Valorant Neon Guide: All ability timings and how to use them effectively in any scenario

With the arrival of Episode 4 Act 1, Valorant's global audience will finally get first hand experience with the new Filipino Agent, Neon. Neon belongs to the Duelist class and enters the Valorant Protocol as Agent 19.

Neon's set of abilities will grant players the advantage in gaining entry into bomb sites, facilitating quick rotations, and hitting the enemy team unannounced.

While the entire Valorant community awaits Patch 4.0 to witness the release of the Agent, let us take a look at various specifics of Neon's ability toolkit in Valorant.

Neon Valorant Guide: Ability timings, cost, damage, range and more

Neon's set of abilities in Valorant comprise of:

Fast Lane (C) : Neon can fire 2 energy lines forward and set 2 walls on either side of her, creating a pathway in between.
Relay Bolt (Q) : Neon can throw an energy bolt that bounces off surfaces and hits the ground, concussing Agents on both points of contact.
High Gear (E) : Neon enters a state where she can channel her energy to increase her movement speed. ALT Fire enables Neon to slide.
Overdrive (X) : Neon can unleash maximum power and speed for a short duration, while being equipped with a lightning beam that she can fire from her fingertips.

Cost

Fast Lane (C) : 300 Creds | 1 charge
Relay Bolt (Q) : 200 Creds | 2 charges
High Gear (E) : Free recharge. Slide costs 2 kills for recharge.
Overdrive (X) : 7 ultimate points.

Duration

Neon can use each of her Valorant abilities for a fixed duration.

Fast Lane (C) : From the time of initiation, the ability lasts for 6 to 7 seconds.
Relay Bolt (Q) : Relay Bolts dissipate if they don't hit any surface within 5 seconds of deployment.
High Gear (E) : Neon can use the ability for 15 seconds to drain the meter from 100 to 0. Once exhausted, Neon's speed meter takes a full minute to replenish. Each kill will result in Neon's speed gauge increasing by 25%. During High Gear, the slide ability can be used once. Neon will have to get 2 kills to recharge the ability.
Overdrive (X) : Neon's Overdrive gauge lasts for 20 seconds. With each kill, the gauge increases by 25%. Her lightning beam will have 40 ammo, out of which players can use 20 ammo per second. After each round of ammo, players will have to wait 2 seconds for it to regenerate.

Damage

Fast Lane (C) : The ability does 30 damage per second to the enemy Agents, with teammates taking one-third of the damage. Fast Lane has no effect on Neon's health.
Relay Bolt (Q) : Relay Bolts can stun Neon and her teammates as well, in addition to enemies. Stunned players take 3 seconds to recover.
High Gear (E) : This ability doesn't deal any damage
Overdrive (X) : Neon's lighning beam does damage of 22 HP per bullet, with 20 bullets each second at the closest range. The damage drops off with distance, with shots from beyond 50m dealing 10 HP per shot.

Range

Fast Lane (C) : The ability is estimated to have a range between 30-50m in Valorant
Relay Bolt (Q) : Each bolt has a 5m radius. When fired on the ground, the bolts cannot affect players with a verticality advantage from standing on a double-stack box or similar surfaces. Relay Bolts can affect players through walls and can be used to stun Agents right underneath the player, similar to A-site Heaven on Ascent.
High Gear (E) : Neon can use the ability all across the map.
Overdrive (X) : Neon can use her ultimate across the map within a limited time frame.

How can Neon's abilities be used effectively in Valorant?

Fast Lane (C) : Neon initiates the ability by deploying a missile at the desired area to erect 2 electric walls along the path. Since the missile cannot go through walls, players have to launch it over surfaces to lengthen the walls.

The damage dealt by the wall denies enemies from entering, whereas Neon and her teammates have a generous timer of seven seconds before the ability runs out. Fast Lane is the most effective while gaining entry into the bomb site.

Relay Bolt (Q) : Relay Bolt is a highly effective ability that players can use to clear corners while accessing various parts of the map. The manueverabilmakesof the bolts make them a versatile ability to use in Valorant. Relay Bolts function with a mechanism similar to Sova's darts, and has a speed between two and three charges of Sova's darts.

As a Duelist in Valorant, there are many situations in Valorant where Neon's Relay Bolts will come in handy. In the defensive half, the ability serves the purpose of slowing down the enemy, while prompting players to take an aggressive approach with Neon.

High Gear (E) : Neon was established as the fastest Agent in Valorant, and rightly so, due to the advantage she has over other Agents in terms of mobility. High Gear can be an excellent tool for players who have an aggressive approach in their playstyle. This ability is also an excellent tool for site-rotations.

In addition to speed, Neon's sliding ability can generate an element of surprise and can be hard to counter. Although the Agent cannot shoot while in High Gear, she can deploy all of her abilities.

While moving, Neon releases a faint audio cue along with disappearing electric footprints on the ground, which can indicate her presence to the enemy team.

Overdrive (X) : One of Neon's most exciting features is her Overdrive ability, which allows her to embark on a frenzy, annihilating any enemy in her path. Players have access to a lightning beam which deals massive damage to opponents in Valorant. What makes the ability challenging to counter is its accuracy.

Neon can accurately damage opponents with the ability while moving at an unreal pace. Players can also use the lighting beam to damage enemies while sliding. With the added potential to deal over 400 damage per second at short range, Overdrive is a menacing ability enemy Agents have to be concerned about in Valorant.