Deadlock Hero Counters: How to Beat Every Hero (October 30 Update)

This guide covers all 44 heroes, along with the shop items that come up again and again. Nurse Harrow's counter is in the item table, and every other hero has an entry in the A to Z list.

It's written for the October 30, 2026 Halloween + Gameplay Update. Item numbers below are the current base (non-enhanced) values. Valve rebalances often, so recheck any number after the next patch.

The video below walks through all of them with in-game demos:

Core counter items

Heroes A to D

• Abrams. Buy anti-heal. Against Shoulder Charge, parry it with Counterspell (or block it with an ability like Pocket's Enchanter's Satchel or Viscous's The Cube) and he passes right through you. Warp Stone also gets you out of the way. Debuff Reducer shortens the Shoulder Charge stun, so you recover in time to parry the heavy melee he follows up with.
• Apollo. Buy Slowing Hex. It silences Disengaging Sigil, Flawless Advance and Itani Lo Sahn, leaving him only Riposte. He'll often panic-Riposte right after the hex lands, so stop shooting until it's over, then go in.
• Baba. Build gun against her, since she gets lots of spirit resist and has negative bullet resist. Dispel Magic also strips the spirit power she steals with Threadsap.
• Bebop. Reactive Barrier gives you a barrier when you're hooked by Grapple Arm, so you can tank the follow-up bomb. It upgrades into Indomitable, which cleanses the hook outright. If he Exploding Uppercuts you, go with the knock-back and use it to put distance between you. Dashing back toward him barely moves you and makes you an easy target.
• Billy. Rising Ram, Bashdown and Blasted all disrupt your movement, so don't waste stamina mid-combo. Wait until he finishes, then dash away. Counterspell blocks the damage, and Warp Stone gets you out of Rising Ram or the Bashdown combo.
• Calico. Much of her burst is spirit damage (Gloom Bombs, Leaping Slash, Return to Shadows), so buy vitality: Spirit Shielding early and Spirit Resilience later. Slowing Hex silences Leaping Slash, Ava and Return to Shadows.
• Celeste. Many of her abilities, Light Eater included, need her to get close. Hit her with crowd control (Slowing Hex, Knockdown) when she does, or knock her down before she gets there.
• Deadman Danny. Take fights indoors. In tight spaces his jetpack and crash-down cover less ground, and his ultimate does less than it does in the open. If the fight starts outside, pull it into a hallway.
• The Doorman. You can Counterspell his kidnap combo before you go through the door. If you're already inside and slowed, block the damage with Counterspell or another blocking ability. If you're not slowed much, wall-jump off the side to get out using less stamina.
• Drifter. Don't 1v1 him. Bloodscent gives him amplified damage against isolated heroes and leaves a trail showing where they went, so stay grouped. Dispel Magic removes Stalker's Mark, which stops him teleporting to you.
• Dynamo. Quantum Entanglement briefly makes him untargetable and can bring allies along, so bait it out with pressure before you commit your big ability or ultimate. To guarantee he can't use it, hit him with Slowing Hex or Silence Wave first.

Heroes G to L

• Graves. Monster Rounds (+25% weapon damage against NPCs) kills her skulls and ghouls faster. If you're on a gun build, Ricochet clears the skulls too. Otherwise let the skulls group up on you and punch them. Ghouls can't climb or jump, so get onto high ground.
• Grey Talon. Against Guided Owl, retreat into tight hallways where the bird is hard to steer, or tuck into a corner. Counterspell, Pocket's Enchanter's Satchel or Dynamo's Quantum Entanglement can block it, but a patient Grey Talon will bait them, so only use them right before impact.
• Haze. Metal Skin makes you immune to bullets for 5s, which is longer than Bullet Dance's 3.5s base duration. If you get slept and she starts Bullet Dance, pop Metal Skin right away. Fixation's spirit damage still applies through it.
• Holliday. With fast reactions you can Counterspell Spirit Lasso. Debuff Reducer shortens Spirit Lasso and the effects of Powder Keg and Crackshot.
• Infernus. Check his build. Against afterburn (gun) Infernus, Dispel Magic removes Afterburn and Toxic Bullets, which is most of his damage. Against dash (spirit) Infernus, Slowing Hex stops Flame Dash. Both items work against both builds, so this is only about which to buy first.
• Ivy. Stone Form is heavily telegraphed. Bait it before your big abilities, then dump damage and crowd control on the spot where she lands. You can also Counterspell it or Warp Stone away.
• Kelvin. Buy Healbane for Frost Grenade and Frozen Shelter. Arctic Beam and Frost Grenade also slow you, so add Debuff Reducer, Enduring Speed or Fleetfoot.
• Lady Geist. Watch whether her ultimate, Soul Exchange, is ready. It swaps health levels with you, but its range is only 5.5m. If it's up and she's at half health or lower, stay back. If you must get close (Abrams, Billy, Lash), Silence Wave her first.
• Lash. His abilities, his ultimate included, are telegraphed, so you can Counterspell them. Ethereal Shift, Indomitable (it cleanses Death Slam) and Unstoppable also work, but at 6,400 each they cost twice as much as Counterspell's 3,200.

