8 Mistakes Almost Every New Deadlock Player Makes
Deadlock is a tough game. There’s no doubt about that. And honestly, it’s not very forgiving to newer players. The tutorial will teach you the extreme basics, but that’s about it. And naturally, once you get into an…
Deadlock is a tough game. There’s no doubt about that. And honestly, it’s not very forgiving to newer players. The tutorial will teach you the extreme basics, but that’s about it. And naturally, once you get into an actual game, it can feel overwhelming.
New players make all kinds of mistakes, whether it’s aiming, buying items, teamwork, etc., and they won’t really understand what’s happening until another player starts flaming them or they keep losing matches. More often than not, it’s not the players' fault, but a lack of information and teaching methods.
So, let’s look at some of the most common mistakes new players make so we don’t fall into the same pitfalls. Chances are Valve knows about these and is looking to tackle them, but who knows when Deadlock will actually release, right?
8 Too Much Aggression in Lane
All in Good Time, My Friend
When you jump off that zipline for the first time in a match, and enemies goad you from the other side, I get it if the red mist descends. It’s tempting to keep pressuring them and go for the kill when they get low enough, but that can be a bit of a trap for a couple of reasons.
The more you focus on the opponent, the less attention you give your own troops and the last hits you need to secure. Additionally, if you’re constantly standing on the bridge trying to chip them down, you’re probably not doing those extra box runs or farming the nearby jungle camps for extra souls.
Even if you get them low, the other team can easily zip back to base, heal up, and be back in lane in time for the new wave, making all the time you spent shooting at them pretty pointless. A bit of aggression isn’t bad, but spending the whole laning phase trying to shoot the other team is a fruitless endeavour.
7 Overextending
Alone On the Dark Streets of New York
And speaking of being too aggressive, this is another trap many players fall into. Once you’ve taken down the first tower, or guardian, it can be tempting to keep on pushing to claim the second.
However, once the initial laning phase is over, the other team will protect their remaining towers much more. And of course, as you push closer towards them, they’re going to be able to more easily zipline to stop you, or even worse, sneak behind you and take you out as you’re trying to escape.
The more time you spend in your enemy's territory, the bigger target you make yourself. And if you’re out there alone, you’re probably not doing much for your team. And of course, all this is doubly true when you try to get into the enemy's base.
6 Denying and Collecting
No Souls For You!
At this point, you’ve probably seen the text pop-up while you’re in lane, saying “Denied”, and I’m sure you can imagine what that means.
Timing your opponent's soul denial can be finicky, but it’s a massively important habit to build. Letting your opponent deny your souls while they collect theirs often creates a massive power imbalance. Even if you’re excellent at your hero, item advantage alone can win games.
And of course, shooting your souls before your opponent can get them is super important too. Sometimes, you’ll have to execute the troops when your opponent doesn’t expect it to secure the souls, creating another mind game you’ll constantly play with your opponents. It’s a tricky business, eh?
5 Hoarding Souls
Don’t Be Stingy With Your Cash
And if we’re talking about souls, another massive mistake many new players make is not spending them. This sounds obvious, right? But you’d be surprised! When players start, they’re often so focused on avoiding enemies, killing troops, or helping the team that they forget to spend their souls.
Realistically, once you hit 800 souls, or 1600 max, you should be hitting that lane shop; otherwise, you’ll fall behind fast. Sometimes a small healing item can be the difference between getting killed or escaping.
Additionally, sometimes players might be waiting for a big 6400 soul item. However, it’s often better to buy smaller items first that have an immediate impact; if you wait too long to buy anything, your opponents will quickly outscale you.
4 Stamina Usage
Save the Goods For the Fight
You’re happily laning when, all of a sudden, you hear a lot of pings, and your teammates start taking heavy damage. Something is going on across the map, and they probably need your help! You jump up to a vent, blast off, dash and double jump to get to the teamfight as quickly as possible. Suddenly, you’re there, your stamina depleted, and you’re at the enemy's mercy.
This is just a small example, but it happens all the time in-game, whether you're travelling between fights or just playing normally in lane. Chances are your opponents will have a vague idea of how many dodges you’ve used, and will use that information to catch you out. So always keep a spare stamina bar or 2; it's vital for survival. Or, of course, invest in extra stamina!
3 Buying the Same Old Stuff
An Item For Every Occasion
It can be tempting to open the build browser, pick a popular build, never look at anything else, and then buy the same items every game. Happens to the best of us.
However, as players improve, they’ll notice enemies start bringing specific items that counter you, and you'll need to do the same. Are you having a hard time pinning down Danny or Lash? Then invest in Knockdown. Are you taking too much damage from Drifter’s Marks and Bebop's pesky Sticky Bombs? Well, Dispel Magic will come in clutch!
When you're struggling with something specific, there’s usually an item that can help. Sometimes, it’s worth browsing the shop to understand what each item does before you start a game. That info can often be the difference between winning and losing.
2 Never Stop Moving
A Moving Target is Harder to Hit
Hero Shooters can be pretty tough to get into, especially if you’re not used to aiming at fast-moving targets. Pair that with a MOBA, and you get crazy complexity that's especially hard for newcomers to handle.
One of the biggest mistakes new players make is standing still while aiming at opponents. Yes, this makes you easier to hit, but it also makes you a sitting duck, and your health bar will deplete faster as two opponents focus you down. So you’ll need to start learning to move while shooting, moving randomly, so your opponents don’t learn your movement patterns.
This, of course, extends to the extremely complex movement tech found in Deadlock. Once you get the basics down, you then have zipline tech, movement speed conservation, ledge boosting, sliding, wall jumping and everything else that makes Deadlock infinitely tough yet satisfying to learn.
1 Wasting Precious Time
Never a Minute to Spare
Honestly, I’m often guilty of this, whether it’s Dota 2 or Deadlock. After the laning phase, I often spend too much time doing nothing.
You’re eyeing the opposing team at the other end of the lane, waiting for someone to initiate, but you don’t want to. But you’re also worried that if you leave, you’ll miss the fight! Moments like this can last minutes, and standing around accomplishes nothing.
Instead, you can spend those moments pushing a lane, going on a box run, or farming jungle camps. That’s the thing about Deadlock: there’s always something to do, whether you’re playing support, tank or carrying.
If you’ve realised you’ve spent too much time standing around in lane, pull yourself away, but always keep an eye on the minimap. You never know when a big fight can break out!