Sidearms
The Classic
The Classic is the free starter pistol which every player has the option to start the round with. Although it is the free standard pistol, this weapon is still fun to use and effective option, especially in the early rounds of the game.
The Classic comes with a 12 round magazine. The primary fire rate is 6.75 rounds/sec. The alternative fire is a higher spread three round burst with a 2.22 rounds/sec fire rate. The alternative fire may be effective at close range, but the increased spread makes it impractical for longer range engagements.
Within 30 meters the Classic will deal 26 damage to the body, 78 damage to the head, and 22 damage to the leg. From 30-50 meters away, the classic will deal 22 damage to the body, 66 damage to the head, and 18 to the leg.
Shorty
The Shorty is a sawed off shotgun in VALORANT which costs 200 credits. The gun can fire at 3.3 rounds per second, however you will have to reload after every two shots. This weapon is highly effective up close, especially when a player can land headshots. This might be a good weapon to buy if you bought a longer range sniper or battle rifle and want a cheap side arm that can operate in close quarters.
The Shorty fires 12 pellets with each blast. Within nine meters, each pellet will deal 12 damage to the body, 36 damage to the head, and 10 damage to the leg. From 9-15 meters, each pellet will deal eight damage to the body, 24 damage to the head, and six damage to the leg. Beyond 15 meters, the gun only deals three damage to the body, nine damage to the head, and two damage to the leg. It goes without saying, you should probably not use this weapon on a target farther than 15 meters away.
Frenzy
The Frenzy is a machine pistol that costs 400 credits. The Frenzy can fire 10 rounds per second, making it a highly effective weapon if you can control its significant recoil. With a clip of 13 bullets, it only takes just over a second to burn through your entire magazine, so this weapon will definitely be a challenge to master.
Within 20 meters of the target, the Frenzy will deal 26 damage to the body, 78 damage to the head, and 22 damage to the leg. From 20-50 meters, the Frenzy will deal 21 damage to the body, 63 damage to the head, and 17 to the leg. Overwall, this is a great sidearm.
Ghost
The Ghost is the VALORANT version of the silenced pistol and costs 500 credits. The weapon features a suppressor and fires at 6.75 rounds per second and has a 15 round magazine capacity. In many ways, this weapon is the upgraded version of the Classic. Although it is similar in form and function to the Classic, the Ghost deals more damage. It also has a higher magazine capacity, and penetrates walls better.
Within 30 meters, the Ghost will deal 30 damage to the body, 105 damage to the head, and 26 damage to the leg. From 30-50 meters, the Ghost will deal 25 damage to the body, 88 Damage to the head, and 21 damage to the leg. Because the ghost deals 105 damage to the head, it is possible to one tap headshot players without armor.
The Ghost is essentially a stealth player’s dream sidearm and might be a great weapon to combine with agent’s who benefit from stealth.
Sheriff
The Sheriff is a high damage revolver that costs 800 credits. The Sheriff has a relatively slow 4 round per second fire rate, but it makes up for it with high damage. In some ways, the Sheriff is reminiscent of the Desert Eagle in Counter-Strike since it is a high-risk high-reward pistol. If you can land the headshot with the Sheriff, they will die.
Within 30 meters, the Sheriff wil deal 55 damage to the body, an impressive 160 damage to the head, and 47 damage to the leg. From 30-50 meters, the Sheriff deals 50 damage to the body, 145 damage to the head, and 43 damage to the leg. This means that regardless of how far you are from your target, the Sheriff should kill in one headshot.
Shotguns
Bucky
The Bucky shotgun costs 900 credits. The Bucky is a semi-automatic shotgun which can fire at a 1.1 round per second rate. It has a magazine capacity of 5 shots. It also features an alternate fire which blasts an Air Burst at opponents. This weapon fires pretty slowly. Therefore, it will likely be outclassed by the majority of primary weapons available in VALORANT.
