[Perks | Perk Change Ideas] Midchapter was great, and has got me thinking of future perk changes.

Coffe_e

The 6.1.0 Patch was really great so far. I've had probably the most fun making and playing Killer/Survivor builds since I started and was naive to the meta. It makes me really happy to see big sweeping changes to many perks. Though, A lot of perks still need that treatment, and I've had ideas for them, so I decided to put them here. By no means do I expect them to be used, but I think it'll be fun sharing them and seeing how a bunch of others feel. I'd love to see what people think of them, though i'm sure they're far from perfect haha.

A lot of perks could use some change-ups in my book, so I decided to list every perk I think is in need for a glow-up, and some ideas I've had for them. I'll also be shortening Boon: and Hex: to B: and H: wherever applicable.

For Survivor we have:

• [Aftercare] - Removing the "On Hook" penalty would be a sizeable buff, but if it's too much, being hooked could instead remove one of the Auras instead of all of them.
• [Any Means Necessary] - A great perk design overall. The Pallet aura reading is great, and the ability to reset pallets is strong, but I feel the cooldown is a bit on the long side. You could maybe drop it down to 45s, to help account for some of the time lost traveling to the pallet.
• [B: Circle of Healing] - Making the Healing Speed bonus only apply to Altruistic healing would be a sizeable nerf, but in it's current state, it's much less annoying than it was before. I would probably be fine with it's Healing Speed being buffed too if it only applied altruistically.
• [B: Dark Theory] - Dark Theory is interesting, but buffing the numbers on it would just cause issues. I propose that in addition to it's 2% haste, it gives an equivalent 2% Action speed bonus to everything, like a very subdued resilience. You could maybe buff the bonuses to 3% as well, but that may be too much, as this perk in concept is very volatile.
• [Buckle Up] - This one's a real piece of work, no offense BHVR. Really all of Ash's perks are pretty... out there. I suggest a major rework to it: You're able to see the Recovery progress regardless of distance, and in addition it functions like Kindred, but for slugging. Revealing all other Survivor's auras, and the Killer's aura within a certain distance. It could also apply to other Survivors when you're downed, but that may be too much for just being knocked down.
• [Clairvoyance] - Due to the limited amount of totems, the time to look for them and the time to cleanse them, I think simple numerical buffs to the duration, or the radius would be nice.
• [Dance With Me] - The 40 seconds seems a bit much. A small reduction like to 35 or 30 would be nice.
• [Deception] - A very interesting perk with a horrendous cooldown. I suggest two changes: Changing the activation requirement to the "Ability Button" while by a locker (Preferably lower priority than something like Dead Hard), and reducing the cooldown to 30, or even 25. The "Ability Button" change was suggested so you have the option to jump into a locker and Mix-Up the Killer if needed.
• [Flip-Flop] - A numerical buff would be nice, having 100% of your recovery progress turn into wiggle progress, up to 50%. This could be higher, but it could risk being abusable.
• [Guardian] - Just a small change idea to align with the recent base-game changes: Guardian's speed-boost is now combined with the base speed boost, and it's duration is extended by 3 seconds (Now 14% for 8s instead of 14% for 5s, then 7% for 3s), The Scratchmarks and Pools of Blood being suppressed are now tied to the Speed Boost as well.
• [Head On] - Multiple ideas for this one. The first I heard from somewhere online, and the others just simple ones I thought of. They include: Increasing the speed you slow-enter lockers, Making Slow-entering lockers silent, reducing the time it takes to activate by 1s, or even revealing the aura of Lockers in a large radius. Due to the fact that Head-On is restricted to lockers, and lockers are so committal, I could see all three being applied, similar to how Balanced provides buffs to aid in it's use that go away while exhausted.
• [Inner Healing] - It's effect is nice, but the difficulty of finding totems combined with the limited amount of totems, cleanse time, locker requirement, activation time, and risk of Pentimento make it have too many downsides compared to running something like Self-Care or a med-kit. I suggest changing it to a Token-based system. You gain 1 token per dull totem cleansed, 2 for hex or rekindled totems, up to some kind of maximum. In addition you could decrease the amount of time it takes to activate, but I'm unsure if that would be too much.
