The big talking point ahead of the launch of Valorant’s Episode 4, Act 3 might be the launch of the new Agent Fade, but potentially just as game-changing are nerfs and buffs to three of the game’s current roster: Jett, Neon, and Sova. Riot Games has today detailed those changes in its full reveal of Patch 4.08 notes, which you can check out below.

JETT

The team loves what Jett has continually brought to the fight, but as the game has evolved, some of her impacts have pushed beyond what we think is healthy for the tactical promise of VALORANT. Our update to Tailwind aims to address these concerns while maintaining the aggressive site takes and awe inspiring highlight plays Jett should bring to the roster. Check out our full article on the Jett update here for a complete breakdown of our approach and the philosophies that drove this update. We expect this change to have ripple effects on the Agents around Jett and the ecosystem overall, so we’ll keep a close eye not only on Jett, but any cascading impacts on the entire roster.

NEON

We’ve been keeping an eye on Neon and wanted to make some quality of life changes to help remove some friction when playing as, or with, Neon.

SOVA

At high-level ranked or pro play, Sova’s been a staple for quite some time. While his power has not been felt as viscerally as Jett’s, his impact in coordinated settings is nearly unmatched. We wanted to focus on addressing the amount of space that the Owl Drone practically guaranteed, and introduce additional counter play opportunities for opponents. A reduced Drone duration means Sova has to incur more risk in his positioning to clear deeper angles, and the adjustments to ping reveal (below) give opponents more opportunity to mix up their repositioning without feeling forced to completely exit the area. Shock Dart has also taken a hit as we continue to sharpen damage outputs on non-ultimate abilities, so that they kill less frequently

AGENT ABILITY AMMO

  • Jett’s Bladestorm, Raze’s Showstopper, and Sova’s Hunter’s Fury will now show how much ammo they have left when equipped

COMPETITIVE UPDATES

5-STACK QUEUES

  • Reduced Rank Rating gain/loss penalty for different 5-stack configurationsIf EVERYONE in your party is Iron–Diamond 2:No RR penalty if within normal grouping25% RR penalty for all players if any player falls outside of normal groupingIf ANYONE in your party is Diamond 3–Immortal 3 (but no one in your party is Radiant)25% RR penalty for all playersIf ANYONE in your party is Radiant75% RR penalty for all playersTuned matchmaking to reduce wait time for 5-stacksYou can read the basics on how Rank Rating penalties work for 5-stacks in our previous patch notes.

BUGS

AGENTS

  • Fixed a bug where Jett could find herself unable to use abilities or weapons when using Tailwind immediately after depleting her Bladestorm daggersFixed a bug where Yoru could teleport out of bounds when using GatecrashFixed various exploits allowing Yoru to use weapons before fully decloaking at the end of his ultimate

PERFORMANCE

  • Fixed a bug in the Shooting Range where bots would respawn unarmed

  • New Valorant Bundle Supports VCT LOCK//IN Teams & Brings the Hype Before Brazil

  • Valorant Skin Artist: “Competitive Integrity Is One of the Key Aspects We Never Lose Sight Of”

  • What Time Does the Night Market Start in Valorant & How Does It Work?

  • How Crypto Throwing Trolls Led to Valorant Pro City’s High Elo League

  • Valorant Devs Explain Lotus Lore, Design, & How the Team Factors in Utility Lineups

  • If EVERYONE in your party is Iron–Diamond 2:No RR penalty if within normal grouping25% RR penalty for all players if any player falls outside of normal groupingIf ANYONE in your party is Diamond 3–Immortal 3 (but no one in your party is Radiant)25% RR penalty for all playersIf ANYONE in your party is Radiant75% RR penalty for all players

  • No RR penalty if within normal grouping25% RR penalty for all players if any player falls outside of normal grouping

  • 25% RR penalty for all players

  • 75% RR penalty for all players