Cover-Credits:
- Valorant's European meta in First Strike has some interesting differences when compared to NA.
- Breach is one of the dark horses in the tournament and has made it to the top 5 on Europe while being omitted from NA.
- Skye just got released into the competitive rotation and might see play in the upcoming finals.
Valorant First Strike is coming to an end soon, and we are just days away from finding out who will be crowned champions. The current pro meta is heavily cenetred around Omen and Sova right now in Europe with Breach taking the number three spot. Breach is nowhere close to being in the top 3 in North America, which is a big surprise. Cypher and Jett take up the number four and five spots respectively in Europe. Other agents that see regular play include Raze and Killjoy, but the rest of the cast is barely picked at all.
Breach Rising in Ranks Across European Qualifiers
Image by Riot Games
One of the most significant differences between North America and Europe is the use of Breach. The agent was buffed in patch 1.11, which made his flashes to be more effective. He is picked over the likes of Phoenix and Reyna because of how effective his flashes are. Despite his popularity, he struggles in certain maps with a pick rate of 57% in Ascent.
Omen’s Unending Dominance in Valorant
With a pick rate of 95% in the European qualifiers and 98% in the American qualifiers, Omen is by far the most viable Controller in Valorant. Even on Bind, which is the map he is least picked in, Omen has a pick rate of 88%. Omen has a very powerful kit that lets him smoke all off sites for teams or flash into sites whenever needed. His teleportation and ultimate abilities are crucial in winning team fights in Valorant. Riot Games has been teasing another Controller agent, but until the new character proves to be viable and is rotated into competitive play, we will see Omen dominating everywhere.
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What’s Unique About the European Meta?
Aside from the high Breach pick rate, there are other differences between NA and Europe as well. Jett and Cypher have a higher pick rate in Europe than in NA, but it’s very close. Raze dropped considerably with a 59% pick rate, and whenever there is a Split match to be played, her pick rate jumps up to 97%. Killjoy is also a situational pick with a pick rate of 34%, but whenever Ascent is played, she gets played in over half the Valorant First Strike matches.
When it comes to duelists, Reyna and Phoenix have a sub-20% pick rate, and significantly lower than their pick rates on NA. Sage, on the other hand, is picked a lot more in Europe than in North America. She has a pick rate of 11% compared to NA’s 3%. Skye is relatively new to the game, and her healing capabilities might push her into viability next month at the Valorant First Strike finals.
