VALORANT’s latest agent, Killjoy, has arrived on the live servers in conjunction with the game’s second act. As the roster’s twelfth character, Killjoy most certainly shakes up the game’s spectrum as her playstyle is truly undefinable in relation to anything we’ve seen in VALORANT throughout its brief lifespan.

As a truly control-focused character, Killjoy thrives on the prospect of marking her territory with turrets and traps while capitalizing on the mistakes of her enemies. If there’s any relatable angle that Killjoy players can align with, it’s the concept that the game’s newest agent is heavily reliant on utility and plays like a traditional sentinel character with a few twists. While Killjoy does share some gameplay traits with her subclass partners in Sage and Cypher, there’s definitely a ton of unique focal points that make Killjoy stand out from the pack. In this guide, we’ll go over every one of them.

Ability Overview

Killjoy’s abilities focus on a combination of reconnaissance, information gathering, kill setups, and a splash of pure DPS. Her ability to set up kills through recon and utility and then execute on the opportunity to give her team a numbers advantage is something that VALORANT hasn’t really experienced up until this point. Only a certain handful of characters have the ability to both reveal enemies’ positions and deal damage to them in an attempt to secure the kill in their kits alone. Agents like Sova, Raze, and even Viper have showcased this concept to a certain extent, but Killjoy takes it to a whole new level.

Turret

Killjoy’s signature ability, Turret, is perhaps the most important part of her kit. As her kit’s main source of damage, recon, and utility, this ability has everything you’ll be relying on as Killjoy in a given game of VALORANT (outside of your gameplay fundamentals and gunplay, of course).

Although it doesn’t deal an excessive amount of damage (about 24 DPS at close range), Killjoy’s turret still deals enough damage to enemies in quick bursts to warrant a bit of attention in any given gunfight or scuffle. If left unattended, Killjoy’s turret can be a real nuisance to the enemy team, as well as a pretty powerful boost to your team.

If you’re looking to make the most out of Killjoy’s turret, definitely try placing it in a position where it can “watch” a sightline in the same vein that another player would. With your turret holding down one entryway to a site, you’re free to look down another, keeping your options expanded and your safety intact. Whether she’s on offense or defense, Killjoy’s turret allows her to hold most sites in the game completely on her own.

Alarmbot

Killjoy has the ability to deploy an invisible bot that can reveal and pinpoint the exact location of an enemy player on the map as soon as it detonates. Whenever a hostile player comes in contact with the Alarmbot, Killjoy and her teammates will be alerted of the enemy player’s exact location.

When it comes to securing kills with Alarmbot, the actual execution of that idea is pretty difficult considering the bot doesn’t actually deal any damage upon detonation. However, when an enemy is revealed by the bot, they’ll be marked with a debuff that makes them receive double damage. So, if you’re in the nearby area of the hostile when Killjoy’s Alarmbot goes off on them, you’ll want to pick them off quickly and efficiently in order to make the most out of the double damage debuff that’s going to be applied to them.

Be warned, though, because Killjoy’s Alarmbot can be destroyed by an enemy player with a quick trigger finger.

Nanoswarm

Easily the most intriguing of Killjoy’s abilities, Nanoswarm is a projectile that acts like a grenade, trap, and pseudo-molotov all in one. It has the potential to hold down certain areas of a site with ticking damage and a strong chance for pickoffs. While securing a kill with Nanoswarm could prove to be difficult at times considering the nature of projectiles in VALORANT, enemies that fail to leave its radius in time will face severe consequences as Nanoswarm can very easily secure kills on unsuspecting hostile players by itself.

Although it can’t be remotely recalled like her other abilities, Killjoy can remotely detonate Nanoswarm before an enemy player activates it themselves, similarly to how Cypher can activate his cages.

Although the ability can be used as a straight up projectile in a combat scenario, it’s definitely recommended to utilize Nanoswarm as a trapping mechanism, as well. Try placing it on a point of contention - such as a site or a choke - to get the most value out of it when a surprised enemy player triggers the ability.

Lockdown

As one of the most abrasive and round-changing ultimates in all of VALORANT, Lockdown allows Killjoy to essentially shut down all enemy players in the radius of the ability by way of applying a devastating slow and preventing the use of abilities of gunfire. This is done via a small mechanism that Killjoy places on the ground which detonates after 13 seconds. While the device can be destroyed by the enemy team before the blast goes off, it doesn’t need any particular line of sight in order to affect enemy players. Therefore, Killjoy can place it in a hidden location and still allow the blast radius to go off.

Tips and Tricks

- Although she’s classified as a Sentinel, Killjoy plays incredibly differently than Cypher and Sage. While utility is certainly a focal point of her kit, don’t forget that DPS is also a part of what makes her strong in a lot of areas. While her counterparts in the Sentinel subclass deal mainly with recon and healing, Killjoy excels at dealing damage in situational scenarios. While she definitely has strengths in regards to spotting enemies’ respective locations on the map, Killjoy is also able to pack a pretty hefty punch. However, don’t take that as a green light to play her like a full-on DPS character. If anything, you’ll want to keep a balance of utility and DPS in your arsenal when playing Killjoy. Committing too far down a single playstyle will alienate parts of her kit, preventing you from getting the most out of her potential.

- Lockdown has the potential to swing a round completely. Wasting it or allowing the detonation mechanism to get destroyed will severely put your team at a resource disadvantage, so be sure to hide it in a spot where it’s not going to be compromised. Additionally, don’t be afraid to hide the device away in a corner of the map and sacrifice some of the blast zone for a bit of security. You don’t always want to place your ultimate in the middle of a site due to the fact that it might be found out easier than if you were to place it somewhere far off from the enemy team’s reach. The number one rule to keep in mind in regards to Lockdown is that it’s better to let the ability go off and cover some space than try and get the maximum potential out of the ability, only to see the detonation mechanism destroyed for nothing in return.

- Nanoswarm has a ton of versatility options that should be taken advantage of in every round. It’s one of - if not - Killjoy’s best abilities and should be utilized in any situation where you see even remotely fit. It’s best to use Nanoswarm as a trap device - similar to the way Cypher players would use tripwires and cages - but if you feel like you can pick off an enemy player by using Nanoswarm as a projectile, then by all means do so. The strength of the ability is highly understated. Additionally, in regards to how Nanoswarm is used as a projectile, you’re going to want to combine it with another projectile at most points. If you feel like you can secure a kill with Nanoswarm, try lining it up with something like a molotov from Phoenix or Brimstone to corner off a certain sector of the map. Killjoy is all about control and manipulation. The more abilities that are used in concert with her’s, the better off she’ll be.