Deathslinger needs a serious buff
For context in this discussion, I am a rank 1 killer on PS4.
Right now, and hopefully also in the future if things go right, I am a Deathslinger main. From the day he was announced, I started training with Huntress to get good at a 110% (movement speed), ranged killer. My games with, like with Deathslinger, were hit or miss all around. One match I'd get a 4k, and the next I'd get a 1k. That probably has more to do with the power variation of red rank survivors, but still.
I agree with the popular opinion that he's literally just a weaker Huntress. I have played them both a ton, at rank 1, so I know what I'm talking about. He's more fun for sure, but all killers are when they first come out, and I think he'll get less and less fun to play as people realize how truly weak he is (about as weak as Clown, I'd say).
First, his few upsides:
1. He can reload on the move.
2. He has a smaller terror radius.
3. He can land some shots that Huntress can't.
Now, I'll explain why these upsides aren't even that great:
1. He can reload on the move, but unlike Huntress and Clown, he can only shoot once before reloading. It doesn't waste as much time as Huntress where she has to effectively end the chase to reload (finding a locker), but it still wastes time and can only be helped with reload speed add-ons. With Huntress, you wouldn't go for that many shots unless you knew they were going to hit, because after you run out of hatchets, you have to find a locker. The Deathslinger's ability to reload while chasing gets rid of that fear, but brings on the more detrimental action of commiting too many missed shots to a chase. Since you think you reload fairly fast (compared to Huntress), it's basically instant gratification, causing you to overcommit and lose the game. Reload speed is meaningless if you never hit half your shots.
2. I don't know the exact measure, but Deathslinger's terror radius is smaller than most killers'. What does this do for him? Almost nothing. He's about as good as Trapper or Clown, and Monitor&Abuse on then isn't good so why would it be on him, even as part of his base kit? You might get in a little closer to survivors before they start running, but competent survivors will already know where a pallet is and just run to it anyway, especially if they have a heads up with Spine Chill. At best, his terror radius causes a survivor to be caught off guard and giving you a free hit. But it's unlikely to happen, speaking from a red rank perspective.
3. If you get good at Deathslinger, his small projectile will really come in handy. Its small size allows him to hit survivors more easily over loops than Huntress's big ole hatchets. It can also go through little holes (like the ones at killer shack) and hit survivors. But does that matter? In most cases, no. You can pull off crazy shots with Deathslinger and not get the survivor. Either they'll be too far away, or they'll break free before you can hit them. If either of those scenarios or a classic miss happens, you have to reload and try again, probably at a stronger position for the survivor. Huntress would have injured or downed that survivor but Deathslinger, despite your accuracy, couldn't. You could let the chain break and get an injured/deep wounded survivor, but you suffer from a long stun, long enough to allow the survivor to get to another strong position. You also have to reload again. So while Deathslinger can pull off shots that Huntress couldn't possibly hit, very few times will you actually be able to capitalize on it, especially if the survivors know how to hold left or right on the controls (T_T).
Deathslinger also has glaring downsides that I'll now touch up on:
1. Survivors have too much struggle power.
2. He's a 110% killer.
3. He has to 1v1.
Here's the expanded versions of these points:
1. Survivors have far, far too much struggle power with base Deathslinger. Therefore, he's an add-on dependent killer, as if we didn't have enough of those. If you harpoon a survivor in between yourself and a window or anything really, the chain burning combined with the survivor's struggling will cause it to break almost instantly, giving you zero capitalization on what was probably a pretty good shot. All the survivor has to do at a window to stop you from reeling them is hold left or right, and the chain breaks instantly. The survivor is in control there, not the killer. Sometimes it's the polar opposite where you're using STBFL or PWYF (therefore not trying to hit your obsession with your basic attack) or something, and they'll know it and they won't struggle. If you don't have an object to put between yourself and the survivor, and they don't struggle, you're at a standstill for like 20+ seconds (unless you attack, losing your stacks in the process). That is mind-blowing to me, and should not be a thing. I'd fix it by making the meter go much faster when the survivor is touching your body.
