VALORANT Patch 13.05: The Three Dates Players Should Not Miss

Patch 13.05 is small by Riot's own description, but it has three dates that are easy to miss: Champions Shanghai Pick'Ems opens September 10, Agent Gear changes with Patch 13.06 on September 22, and Groups begins September 24. Riot's Patch 13.05 notes are the source for all three.

Those dates do different jobs. Pick'Ems is a short participation window. The Agent Gear change matters if you are partway through an Agent's unlock track. The Group Stage date is the cutoff Riot gives for submitting picks. Do not turn them into one vague "Champs update" and hope the client reminds you in time.

Pick'Ems opens before Groups, not at the first match

Riot says Champions Shanghai Pick'Ems will be available in the client and on the web from September 10. Players predict the teams that advance from Groups, receive points for correct advancing teams, and get extra points for exact placement. Riot also says participating earns rewards. That is what the current patch notes confirm.

Riot says picks must be in before Groups begins on September 24. The notes give dates but no precise clock time or time zone for availability or the cutoff, so there is no honest UTC conversion to put on a calendar. Treat September 23 as your reminder and use the live client, web page and official event information for the actual lock time.

This is not a reason to make a prediction on September 10 and never look again. If the interface permits changes before it locks, you may want the official team and event information close at hand. But do not build a guide around a feature Riot has not promised. The confirmed part is simple: Pick'Ems begins September 10 and closes before Group Stage starts September 24.

For the tournament's announced calendar and format rather than the prediction feature, see our Champions Shanghai guide. The patch notes should remain your first stop if the availability date or reward details change.

Finish any borrowed Agent Gear now

Patch 13.05 gives a direct warning about Agent Gear. Riot says Patch 13.06 is planned for September 22, and that the progression track will then tie each piece of gear to play time on its associated Agent. Players keep gear already earned and will still use Kingdom Credits for future gear. Riot's wording is specific about the transition.

The part worth acting on is the gap before that patch. If you are currently earning Agent Gear on an Agent you do not normally play, Riot says this is the time to finish those unlocks. After 13.06, playing a different Agent will not advance that Agent's gear in the same way. That is a progression decision, not a balance recommendation. Do not force a ranked pick you cannot play just to clear a cosmetic track.

Riot has not published a detailed replacement unlock table in these notes. It would be speculation to promise a number of games, an exact play-time threshold or a migration rule beyond what Riot has written. If you have credits and a half-finished track, check the current client before September 22 and decide whether the remaining items are worth the matches you would spend.

The enforcement notice is not a loophole guide

Riot says it has started rolling out penalties when it detects stream-sniping and instalock tools. The patch notes say a player found using one can receive a temporary game ban, with repeated use escalating to a permanent ban. That is an enforcement notice, not a published detection manual.

The safe interpretation is short: do not run software or scripts that read, automate or interfere with agent select, and do not use a stream to gain match information. The notes do not name every tool, describe technical detection signals, or promise a fixed first-offence outcome. Anyone claiming they know a safe version of an instalock tool is asking you to trust them over Riot's rule. That is bad math.

This update is narrower than the broader account-behaviour questions covered in our penalty systems guide. If you receive an account message, read its category and use Riot's support route when you need account-specific help. Do not assume another player's punishment tells you what will happen to yours.

A few fixes worth unlearning

Patch 13.05 also changes two things players may notice mid-round. Sound sprays now attenuate so they can be heard only nearby, and Riot says that will be the standard for future audio sprays. Riot also fixed a timing issue where dissipating Astra, Brimstone, Clove, Miks and Omen smokes could keep blocking flashes and other line-of-sight-dependent abilities after the smoke had faded. Both changes are listed in the official notes.

Do not overread that smoke fix as an Agent buff or nerf. It removes an interaction Riot calls a bug. If a flash previously failed after a smoke appeared gone, stop treating that old timing as a reliable round plan.

For PC players, the Range now lets you select 10, five or one bot; five is the new default. Riot lists the setting under the PC-only general updates. It is a small convenience, but it makes a short warm-up less fiddly if five targets are already the drill you use.

Patch 13.05 does not demand a new agent pool or a wholesale practice routine. Put the September 10, 22 and 24 dates somewhere you will see them, complete any Agent Gear you genuinely want, and leave the tool shortcuts alone. The rest is mostly a welcome chance to delete old workarounds.

Sources checked

• VALORANT Patch Notes 13.05, Riot Games, page dated September 2, 2026; checked September 1, 2026 at 18:31 UTC. Used for every Patch 13.05 change, date and enforcement statement in this article.
• VALORANT News, Riot Games, checked September 1, 2026 at 18:31 UTC. Used to confirm Patch 13.05 is the latest official game-update item.
• VALORANT Esports | Schedule, Riot Games, checked September 1, 2026 at 18:31 UTC. Used only to verify current esports context; it is not the source of any deadline in this article.

The practical reminders in this article are Valorant Village editorial guidance. Riot's live Patch Notes and Champions surfaces control if a date, cutoff or reward changes.

Header image: an original Valorant Village explanatory illustration. It is not a Riot asset, client screenshot or event photograph.