October 5, 2023
A good Valorant player must know how to communicate! Like any team-based shooter, Valorant has its own lingo when it comes to maneuvering around the map. You may have heard terms like “entry fragger” or “counterstrafe” that have left you wondering what was going on.
It may take a little time to fully grasp what is going on in the heat of battle. However, this guide will help explain what “economy” is and how to keep your team from yelling at you when you’re not “shift walking.”
One Tap
When sufficient damage has been done to an opponent to the point that they are literally one tap or hit away from being eliminated
Op
The Operator, or Op, is a sniper rifle and the most expensive weapon in Valorant. It’s able to one-shot most enemies, even with full shields. You can lock down long lines of sight with an Op, so you will more than likely hear this called out, especially in later rounds.
Orb Pick Up
Ultimate orbs lie around the spawn points and entry points to bomb sites. These orbs boost the ult meter by one, but this comes at the cost of a sound cue that can expose you. Some teams may send a specific player with a good ultimate to gather these more often, so they can gain their ult quicker.
Peek / Jiggle Peek
This involves quickly turning the corner to try to spot enemy positions. Jiggle peeking is the same but with faster and more fragmented peeks. This is usually done to make themselves the smallest possible target to bait out enemy shots. This can be helpful when facing an Op giving you an advantage if the enemy misses their shot.
Peek Off
This is when the enemy is focusing on another teammate, or you’re in the middle of a double swing. It allows the teammate to push with you, hiding and watching their blindside. This gives you the advantage of cleaning up the kills in any trade situation.
Pistol Round
The first and sometimes second round of a match. Usually, teams will go in with pistols only due to the low economy in early rounds.
Playing off Angle
When a player uses an uncommon spot or angle hoping to catch the enemy off guard, players like Jett, who can use their mobility to get up to the high ground, can play off angle and catch their opponents who are not expecting to check that corner or angle.
Play Slow
Taking the time to scan for intel or wait in the back, hoping to rush a point late to apply pressure on the other team. Playing slow helps cause the other team to get antsy and push and causes them to waste abilities, making them easier to overcome.
Point Long and Short (A, B, or C)
Each point will have two entries depending on the map and bomb site variance. The entries on the farther side of the map, with longer lines of sight and better defensive positions are called long – A, B, and C long.
Short is the inside path to the point. The point will be very close to the short path and run parallel to the opposite site with closer quarters.
Post Plant
The phase in a round after the bomb has been planted and the attackers defend site and the defenders take the offensive to retake site and defuse the bomb. This can be an intense portion of the round where a team’s fate is decided.
Prefire
A tactic where a player shoots through a wall where a player is in hopes to catch them as they peak. Usually done when pushing to catch opponents off guard.
Rez
Sage’s ultimate ability resurrection is called rez for short.
Rotate
Traveling across the map to another location
Rush
Trying to overwhelm the defenders with speed and numbers by quickly running onto site before they can react.
Shift Walking
Walking while holding (toggling) the shift key to keep your footsteps quiet and your position unknown. is usually how most rounds start unless a team is making an aggressive play.
Shift walking will prevent you from causing audio cues with loud steps. Audio cues from your steps can alert the other team where you’re and in which direction you’re headed.
Smoke Out
Smoking out a site can help the team push more safely by forcing the enemy to either play conservatively or retreat. There are many agents with smoke abilities, including Omen, Brimstone, Jett, and others whose utility smoke obscures part of the map.
Spending Strategy
This is making sure the right characters have the right build for your team’s strategy that round. Some characters with high utility costs may buy a heavy shield and a cheap weapon to make sure they can stock up on abilities.
TP
Short for ‘teleport,’ usually used in reference to taking a teleporter on Bind.
Trade
When one person on each team dies during a gunfight, often the entry fragger will be one of the trades.
Ultimate / Ult
The most powerful of a character’s abilities, requiring kills, or orb pick ups to unlock instead of purchasing with credits. Ults can kill, reveal information, or open entry for safe pushes.
Wallbang
Shooting through a wall or piece of cover that enemies can be hurt through. Pre-firing can help expose an enemy lying in wait. Some weapons can puncture easier than others, but this can help get a surprise kill on enemies camping bomb sites.
This wraps up our list of Valorant terms you need to know. As the game continues to be at the forefront of esports, it’s sure to spawn new lingo. Be sure to communicate with your team thoroughly, so you’re all on the same page!