Valorant Sunset: callouts, map & tactics

How to use the interactive Sunset map

Above you see the official Sunset minimap straight from the Valorant API – with all 17 callouts exactly where the game itself places them. Tap a dot or a name in the list and the map shows you the callout, its area and the three nearest neighboring callouts. Use the filters to show only A, B, mid or the spawns. “All names” labels the entire map at once – with only 17 callouts, you’ll have Sunset memorized faster than any other map in the pool.

If you think you know Sunset, start the callout quiz: ten random callouts, you tap the right spot, and at the end you see your hit rate. Because Sunset has so few callouts, the goal here is more ambitious: ten out of ten is realistic. That drill saves you the decisive second in a match, because a fast, precise callout is often worth more than a perfect flick. For all 13 maps and several difficulty levels, try the full callout trainer.

Sunset at a glance

Sunset released on August 29, 2023 with patch 7.04 in Episode 7, Act 2. According to the patch notes, a Sunset-only queue in Swiftplay mode ran for one week at launch, and the map was playable in Unrated right away. It joined the Competitive rotation one patch later with 7.05. Riot’s official description reads: a disaster at a local Kingdom facility threatens to engulf the whole neighborhood. Stop at your favorite food truck, then fight across the city in this traditional three-lane map. Sunset’s internal codename was “Juliett”.

The backstory according to the Valorant Wiki: residents of Boyle Heights had already noticed strange things happening around a secretive Kingdom facility – peculiar creatures and unusually loud noises. Then a huge sinkhole suddenly opened up in front of the facility, putting the whole neighborhood at risk while Kingdom desperately tries to keep the cause and the facility’s classified work from being exposed. The map is packed with details: graffiti by Los Angeles artist ATLAS (the cat on a wall and a billboard near defender spawn), a mural by the Montréal crew 123KLAN on the skate shop, and according to the wiki, the theater facade in B Lobby even displays the dates of major VCT tournaments – during Champions Seoul, for example, it showed August 1–25, 2024. In early development, Sunset even had acid pools that damaged players. At match start, Gekko wants to drop by and see his folks, and Jett is excited about a phở place she’s been dying to try.

Sunset’s mechanics: the door and the B rework

According to the official Valorant Wiki, Sunset is one of Valorant’s more traditional maps: two sites, three lanes – and exactly one additional mechanic. No ropes, no teleporters, no rotating doors. That makes Sunset one of the most approachable maps in the pool, but you should still understand that one door inside out. All values come from the wiki and the official patch notes.

The mechanical door between B Market and Mid Courtyard

A mechanical door sits between B Market and Mid Courtyard. A switch on the Market side closes it and opens it again. When closed, the door is impenetrable – no bullet goes through. But it has 500 HP and can be damaged and eventually destroyed. Once destroyed, the doorway stays open for the rest of the round; the switch no longer does anything.

Tactically, the door is the most important lever on the map. The passage connects mid directly to B Market and thus to the route onto B site. If the defense closes the door, attackers either have to take B Main, look for another way through mid, or spend ammo and time shooting through 500 HP. The flip side applies here too: a closed door doesn’t just block enemies – it also blocks your own rotations through Market. Because the switch is on the Market side, whichever team holds Market decides the state of the door.

The B rework from patch 9.08

With patch 9.08 (October 22, 2024), Riot reworked Sunset’s B site. The official goal: make the site more defensible, tone down the post-plant and provide more ways to play on site. Specifically, Riot said the pivot box in B Main was adding a ton of pressure during post-plant, so the cover there was simplified. You can still play B Main during post-plant, but it should now be easier for retakers to manage. The B Main exterior, B site, the back of B site, B Boba and Mid Courtyard were adjusted as well, and one particular Cypher trip was removed. If you last played Sunset before October 2024, a walk-through in a custom game is worth it.

Small details that decide rounds

A few smaller fixes are worth knowing: since patch 9.02, you can no longer jump onto the tall box in A Alley. Patch 8.03 adjusted the fence in A Elbow so shots through the top section work properly, removed a jump onto the phone booth in A Lobby and fixed a bug that let attackers break Cypher’s Trapwires in B Main from mid. Patch 10.05 fixed a bug where players couldn’t plant the spike on the B site crates inside the plant zone. And with patch 9.10, the whole map got updated lighting. Sunset also has two ultimate orbs.

