Have you been planting the Spike all wrong in Valorant?

Fariha Bhatti Published 08/03/2022

Planting the Spike may sound simple, but even some Immortal players are doing it all wrong. These tips can help you perfect planting the Spike in Valorant.

Valorant is a highly tactical five-vs-five shooter that requires patience and consistency. Heavily skilled Valorant players are busy polishing their aim, but they often miss important details. Something as basic as a Spike plant can make or break an easily winnable game. If you’re usually the Spike carrier, you may want to correct your mistakes to turn the game around.

Valorant may be all about the aim, but small details matter. Mastering the Spike plant is crucial if you’re dedicating yourself to the ranked grind.

How to plant the Spike in Valorant

Activating the Spike in Valorant is as simple as pressing a key inside the plant radius. But, these tips will make defusing the Spike a menace for the defenders. Here are a few things you should keep in mind when planting the Spike.

Plant for teammates

Always activate the Spike in a clear line of sight if your teammates are alive. Often, your teammates would stay back and ask you to plant for them. If they’re holding long, set the Spike where they can see it. Shooting down enemies becomes tenfold easier when the bomb is visible.

If you’re solo in a clutch situation, place the bomb at the most unexpected spots that are within your fire range. Avoid planting behind barriers and walls.

Check where you’re looking

One common misbelief of players is that the Spike activates beneath the player model. It doesn’t initiate under, instead the Spike follows the direction you’re looking.

Crosshair path is crucial when planting the Spike. So if you want the Spike to fall towards your left, you need to keep your posture in check when you press 4. For example, if a teammate asks to set the Spike for Split’s B long, you must look to your left while activating. Otherwise, the Spike will fall inwards, hidden from your teammate’s vision.

https://youtu.be/F4E5DC15wFk

You can even set the Spike outside the specified radius by perfectly timing your position. This trick can confuse enemies on maps with choke points and barriers like Icebox.

Plant in a corner

Placing the Spike out in the open is another common mistake that even high-ranked players make. Setting the bomb in an unrestricted area offers enemies a larger radius to defuse from. Denying space makes pre-firing much easier. For example, if you’re planting on Haven’s A site, make sure the Spike is bordering two walls. This way, the enemy is left with only one angle to defuse from.

https://youtu.be/4j8nVoCsLZ8

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

View full profile