Pretty much everybody who plays Behaviour Digital’s game Dead by Daylight has heard about the upcoming Stranger Things DLC and some have considered checking out the game because of this announcement. Well, as they always do, the development team has gone over the new perks coming with the DLC while showing off some gameplay inside of the new map in the above video. I thought it would be worth the time to go over how some of these new perks are going to change the perk builds that both killers and survivors are using.

Also, quick side note before we begin the breakdown, the Scoops Ahoy costume has been confirmed!

Killer Perks

The three new perks that the Demogorgon is bringing are Surge, Cruel Confinement, and Mindbreaker. Each of these perks are useful and relate to the generators in one way or another.

Surge is a perk that will pop each generator within a 32-meter radius when you put a survivor in the dying state using a standard attack. This is the equivalent of kicking every generator within a 32-meter radius of your latest victim. With something this powerful, it is easy to see it paired up in builds such as: Ruin, Surge, Overcharge, Thrilling Tremors. This perk build would be the ultimate anti-generator build and cause the slowest repair time on the generators. There are, of course, other combinations that Surge can be paired with, but the strongest perk that should almost always go hand-in-hand with Surge is Overcharge.

*Edit - I have been informed that they are not letting other generator perks activate from the Surge hit meaning Overcharge would not be as effective. In that case, I would suggest replacing Overcharge with Mindbreaker for the best build.

Cruel Confinement is a perk that will block all windows and vault locations within a 32-meter radius of a completed generator. This is a great way to catch survivors quickly and removing their chance to escape in a chase through the usual means, including the dreaded endless killer shack strategy. This perk can be mixed well with a number of things, but the build I see it being used in is: Mindbreaker, Cruel Confinement, Corrupt Intervention, Bitter Murmur. This perk build would let the killer get some time to find the survivors for early damage, see them when they finish the generator, and trap them with no exhaustion perks nor anywhere to run.

Mindbreaker is a perk that will put survivors in the Exhausted state when working on a generator with less than 50% completion on it. They also can not recover from exhaustion while working on a generator and the status stays in effect for up to three seconds after leaving the generator. With something that wipes away the perk type that many rely on to get away, this can be used to your advantage in a build like: Mindbreaker, Cruel Confinement, Bitter Murmur, Overcharge. I know it is similar to the Cruel Confinement best build, but those two perks go hand-in-hand and you want to be able to find the weakened survivor quickly. The change of Corrupt Intervention to Overcharge is because you won’t be purely holding back generators, but rather keeping the status low and Overcharge does the most damage both initially and when they fail the difficult first skill check.

Survivor Perks

This section is second because it will be much longer. Since we are getting two survivors, meaning that we have six new perks to work with here. These perks are Inner Strength, Fixated, Better Together, Second Wind, Camaraderie, and Babysitter.

Inner Strength allows you to heal from the injured state inside of a locker within 8 seconds after you activate the perk by cleansing a totem. The first thing to keep in mind is that there are only 5 totems in each match and 4 survivors, so it is likely you will only get to use this perk once. With that in mind, the best build to go with this perk would be: Inner Strength, Head On, Small Game, Mettle of Man. The odd perk out in this build is certainly Mettle of Man, but I included this because if you happen to have a game where the other players are not cleansing totems then you can quickly heal as much as you want, making this build optimal for being the distraction.

Fixated allows you to see your own scratch marks and move faster while walking if uninjured. This is a perk that will help you both lose the killer in a chase and add to your ability to be immersed. Taking the fact that this would be more for staying out of site, the best build combination would be: Urban Evasion, Fixated, Sprint Burst, Quick & Quiet. All of these will help with your movement, both slow and quickly, all while keeping yourself hidden as much as possible.

Better Together simply reveals the generator you are working to fellow survivors within a 32-meter range and see all survivors locations when one of your teammates are knocked down. This perk has Dwight screaming all over it, but can be useful for gen-rushing builds such as: Prove Thyself, Better Together, Kindred, Sprint Burst/Lithe/Balanced Landing. While any of the exhaustion perks that will help you get to the next generator the quicker, usually depending on level choice, Kindred is the only perk added that is changeable with little consequence. The reason I include it in the main perk build for Better Together is because this would allow all the other survivors to see each other if you are the one knocked down instead.

Second Wind will let a survivor heal from the injured state while outside of the killers terror radius after being unhooked, given they have healed another survivor at least one full health state. This is probably the easiest perk build for me to put together as many of the perks I use myself would go great with this as the fourth option. The suggested perk build would be: We’ll Make It, Deliverance, Second Wind, Lithe/Sprint Burst. While two of these perks only activate once you help another survivor, all you have to do is make a clean hook save, heal them with that healing speed boost, and get out of there in order to set this build up.

Camaraderie is the life saving perk that pauses your struggle phase timer on the hook for up to 14 seconds when a survivor is within 16-meters of you. While you would want to hope that your teammates have Borrowed Time in order to help you get out, the best perk build for this is: Breakdown, Camaraderie, Decisive Strike, Kindred. The reason for this match up is for both tunneling and face-camping killers. If the hook you were on breaks once you are rescued, they will have a longer distance to travel. Hopefully you can land that Decisive Strike, but Kindred is included so that your teammates can find the best moment to get a safe hook rescue.

Babysitter is our final perk and it removes the scratch marks from the survivor you just unhooked for up to 8 seconds while the killers aura is revealed to you and your aura is revealed to the killer for 4 seconds. This is basically the trade off perk that only a player who is good at running the killer in a chase would want to use. For that reason, the perk build includes: Balanced Landing, Babysitter, Inner Strength, Fixated. The speed boost to both walking and height dropping are essential in majority of the maps when being chased, but if you end up taking a hit before losing the killer, then you have an easy lounge time in the next locker for a quick heal.

Opinions

That wraps up my best perk build suggestions when it comes to making the build around using the new perk to its best. Of course, there are other combinations and builds that these new perks would be useful in, but it is all based on how you want to go into the game. There are more things to consider than just amping up the perks to compliment each other; you could also want to focus on using others perks against them.

For instance, a great perk to go against Babysitter would be Make Your Choice. Knowing exactly where your now-exposed survivor makes them an easy target to choose to go after. Inner Strength wouldn’t do anybody any good against a killer with Iron Maiden on since they would, again, go into the exposed status. This game is all about the perks you use and taking in a build that works best for your play style and what you focus on.

I am interested though: what perk are you most interested in adding to your build from the Stranger Things DLC? Also, what do you think of my suggested perk builds knowing they are focused on using the new perk to its best possible set up?