Sunset rule of thumb: one door, 500 HP, one switch on the Market side. If you know whether the door is open, closed or destroyed, you know how fast the enemy can move between mid and B.

All 17 Sunset callouts explained

The table lists every Sunset callout from the official map with its area and the three spatially closest callouts. That way you instantly understand where a spot is when your team calls it. The table uses the names from the English client. Other language versions translate only a few terms – in German, for example, “Mid” becomes “Mitte” – so the callouts work with teammates from any region. The breakdown: 6 callouts on the A side, 5 on the B side, 4 in mid, plus attacker spawn and defender spawn.

How Sunset is laid out

On the official minimap, attacker spawn is at the very bottom in the center and defender spawn is at the top. B is on the left, A on the right, with mid in between. That’s the classic three-lane principle Riot itself describes for Sunset: one lane toward A, one lane toward B, and mid connecting both. Each site sits at an outer edge of the map – B site far left, A site far right.

A side: Lobby, Main, Elbow, Link and Alley

Attackers gather in A Lobby, which borders Mid Tiles directly. From there, A Main leads up onto A Site. To the right of the site, at the edge of the map, is A Elbow – a corner that borders both the site and Main. Above the site toward the defender side is A Link, and further up along the right edge of the map is A Alley. Link and Alley are therefore the areas the defense comes from on A. With six callouts, A is Sunset’s biggest area.

B side: Lobby, Main, Market, Boba and the site

B Lobby sits near attacker spawn and borders Mid Bottom. From there, B Main runs along the left edge of the map onto B Site, which lies at the far left of the map. B Market sits between B site and mid – this is where the door to Mid Courtyard and its switch are. B Boba lies above B site toward the defender side and borders Mid Top.

Mid: Bottom, Courtyard, Tiles and Top

Mid has four callouts. Mid Bottom is on the attacker side next to B Lobby, and Mid Tiles is also on the attacker side, next to A Lobby. Between them and a bit higher up is Mid Courtyard, the central square – right at the door to B Market. At the very top, close to defender spawn, is Mid Top, which borders B Market and Mid Courtyard; B Boba isn’t far away either. Whoever holds mid is therefore standing at the door to B (via Market) and close to the A side (via Tiles) at the same time.

Is Sunset in the map pool? Rotation history

Yes. Sunset has been back in rotation since patch 13.00 (June 23, 2026) – according to the patch notes, Summit and Sunset entered the Competitive and Deathmatch queues at that point, while Fracture and Pearl left. That makes Sunset part of the pool used for Competitive since patch 13.04 (August 18, 2026): Ascent, Abyss, Haven, Lotus, Split, Summit and Sunset. You’ll always find the current status for every map on our Valorant maps & map pool overview.

Sunset’s history has been eventful:

• Patch 7.04 (August 29, 2023): release, initially in Unrated and a Sunset-only Swiftplay queue.
• Patch 7.05: Sunset joins the Competitive rotation.
• Patch 10.00 (January 7, 2025): Sunset and Ascent leave the pool, Fracture and Lotus return.
• Patch 10.08 (April 29, 2025): Sunset is back in the pool, Fracture leaves.
• Patch 12.00 (January 6, 2026): Sunset leaves again, Breeze returns.
• Patch 13.00 (June 23, 2026): return alongside the new map Summit.

That’s normal: since patch 10.00, Riot rotates the pool with every new act. At the launch of patch 13.00, Sunset was also one of the maps whose sites were used in the new 3v3 Retake mode – alongside Ascent, Bind, Haven and Summit.

Sunset pro meta: who gets picked

What do pros play on Sunset? The presence values show in what percentage of maps an agent was picked by at least one team. The numbers come from our pick rate overview (source: vlr.gg, VCT 2026 Americas Stage 2, 150 maps played).

