Act 3 of Episode 5 of Valorant will introduce a new agent: Harbor. Hailing from the Indian coast, Valorant's new strategist, wields dominion over the water to rule the battlefield. His abilities focus on obscuring the lines of fire, protecting teammates and limiting the movement of the opposing team. He has a somewhat similar kit to other agents, but he also takes advantage of new mechanics that will make his role in the team interesting.
Equipped with an ancient technology capable of commanding the water at will, he harnesses its impetuous force, unleashing rapid waves and colossal tidal waves. Let's take a look at their skill set together and then move on to an analysis of their effect on the pitch.
Waterfall (C)
Equip a water wave. Use the fire button to send the wave forward and through walls. Use the skill again to stop the wave. Players touched by water are slowed.
Bay (Q)
Equip a sphere of protective water. Use the fire button to throw normally. Use alternate fire to throw it from below. Upon impact with the ground, the sphere generates a water shield that blocks projectiles.
High tide (E)
Equip a wall of water. Use the fire button to send the water forward along the ground. Hold down the fire button to drive the water in the direction of your reticle, sending it across the play area and building a wall along the way. Use alternate fire to stop the water early. Players touched by water are slowed.
Showdown (X)
Equip the true power of your artifact. Use the fire button to summon a geyser that springs from the ground. Enemies in the area are targeted by consecutive eruptions from the geyser. Players hit by a jet from the geyser are stunned.
Harbor: All skills of the new Valorant strategist
The wave of Cascade can be generated without problems while in cover as the water completely cuts through even the physical obstacles it finds in its path. A protective shield is generally something static that once placed remains in that position, while the peculiarity of this ability is that the wave moves unless stopped by the player. This flow through the field allows other players to advance while maintaining coverThe skill is also very useful for clearing corners of enemy forces.
Since it also inflicts slow, Cascade can be used in defensive phases to overwhelm enemies and slow their progress towards the objective, at the same time blocking its view on the choke points present in the game maps. The wave, while resembling a wall of water, does not repel or block hits, meaning both enemy and allied attacks can pass through it.
Baia has two fire modes, it can bounce off walls and forms a protective shield upon contact with the ground. This tool is versatile and can be used in different ways: it is a full-fledged smoke bomb so it can block the view; it is able to block shots so it can be positioned as a nuisance element between the crossfire of the two teams; since it protects and blocks the view is excellent as a cover for planting or defusing the Spike.
The shield though it is not indestructible and can be destroyed after receiving enough hits: the golden aura will disappear and the water dome that grants cover for that very short time will remain active for a second.
High Tide is similar to what has already been seen in Valorant, in fact, it seems to take its cue from both Viper's toxic gas wall and Phoenix's wall of fire as can be folded by drawing an angle with the pointer. Instead of having charges, it has a 40 second cooldown after which it can be used again. The cooldown already begins when the wall is erected and not when it dissolves.
Harbor's wall can be better adapted to different maps due to the possibility of curving its shape, therefore offers greater flexibility than Viper. This could go to erode its pick rate and would be in line with the goal behind its design, in fact, as stated by the designer Alexander Mistakidis, the team's intention was also to create an agent that could compete with the American scientist in the maps where she is practically always chosen.
Furthermore, an Ultimate with a great effect could not be missing. Showdown creates a huge AOE attack from which geysers spring up that stun players caught in its area. Up to a maximum of 3 hits can hit each player who is within the boundaries drawn by the Showdown. Their peculiarity lies in the visual and sound effect they generate, which is essential for identifying the position of a static opponent.
It's a skill clearly designed to be played on Spike sites and disrupt bomb placement or even to prevent the opponent from getting too close to the site. Excellent both in defense and in attack in case control of a site needs to be recovered. To avoid being stunned, the opponents will have to move, perhaps coming out of cover or being out of position. Users who think they are safer standing still will be identified easily and it takes very little in Valorant to be eliminated.
After trying it in preview, however, it is really difficult to imagine him as the main strategist of the team. The most direct comparison that can be made is with Viper which has greater stopping power than Harbor. Viper can damage enemies, while Harbor offers a slight slow. The wall built by Harbor, on the other hand, offers more control over positioning even if Viper can raise and lower it with more responsiveness.
The main thing that disadvantages Harbor as the only Tactician is the absence in his kit of smoke bombs that can also be positioned from long distances such as Astra or Brimstone. True, this is a peculiarity sought by the development team who wanted a more direct solution for the new strategist, without forcing the player to manage the positioning of the smoke bombs from a map, however the absence of a wide range of action that allows you to block the view on several strategic points at the same time, they could limit the choice to secondary strategist.
Harbor will be available on October 18 along with the release of theEpisode 5 Act 3 and the accompanying Battle Pass.
