angles, pushing your character’s kit to its limits. However, this often leads to mistakes because you might ignore proper strategies, learning many lessons the hard way.

Turning Limit Testing into a Learning Experience

Limit Testing transitions from a temporary feed into something that makes you great only when you analyze why certain things didn’t work. You can’t just keep being aggressive and using your utility without reflection. Instead, you must think critically about why a particular strategy failed, so you can improve and refine your approach over time.

Re-evaluating Your Gameplay for Improvement

I’m just going to do it again and again—you need to be re-evaluating every single game. I highly suggest, if you really want to limit test and get better quickly, to record your gameplay. Play aggressively, push the limits, and then reel those limits back in so that you’re not playing overly passive. This way, you know exactly what you can get away with and where the lines are, understanding what you can be punished for. That’s how you’re going to improve much faster.

Trying Every Agent at Least Once

Number six is to try every agent at least once, even if it’s just in the range. This is something that many players neglect. If there’s a character in Valorant that you haven’t played, or a kit, ability, or ultimate you haven’t used, you need to try them. Understanding every agent doesn’t mean you need to grind every single character.

Understanding Opponents’ Kits

While I advocate for specializing in a small agent pool—maybe three or four characters max—this doesn’t mean you should have no idea how your opponent’s kits work. You should have a good understanding of what it feels like to play as Viper, even if you’ve never grinded her. You should know what the visibility looks like, what it’s like to try to smoke certain corners, or how it feels to flash for your team or entry dash as Jett. The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be.

Understanding the Importance of Knowing All Agents

You know the pain points, what you’re waiting for, how the kit works and functions, and how to interrupt an opponent’s flow. All these things are incredibly important. But if you’ve only played five characters in the roster, I strongly recommend you play at least one game, even a swift play, with every character you haven’t tried yet. This will make you better very quickly.

The Importance of a Proper Warm-Up

Another thing that many people, including myself, often overlook is the importance of warming up before every session, even if it’s just a short one. Sometimes all you need is a five-minute Warm-Up. In fact, some players might warm up too much. If you’re spending an hour or more on Warm-Ups between Aim Lab, deathmatches, and training, you’re probably overdoing it.

Balancing Warm-Up and Playtime

Over-warming can cut into your grind time and reduce the time you have for playing competitive matches, which is crucial for your development. However, if you consistently spend a short, optimized amount of time—around five minutes—warming up, you’ll achieve a higher level of consistency. You might not be 100% warmed up, but you’ll be 80-95% ready, which is much better than jumping straight into the game unprepared.

The Importance of Smoking the Spike in Retake Situations

As you climb the ranks, you’ll notice that everyone in high ELO does this, while almost no one in low ELO does: smoking the spike in almost every single retake situation where you need to defuse. Smoking the spike is nearly always the optimal play because it puts immense pressure on the attacker. They don’t know if you’re sticking the defuse, so they have to either manually check inside the smoke or spray it. Spraying gives away their position, and manually checking also reveals their location, giving you the opportunity to counterplay them.

Executing the Smoke and Defuse Strategy Effectively

If you’re not smoking the spike and just trying to press the defuse and hold it, an enemy is likely to peek you just before the half, knowing exactly where you are. This makes it impossible for you to do anything about it. Instead, you should immediately smoke the spike, gather information, tap the spike, and get off it. You can wait in the smoke, move to an angle, or force the enemy to act in a way that benefits you. This should become an automatic process, ensuring you always follow these steps in defuse situations, leading to a much more consistent and successful post-plant strategy.

The Power of the Mini-Map in Valorant

I didn’t realize how powerful the mini-map was, but especially when you have little to no communication in a ranked game, the mini-map is actually your best friend. For example, if you know the enemy Cypher likes to lurk, and because you’re paying attention to your mini-map, you notice that your teammate spots them on a site hit, you can now freely rotate to help your team without worrying about a lurker. This is valuable information you can gather without needing it to be communicated directly to you, just by paying attention and absorbing it.

Using the Mini-Map for Strategic Advantage

Jiggle Peeking while looking at the mini-map is a simple way to gather information. Even if you only see a sliver of the enemy or it was impossible to identify the character, the mini-map can provide that information for you. This tactic enhances your awareness and can significantly improve your decision-making in-game.