Heroes M to R

• McGinnis. Spectral Wall can be broken with melee: two heavy melees open a segment. Mid-fight, though, turning around to punch it often gets you killed. Warp Stone over it instead. With fast reflexes, you can even Warp Stone through before it rises.
• Mina. She relies on Sanguine Retreat, which Slowing Hex silences. Mina players build Dispel Magic, so your team needs a second Slowing Hex ready for after she cleanses the first.
• Mirage. Each extra Djinn's Mark doubles its damage. It's a debuff, so use Dispel Magic at three or four stacks. That also removes Toxic Bullets if he's built it.
• Mo & Krill. Indomitable cleanses Combo outright, while Debuff Reducer shortens it. You can Counterspell Combo on reaction, but it's hard. Scorn and Combo are very short range, so keep your distance, using Warp Stone, Stamina Mastery or Enduring Speed.
• Paige. Most of her abilities are ground effects, so stay airborne or on high ground. Captivating Read has three answers: Counterspell it, Dispel Magic the root after it lands, or Warp Stone away.
• Paradox. Kinetic Carbine scales with gun damage but deals spirit damage, so Metal Skin doesn't stop it. Build Spirit Resilience or Spellbreaker, which cuts the next big hit of spirit damage by 65%.
• Pocket. His ultimate, Affliction, blocks all healing at tier 3, and Dispel Magic can't remove it because it's an ultimate. Divine Barrier can, and supports should cast it on afflicted teammates. Counterspell is the fallback.
• Rat King. He stacks health and barrier, so take percentage-damage items: Tankbuster, Decay, Toxic Bullets and Siphon Bullets. Siphon Bullets steals max HP with each proc, healing you and shrinking the barrier he can make.
• Rem. He can't be targeted or damaged during Tag Along. Slowing Hex or Silence Wave stops him jumping in. If he's already attached, stunning his host with an ultimate knocks him off.

Heroes S to Y

• Seven. Pressure him early: harass him while he farms his jungle and steal his camps before his items come online. Dispel Magic cleanses his Static Charge stun, and Spirit Resilience helps later in the game.
• Shiv. Use the same items as against Infernus: Dispel Magic against his Serrated Knives, Slowing Hex to stop Slice and Dice and his ultimate, Killing Blow.
• Silver. She's very fast during Lycan Curse and has a dash, but little vertical movement. Get onto high ground with Stamina Mastery or Warp Stone, or lock her down with Cold Front, Slowing Hex or Knockdown.
• Sinclair. Don't burn stamina while his magic bolts are still flying. Wait for him to redirect them, and dodge when the circle appears on the ground.
• Solomon. His damaging abilities are ground-based, so take high ground or fly. If Rook Battery immobilizes you, Dispel Magic frees you, or Counterspell the rooks or the queen hit.
• Venator. Gutshot stuns enemies near a wall, so never fight him up close with a wall behind you. If he retreats into a tight hallway, don't follow. Go around or burst past with Warp Stone.
• Victor. Buy anti-heal and resist shred: Crippling Headshot, or cheaper options such as Weakening Headshot, Mystic Vulnerability or Healbane. Stay out of Aura of Suffering, which is where most of his damage and sustain comes from.
• Vindicta. Knockdown pulls her out of Flight, but Vindicta players often build Counterspell or Dispel Magic. Phantom Strike is harder to react to: it teleports you to her and pulls her to the ground. Otherwise, stack several Knockdowns or Disarming Hexes across your team.
• Violet. Against Still Life, play near cover and break line of sight. Dispel Magic cleanses the stun once it's applied, and Counterspell blocks it.
• Viscous. Parry Puddle Punch by sound, even when it comes from behind. Rebuttal cuts your parry cooldown, and a successful parry heals you for the damage and sends it back.
• Vyper. Her gun damage is high but short range, and she burns ammo fast. Hard CC while she's sliding drains her ammo, and keeping your distance cuts her damage. Up close, use Metal Skin or Disarming Hex.
• Warden. He steals stamina and uses Binding Word to make you burn more. Bring Extra Stamina or Stamina Mastery, movement items like Enduring Speed, or Warp Stone. His tier 3 cage silences you, and Dispel Magic gets you out.
• Wraith. Most of her damage is spirit damage, even on gun builds, so instead of Metal Skin, disable her gun with Disarming Hex or fire-rate slows such as Juggernaut and Suppressor.
• Yamato. Dispel Magic removes Flying Slash before she can grapple to you, which keeps her at a distance from the rest of her kit.

Deadlock is still listed as a game in early development. You can find it on Steam.