Valorant guide: How to play Clove

In Valorant, controllers are agents tasked with manipulating the battlefield by using strategic smoke placement. 

These Agents excel at controlling the combat, creating advantageous positions for the team while actively disturbing the opponents. 

However, Riot’s newest addition to the Agent pool defies these boundaries, as Clove revolutionizes the entire role with an unprecedently aggressive approach in combat.

Clove: The basics

Introduction to Clove

Valorant’s ever-expanding roster welcomed its 25th agent and the 6th controller by the name of Clove in patch 8.05. This agent is the second one originating from the United Kingdom after Phoenix, with Clove being of Scottish descent.

Using the powers of immortality, Clove’s nature is generally mischievous and hectic which is reflected in their abilities and preferred playstyle.   

Clove’s kit and abilities

While they are technically a controller, unlike agents like Brimstone or Omen, Clove’s playstyle embraces a hyperaggressive approach because of their abilities.

Clove’s C is Pick-Me-Up. This basic ability sets the tone for Clove’s aggressive playstyle as they’re able to absorb haste and temporary health from the enemies Clove recently damaged or killed.

The other basic ability is Meddle, allowing Clove to equip and throw a fragment at will, exploding and afflicting decay all targets caught in the blast.

Clove’s signature ability Ruse certainly makes them stand out due to the them being able to deploy smokes after death. This makes mastering smoke placement an essential skill for any aspiring Clove player because of the sheer impact that has on the battlefield.

Last but not least, Clove’s ultimate is a complete game-changer that further defines their aggressive playstyle. After dying, Clove can use this ability to instantly resurrect, gaining a short window where they must get a kill or assist before relapsing and dying. 

Understanding Clove’s role and playstyle

Despite being a controller, Clove’s role in-game is often far from traditional. Their playstyle resembles that of an aggressive duelist, always looking for a combat angle.

Due to their passive and ultimate, Clove is constantly rewarded for high-risk, high-reward playstyle and approach, thriving in combat. Because of this tendency to engage in fights and capitalize from killing screens, Clove is often compared to Reyna in terms of gameplay.

Although Clove challenges the conventional approach to playing controllers, Clove doesn’t fully abandon the fundamental controller playstyle. 

This is highlighted by their Meddle and Ruse abilities which are designed to disrupt the opponents and gain further pressure on the map.

As a result, a major aspect of mastering Clove lies in mastering the usage of Meddle and Ruse on different maps and in different scenarios.

How to play Clove?

Early game 

In the early game, you should always prioritize unlocking your C as it grants you useful early-game stats such as free overhealing and movement speed. 

Because of the overheal, you don’t need to purchase any early-game armor, especially since everyone is wielding pistols. Therefore, your ideal early game setup is C + Ghost + smoke.

Engaging in early fights is recommendable because you can get continuous bursts of haste and health whenever your Pick-Me-Up absorbs the opponents’ life force.

Mid-late game

Using your ultimate

The dynamic of the game as Clove completely changes once you’ve gained access to their ultimate. Once your ult is active, you should always aim to be the first one engaging in combat in your team because you’ll be revived upon dying.

It’s essential to be coordinated with your teammates as you’ll be the one spearheading the attack whenever your ult is up, while your team engages only after you’ve been revived.

The damage your teammates inflict on opponents is essential in this context as it increases the likelihood of your full revival after ulting.

Push and smoke like a pro

Learning when to push and how to use your smokes in the latter stages is essential to mastering Clove. 

As far as pushing goes, you should manage your aggression according to the availability of your abilities, since using Q after exiting smoke and having ult up allows you to make aggressive plays.

When it comes to using smokes, you shouldn’t waste them all at once, especially since you’re able to smoke after dying as well. Use smokes only when you see a strategic approach behind them or a potential spot where you can catch your opponents off-guard.

Clove tips and tricks

Duck after using ultimate

You should always hide after using your ultimate and reviving instead of charging towards opponents head-first. 

Picking a safe place to respawn before rushing is an essential skill that will take time to adopt. This method will allow you to rush more efficiently, and calmly, while also reducing the likelihood of you being one-shot as soon as you revive.

Rush with your team

A common mistake most rookie Clove players make is rushing the opposing team by themselves instead of fighting with teammates.

Instead of rushing on your own, you should use your teammates as an additional layer of aggression, increasing your lethality.

Fighting with the help of your team results in a smaller chance of being one-shot as well as an increased likelihood of staying revived.

Don’t greed because of decay

Another aspect you should look out for is your greed when playing offensively. Clove players often bait themselves in fighting bad fights because of hitting Decay on opponents

Make sure to choose your fights wisely, rushing only when you feel comfortable, instead of forcing risky situations that solely rely on your aim.

Reloading after ulting

One of Clove’s many unique traits is the fact that they get their gun fully reloaded after reviving with the ultimate ability.

This allows you to force more aggressive plays since you won’t need to worry about reloading after emptying a clip on your opponents.

Using smokes after dying

One of the best habits you have to adopt when playing Clove is to be patient after dying instead of wandering off.

Using smokes wisely after dying is an important aspect of mastering Clove and it's essential to their controller side of the playstyle.

Unlike with other Agents, don’t open Instagram reels as soon as you die as you can impact the game heavily and help your teammates by using smokes from the grave.

Additionally, you have to learn to effectively communicate with your team, especially with other controllers who are using smokes. This prevents double smoking in the same location and general confusion while making the optimal use of your abilities. 

Smurfing with Clove

If you’re someone who enjoys playing on a Valorant smurf account, you’re going to love Clove’s playstyle and their ability to stomp low elo games.

Clove’s core design supports aggressive gameplay which is the best way to approach games when smurfing against weaker opposition.

By maximizing the offensive capabilities of their C, Q, and X, you can get on insane killing sprees with this Agent, allowing you to swiftly and easily boost your Valorant elo.

Dying with ult up

Clove’s ult is unique in the sense that it activates when you take fatal damage and prevents you from dying completely.

For this reason, you should always remember to stay focused and use your ult as you only have a few seconds before fully dying to use it.

Dying with ult up also changes the way your smokes operate, as you cannot use smokes before fully dying.

Essentially, you will have to wait around 3 seconds if you want to smoke immediately after you die while your ult is up because of its activation window.

Abuse your C

One of the first things you will notice when playing Clove compared to some other Agents is the brief duration of their C.

Clove’s Pick-Me-Up! lasts for only a few seconds after taking down an opposing Agent before it expires. 

This means you should prioritize rushing after killing someone if you want to maximize the overheal’s efficiency and extend the C’s duration.

Ult charges after dying

In Valorant, once you die in combat, you receive an ult point that charges your ultimate ability. However, this works a bit differently in a specific scenario when you die with Clove.

The scenario we’re referring to is when you require only one charge before having your ult available.

In this case, you won’t get the final charge upon dying and you won’t be able to use your ultimate immediately to revive.