Valve recently released a minor update that has impacted numerous characters and items. In this article, the Blix team will outline the key changes, their effects on gameplay, and the potential balance implications for players.
Contents
Bebop
Deadlock hero: Bebop
- Bebop: Hook T1 reduced from 30% more weapon damage to 25%
- Bebop: Exploding Uppercut T2 reduced from +60% weapon damage to +50%
- Bebop: Sticky Bomb damage reduced from 120 to 110
- Bebop: Sticky Bomb T2 reduced from +80 Damage to +75
Bebop has become less effective in aggressive play styles but still retains his usefulness due to his control abilities. He will now be more difficult for new players to use effectively for early-game dominance. This adjustment is fair, as the hero was dealing excessive damage, making him overpowered.
Calico
Deadlock heroes
- Calico: Bullet Damage increased from 2 to 2.2
- Calico: Leaping Slash Radius increased from 4m to 4.5m
- Calico: Leaping Slash T2 damage increased from +50 to +75
- Calico: Ava now destroys breakables it runs through
- Calico: Ava T2 increased from 25% move speed to 35%
The buffs make Calico a versatile fighter who can effectively pursue and eliminate enemies. Previously considered a weak character, these improvements may increase Calico’s popularity among players.
Holliday
Deadlock hero: Holliday
- Holliday: Bullet damage growth increased from 1.5 to 1.7
- Holliday: Powder Keg T2 reduced from 140 to 120
- Holliday: Crackshot now triggers on units. Uses half cooldown when triggered this way.
- Holliday: Crackshot damage reduced from 75 to 60
- Holliday: Crackshot spirit scaling increased from 1 to 1.2
- Holliday: Crackshot T2 increased from 75 to 85
- Holliday: Crackshot T3 now also has -2s on creeps
- Holliday: Fixed Crackshot applying Slowing Hex’s anti-teleport debuff
- Holliday: Spirit Lasso T2 duration increased from +0.5 to +0.75
- Holliday: Fixed height on damage from Bounce Pad sometimes causing it to not hurt heroes on your lasso
The Crackshot buff enhances Holliday’s versatility, and the reduced cooldown improves farming efficiency. However, the damage nerf to both the Powder Keg and Crackshot reduces overall burst potential. On the positive side, the increased duration of the Spirit Lasso and the bonuses from Crackshot’s T2 and T3 upgrades help compensate for this loss. As a result, Holliday has become a more flexible hero that emphasizes control and consistent damage. However, mastering this hero now requires greater precision and a deeper understanding of her mechanics.
Kelvin
Deadlock hero: Kelvin
- Kelvin: Health increased from 600 to 650
The small improvement enhances his ability to survive, particularly in the early stages of the game.
Mirage
Deadlock hero: Mirage
- Mirage: Fire Scarabs Max Health Steal reduced from 75 to 50
- Mirage: Fire Scarabs Max Health Steal spirit scaling increased from 0.9 to 1.4
Reducing the health steal of Fire Scarabs will lower the survivability of this hero. Mirage has become more dependent on spirit, making it more challenging to use in standard builds.
Shiv
Deadlock hero: Shiv
- Shiv: Bullet Damage reduced from 5.7 to 5.5
- Shiv: Slice and Dice damage reduced from 110 to 100
- Shiv: Slice and Dice T2 reduced from +70 to +60
- Shiv: Slice and Dice spirit scaling increased from 1.3 to 1.55
- Shiv: Bloodletting deferred damage duration reduced from 13s to 12s
- Shiv: Bloodletting cooldown increased from 50s to 60s
Weapon damage reduction, along with the abilities Slice and Dice and Bloodletting, decreases overall and long-term damage potential. While Shiv has become less lethal in burst attacks, he still maintains strong control and long-term damage if used effectively. As a result, the character’s popularity and win rate are likely to decline significantly.
