Anyone think they've figured out what the optimal team composition is right now?
If you had to put together 5 agents regardless of map and player skill, who would you pick for the best chance to win consistently?
My thought process in formulating the best comp:
I think you need four elements in a standard team composition so you're not at a major disadvantage.
- Reliable Vision Denial - Omen, Brimstone, and Viper are best at this. Other champions can do this in specific instances such as Jett (Cloudburst), ( Cypher (Cyber cage), Phoenix (Blaze), Sage (Barrier orb)
- Flashes- Breach, Phoenix, and Reyna. Omen's paranoia can do this as well.
- Crowd control to slow pushes- Cypher and Sage are top at this, but a lot of agents can do this in their own way- Brimstone and Phoenix molly, Viper snake bite, even damaging abilities that don't slow like Raze grenades and Sova's shock darts can slow pushes with their threats.
- Recon Sova with both Drone and Recon Bolt, Cypher's Camera and Trapwires (sort of). Raze's Bomb Buddy can recon in a way and technically Omen and Phoenix's ultimates can as well.
I didn't add healing to the list only because Sage is the only character who can heal others right now. Reyna and Phoenix have self healing.
My optimal team comp right now-
- Breach, Initiator
-Great flashes and general initiation. Can also slow pushes on defense.
- Brimstone
-Easiest smokes to cover sights. Great on both offense and defense.
- Sage
-Obviously, she heals, but regardless of that she can slow down rushes better than anyone and her Resurrection can be a round winner in the right spot.
- Sova
-Best recon in the game
- Raze
-It made sense to have a duelist here, but I chose Raze over others like Jett or Phoenix because of what her bomb buddy brings to pushes. I felt least confident in this pick.
If I had to replace one of the characters- (with characters I haven't already used)
- Phoenix for Breach
--Has a flash like Breach that is objectively worse, but he's more versatile. Can heal himself and deny vision with his wall (Blaze)
- Omen for Brimstone
--I could have put Viper here; Omen smokes are just easier for the average player to pickup. Viper takes some time to learn her spots and even for teammates to learn how to play with her. Omen provides great smokes, but also has some more play making than Brim in the hands of a talented Omen main with his different teleports.
- Cypher for Sage
--The only other Sentinel in Valorant right now. Cypher could easily be in the optimal comp, he is one of the best agents in the game. He brings less to a team on offense than Sage as he mainly just makes sure the attackers don't get flanked.
- Reyna for Sova
-(doesn't do what Sova does at all, and I know some people would have Cypher as the Sova replacement. While both Cypher and Sova give information, they do it in very different ways. Reyna can help a team initiate with her powerful blinds (Leer)
- Jett for Raze
-Very different skill set and playstyle than Raze even though they're both duelists. Jett offers some vision denial. Jett's ult can be great for eco rounds and after her buffs she counters Cypher traps quite hard. She can lead a push for teams with her mobility.
Obvious Criticisms
Where is Reyna and where is Cypher in my top comp??
Reyna is an absolute pub stomper. Leaving her off this list doesn't mean I think she's under powered. I just didn't see a place for her in the ultimate comp. Two of her four abilities are worthless without her getting a kill first, and even her ultimate is almost worthless without her getting kills. She is a high-risk, high-reward character.
I think Cypher is a top five best character in this game, I play a lot of him, and he's infuriating to play against so I know its odd to not have him on my top comp list. Like Reyna, I don't believe he needs any sort of buff. A Cypher can lockdown a bomb site and recon like no one else can on defense. I just didn't see an obvious spot for him on the comp I created. Perhaps you could swap him for Sova or Raze at the cost of some attacking flexibility.
I realize its map dependent and dependent on the ability of the players on the agents themselves, but lets ignore that for this discussion.
Excited to hear others' compositions and things I have overlooked! Thanks for reading.
