Vatu

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Vatu is a Flank Champion in Paladins, added on May 26th, 2021.

Vatu
Summary
Icon:
Title:	The Shadow
Class:	Flank
Affiliation:	Neutral
Group:	Thousand Hands Guild (works with)
Race:	Ska'drin
Gender:	Male
Release Date:	May 26th, 2021
Release Version:	4.4
Cost:	60,000 or 300
Voice Lines:	Vatu voice lines
Voice Actor:	Yong Yea
Statistics
Base Health:	1900
Base Movement Speed:	375 ~23.08 Units/s
No Dmg Falloff:	75 Units

Lore

Behind every door of the mind is the fear of the darkness in the corner of a dimly-lit room. It is the unknown — the terror without a form, but with a name: the Shadow.

Vatu’s origins are shrouded in the same shadow he uses as a weapon. He is the knife in the night, ending an eternal conflict – he is the untimely death, never confirmed as accidental. He and the Thousand Hands guild have an understanding: they provide him with work and money, and he takes care of their problems. The only thing clear in his actions are his desire to protect his Ska’Drin people and his deadly capability to do so.

Wielding sharp Kunai and mysterious shadow magic, Vatu takes care of business with a ruthless efficiency matched only by his strict code of ethics. His are not the eyes you want to see staring back at you from the darkness, for by that time it is already too late.

Summary

To be added

Skills

	Kunai 300 /0.9s Direct Damage Launch 3 Kunai in an arc from your hands, dealing 300 damage per Kunai.
Details Launch 3 Kunai from your hands every 0.9s, dealing 300 damage per Kunai. Has a max Ammo count of 5 and is fully effective up to 75 units. Kunai are fired in an arc. The spread of the Kunai could be reduced by firing it up or down, or by moving your view quickly. Has a reload time of 1.15s. Generates 2.33% of ultimate charge per Kunai per enemy hit. Has a max Ammo count of 5. Has a max range of 320 units. Ability Video
	Kunai Direct Damage
300 /0.9s Launch 3 Kunai in an arc from your hands, dealing 300 damage per Kunai.
Details Launch 3 Kunai from your hands every 0.9s, dealing 300 damage per Kunai. Has a max Ammo count of 5 and is fully effective up to 75 units. Kunai are fired in an arc. The spread of the Kunai could be reduced by firing it up or down, or by moving your view quickly. Has a reload time of 1.15s. Generates 2.33% of ultimate charge per Kunai per enemy hit. Has a max Ammo count of 5. Has a max range of 320 units. Ability Video

	Shadow Bombs 10 + Additional 200 /0.3s Area Damage Throw out 3 explosive projectiles that stick to their target and deal a small amount of damage on hit and an additional damage when they explode.	10
Details Throw out 3 explosive projectiles that stick to their target and explode after 0.3s. Each explosive deals 10 damage on hit and an additional 200 damage in a radius of 10 units on explosion. Has a range of 150 units before auto-exploding in the air. Also sticks to walls. Ability Video
	Shadow Bombs Area Damage	10
10 + Additional 200 /0.3s Throw out 3 explosive projectiles that stick to their target and deal a small amount of damage on hit and an additional damage when they explode.
Details Throw out 3 explosive projectiles that stick to their target and explode after 0.3s. Each explosive deals 10 damage on hit and an additional 200 damage in a radius of 10 units on explosion. Has a range of 150 units before auto-exploding in the air. Also sticks to walls. Ability Video

	Ambush 200 Direct Damage Teleport next to your target, dealing damage in an area on arrival. Can be refired on another enemy within 4s of teleporting.	11
Details Teleport next to your target, dealing 200 damage. This ability can be re-fired a second time within 4s on a different target. Damage hits in a 20-unit radius and is fully effective up to 10 units. Teleport has a range of 85 units. Your target is marked with an indicator. No indicator will be shown if your target is out of reach. Ability needs line of sight to a nearby target to be activated. Has wind up time of 0.3s. Ability Video
	Ambush Direct Damage	11
200 Teleport next to your target, dealing damage in an area on arrival. Can be refired on another enemy within 4s of teleporting.
Details Teleport next to your target, dealing 200 damage. This ability can be re-fired a second time within 4s on a different target. Damage hits in a 20-unit radius and is fully effective up to 10 units. Teleport has a range of 85 units. Your target is marked with an indicator. No indicator will be shown if your target is out of reach. Ability needs line of sight to a nearby target to be activated. Has wind up time of 0.3s. Ability Video

	Dash   Quickly dash in the direction of your movement input.	5
Details Quickly dash 40 units in the direction you are moving, reducing the damage you take by 60% during the dash. Has 3 charges. Dashes in the direction of your movement input depending on the viewing direction. Ability Video
	Dash	5
Quickly dash in the direction of your movement input.
Details Quickly dash 40 units in the direction you are moving, reducing the damage you take by 60% during the dash. Has 3 charges. Dashes in the direction of your movement input depending on the viewing direction. Ability Video

