Neon (2024)

“	Filipino Agent, Neon, surges forward at shocking speeds, discharging bursts of bioelectric radiance as fast as her body generates it. She races ahead to catch enemies off guard, then strikes them down quicker than lightning. — Official description

Neon is an Agent in VALORANT and the sixth Duelist to be released.

1 Profile
- 1.1 Biography
- 1.2 Personality
- 1.3 Appearance
2 Abilities
- 2.1 Passive
- 2.2 Basic
- 2.3 Signature
- 2.4 Ultimate
3 Agent Cosmetics
- 3.1 Gear
- 3.2 Other cosmetics
  - 3.2.1 Player Cards
  - 3.2.2 Sprays
  - 3.2.3 Weapon Skins
  - 3.2.4 Buddies
4 Quotes
5 Update History
6 Spotify Playlist
7 Trivia
- 7.1 Relations
- 7.2 Development
8 Gallery
9 References
10 Navigation

Profile[]

Biography[]

For more lore details and analysis related to Neon, be sure to also check out the VALORANT Lore Wiki's article!

VALORANT Lore Wiki: Neon

Biography
Timeline of events

Raised in Manila, Philippines, Tala Nicole Dimaapi Valdez is a Radiant empowered by her bioelectricity which has enlaced itself with Earth's radianite mesh. A young but former veteran at K-SEC, she was recruited by the VALORANT Protocol as part of their Omega Project, specifically to utilize her electric abilities as they attempted to power an Alpha-Omega teleporter. Accepting a position there as their nineteenth agent, "Neon", Valdez left her home to join the Protocol and now seeks to help establish a stable connection that will finally allow the VP to cross over to Omega Earth.

TALA NICOLE DIMAAPI VALDEZ: Early Life[]

Valdez works for K-SEC.^[1]

NEON: VALORANT agent[]

Recruited as its nineteenth agent.
Neon is present at VALORANT HQ whilst several agents were participating in the Max Bot training exercise.^[2]
- Neon is able to turn on a live stream of the action from her personal quarters.

The Omega Project[]

Neon works with Killjoy to attempt rebooting the Alpha-Omega teleporter.^[3]
Neon expresses concerns over Killjoy becoming more lax with her own safety protocols.^[4]
Neon rejects ideas about removing limiters from her surge protector.^[5]
- Despite Chamber inquiring into the possibilities, Neon assures Brimstone she can still produce a lot of power and that removing the caps could result in a destructive overload. She makes it clear that she will not be removing the limiters.

The Blackmailer[]

Neon is assigned as a member of the Istanbul strike team.^[6]
- Neon’s role was to cover ground quickly, and she also fights in the team’s final move to apprehend their target.

First ventures into Omega[]

Neon is assigned as a member of the Omega Lisbon Data Center strike team.^[7]
- She holds off a squad of Force Atlas agents along with Reyna whilst Killjoy obtains information from a terminal.
- Her surge protector is damaged during the mission, causing her to go into Overdrive.
After the mission to the Data Center, Neon is kept isolated in a containment room whilst her surge protector is repaired.^[8]
- She expresses boredom and frustrations whilst waiting, and wants to return to the fight as soon as possible in order to get payback.

Journey into the City of Flowers[]

Neon takes time away in Salvador, Brazil, with some of the other agents before the Protocol's main mission to the City of Flowers.^[9]

Project Landfall[]

Neon receives a new capacitor from Killjoy and Reyna to help her control her pack's limiter.^[10]
- She only trusts her father with the installation, so she heads back home for him to install the upgrade.
Neon reacts to the possible addition of a new recruit with other agents.^[11]

Personality[]

“	"You made me care. Big mistake" — Neon (Ace)

With her electrifying speed allowing her to charge into the heat of the battle, Neon is not one who can promise her allies that she'll stay out of harm's way. While she is confident in her abilities and the value it can bring during gunfights, she can sometimes struggle to control her electric powers and thus makes it a point to keep them in check at all times.

Neon has strong and close ties with her family; as soon as she arrived at the VALORANT Protocol headquarters, she made sure to call her parents to update them on the news.^[12] According to Chamber, Neon has a strong sense of service which she gets from her family. She also cares a lot for her teammates during missions, reminding them to take care and to stay alive because as she states, she hates making new friends.

Appearance[]

Neon is a young Filipina woman with olive skin and a short stature. She sports an athletic attire with black and blue running leggings along with a pair of sneakers. She also wears a dark-blue cropped vest that appears to act as electrical conduits for her powers. Her arms and face have light blue patterns that can illuminate with her radiant abilities. She has shoulder-length shaggy hair, colored mainly electric blue with streaks of yellow throughout and wears it in a half-up pigtails hairstyle. She also wears a belt and accessorizes with a golden bracelet on each arm.