The 40-40-20 Rule

Another concept I wish I had adopted when I first started is the 40-40-20 rule, which would have greatly helped my mindset. Here’s the idea: 40% of games you’re going to lose no matter what you do—maybe there’s a smurf on the enemy team, or someone on your team leaves or throws. These games are unwinnable. Then, there are another 40% of games that you will win because the enemy team self-destructs or becomes toxic.

The 40-40-20 Rule in Competitive Play

In 40% of games, factors like having a leaver, facing a smurf, or other uncontrollable elements mean you’re unlikely to lose no matter how you play. In these games, your agency is limited. However, the crucial 20% of games are the ones where your actions can truly influence the outcome.

Maximizing Your Impact in Every Game

The key is that you don’t know which 20% are the ones you can change. Therefore, you must treat every single game as if it’s the one you can impact. If you lose a few rounds and feel like the game is lost, you might be wrong. You could have clutched one round and shifted the momentum entirely. How many times have you seen a game where you were winning dramatically, only to lose in the end? It happens all the time.

The Importance of Effort and Mindset

You need to give everything you can to turn every game into a win, even if it seems lost. Many games that look unwinnable can be turned around. But if you gave it your all, had a significant impact, and performed well on the leaderboard, you’ll know you did everything possible to influence the outcome positively.

Learning from Every Game Without Mental Burnout

I want you to take lessons from every game, but don’t let losses destroy you mentally. Some games are simply unwinnable unless you suddenly turn into a pro like TenZ. It’s crucial not to beat yourself up too hard over these losses, as they are inevitable. You’re not going to have a 100% win rate, so it’s important to maintain a balanced perspective.

Practicing with Weapons Other Than Rifles in Deathmatch

Number 11 is about practicing with weapons other than rifles in Deathmatch. You might notice that you don’t fully understand a weapon when you buy it in-game. No matter what weapon it is, you should use it in Deathmatch to learn the reset timers and how it feels to shoot against real players. While it’s tempting to stick with the Vandal to improve your aim, experimenting with other weapons, even if you’re struggling, is a cheat code to improving niche weapons. When you walk into a game with a weapon you’ve mastered in Deathmatch, you’ll dominate and feel much more comfortable.

Breaking Free from Playstyle Stereotypes

Number 12 is about understanding that there’s no single playstyle for each role. Many players get locked into the idea that they must play a role in a specific way. However, versatility and adaptability are key to success, allowing you to tailor your approach based on the situation and your team’s needs.

Embracing Flexibility in Playstyles

You shouldn’t feel locked into a specific playstyle, whether it’s aggressive, lurky, or frag-focused, based on the agent you’re playing. Sentinels can be aggressive, controllers can create opportunities, duelists can play slow, and initiators can make solo plays. Valorant offers a lot of flexibility in how you approach the game, depending on your teammates, the enemy’s reactions, and how consistent you’re feeling on a given day.

Breaking Free from Traditional Roles

There’s a significant opportunity to go beyond or even redefine your role, making plays that might be untraditional for your agent. It’s important not to feel confined to a particular style, as this mindset can hinder your development. Playing in a very linear, specific way limits your ability to predict and react to situations that fall outside of that mold. Experimentation is key to becoming a better player.

The Importance of Learning Lineups

If you main an agent with lineups, you need to learn them. Although some players might consider lineups “cringe,” mastering them is crucial for maximizing your effectiveness in games. Lineups can be the difference between winning and losing, and understanding them adds another layer to your strategic depth.

The Importance of Learning Lineups

I once thought, “I’m not going to learn lineups; there’s nothing you can do to make me learn them.” But the reality is, learning lineups can guarantee some free wins, and it only takes about five minutes to learn the meta. If you’re playing an agent like Sova, Viper, or Brimstone and you don’t know lineups, you’ll eventually hit a hard cap in your effectiveness. You’ll be less efficient than another player who has taken the time to learn them. Pros learn them, and if you want to be good, consistent, and reliable, you need to learn them too. It takes almost no time and is crucial for your overall impact. Once you’ve mastered them, you can focus on other aspects of your kit that you enjoy more, but lineups are non-negotiable necessities if you want to excel.

Mastering Jiggle and Jump Peeking

Normal and jump jiggle peeks might be the single most important mechanics to learn in Valorant. There are many movement mechanics and abilities, but if you don’t know how to jump and jiggle peek, this is unacceptable. Jiggle Peeking is the easiest way to displace enemy crosshairs and gain information about their location. Jump jiggling is best used against an Operator, but be cautious—if your jump peek is too predictable, a skilled opponent might still hit their shot. Practice these techniques until you’re confident in your ability to execute them. Mastering Jiggle Peeking demonstrates full control of your character and a solid understanding of a critical game mechanic.

