VALORANT 12.08 Patch Notes

Written by: Wei

29/04/2026

Patch 12.08 is bringing you an exciting new update to Skirmish called Skirmish: Ascension as well as another map rotation. Here’s the TLDR;

TLDR

Skirmish: Ascension - a new, experimental ranked experience with its own competitive leaderboard on our FTW site
Ascent is in, Bind is out
[PC only] Premier is back!
More bug fixes

ALL PLATFORMS

MAP UPDATES

Map Pool Updates

ASCENT is IN the Competitive and Deathmatch queues.
BIND is OUT of the Competitive and Deathmatch queues.

MODES UPDATES

NEW LIMITED TIME MODE

Introducing Skirmish: Ascension, a new limited ranked experience for Skirmish.

We designed this mode as a fast, skill-forward competitive experience where gunplay stays primary, but selected abilities create more tactical decisions and replayable duels. Pick from a curated roster of Agents, each equipped with a single ability, and fight through staged weapon rounds in 1v1 or 2v2. Compete on the FTW ranked ladder to earn rewards and prove you are better. Available for Act 3.

Mode Details

Agents & Abilities

Choose from 14 Agents, each with one ability from their kit

Jett (Tailwind)
Waylay (Refract)
Chamber (Rendezvous)
Cypher (Cyber Cage)
Omen (Shrouded Step)
Phoenix (Curve Ball)
Yoru (Clone)
Iso (Contingency)
Sage (Barrier Orb)
Raze (Blast Pack)
Vyse (Arc Rose)
KAY/O (Flash/Drive)
Breach (Flashpoint)
Veto (Crosscut)

Staged Weapons

No economy. Weapons escalate through stages as the match progresses

Rounds 1-4: Pistols (Bandit, Sheriff)
Rounds 5-8: Low-tier rifles (Guardian, Bulldog)
Round 9+: Vandal and Phantom

Queues

1v1 and 2v2 with separate matchmaking

Round Structure

First to 10 rounds wins

FTW Ranked Ladder

Competitive leaderboard segmented by server, region, and platform
Separate leaderboards for 1v1 and 2v2, tracked independently

Rank Tiers

Iron: 700
Bronze: 1100
Silver: 1500
Gold: 1800
Platinum: 2100
Diamond: 2400
Ascendant: 2700
Immortal: MAX
Radiant: Top 100

Rewards

Combat Ready player card: Complete 3 Skirmish: Ascension matches
Trade Me player card: Complete 15 Skirmish: Ascension matches

Titles awarded by highest rank achieved on either ladder

Skirmish Competitor: Gold to Platinum
Skirmish Expert: Diamond to Immortal
Skirmish Legend: Radiant

LEAVING LIMITED TIME MODES

Knockout is heading out. Thanks for playing!

BUG FIXES

Agent

These were fixed in Patch 12.07 but missed the notes.

Fixed a bug where using Miks’ Bassquake would cause the minimap cone to blink on use.
Fixed a bug where Veto’s Chokehold could detect enemies behind rotating doors on Lotus.
Fixed a bug where KAY/O’s ability VFX were not appearing if used right after KAY/O casts NULL/cmd.
Fixed a bug where Neon’s High Gear slide was not playing SFX for moving across different surface types.
Fixed a bug where Tejo’s agent select animation would sometimes cut off the smoke from the explosion.
Fixed a bug where Gekko’s Dizzy would only target an enemy if their head was visible.
Fixed a bug where during Dimensional Drift Yoru could not see invisible abilities like Vyse’s Shear or Cypher’s Trapwire even if he was close enough to them.

These are new fixes in Patch 12.08.

Fixed a bug where Viper's Toxic Screen SFX would activate repeatedly when Veto walked into it with Evolution active
Fixed a bug where players resurrected by Sage inside of Viper’s Decaying abilities would not gain Decay.
Fixed a bug where Tejo’s Armageddon would sometimes cast targeting spawn instead of the intended location.

PC ONLY

PREMIER UPDATES UPDATES

Welcome to Stage V26A3! Matches start on May 6.

Contender and Invite Division schedule changes:

There are only 6 weeks of matches this stage – the matches are still each Saturday from May 9 - June 13.
Playoffs now take place across multiple days.
The first round of playoffs takes place on June 20.
Teams that advance from the first round return on June 21 for their next matchup.
Make sure to check the schedule in the client for round start times for your zone!

BUG FIXES

General

Fixed an issue in settings where audio sliders weren’t moving correctly
Fixed an issue where trying to exit the client while a replay was paused wasn’t working

CONSOLE ONLY

KNOWN ISSUES

Modes

Skirmish 2v2: Ascension and Skirmish 1v1: Ascension - Timer is stuck at 00.50 sec when during Overtime phase.
Skirmish 2v2: Ascension and Skirmish 1v1: Ascension - Agent abilities do not show up on the Combat Report in the following round after affecting enemies