Pearl is one of the most versatile maps in Riot’s tactical hero shooter, offering almost endless possibilities for creative plays. If you want to truly master this map, you’ll need to know its layout like the back of your hand and have every callout in your back pocket. In this guide, we’ll run through all of this and more, including tips, tricks and agent picks.
The map features two bomb sites, with numerous twisting lanes in between them. The A site is open and features long sightlines, while B is much tighter, with corners that demand defenders find good angles. Rotations are particularly long on this map, so controlling mid is the key to success. This makes information gathering crucial for defenders, while attackers can play some mind games, using their long rotation times to their advantage.
Pearl is relatively gimmick-free
© Riot Games
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A Secret
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A Flowers
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A Dugout
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A Link
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A Main
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A Art
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A Restaurant
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Mid Connector
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Mid Doors
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Mid Plaza
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Mid Shops
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Mid Top
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B Hall
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B Screen
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B Tunnel
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B Tower
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B Link
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B Main
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B Ramp
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B Club
The sheer amount of routes in Pearl makes Astra an obvious pick due to her ultimate ability, Cosmic Divide. This ability allows you to instantly create a wall to block off angles – particularly important when capturing or defending a site. Her regular astral abilities are also a boon, as she is able to throw out smokes and stuns in a pinch.
With so many possible angles for attack, Killjoy is an instapick for defenders. She can place down turrets to hold angles that you can’t watch and alarmbots to alert you to advancing enemies. This can be a lifesaver if you’ve already lost mid, making hectic fights much more manageable. In the likely event that you have to retake a site, Killjoy is invaluable thanks to her ultimate, Lockdown, which can trap enemies in place, allowing you to pick them off.
Jett’s mobility makes her the best duellist to pick on Pearl. Tailwind allows you to peek around corners and quickly escape danger, while updraft can instantly lift you to high ground. This is especially useful on A Site, which has one of the longest sightlines on any map in the game. Here, you can use Jett’s movement to secure the best angle and take down any attackers that step in your path.
Sova is one of the best information agents in the game and is particularly useful on Pearl. His Recon Bolt allows you to tag agents through walls, revealing their location and allowing your allies to get the drop on them. You can also send his Owl Drone through doors to reveal enemy locations. Combine these abilities with his Shock Darts and Hunter’s Fury, and you’ve got yourself a powerhouse initiator.
Pearl map tips and tricks
Pearl is one of the most versatile maps in VALORANT
© Riot Games
Attackers’ first mission on Pearl is to take mid early. Due to its numerous routes, it’s essential to maintain control of this area. One great tactic is to use smokes to block A Art and B Connector and push through to the Plaza. From here, you’ve got access to both bomb sites. Defenders need to try and control mid too. Don’t play on-site, as attackers will overwhelm you in a flash.
Tip 2: Fake it ‘til you make it
Due to this map’s long rotations, it’s a great idea to bait the opposition using utility. A common tactic is to launch abilities on A site before rotating to B and surprising the defenders. Holding mid is crucial to this tactic – hold these corridors and you can easily slip from one site to the other before your opponents can decide where to focus their fire.
Defenders won’t have an easy job guarding B site, due to the advantageous angles attackers can exploit. The solution? Perfect your retake game. It’s better to retreat and then launch a coordinated assault to retake than suffer heavy losses and get locked out by the attacking team. B is particularly difficult to defend, so be prepared to fall back and fight from B Link to secure some crossfire kills.