How to Improve in Deadlock: Intermediate to Advanced Player Guide

Introduction

This guide covers intermediate to advanced techniques that separate good Deadlock players from great ones. If you already understand the basics but struggle to consistently carry games, the strategies below will transform how you approach economy management, positioning, and team coordination.

The strategies below are drawn from top-level gameplay analysis and cover economy optimization, movement mastery, and macro decision-making. Each section builds on the previous one, so even if you think you know the basics, the execution details matter.

Laning Phase Economy Management

Lane creeps are worth more than jungle camps throughout most of the game. Your farming cycle should be: clear wave → jungle boxes → return for next wave. Missing waves costs you more than any jungle camp can compensate for.

Wave management fundamentals:

• Push creeps FIRST, then harass enemies
• Last hit your own souls (teal/green) rather than denying enemy souls
• One creep wave is worth more than a level 1 kill
• Use map cover to hit creeps without taking damage
• Keep your healing creep alive (40 HP every 6 seconds beats early regen items)

Treat HP as a resource meter. Trade damage when you're at high HP since you regenerate faster than low-regen enemies. Passive play wastes your HP advantage. Aggressive pressure creates opportunities and forces enemy responses.

Hero Role Classification

Every hero fits into one of two categories: laners who need souls to reach power spikes, or roamers who excel at team fights even without farm priority. Knowing which category your hero fits determines whether you should farm side lanes or stay grouped.

Your hero's soul spike mechanic is the ability that makes you better at gathering souls than other players. Some heroes have none (inactive) and rely on the basic trooper-jungle-box cycle. Others have abilities that accelerate farming (active). If you're inactive early, buy movement items to rotate efficiently until you come online.

Movement and Positioning

Advanced movement separates intermediate from high-level players. Master these techniques:

| Technique | Application | Key Benefit | | ---------------------- | ---------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- | | Dash crouch cancelling | Parry during dash animations | Necessary for fighting Abrams and other aggressive heroes | | Instant air dash | Jump before dashing | Better escape trajectories | | Dash sliding | Hold crouch after dashing | Preserves momentum for longer distances | | Wall jumping | Vertical positioning | No stamina cost, more efficient than double jumping |

Learn each hero's unique footstep sounds. Audio cues tell you which enemies are nearby through walls, giving you advance warning of ganks.

Map Traversal Optimization

Dash-jump-slide is your fastest movement for short distances. Sliding downhill is faster than flat ground and gives you infinite ammo. Corner boosting preserves momentum when you clip corners. Mantle sliding (hold Control while mantling) adds extra speed and should be used automatically.

Economic Strategy and Timing

Never miss minion waves. Avoid splitting waves with more than one teammate unless you're taking a major objective. Two players per lane is optimal (100% + 60% + 60% = 120% total efficiency). Three players reduces overall team economy.

Jungle Priority Hierarchy

1. Sinners Sacrifice (highest priority)
2. Tier 3 camps (if you can clear them efficiently)
3. Tier 2/1 camps
4. Boxes (scale well into late game)

Soul Management Strategies

• Unsecured souls drop on death - spend them quickly at shops when carrying large amounts
• Buy your next item immediately when you have enough souls, then be active for ~60 seconds to leverage your power spike
• Test your hero in sandbox mode at 12k, 20k, and 40k soul breakpoints to understand when you spike
• Adapt builds to your damage profile: slowing items if you're hit-dependent, movement if you're cooldown-dependent, tanking if you need sustained fighting

Objective Control and Team Play

Timed objectives (earn and buffs) spawn every 5 minutes and provide significant team advantages. Coordinate around these timings. When ahead, play safe to avoid giving comeback opportunities. When behind, take risks and hunt for favorable fights.

Ultimate Usage Philosophy

Use your ultimate more often. A decent ult now beats a perfect ult that never happens. Don't wait for ideal conditions - use it to create advantages, not just respond to them.

Communication and Vision

Call missing enemies when they respawn, leave lane, aren't visible when they should be, or rotate for objectives. This prevents your teammates from getting ganked.

Create space in lane by positioning separately from teammates. Controlling multiple angles forces enemies to make positioning compromises and makes your team harder to engage on.

Advanced Techniques and Mechanics

Tower parrying stuns enemy towers for 3-4 seconds when you parry their shots. This enables tower dives when you have an advantage or lets you get extra damage on towers while enemies are retreating.

Self-denying works by letting towers, map spikes, or neutral camps kill you. You get full health and abilities at base without giving enemies souls. Before 5-6 minutes, respawn timers are short enough that this is often worth it.

Itemization Theory

Debuff remover counters almost every hero by removing non-ultimate debuffs. Counter spell hard-counters Billy and Dorman specifically.

Check enemy items before 1v1s to avoid getting surprised by Silencer or Slowing Hex. You can't cover everything with 12 item slots, so commit to a specific build direction. Test your item DPS in sandbox mode with the console command HUD damage meter 1.

Practice Habits

Play 3-4 games per day with breaks rather than grinding marathons. You improve faster with focused practice.

Value your time - every death gives enemies an advantage and stunts your growth unless you're dying to secure an objective with favorable respawn timing.

Conclusion

Core priorities for climbing:

1. Push waves first, before jungle camps or harassment
2. Never miss minion waves - they're worth more than early kills
3. Master movement mechanics for positional advantages
4. Use ultimates frequently instead of saving them
5. Call missing enemies and maintain map awareness

Focus on one area at a time. Economy management and positioning have the biggest impact on win rate. As you internalize these concepts, your decision-making becomes instinctive and your macro play improves automatically.