Valorant’s Act 5 is here as part of the 13.04 update, bringing some much-needed changes, as well as some new cosmetics to get your hands on. Here’s what you need to know.
When a new Act drops in Valorant, fans of Riot Games’ five-on-five shooter know they’re getting some big changes – as well as a new Battlepass. The previous act, which dropped back in June, brought a number of Agent overhauls, a new map in the form of Summit, as well as some buffs for the Bandit pistol.
Since that 13.00 update, Riot has made some further big changes too, with Phoenix’s Ultimate being tweaked and adjustments for The Outlaw. There have also been some issues with the likes of Waylay, so the devs have had to temporarily remove certain Agents.
However, with the 13.04 update, there are fixes for bugs, as well as map rotations for Competitive and Deathmatch.
Agent fixes for 13.04
That’s right, the start of Season 2026 Act 5 is cleaning up some issues that have been around with different Agents.
Deadlock’s GravNet had visual effects if a player disconnected and reconnected, but that has been addressed, so too has the lingering problem with Cypher’s minimap icon displaying incorrectly when using Spycam.
New cosmetics: AERIS
There is a new Riftbound-themed bundle being added to the mix too, with the AERIS skins appearing in Valorant.
This new set comes with new looks for the Vandal, Bandit, Guardian, and Marshal, as well as the Suit of Aeris melee. Riot has also confirmed that there is a 10% chance of seeing cards from Riftbound when you use the new interactive flex.
The new act kicks off on August 18 and will last through to October.
As ever, the full patch notes for the 13.04 update can be found below.
Valorant 13.04 patch notes: Season 2026 Act 5
MAP UPDATES
Map Pool Updates
- ABYSS is IN the COMPETITIVE and DEATHMATCH queues.
- BREEZE is OUT of the COMPETITIVE and DEATHMATCH queues.
BUG FIXES
Agent
- Fixed an issue where Cypher’s Spycam minimap icon was rotated incorrectly.
- Fixed an issue where Viper’s Snake Bite equip animation appeared incorrectly from an enemy’s point of view.
- Fixed an issue where Deadlock’s GravNet visual effects could disappear after a player disconnected and reconnected.
Stability
- Fixed an issue where repeatedly switching between Clove’s Meddle and Ruse could cause a player to freeze and disconnect.
PREMIER UPDATES
Welcome to Stage V26A5! Matches start on August 18.
- This Stage will run for five weeks of matches instead of the usual seven.
- Teams with a Premier Score of at least 450 qualify for Playoffs on September 20.
- In Contender and Invite, qualification is still based on your placement – check out the standings page for more info.
For Contender and Invite Division teams:
- Playoffs will be played across two days! The first round of Playoffs will be on September 19. Teams that advance from the first round return on September 20 for the finals.
BUG FIXES
Cosmetics
- Fixed a bug where the animation on all transforming melee weapons (like Kuronami 2.0 and Nocturnum) would not transform during their inspect.
