VALORANT Patch 13.06: New Weapon, Game Mode, Major Competitive Changes, and More

VALORANT Patch 13.06 is surely an exciting one. The much‑awaited update introduces a new rifle, a new limited‑time game mode, and Agent progression changes. But that's not all. The update also brings a ton of other changes, including anti‑boosting updates, new UI, various competitive and gameplay updates, and more!

More changes will arrive in the next few patches, including Map Rating (13.08), Competitive Flex (14.00), and some updates for the Radiant experience (14.00).

Patch 13.06 will be shipped worldwide later today, September 22. Read on for a brief look at the patch notes.

General Updates: Anti-Boosting Success

The recently introduced anti‑boosting update has proven successful. Riot Games has reported that over 90,000 VALORANT accounts have been banned since July 20, averaging 1,600 accounts per day. The Anti‑Cheat team at Riot has shared a graph highlighting this progress.  

Client Updates: New UI and Item Indicators

New Home/Lobby

• Home and Lobby have been merged into a single hub, offering a simpler overview and making the gaming experience a whole lot smoother. 

• Events, Missions, Active Map Pool, Leaderboards, etc. can now be explored all while keeping your party front and center. 

• New tiles have been added to Home to make limited-time features (new modes, Pick’ems, etc.) more visible. 

• Updates to the Mode Select interface are coming in Patch 13.08.

Global Navigation

• Revamped Global Navigation makes movement between major hubs easier. 

• New layout allows more room for navigation and reduces visual crowding. 

• Active pages, secondary navigation, and back behavior are now more consistent.

New Item Indicators

• Indicators have been added to the Collection menu to highlight newly obtained cosmetics. 

• They will disappear once the player views their Collection or ends the gaming session. 

Competitive Updates: Performance Score, Accolades, and More

Range and Queue

• Players can now enter the Range while in a queue. 

• The Range can be accessed either after starting the queue or by starting matchmaking from within the Range. 

• If the expected queue time is short, the Range won’t be available. However, if matchmaking eventually takes longer, the option to enter the Range will reappear. 

• Premier, as well as modes that don’t require Agent Select (such as Deathmatch), cannot be queued from the Range. 

Performance Score 

• The Performance Score metric will replace Average Combat Score (ACS) , which was previously used to gauge overall player performance and impact, and was displayed post‑match on the scoreboard.

• Performance Score will range from 0-500 and more aptly measure player contributions to a match without limiting it to just damage and kills.

• Available in Competitive, Unrated, Swiftplay, and Premier. 

• Similar to ACS, players’ MVP and Scoreboard position will be determined by Performance Score. 

• Updates to Performance Score are planned for the future based on player feedback.

Accolades

• Accolades recognize standout performances across a variety of stats, including many of the contributions measured by the Performance Score.

• Each Accolade tracks your personal best for the current Act and across your lifetime play. 

• Accolade tracking begins with this patch and will reflect on your gameplay going forward. Historical match data will not be taken into account. 

• The Accolades you earn can be seen throughout the End of Game experience, including on the MVP screen. A more in-depth interface will be available in the Competitive Hub. 

• Accolades can only be earned in Competitive and Premier. 

Rank Legacy

• Players can now see the number of times they’ve hit each rank across their Competitive career. 

• With each rank-up, players can see the counter increase or find out whether they’ve hit a new peak. 

• To check your current rank and lifetime ranks achieved, open the Competitive Hub from the Career tab. 

• Each existing rank can increase the Rank Legacy counter once every three Acts (from Acts 1-3 and Acts 4-6)

• Demoting into a rank does not increase its counter. 

Career Page Updates

• The Career page has been revamped, and new pages have been added.

• Career: Shows your top Agents, Match History, and your Rank. 

• Competitive Hub: Here, you can find a snapshot of your Competitive Act, dedicated pages for Accolades and Rank Legacy, and a preview of some upcoming content. 

• Friends can still view your Career and Competitive Hub Overview.

• Dedicated Competitive Hub pages, like Accolades and Rank Legacy, will only be visible to you. 

Gameplay Systems Updates: New End of Game Experience

End of Game

• The revamped End of Game experience shows performance, rewards, match details, etc., all in one place, with the most important moments highlighted.

• This screen will also show highlights like earning MVP or rank promotion, along with Performance Score and progress across Agent Mastery and Accolades. 

• End of Game progresses automatically, but players can move at their own pace, dive into more detail, requeue immediately, or return to Lobby. 

New Limited-Time Mode – Gauntlet: Glitched

Gauntlet: Glitched is a 16‑player battle royale game mode featuring 8 duo teams. The mode introduces some interesting mechanics, including drafting abilities from different agents and upgrading them as the match progresses.

Check out our dedicated article on Gauntlet: Glitched for an in‑depth look at the game mode.

Agent Mastery and Progression Updates

Players now have a new way to showcase their experience and familiarity with different agents. With the introduction of Agent Mastery, every Agent now has their own Act levels, Lifetime levels, Reward Track, and more.

We've covered the Agent Mastery changes in detail in a separate article.

New Weapon: Warden

Following the arrival of the Bandit earlier this year, VALORANT will welcome yet another weapon to its arsenal: the Warden. This rifle will take its place alongside the Vandal and the Phantom in the 2900 Credits range. 

We've detailed everything you need to know about the Warden in a separate article.

Bug Fixes

Agent

• Fixed an issue where an Agent’s Ultimate Ability Voiceover was being cutoff when casting a different ability immediately after.

• Fixed an issue where Agents with possessable abilities (Tejo, Sova, Gekko, Cypher, Skye) were not being flashed when they exited a possessable ability at the exact same time an enemy activated a flash.

• Fixed an issue with Cypher Trapwire where the trap would look active after Cypher was killed or suppressed at the exact moment the trap was reactivating.

Competitive

• The threshold shown for the ‘Masterful’ Accolade is incorrect and will be fixed next patch. This is purely a visual bug and doesn’t impact earning the Accolade.

Cosmetics

• A known bug that allowed players to jiggle peek with their Flex equipped was fixed. (Fixed in Patch 13.02)

Follow Strafe Esports for the latest VALORANT news, and our X account for the latest content and coverage. Also, stay tuned to Strafe's YouTube channel for exclusive interviews, press conferences, and more.

Featured Image Credit: Riot Games

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