The Importance of Clear Communication

Calling out agent names and specific numbers of enemies is extremely helpful. I’ve been guilty of making poor calls, and vague communication can easily lose rounds. Clear and precise comms are essential for effective teamwork and can make the difference between winning and losing a game.

The Importance of Precise Communication

If you hear one or two footsteps and immediately yell “It’s A, it’s A,” your entire team might rotate and potentially throw the round away. It’s crucial to be precise with your comms. Many Valorant rounds are like a puzzle; everyone on your team gains different information, and the more specific you are, the easier it will be to put the pieces together and fully predict the enemy’s moves.

Setting Up a Perfect Double Hold

To set up a perfect double hold, use the ping function. If you’re holding an angle with your teammate, pinging the angle you are covering will make it easier for your teammate to line up in the perfect position. Pinging is often underrated, but it can be more effective than verbal communication in many instances. It helps your teammate know the exact line of sight you have covered, allowing them to set up an ideal double hold. It’s simple to do but incredibly important for effective teamwork.

Planning Rounds Based on Enemy Economy and Ultimates

Number 17 is about planning your rounds based on the enemy’s economy and available ultimates. It’s easy to focus only on what you want to do in the round, but many rounds can be won before they even start by considering the information available. For instance, if you notice the enemy has enough money for a decent buy but not a full buy, you can plan accordingly. You might anticipate light armor and adjust your strategy to exploit that, such as opting for a weapon that can double tap more effectively.

Predicting Enemy Movements Based on Agent Abilities

If you notice the enemy has a Killjoy, you can anticipate a specific site hit because some setups work better with her ultimate. For example, on Ascent, you can predict that they will likely go either Tree or B, as these areas are advantageous for a Killjoy ultimate. Playing around this knowledge makes it much easier to defend, as you can prepare for the enemy’s likely strategy. This kind of prediction provides free information and can lead to easy wins in rounds.

The Pros and Cons of Crouching in Fights

Crouching is only bad if you’re peeking multiple opponents. In simple terms, crouching locks you into your fight. In most 1v1s, it won’t negatively affect the fight at all. However, it becomes a disadvantage when you’re facing multiple opponents or if you’re unsure how many you’ll encounter. Crouching makes you much easier to trade, as it makes you a predictable target. If you have a truly isolated fight, crouching isn’t necessarily bad, but if you’re likely to face multiple enemies, it could lead to you being easily traded.

The Importance of Proper Smoke Placement

Number 19 is understanding that making your smoke flush with the Choke Points is always the best option. It’s easy to get lazy with smokes—we’ve all been there, where you just throw the smokes out and think, “That did the job; I can move on.” But proper smoke Placement is crucial for effectively blocking enemy sightlines and controlling the map. Being precise with your smokes can be the difference between a successful defense and a costly mistake.

The Importance of Proper Smoke Placement

When smokes aren’t flush with the enemy choke point, they give the enemy slight cover to play around, allowing them to create counterplay within your own utility. This can let them funnel onto your site or set up a better pop-out flash than they could have otherwise, all because you allowed them to gain a foothold on-site. Ensure that your utility is consistent and efficient, and avoid setting up your opponents for strong plays against your own team.

Using Your Ultimate More Often

Number 20 is something subconscious and hard to shake, but you should be using your ultimate more frequently, especially in ranked Valorant games. No rounds are truly secure, and using your ultimate to guarantee as many rounds as possible will win you more games. Many rounds that seem secure on paper—when you’re up by one person, like three to two—can still be lost easily. It’s likely happened to you before, but an ultimate would have locked that round down, securing the win. Too many players hold onto their ultimates for potentially more value and end up not using them effectively throughout the game, missing opportunities to secure rounds that should have been won.

Seizing Opportunities with Ultimates

Some rounds are 60/40 or 55/45, where the advantage is slight, and players often think they can hold without using their ultimate. However, not using your ultimate in these situations means missing the opportunity to secure easy rounds. In many cases, a single ultimate can be the difference between winning or losing a round. So, put the nail in the coffin and win that round—use your ultimate. Plus, the more you use your ultimates, the more you’ll get throughout the game, so it’s a win-win situation.

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