Deadlock Patch Notes: Adjustments to Comeback Mechanics, Bounties, and Hero Abilities

What changed#

The update tweaks comeback mechanics: Unstable Rift resistance now starts at 10% and gains 1% per minute, capping at 40% after half an hour, replacing the former flat 35% cap. The flat bonus souls given for being slightly behind in net worth have been removed for hero kills and Unstable Rift rewards, and overall comeback bounties have been slightly reduced. Additionally, 70% of the extra comeback souls earned by players above the enemy team’s average net worth now flow through the tick gold system to the two lowest‑earning heroes.

Bounty adjustments: Guardian bounty +10%, Walker bounty +5%, and the share of objective bounty given to nearby heroes dropped from 30% to 25%, with the remainder split evenly among all six players.

Respawn timing: At the 20‑minute mark, respawn time rises from 35 seconds to 38 seconds.

Parry and reload changes: Activating parry now pauses weapon reload; parrying while dashing cancels the dash and momentum and performs a standing parry; being stunned pauses reload instead of resetting it.

Underground tunnel breakables: Initial spawn and respawn intervals increased from three minutes to five minutes.

Slow effects: Global movement slows reduced by roughly 20%; ground dash slows reduced by about 10%; slows also influence air drag by 35% of the slow amount, controllable via the citadel_enable_slows_affect_air_drag toggle.

Weapon interaction: Dashes and light melee attacks no longer interrupt gun cycle time, benefitting high‑rate weapons such as Silver or Abrams.

Item and ability tweaks:

• Weakening Headshot bullet resist reduction: -13% → -12%
• Hollow Point bullet resist increase: 9% → 10%
• Toxic Bullets spirit scaling: 0.005% → 0.006%
• Shadow Weave now requires Sprint Boots; sprint speed 1.5 → 2; cooldown 45s → 37s
• Cultist Sacrifice bounty: 180% → 170%
• Ballistic Enchantment duration: 14s → 20s
• Spiritual Overflow buildup 35% slower; spirit power on proc 40 → 30; fire rate on proc 30% → 25%
• Restorative Locket heal per boon 0.5 → 0.45; stack range 35m → 32m
• Trophy Collector souls per minute 18 → 16
• Veil Walker no longer builds from Sprint Boots; loses +2 sprint and +2 out‑of‑combat regen; movement speed bonus removed when invisibility ends; spirit power 10 → 6
• Fortitude max health regen 2% → 2.25%
• Lifestrike melee heal 100+1.5 → 120+1.75; heal percent 30% → 35%
• Leech lifesteal (bullet and spirit) 25% → 28%
• Plated Armor now blocks spirit damage from Mercurial Magnum, Vindicta’s Flight, Wraith’s Full Auto, Tesla Bullets/Capacitor
• Diviner’s Kevlar grants +10% ultimate ability cooldown reduction
• Golden Goose Egg damage penalty -10% → -15%; stored souls count toward net worth; souls per minute 90 → 80
• Slowing Hex cooldown 27s → 29s
• Radiant Regeneration heal per boon on cast 2 → 1.7
• Tankbuster health‑based damage 8% → 7.5%
• Decay DPS -25%; duration +20%
• Mercurial Magnum base damage scaling 0.49 → 0.38; base damage 25% → 20%
• Focus Lens damage 30% → 35%; cast range 20m → 25m
• Abrams Infernal Resilience T3 +8% → +9%; Seismic Impact T3 unstoppable 6s → 5s
• Celeste stamina cooldown 5 → 5.3; Light Eater spirit lifesteal 20% → 18%; Light Eater T3 +25 → +22; Dazzling Trick cooldown 34s → 38s; Radiant Daggers T2 +80 → +70; Shining Wonder radius 16.5m → 15.5m; Shining Wonder T3 max bounces +8 → +6
• Graves health per boon 33 → 35
• Haze fixation headshot stacks +2 → +3; fixation T3 weapon scaling 0.0003 → 0.00035
• Holliday health per boon 41 → 43; Crackshot T2 now adds -6% bullet resistance for 5s; Lasso extension via bounce pad +1s → +1.25s
• Ivy Stone Form radius 6m → 5.75m; Stone Form T1 max health heal 7% → 6%
• Kelvin Frozen Shelter base regen now scales with spirit power at 0.2
• Lady Geist Life Drain T3 spirit scaling +0.3 → +0.45; Essence Bomb T3 damage 26% → 30%
• Lash gun falloff range 18m‑>54m → 16m‑>48m; Ground Strike T3 spirit scaling +0.03 → +0.04; Ground Strike T3 damage per meter 110% → 120%; Grapple T2 buff duration 10s → 6s; Flog heal 50% → 40%; Flog angle 38 → 40; Flog T3 angle +40° → +25°; Flog T3 heal +20% → +15%
• Paige Heavy Melee spirit scaling 0.3 → 0.45; Captivating Read T1 cooldown -11s → -14s; Captivating Read T3 range +1m → +2m; collision issues fixed

Why it matters#

These shifts aim to tighten early‑game comeback potential while giving trailing teams a steadier flow of resources through tick gold. The reduced global slows and altered dash‑reload interactions make movement feel more fluid, especially for heroes reliant on rapid firing. Adjustments to specific items and abilities rebalance power spikes, ensuring that previously dominant picks like Shadow Weave or Golden Goose Egg are less overwhelming, while underused tools such as Plated Armor and Diviner’s Kevlar gain clearer niches.

What to do next#

Players should revisit their loadouts, especially those featuring Sprint Boots, Shadow Weave, or Golden Goose Egg, to see how the new timings and stats affect their playstyle. Testing the revised parry‑reload interaction in training matches will help avoid accidental downtime during fights. Finally, keep an eye on the tick gold distribution when ahead in net worth, as it now funnels extra comeback value to the lowest‑earning allies, potentially altering team‑fight dynamics.

Source: Community Announcements