In terms of importance to any team, Sage is perhaps at the top of the list in Valorant. Her healing capabilities matched with her ability to slow down an enemy team make her an invaluable character. As such, whoever plays Sage on your team needs to be on top of their game for the entire match. A good Sage can single-handedly win you rounds and sometimes entire matches in Valorant. So, what’s the best way to play as the healing Agent? Run It Back takes a look in our newest Agent guide.

what are sage’s abilities?

Because of their usefulness, Sage possesses some of the most expensive abilities of any Agent in Valorant. However, we would say the extra money is well worth it.

• Basic Ability #1: Barrier Orb | Cost: 300 | Charges: 1
• Basic Ability #2: Slow Orb | Cost: 100 | Charges: 2
• Signature Ability: Healing Orb | Cost: Free | Charges: 1
• Ultimate Ability: Resurrection | Cost: 7 Points | Charges: 1

Barrier orb

Equip a barrier orb. Fire places a solid wall. Alternate fire rotates the targeter.

One of the most effective basic abilities in Valorant, the Barrier Orb can affect every round you play. It costs 300 in-game credits but once you decide to place it down, you essentially can block the opposing team from pushing one side of the map.

The Barrier Orb is four blocks long and can be placed almost anywhere on the map. Once it is placed, the only way to get past it is to shoot one of the blocks, wait for it to break, or use an ability to get over it (Jett’s Updraft). This ability is great for blocking off a bombsite before or after the bomb has planted. If you block one entrance to a bombsite, then you don’t really have to watch that area and have a better understanding of where the enemies will come from.

One advanced tactic with the Barrier Orb is using it to lift you or a teammate up to a vantage point. Just make sure the Barrier Orb is directly under your feet if you want to lift yourself up.

slow orb

Equip an orb that slows whoever walks on them after being thrown on the ground.

The Slow Orb serves a similar purpose as the Barrier Orb but isn’t quite as effective. You can buy two charges of this ability and, when equipped, allows you to fire an ice orb that slows down any person who tries to walk through it. The ice lasts for around 6-7 seconds and is terrific at stalling enemies if you’re trying to plant or defuse the bomb. You can also use it to trap an enemy in a room or corner, but that only works if you know exactly where they are. You can view the Slow Orb and all of Sage’s other abilities in our newest YouTube video.

healing orb

Equip a healing orb. Fire with your crosshairs over a damaged ally to activate a heal-over-time on them. Alternate fire while Sage is damaged to activate a self heal-over-time.

The Healing Orb is partly what makes Sage so important to any team in Valorant. No other Agent can heal teammates so this is obviously a huge help for any situation. There’s no real right time to use it as it depends on how a round unfolds. However, it’s worth noting that Sage can only heal teammates that are in her direct line of sight. So, if you’re playing as Sage, try to stay near as many teammates as possible in case one takes damage.

The Healing Orb can also be used to heal yourself. After you use the orb, there’s a 35-second cool down before you can use it again. This means that if a particular round goes on for an extended period of time, the ability can be used more than once.

resurrection

Equip a resurrection ability. Fire with your crosshairs placed over a dead ally to begin resurrecting them. After a brief channel, the ally will be brought back to life with full health.

Another situational, yet useful, ability is Sage’s Ultimate, Resurrection. Simply put, this ability can revive a fallen teammate once charged up. It takes 7 points to charge, so making use of the Ultimate Orbs around the map is paramount with Sage. Similarly to the Healing Orb, you want to stay close to as many teammates as you can so that if one dies, you can revive them before the round is lost. The revived teammate will come back 100 health but no shields, even if they bought one for that round.

Run It Back will have a new Agent guide every day, so stay tuned for that and all other Valorant news!