• [Left Behind] - Probably one of the most Selfish perks you could run in DBD, I have two ideas for this: In addition to it's current effects, if you escape either: The last survivor in the trial inherits it's effects, or the remaining survivors see the auras of Exit Gates (not the switches, but the entire structure, or just the exit-box)
• [Object of Obsession] - I suggest removing the part where you reveal yourself every 30 seconds. Too often does this effect allow the killer to constantly go after you, whether they tunnel or hook another person, then go for you. The action speed, and seeing the killer's aura whenever they see yours would be enough for a decent perk. You could even make it so the time you read the killer's aura is increased.
• [Poised] - An interesting, but selfish perk that doesn't provide much of a bonus compared to others. This is another perk where a few ideas have circulated in my head, and I've heard from others. You could make it so it hides your Aura, and Blood along with scratch-marks, or have it apply to everyone within a certain radius of the completed generator like a reverse Bitter Murmur. Having both of those effects would undoubtedly make it a useful perk, but due to the limits of YOU having to complete a generator to activate it, it's returns should probably be large due to the fact it's only likely to Proc once or twice per game.
• [Premonition] - Simple cooldown reduction could be nice, or a full on rework. I'm not really sure about what I'd do to rework it however.
• [Prove Thyself] - A very popular choice since the update, making it's affect only apply to the user would be good, as it would require multiple survivors to run it's original full effect.
• [Red Herring] - Hoooooo boy, this one is a really interesting perk in concept, but I feel like it has too much potential to screw over a teammate and deserves a bit of a rework to avoid that along with a small buff: It's aura is highlighted in Red to ALL Survivors until it activates, and the Generator appears and sounds around 75-90% completed to the killer until it is interacted with by any Player.
• [Resilience] - This change actually coincides with my proposed change for "This is Not Happening". Resilience now gives the 30% bigger Great Skillcheck zones in addition to it's current effects.
• [Rookie Spirit] - While I like the perk's concept, the activation condition is... strange, and it's missing something that I feel would make it perfect: In addition to it's current effects, You are able to see the Repair Progress of Regressing Generators. This would allow you to prioritize generators that are at 70% but regressing, while leaving the gen you only had 20% on. Maybe also reduce it's activation condition by 1.
• [Solidarity] - A possible numerical buff, but what I think everyone would like more is a Buff Icon that shows nearby injured survivors that you have the perk. Not even really a balance change, more like Quality of Life.
• [Technician] - I feel like removing the extra penalty on failed skill-checks would be enough.
• [This is Not Happening] - This perk's effect and requirement for that effect are so underwhelming that you may as well run Resilience over this. That's why it's original effect I applied to Resilience. A possible idea for a new effect could be gaining a Repair Speed bonus that scales based on the amount a Generator has regressed since you last worked on it, though the numbers on this would have to be fine-tuned.
• [Up the Ante] - Luck is a pretty dated mechanic in DBD, it solely affecting Self-unhook chance. Sure, when stacked with Luck offerings, Multiple people running the perk, and Slippery meat, you can have a pretty large self-unhook chance, but in a real match you'll likely never have that kind of coordination. I suggest this rework: Up the Ante now increases luck for each hooked or dying survivor, and only applies once if multiple Survivors run the perk.
• [Urban Evasion] - A small buff to it's speed, and an additional effect to make your Grunts of Pain quieter or making blood disappear faster/drop less while crouching would be great.
• [Visionary] - In terms of usefulness compared to other perks, Deja-Vu Blows this out of the park, Providing Critical information and a Gen Speed bonus. I say removing the temporary deactivation on Generator completion, and increasing the range to be able to see ALL generators. While not providing any tangible speed bonus, the knowledge of where ALL Generators are at all times would serve the same purpose that Windows of Opportunity serves for chases.
• [Wake up!] - Two small buffs I propose: In addition to it's current effects, you're always able to see Exit Gate progress based on the intensity of their aura, and Survivors are able to see your aura when within a certain range of an exit gate.
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For Killer we have:

