Survivor Stealth Playstyle Discussion and Tips?
This was originally going to be solely a request for tips for a stealthy survivor playstyle, but it occurred to me that a lot of people probably associate a stealthy survivor with hiding in a corner or locker and just waiting for the team to die off so they can get the hatch or open the exit gates quickly with a Sole Survivor + Wake Up combination.
So I guess my first question is: what is everyone's stance on stealthy playstyles? This can include the aforementioned example, of course, but I'm mostly curious what people's opinions are on trying to evade the killer through stealth instead of through chase. From what little I know just from reading past discussions either here or in youtube comments, hiding instead of engaging in a chase seems more frowned upon, and I guess I can understand. Staying out of the killer's sight doesn't give the survivor or the killer chase points, obviously. And of course, an epic chase is leagues more fun than playing hide-and-seek. There's also the benefit of the killer being distracted with a survivor in chase, which allows teammates to work on generators in some semblance of peace.
I definitely get that chases are just more fun and do have gameplay advantages as well, but what are your opinions? From a survivor or killer perspective, what immediately comes to mind when you think of a survivor with a more stealthy strategy?
With that curiosity out of the way, I suppose I should give more context as to why I'm seeking tips for a stealthy playstyle. Long story short, I'm pretty bad at looping. I can have my moments, but I'll be honest, those moments are probably greater due to a mistake on the killer's part than any sort of skill or cleverness on mine. I'm obviously trying to get better at the art of running around the map without getting slaughtered in an embarrassing amount of time, but while I chip away at that, I was wondering about stealthy playstyle tips or tricks from you guys.
For context, when I'm asking for stealthy gameplay tips, I'm not asking for advice on how to most safely wait for the rest of the team to die. My mindset playing Dead by Daylight as a survivor has always been "help team survive and escape." Unfortunately, when perks like Eruption, Jolt, and Pain Resonance trigger any time my skills in a chase are being subpar, I often have the overhanging dread of, "If I screw up, I'm hurting my team more than helping them."
Like I said, I'm trying to up my running from the killer and not dying game, but until that happens (and I tend to be a very slow learner with this stuff) I figure it might be better for me and my teammates to play to my strengths of just not getting in a chase in the first place.
It's probably weird to ask for stealth tips, now that I think about it, since a lot of it can be summed up to, "Stay out of the killer's line of sight, make as little noise as possible, and try not to panic by sprinting away when the killer doesn't even know you're two meters away from him." But I guess I'm asking for more "advanced" tips, then? Just little things like working on a generator at the beginning of the game, only to switch to a different generator so if the killer happens upon that generator first, they won't happen upon you and they might even waste time scouting out hiding locations around that generator. That sort of thing.
I'm really curious as to what you guys think of stealthy play and what tips you guys might have. :)
Comments
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I have a big tip, clothing doesn't really matter anymore, it's almost exclusively knowing about how killer's line of the sight works and using the right stealth perks, a dark clothing doesn't mean anything, most of the maps brightened up etc.
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I definitely agree with this a lot! I remember when the maps were darker and moon offerings were a thing. (Which honestly makes it sting more that I've been with this game for years and I'm still so bad. XD) But yeah, some outfits are obviously way more flashy. Though when I play as the killer, I honestly catch sight of certain bright charms on survivors more than their clothes. And just movement in general. There are games where I feel like I only see things when they move. X3
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Stealth! My enemy!
Uh, bring Distortion. Obviously.
And no, flashy clothes don't matter. Although, I have lost track of someone in neon clothing when they were literally right in front of me, without even much line of sight break, so I don't think my ability to spot people up close is terribly good. That Mikaela running right on the edge of vision? Sure! Brightly coloured Nea or Feng in my face? Really? I can't see 'em. xD
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stealth is frowned upon. the community is full of babies. rushing gens is just an overall better strategy. this is just how it is, but! i do have some stealth tips for you.
for starters calm spirit, lightweight, technician, and several other perks exist to help you reduce noise cues and scratch marks. these kind of perks are very important for stealth play.
likewise you've already mentioned one playstyle: sole survivor+left behind+vigil. this is probably the most frowned upon way to play, but if it's so good then why doesn't everyone run it and fight for hatch?
