Kiljoy Abilities
Killjoy can make use of two basic abilities, one signature ability, and one ultimate ability. As her name suggests, all of her abilities are specifically designed to kill the joy of enemy Agents. Enemies always have to be on high alert while looking for traps. The more time they spend looking for traps, the longer they stay distracted.
C – Nanoswarm: 200 Credits, 2 Charges
- EQUIP a Nanoswarm grenade. FIRE to throw the grenade. Upon landing, the Nanoswarm goes covert. ACTIVATE the Nanoswarm to deploy a damaging swarm of nanobots.
Video Credit: Riot Games
The Nanoswarm ability is a stealth molly. This ability works similarly to Cypher’s cage, and Killjoy can activate it once enemies step inside of the range. The radius is quite big, and it deals a good amount of damage; 45 per second, to be exact. In other words, if enemies don’t get out of it within the first 3 seconds, they will die. Keep in mind that Nanoswarm can be destroyed, so it is wise to change the position of its placement from round to round.
The best way to use Nanoswarm is on choke and plant points. It can be used to delay plants and sometimes even get you a kill. It is also a powerful weapon in post-plant situations, especially if you play as an Attacker. As soon as the enemy starts defusing the Spike, just activate the Nanoswarm, and they will be forced to leave.
Q – Alarmbot: 200 Credits, 1 Charge
- EQUIP a covert Alarmbot. FIRE to deploy a bot that hunts down enemies that get in range. After reaching its target, the bot explodes and applies Vulnerable to enemies in the area. HOLD EQUIP to recall a deployed bot.
Video Credit: Riot Games
Her second basic ability is an Alarmbot. It is a small robot that Killjoy deploys on the floor, and it stays in stealth mode until activated. This ability is mostly similar to Raze’s Boom Bot, as it follows enemies within its line of sight and jumps on them. The Alarmbot will make enemies vulnerable for 4 seconds, making it a great weapon, especially in combination with Nanoswarm. Unfortunately, it can be destroyed, so its primary usage in high-rank matches is to gather information.
E – Turret: Free, 1 Charge
- EQUIP a Turret. FIRE to deploy a turret that automatically fires at enemies in a 180 degree cone. HOLD EQUIP to recall the deployed Turret.
Video Credit: Riot Games
Killjoy’s Turret is a deployable sentry that shoots burst shots within its 180-degree field of view. It won’t deal a high amount of damage, and the further away it is, the less damage it deals. Unless the enemy is really low, they likely won’t be killed by it.
The Turret is great for tagging enemies and getting information. You can play around it, hide, wait for it to start shooting, and peek and get the kill while your enemies are distracted shooting at the Turret. In case the Turret is destroyed, there is a cooldown of 45 seconds until you can deploy it again. You can also recall it to place it somewhere else, and in that case, the cooldown for redeployment is only 20 seconds.
X – Lockdown: 7 Ultimate Points
- EQUIP the Lockdown device. FIRE to deploy the device. After a long windup, the device Detains all enemies caught in the radius. The device can be destroyed by enemies.
Video Credit: Riot Games
Lockdown is a gadget that looks like the Spike and takes 13 seconds to activate. Once activated, a huge electrical field stuns every enemy inside of it. The enemies won’t be able to move at full speed, use abilities, or shoot for 8 seconds straight. That’s why this is a powerful ability to gain site control in both offense and defense.
If the opposing team has planted the Spike, use your Ultimate, and enemies won’t dare to stay inside of the electrical field. It will force them to get out of their hiding spots. They will have to push, or they will get stunned and eventually killed.
If your team planted the Spike, once again, use the Ultimate, and enemies won’t be able to attack you. It will take away 13 precious seconds from their retake. Just make sure to time the lockdown perfectly and hide it somewhere because it can be destroyed.
Playstyle for Killjoy in VALORANT
The most important aspect of playing Killjoy as an Agent in VALORANT is to stay alive, so the suggested playstyle is passive. As long as you are alive, your traps will be active. Play passively and don’t encounter any unnecessary duels. You are not a duelist, and your traps are worth more than you think.
With proper gadget setup, Killjoy can single-handedly defend the whole site while only using her gadgets, without peeking. Gadgets will provide enough time for the rest of her teammates to rotate.
On the other side, if Killjoy is attacking, the ideal way to play her is to survive until the Spike is planted. Killjoy is an absolute beast in post-plant situations, and if she is alive, it is usually a round won.
Here are some tips for playing Killjoy in VALORANT:
- Killjoy needs to be within a certain range of her Alarmbot and Turret for them to be active. If you leave this range, not only will they not work, they will make a deactivation noise that is audible to any nearby players. This can tell enemies not only where your utility is, but that you are no longer in the area. If you’re going to commit to using these abilities, remain close by.
- Nanoswarm, on the other hand, can be activated from anywhere on the map, so you can use it to thwart plant or defuse attempts from a safe area. You can even use the window of time it creates while active to reposition yourself and punish enemies with a flank or off-angle.
- There are several locations on each map that are optimal spots for Lockdown placement. For example, placing Lockdown in a corner of B Garage on Haven will zone out the entire B Site. Learning these spots can prove invaluable when playing Killjoy in VALORANT.
All in all, VALORANT’s Killjoy is a very good Agent desirable to have in any squad. Her ability to watch for flanks allows the whole team to attack without having to worry about their back. She is also good on defense as her Turrets are a great addition to a successful hold. Her kit makes Killjoy in VALORANT one of a kind and the post-plant master, no matter the side she plays on.