OmenController

100 %

NeonDuelist

91 %

SovaInitiator

57 %

CypherSentinel

54 %

ChamberSentinel

46 %

PhoenixDuelist

39 %

FadeInitiator

34 %

SageSentinel

27 %

KAY/OInitiator

14 %

Presence = share of pro maps played on Sunset in which at least one team picked the agent · data: vlr.gg, VCT 2026 Americas Stage 2 (150 maps in total)

Omen sits at 100% – no pro team plays Sunset without him. His smokes (Dark Cover) shut the chokes of all three lanes, and Shrouded Step lets him take surprising angles. Neon follows right behind at 91%: on a map with tight paths and clear lanes, her speed is ideal for entries. Next come Sova (57%), Cypher (54%) and Chamber (46%), followed by Phoenix (39%), Fade (34%) and Sage (27%). KAY/O reaches 14%, Viper and Skye 9% each. What stands out: on Sunset, pros almost always run just one controller – Omen – instead of a double-controller setup.

NeonDuelistFadeInitiatorSovaInitiatorOmenControllerCypherSentinel

Sunset: Top 5 by pick rate (28 team comps) · source: vlr.gg, VCT 2026 Stage 2 (4 regions) + Champions 2026

The reference comp shows the top 5 by pick rate on Sunset: Neon, Fade, Sova, Omen, Cypher (source: vlr.gg, VCT 2026 Stage 2 across four regions plus Champions 2026, evaluated over 28 team comps). Omen was in all 28 of those comps, Neon in 26. The idea behind it: scout mid with a double initiator – Fade and Sova – use Neon for fast entries, Omen for smokes and Cypher against the many lurk routes. Fade shows up here instead of Phoenix because of the broader data set with four regions plus Champions; in the Americas presence above, Phoenix is slightly ahead of Fade. Try your own variations in the team comp builder.

Attacking on Sunset: tips for the attacker side

As an attacker on Sunset, you decide many rounds in mid. Whoever holds Mid Courtyard can push toward B Market and play toward A through Tiles – forcing the defense to invest resources in mid.

1. Contest mid early: even one or two players moving through Mid Bottom or Mid Tiles toward Courtyard put pressure on the defense. With a Recon Bolt, an Owl Drone or Fade’s Haunt, you’ll then know whether Mid Top is held.
2. Check the door status: before you plan a B hit through Market, you need to know whether the door is open, closed or destroyed. A closed door costs 500 HP worth of ammo – plan for it or take B Main.
3. Hit B from two directions: the strongest B take comes through B Main and through Market at the same time. B defenders then have to look in two directions.
4. Clear A Elbow and A Link: on A, defenders like to wait in A Elbow next to the site and reinforce through A Link or A Alley. Smoke Link and Alley, get info on Elbow, then go through A Main together.
5. Post-plant after the B rework: since patch 9.08, the cover in B Main is simplified. Plan your B post-plant so you don’t only play from B Main but can also hear and see the spike from Market or mid.

A proven pattern is the mid split onto B: two players take control through Mid Courtyard and push toward Market while three come through B Main at the same time. The B defenders suddenly find themselves in a crossfire. Timing is everything – if one group is late, you end up playing isolated duels. Practice these plays beforehand on the strategy board.

On A, a fast, grouped hit through A Main with smokes on the defender side often pays off instead. While the take is happening, one player holds Mid Tiles so no defenders can rotate out of mid into your flank. And think about lurkers: with its three lanes, Sunset has many routes a single player can use to get behind the defense – which is exactly why pros rely on Cypher.

One thing specific to attackers: with only 17 callouts, Sunset is compact. Information spreads quickly, but so do defensive rotations. Hesitate for long on Sunset and you give the enemy time. With Neon at 91% presence, the pros show how important speed is on this map.

Defending on Sunset: tips for the defender side

As a defender on Sunset you have one advantage: the door. Used well, it shrinks the route from mid to B down to a single, known entrance – or removes it entirely.

1. Control Market and the door: the switch is on the Market side. Whoever holds Market decides whether attackers get from Mid Courtyard to B. Close the door when pressure comes from mid.
2. Mid Top as an info post: Mid Top sits close to defender spawn and borders B Market and Mid Courtyard. One player there with info utility – such as Cypher’s Spycam – spots attacks through mid early.
3. Hold A with a rotation path: defenders reach A site quickly through A Link and A Alley. Plan your A defense so that a retake through those two routes stays possible.
4. Play B after the rework: patch 9.08 explicitly made B more defensible and created more ways to play on site. Use the new positions and the simplified cover in B Main for retakes.
5. Retake instead of solo fights: on a compact map with short routes, it pays to give up a site in a controlled way and retake it together with utility, rather than running into the post-plant one by one.

