How effective is it to play with a zero Duelist meta in Valorant?

Constant meta-shifting has been an integral part of Valorant ever since its release. The developers also have a fair share of influence in this regard. With every new update in the game, the developers have tried to tweak the meta a bit. This keeps the game fresh and appealing.

Valorant currently has 19 Agents in the game. Teams can enter the game with any five Agents based on their strategies and playstyle. Recently, some teams have preferred to approach the game without any Duelist in the team composition. It may seem a bit odd, but many teams are finding success with this lineup.

This article discusses the tactical approach regarding the zero Duelist lineup in the game.

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Is the zero-Duelist meta the future of Valorant?

Valorant has 19 Agents in the game, and all of them can be divided into four categories based on their abilities and playstyle. These include Duelist, Controller, Sentinel, and Initiator.

What is the Duelist's role in the game?

Agents with aggressive mindsets belong to the Duelist genre in Valorant. The main objective of a Duelist is to get early frags in a round and create space for their team to take control of the site. Duelists can also put their teams in an advantageous position by eliminating an opponent early in the round.

There are currently six Duelist Agents in the game: Raze, Reyna, Phoenix, Yoru, Neon, and Jett. All of these Agents suit different playstyles depending on their abilities. However, the only thing that is common among all of these Agents is their aggressiveness.

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What if a team plays with zero Duelists?

Ever since the launch of the game, teams have picked one or two Duelists every time to maintain balance in the composition. Teams are used to dividing responsibilities, and Duelists take on the responsibility of getting as many frags as they can.

However, after several meta changes, players these days seem to prefer to go without a single Duelist in the composition. Though some players are really confused about the efficiency of this meta, it has certainly brought success to plenty of teams, including a few renowned esports teams like EMEA's Team Liquid, Korea's DRX, and more.

Valorant is a game where the player needs to be proficient with Agents' abilities and mechanical skills. The combination of these two things allows a player to be both strategic and aggressive at the same time; perfect ability usage in the game can improve chances of winning ties as well. For this reason, players can enter games without a Duelist in the composition.

Perfect ability usage with Initiators, Sentinels, and Controllers can do great damage as well.

Moreover, some Agents in other categories, such as Chamber, Skye, and Breach, can be utilized as Duelists with perfect usage of their abilities in the game. The new meta favors more of these pseudo-Duelist Agents as they can offer more versatility in the game than the Duelist itself in certain situations.

Changes in maps also influenced this meta. Bigger maps like Breeze and Fracture, where utility usage is one of the key factors, are better played without a Duelist.

That said, at the end of the day, it all comes down to the team and their strategic approach to the game.