Phoenix Nerf Leaked for VALORANT Patch 13.02: What Changes for Run It Back

[COSMIN]

Phoenix is reportedly about to lose one of the best things going for him in VALORANT, and it comes down to a single number.

In brief:

• A leak from VALORANT insider account @valohabercisi claims Phoenix’s ultimate, Run It Back, is going from 6 ultimate points to 7 in the next patch
• Phoenix currently sits among the strongest agents at Platinum and above with a 51.4 percent win rate, which likely triggered the balance pass
• Riot has not confirmed the change yet, so treat everything here as unofficial until patch notes drop
• The last update was Patch 13.01 on July 14, putting the next one right on schedule for late July

The leaked Phoenix nerf changes in VALORANT

Credit: Riot Games

Run It Back, Phoenix’s ultimate, would move from 6 ultimate points to 7. That is it. No changes to Curveball, Blaze, or Hot Hands were listed in the post, though separate community discussion earlier this year floated a much heavier package that included duration cuts and a flash price hike. Nothing from that longer wishlist appears in this particular leak.

[LEAK]

Phoenix nerf coming with tomorrows patch.

•Run it back(X)
Point increased 6 to 7 pic.twitter.com/1uEK5lPtgl

— valohabercisi (@valohabercisi) July 27, 2026

One extra orb sounds minor on paper. In practice, it is the difference between having your ultimate ready on round five and having it ready on round seven. Especially for an agent whose entire identity is throwing himself into a site knowing he gets a free rewind, delaying that safety net by a round or two matters a lot more than the number suggests.

Phoenix has quietly been one of the most efficient agents in the game. Recent tracking has him at a 51.2 percent win rate, which puts him near the top of the duelist pool alongside Neon. He does that while asking almost nothing of the player. Free entry, free heal, free reset. Compared to Jett or Raze, the skill floor is generous.

Image Credit: Riot Games

Riot has used ultimate point increases as a soft nerf before. Jett’s Bladestorm and Killjoy’s Lockdown both got the same treatment in past patches, and it worked without gutting the agent. So, basically this looks like the same tool being pulled off the shelf.

If this goes through, Phoenix players will need to be far more deliberate about orb pickups and spike plants. Ult economy becomes an actual consideration instead of an afterthought. Expect fewer rounds where Phoenix walks into a site with a guaranteed second life, and expect his value to lean harder on the flash and molly.

When the VALORANT Phoenix nerf goes live?

Patch 13.01 landed on July 14, so the next update falls in line with VALORANT’s usual two-week cadence. The leak claims the change ships with that patch. Riot has not published the notes, so the number could still shift before release.

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