A common defender mistake is closing the door stubbornly and then forgetting about it. A closed door also blocks your own rotation through Market. If you’re planning a B retake and want to come through Mid Courtyard, the door has to be open – or you deliberately take the longer route.

Watch the door: once the door is destroyed, the passage between B Market and Mid Courtyard stays open for the rest of the round – the switch won’t help anymore. Call it out the moment the door goes down, because from then on B can be reached through mid at any time.

Sunset setups: Cypher & Omen smokes

Here are the key Sunset setups to copy – no video needed: every position is marked on the official minimap, numbered and explained step by step. The agents are the ones actually played on Sunset in VCT 2026: Omen (100% presence) and Cypher (54%).

Every setup is backed by at least two matching sources; for B only sources from after the patch 9.08 rework count. Pick a setup on the map – it zooms straight to the right spot. Important: the markers show the area, not the exact pixel. Try each setup once in a custom game before you use it in ranked.

Cypher A setup: trips A Main & A Elbow, cage on default

DefenseSite ACypher

1. 1Trip 1: Place the first wire across the entrance attackers use to walk from A Main onto the site – set it low so it is hard to spot while running in.
2. 2Trip 2: Put the second wire in the A Elbow choke. You hear anyone trying to get behind you through Elbow.
3. 3Cage: Drop the Cyber Cage on the green box at the default plant and pop it when a trip fires or someone tries to plant.
4. +Tip: The camera is up to you in this setup – the sources name different spots. A good angle is one that shows the entrance from A Main.

Covers: Both attacker routes onto A (A Main and A Elbow) plus the default plant.

Weak spot: A Link and A Alley have no wire – your rotations come through there, but so do lurkers from mid.

Sources: EsportsDriven – Best Cypher setups on Sunset · EsportsBetting – Three Cypher setups on Sunset · AllValorant – Cypher guide for the Sunset rework (11/2024) · Cyphered – Sunset Cypher trips

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Cypher B setup: one-way cage in the B Main doorway

DefenseSite BCypher

1. 1Cage: Walk to the corner of the B Main doorway, aim at the top of the door frame and throw the Cyber Cage there. Then fall back onto the site; pop the cage as soon as you hear steps in B Main – you see the attackers' legs, they don't see you.
2. +Tip: patch 9.08 reworked B Main, so old lineups no longer work. For trips and the camera the post-rework sources name different spots – ideally buy two cages to also catch a fake push.

Covers: The attackers' main route onto B (B Main) with a one-way advantage.

Weak spot: Market stays open, and blinds quickly devalue the one-way. Play with a teammate in Market.

Sources: EsportsBetting – Cypher one-way for the new Sunset (10/2024) · AllValorant – Cypher guide for the Sunset rework (11/2024)

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Omen A execute: smokes on A Link & A Alley

AttackSite AOmen

1. 1Smoke 1: Put Dark Cover on A Link. It cuts off defenders rotating from Mid Top onto the site.
2. 2Smoke 2: Place the second smoke at the A Alley exit onto the site. It blocks the shortest path from Defender Spawn.
3. +Tip: Then go through A Main together; check A Elbow with info utility first.

Covers: Both defender rotation routes onto A: A Link and A Alley.

Weak spot: A Elbow stays open – defenders there sit right next to the site. Clear it with a flash or drone.

Sources: VNGGames – Omen smoke guide Sunset (12/2025) · Sportskeeda – Complete Brimstone Sunset guide

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Omen B execute: smoke on B Market

AttackSite BOmen

1. 1Smoke: Put Dark Cover in the B Market exit onto the site. Defenders in Market and rotations from mid can neither see the plant nor step in quickly.
2. +Tip: the sources place the second smoke differently (back site or site entrance) – place it based on your initiator's info, then go in together from B Main.

Covers: The Market rotation route between mid and B.

Weak spot: If the door between Market and Mid Courtyard is closed, rotations are slower – then the smoke is worth more for the post-plant.