When using her radiant powers to channel electricity through her body, the patterns on her arms, face, as well as her eyes glow light blue along with the her hair which stands-up due to the electricity.

Abilities[]

Passive[]

Energy

Using High Gear and Overdrive consumes Energy. Killing an enemy agent instantly refills Energy.

Duration: 10 s to completely drain using High Gear, 20 s using OverdriveCooldown: 20 s to replenish from 0-100Health: 100 Energy

Basic[]

C – Fast Lane

FIRE two energy lines forward on the ground that extend a short distance or until they hit a surface. The lines rise into walls of static electricity that block vision.

Uses: 1 Cost: 300Duration: 4 s

Q – Relay Bolt

INSTANTLY throw an energy bolt that bounces once. Upon hitting each surface, the bolt electrifies the ground below with a Concussive blast.

Uses: 1 Cost: 200Windup: 0.8 sDebuff: 3.5 s Concuss

Signature[]

E – High Gear

INSTANTLY channel Neon's power for Increased Speed. When charged, ALT FIRE to trigger an electric slide. Slide charge resets every two kills.

Uses: 2 Cost: 150Duration: 10 s max.Cooldown: 2 kill recharge

Ultimate[]

X – Overdrive

Unleash Neon's full power and speed for a short duration. FIRE to channel the power into a deadly lightning beam with high movement accuracy.

Ult Points:♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ 7Duration: 20 s min.Damage: 54-30 Head, 18-10 Body, 15-8 Legs (with falloff))

Agent Cosmetics[]

The following are cosmetics related to Neon from Agent Gear and from other sources (e.g. Battle Pass).

Gear[]

More information: Gear

Chapter 1
Tier 1	Tier 2	Tier 3	Tier 4	Tier 5

Spray: Nice To Zap You	Player Card: VALORANT Neon	Player Title: Electrifying	Spray: Hot Mic	Kingdom Credits: 2,000
2,000	2,500	3,000	3,500	-

Chapter 2
Tier 6	Tier 7	Tier 8	Tier 9	Tier 10

Buddy: Surge Protector	Spray: Neon	Player Title: Zoomer	Player Card: Eye of the Storm	Weapon Skin: Live Wire Frenzy
4,500	5,500	6,500	7,500	8,000

Other cosmetics[]

Player Cards
Image	Name	Source
	A Warm Welcome	Event Pass: 2023 Horizons
	Ankle-Breaker	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 2
	Boot Camp // So Much More	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 2
	Enter the Duelists	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 1
	EP 4 // DISRUPTION	Event Pass: Recall
	EP 5 // DIMENSION	Event Pass: Recall
	Give Back // 2022	Store: Give Back // 2022
	Latest Issue	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 2
	Live Wire (teaser)	Battle Pass: EP 03 Act 3
	Mementos Pt. 2	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 3
	Neon ID	Battle Pass: EP 04 Act 1
	Operation Vacation	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 1
	Pixel Moments	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 2
	Radiants Detected	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 3
	Rank Up! // Masters Tokyo 2023 (banner only)	Broadcast Drops
	Rooftop Revelry	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 3
	Scare Tactics	Prime Gaming Drops
	Spike Sanded	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 2
	While It's Hot	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 3
	Wishing You Happiness	Event Pass: Lunar Celebration
	You Wanna Bet?	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 1

Sprays
Image	Name	Source
	All Aboard	Battle Pass: EP 04 Act 2
	Already Locked	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 3
	Give Back // 2022	Store: Give Back // 2022
	Hold Back	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 1
	Immortalized	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 2 Part of collection: Immortalized
	Neon Bot	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 1
	No Bodyblock	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 3
	No Worries Neon	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 1
	Oh I See	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 2
	Perfectly Roasted	Battle Pass: EP 06 Act 1
	Power of Five	Battle Pass: EP 09 Act 1
	Shocked Spark	Battle Pass: EP 08 Act 1
	Spark Shock	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 3
	Updraft Scare	Battle Pass: EP 07 Act 3
	You Are Here	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 2

Weapon Skins
Skin	Weapon	Variant	Source
Immortalized	Vandal	Base	Battle Pass: EP 05 Act 2
		Orange
		Blue
		Green

Buddies
Image	Name	Source
	Give Back // 2022	Store: Give Back // 2022

Quotes[]

Main article: Neon/Quotes

Update History[]

v9.01 (Console)

High Gear
- Re-equip Speed changed from Fast to Instant.

v9.01

High Gear
- Fixed a bug where Neon could equip faster out of her slide than intended by manually inputting an equip action.

v8.11 (PC) / v9.0 (Console)