2. Deathslinger is a weaker Huntress yet moves at 110%. 110% movement speed is reserved for killers whose ability is so impactful, they're movement has to be nerfed as a balancing mechanic. Personally, I think every killer should be 115%, that way everyone would be at the same movement speed (it'll never happen, I know). But that's the thing: his ability is too weak to make him 110%. You can leave on his leg brace or whatever you want to do, but he needs to be 115%.
3. Deathslinger is a pretty good killer when it comes to 1v1. Sadly, that means nothing when you're above green ranks. Since the Ruin nerf, killers are no longer able to 1v1 in even the slightest degree (so "1v1-ing" is a negative term). Killers have to either do hit and run builds with Sloppy, or get downs extremely quick (we're talking less than 20s a chase). Deathslinger is too slow with either. He's is decent at 1v1 but unless you're outplaying survivors at every turn and getting those quick chases, he has too little pressure to 1v1 and still win. Even playing a hit and run style of play, survivors don't fear him even if they're injured. All they have to do is get between him and an obstacle, take the chain break, and heal deep wound so they can jump back on the gen. Chain breaking (a common occurrence while playing Deathslinger) is basically giving a survivor Borrowed Time, which takes only a little longer to heal, so it basically does nothing. With all that in mind, he's better off doing a playstyle that closer resembles 1v1 (which is still an inefficient way to play).
I love Deathslinger. He's probably the best killer from a design standpoint, but he's been horribly translated to a reality. DBD at red ranks is absolutely ruthless for killers. It's literally a case of "You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain" (lose because you played 'fair', or win because you had to slug/tunnel). There are exceptional players who win a lot more on than "average chumps" like me, without slugging or camping somehow. But trust me, they still lose a lot.
If this was a balanced game, Deathslinger would be almost fine where he's at, but it's not. Cool killers like him are tossed to the wayside in favor of stronger killers like Spirit or Wraith, simply because the survivor role is so incredibly strong compared to the killer on average. So this is as much a debate about how good Deathslinger is as it is about the overall balance of the game. Since we know our devs too well by this point, we know they're not going to do any comprehensive rebalancing (or they'll fail at it like with the "killer sided" mechanic of breakable walls). The least I expect is a buff to this awesome killer, instead of a nerf after (coincidentally) everyone has already paid for him and can't get a refund (like has happened with past killers).
Comments
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no.
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Nah fam, he fine.
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I feel like his iri add ons need some love. 15 meters is to much imo, maybe 12-13, I get it shouldn't be a free insta down like iri head but it is actually almost max range, even if you manage to land that shot what are the odds you can actually pull them in all the way.
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Also randomness of maps can kill this add-on very quickly. There is no place for so long shots on maps like The Game or Hawkins Laboratory.
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You forgot his biggest pro: He has quickscope and absolutly no counterplay beside hoping the killer has bad aim. And thats the end of discussion for buffing him already.
If anything, he needs a nerf. Might be that he is weak on PS4 because stinky controls, but on PC when versing a good Deathslinger you are dead when within LOS.
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A much as Deathslinger is probably my second favourite killer in the game just after Hag, he is, in my opinion, the single most punishing killer to use in the entire game.
His power is extremely discouraging to use even if you're decent at aiming. Huntress throws giant hatchets at survivors that are forgiving even if survivors are twitching all around trying to dodge it. Even with your sound cue, if you manage to fully charge your hatchets its pretty tough for survivors to reliably dodge them, and even so, you can adjust to try and compensate for their movement.
The Deathslinger's projectile is a tiny, very fast needle that's very precise in comparison. A survivor can literally spam A and D and most of the time its not even worth risking the shot because of how twitchy and sudden their movement is. Quickscoping is the only thing that he has going for him and even so, if a survivor is good and experienced and if the survivor did not out-position themselves they can bait movements and they can read when you're most likely to shoot. And the corn....the god forsaken stupid ass corn...
