Question for the killers mains.

When chasing a survivor, how long do you chase the survivor before dropping the chase?

Also what makes the chase shorter or longer against a specific survivor (assuming you haven't killed any survivors yet, also they still have to repair the 5 or 4 generators)

Comments

  • Iron_Cutlass
    Iron_Cutlass Member Posts: 3,227

    Knowing when to drop chase it not easy for a lot of people.

    I typically think of how long I have already been chasing, if the Survivor has been hit during the chase, was already injured, or is still healthy can also play a part in this since it is often more ideal to leave a long chase if you have already gotten nothing from it.

    I also like to consider the location of the Survivor, nearby resources they have access, and perks they are using that could extend the chase further. If a Survivor runs themselves into a deadzone, of course Im going to take my hit, see where they ran, and decide if it is worth it for me.

    Finally, it is important to consider playstyles. Some Survivors actually loop while other Survivors camp pallets and instantly drop them when you get close. While camping pallets might be boring to go against, it burns through resources faster, so you get hits later on you otherwise would not get since Survivors have less to work with.

    TLDR; there is a lot to consider, it is mostly personal preference and experience that dictates what you do.

  • Wibwob
    Wibwob Member Posts: 87

    Like others mentioned, it's more about assessing the situation than how long it has already taken. The most important parts are recognising good players and strong setups, which takes time to learn.

    At about 1:07 in this vid, the Killer finds an Ace at a strong tile. It took him about 20 seconds to realise it was a good survivor and a bad situation to chase in, so he dropped it and went in the direction of the hook (where there would be other Survivors to pressure).
    https://youtu.be/H69KJRDHwUU?si=XiPrGkElBKIvvbEN

  • GeneralV
    GeneralV Member Posts: 11,054

    Freddy used to be an excellent teacher on this subject because you could see everyone's auras while they were in the Dream World. So if you were chasing someone and you know what the other 2 or even 3 survivors are doing that creates an opportunity for decision making. Maybe chasing the survivor isn't worth it when all of the others are trying to get skill checks on generators. Or maybe you're about to catch them and the others are wasting time, so you can commit.

    I am using Freddy as an example because he is the killer that I play, but in his current state that idea of controlling the map doesn't exist. At least not in the way it used to. These days, if it looks like I won't be able to catch the survivor any time soon then I'll drop the chase.

  • radiantHero23
    radiantHero23 Member Posts: 4,123

    If they bee line to tiles I can't play around. (pig)

    In only chasing for one jungle gym / shack. I know this sucks, but I don't have a partner that helps me to slow down gens. Have to do that by myself.

  • Thusly_Boned
    Thusly_Boned Member Posts: 2,945

    I rarely let a chase go much beyond bloodlust 1, but it's subjective. The skill of the survivor, the strength of the tiles they are running, if they're taking you away from unfinished gens, and a number of other factors can go into the decision to drop the chase. And really a lot of it just comes down to putting a lot of time in game to develop that sense. One good rule of thumb - don't chase people who obviously want to be chased (unless they are clearly delusional about their chase skills).

    And not letting your ego get in the way. Not knowing when (or getting tilted and being unwilling) to drop chase is probably the biggest issue for inexperienced killers. You'll hear tall tales of five gen chases (I've seen one, literally one of these in about 5K hours), but allowing chases to go on too long will absolutely ruin you.

  • justadreampallet
    justadreampallet Member Posts: 150

    when the chase isn’t worth it. I loose a gen and haven’t hit them, I hear a gen about to pop, they are the 4 stacks chaser, or they lead me to a god zone, and sometimes I will drop if they drag me out to the edge cause then I’m stuck without hooks or map pressure.

  • I_Cant_Loop
    I_Cant_Loop Member Posts: 532

    I'm not a killer "main" (I play both sides about equally), but it's really difficult to answer that question because it depends on many different factors in the game. I'd recommend watching some educational YouTube videos for advice about how to chase and tips for deciding when to drop chase. For me personally, I will usually only drop chase if I know the survivors is likely going to be able to continue looping me through a series of strong tiles chained together without using pallets. Other than that, if I know I will down them eventually while also forcing them to use pallets, that helps give me a better chance to win later on.

