4 BEST Guns Almost NOBODY USES In Valorant

 

Patch 2.02 Valorant Weapon Tier List

Methodology

Our experts (ranked Immortal – Radiant) will be ranking weapons from S/A/B/C based on how strong they are in the ranked meta.

This list aims to apply to the general meta so it should be useful for more elos (perhaps not the very bottom of Iron where OPing probably isn’t recommended).

Overall, the criteria for S/A/B/C are as follows:

S-tier

These are weapons that have an optimal cost/effectiveness ratio. They are typically the most commonly used guns for most maps on both offense/defense and the least situational weapons.

A-tier

These are weapons that are very powerful but a little more situational than S-Tier. They usually have a slightly lower cost/effectiveness ratio and may not work too well on either offense or defense on certain maps.

B-tier

These are weapons that can be strong in certain situations but also tend to have a disadvantage against their competitors in many situations. You usually only run them at very specific parts of the map and they can vary in performance based on attacking or defending.

C-tier

These are weapons that are very situational and rarely worth picking up. They are they rarely offer an advantage over their competition.

Weapon Commentary

Here are some insights for each gun from our experts with explanations for why they’re ranked where they are.

S-tier Weapons (Optimal)

Operator

Type: Sniper Rifle – Creds: ¤ 5000 – Magazine: 5 – Wall Penetration: High

• Although the price of the Operator was increased by 500 credits in a recent update (4500 → 5000) it still is the most powerful weapon in Valorant and has no competitors in this regard.
• It’s the only weapon that can kill armored enemies at all ranges with just one shot to the body and it’s the best weapon for quickly getting a frag and getting away with your life.

Phantom

Type: Assault Rifle – Creds: ¤ 2,900 – Magazine: 30 / 90 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• This is the clear weapon of choice for players who appreciate a higher fire rate (11 rounds/sec, 660 RPM) and a slightly bigger magazine in comparison to the Vandal.
• It benefits from a silenced barrel and conceals the direction its bullets are coming from, making your shots harder to pinpoint for enemies.
• The Phantom’s first bullet accuracy is considerably better in comparison to Vandal.

Vandal

Type: Assault Rifle – Creds: ¤ 2,900 – Magazine: 25 / 75 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• Vandal has a slower fire rate (9.75 rounds/sec, 585 RPM) and a slightly smaller magazine in comparison to the Phantom.
• The main advantage of using the Vandal is its consistent damage output and one-shot kills when hitting the opponent’s head (at all ranges).
• Overall, its first bullet accuracy is not as good as the Phantom but this can be neglected in most situations

Ghost

Type: Sidearm – Creds: ¤ 500 – Magazine: 15 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• The Ghost is the all-around best choice in pistol rounds and as a sidearm in general
• This semi-automatic pistol has the potential to kill opponents without armor in only one shot to the head and is, therefore, a cheap alternative for many Rifles and SMGs in certain situations
• Like the Phantom, the Ghost has a silencer which helps to increase overall accuracy and also reduces noise while firing, making it an effective stealth weapon

Frenzy

Type: Sidearm – Creds: ¤ 400 – Magazine: 13 – Wall Penetration: Low

• The Frenzy is, just like the Guardian, not an utterly bad gun but it just doesn’t fit in the current way players are playing Valorant.
• It is a low-cost pistol and does relatively high damage, typically requiring 7-8 shots to the body and 3 to the head to kill.
• However, the spread of this fully-automatic gun is hard to control and its magazine size is considerably small.
• There simply are better options in pistol rounds as well as buy rounds (like the Ghost or the Sheriff).

A-tier

Bulldog

Type: Assault Rifle – Creds: ¤ 2,100 – Magazine: 24 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• Compared to the other two assault rifle in Valorant (Phantom & Vandal), the Bulldog has some noticeable disadvantages: slower fire rate (9.15 rounds/sec), smaller magazine, and lower damage output
• However, it can have its niche as a more powerful alternative to SMGs in half-buys or anti-eco rounds.
• Unlike other rifles, the Bulldogs firing mode switches to a three-round burst when using the AD.

Spectre

Type: SMG – Creds: ¤ 1,600 – Magazine: 30 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• The Spectre is the best out of the SMG class for different reasons:
  • In comparison to the Stinger, the cheaper SMG alternative, the Spectre is substantially more accurate, kicks considerably less, and has a higher magazine capacity.
• This weapon finds its use in many economically challenging situations as a budget alternative to the traditional assault rifles.

Judge

Type: Shotgun – Creds: ¤ 1,600 – Magazine: 7 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• The Judge is the most expensive shotgun but also most effective in the game in almost all situations
• The main selling feature for the weapon is its full-automatic firing mode which makes it  extremely effective against close ranges, even against far superior Rifles/Snipers.

