Why is Sage the best Sentinel in Valorant?

Since Valorant's launch in 2020, its original core agents like Jett and Sage have remained some of the strongest and most competitive choices.  While that's easy to understand with high-damage-dealers, what is it about the orb-using Sage that makes her a Valorant fave to this day?

What makes Sage such a good Sentinel in Valorant?

When it comes to Valorant agents, one of their best skills for competitive play is utility. No surprise, Sage is great at that. Players know her for her ability to heal and resurrect allies, but her walls and slows can also make a big difference during high-pressure conflicts. Utility like this makes supporting your team or solo-queueing much easier.

This kind of usefulness reflects in Sage's stats, which you can check out on Tracker Network's Valorant Insights. Sage has the second-highest pick rate at 10.6%, and despite being a supportive Sentinel, she has the third-highest kill percentage at 9.3%.

As far as pro-play goes, Sage is so effective because she has all those supportive skills and kill capability. If you're a good shot, as Sage you can get high kills and high support. In a good team, a Sage can make huge moves. A single Sage wall can mean the difference between a successful bomb defusal and crushing, explosive defeat.

Related: How Long to Defuse The Spike in Valorant?

How does Sage do in competitive Valorant's professional scene?

Sage's popularity in competitive Valorant tournaments varies. She can be versatile for her own benefit (can heal herself) or can slow and heal for her entire team. But much like Reyna hasn't shined much in pro-play recently, Sage struggled to have footing the past few months. When other Sentinels are balanced strongly, she simply gets bowled over. However, with the somewhat-recent Chamber nerfs, Sage has returned to pro-play again. Known Sentinel-mains like DSG Yay have been using her to influence their games.

Related: Who is Valorant Pro Player DSG Yay?

But Sage isn't just a good option in competitive or professional games.

Why is Sage a great Valorant agent for noobies?

Whether Sage is a pro-play darling or not, though, her ability to influence Valorant sets her apart from other starting agents. After all, Sage is one of the few agents that can still be huge influences in a game even if you're not a good shot. Your walls, heals, and slows can all be used to assist your teammates. Therefore, Sage can still be a good ally even while you're new and still working on your shooting skills. While fellow Sentinel Killjoy has a higher winrate (50.5% to Sage's 50.1%), that's something the tech-genius just can't beat.