In the best case scenario he shoots a survivor, wastes time reeling them in, hits them then has to waste time reloading as he walks very slowly or else you're just a 110% m1 killer. If you miss, you're stupid slow for like 1.5 s after your shot, and then you're stupid slow while reloading again, and then have to try and catch up.
Worst case scenario, you actually land an extremely difficult shot only for the game to be like "oh you thought your skill matters in this game? lul" and have either the survivor be unreachable or even worse some bystander survivor just gets in between you and your target and pretty much takes your hit away almost for free. This can actually destroy your momentum cus it can deny you downs that with other killers would be easier to recover or otherwise push through.
In my experience both using Deaslinger a lot and facing a lot of Deathslingers between rank 3 and 1, if the killer misses about 4 or 5 shots while 4 survivors are alive that's almost a guaranteed gg because of how little overall pressure he has, even if otherwise the killer has been having chases under 20 seconds. Even with how punishing killer mistakes are in general, a mistake with Deathslinger is waaaaaaaay worse.
That being said, and as much as games with Deathslinger can be extremely stressful because of how perfectly you're expected to perform, I do not think he is as weak as Clown. He's most definitely weaker than Hag. I don't know if he's weaker than Legion or Bubba either. Probably somewhere around low-mid tier.
I don't know if he needs to be 115%, but I definitely think he needs something to help him out.
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"...Reload speed is meaningless if you never hit half your shots."
"...You can pull off crazy shots with Deathslinger and not get the survivor. Either they'll be too far away, or they'll break free before you can hit them."
...wait, are you talking about his power level or your skill play???
I don't want to judge you but....come on, He is the first legit FPS killer. Quickscope is his big advantage. If you're not that good at FPS, can't quickscope or need more than 1.25 secs to aim and still miss, just accept that the problem is your skill play not his power.
I'm rank 1 survivor and already against many good Deathslinger players, He can end chase faster than you think and you will have no idea when he starts to shoot.
Deathslinger is weaker than Huntress If you try to play him like her. Like you try to play Ghostface like Myers.
//His base power is fine but I agree with @HollowsGrief that his red add-ons are too weak.
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So his lower TR to the point of basically sniping people outside of it isnt an upside?
Also, EVERY killer (except bubba and oni?) Has to 1v1 a target. This isn't an issue for Deathslinger. In any way. You have to choose ONE target to chase and down.
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He doesn't have enough pressure to justify his downsides IMO. His 1v1 is only strong relative to the tile set. He completely lacks reasonable downing capability for a 110 killer on many maps. A 110 killer can't be merely good at 1v1 and absolutely nothing else.
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I don’t understand why people say he’s strong he’s not lol I honestly agree that he’s in D tier
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Deathslingers can be very good when played well.. I agree with many who say a few missed shots can be the difference between a win and loss with him, and that's why I see him as more of a weaker nurse than a huntress.
First off, his small, already hard to hear TR means he gets in for free a surprising amount if the time. Any information that tells you where survivors are working on gens is very strong for this reason, because it helps you do what Deathslinger wants to do, get the first hit in a survivor, then line up the shot for a quick down. If you approach the gen a certain way to position yourself for a clean shot after a potential hit or chase, you cut down the escape options for survivors. It's also important to know there is almost no shot you can make that is a waste of time, and on certain loops and corners it's smart to actually approach and reel instead of back and reel so you can end with a lunge that may not get a hit, but lessens the space between you and survivor and pulls him out of position enough for you to get the follow up hit. Anything to shorten the chase.
DS is a monster when it comes to cutting down the map, getting a surprise shot that disorients the survivor worse than a hag trap, and securing an area. His 3 gen game is really strong if played well, and he is one of those killers you can never really sleep on, even in endgame, because with certain add ons and perks, a sharp DS makes hook saves almost impossible even from a distance. He's got alot going for him, but I don't think he's top tier or anything, I just think the way in which he locks down chases and removes survivor options shouldn't be overlooked.
