In the fast-paced world of Valorant, where split-second decisions can determine the outcome of a match, having a deep understanding of your chosen agent is crucial. Enter Smokedancer, a versatile controller who brings a unique blend of disruption and tactical prowess to the battlefield. Unlike traditional controllers who focus solely on cutting off sightlines, Smokedancer excels at creating dynamic opportunities for their team by manipulating enemy movement and visibility in ways that are both unpredictable and game-changing. Whether you’re blocking key chokepoints, faking out opponents with clever diversions, or setting the stage for a flawless site execution, Smokedancer’s toolkit is designed to keep the enemy guessing and your team in control.
As the meta continues to evolve, mastering Smokedancer’s abilities can give you the edge you need to dominate your matches. This guide dives deep into the intricacies of Smokedancer’s skill set, offering strategies, tips, and insights to help you unlock the full potential of this agent. Whether you’re a seasoned Valorant veteran looking to expand your repertoire or a newcomer eager to make an impact, understanding Smokedancer’s role in the team is key to climbing the ranks and outsmarting the competition. Let’s explore how you can harness the power of Smokedancer to lead your team to victory.
Smokedancer is a versatile controller agent in Valorant, known for their unique ability to control the battlefield with smokes and disrupt enemy visibility. Smokedancer excels in creating opportunities for their team by blocking sightlines, isolating enemies, and providing cover for rotations or plant/defuse plays.
Role: Controller
Playstyle: Tactical, Strategic
Difficulty: Intermediate
Abilities
[Q] Smoke Veil:
Type: Basic Ability
Description: Deploy a series of smokes in a linear pattern across the map, blocking enemy sightlines. The smokes last for 15 seconds and can be placed at long distances.
Usage Tips:
- Use Smoke Veil to obscure key choke points and entrances, making it difficult for enemies to push or hold angles.
- Combine with teammates’ flashes or aggressive pushes to surprise enemies who may be caught off-guard.
[E] Phantom Mirage:
Type: Signature Ability
Description: Create a moving illusion of Smokedancer that mimics running and shooting, distracting enemies. The illusion disappears upon taking damage or after a set time.
Usage Tips:
- Deploy Phantom Mirage to bait out enemy utility or create a diversion, allowing your team to reposition or execute a strategy.
- Use it to check dangerous angles or to fake a rush, causing the enemy to waste resources.
[C] Mist Barrier:
Type: Basic Ability
Description: Erect a wall of mist that slowly advances forward, blocking vision and slightly damaging enemies who pass through it.
Usage Tips:
- Utilize Mist Barrier to force enemies out of cover or to deny access to key areas of the map.
- The advancing wall can be combined with other abilities, such as flashes or grenades, to push enemies into unfavorable positions.
[X] Shadow Dance (Ultimate):
Type: Ultimate Ability
Description: Smokedancer becomes invisible and invulnerable for a short duration, leaving behind a trail of smoke. Upon reappearing, they unleash a burst of smoke that disorients and slows enemies within its radius.
Usage Tips:
- Use Shadow Dance to infiltrate enemy lines or to escape from a dangerous situation. The smoke trail can confuse and disrupt enemy plans.
- Ideal for clutch situations where Smokedancer can turn the tide of the game by isolating enemies and creating chaos.
Strategies
Map Control:
- Smokedancer excels in controlling key areas of the map with their abilities. Use Smoke Veil to cut off sightlines and prevent the enemy from gaining information. The Mist Barrier can be used to control space and force enemies into predictable positions.
- On defense, focus on delaying enemy pushes by strategically placing smokes and using Phantom Mirage to mislead attackers.
Site Execution:
- When attacking, coordinate with your team to execute site takes. Use Smoke Veil to cover multiple angles, blocking off enemy vision and reducing their ability to defend the site effectively.
- Shadow Dance can be a game-changer during site executions, allowing Smokedancer to infiltrate the site, clear out key defenders, and create opportunities for the team to plant the spike.
Clutch Potential:
- Smokedancer’s Ultimate, Shadow Dance, provides high clutch potential. It allows them to reposition, gather information, and disorient multiple enemies at once. Use it in 1vX situations to turn the odds in your favor.
- Use the invisibility phase of Shadow Dance to gain an advantageous position, then surprise enemies with the disorienting smoke burst.
Tips & Tricks
- Communication: Always communicate with your team regarding smoke placements. Smokedancer’s abilities can make or break a round, so ensure your team is aware of your plan.
- Fakeouts: Use Phantom Mirage to fake pushes or rotations, causing the enemy to rotate or waste utility. This can create openings for your team elsewhere on the map.
- Combo Plays: Smokedancer works well with agents who can capitalize on obscured vision, such as flashers (Phoenix, Skye) or those who can execute plays through smokes (Raze, Breach).
- Cooldown Management: Smokedancer’s abilities have long cooldowns. Use them wisely and avoid wasting them early in the round.
Agent Synergy
- Brimstone: Combine Smokedancer’s smokes with Brimstone’s to completely obscure large areas of the map, making it extremely difficult for enemies to navigate.
- Omen: Smokedancer’s abilities complement Omen’s, allowing for intricate plays where multiple angles are covered, and enemies are left guessing where the push is coming from.
- Breach: Breach’s flashes and stuns can be combined with Smokedancer’s smokes to create devastating site takes or defensive holds.
- Cypher: With Cypher’s intel-gathering capabilities, Smokedancer can place smokes and barriers more effectively, knowing exactly where the enemies are likely to be.
Conclusion
Smokedancer is a powerful controller agent in Valorant, offering unique abilities that can drastically alter the outcome of a round. With proper communication, strategic use of abilities, and coordination with the team, Smokedancer can be a cornerstone of any competitive lineup. Mastering Smokedancer requires understanding map control, timing, and the ability to think ahead, making them a rewarding agent for players who enjoy a tactical, methodical approach to the game.