Each shot with the Bucky fires 15 pellets. Within 8 meters, each pellet will deal 22 damage to the body, 44 damage to the head, and 19 damage to the leg. From 8-12 meters, the Bucky will deal 17 damage to the body, 34 damage to the head, and 14 damage to the leg. From 12-50 meters the damage falls off to 9 damage to the body, 18 damage to the head, and 8 damage to the leg.
The Bucky might make sense to buy in some situations, but generally this weapon won’t be on top of most people’s list of favorite weapons in VALORANT.
The Judge
The Judge is VALORANT’s fully automatic shotgun which costs 1,500 credits to purchase. This weapon is capable of firing 3.5 rounds per second. It features a seven round magazine and unlike the Bucky has the capability to penetrate walls. The Judge does come with significant recoil, so it will be important to master its recoil to use this weapon effectively.
The Judge fires 12 pellets per shot. Whtin 10 meters, the pellets deal 17 damage to the body, 34 damage to the head, and 14 damage to the leg. Between 10 and 15 meters, the Judge will deal 13 damage to the body, 26 damage to the head, and 11 to the legs. Beyond 15 meters the Judge will deal 10 damage to the body, 20 damage to the head, and 9 damage to the leg. Of course, since it’s a shotgun the pellet spread will make it hard to hit far away targets.
SMGs
Stinger
The Stinger is a high damage SMG which costs 1000 credits. The Stinger is fully automatic and can fire up to 18 rounds per second. The biggest drawback to this weapon is that it only has a 20 round magazine capacity. The Stinger comes equipped with an alternate 1.15x zoom mode which fires 4-round bursts. The fire rate on the alternate fire is 4 rounds/second.
Within 20 meters, the Stinger deals 27 damage to the body, 67 damage to the head, and 23 damage to the leg. Beyond 20 meters, the stinger deals only slightly less damage, dealing 25 damage to the body, 62 damage to the head, and 21 damage to the leg. The Stinger is a versatile weapon due to its low damage fall off and more precise alternate burst mode for longer range encounters.
Spectre
The Spectre is a fully-automatic silenced SMG which can be purchased for 1,600 credits. The Spectre features a 30 round magazine capacity. The weapon fires 13.33 rounds per second and also comes with a 1.15x zoom mode which decreases the spread of the weapon. The gun fires at a slightly slower 12 rounds per second while using the alternate fire mode.
Within 20 meters, the Spectre will deal 26 damage to the body, 78 damage to the head, and 22 damage to the leg. Beyond 20 meters, the damage falls off to 22 damage to the body, 66 damage to the head, and 18 damage to the legs. Unlike the Stinger, the Spectre features medium levels of wall penetration.
This gun is similar to an M4A1-S from Counter-Strike. The recoil feels very manageable and it is decently versatile.
Rifles
Bulldog
The Bulldog is a fully automatic bullpup rifle which costs 2,100 credits to purchase. The weapon fires 9.15 rounds per second and features a magazine capacity of 24 rounds. The Bulldog features an alternate fire 1.25x zoom burst mode, which fires at 4 rounds/sec.
There is no damage fall off for the Bulldog. Regardless of the distance to your target, this weapon will deal 35 damage to the body, 116 damage to the head, and 30 damage to the leg. Additionally, this rifle is classified for medium wall penetration. This gun feels very much like a standard tactical shooter assault rifle. These are designed to be highly effective at medium range and has the potential to kill in a single headshot.
Guardian
The Guardian is a semi-automatic battle rifle which costs 2,700 credits. This weapon is intended for longer range use. It features a relatively slow 6.5 rounds per second fire rate and a low magazine capacity of 12. The alternate fire offers a 1.5x zoom with a reduction in bullet spread. Additionally, this weapon is rated for medium wall penetration.
The damage model for this weapon has no damage fall off over range. It deals 65 damage to body, 195 damage to head, and 49 damage to legs. Distance doesn’t cause any damage to drop off. This means that this weapon can one tap headshot anyone on the map, regardless of how far away they are.