  • Grigerbest
    Grigerbest Member Posts: 1,698
    edited September 26

    Lemme flex a bit…

    I played as a killer for so long so I subconsciously know for how long I've been chasing… Usually, If I feel like I'm chasing for longer than 30 sec - I'm dropping the chase.

    The skill level of survivor that I'm chasing is also should be considered.

  • Xernoton
    Xernoton Member Posts: 5,817

    That depends on the match, the survivors, your killer, the map, your loadout and a variety of other things. Unfortunately there is no one size fits all approach here.

    Personally I almost always play completely without slowdown, so I cannot chase after someone for a long time. That means I'll look for an opportunity to get an easy hit and when I realise, I won't get it, I'll take the first convenient moment to switch targets.

    Especially on high mobility killers I often drop chases and begin "poking" the survivors until something has to give and I get an easy hit / down. However, you cannot do that forever. At some point you will need something to slow down the game, so you'll have to commit to a chase even when it may take a little longer.

    Some ways to make your chases shorter are to play around exhaustion perks, use your own chase perks, know which tiles to mind game and which to brute force, picking your target(s) and proper zoning.

    If you can pressure a survivor towards the edge of the map when they use their exhaustion perk it becomes a lot harder for them to get to stronger loops. Likewise you can try to bait out an exhaustion perk and immediately switch targets if even for a moment. You'll have a chance to find that survivor again while they're still exhausted.

    Perks like STBFL, Bamboozle, Brutal Strength and Rapid Brutality can shorten your chases quite a bit.

    Some tiles in the game are so strong, that it's not worth it to spend time on mind gaming. Especially if the survivors look out for you and use check spots. The shack is one such loop for almost all M1 killers (Doctor is a bit of an exception) and so are jungle gyms and some main buildings. By extension even brute forcing can take too long, so if you need a really quick down on a killer without an effective chase power for that loop, it might be better to leave as soon as you realise they'll make it there.

    Picking your target is a strategical decision that survivors won't always appreciate but in general, you want to go after the survivor with the least protection. Meaning, if you find someone that's injured, they'll likely be a better target than someone that's healthy. The same is true when you see 2 survivors and one is much further away or far more skilled than the other. Some games I'll ignore one survivor until they are an easy target either because they are in a bad spot or all the resources are gone.

    Proper zoning can make a huge difference. All killers have the ability to zone survivors because the survivor has to maintain distance. If you can position yourself between a survivor and their strongest available loop, then they won't get there without giving you something in return (mostly a health state or exhaustion perk). This also very important when you break pallets or chase someone around a loop. You pretty much always want to stand between them and their strongest available resources. There are some exceptions with specific perks and killers.

    With more experience you'll learn to recognise some hints on when to leave a chase and how to keep a chase short. But everyone has a bit of a different approach to these questions.

  • 100PercentBPMain
    100PercentBPMain Member Posts: 998

    Too many variables, so I'll give the lame non answer of "depends"

    If I am where I want to be, I'll chase all day. I'm typically very liberal with my chases, maybe partly due to my Legion heritage; I'm always adapting and reacting to new information as they come up.

    My mindset is to control the match so I can chase mindlessly. I sometimes try to cook too hard so a perk like Tinkerer helps me wake up and not throw

  • drsoontm
    drsoontm Member Posts: 4,898

    "Killer mains"

    A good chunk of the player base plays both roles. (That's how you get better at the game.)

    When I play killer, it hugely depends on what the survivors are doing, or what I think they are doing.

    Sometimes I won't even start a chase if I believe I'd better patrol the gens or keep an area under control.

    So there is no simple answer to that question.

  • Brutha
    Brutha Member Posts: 181

    Commit.

  • Sngfun
    Sngfun Member Posts: 293

    I simply don't play killers that don't have the agency to deal with an skilled survivor on a timely manner, and judge wheter I drop chase based on the loop.

    For example, I never chase in main at the start of the game, since I need the first chase to be as quick as posible .

    It depends heavily on the moment of the match

  • danielmaster87
    danielmaster87 Member Posts: 9,307

    I'll drop chase after maybe 2-3 pallets are dropped, or if they have a lead on me and run somewhere stupid like shack, a jungle gym, or main. I'm bad with time on this game, so I could be chasing them for 20 seconds or a minute before I drop. It depends.