Icebox is one of the ten maps in VALORANT. Currently, it is one of seven in rotation for competitive and unrated. The map features "nests" which are included in the planting zone and zip-lines both vertical and horizontal. This map is also where the RETAKE cinematic takes place.
Your next battleground is a secret Kingdom excavation site overtaken by the arctic. The two plant sites protected by snow and metal require some horizontal finesse. Take advantage of the ziplines and they’ll never see you coming.
| ||
Lore[]
This map features a modern ship as attacker spawn and various shipping containers all around the map. Both sites on the defender half include sectioned research labs with their own equipment and purpose. A site contains the large display chamber that showcases a samurai suit. Originally the samurai suit included a mask on display, however, Yoru broke into the facility using a rift and stole the mask.
Crashed Ancient Ship[]
Off the coast of B site sits an ancient Japanese ship frozen in a mountain of ice. Harbor identifies this vessel as a Red Seal ship from Tokugawa era. Red-seal ships (朱印船, Shuinsen) were Japanese armed merchant ships bound for Southeast Asian ports in the first half of the 17th century. Currently, the area is being excavated by Kingdom by the use of large cranes. On board the ship were a collection of samurai suits, including the one linked to Yoru's ancestor who had the radianite mask Yoru uses to traverse rifts. In a voicemail from Yoru, it appears that the ship has a collection of temporal oddities, as Yoru was able to go through a rift there that he described as 'more of a now to then'.[1] (For further discussion of this message, see the voicemail from patch 4.02 in Brimstone's Office)
Furthermore, Kingdom Corporation has taken containers from the inside of the ship in the “Ancient Secrets” card, with their contents possibly being Radianite or the samurai suits.
Server Towers[]
Multiple servers can be found scattered throughout Icebox: two on the large A site building, and one in the research station in B Hall.
The purpose of these servers is unclear, but it is possible that the one under the samurai cage is used as a monitoring device, as the cable coming off of it is connected to a controllable unit with a danger sign.
As for the other two servers, their most likely purpose is data storage and scientific computation since they are both located inside research facilities.
KAR[]
Signs of Life[]
Although Icebox is presented as abandoned, evidence found in the map may suggest otherwise:
- There is fresh fruit and pizza that can be found in the employee lounge, indicating food is being brought to Icebox.
- Pathways are kept clear of snow and have truck wheel marks, indicating recent and continued activity.
Intruder Alert[]
All over the map warnings about an intruder are being shown, as seen in the following images. Even after Yoru leaves the facility with the mask the warnings have not been turned off, indicating that no one has bothered to do it or there are still intruders in the facility.
Samurai Armor On Display[]
There is a small room in Icebox's main building (A Site) which displays seven pods of Japanese samurai armor. There is one main set of armour displayed in a blue cage, along with the six other armor sets surrounding it, all stored in orange colored pods. The displayed armour in the blue cage is one of the focal points of the transition between Episode 1 and Episode 2 of VALORANT's story.
Samurai Armor On Display - Before Yoru[]
The armor is a complete set, mask included, worn by an ancient clan.
Vapor leaks from the cage, meaning that there is either a gas inside of it or the armor is being refrigerated, possibly for preservation.
This set of armor has been subject to many theories, many coming to the conclusion that the new Agent introduced in Episode 2 Act 1 would be an ancient samurai. Even though this turned out to not be the case, the theories were close.
Samurai Armor On Display - After Yoru[]
The entire layout of the cage has changed after someone, most likely Yoru, broke into the facility to steal part of the armor.
The window and wall have been torn apart, the cases that were previously orange now appear to be inactive and the cage containing the full set of armour is now broken, leaking even more vapor. The suit is no longer neatly displayed, as it has fallen down.
Additionally, a ray of energy, possibly Radianite energy, is coming off the previous position stolen piece: the mask. The flow of energy through the ray points towards the ceiling, and the ray's width gets larger as it ascends as well, suggesting that the energy is going away from the armor.
Even though it is not completely certain, the stolen mask is most likely the one Yoru is seen wearing after the incident.
We can see both masks very closely resemble each other in everything but the coloring. Both have six teeth: two large ones on the sides coming from the top jaw and two pairs distributed between the top and bottom jaw. The shape of the nose and chin are very similar as well.
Samurai Armor Being Scanned[]
This suit of armor does not have a mask as opposed to the one being displayed in the cage before the events of Episode 2. This potentially means that there is a second mask about which there is nothing known about.
Map Layout and Design[]
Attackers' Spawn[]
The entirety of Attackers' Spawn is housed on board a small, armed cargo ship containing not only storage for large shipping crates, but a room for research and planning that is monitoring the samurai suits in A site. This research room contains multiple noteworthy aspects:
- A monitoring screen on the wall for the encased samurai armor in the main A site building. The word “NORMAL” can be seen faintly overlayed on an image of the broken display case for the suit.
- Two prints of the same map, one on a table at the center of the room, and another on a notice board, the latter has sticky notes and connected pins spread across it. The bottom left of the map says “Strategy Map”, but what this refers to is unclear.
- A screen displaying a static image of Experiment X011 is also mounted on the wall. Given the color and effects of the experiment, it is likely a large chunk of radianite that was being tested. It is unclear how the ship or Icebox relate to this event. The picture is similar to the one found in the “Experiment X011” card, but without people.
A Site[]
The two NPC researchers near A site
Between A Belt and A Nest is a smaller research room marked with a sign telling employees to have their IDs ready. Inside this restricted room is a small server box, and a table holding one of the anti-Kingdom posters under scrutiny. Based on a few monitors on the back wall, this room also appears to be scanning and monitoring the crates being passed on the above conveyor belt.
Further along in A is the storage for the prior discussed samurai suits that were uncovered at B site, and a large radianite storage section. This section is located beneath A Site and has a large stash of radianite stored beneath a thin grate. In line with the rest of Icebox, the majority of this radianite is stored below ground with only a few boxes sitting directly on top of site.
B Site[]
The majority of the radianite for B is stored in between this crate and another that is open near B Orange. While that covers the visible radianite, there also appears to be more radianite stored beneath the site as evidenced by the elevator at B Fence where a green glow can be seen coming from one of the hallways placed just beneath the surface of the site.
Defenders' Spawn[]
Atop the northern part of the facility is a large platform which, at some point, housed a helicopter. This is seen in the pre-match art of Icebox, but never seen in-game. No markings are shown for a helipad on the platform, given that players are unable to see its upper part without the use of Ghost or Spectator mode.
For the end of the year, VALORANT’s creative team released some lore-related images, including the one on the right. In it, the tail of a helicopter is featured alongside a view of Icebox’s control tower, implying that it was somewhere in the map at the time the image was taken. The relevance of either helicopter is still unknown, but the existence of at least one helicopter in Icebox at a certain time is reinforced by both images.
Notes[]
- Kingdom HQ: Some of the shipping containers have a label that says “Managed and Operated by: The Kingdom Corp. 12333 W Olympic Blv, Los Angeles, CA 90064.”. This is actually the address to Riot Games Headquarters.
- Due to the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) that can be seen in Icebox’s sky it appears that the Agents visit the map between November and March, when the weather is “warmer”.
References[]
- ↑ Yoru's voicemail on Icebox from Kingdom Archives.