Sources: VNGGames – Omen smoke guide Sunset (12/2025) · Sportskeeda – Complete Brimstone Sunset guide

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Omen defense A: smokes in A Main & A Elbow

DefenseSite AOmen

1. 1Smoke 1: Put Dark Cover in the A Main lane leading up from A Lobby at the start of the round. Attackers have to walk through the smoke or spend utility.
2. 2Smoke 2: Place the second smoke in A Elbow – both fast routes onto the site are now blocked at once.
3. +Tip: The smokes buy time until your rotation arrives through A Link or A Alley.

Covers: The two fastest attacker routes onto A: A Main and A Elbow.

Weak spot: The smokes expire early – you need other utility to stop later pushes.

Sources: Sportskeeda – Complete Brimstone Sunset guide · ONE Esports – Best Sunset smokes · VNGGames – Omen smoke guide Sunset (12/2025)

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The best agents for Sunset in ranked

You don’t need to copy a pro comp in ranked, but you should cover the roles. On Sunset, an Omen is almost mandatory. This selection is based on the pro meta and the map’s layout:

The agent test tells you which agent fits your playstyle on Sunset. For the overall ranking of all agents, check the agent tier list.

The 5 most common mistakes on Sunset

Many rounds on Sunset aren’t lost to bad aim but to the same thinking errors. Avoid these five and you’ll win noticeably more rounds:

• Forgetting the door: a closed door nobody notices costs attackers valuable seconds. A destroyed door nobody calls out costs defenders the round. Always call the door status.
• Giving up mid for free: attacking only through A Main or B Main hands the defense mid – and fast rotations through Mid Top and Market with it.
• Not checking A Elbow: attackers often clear the corner next to A site too late. A single defender there can stop an entire take.
• Ignoring lurkers: three lanes mean many routes into your back. Without a Trapwire, an alarm or a player holding the flank, a single enemy can get behind you unnoticed.
• Old B in your head: if you remember Sunset from before patch 9.08, you’ll look for cover and trip spots that no longer exist. Walk B site once in a custom game.

Callout cheat sheet: what good calls sound like on Sunset

A good callout answers three questions in one sentence: how many, where, and in what state. On Sunset, a fourth piece of info often belongs in there too: the state of the door. The following examples use only names from the official map:

• “Two A Main, one tagged” – two enemies are coming through A Main, one of them is damaged.
• “One A Elbow, holding site” – a defender is waiting in the corner next to A site.
• “Door’s closed, Market” – the path from Mid Courtyard to B Market is shut.
• “Door’s broken” – the passage between Market and Courtyard stays open for the rest of the round.
• “Three B Lobby, one Mid Bottom” – a B attack is building, with one player in mid.
• “One Mid Top, turning to Boba” – an enemy in mid is heading toward B Boba.

Two rules make the difference: first, always include the door status – “door closed”, “door open”, “door broken”. That instantly tells your team how fast the enemy can get from mid to B. Second, short and calm after you die: you can still see where the enemy is going, and that is exactly the info your team needs right now.

Sunset compared with all 13 maps

With 17 callouts, Sunset is the most compact of the 13 maps – no other map has fewer named spots. It also has just one mechanic: the door between B Market and Mid Courtyard. While Haven and Lotus work with three sites and other maps rely on ropes, rotating doors or teleporters, Sunset sticks to the classic three-lane principle with two sites. The table compares all 13 maps side by side:

Learn Sunset in 15 minutes: your plan

Want to master Sunset quickly? This short training plan combines the tools on Valorant-Spind:

1. 5 minutes of map study: turn on “All names” above and go through A, mid and B one by one using the filters.
2. 3 minutes of quiz: run the Sunset callout quiz – with only 17 callouts, ten out of ten is the goal.
3. 5 minutes in a custom game: walk Sunset in the game itself – A Lobby, A Main, Mid Tiles, Mid Courtyard, B Market, B Main – and close the door once using the switch on the Market side.
4. 2 minutes of tactics: for Sunset, draw a mid split onto B through Market and B Main on the strategy board and share it with your team.

After that, check out two maps that work similarly yet differently: Ascent with two doors and an open mid, and Haven with three sites. If you also want to work on your aim, the aim trainer has matching drills.

Sunset FAQ