• [Beast of Prey] - Two out of Three of Huntress' perks are pretty... yeah i'll just say it they're pretty dang bad. Beast of Prey relying on you getting bloodlust during a chase is really hampering to it's potential strength. I propose a rework to the perk: When you enter chase, you gain the undetectable status effect for 15 seconds, or until you damage a Survivor. This effect has a 30s cooldown. The Bloodpoint bonus in the Hunter category is still increased.
• [Bloodhound] - While nice, Bloodhound's effect is not that good compared to other Chase-Perks. I suggest giving it the ability to let you see Blood through walls, though at a very limited distance. (16m? 12m?)
• [Coup de Grace] - I, like many others, think that Coup de Grace's tokens should be gained in a different way than gens being completed. This results in too many issues due to the lack of control, the amount of times you can use the perk, and how weak it is when it's effect only triggers as you lose generators. I've seen a lot of people suggest getting tokens on hooks, and I think that'd be a great solution.
• [Deathbound] - Deathbound is a weird perk. It's information is marginally useful since you can't really capitalize on it, and the Oblivious status effect usually isn't enough to get two Survivors to stick together most of the time. I propose that in addition to the Oblivious status effect triggering when the survivors separate, the Survivor's auras are revealed to the Killer until one of them is damaged.
• [Dragon's Grip] - the cooldown on Dragon's is MONSTROUS, probably because BHVR didn't want it to be too powerful, but it's pretty bad. I suggest Refunding the cooldown like Blast-Mine if it doesn't expose any survivors.
• [Fire Up] - Like Coup, Fire Up suffers from it's effect being weak when it's condition for tokens is losing generators. It also suffers from other perks such as Brutal Strength providing immediate benefit to the Killer. I had two change ideas for this perk in my head for a while: Extending it's bonuses to Searching Lockers would be a nice QoL change, and Increasing the bonuses per stack is probably the most simple way to buff it. The numerical increase could be 6%, or even 8%.
• [Forced Penance] - Forced Penance is a good perk, but due to the jank of Protection Hits it can be really inconsistent. I'd first suggest fixing it's inconsistencies, then a small buff in the form of a Secondary Effect: ALL Basic-Attacks apply the Incapacitated status effect for a short amount of time (Roughly 4 seconds would be good?). This would allow the perk to prevent Sabotages while carrying, and allow Killers to prevent Generators or Heals from being brute-forced directly in front of them.
• [Furtive Chase] - This one's a doozy. It's main effect that it's sometimes used for is it's ability to switch obsessions, but it's secondary effect is pretty bad due to the In-chase condition. I propose that the Terror-radius reduction should now apply outside of chase. Due to needing to hook the Obsession, and encouraging you to chase the Unhooker, I think it's effects should be strong.
• [Grim Embrace] - Grim embrace is in a bit of a rough spot. It's effect is pretty good, but the activation requirement can be exceedingly rough, especially if a Survivor stealths and avoids helping their teammates. I propose buffing the duration by 5s to match the halfway point of new gen times, and changing it's aura reading to this: Whenever you hook a survivor for the first time, the locations of all Survivors not yet hooked are revealed to you for 5 seconds.
• [Hangman's Trick] - This perk used to be pretty different, and It's current effects are very lackluster compared to others. I would change this perk so that the Loud Noise notification doesn't need you to be carrying a survivor, maybe buff the aura reading by 1m, and give it back the one effect that prevented hooks from being permanently destroyed.
• [Hoarder] - An interesting effect would be inflicting the Oblivious status effect for a somewhat short duration after Interacting with a Chest, or picking up an Item.
• [Insidious] - Insidious is strange. It's main effect is often used for Stealth-Camping, but in reality it was probably meant for off-the-wall plays. I propose a rework: After standing still for 1 second, you become Undetectable as long as you stand still, and for 2s after. Insidious does not work if you are within 24m of a Hooked Survivor.
• [Iron Grasp] - As it stands currently, Iron Grasp doesn't really have much going for it. Sure it decreases the Wiggling sway, but Agitation saves you time while getting to far off hooks better due to the fact that it increases your movement speed. It needs one thing to make it unique from Agitation that isn't minor. I propose that Iron Grasp, in addition to it's current effects, lets you perform Vault and Break actions while carrying a Survivor, pausing their timer while doing so.
• [Knock Out] - Remove the Aura Suppression. It does nothing but hamper SoloQ and I believe it would be a fine enough perk without it.