	Nightfall (Ultimate) ▶️800 Area Damage Activate to start charging up and fire to dash forward through enemies dealing 800 damage and stunning them for 1.25s.
Details Activate to start charging up. Reactivate to dash forward extremely quickly through enemies, dealing 800 damage and stunning enemies hit for 1.25s. Distance increases with charge duration. You are immune to Crowd Control while charging. Minimum charge is 0.5s, maximum charge is 2s, and will automatically fire after 3s. Cannot be canceled. ▶️ “Your light flickers!” (Self/Enemy) ▶️ “Witness true mastery...” (Ally) Has a maximum range of 130 units. Charge duration does not effect the damage dealt. Ability Video
	Nightfall (Ultimate) ▶️ Area Damage
800 Activate to start charging up and fire to dash forward through enemies dealing 800 damage and stunning them for 1.25s.
Details Activate to start charging up. Reactivate to dash forward extremely quickly through enemies, dealing 800 damage and stunning enemies hit for 1.25s. Distance increases with charge duration. You are immune to Crowd Control while charging. Minimum charge is 0.5s, maximum charge is 2s, and will automatically fire after 3s. Cannot be canceled. ▶️ “Your light flickers!” (Self/Enemy) ▶️ “Witness true mastery...” (Ally) Has a maximum range of 130 units. Charge duration does not effect the damage dealt. Ability Video

Talents

Omnipresence

Default Talent

Your Ambush gains an additional charge and can now be used on allies.

Unerring

Unlocks at Mastery Level 2

Increase the explosion radius of Shadow Bombs by 5 units and they now home to enemies.

Enveloping Shadows

Unlocks at Mastery Level 8

Reduce the Cooldown of your basic abilities by 12% after hitting an enemy with at least one Kunai. This can activate only once per throw.

Cards

This is a list with all cards available to Vatu:

Name	Image	Description	Cooldown	Category
Assassin's Tools		Reduce the damage you take by {6|6}% for 2s after activating Shadow Bombs.		Shadow Bombs
Contemplation		Heal for {100|-7.5} every 0.5s for {0.5|0.5}s after activating Dash. This effect stacks.		Dash
Deadly Dash		Generate 7% Ultimate charge after activating Dash once every {60|-8}s.	60-28	Dash
Extraction		Increase your Movement Speed by {5|5}% for 2s after Dash ends.		Dash
Final Sight		Reset the Cooldown of Ambush after falling to or below {10|10}% Health.	15	Armor / Weapon
Gathering Shadow		Reduce the damage you take by {5|5}% for 2s after Ambush ends. This applies to each Ambush in the chain.		Ambush
Infiltration		Heal for {70|70} after activating Ambush. This applies to each Ambush in the chain.		Ambush
Memento Vivere		Increase your maximum Health by {40|40}.		Armor / Weapon
Nightwatcher		Reduce the Cooldown of Dash by {0.5|0.5}s after hitting at least one enemy with Shadow Bombs.		Dash
Outnumbered		Generate {1|1} Ammo after hitting at least one enemy with Shadow Bombs.		Shadow Bombs
Retribution		Increase the Radius and Effective Radius of the damage from Ambush by {15|15}%.		Ambush
Shadow Garrote		Generate {5|5}% Ultimate charge after hitting an enemy with your Ultimate.		Armor / Weapon
Shadow's Gaze		Heal for {40|40} for after activating Shadow Bombs.		Shadow Bombs
Shadow's Perch		Increase the range of Ambush by {10|10}%.		Ambush
Shattered Worlds		Reduce the Cooldown of Shadow Bombs by {8|8} after earning a Killing Blow or Elimination.		Shadow Bombs
Tranquility		Increase your base jump height by {30|30}%.		Armor / Weapon

Pre-Built Loadouts

All of the following cards are in Vatu's pre-built loadouts:

• Omnipresence
• Unerring
• Enveloping Shadows

---

Omnipresence

Shadow's Perch

Increase the range of Ambush by 30%.

3

Retribution

Increase the Radius and Effective Radius of the damage from Ambush by 45%.

3

Final Sight

Reset the Cooldown of Ambush after falling to or below 30% Health.

3

15

Gathering Shadow

Reduce the damage you take by 25% for 2s after Ambush ends. This applies to each Ambush in the chain.

5

Memento Vivere

Increase your maximum Health by 40.

1

---

Unerring

Shattered Worlds

Reduce the Cooldown of Shadow Bombs by 40 after earning a Killing Blow or Elimination.

5

Shadow's Perch

Increase the range of Ambush by 20%.

2

Memento Vivere

Increase your maximum Health by 120.

