Recent patch 8.11 in Valorant brought many changes, especially to the balance of duelist agents, and this did not overlook one of the most popular agents - Reyna. The character received several updates aimed at making her more of a team player and less dominant in lower ranks (gold and below). In this article, we will explore how the innovations of patch 8.11 have affected the agent Reyna and whether she has become more of a team player.
What was wrong with Reyna?
Agent Reyna has a unique feature: she is the most popular agent in the game among Valorant fans in ranked and other game modes. However, the situation is radically different in the professional scene. She is one of the least popular agents, and her appearance in a match is rare. There are several objective reasons for this.
The main reason is that the agent does not have the ability to assist her team and relies entirely on herself. All her abilities are focused solely on her, making her attractive to players in ranked matches who prefer solo play. However, on the professional scene, she is rare, as at such a high level, players understand that the team component is the best path to victory.
Changes in Reyna's abilities
Weakening of Devour (Q)
Devour (Q), one of Reyna's main abilities, received significant weakening. Now, it only restores a maximum of 50 health units instead of 100 as it was before. The time to restore all units has been reduced from 3 seconds to 2, although the amount of health has been halved, and the time has not. However, there is a positive side: Overheal from Devour (Q) no longer disappears over time, as it did before, so there is no need to rush to utilize the additional hp units.
As the developers explain, the goal of this change is to deprive skilled players of the ability to build up personal stats. Previously, if Reyna survived an encounter, she could fully restore her health and re-enter the fight at full strength. Now this has become less possible, making her less dominant in the game.
Balance of Dismiss (E)
The ability Dismiss (E) received both a buff and a debuff. The buff is that the movement speed during Dismiss (E) has increased from 9.1 m/s to 12 m/s, allowing Reyna to jump into positions that were previously unreachable, thereby surprising opponents. However, the negative change is the reduction in duration from 2 seconds to 1.5 seconds. Overall, it can be said that these changes have strengthened the agent more than weakened her.
Balance of Empress (X)
Reading only about Empress (X) (ultimate ability), one might conclude that it has been significantly strengthened, as it now lasts until the end of the round or until death. However, since this ability is related to the two previous abilities described above, it turns out that it has also been balanced, like all other agent abilities, except Leer (C).
Reyna as a team player after patch 8.11
Team support
Reducing the duration of Dismiss (E) and the number of health units restored by Devour (Q) will force players who play Reyna to rely more on team support. Her role remains unchanged, but now she will need to interact more with her team to stay effective.
Strategic use of abilities
Reyna will now need to be more cautious in using her abilities, considering the situation on the battlefield, as most of them have been weakened and are no longer as effective for solo actions on the map. Her gameplay will become more strategic, which will facilitate better coordination with the team.
Matching the team's pace
Thanks to the fact that Overheal from Devour (Q) and Empress (X) no longer have time limits, players on Reyna will not have to rush and set too fast a pace, which the team often could not keep up with due to playing characters of a different type. This will help better integrate Reyna into team play, as she will be able to better coordinate her actions with the rest of the team.
Future
In our opinion, the changes in patch 8.11 are generally positive for game balance. Reyna has always been a powerful agent for players with high individual skills. However, these changes will force players who main and love Reyna to think more about teamplay and interaction with other agents. All these changes have made playing this character a bit different, but no less interesting. Now, more communication and coordination with your teammates will be required, which is a main rule in Valorant.
Changes affecting the duration of abilities and the reduction of their effectiveness will promote a more considered approach to using Reyna in team fights. Players will have to rely more on their skills and team support, which on one hand may seem like a weakening of the agent, but it is not, as for every debuff, developers tried to give a buff to make from a solo agent a team player, and how this will work we will already see in practice after the meta settles, but most likely her popularity will be significantly less than before the update.
Conclusion
Patch 8.11 in Valorant brought significant changes for Reyna, forcing her to interact more with the team and use her abilities more strategically. This will likely have a negative impact on her popularity in ranked and other game modes. On the professional scene, the situation will most likely remain unchanged: teams will choose other duelists instead of Reyna.
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