Fracture is the only map where the attackers come from both sides at once, with the defenders placed in the center. You never defend a direction here, you defend against being surrounded.
Fracture reads like an H: two spike sites at the ends, the defender spawn in the center, and the two halves of the attacking ground linked by ziplines that run underneath. There is no middle to contest in the usual sense, since the only way between the two sites is the enemy spawn. In the lore, the map sits in New Mexico, on a research facility split in two by a failed experiment.
A SiteTwo opposite approaches: A Hall from above and A Dish from below, which lets you pinch the site without ever going through a single corridor. The rope at A Rope also gives access to the height towards A Link.
MidIt does not exist in the usual sense: the only way between the two sites is the defender spawn. On the attacking side, the bridge and the ziplines make the link, which moves the whole information battle towards the edges of the sites.
B SiteA wide site, full of corners, approached through B Main, through B Arcade and through the tunnel that runs underneath. It is dominated by B Tower, the most profitable position on the whole map.
The ziplines
Two parallel one way ziplines run under the defender spawn and directly link the two halves of the attacking camp. You take them by walking onto them and they move the player automatically, but <strong>you cannot shoot, use an ability or get off during the trip</strong>: slowing down is the only thing available. The map also has classic verticality, with the rope at A Rope and the drop at A Drop.
Vocabulary
ALL THE CALLOUTS ON FRACTURE
The callouts on Fracture serve less to locate an opponent than to say which side the pressure is coming from, since the attack can come from both at once.
Callout
In plain English
Tactical role
A Hall
The hall on A
The large approach to A Site from the upper half of the attacking ground. It feeds several entry angles instead of a single corridor.
A Door
The door on A
The opening that carries A Hall on towards the site. A key way through for anyone who wants to vary the entry angle rather than arrive through A Main.
A Main
A main entrance
The direct way into A Site. Simple but heavily anticipated, so costly without a smoke or a flash.
A Rope
The rope on A
The rope that lets you climb to the upper part of the A side. It opens access to the window and to A Link.
A Link
The A link
The raised passage linking the A side to the defender spawn. One of the rare paths to the other half of the map.
A Drop
The drop onto A
The drop that brings you onto A Site from the lower part. The classic way through for an attack coming from A Dish.
A Dish
The satellite dish
The area of the large satellite dish, on the lower half of the attacking ground. You also hear it called Satellite, and it is where the second pincer on A comes from.
A Gate
The gate on A
The gated way through on the edges of A Site. A useful landmark for saying where pressure is coming from.
Attacker Side Bridge
The bridge on the attacker side
The way that links the two halves of the attacking camp from above. Together with the ziplines, it is what lets you rebuild the team on one side or the other.
Defender Spawn
The defender spawn
The central area where the defenders spawn, and the only direct link between the two sites. Controlling it after a plant cuts off every fast retake.
B Tree
The tree on B
A landmark area on the upper half of the B side. It leads to B Main or to the tunnel depending on the plan chosen.
B Main
B main entrance
The frontal way into B Site from above. Long and exposed to B Tower, so rarely crossed without utility.
B Tunnel
The tunnel under B
The underground passage that goes around B Site and comes out below. A quiet flanking route, and a retake angle for the defenders.
B Canteen
The canteen
The room next to B Site, full of cover. A holding area for the defenders and a fallback after the plant.
B Generator
The generator
The raised corner of B Site, around the generator. A frequent plant position, but hard to defend without B Tower.
B Tower
The tower above B
The high position dominating both B Arcade and the entrances to the site. It is the most contested point on the map, and the one that sets the pace of the rounds on B.
B Link
The B link
The passage linking the B side to the defender spawn. A rotation route for the defenders and a retake angle after a plant.
B Arcade
The arcade on B
The approach to B Site from the lower half of the attacking ground. It takes the site from the opposite side to B Main, which makes double pressure possible.
B Bench
The bench on B
A small landmark on the edges of B Site. Useful for pinning down a position without having to describe the whole area.
The callouts of Fracture, with their zone and their tactical role.
Remember
THE KEY POINTS OF THE MAP
B Site
B Tower
The most profitable position on the map: it sees B Arcade and the entrances to the site at the same time. Taking it on attack decides almost every plant on B.
Mid
The defender spawn
The only direct link between the two sites. Controlling it after a plant means removing the enemy rotations and turning a retake into a race against the clock.
A Site
A Hall and A Dish
The two opposite approaches to A Site, one from above, the other from below. Playing them together is the simplest way to understand what the map asks for.
Gameplan
THE COMMON STRATEGIES
Attacking
Press from both sides at once
Engage a site through both of its approaches at the same time, A Hall with A Dish or B Main with B Arcade, rather than lining the players up in a single corridor.
Take B Tower as a priority as soon as the attack on B is decided, since the rest of the site depends on it.
Use the ziplines to rebalance the team on one side, bearing in mind that a player in transit cannot defend himself.
Occupy the defender spawn after the plant, which cuts off the fast retakes.
Defending
Look for information, play the retake
Gather information on both approaches to a site from the start of the round, because the pressure can come from both at once.
Hold B Tower for as long as possible, because it lets one player watch several entrances.
Place traps on the tunnel and on the links, the paths the attackers use to flank.
Accept the plant rather than forcing a duel that is lost in advance, and prepare a coordinated retake from the links.
Media
DISCOVER FRACTURE ON VIDEO
Riot Games' official map overview, useful for picturing the volumes and the heights before you set foot on it.
Map overview
The video only loads when you click, so it does not slow the page down.
Pincer attacks, ziplines and a central spawn: the questions Fracture raises for everyone discovering it.
It is one of the most disorienting maps in the game, but not one of the hardest to play. Its unusual structure simply asks you to drop one reflex: here you do not defend a direction, you defend in the middle of being surrounded. A beginner gets lost mostly at the start, until it becomes clear which side matches which half of the ground. Once that reference point is acquired, the map becomes very readable, because there is no complex mechanic to absorb on top.
Two parallel ziplines run under the defender spawn and link the two halves of the attacking camp. Each one works in a single direction, and walking onto it is enough to be carried automatically. The important point is that a player in transit cannot shoot, use an ability or get off before arriving: he is completely vulnerable for the whole crossing. So you take them to rebalance the team between the two sides, never to arrive in an area you know is held.
It is the feature that defines the map: the defenders spawn in the center, the attackers on either side. The direct consequence is that each site has two opposite approaches, which makes pincer attacks natural rather than exceptional. For the defenders it means that no single position covers every angle, and that you have to play information and then the retake rather than pure holding. That is also why the defender spawn matters so much: it is the only direct way from one site to the other.
The map asks for a lot of smokes, because a pincer attack means covering two entrances at the same moment. A controller able to place several zones at once therefore changes the cost of an execute. An initiator geared towards short angles is preferable to a long range recon agent, since the sightlines are rarely long. Finally, a sentinel gains a lot of value here, less to lock a site down than to watch the flanking routes, the tunnel and the links, that both teams move through.
THE MAPS OF VALORANT
Every map in the game, filterable by number of sites and by mechanic, each with its own detailed page.
