Omen player shows clever VALORANT play on Lotus while exposing biggest flaw in Phoenix’s kit

While Lotus is still relatively new to the active VALORANT map pool, players are already finding reliable new tricks to give themselves an advantage. Whether it’s post-plant lineups at C Mound and C Main or fast B site executes, players are discovering every possible advantage in the game’s newest map.

One that’s been common is the use of the prominent rotating doors on Lotus, in particular the one that connects A Main to the A Tree room. A popular move is to get on top of the door for the brief moment when it’s rotating, giving whoever pulls off the move a small window to catch an opponent pushing through the open door off guard.

A recent post on the VALORANT subreddit demonstrates a perfect example of this play from an Omen player but also highlights how the panicked use of a Phoenix ultimate can backfire. The Omen in the clip waits for their opponent to open the door and instantly teleports on top of the door expecting a push. Their instincts are correct and they catch a Sage who doesn’t look up before pushing through.

When the play devolves into a one-vs-one, the opposing Phoenix casts his Run It Back ultimate in the middle of the site, presumably to clear out the surrounding area before he plants the spike. But he’s caught by the tail end of Omen’s Paranoia and doesn’t realize that Omen is coming from Tree room. While Phoenix’s copy explores A Main, Omen just waits for it to expire and plunges their knife into Phoenix to clutch the round.

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While Omen has the easiest time of any agent to get on top of the rotating door, agents like Raze and Jett can do so as well. But this play also exposes the feast-or-famine aspect of the Phoenix ultimate; it’s great for clearing out defensive utility on an execute, and can gather info or even free kills. But one wrong turn or miscommunication could mean the ultimate is spent for nothing or even an embarrassing end to a round.