Haven is one of the bigger and more twisted maps in VALORANT – with which agents you can still master it like the pros, we will tell you in this guide.
No matter if you are a defender or an attacker: The basic requirement for a victory in VALORANT is a solid knowledge of the map you are playing on. Only if you know all the angles and paths sufficiently, you can predict exactly from where the opponents can attack next – or where they are most likely to defend.
So, in order to choose the right agents on Haven and deliver good rounds, you should first memorize the map design:
The Haven map is characterized above all by its countless nooks and crannies and hiding places. Besides these, all three sites on Haven have a minimum of three entrances each – so more than enough room for attacks and flanks. With so many narrow corridors and opening potential, players on Haven want one thing above all: map control. And one agent class in particular lends itself to this and should ideally even be double-picked – we’re talking about guards, of course.
The two agents Cypher and Sage are absolute showcase guards and almost must-picks on Haven. Sage can defuse many situations with her Slow and Barrier Orbs and fend off enemy pushes. In the defender position, she should ideally do just that on the B-Site. From here, she also has quick access to A- and C-Site and can quickly rotate to allies should they need her healing.
In the Pro Leagues, for example, European favorite Team Heretics Sage showed up on Haven. Although the team lost the Grand Final of the VALORANT Masters to underdog Acend, the Haven map was clearly won with Sage and Cypher.
Cyper as a guardian can delay enemy pushes just like Sage. His trapwires can be placed at passages as a precautionary measure to intercept motivated opponents when they attack or to lure them into a trap. The Spycam is extremely important for map control and to anticipate, prevent or at least delay attacks. Cypher should be played on one of the outer sites, i.e. A or C.
In the professional leagues, Cypher is currently showing up even more often than Sage. Last Thursday, both Ninjas in Pyjamas and Guild Esports selected him in the VCT Challengers Stage 2 semifinals, with NiP losing the best-of-3 but cruising to a clear victory on Haven. North American teams Cloud9 Blue and Immortals also didn’t want to miss Cypher in their Challengers quarterfinal. In this match-up, however, Son “xeta” Seon-ho’s guardian dominated, so C9B won the map.
Agents for Vision Control and Engage
To prevent your opponents – whether attackers or defenders – from encircling or flanking you on Haven, it’s essential that your team keeps certain areas from being seen by opponents. Controllers on the team are essential for this. Pro players will most recently pick Omen for this, who uses his Smokes to prevent enemy vision. In the current tier list of agents, Omen is not far ahead without reason: With his Dark Cover and his teleport, the Phantom has the winding map perfectly under control.
Last but not least, an initiator like Sova has to provide the right offensive potential in the team. The Russian gunner is an excellent choice on Haven, as he can use his Recon Bolt and drone to uncover enemies on the large map and enable the attack.
Here’s how the pro teams look
In the North American League, both Omen and Sova have recently been must-picks for top teams like Sentinels and FaZe Clan. Therefore, in their Grand Finals of the NA Masters on March 21, both agents were even part of both teams. With almost identical characters to FaZe Clan, Sentinels won the map – only their Cypher made the difference in the lineup, facing a Breach at FaZe.
For Sentinels, the winning lineup thus consisted of: Cypher, Phoenix, Jett, Omen, and Sova. The previously mentioned second Sentinel position is swapped out for duelists like Phoenix or Jett in this example to allow for a more offensive style of play. Both agents provide the necessary Engage, for which Sova creates the opening. Omen as well as Cypher build map control and vision respectively deny them to the opponents, creating a solid defense.