3

Shadow's Gaze

Heal for 160 for after activating Shadow Bombs.

4

Outnumbered

Generate 1 Ammo after hitting at least one enemy with Shadow Bombs.

1

---

Enveloping Shadows

Infiltration

Heal for 210 after activating Ambush. This applies to each Ambush in the chain.

3

Shattered Worlds

Reduce the Cooldown of Shadow Bombs by 32 after earning a Killing Blow or Elimination.

4

Nightwatcher

Reduce the Cooldown of Dash by 2s after hitting at least one enemy with Shadow Bombs.

4

Shadow's Perch

Increase the range of Ambush by 20%.

2

Contemplation

Heal for 92.5 every 0.5s for 1s after activating Dash. This effect stacks.

2

Cosmetic Items

These are the Cosmetic Items currently available for Vatu:

Champion Skin Collections

• Default
• Sorrow
• Duty
• Mayhem
• Golden

Default
Loading Art	Icons		Character Model
	Weapon	Default Kunai
	Rarity	Common
	Availability	Standard
	Release Date	May 26, 2021
Cost		Free
Voicelines		Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview		▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Cost	Free
Voicelines	Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview	▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Character Model

Sorrow
Loading Art	Icons		Character Model
	Weapon	Sorrowful Kunai
	Rarity	Uncommon
	Availability	Exclusive
	Release Date	May 26, 2021
Cost		60,000  •  300  •  Bounty Store  •  Season Pass 2021 (Sorrow Vatu Collection)
Voicelines		Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview		▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Cost	60,000  •  300  •  Bounty Store  •  Season Pass 2021 (Sorrow Vatu Collection)
Voicelines	Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview	▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Character Model

Duty
Loading Art	Icons		Character Model
	Weapon	Dutiful Kunai
	Rarity	Rare
	Availability	Limited
	Release Date	May 26, 2021
Cost		Season Pass 2021 (Duty Vatu Collection)
Voicelines		Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview		▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Cost	Season Pass 2021 (Duty Vatu Collection)
Voicelines	Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview	▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Character Model

Mayhem
Loading Art	Icons		Character Model
	Weapon	Mayhem's Gifts
	Rarity	Epic
	Availability	Exclusive
	Release Date	July 21, 2021
Cost		800  •  (Mayhem Vatu Collection)
Voicelines		Mayhem Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview		▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Cost	800  •  (Mayhem Vatu Collection)
Voicelines	Mayhem Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview	▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Character Model

Golden
Loading Art	Icons		Character Model
	Weapon	Golden Kunai
	Rarity	Legendary
	Availability	Mastery
	Release Date	May 26, 2021
Cost		Rewarded at Mastery Level 50 (Golden Vatu Collection)
Voicelines		Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview		▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Cost	Rewarded at Mastery Level 50 (Golden Vatu Collection)
Voicelines	Vatu voice lines
Voice Pack Preview	▶️  •  ▶️  •  ▶️
Features
Character Model

Emotes

• Default
• Meditation

Default
Loading Art	Icon		Character Model
	Weapon	{{{weapon}}}
	Rarity	Common
	Availability	Standard
Release Date	May 26th, 2021
Cost		Free
Voicelines		[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview		{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Cost	Free
Voicelines	[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview	{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Character Model

Meditation
Loading Art	Icon		Character Model
	Weapon	{{{weapon}}}
	Rarity	Epic
	Availability	Exclusive
Release Date	May 26th, 2021
Cost		Season Pass 2021 (Endless Emote)
Voicelines		[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview		{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Cost	Season Pass 2021 (Endless Emote)
Voicelines	[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview	{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Character Model

MVP Poses

• Default
• Poised

Default
Loading Art	Icon		Character Model
	Weapon	{{{weapon}}}
	Rarity	Common
	Availability	Standard
Release Date	May 26th, 2021
Cost		Free
Voicelines		[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview		{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Cost	Free
Voicelines	[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview	{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Character Model

Poised
Loading Art	Icon		Character Model
	Weapon	{{{weapon}}}
	Rarity	Rare
	Availability	Exclusive
Release Date	May 26th, 2021
Cost		Season Pass 2021
Voicelines		[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview		{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Cost	Season Pass 2021
Voicelines	[[{{{voicelines}}}]]
Voice Pack Preview	{{{vpPreview}}}
Features
Character Model

Trivia

• General
• Champion Skins

• Lore
• Cameos
• References
• Promotion
• Concepts
• Other

• As stated here, while Vatu works with the Thousand Hands Guild, he's not an actual member of the group, but rather has a mutual understanding with Zhin.
• As mentioned here and here, Vatu and his deeds are legendary.
• Vatu may be a title passed down between different individuals, or he may be an ancient being who has lived for a long time, as stated here.
• The mark that appears when Vatu uses his Ambush ability appears to be a combination of the marks that appear when Talus uses Rune of Travel, as well as his ultimate True Power.
• A unique mark appears when Vatu his Dash ability, and as part of his ultimate that somewhat resembles the mark that appears when Talus uses Rune of Travel.
  • This mark also used to appear when Vatu used his default emote, but this was seemingly removed.
• Based on a dev statement revealing Viktor to be around 5'9 or 175cm tall, and comparing it to model sizes in-game and out of game, it was discovered that Vatu would be around 6'1 or 185cm tall.

