Brimstone is now the best duelist in Valorant, says TenZ
It’s Brimstone’s world now.
Valorant patch 4.04has gone live with some much-neededBrimstone buffs, featuring faster Sky Smokes, a wider deploy radius, and an all-new 15% speed boost to Stim Beacon. What does that mean for him as an agent?Sentinels’Tyson “TenZ” Ngobelieves that the changes might just have turned him into the best duelist in Valorant.
TheJett superstarsaid that the new changes to Brimstone are whatRiot Gamesshould have done withNeonat the start. TenZ wasted no time picking the newly-buffed controller, proceeding to wreak havoc in the competitive queue after the new patch.
TenZ shows why the Brimstone buffs to Stim Beacon make him an agent that could rival duelists
The 20-year-old Valorant pro showcased how impactful Brimstone’s Stim Beacon can be in his first competitive game inEpisode 4 Act II.TenZused Brimstone’s Stim Beacon to pressure his opponents aggressively at the start of the round, with the help of Rise’s Ryan “Shanks” Ngo and Derrek “Derrek” Ha.
“The movement speed makes a world of difference,” saidTenZ. “I’ve actually been having a lot of fun with this new meta.”
The Stim Beacon’s 15% speed boost allowedTenZand his team to take control of key areas on Breeze within seconds, far quicker than their opponents anticipated. The movement speed increase also let them push out on defense early in the round and flank the enemy with some unexpected timings.
The Brimstone buff works even better on attack. Attackers can overwhelm defenders holding the site using the first Stim Beacon. The second can then be used to push deeper for better site control, or even to catch defenders off-guard in the middle of their rotation.
TenZalso said the new patch is the most fun he’s had since theAstra metatook over Valorant. Players are now leaning toward picking either Brimstone or Omen, two controller agents that are now viable choices afterAstraandViperreceived heavy nerfs in the recent patch.
Valorant patch 4.04has shifted the controller meta significantly, and we’ll likely see more diverse controller picks or even more frequentdouble controller compositions.
Riot Gameshas said that the Stim Beacon change was designed to help Brimstone “give his team a clear signal that it’s time to get going”, but it may soon find that players are taking things a little too far.
The developer may eventually decide to tweak or roll back the changes to Brimstone’s Stim Beacon, if it finds that it isn’t serving its intended purpose. In the meantime though, players are having a great time turning their entire team into mini-Neons.
READ MORE:The new Yoru bugs in Valorant patch 4.04 nearly broke thegame