The Magnificent Sinclair
Deadlock hero: The Magnificent Sinclair
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Rabbit Hex movespeed increased from 25% to 35%
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Rabbit Hex can no longer be applied to Unstoppable
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Rabbit Hex now triggers Reactive Barrier
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Fixed Debuff Reducer not working on Rabbit
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Teleporting now drops the Urn
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Vexing Bolt base damage reduced from 120 to 110
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Spectral Assistant base cooldown increased from 30s to 40s
- The Magnificent Sinclair: Spectral Assistant base duration decreased from 8s to 6s
Rabbit Hex has become more powerful; however, its restriction on being applied to Unstoppable weakens the control some heroes have. The nerf to Spectral Assistant reduces the effectiveness of long-duration control abilities. It is safe to say that The Magnificent Sinclair is now a more balanced character, although he has become less effective overall.
Vindicta
Deadlock hero: Vindicta
- Vindicta: Movespeed reduced from 9 to 8
- Vindicta: Bullet Velocity reduced from 810 to 740
Reduced speed and bullet velocity hinder her mobility and range effectiveness. While Vindicta loses some versatility, she remains a dangerous hero.
Vyper
Deadlock hero: Vyper
- Vyper: Bullet Damage decreased from 9 to 7
- Vyper: Move Speed reduced from 7.3 to 7.0
- Vyper: Lethal Venom Max Damage reduced from 200 to 180
- Vyper: Slither T3 spirit and bullet resist while sliding reduced from +30% to +25%
Weapon damage reduction and Lethal Venom damage reduction lower this hero’s burst potential. Decreased resistance makes him less survivable. As a result, Vyper becomes less dominant, weakening his effectiveness as a meta-assassin.
Wraith
Deadlock hero: Wraith
- Wraith: Card Trick spirit scaling reduced from 1.1 to 0.9
- Wraith: Card Trick cooldown increased from 0.65 to 0.75
- Wraith: Card Trick summon rate from non-heroes reduced from 0.35 to 0.25
- Wraith: Telekinesis silence and disarm duration increased from 2.5s to 3s
- Wraith: Telekinesis cast delay reduced from 0.4s to 0.3s
- Wraith: Telekinesis up/down motion now lasts 0.25s longer and moves a little bit higher
Card Trick’s nerfs slow farming and burst potential, while the Telekinesis boost enhances this character’s usefulness in team-fights. Wraith remains strong but requires more precise execution.
Yamato
Deadlock hero: Yamato
- Yamato: Bullet damage growth reduced from 0.27 to 0.24
Yamato’s damage increase has been reduced, making this character less effective in the late game. While Yamato is weakened, she still proves useful in teamfights.
General Changes
- All heroes base gun damage and growth reduced by 10% (numbers listed above are before this global reduction)
The damage reduction for all characters enhances tactical gameplay, making the use of abilities a more valuable and efficient resource.
Items
- Extra Stamina: Fire Rate reduced from 5% to 4%
- Alchemical Fire: Reduced from –40% Effectiveness vs non-heroes to –50%
- Alchemical Fire: Weapon Damage in radius reduced from +50% to +40%
These changes diminish the farm potential of this item.
- Hunter’s Aura: Bullet Resist Reduction reduced from -9% to -8%
- Hunter’s Aura: Fire Rate Slow increased from -9% to -10%
The changes made to Hunter’s Aura have reduced its effectiveness in team fights.
- Sharpshooter: Weapon Damage reduced from 30% to 20%
- Sharpshooter: Movespeed penalty increased from -0.5 to -1
The significant weakening of the Sharpshooter makes him a less favorable choice for practical use in all situations.
Conclusion
Deadlock art
These changes are designed to slow down the game’s pace and create a better balance among heroes. High-damage heroes like Bebop and Vyper have been weakened, while versatile heroes such as Calico have received enhancements. This patch is expected to have a significant impact on the current meta. Most heroes will need to adjust their item builds to stay effective in the game. For more information about the updates, please visit the game’s official forum or the Reddit thread.
