What kind of game is Deadlock?

Deadlock is a MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) in a third-person-shooter format by Valve, combining elements of games like Dota 2 and Overwatch.

How do you win a game of Deadlock?

To win, your team must destroy enemy defensive buildings, push into their base, and ultimately eliminate their Patron, an extravagant brassy orb with a face.

What are 'Souls' in Deadlock and how do I get them?

Souls are the main currency in Deadlock, used to buy items and upgrade your hero. You primarily earn them by killing enemy Troopers (minions) and securing their soul orbs, as well as by clearing neutral jungle camps and destroying breakable objects.

Are there different lanes in Deadlock?

Yes, Deadlock features a map with four lanes, where two teams of six players battle for control and objectives.

Is Deadlock currently available to play?

Deadlock is currently in closed playtesting and is invite-only. Access is typically granted via an invite from a player who already has access.

Main Content

What is Deadlock?

Deadlock is Valve's upcoming multiplayer game, described as a MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) in a third-person-shooter format. It combines elements from games like Dota 2 and Overwatch, featuring gunplay, hero abilities, and significant verticality. Matches consist of two teams of six players battling across a map with four lanes. The ultimate objective is to destroy the enemy team's Patron, an extravagant brassy orb with a face, located within their base. The game is currently in closed playtesting and is invite-only.

Getting Started

Before diving into public matches, it's highly recommended to spend time in the sandbox mode. This allows you to familiarize yourself with different heroes' abilities and weapons. When queuing for a match, you'll select three heroes, and the game will randomly assign one to you, ensuring no mirror matchups and each character appearing only once per game. Beginner-friendly heroes often recommended include Seven, Infernus, McGinnis, and Haze.

Understanding the Core Gameplay Loop

Deadlock's core loop revolves around accumulating 'Souls,' the game's primary currency, to purchase items and upgrade your hero. Every character starts weak and gains power by gathering resources and completing objectives. Abilities in Deadlock are cooldown-based, meaning there's no mana system.

Winning a Match

The path to victory involves destroying enemy defensive buildings, pushing into their base, and ultimately eliminating their Patron. This requires a sequence of destroying Guardians, Walkers, Base Guardians, and Shrines before the Patron becomes vulnerable.

The Laning Phase: Early Game Dominance

The laning phase typically lasts for the first 8-10 minutes of a match. Your primary goal during this time is to efficiently farm Souls and gain an advantage over your opponents.

Farming Souls: Kill enemy 'Troopers' (minions) to obtain Souls. Shoot the orbs above their heads for extra Souls, and shoot orbs from defeated allied Troopers to deny them to the enemy. Using a melee attack for the 'last-hit' on a Trooper instantly grants Souls, preventing denial. Focus on securing these last-hits rather than constantly brawling with enemy heroes. After 8 minutes, the soul distribution from lane creeps changes.

Item Purchases: As soon as you accumulate 500 Souls, purchase items at the side shop in your lane. These shops remain open as long as the front Guardian of that lane is alive. Avoid returning to base unnecessarily, as this can cause you to fall behind in items and experience. Buy items that provide regeneration, like Healing Rite, and target the healing Trooper in waves to restore health.

Guardian Pressure: Deal damage to the enemy Guardian when it's vulnerable. Taking down a Guardian removes the nearby item shop for enemies in that lane, forcing them back to base or other lanes to buy items.

Early Game Fights: While killing enemy heroes can provide an advantage, it's often not worth dying for, especially in the early game due to short respawn times. Prioritize farming and securing objectives. If an opportunity for a kill arises, take it, but don't tunnel-vision on hero eliminations.

Mid-Game Strategies: Objectives and Rotations

The mid-game begins when the first Guardians start to fall, typically around 10-25 minutes into the match.

Wave Clearing: Continue to prioritize clearing Trooper waves, as they are your main source of income. Letting waves push uncontested allows enemies to gain map control and take down objectives.

Jungle Camps: Neutral camps spawn at around 7-8 minutes and provide additional Souls. Clear them during downtime between waves or while rotating, and try to steal enemy camps to deny them resources. Be cautious with more powerful camps (indicated by red circles) early on.

Spirit Urn: The Spirit Urn objective spawns at 10 minutes (and then every 5 minutes after that). Successfully carrying the Urn across the map and depositing it grants Souls to your entire team. However, carrying it alerts enemies, and the holder cannot use weapons or abilities unless they drop it.

Walkers: Walkers are significant objectives. Each Walker kill opens an additional item slot (up to three total) and provides substantial Souls. Remaining Walkers gain health when one of their counterparts is destroyed, so pushing lanes somewhat evenly is beneficial. Don't rush Walkers before 13-14 minutes unless you have a significant advantage, as they are very tanky early on.

