Riot added their newest agent, Deadlock, into the fray in update v7.0. What does this Sentinel do that the others don’t? Is she a hybrid agent like the previous edition of Harbor, or is she a one-trick pony? Let’s break down Deadlock’s abilities and the playstyle she brings to the match.
Iselin, better known to us as Deadlock, is an elite Norwegian hunter from the security force Ståljeger. Equipped with a prosthetic bionic arm (lab-tested bear attack, don’t ask her about it), her kit includes abilities to delay and trap prey. The abilities include a net, an audio sensor, a barrier, and a cocoon. Riot categorizes these abilities and her character as a Sentinel type agent, but with the last few releases, agents have strayed further and further away from their designated descriptors.
Deadlock’s net, called Gravnet, is a grenade with the same throw physics as a Killjoy Nanoswarm and a KAY/O FRAG/ment grenade. It activates upon impact and forces enemies to crouch in its radius for 6 seconds.
Deadlock’s Sonic Sensor is a trip that can be set up in the Buy Phase or during the round that monitors sound in its marked area. It concusses the entire area of coverage upon the sound of footsteps, weapon fire, or any other significant noise. The sensor has 20HP and concusses enemies for 3.5 seconds.
Deadlock’s best ability is her signature ability Barrier Mesh. You can equip and throw Barrier Mesh like Brimstone’s Stim Beacon. Once on the ground, an X-shaped barrier appears. Projectiles can go through this barrier, but it prohibits the opponents from advancing through it.
Her ultimate is a cocoon called Annihilation that can be bounced off of walls that entraps an opponent in its path. The cocoon then slowly returns back to where it was thrown from, while enemies can try to shoot it to break their ally free.
Gravnet is a great ability to use in a pinch to disrupt an enemy’s execute on site. As a Sentinel agent, her kit focuses on-site control and delaying the opposition. Although it is great for slowing the speed of an enemy’s execute, it does not stop them from killing you, as they are more accurate when firing a rifle at a crouched position. Gravnet is best used in combination with another agent’s ability, a trend we will see throughout Deadlock’s abilities.
Sonic Sensor has a huge weakness that will be exploited even more so as players learn to play against Deadlock. Sonic Sensor only senses sound. It is extremely weak compared to Cypher’s Trapwires due to the fact that a simple shift walk will allow the opposition to pass right through without being punished. However, this can disrupt an execute by slowing down the opposition’s movement by forcing them to walk or by giving their position with an audio cue when the sensor is destroyed.
Because this piece of kit can be bypassed, it does give the user and the team a false sense of security which cannot be afforded in a tactical shooter. Luckily players can equip up to two that can be used in tandem. Setting one up as a decoy to be shot down only for the second one to catch the opposition by surprise is Sonic Sensor’s best use-case. However, you are now dedicating 400 credits to one area dealing a concussive effect.
Not being able to trust your own equipment is concerning and might make a player second-guess before selecting Deadlock as their agent.
Barrier Mesh is a fantastic signature ability and really carries the weight of her worth when selecting an agent. Like Sage’s Barrier Orb, Barrier Mesh is a character-defining ability. The nodes in the barrier have a lot of health and are absolutely devastating in the pistol rounds.
The small nodes have 320 HP when it spawns, and after 3 second, it has 680 HP. The large node has 570 HP when it spawns and 1200 HP after 3 seconds. In comparison, Sage’s Barrier Orb has 400 HP when it spawns and 800 HP after 3 seconds. The barrier lasts 40 seconds compared to Sage’s wall lasting 30 seconds.
It is great to use in small, defined chokepoints, and for blocking your flank, it is the only piece of kit that Deadlock has that will guarantee a block or cue for flankers.
Deadlock’s Annihilation ultimate itself will only guarantee one kill, as only one opponent can be caught inside the cocoon. However, the chaos it causes can line up players for multiple kills, as it is a huge distraction to the other team. They must debate if saving their alley is worth their safety. If they choose to attempt to break the cocoon, your teammates have a free kill, as the enemy’s crosshair will be on the cocoon rather than them. It is a great chaotic ultimate when used in the right situation.
Deadlock is very similar to Riot’s last release in Harbor, but there are some stark differences in the role they have in a team. Harbor is a hybrid agent who is labeled as a Controller, but he also has space-progressing abilities like an Initiator. Deadlock is a Sentinel, but she also has abilities that can control space, like a Controller. She is not a traditional Sentinel like Cypher, who can hold down an entire site by themselves and gather information on enemy positions. Like Harbor, Deadlock works well as a second pick of the same agent type. Harbor is good when combined with an agent like Omen or Viper. Deadlock is very useful to a team when combined with another Sentinel like Sage or Killjoy. Both Harbor and Deadlock are specialty agents. They will shine in a team composition made for them. Double Controller composition for Harbor, Double Sentinel team composition for Deadlock. You will not see the best of these agents without them being featured in a double agent-type composition.
For example, Deadlock will not work well with a fast-paced, aggressive Double Duelist composition of a Jett and Neon. Deadlock has to play a lot slower and methodical to be useful. Most likely, being the only Sentinel in that composition, Deadlock is not great at holding a site by herself. Deadlock excels at stalling and trapping the opposition (remember, she’s a hunter). This leaves her in a peculiar position.
Deadlock is a master of none (non-derogatory) but is great in a coordinated combination of other agents. Smoke agents combine well with her the most, with flash agents being a close second. But her weaknesses as a Sentinel need to be covered by another Sentinel on the team. Cypher would be redundant as he can do a lot more by himself, but cannot combine as she does with her teammates. Like Cypher, she does counter-aggressive teams harder than others, and she is very good on maps like Split that have very narrow chokepoints with limited options to attack a site. On Attack, Deadlock is most valuable on post-plant, rather than lurking. Deadlock could be a great addition to a composition, but players need to build around her kit.
Players have to get creative. Since she is a master of none, players must figure out how she will work best with the team’s composition. On attack, she is your best post-plant agent, so staying alive should be a priority. On Defense, combining with your Controller or second Sentinel player should be the focus rather than trying to control a site by yourself.
If players already enjoy playing Sentinel, Deadlock is a fresh agent to play and flex your gameplay IQ. If players are not used to playing a Sentinel agent, then Deadlock can be a great gateway agent into this agent type, as she is not a traditional Sentinel agent.
She is not taking Cypher’s role as he is way too efficient at solo holding a site. She does not gather information as well as Killjoy does with her bots, and she is a lot more complicated to use than Sage, so she is not quite a “fill” agent. Chamber is practically a Duelist at this point, and her abilities do not translate to the same kind of gameplay.
Conclusion
Deadlock follows the trend that Harbor started with being a specialist agent type. She is not that great when she is the only Sentinel on the team, but she has a lot of value if the team builds around her or if the composition heavily favors her abilities.
