If you’re a VALORANT enthusiast that has been itching for another sentinel to main, you should definitely get excited for Deadlock, the newest agent to join the Riot Games shooter’s ever-growing character roster.
As a rare Cypher main, I’ve been searching for another agent that can bring a ton of lockdown to a site, flexing the ability to stall out enemies while the rest of their teammates rotate to fight alongside them. Deadlock’s high-tech skillset does exactly that and more, thanks to her expansive collection of nanowire technology.
There are multiple different ways to use her abilities on a plethora of different maps in VALORANT, but she excels in areas where she can shut down advances, whether she’s using her Barrier Mesh to prevent any fast-moving agents from zooming onto a site, her Sonic Sensor to catch some enemies off-guard, her GravNet to bog down a fast take, or her ultimate ability to snatch away an unsuspecting opponent from their team.
In more open areas, the sentinel can have trouble finding targets since they’ll have more room to dodge away from her lockdown skills, which means she’ll be best placed on sites and areas with narrow entryways and indoor spaces.
Best VALORANT maps for Deadlock
Fracture
Deadlock may be a fringe pick for Fracture since there are multiple different angles she’ll have to worry about due to the locale’s cross-map rope system.
She can lock down the A site very well, whether she’s blocking off A main and A hall with her Barrier Mesh, GravNet, or catching out enemies as they run through with her Sonic Sensor. There aren’t many other places for the enemy team to flee unless they rotate back to spawn or push A rope, but her teammates can be waiting as they funnel into their own crosshairs.
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B site, on the other hand, will be a tougher hold, since the area is more open and easily traversed by movement abilities. She can also get flanked quite easily through Arcade, which means she will mostly be planted on A site.
Split
Since there are many different close-quarter situations on Split, Deadlock will find it a lot easier to hold down chokepoints because of how tight some spaces are when pushing onto a site. For example, her Barrier Mesh can be a nightmare to deal with in mid where there are plenty of close corners to check and not a lot of room to maneuver.
In a similar vein, Deadlock will be absolutely devastating to any team that tries to rush through B garage or through B heaven, seeing how small the site entryway is. Her GravNet and Sonic Sensor will be downright oppressive for uncoordinated teams, and even with a five-stack, she’ll be difficult to push through these narrow corridors and small rooms.
A site has more room to move for attackers, but Deadlock can still force any rushing squads into inopportune situations by locking down A ramp with a flurry of abilities.
Ascent
Whether you’re running through A main, A tree, B main, or mid, Deadlock can stall you out with ease, since they are tight chokepoints that are easily stacked with area-of-effect abilities. Her skills are meant for small spaces, and a well-timed wall and GravNet could be deadly, especially when paired with a Brimstone ultimate or Raze Showstopper.
Deadlock just needs to avoid trying to use her abilities in mid, since that is the only place on the map with wide sightlines meant for longer-range encounters. Other than that, she can hold down a site by herself while her other teammates roam.
Haven
Haven does have some longer-range sightlines and areas, such as C long or through the mid courtyard, but when heading through any of the sites, Deadlock has multiple different ways to stuff a rushing team in its tracks. Her best site to hold is A site, since she can dominate both entrances with a barrier or trap, whether they’re pushing through A long or sneaking through A sewer.
B site is a fine hold for Deadlock, but if they are able to get the spike down successfully, she might not be able to provide much utility since Barrier doesn’t stop bullets. C, on the other hand, can be great for Deadlock if she’s holding C garage. With such a small space, a well-placed GravNet or Sonic Sensor can blast an entire squad within.
Bind
Although Deadlock might have a harder time if enemies are able to set onto the site, she can hold select spots on the map with relative ease. For example, she can slow down a push through B hookah or B garden, since the enemy team must funnel through these areas to access the site.
On A, she can also stall out the enemy squad by throwing her abilities into A short and A showers, since they too are chokepoints that can be clogged with a plethora of abilities from Deadlock and her teammates. She must not let them onto site though, because there are way too many angles she’ll need to worry about, and at that point, she’ll have to rely on her aim more than her abilities.
