A huge patch is here with VALORANT 9.10, delivering promised changes to Phoenix and the inclusion of the Regen Shield.
The new update to VALORANT has been teased and hyped up for a while. We've all been waiting for VALORANT patch 9.10 after a brief trailer for year-end content. Now, it is here and it is jam-packed with changes to the first-person shooter.
You've got the newly added Regen Shield into the armor pool. You've got Controller and Sentinel tweaks galore. And of course, the big buff to Phoenix that should once again put him on par with the other Duelists in the game.
Let's go over the main highlights.
VALORANT 9.10 patch notes introduce the Regen Shield
We originally speculated on what the Regen Shield could offer when it was first revealed. Speculation is no longer needed as Riot Games has confirmed its use.
- 650 Credits
- 25 HP damage absorption
- 50 HP regeneration pool
- Absorbs 100% of incoming damage taken before health point damage begins.
- Shield regenerates by draining any remaining points left in the regeneration pool after a short delay.
Perhaps this is a test to see how well-received varying armor types are by the community? It could definitely lead to more, but for now, expect to see some new meta purchases in play with the Regen Shield in VALORANT 9.10 onward.
Phoenix buffs are a main focus of VALORANT patch 9.10
Alongside the Regen Shield tease, we were told of a Phoenix rework. Now is the time to rejoice if you are a Phoenix fan and have had to play other Agents because of his lack of viability. Here's what was changed with VALORANT patch 9.10:
- Phoenix now applies heal over time when he touches his flame. The heal continues when he exits, allowing him to push more offensively.
- Curve Ball is now a signature ability, with a free charge on round start. Get two kills to generate an additional charge.
- Hot Hands is no longer the signature ability and costs 200 credits.
- Blaze's initial projectile now goes through walls such as Harbor's High Tide.
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Additional Agent updates in the patch notes
While Phoenix may be the most impactful change in the VALORANT 9.10 patch notes, he isn't the only Agent seeing tweaks. Let's go over all of the Agent updates you can expect when you load in after the patch hits:
- Cypher
- Trap Wire: Now has a 5. second windup before the reveal applies. Now has an updated minimap icon to better display what it is connected to.
- Neural Theft: Ult Cost from 6 to 7 points.
- Sage
- Healing Orb: Self Heal increased from 30 HP to 50 HP, and heal time brought to match that of ally heal time.
- Slowing Orb: Now reduces dash speed of enemies caught inside slowing zone by 50%.
- Resurrection: Ult Cost from 8 to 7 points.
- Deadlock
- Annihilation: Will now always kill the target when the timer expires instead of releasing the player. Visual updates have also been made.
- Omen
- Dark Cover: Will now always fall to level geometry where players can stand.
- Clove
- Ruse: Ally vs. enemy clarity for both alive and dead Ruse casts has been improved. Enemy smokes to appear more red than ally ones.
- Not Dead Yet: Timer to get a kill reduced from 12s to 10s.
- Jett
- Drift (Passive): Jett can no longer float while suppressed or detained.
VALORANT patch 9.10's weapon tunings and adjustments
The last thing we'll touch on in the patch notes for VALORANT 9.10 focuses on weapon updates. Riot Games is making a handful of adjustments to weapon tuning. Let's take a look at what was tweaked:
- Pistol Inaccuracy Changes
- All Pistols (Not Shorty): Moving while crouching inaccuracy moved from .1 to .5.
- Classic: Right-clicking running inaccuracy from 1.3 to 1.5. Right-click burst jumping inaccuracy from 2.1 to 2.25. Walking inaccuracy from .84 to 1.1. Run inaccuracy from 2 to 2.3.
- Ghost: Walking inaccuracy from .84 to 1.1. Run inaccuracy from 2 to 2.23.
- Rifles
- All rifles walk inaccuracy up from 2 to 3. Run inaccuracy up from 5 to 6.
- Machine Guns
- All machine gun walk inaccuracies from 2.4 to 3. Run inaccuracy from 6 to 6.5.
- Pistol Bullet Count Changes
- Frenzy: Bullet count increased from 13 to 15.
- Ghost: Bullet count reduced from 15 to 13.
- Phantom
- Damage fall-off changes: Now does 39 damage per bullet from 0-20m and 35 damage per bullet 20m+.
There are a slew of other details in the full patch notes if you'd like to read them directly from Riot Games. VALORANT patch 9.10 also previews Premier updates, bug fixes, and some gameplay system updates.
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