Sheriff

Type: Sidearm – Creds: ¤ 800 – Magazine: 6 – Wall Penetration: High

• The Sheriff is the pistol that deals by far the most damage of all sidearms
• In contrast to its silenced counterpart, the Ghost, the Sheriff is more commonly used in economy rounds or as a sidearm to Rifles or Snipers instead of in pistol rounds.
• In 90% of times the Sheriff will one-shot opponents when hitting the head, but watch out:
  • From 30m distance and further, this weapon will only bring your opponent down to 5 hp.
• Its penetration of the gun enables you to kill opponents even through the thickest walls

Odin

Type: Heavy – Creds: ¤ 3,200 – Magazine: 100 – Wall Penetration: High

• A well-played Odin is a force to be reckoned with – close chokepoints or common areas that are wallbang-able aren’t so secure anymore with the threat of an Odin around.
• The large-scale magazine of the Odin make multi-kills possible that wouldn’t be otherwise and reloads become nearly redundant.
• Additionally, Odin players are still something opponents get easily distracted or confused by, and therefore, they might not be able to instantly counter your plays.=

Bucky

Type: Shotgun – Creds: ¤ 900 – Magazine: 5 – Wall Penetration: Low

• The Bucky is the cheapest primary weapon in the game at 900 credits, making it useful for half-buy rounds.
• Past 12 meters, the primary fire is near useless, but the alternate fire allows Bucky users to extend its range by firing a single shell containing pellets that explode at 8 meters, allowing its user to fight enemies at a medium distance.
• It’s risen in popularity recently as it can really pop off in the right situations, such as close quarters during eco rounds/force buys.

B-tier Weapons (Good)

Marshall

Type: Sniper Rifle – Creds: ¤ 1,100 – Magazine: 5 – Wall Penetration: Medium

• The Marshall serves as the cheaper counterpart to the Operator, justifying the lower price by weakening a lot of the features that make the Operator so strong.
• For example, body hits with the Marshall are only able to kill people without armor
• Nevertheless, the Marshall has its perks too: fast movement speed and scoping animations, and great no-scope accuracy (compared to the Operator).

Ares

Type: Heavy – Creds: ¤ 1,600 – Magazine: 50 – Wall Penetration: High

• Overall, the Ares has the same traits, pros, and cons as the Odin with its decreased price point being its main distinction.
• The lower price is justified by the 50 bullets less in a magazine and the lower firing rate.
• It costs the same as the Spectre, but while the Spectre specializes at short to medium range fights, the Ares is better at a distance due to its low damage falloff

Stinger

Type: SMG – Creds: ¤ 1,000 – Magazine: 20 – Wall Penetration: Low

• The Stinger’s unique characteristic is its extremely high fire rate but in all other respects, the Stinger is a cheaper but also distinctly worse version of the Spectre.
  • This is due to its smaller magazine, low wall penetration, and lower damage output.

  
  

• Furthermore, this gun has an absurdly high spread and doesn’t work well at distances over 20m due to the low accuracy leading from it.
• Overall, the Stinger should be used like a shotgun with the advantage of being able to slightly adjust your aim onto your opponent after shooting the first bullets.

Classic

Type: Sidearm – Creds: ¤ Free – Magazine: 12 – Wall Penetration: Low

• The Classic is mainly a good choice for pistol rounds in which you choose to use your invested money on abilities and armor.
• Besides the mentioned value in pistol rounds, the Classic can also be a surprise factor in buy rounds by using the right-click burst mode that comes with it
• Considering the fact that this gun is completely free and is given to you by the game at the start of every round, it provides incredible value at 0 credits.

C-tier Weapons (Situational)

Guardian

Type: DMR – Creds: ¤ 2,400 – Magazine: 12 – Wall Penetration: High

• The Guardian is the only semi-automatic rifle in the game so far and is capable of one-tapping just like the Vandal, with the highest damage per bullet among the rifles.
  • However, when put in relation to weapons at a similar cost, the Guardian really doesn’t find a place for its own in the current meta.
• For 500 credits more you can afford better guns like Phantom/Vandal and even for 300 credits less, you can get yourself a Bulldog which generally performs better, too.
• Additionally, handling this special gun is a task not everyone can instantly master in the heat of the game – its shooting rhythm and the very few bullets in a magazine often are the reason why players trade the Guardian for a Vandal or Phantom as soon as they get the chance to.
• One thing to keep in mind is that the Guardian does have High wall penetration but it’s a bit too niche to make it that big of an advantage.

Shorty

Type: Sidearm – Creds: ¤ 200 – Magazine: 2 – Wall Penetration: Low

• The Shorty is the cheapest purchasable gun in the game and has a proportionate value for its money in the game.
• Due to its low price point, it can be a game-changer in economical rounds.
• It’s only really useful in even closer ranges than its shotgun classmates, the Judge and Bucky.
• With just two shells in a magazine, multi-kills are basically impossible with this weapon.

Knife

• If all guns in your arsenal fail you and you find yourself left with nothing else than your knife, you might as well use it
• But considering how poorly implemented the current version of the knife in Valorant is, this should be your absolute last resort when playing to win.