Split is an interesting map in the current pool. There is a sector of players that prefer Split due to many reasons. It’s a decently balanced map with huge possibilities for both Attackers and Defenders. The map has two plant sites and the middle area that connects the whole map. There are three main bottlenecks that are equally important and the whole gameplay revolves around those three points. Today, Run It Back continues its series of map guides by diving into Split.

Map Callouts

Truth to be told, Split is one of the easiest maps to understand. Both sites are pretty wide open and there aren’t too many named positions to learn. Still, you should take some time to understand what each position is called.

Check out all the Split callouts on the picture above and try to use them every time you callout. Once you master all the callouts, you will be able to give and receive precise information which will impact your overall gameplay and make things easier on your team.

Split – Attackers Side

As we already mentioned, this map has three bottlenecks the whole gameplay revolves around. Those bottlenecks are crucial points you need to secure if you want to win any given round. As you can see from the callouts image above, attackers can’t even get near any of the sites if they don’t get pass through A-Main, Top Mid, or B-Main.

Those three spots is where the fight is. If any one of those spots isn’t guarded by the defenders, make sure to capitalize on that and take it as soon as possible.

Your main goal as an attacker is to avoid any early damage. Instead of just rushing, wait for your enemies to waste their utility. If you play a standard default and show presence on all three points, it will force defenders to use their abilities early on and it will be easier to take any of the sites later. If some of them decide to rush, just hold the angle and you should have a man advantage early in the round.

A Site

Due to the fact that A site is a wide-open site with not too many objects for the defenders to hide behind, they will probably play it aggressively and guard the ramp. Make sure to use a flash before peeking because an Operator is probably posted at A Heaven watching the ramp. Your main objective is to take A Heaven before you enter the site. Cut off the ramp defenders with a smoke or wall and get straight to Heaven. Once you have successfully taken Heaven, go to the site from the various entry points and leave at least 1 Agent in Heaven. That player can then wait for the mid-rotation while another Agent can push Screens and try to catch enemies off guard.

Mid

Whether you plan to take mid or not, you should always send at least one Agent to contest it, just to keep the enemy Agents occupied in the area. On the other side, if you want to take mid, you will need at least two Agents.

It is smart to send one Agent from B Link and one from A Sewer. In this case, they can double peek mid after a flash and have a higher chance of capitalizing and getting one map advantage. After you have that advantage, you can rotate back to a safer position or advance and use Sage to block one side of mid with a Barrier Orb.

With mid control, you will have countless possibilities and you can set the tempo for that round. You can either attack B and take Heaven or even go for an A attack and take that Heaven instead. Attacking A is riskier but it works perfectly with split attacks because the enemies will be occupied guarding the ramp and won’t expect you at Heaven at all.

B Site

Entering a B site on Split is a little bit trickier because there are a lot of angles that defenders can hold. You can’t just take B Heaven because there is no straight path to it unless you won the battle for mid. Therefore, the B attack should be coordinated from both mid and B-Main.

B-Main is relatively easy to take without using any utility. You will always have a better spawn so just post one Agent on the main entrance to watch if anyone is pushing inside. Once you have the info, take B-Main and wait for defenders to challenge you. If no one is challenging, wait for your teammates from mid to take B Heaven, and if they fail to do so, make sure to smoke it off before you cross to the site.

The post-plant scenario on the B site isn’t easy to play because there are a lot of entries. That’s why it’s smart to go for an aggressive approach and post at least 1 Agent to guard it from Heaven.

Split – Defending Side

The main goal as a defender is to position yourself correctly and avoid any unnecessary duels. All you have to do is waste time and save your utility until you are sure the enemies are there. Try to be unpredictable and never play at the same spot two times in a row. A smart strategy is to start the game with an aggressive approach and play passively later on. Your enemies will expect you at all times and probably waste a lot of abilities trying to clear certain corners.

A Site

This location is wide open so you don’t want to defend it from the site. Send your aggressive duelists to fight for A ramp and post an Operator at A Heaven. If you fail to defend Heaven, you will probably lose that round. The aggressive ramp approach is recommended but don’t take too many duels. Instead, fall back in dangerous situations and don’t let them have the man advantage for free. Be aware that you can always reposition and defend the ramp from the site.

However, the aggressive play-style isn’t always recommended on A ramp. Ramp leaves little room to work around but you should never leave it unguarded. Challenge for A ramp control from the site and make your enemies use utility to get past it.

Mid

The mid-area is very important to defend because mid control is everything on this map. Attackers can’t do any good if they do not have enough space to play with. A player that is guarding B from Heaven should always play Mid Mail in the early round and help out the mid defender. This way, he can defend mid and B at the same time. We recommend you use an Agent with smokes, someone like Brimstone or Omen, in the Mid Vent area. Both Agents can fight for map control without peeking and entering into duels. The best Agent for Mailroom is Sage because she can help additionally with walls and slow orbs. If you don’t have a Sage on your team, any duelist will do just fine in that position.

B Site

The easiest site to defend on this map is B and it can be done with only one Agent. Although it is also a wide-open site, there are a lot of corners to hide in. It is important to have a B anchor player that can delay attacks and allow middle players to rotate. The rotation is relatively fast and with just a small delay, you will have 3 Agents defending B in no time. The anchor payer for this position can’t be a duelist. The best Agent for that is definitely Cypher as he can gather info without challenging for it. Alternatively, you can send a Viper there to delay attacks with toxins.

We hope you liked this Valorant map Split guide! For more Valorant news and guides, come back to RunItBack.