• Vora appears in Vatu's teaser trailer.
• A unique demon version of Vatu appears in the Hallowed Vatu avatar.
• Vatu appears as part of a design featured on various pieces of Paladins merchandise.

• The line "*grunt* Hesitation is... defeat..." (▶️) is a reference to the death message that appears in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
• The line "I was born in shadow, molded by it; you merely stumble around like a blind child." (▶️) is a reference to lines spoken by Bane in The Dark Knight Rises.
• The line "No, hands behind my back do not make me more... aerodynamic." (▶️) is a reference to Naruto running, a type of run that originates from... well, Naruto, which has since become associated with anime fans mimicking the run in real life.
• The line "Cowabunga." (▶️) is likely a reference to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
• The line "This is not a matter of personal vendetta, child." (▶️) is a reference to the Nothing personal, kid meme.

• As with previous champions, in order to promote Vatu, Paladins artist Thunderbrush would change his Twitter profile picture and banner. On April 1st, 2021, his profile picture would be changed to this image, which would later be revealed to be an edited version of Vatu's splash art. His banner meanwhile, would be changed to this image.

• Another part of Vatu's promotion was influencer packages. From April 24th, 2021 to April 28th, 2021, packages were sent to various Paladins influencers. Each contained a satchel, inside of which was part of a puzzle (later revealed to be of Vatu's splash art), as well as a message. The message was the same for each influencer and read:

“

Behind every door of the mind is the fear of the darkness
in the corner of a dimly-lit room.
It is the unknown terror without a form,
but with a name-
the Shadow.
#DoNotFearTheShadow

”

• Aqui's package can be viewed here.

• SterileTick's package can be viewed here.

• Bitey's package can be viewed here.

• Nada Llama's package can be viewed here.

• Vatu's standard teasers can be found here.
  • Teaser 1
  • Teaser 2
  • Teaser 3
  • Teaser 4
  • Teaser 5

• As mentioned here, Vatu originally had a slash ability that would knock enemies towards him. It was meant to be used in combination with other abilities at close range, but was ultimately dropped due to difficulty finding an identity for the ability. This ability can be seen in datamined versions of Vatu prior to his release.
  • As also mentioned here by AoC member SterileTick, this ability originally existed in place of Shadow Bombs, and Vatu originally wielded a katana for this ability.

• A mark similar to the one that appears when Vatu uses his ultimate ability also appears when Ska'drin and Scorned Ash have Kinetic Burst active.
• Alternate art for the card Contemplation exists and was used for one of Vatu's teasers, featuring Vatu edited out.
• Alternate art for the card Shadow Garrote exists and was used for one of Vatu's teasers, featuring Vatu covered in shadows.
• Unique artwork of Vatu was used during his release on the Steam and Epic launchers.
  • Concept art for this artwork also exists.
• A face reminiscent of Vatu appears in the Bue Asssassin and Red Assassin sprays. It is unknown if these were early versions of Vatu, if he took inspiration from the faces, or is merely a coincidence.

• Sorrow

• Sorrow. A feeling of deep sadness. Come on, you already knew that, I don't know what you were expecting.

• Duty

• And Duty. It's a responsibility or task, but you already knew that too. I've got nothing for you this time.

• Mayhem

• The line "Mmm... Today I woke up, and chose... violence." (▶️) references the Wake up and choose violence meme.
• The line "If Peter Piper plucked a perfect pair of eyeballs, how many perfect eyes did Peter Piper pluck?" (▶️) references the nursery rhyme Peter Piper.
• The line "A perfect little... accident." (▶️) may be a reference to a line spoken by Bob Ross.
• This skin appears on a mousepad design.

Changelog

➤ September 15th, 2021
Paladins Release Version 4.6.4252.6‎

• Talents

• Enveloping Shadows

• Reduced effectiveness 15% ➞ 12%

➤ July 21st, 2021
Paladins Release Version 4.5.4175.5

• Abilities

• Ambush

• Current: Teleport next to your target, dealing damage in an area on arrival. Can be refired on another enemy within 4s of teleporting.

• Decreased the amount of time before Teleporting 0.4s ➞ 0.3s

• Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where Vatu’s Shadow Gaze card activated twice when he used his Shadow Bombs ability.

➤ May 26th, 2021
Paladins Release Version 4.4.4098.0

• Vatu was added to the game.