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Why is one of the iridescent an aura reading???
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He has an aiming animation and projectile delay you can relax now
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He definitely doesnt need a serious buff. Hes fine, mostly even broken as long as hitboxes are the mess theyre actually. Struggle is too powerful? What? You as survivor cannot do anything properly against it as long as you dont cheat some way out.
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Lol, he’s quite weak and they’ve already passively admitted this when Peanits said “some players can do well with him. We are just hoping people need more time to get better at aiming.” If you know anything, this means he is under performing. People aren’t going to get too much better with his aim and when they do, they’ll realize that the survivors will get better at positioning and then you’ll never get a hit. Harpooning theM isn’t the issue. Being able to hit them and capitalize on the harpoon is.
He is fun but an awful killer.
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You’re joking right? His shooting is leading. It means the quick scope only works if they run in a straight line or you’re 100% accurate on your read as to their direction. This game is not scan detection hits.
the aiming requires so great accuracy that you can juke slightly to the left or right and it will miss. Or duck. Or be near any object at all and the chain will break.
I have not lost to a single Deathslinger in red ranks yet. They cannot pressure the gens.
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Checking out his stats on the movement speed page of the wiki reveals that he's slowing himself down quite a lot.
Additionally to being slow, he takes a long time just to hit a single survivor, compared to others. (Especially Huntress). You might check out Tru3's comparison video.
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Saying he’s weaker then huntress is subjective. Huntress gives so many indicators like her humming and grunting that gives survivors the info they need to counter play her. Deathslinger has no such counterplay except for finding a loop with a safe enough pallet that he can’t shoot and reel you at. Are people really forgetting he has instant ADS and just by simply walking towards survivors you are causing them to take weird pathing because they are expecting you to shoot? Against a “SWF bully squad” this guy has a way better chance then huntress imo since huntress has so much counterplay that good survivors can take advantage of.
Saying he is weak just because he is a 1v1 killer isn't a downside if his 1v1 is strong. Clown imo is the weakest killer in the game because his power only works for a chase but it’s a chase power that doesn’t even end chases quickly. Deathslinger’s 1v1 is just as strong as spirit with how little counterplay the survivors have in a chase. Also you say that as a 1v1 killer you need to end chases in like 20 seconds... ya he does! With his small terror radius you can sneak up a m1 hit and then just go for the shot when you get line of sight on the survivor. If spirit is considered top tier because of her 1v1 then how come this guy isn’t the same?
the only way I could see this guy justifiably being 115 speed is if they nerf his power. If they made him trapper speed without a single change to his power... yikes. I think as he I saw now he is already a top tier killer but the reason for why people consider him weak is because of bad map design. The bad map design I am referring to are the larger maps like Red forest maps, Thompson house, ormond, etc. These are maps that make it hard to pressure as any killer so I don’t think it necessarily is a problem that only effects slinger. You put this killer on an actual balanced map like coal tower, Chapel, dead dawg, you can see just how insane he can be when placed on maps where’s the survivors are forced to interact with the killer more often.
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He is fine.
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His aim is pretty easy, and IMO its easier than Huntress. Unlike huntress its dead center in your screen, where her weapon sits off to the side and you have to gauge where center will hit. I will preface that like I do all my killer-related opinions and say that I am not a red rank killer. But in my limited experience with him, aiming was no issue. And any P2 - P3 I have run into can quick scope without issue (I do play red rank survivor, so that probably makes a difference as well). He seems more like nurse (albeit not as difficult) - perhaps has a higher learning curve but very strong in the right hands. There isn't much you can do as a survivor against someone who can quickscope...there is literally no delay, unlike huntress where no matter what there is some delay and sound notification between when the hatchet is thrown and when it lands. You really have to anticipate where good players are going. With him, if you have decent aim, you can nab someone easily with no time to dodge. The people who have trouble are the people who aim down sights (so its easier to anticipate where they are shooting) and who have bad aim. That is easily improved by repetitive game play.
