Everything you need to know about Skye
Skye relies on using her trinkets to scout out enemies and find the enemy team for her team to kill. Skye’s trinkets come in the form of her abilities- which are animals and creatures alike to assist her and her team in battle.
Is Skye right for you?
Skye is a passive Valorant agent and does not like rushing in first- meaning you won’t always get a bunch of kills. The upside to Skye is that her recon abilities are almost unparalleled as she can scout enemies with both her Trailblazer (Q) and Seekers (X). If you enjoy playing Valorant tactically, then Skye is for you!
Skye’s abilities
Regrowth (C)
How to use Regrowth (C)
Skye’s Regrowth (C) is a healing trinket, which allows her to hold fire (left click) to channel her healing. Allies need to be in the healing area and range, as well as need to be in line of sight with Skye.
The amount she can heal is a bar that decreases and Skye can keep using Regrowth (C) until the bar is fully depleted. This bar is 100hp and heals 20hp a second. Skye can have one charge of the ability which can be recast each round and costs 200 credits.
When and where to use Regrowth (C)
As Skye cannot heal herself, she can help by making her allies more sustainable, heal allies who are exposed from cover themselves. Skye wants to be taking minimal damage to counter the fact that she cannot heal herself.
Make sure you are healing multiple allies at once. Using Skye’s Regrowth (C) on a single target is a waste of the ability. Skye cannot do anything whilst healing, so do not use Regrowth (C) whilst out in the open!
Trailblazer (Q)
How to use Trailblazer (Q)
Skye’s Q is another trinket that she summons and possesses in the form of a Tasmanian tiger. Becoming the tiger allows her to leap forward with it and concuss any enemies it hits as well as doing 30 damage.
Trailblazer (Q) lasts for 6 seconds and has 100hp- meaning it can be shot. The concuss lasts for between 2.5-4 seconds depending on how direct the explosion was to the enemy team. Skye can have one charge a round and it costs 250 credits.
When and where to use Trailblazer (Q)
Use Trailblazer (Q) as an initiation tool- as her class suggests. The tiger is nearsighted so cannot see far, so is best used to check close angles and corners. Even if an enemy shoots the tiger, that is still intel you have gathered, so be confident when using it!
Do not use Trailblazer (Q) out in the open- Skye is vulnerable when using Trailblazer (Q), so make sure you are well hidden!
Guiding Light (E)
How to use Guiding Light (E)
Guiding Light (E) is arguably Skye’s most renowned ability, with her hawk trinket being the most flexible and useful tool in her kit. She is able to summon a hawk trinket, which can be directed based on where the player’s crosshair is by holding down fire (left click).
Skye then recasts the ability to explode the hawk into a two second flash for anyone who is in line of sight of the bird. If an enemy is blinded, Skye gets an audio cue and the hawk can be shot down and destroyed- although it does have 60hp!
Guiding Light (E) costs 250 credits and Skye has 2.5 seconds to control the hawk trinket before the ability goes on a 40 second cooldown- as it is her signature ability.
When and where to use Guiding Light (E)
Always use Guiding Light (E) to initiate and provide cover for your entry fraggers- usually Duelists! This means that you need to be safe and behind cover as when playing Skye and using Guiding Light (E), you cannot do anything else until the hawk explodes, so do not use it out in the open!.
The two second blind means that Skye can hit the whole enemy team for a long duration, allowing your team to push onto site or defer a push from the enemy players. This is invaluable as Skye can control where and when enemies push and defend from.
Seekers (X)
How to use Seekers (X)
Skye spawns three seeker trinkets that track down the three enemy players closest to Skye at the time. Once a seeker trinket reaches an enemy, it will nearsight them for three seconds. The Seekers can be destroyed but have 150hp so will take a significant amount of firepower to kill.
Seekers (X) costs 7 ultimate points to cast and lasts for 15 seconds, which is normally enough to either find an enemy or figure out what general direction they are in.
When and where to use Seekers (X)
Using Seekers (X) when defending is very important as you can find out if an enemy player or the whole enemy team are rotating between spike sites, or if there is only one or two players remaining, you can use Seekers (X) to scout them out. We recommend following the Seeker trinkets closely so when enemies try and destroy them, you can trade your own trinket!
When attacking, you can use Seekers (X) to force enemies out of tight angles and force pushes onto spike sites. This can also be used after planting to prevent enemies from attempting to retake the site!