• [Lightborn] - Instead of Completely negating Flashlights, make it reduce the blind angle, or increase blinding time. Maybe both, but I think this is really the only perk that provides an Instant, start-of-game "Get rid of this Mechanic" effect, and I think that's pretty lame. It should make blinds harder, not impossible. In exchange though, i'd buff the Aura duration from 10s to 15s, maybe even 20s.
• [Mad Grit] - I love mad grit in concept, but I feel it's missing one thing to make it truly a wildcard pick: In addition to it's current effects, While carrying a survivor, you can Lunge your full Lunge distance. This should probably not benefit from it's "No Cooldown on Basic-Attacks".
• [Monitor & Abuse] - I propose removing M&A's FoV Increase/Decrease mechanic in favor of giving an FoV Slider to all players accessible from the options. I could get into the gist as to why FoV shouldn't be tied to perks, but that's already in a post i've made before.
• [Nemesis] - Just a small buff, the Aura Reading can be really short due to pallet stuns being pretty long without enduring, maybe 6-7 seconds.
• [Oppression] - Man, Oppression is rough. When compared to all the other Generator-kick perks, it's stupidly massive cooldown is a bit ridiculous. A lot of the changes i've seen from the community seem to just be removing the cooldown, and applying the new 2.5% base regression to all gens affected by the perk.
• [Overwhelming] - Overwhelming is an simple perk with a simple goal, but I feel adding a unique secondary effect would be nice. My idea is that, in addition to it's current effects, The terror radius' volume/heartbeat reaches it's maximum sooner than normal. (This means that instead of the maximum heartbeat speed happening when you're roughly 4m from the killer, it happens at like, i dunno, 16m?)
• [Predator] - Predator is pretty bad, to the point where it can actively hinder your ability to see Scratchmarks on maps with lots of foliage. I would say it needs an entire rework due to that. I propose this rework: Predator causes Scratchmarks to be brighter and more ordered, pointing in the direction the survivor was going.
• [Remember Me] - Making it's effect apply to the obsession as well as all other survivors would be a good change, as in it's current state, it encourages you to tunnel your Obsession out of the game as early as possible.
• [Shadowborn] - Like I said above, FoV mechanics shouldn't be attached to perks. Here's the rework I suggest in exchange for an FoV slider: Shadowborn makes you Undetectable for 15 seconds when you exit a chase, and extends all Undetectable status effects by 6 seconds.
• [Spies from the Shadows] - Increasing the range of it's effects or making it's range further than 32 meters could be nice, maybe in exchange for a bigger cooldown.
• [Territorial Imperative] - Territorial is a very niche perk, too niche to be useful in any capacity. While it can be a game-changer, and I don't think that it's game-changing in the right way. It enables certain killers to easily get an early basement hook and camp out a Survivor while the others do Generators. I suggest reworking it completely: Territorial Imperative is now a Token-based perk. For every Unique Survivor hooked, you gain a token. Whenever you hook a survivor with One or more tokens, gain a 5% Haste effect per token for 5 seconds, up to 20% Haste. (Disclaimer: These numbers are made up just to get the idea across)
• [Thrilling Tremors] - A small change to how it's effect and small buff works would be nice. Instead of blocking generators for 16s after you pick up a Survivor, Generators that aren't being repaired are blocked as long as you carry a Survivor, and for like 12 seconds after. Finally as a QoL change, it's effect also applies like Starstruck when going off cooldown and carrying a Survivor, instantly activating.
• [Trail of Torment] - Having this Perk's aura be revealed 5-10s after you kick a Generator instead of instantly would be a nice change. In addition, making Trail of Torment have a much shorter cooldown that triggers when the perk deactivates would be nice.
• [Unnerving Presence] - Same situation as Overwhelming. It's a nice perk, but I wish it had something else: In addition to it's current effects, whenever a Survivor working on a Generator or Healing enters your Terror Radius, they are faced with a Tremendously Difficult Skillcheck. (Similar to Soul Chemical addon on Blight, or the Overcharge skillcheck)
• [Unrelenting] - Pretty simple change here: Make it apply to hitting walls, and it'd be pretty nice.

aaand that's all of my ideas in one place! My brain refuses to stop thinking about these until I actually write them down, and even then sometimes it wanders back to balancing. I think it's because I enjoy the unique experience DBD provides so much that I want some of the Super niche, and borderline useless perks to have some time in their own little spotlight, and being good enough to have a reason to run them.