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He tends to do really well in most games I see. Is very strong at loops. But sure buff him because you cant win easily
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I am not saying his genpressure is good, but his chase potential is absurd. I also never mentioned that every scrub is automaticly a god with him, but once you figure out how he works, he is unstopable in chase.
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You wanna tell me you can react to that? You know, the 0,1 seconds or what?
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He's a very good killer in the right hands. He's somewhat similar to Oni. His power is nuts in a chase. Yes, he lacks map pressure at times but his power can almost be an instadown in many situations. You can snowball pretty hard with him. In the right hands he's a very solid B tier killer.
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Being upset by the fact that he has only one shot when he can reload on the move was already irrational enough. But once you said that his small terror radius was practically pointless, it became clear you truly have no clue about the power potential of this killer. The rest of your points are pretty weak as well. You're upset cause you have to aim more carefully with him even though he actually has a scope to aim with unlike Huntress. You think survivors have too much struggle power which can only mean you've been shooting over stuff and then getting upset that the obvious problem scenario ended up being problematic. You're upset that a near stealth ranged killer only has 110% movement speed. And you're finally point doesn't even have to do with Deathslinger but killers in general.
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i'd say he is pretty much fine right now.
the only thing he is lacking is map pressure - but thats a problem for countless killers, isnt it?
fix survivor objective times and he is definitely fine the way he is.
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Deathslinger is fine. If you buff him he will become S Tier for people who can quickscope reliably. Right now he's in the same spot as Oni and Ghostface, fantastic if you dedicate time to learn the killer, but difficult to master.
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Absolutely true
What kills him is the projectile size and dedicated servers in general
I was healing someone off the hook, and a DS shot at us, and the hook passed between me and the guy getting healed, we were mid healing animation btw
What?
Deathslinger right now is low C tier. His harpoon is barely threatening at all. It doesnt guarantee damage, and even if you have god aim, you wont ever get reliable downs because of the flimsy chain.
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Imagine thinking he has no counterplay when he can't deal with MANY pallets.
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Happened to me. Huntress hatchets gets the hitbox of a pallet yet this guy aims with a needle.
He is so much fun, but he is more frustrating than he is fun.
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People saying he’s strong is a joke lol he’s down there with clown ..I don’t know who’s worse him or clown tho ..110% vs 115% I’d probably say he’s worse unless he gets a buff barley anyone will play him
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dear god never buff him
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Can't tell if a lot of trolls or just bad players. The killer absolutely dominates chases and if you can't somehow make map pressure out of that... I don't really know what to tell you.
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you realise pallets are the only thing survivors have against him? if he could down survivors through pallets, people could do nothing when facing him.
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Easy..move sideways 0.0
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You know that you can just harpoon the Survivor and pull them around to you if you get LOS from either the short or long side of the loop right?
I mean pallets stop him from instantly winning a chase (since if you don't throw the pallet he can just harpoon you through it and hit you immediately), but they don't hard counter him. All he needs is to play the pallet and get LOS for literally half a second to win.
Heck, plenty of pallets have low wall loops too; which is a free hit for him as long as he has the quickscope down since his chain will be over the loop and he can pull the Survivor around it.
Windows don't help either since he can just harpoon you through them, pull you to the window, and hit you.
He has no counterplay in chase besides hoping the person playing him messes up.
Once people git gud at him it'll be Exploit Legion all over again.
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As a fellow rank 1 deathslinger, none of these should be changed. His genuine problem is the ads sensitivity and his addone being somewhat worthless. Some arent worth using and his ads before the patch was perfect for flicks. Having a smaller terror radius would be awfully unfair with M/A making it impossible to hear him coming. The only point which could be changed with justification is the charges needed to break the chain. Even with the chain addon, its still smvery easy for survivors to escape.
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