VALORANT Patch 4.09 will only introduce a handful of overall changes, but the changes to the risingly popular Chamber are significant in affecting how much control he can exert over any given map.

Aside from the nerfs to Chamber, which are explained more in detail below, Patch 4.09 also includes some VFX updates to the recently introduced Fade, plus some minor competitive updates and bug fixes.

Here are the full notes for VALORANT Patch 4.09, including notes about Chamber from Jay Watford, lead agent designer, and Dan Hardison, game designer.

Chamber

• Trademark cost has increased from 150 to 200 credits.
• Trademark charges are reduced from two to one.
• Trademark’s audio range has increased.

Notes from the devs on Trademark nerfs

“Right now, Chamber’s Trademark outperforms other Sentinel tools in both reliability and power, which feels inappropriate given the amount of defensive combat tools Chamber has spread across the rest of his kit. We believe Chamber’s identity is defined by his unique weapons and defensive combat mobility, so we are decreasing his level of global flank protection/information and increasing counterplay on a single premium trap. This means Chamber will have to make a choice based on if he wants to play selfishly around his Trademark, or place it to help his teammates instead.”

Notes from the devs on the Sentinel role

“When we think about the Sentinel role, we think about its overall ability to keep map control and defend space. We believe that Sentinels and Sentinel players should have many options and methods to control and defend, whether it’s through the use of Sage’s reactive slow abilities, Cypher’s flank-watching gadgets, or defensively-oriented combat and guns like Chamber. Like all our Agents, it’s important to carve out sharp strengths and weaknesses for Chamber in the roster. If you take him for his weapon arsenal and disengage, you should feel as if you’re giving up a strength—like traps or stall—that his peers excel at. As usual, all eyes are now on Chamber changes, and we’ll adjust if we see him suffer disproportionately on defense relative to attack.”

Fade

• Nightfall (X) – You should now see a decreased amount of flickering textures on diagonal walls when casting Fade’s ultimate. Also added VFX for additional clarity and visual impact.
• Seize (Q) – VFX change to the orb for a more dynamic presentation in 1p and Agent select.

Competitive/esports features

• Party Lead Transfer — You can now change the lead of your party.
  • Current party leader can right-click the player name they want to transfer the responsibility to and choose “Make Leader” in the drop-down menu.
• A number of small tweaks and updates made to the UI.
• Added Observer ability to toggle Scoreboard on/off.

Bugs

Agent bugs

• Fixed a bug where Jett’s Tailwind would sometimes fail to cast when used immediately after curving a Cloudburst smoke.
• Fixed a bug where Jett’s ultimate indicator would sometimes stay active after firing all JCnai.

Gameplay bugs

• Fixed an issue where an unintended ‘use’ input could happen after abilities such as Skye’s Trailblazer or Sova’s Owl Drone is activated while using the ‘use’ key.

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VALORANT Patch 4.09 is expected to go live today.