Mid Boss (Rejuvenator): The Mid Boss spawns at 10 minutes. Defeating it drops a 'Rejuvenator' which, when heavy-meleed, grants buffs that act as extra lives for your team, allowing players to respawn at their death location. These buffs can be split between teams. Consider taking the Mid Boss after a successful team fight in the mid-to-late game to solidify your lead.

Map Control: Maintaining map control is crucial in Deadlock, leading to easier team fights and more effective objective pressure. Utilize the map's verticality and cover to your advantage.

Late-Game Push: Destroying the Patron

The late game typically starts around the 25-minute mark or when one team begins to enter the opponent's base. The focus shifts heavily to objectives, team fights, and map control.

Base Buildings: To attack the Patron, you must first destroy the first two buildings in a lane and then the two 'Shrines' located on each side of the enemy base. Shrines don't attack back, but the Patron will attack nearby enemies. Once the Shrines are destroyed, the Patron becomes vulnerable, but its attacks also deal increased damage.

Team Fights: Grouping up and engaging in coordinated team fights becomes paramount. While kills are beneficial, remember that objectives are king; you cannot win without destroying the Patron.

Mastering Movement

Movement is a fundamental skill in Deadlock, often distinguishing average players from skilled ones. The game features advanced mobility options that utilize stamina, displayed next to your crosshair.

Sprint: Activates automatically out of combat but cuts off when you take or deal damage. Plan rotations accordingly.

Stamina-Powered Abilities:

* Slide Jump: Your primary tool for map traversal. * Air Dash: Useful for repositioning mid-fight and reaching high ground. * Wall Jump: Provides escape routes and unexpected attack angles. Learn to wall jump and heavy melee to climb ledges without using stamina. * Standard Dash: For quick repositioning in close-range skirmishes.

Ziplines: The map's transit system for rotating between lanes. Drop off a zipline using crouch (Ctrl) to preserve momentum and travel further. Be aware that you can be knocked off and stunned if hit while on a zipline, especially within the first few seconds. You cannot jump on a transit line for 2 seconds after being shot.

Teleporters: Scattered across the map, these are often ignored by new players but can save crucial seconds for rotations and objective contests.

Other Techniques: Learn to dash jump for evasiveness. Use wind fans as jump pads to conserve stamina. Explore the map's verticality to break line of sight and surprise opponents.

Itemization: Building Your Hero

Deadlock's item system involves three categories: Weapon, Vitality, and Spirit.

Weapon Items: Generally increase weapon damage, fire rate, and ammo.

Vitality Items: Typically boost health, health regeneration, resistances, and shields.

Spirit Items: (Information on Spirit items is less detailed in the provided snippets, but generally suggests they interact with Spirit damage.)

Passive vs. Active: Many items provide passive effects, always active, while some offer active abilities that require manual activation.

Synergy: Items have synergies with hero kits and damage types (Gun, Spirit, Pure). Damage-focused heroes often benefit from items that increase weapon or spirit damage.

Flexibility: While having a core build in mind is good, be flexible enough to purchase counter items and defensives based on the game situation. You start with 9 item slots, and each Walker kill opens an additional slot, up to three.

General Tips for New Players

Practice in Sandbox: Before public matches, try out heroes in sandbox mode to learn abilities and weapons.

Don't Fear Mistakes: Play aggressively and make mistakes early to develop game sense faster.

Stay in Lane: In the early game, stick to your assigned lane to make consistent progress. While helping other lanes is sometimes necessary, frequent lane switching can hurt team coordination.

Headshots Matter: Landing headshots deals significantly more damage.

Use Abilities Often: Since abilities are cooldown-based and don't cost mana, don't hesitate to use them to poke enemies and force them back.

Map Awareness: Explore and learn the map, including shop locations, objectives (Guardians, Walkers, Shrines, Spirit Urn, Mid Boss), neutral camps, teleporters, ropes, and jump pads.

Communication: Utilize pings and map drawing for effective team communication. Indicate missing enemies or warn teammates.

Destroy Breakables: Destroy boxes and figurines scattered across the map for extra Souls.

Efficient Farming: Focus on efficient farming of troopers and jungle camps throughout the game to maintain a soul lead.

Objective Focus: Deadlock is an objective-based game. Prioritize pushing objectives and consistent pressure to win.

Customize Keybinds: Optimize your ability usage by customizing keybinds.

By focusing on these fundamentals, new players can quickly improve their Deadlock gameplay and contribute significantly to their team's success.

Deadlock Beginner's Guide: Master Valve's MOBA/Hero Shooter Hybrid

Quick Summary