Best and worst team compositions for Skye
The best team compositions for Skye
The best team composition for Skye should contain agents that can play aggressively, but also an agent who can help protect the flank as Skye is quite vulnerable when using her abilities. It goes as follows:
Skye as the Initiator helps cover for the Duelists in Jett and Phoenix to enter onto site and into a fight with her Trailblazer (Q) and Guiding Light (E) and can also heal them after the fight. Cypher as the Sentinel means that whilst Skye is using these abilities, flanking enemies will not be able to kill her.
Omen as the chosen Controller is very good as he can push onto a spike site a lot more effectively than a Viper or Sage.
The worst team compositions for Skye
The worst team composition to pick a Skye into is one that cannot cover her or play aggressively. It goes as follows:
Killjoy is good at covering the flank for Skye, but with a lack of aggressive pressure, two agents staying back makes it exceedingly difficult to push. Sage can also heal, which is a waste as it overlaps with Skye’s own healing ability- which is superior. The Barrier Orb (C) in Sage’s kit can also block off some of Skye’s abilities if not timed correctly.
Viper and Neon both block off areas with walls, meaning Skye’s blind in Guiding Light (E) and the nearsight she gets whilst controlling the tasmanian tiger even further hinder Skye and her ability to put enemy players at a deficit and can be somewhat wasted too.
The Best and worst maps for Skye
The best map for Skye
The best map for Skye hands down is Split. This is because she excels with her Guiding Light (E) and the tight corners for her Trailblazer (Q) means she can easily jump out and surprise enemies.
On top of this, the agents that Skye excels with when lined up next to, also perform well on Split- such as Jett, who can massively take advantage of the verticality that Split offers. Omen’s smokes can allow for a Trailblazer (Q) to come safely bursting around a corner through the smoke, preventing enemies from reacting!
The worst map for Skye
Skye doesn’t have too many maps she struggles on, but Ascent is one of them. She struggles attacking on A site, due to the difficulty in getting to A Rafters and A Window. If Skye is pushing in through A Main or A Link, her Trailblazer (Q) simply does not have enough time to get to the enemy team and is very exposed- likely to be shot.
Alternatively, when defending there are multiple angles that enemies can come from, meaning she is more often than not leaving herself vulnerable to enemy players when using her trinkets.
Best and worst guns for Skye
The best guns to use when playing Skye
The best guns to use when playing Skye are guns that allow her to play at range. Skye never wants to be up close or entry fragging herself. The best guns for Skye go like this:
The Vandal and Phantom are both very good at range and offer a decent amount of close range damage if it is absolutely needed- with your decision on which one you choose being up to you. The Operator is very good when defending on Skye, especially if you blind or concuss an enemy then peek them to grab an easy kill!
The Guardian does a similar job to the Operator but at a less effective rate, so we would recommend not picking the Guardian when attacking. The Ghost is a must have for pistol rounds and even half-buy rounds as it gives Skye adequate damage and safety from range!
The worst guns to use when playing Skye
The worst guns for Skye are close range exclusive weapons- this means do not buy guns that excel when you are on the front line! The worst Skye guns go as follows:
The Stinger does not give enough damage or range to even be worth picking up- especially as it is more expensive than the Ghost! The Bucky does not have enough sustainable damage, which considering what Skye is all about along with survivability, makes it a pointless pick up. The same goes for the Frenzy- and don’t be fooled by her special Frenzy skin! The Classic is a hard no, you should always buy a Ghost for that sustainability!
Defending Tips for Skye
- Keep your distance! Maintaining your health and staying alive is crucial on Skye as you cannot heal yourself and your abilities have faily long cooldowns compared to other agents.
- Stay in the back line. You can heal your whole team back to full health. Utilise it. If the enemies have taken the spike site, regroup, heal up and push again to take it back!
Attacking Tips for Skye
- Use your Guiding Light (E) to provide cover for your entry fraggers! Whilst you are not the first out of the gate, you are an Initiator for a reason- you can help blind enemies and give your Duelists free kills!
- Use Guiding Light (E) for recon. Although you might not blind enemies (if you do, the audio cue is great) but you may have enemies shoot the hawk down- which still gives you valuable information.
- Use your Seekers (X) to force your way onto a spike site. If you know an enemy is camping in a corner or on an angle, use your Seekers (X) to flush them out and distract them, whilst you and your team swing them and grab a free round!
So, does the nature loving Skye grab your attention and will she become your new main? Hopefully this guide helped make your decision!