perks like quick and quiet and urban evasion can up your ability to slink away when you hear even a tiny bit of terror radius or when you're facing a killer that hasn't seen you yet, but is heading your way.
basically you have the basics down, but one thing you can do is avoid 100%ing gens. bitter murmur, tinkerer, dissolution, etc. are perks designed to punish gen rushers. so let your team finish the gens. just get them to 60% then go somewhere else.
if you see a sparking gen as a killer often that means that no one is nearby. whereas a gen that isn't regressing means a player has recently been there. and if they walked or sprinted there are probably tracks to follow. depending on how long ago a killer might ve able to pick up noise cues like groans, footsteps, the popping and clanking of a gen fixer, the bone rattling of a totem cleanser, the tape noises of a healer, or you might just be able to see the blood trails or hear the crows caw as they fly up or return. even opening a locker or chest can give a player away as each is very distinct in sound.
most of this game is about sound.
you always need a killer based aura perk or key addon. so make sure you run something. consider using built to last to keep it up.
other than that there's really nothing to it other than what you stated.
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your eyes are designed that way. we detect movement a lot better than colors or shapes. that whole thing about not moving because the t-rex wont notice you is actually more true for humans than t-rex's. in fact specifically in the military it is taught that you never scout a base by strafing the perimeter, but instead by approaching at a linear path then retreating a large distance and circling back in at another linear straight path.
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I like pairing Lightweight and Self aware. You can see your scratch marks are barely visible and check the killers line of sight to see if they would be visible to them. The increased walking speed is also really good for hiding.
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Actually the breathing and injured sounds are the most important thing to consider when choosing a survivor to play. Thats to say you are definitely want to avoid to play as Feng because she has such a distinct breathing sound that you can hear from miles away, and she is screaming for every action she does.
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I play stealthy by default, it's my go to gaming strat. Like I won't just sit in a locker all game. But I listen out for the TR and will try to avoid getting caught on a gen and I am usually the last in my swf to end up in a chase.
First up perks. Distortion, this perk is amazing for staying hidden. Especially with the amount of Nowhere To Hide I've been seeing recently. A lot of killers are relying on it and it saves you getting caught out in a locker. It also gives you valuable info on killers aura reading perks. Quick and quiet, always useful to silently jump in a locker to juke out of chase. Self awareness, mad useful in stealth builds. You know exactly where your scratch marks are and walking fast is very valuable for turning a distance gain in chase into an escape. Lastly probably iron will, as killer the amount of survs I catch out because I hear their pain grunts is unreal. Reducing the noise of these is invaluable. Spine chill and urban evasion are worth a mention too. Particularly spine chill, knowing where the killer is can be invaluable for avoiding them. A key with bloodamber is super handy for this.
One other thing is a piece of advice from a book series I love. Stay absolutely still when hiding. There are a lot of good places to hide on most maps, bushes, the cubicles on lery's, toilet stalls and spots on midwich. Wear dark or neutral colour cosmetics and avoid charms that glow like the auric cell or conscious concoction wtc. If you sit still, and there isn't any bright colours or glowy stuff to reveal you then killer can and very often will walk right past you. Even changing your view can cause your character to turn their head and a little movement can betray your position. I've had killers look right at me before and not see me. Yamaoka estate and dead dawg saloon are two amazing maps for this.
Think like a killer. You need to know killer perks and work out how they are trying to track you. If you use distortion you should know exactly what you need to as far as aura reading is concerned to avoid losing unnecessary tokens or getting caught. Some of it is harder to call, perks like spies from the shadows and bloodhound can really ruin your day if you're running a stealth build. Twins, victor has basekit bloodhound so if you're injured he's a nightmare to escape. If a killer catches you when you know you've hidden well. Consider they may be using these. Be aware of killer instinct, legion scoring a deepwound, using a vaccine/spray with nemi or wesker, being near a stationary victor. All reveal you to the killer and bypasses distortion. If you're against demo, only try to seal a portal if necessary and only when someone is in a chase, a lot of demos will ping open portals with from the abyss if they can't find someone, or maybe even run lifeguards whistle to always know when someone is messing with a portal.
Also stealth killers are an absolute nightmare to try and outstealth. You have to be crazy alert to achieve that.
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Spine Chill is still very good vs stealth killers
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