High Gear
- Removed Neon's air accuracy while sliding

v8.11

Energy
- Time until Full Fuel Regen 60s >>> 20s
Fast Lane
- Fast Lane dissipates from behind to minimize visual noise in combat space while giving cover for Neon.
  - Fast Lane’s audio has been updated to travel with the fade out of the wall.
- Wall Duration 6s >>> 4s
- Wall Dissolve Duration 1s >>> 2s
High Gear
- Sprint
  - Neon no longer has her strafe speed reduced while sprinting.
    - Max Sprint Speed while moving sideways 6.73 meters/second >>> 9.11 meters/second
- Slide
  - Slide charges 1 >>> 2
  - Neon now removes all weapon movement error when sliding.
    - This effectively means she’s more accurate while sliding.
  - Second Slide Cost: 150
  - Equips out of slide: Fast >>> Instant
    - Slide equip buffer >>> .2s (after sliding, there is .2 seconds before her gun comes out)
Relay Bolt
- Charges 2 >>> 1
- Windup delay 1.1s >>> .8s
- Concuss Duration 3.0s >>> 3.5s

v7.08

Fast Lane
- Now more reliably fully extends through Fracture’s A Door when cast from the outside, behaving the same as when used from inside A Hall.

v6.03

Adjusted hair height to fit within standardized vertical range

v5.10

High Gear
- Can no longer use slide to boost upwards in specific map locations

v5.03

Overdrive
- Damage per shot reduced 22 >>> 18
- Leg shot multiplier reduced 1.0 >>> 0.85
- Killzone increased 15m >>> 20m
- Headshot multiplier increased 1 >>> 3

v4.10

High Gear
- Fixed a bug where High Gear would automatically stop after using Fast Lane or Relay Bolt

v4.08

Energy
- Energy received upon killing an enemy increased 25% >>> 100%
Fast Lane
- Damage removed
High Gear
- Velocity restriction to cast slide removed
  - Slide cannot be cast during equip delay
- Can now slide sideways and forward, only requiring Neon to be moving
- Energy drain increased 6.7/s >>> 10/s

v4.07

Overdrive
- Can now be input-queued to equip after the current action

v4.0

Added

Spotify Playlist[]

Trivia[]

Neon is from Manila, the Philippines' capital.
- "Viper, your suit is a little stifling, no? When you go meet the new agent, maybe pack something light, Manila is quite warm this time of year"
- The first teaser for this was hidden in some binary code in an official VALORANT tweet, which converted to the coordinates 14.5995° N, 120.9842° E, leading to a busy area in the Quiapo district of Manila.^[13]
- In an official photo for the December 2021 Night.Market, another teaser of Neon's place of origin appeared in the form of parol lanterns, a traditional Filipino Christmas ornament, which were seen in the background.^[14]
Neon is a skilled basketball player and was part of her high school basketball team.^[15]
- A basketball can be seen in her room at VALORANT HQ, as well as both a framed Philippines basketball jersey and basketball hoop mounted on the walls.^[16]
Canonically, she is the shortest agent in the VALORANT roster.^[17]
She makes a cameo appearance in the music video for the song in her agent trailer: Entertain Me by Filipina singer Ylona Garcia.

Relations[]

Neon has had a previous misunderstanding with Chamber, which prevented him from being able to approach her when he and the VALORANT Protocol needed her help later on.
- "Unfortunately, I cannot reach out to her directly, there is a past...misunderstanding that...may make her less receptive."^[1]

Development[]

VALORANT's Agent Team which worked on Neon and the League of Legends's Champion Team which worked on Zeri, collaborated together, contributing to both characters.
- Both characters are inspired by Filipino culture, share the same voice actress, and hairstyle.
- Both also have power over electricity and abilities that affect their movement. One of Zeri's theme during development was to bring the feel of a shooter to League of Legends.
- Both characters were announced around the same time for their respective games.
- Both characters share the quotes "Quick feet, quick trigger", and "I belong here. We all belong here".
  - "Quick feet, quick trigger."
  - "I belong here. We all belong here."
According to a media article with an interview of Neon's VA, Neon was discovered by a Filipino scientist around 10 BFL when they were conducting an investigation near Mt. Pulag following a lightning strike that revealed a rift in the sky. She was then adopted by the scientist alongside her adoptive mom who works as an officer in the Manila Anti-Corruption Task Force.^[18]
- Because this info didn't come from an official Riot or VALORANT source, nor was it associated with a Rioter, it should not yet be taken as canon.^[19] However, there are still links between the info shown and info about Neon that is canon, such as the appearance of a lightning strike and rift in her player card.

Gallery[]

Spark - NEON Agent Trailer -- VALORANT

Concept art

Facial expression sheet