VALORANT 13.00 buffs five Sentinels for Act 4

VALORANT Patch 13.00 opened Act 4 on June 23, 2026 with buffs for Cypher, Killjoy, Veto, Sage and Deadlock. Riot’s stated goal was to make Sentinels better at punishing repeated low-information site hits and more capable when anchoring alone.

The update also reduced several Initiator signature cooldowns, placed Summit in the competitive rotation, adjusted Ranked Rating calculations and introduced Retake as a limited-time mode.

Site anchors receive faster or stronger tools

Cypher’s Trapwire windup dropped from 0.9 to 0.7 seconds. Killjoy received three changes: Turret fire rate increased by 50%, Nanoswarm duration rose from four to five seconds, and Alarmbot movement speed increased by 50%. Those numbers improve her ability to delay an entry without changing the basic logic of her setup.

Veto’s Interceptor reclaim cooldown fell from 30 to 20 seconds, while Crosscut gained a larger usable area and a shorter arming time. Sage’s self-heal over time increased from 50 to 100. Deadlock’s GravNet cooldown moved from 60 to 50 seconds.

These are not interchangeable buffs. Killjoy gains more immediate site pressure, Veto gains flexibility after committing utility, Sage gains personal durability and Deadlock cycles a control tool more often. Controller players should therefore update smoke timing around the specific anchor they are supporting, not assume every defended site now needs the same response. Our controller smoke timing guide provides a useful framework.

Initiators regain late-round cooldown options

The signature cooldowns for Sova, Fade, Skye, Breach and KAY/O fell from 60 to 50 seconds. Gekko’s cooldown after reclaiming a buddy dropped from 20 to 15 seconds. Riot said gunplay had taken a larger role since Patch 11.08 and wanted to restore some strategic agency around late-round cooldowns.

Patch 13.00 also changed Omen’s enemy-facing Shrouded Step audio for clarity. The competitive system now tries to keep each team’s average rank within one sub-tier more often, while Summit joins the ranked map rotation. Riot’s official notes contain the full platform-specific list.

For teams, the practical task is to rewrite execute timings and defender stall plans before scrims. Our post-plant role map can help identify which returning cooldown belongs to each player.

Source: Riot Games, June 23, 2026.