Nina Forneloza 
New agent Iso has just been released in Valorant, and players have already discovered a broken trick that allows Astra to use her abilities inside Iso’s ultimate, Kill Contract, turning a 1v1 situation into a 2v1.
Before the end of the year, Valorant added a new duelist agent to its current roster. Iso has an unconventional kit that allows him to put up a shield after killing an enemy using his signature ability, summon a bulletproof wall that protects his team as they rush in, and a molecular bolt that makes the agents it comes into contact with vulnerable.
The new duelist from China also has a unique ultimate ability that pulls both him and an enemy player into an inescapable duel arena where they must kill each other or both die, reminding players of the Gulag in Call Of Duty: Warzone.
Valorant players have again proven themselves quick to find a trick to exploit the new agent upon its release. One controller agent is revealed to have the ability to support her ally through her abilities even while the ally is locked inside Iso’s Kill Contract.
How Astra can use her abilities in Iso’s ultimate
Ghanaian Agent Astra can place a star inside Iso’s Kill Contract (X), and is able to use her abilities against an enemy from outside of the ultimate, creating a potentially unfair advantage.
As shown in the clip, Astra tries to reach areas beneath the map and eventually manages to place stars inside Iso’s ultimate. After doing so, the player activates the Gravity Well and Nova Pulse, which forcefully pull the enemy Sage toward the center and disorient her. This places the Sage player at a significant disadvantage in the duel.
Prior to Iso’s release, players believed that getting caught by Iso’s ultimate would transport them to an interdimensional arena outside of Valorant’s maps. But it was later discovered that the ultimate actually takes place beneath the map, explaining how Astra is able to pull it off. The controller agent has her passive ability, Astral Form, which grants her access to the entirety of the map and allows her to reach any area without range restrictions.
What makes this trick even more broken is that Astra can place her stars prior to Iso’s ultimate. In this way, Astra can simply cast the powerful pull and stun combo as soon as the duel begins, further increasing the duelist’s chance of winning.
This leads to players also wondering whether it is possible for Omen’s smoke or Sova’s ultimate to reach the arena, as Astra’s ability can.
While this trick can be a powerful strategy and may help players to secure round wins, it’s likely a bug that Riot will patch out of the game soon. Iso’s ultimate is intended to work by pitting two players against each other in an isolated 1v1 battlefield, with only a slight advantage to Iso given by the two barriers. Another player joining the fray through their abilities would turn it into a truly unfair battle.
