Rainbow Six Siege's Y2S1.2 patch saw the operator Warden getting a buff to his Glance Smart Glasses primary gadget. The buff increased both the duration and cooldown of the gadget to 20 seconds - a substantial increase from the previous 10 seconds. This change to Warden provided players with more opportunities to make use of his Glance Smart Glasses, a gadget that allows users to nullify the effects of other gadgets that stun, blind, or otherwise make it hard for Warden to see. But despite this buff, Warden is still a very niche operator.

The vast number of playable operators in Rainbow Six Siege means that even the same team can run vastly different compositions to counter, adapt to, or even throw the enemy team off their playstyle. Some teams like to throw caution to the wind as they break through reinforced walls and rush into the building. Others like to take things slow and scout out the objective before making a move. Not every attacking team in Rainbow Six Siege uses gadgets that can obstruct the defenders' visions, which is why Warden is such a situational pick. With this in mind, giving Warden secondary gadgets that compliment his Glance Smart Glasses will make him a more viable operator.

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Stun and Smoke Grenades Will Make Warden A Force To Be Reckoned With

warden rainbow six siege

The secondary gadgets that will make Warden more powerful are without a doubt the stun and smoke grenades. These throwable projectiles are what the attacking team use most often to block defenders' lines of sight and provide Warden with situations to use his Glance Smart Glasses. Primary gadgets such as Ying's Candelas and Blitz's Flash Shield also call for the use of a Warden, but not as many teams run these operators as much as they can easily pick stun or smoke grenades to complement their existing team lineup.

Giving Warden stun or smoke grenades goes against conventional gadget norms (the two secondary gadgets are reserved for attacking operators), but they make Warden extremely useful. Being able to toss these grenades lets Warden dictate the terms of a fight. A properly deployed stun or smoke grenade followed by the use of his Glance Smart Glasses can provide him with an opening to reposition, defend, or even attack the enemy team. Seeing as it is only Warden who benefits from the use of his gadget and not his allies, this could make it a balanced strategy if combined with the right number of smoke or stun grenades allocated to Warden.

Similar Strategies Have Already Been Implemented In The Game

rainbow six siege glaz sights

This one-two combo of combining an operator's primary gadget with their secondary is nothing new. The attacking operator Glaz was reworked to have his HDS Flip Sight highlight enemies. When combined with smoke grenades (an essential secondary gadget for the operator), Glaz could create opportunities for himself that allow him to easily see enemies through the smoke.

Warden himself can do a similar tactic in the game, although it requires the help of another teammate. With the operator Smoke on his team providing vision-impairing Gas Grenades, Warden and his team can effectively block passageways. The Gas Grenades already damage those who walk in their effective vicinity, but should the enemy get curious and peek around the corner, Warden can easily pick them off thanks to his Glance Smart Glasses. It's an effective combination, but one that requires good timing and communication with teammates. Giving Warden a couple of stun or smoke grenades will allow him to create these situations by himself without the need for a Smoke on the team.

It is unsure if giving Warden these secondary gadgets will make him overpowered or not, but that is what the Rainbow Six Siege test servers are for. PC players can test out the strength of the stun and smoke grenades on Warden and Ubisoft can see whether or not they can add it to the live servers. If Warden players end up dominating matches, Ubisoft can either implement nerfs to his gadget or decrease the number of grenades he has. Feedback from the players will allow the developers to balance Warden, allowing him to become a more prominent pick in Rainbow Six Siege.

Rainbow Six Siege is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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