Valorant Patch 1.05: Killjoy and Other Details

Valorant Patch 1.05 is live now! There are a lot of additions since Valorant Act I, Ignition, has come to an end. Act II brings with it Killjoy, a new game mode, and a bucket full of skins. Also, minor Raze nerfs. Let’s take a look at everything Valorant Patch 1.05 and Act II have in store for us.

If you are just getting into Valorant and want to know if it’s right for you, check out our Valorant review. 

Killjoy – Abilities, Playstyle, and Lore

Killjoy is confirmed to be a Sentinel like Sage and Cypher. This obviously indicates her kit being geared towards defense and stalling. These are her abilities:

AlarmBot

AlarmBot can go invisible once deployed. Once an enemy is in its range, it attacks them and notifies Killjoy. If hit by AlarmBot, enemies are vulnerable to double damage from outside sources for a time. Furthermore, it cannot be affected by Breach’s abilities or Sage’s slow orbs.

Turret

Turret acts like a sentry that can guard a 180-degree area. It fires three shots as a burst at enemies within range. The turret has 125 HP and deals 8 damage at close range, 6 damage at 20 metres, and 3 damage at 35 metres.

Valorant Patch 1.05 Details Killjoy Turret

It’s not a big damage dealer, but quite handy for securing a corner. It also has a bug where it detects and fires at enemies through the wall. Though that should be fixed by the next Valorant Patch 1.05 hot-fix.

Nanoswarm

Nanoswarm is a stealth grenade. How it works: Killjoy can throw this at a ground location and it will then become invisible. Upon activation, it releases a swarm of nanobots in a circle area of effect that damages enemies.

Nanoswarm is a lethal ability. With its stealth and damage capabilities, it can alone win you a round. However, Killjoy needs to be in the line of sight of Nanoswarm to activate it.

Lockdown

Killjoy sets up a bomb which takes around 15 seconds to take effect. Once the timer is over, enemies caught within its radius are affected by a status effect named “Detained”, which severely restricts movement. Additionally, enemies lose their guns during that phase.

Fortunately, the lockdown bomb has a huge visual indicator pulsing out of it while taking effect. Also, it can be destroyed. So, successfully rushing Killjoy is a good counter.

Valorant Patch 1.05 Details Lockdown Ability

When it comes to playstyle, Killjoy can rival Cypher when defending sites. That’s mostly due to AlarmBot and Turret, both being excellent stalling tools. Her Nanoswarm and Lockdown are a bit riskier to apply. For now, it is safe to say that Killjoy is an A-tier agent. We just have to wait and see how she does when attacking sites.

Killjoy Lore

If you’re wondering why AlarmBot and Raze’s Boom Bot seem similar, it is because Raze took Killjoy’s idea and made it her own. They seem to have a rivalry between them, but that’s not all. Killjoy is also related to Brimstone, who is a mentor to her and had his bracelet designed by her.

Her personality is that of a genius inventor. Described as the smartest of all, she is calculated, calm, and always strategic. Her design is meant to reflect that.

To get a better grasp on her story, check out this German interview.

Deathmatch – New Game Mode Details

Valorant is adding another fun game mode called Deathmatch. The winner is decided upon who’s first to reach 30 kills or the most number of kills in 6 minutes. Deathmatch is pure gun-play mayhem as all abilities are disabled. However, you can still buy any weapon you want and will spawn with full armor by default. As per Valorant Patch 1.05, we have the usual game modes with Deathmatch up.

What makes Deathmatch in Valorant more exciting is that, for every kill, the fallen enemy will drop a health boost. Also, the game will periodically reveal enemies from time to time, which will make the game mode more about action than scouting.

If you want a good warm-up before jumping into Ranked or Unrated, a Deathmatch can surely help. Riot recognizes this, hence they have decided not to penalize players should they leave a Deathmatch before it ends.

Competitive Scene

Post Valorant Patch 1.05, those new to Ranked/Competitive will need to play 5 matches to get their rank. As for those who already had a rank before Patch 1.05, only 3 games are needed for a Ranked placement. Moving forward, performance will have a greater emphasis on your ranks, allowing you to move ahead quickly provided you perform that well. Furthermore, solo and other party size queues will match up against similar parties albeit at the cost of longer queue times.

For a detailed view at all the competitive changes, read this deep-dive from the devs.

Raze Nerf

Casting Raze’s ultimate, Showstopper, will now take 1.4 seconds equip time instead of 1.1 seconds. Riot Games have additionally adjusted the VFX on Showstopper to allow players better vision on Raze when he shoots the rocket. This isn’t a big nerf, but should provide more room for enemies to escape or kill Raze if she gets too close. 

Her Blast Pack ability will deal reduced damage, down to 50 now from the original 75. The damage on objects will remain a consistent 600 however. 

Her Boom Bot and Paint Shells remain untouched. Overall, Raze is still in the same place as before since the changes made aren’t impactful enough. 

Valorant Act II Battle Pass – Weapon Skins, Sprays, And More

It’s time for another grind! Valorant Patch 1.05 brings along a new Battle Pass. Get a taste of the eye candy:

Just like Act I, there is a reward line for both premium content as well as free. Either way, players can now unlock exciting new skins, sprays, buddies, etc as they play and gain XP.

Another cool secret could be new voicelines from the agents. At around 00:40, Jett says, “I am the wind!”, a line never heard before. If the agents are getting new voicelines, that would be really interesting and could open up new mysteries regarding the lore of Valorant.

Glitchpop Skins

Last but not the least, Valorant will now also feature slick Cyberpunk genre themed skins for a few weapons. Those weapons being Frenzy, Judge, Odin, Bulldog, and melee. For all things Valorant, be sure to visit its news page.