EG’s C0M had almost half of all Sova final kills at VALORANT Champions 2023

Of all of the showstopping performs and miraculous clutches we noticed at VCT Champions 2023, one participant stood out. Not only for unimaginable purpose or decisive reads on the enemy group, however for bringing one of many oldest brokers within the recreation again to life.

North America’s Evil Geniuses took house the 2023 Champions trophy after a tumultuous first franchised season, and whereas all of their gamers confirmed as much as each match with combating spirit, initiator participant Corbin “C0M” Lee stands out.

Of the 49 kills obtained with Hunter’s Fury—agent Sova’s final—by all groups mixed at Champions 2023, C0M singlehandedly netted 22 of them, according to data from Rib.gg.

Hunter’s Fury is normally a straightforward final to foretell and keep away from. Total, it isn’t thought of a robust final as an entire, extra used for countering in very particular situations. You’ll principally see a Hunter’s Fury in your ranked video games to destroy a Killjoy Lockdown or forestall a spike defuse.

However C0M makes use of the last word in a bit in a different way.

By anticipating and getting info from his group on his enemies’ positions, he is ready to really use the last word extra proactively whereas nonetheless staying a protected distance away from the motion himself. This suits nicely with EG’s aggressive fashion that they finally used to take down Paper Rex within the grand last.

Not solely was C0M utilizing Hunter’s Fury exceptionally, however he additionally had good placement for recon darts and shock darts. His synergy along with his group made him stand out on each map the place he performed Sova. One in all his finest particular person performances within the event got here the primary time EG confronted PRX, the place he had a 304 common fight rating on Ascent whereas taking part in—you guessed it—Sova.

Sova has at all times been a little bit of a distinct segment agent with a excessive talent ceiling and has just lately fallen out of the meta in favor of different initiators like Skye, KAY/O, and Fade. But C0M proves that when you have the notice and data of the Russian archer, he may be a stronger choose than you assume.

After EG performed Sova on Ascent and Fracture at Masters Tokyo, some groups really switched their compositions to match them come Champions. C0M even talked about this in a tweet throughout the group stage of the event.

Sova is considered one of VALORANT’s oldest brokers, which additionally explains why he has been falling off within the professional scene during the last season. Many groups discover that the utility and playstyle of different initiators fits them higher. However with C0M’s 2023 Champions efficiency, it’s solely potential that increasingly Sova picks will likely be locked in not solely in professional play but additionally in your personal lobbies.

For those who specialize within the initiator position and haven’t realized find out how to shoot a recon dart so it bounces in the precise spot, it may be time to start out.

Concerning the writer

Nadine Manske

Nadine is a graduate of the Medill Faculty of Journalism at Northwestern College. She covers VALORANT and Overwatch with a deal with the Asia-Pacific area and marginalized genders in esports. Earlier than becoming a member of Dot Esports as a contract author, she interned at Gen.G Esports and the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her favourite Pokémon is Quagsire.

Author: Ronnie Neal