Dead by Daylight isn’t just about the default capabilities of survivors and killers. Your success, and failure, will also be determined by the perks that you use. Here’s our Dead by Daylight guide on how to use perks.
How to use perks in Dead by Daylight
How to use perks in regular matches
In Dead by Daylight, killers and survivors have their own sets of perks. Each character has three by default, and you can click on the Loadout button prior to starting a game to see a list of those that are available.
In regular matches, you’ll only have the default perks of a character at uncommon rarity. Because all characters start out at level 1, you’ll only have a single perk slot at the beginning. But, as you reach levels 5, 10, and 15, you’ll unlock additional slots so you can equip more perks.
From this point onwards, you’ll also need to reach levels 30, 35, and 40. These milestones lead to Teachable Perks. Basically, the three default perks that each character has will have a chance to appear in the Bloodwebs of other characters. You can think of this as an unlock mechanic that makes playstyles more hybrid.
However, because progression is distinct and separate per character, you’re likely to grind XP for those that you have in your roster just to ensure that their perks can be used by others. It’s a very time-consuming ordeal.
How to use perks in custom matches
The other mode, custom games, allows you and your friends to have a private match together. The killers and survivors that appear here are those that come with the base game, as well as any DLCs that you’ve purchased. However, because the Bloodweb progression is not in play here, all perks and slots are unlocked by default, even the ones from characters that you haven’t obtained yet. In short, you can try different combinations to test them out.
The downside is that custom games don’t give you any Bloodpoints or XP. You’ll need to play regular matches if you truly wish to progress.
What are perks in Dead by Daylight?
As for the kinds of perks that you can use in Dead by Daylight, you can think of these as passives that will take effect during matches. A vast majority aid the character type that you’ve selected (i.e., survivors gain boosts to healing or stealth, while killers can have improved tracking or additional means to stymy progress).
For instance, killers can cause generators to regress or they’ll have ways to track down the survivors with ease. Meanwhile, survivors may choose perks to temporarily help with healing, sprinting, or just getting away from the killer at close range.
For other information about Dead by Daylight, you can take a look at our guides on the best killer perks and the best survivor perks.
