Duelists across the competitive VALORANT environment are closely watching all of the improvements coming to the role in Patch 8.11, including some substantial adjustments to Reyna that might cement her status as the most popular agent in the game.
Riot Games is modifying the majority of Reyna’s abilities in Patch 8.11 to assist “reshape the power of her kit” by decreasing her dominance in ranked play and allowing her more possibilities to thrive in more coordinated settings like professional play.
As a result, the devs will reduce her Devour’s healing ability while also making significant changes to the rest of her kit to help her flourish in other circumstances. For example, while her healing has been reduced, she will no longer lose any armor obtained by Overheal, and her full heal time has been raised by one second.
She can also move significantly faster after using Dismiss after a successful kill, albeit the length of the Dismiss is slightly reduced. Her ultimate, on the other hand, will last until Reyna is eliminated or the round ends, making it a destructive tool that may be used from the start of the round forward.
By removing the time constraints on abilities such as Overheal’s additional armor and Empress’ ultimate duration, players are no longer required to rush forward to take advantage of Reyna’s temporary boosts. With these adjustments, they can play much slower and more deliberately with their teammates while still keeping the same bonuses throughout the game.
The lowered heal on her Devour is a welcome addition given the strength of the rest of her buffs, and it can also provide a much-needed push for Reyna mains looking to improve their team-based talents. They may retreat without worry of losing buffs, regroup and plot, and are far more viable for those with coordinated allies.
It may take some time to adjust, but Reyna may have even greater increases in play rate because the reduced heal is totally countered by the permanent armor, indefinite Empress change, and the Dismiss changes to her mobility speed. For any players who are sure in their aim, this could provide an even larger incentive to instalock Reyna when Patch 8.11 is released later this month.