Phantom
The Phantom is the fully automatic rifle in VALORANT which costs 2,900 credits to buy. This gun features a 30 round magazine capacity. Much like the other rifles, it is rated for medium wall penetration. The Phantom can fire at 11 rounds per second and features an aim-down-site 1.25x zoom mode. While in the zoomed mode, the fire rate for the Phantom is reduced to 9.9 rounds per second.
Within 15 meters, this weapon deals 39 damage to the body, 156 damage to the head, and 33 damage to the leg. From 15-30 meters, the Phantom will deal 35 damage to the body, 140 damage to the head, and 30 damage to the leg. Beyond 30 meters, the Phantom will deal 31 damage to the body, 124 damage to the head, and 26 damage to the leg.
The Phantom is a great standard pick. It will perform well at all ranges and has a relatively easy spray pattern. It deals decent damage at all ranges and has a generous magazine capacity.
Vandal
The Vandal is a standard fully automatic assault rifle which costs 2,900 credits to buy in VALORANT. The Vandal features a slower fire rate than the Phantom, firing at 9.25 rounds per second for its primary fire, and firing at 8.32 seconds for its alternate fire. This gun once again features a 1.25x zoom aim-down-site for its alternate fire. The Vandal has a magazine capacity of 25 and is capable of medium wall penetration.
Regardless of range, this weapon deals 39 damage to the body, 156 damage to the head, and 33 damage to the legs.
This gun is the same price and has similar stats to the Phantom. Selecting between the Vandal and Phantom gun come down to player preference. The spray pattern on the Phantom is very easy to learn, since it essentially kicks straight up for a few moments and then kicks slightly left.
Snipers
Marshal
The Marshal is the cheapest sniper in VALORANT, costing only 1,100 dollars. This gun’s damage model is similar to the Scout sniper rifle in CS:GO. Although this weapon only has a magazine capacity of five, this weapon is highly effective if players can land their headshots.
This gun features a 2.5x zoom scope, but can also be fired with high accuracy in its unzoomed form. This weapon will deal 101 damage to the body, 202 damage to the head, and 85 damage to the leg. The Marshal can kill players without armor in a single body shot, so it can be effective against teams who are on a low eco-round.
Operator
The operator is the heavy sniper of VALORANT and costs a hefty 4,500 credits. This sniper rifle fires at a very slow .75 rounds per second. The alternative fire features a 2.5x and a 5x double zoom mode. This weapon will deal 150 damage to the body, 255 damage to the head, and 127 damage to the leg.
This weapon will one shot most opponents to either the head or the body. The Operator is most similar in function to the AWP from CS:GO.
Heavy
Ares
The Ares is a fully automatic large-machine gun which costs 1700 credits. This weapon features a large 50 round magazine and is one of the few guns in VALORANT that features high wall penetration abilities. The Ares has a variable fire rate which starts at 10 rounds per second and will increase to 13 rounds per second while being continually fired. The Ares is also equipped with a 1.25x sight.
Within 30 meters, this LMG will deal 30 damage to the body, 72 damage to the head, and 25 damage to the legs. Beyond 30 meters, this weapon deals 28 damage to the body, 67 damage to the head, and 23 damage to the leg.
Odin
The Odin is a fully automatic large-machine gun which costs 3,200 credits. This LMG has a generous 100 round magazine and its fire rate increases from 12 to 15.6 rounds per second when continuously fired. While using this weapon’s 1.25x zoom mode, this weapon fires at 15.6 rounds per second. It will likely make sense to zoom while using this gun, if players want to take advantage of that increased fire rate.
Within 30 meters, the Odin will deal 38 damage to the body, 95 damage to the head, and 32 damage to the leg. Beyond 30 meters, the Odin will deal 31 damage to the body, 77 damage to the head, and 26 damage to the legs. Much like the Ares, the Odin is capable of high levels of wall penetration.
The weapons in VALORANT are all unique and interesting to use. Remember that each different gun will feature a separate recoil pattern. When practicing, learn how to use all of these weapons individually. It may be a challenge but it’ll be worth it.
