Best Heroes for Beginners

0:10 Seven is the best-supported pick for a Deadlock beginner: he is in every beginner list checked, from Esports.gg and TheGamer in 2024 to Dot Esports in Aug 2026, the game rates him at its lowest complexity, and deadlock-api measured him winning 54.3% of his matches from Oct 15 to Oct 25, 2026. Dot Esports names Seven, Victor and Ivy "the easiest top-tier characters to recommend to newer players"; older lists add McGinnis, Grey Talon, Infernus and Abrams. This page compares them with measured win rates, dated, and lists the heroes outlets call hard to learn. The full roster is on Heroes and the overall meta on Hero Tier List.

Quick facts

The recommended heroes, measured

The heroes outlets recommend to beginners are not all strong right now. The table puts each outlet's pick beside the game's own complexity rating and two measurements by deadlock-api: the win rate in all of Deadlock's normal matches from Oct 15 to Oct 25, 2026 (1.57 million matches, after Valve's Oct 14 patch), and the win rate in Ranked games whose players average Initiate to Seeker, the two lowest ranks above calibration (Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026, 54,821 matches).

Source: complexity from the game files, Oct 26, 2026; win rates from deadlock-api's all-match hero stats and low-rank Ranked hero stats, measured Oct 26, 2026. A win rate says how the hero does in other players' hands, not how quickly you will learn it.

Seven

6:04 Seven is a Mystic who "electrocutes crowds of enemies", in the game's own role line, with a burst-fire gun and a kit built around area damage. Esports.gg (Connor Knudsen, Sep 26, 2024) chose him because his kit is simple, and Dot Esports (Elizbar Ramazashvili, Aug 25, 2026) calls him "the answer for most players". His ultimate, Storm Cloud, is the part to respect: enemies break it by standing behind cover or with crowd control and Knockdown, Mobalytics notes, so cast it where they cannot hide.

Victor

Victor is a Brawler who keeps fighting after he should be dead, the hero Valve introduced on Aug 29, 2025 as one who "walks the line between life and death" and comes back when you think he is down. Dot Esports puts him among its easiest top-tier picks, and he won 55.2% of low-rank Ranked games in Oct 2026, among the highest there. His weakness is range: Mobalytics tells opponents to kite him and fight while his Shocking Reanimation is on cooldown, so a new Victor player should close distance before committing.

Ivy

Ivy is a Marksman who pairs with an ally, empowering both guns and sharing heals, in the game's own description. Dot Esports recommends her to newcomers, but the game files rate her complexity 3, the hardest common rating, because her value depends on whom she links with and when. She plays best with a friend in voice chat.

Abrams, Infernus and McGinnis

2:19 Abrams is the simplest frontliner. The game files rate him complexity 1 and describe a hero with "the bulk and sustain to lead from the front" (game files), which forgives mistakes in lane. Dot Esports warns that good players kite him and parry his telegraphed abilities, which is why his measured win rate sits near 51%.

1:58 Infernus burns enemies over time and chases them down with speed (game files), a complexity 1 Marksman that TheGamer (Tanay Sharma, Aug 31, 2024) recommended. McGinnis controls fights with turrets, which Esports.gg chose because the turrets need no aim. Both are measured just under 50% in Oct 2026, so they are comfortable rather than strong picks.

Grey Talon

Grey Talon is a long-range Marksman who "delivers long range skill-shots" (game files), recommended by Esports.gg in 2024 because he fights from a distance. The meta has moved away from him since: Dexerto's Oct 9, 2026 tier list puts him in C, Dot Esports in D, and he won only 45.1% of Ranked games from Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026. He still teaches positioning, but he is no longer an easy win.

Simple heroes that are winning now

1:39 Some heroes the game rates simple are also among the strongest in Oct 2026. Paige, a complexity 1 Mystic who conjures dragons and shields allies, won 55.5% of all matches from Oct 15 to Oct 25, 2026, the third highest of 44 heroes, and Haze (complexity 1) won 52.9%. Wraith and Baba are complexity 1 too and won 53.2% and 54.7% of Ranked games from Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026. See Paige, Haze, Wraith and Baba.

Graves is the hero winning most at every level. She is complexity 2 and won 57.6% of all matches and 55.3% of low-rank Ranked games in Oct 2026; Dexerto and Dot Esports rate her S tier. See Graves.

Heroes to leave for later

Outlets name a handful of heroes as hard to learn. Dot Esports lists Celeste, The Doorman, Lash, Yamato and Paradox as the hardest and Vindicta as the most dependent on aim; TheGamer adds Viscous. The game files agree in part: they rate 12 heroes at complexity 3 (Billy, Drifter, Holliday, Ivy, Lash, Mina, Mo & Krill, Paradox, Rat King, Rem, Shiv, Yamato) and Sinclair alone at 4.

Low-rank results point the same way. In Ranked games averaging Initiate to Seeker, the lowest measured win rates from Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026 were Warden 43.4%, Mirage 43.6% and Mina 44.9%, with The Doorman, Viscous and Shiv at 45.7%.

13:30 The newest heroes are popular but uneven. Rat King, the first City Never Sleeps hero (Oct 2, 2026), won 56.3% of all matches despite complexity 3, while Deadman Danny (49.1%) and Solomon (46.4%) trail in the same data. Rat King has his kit.

How to choose

0:50 Pick by how you like to fight. The game sorts heroes into four types in its files: Brawler, Marksman, Mystic and Assassin (game files). A Brawler such as Abrams or Victor forgives positioning mistakes; a Mystic such as Seven or Paige wins with abilities more than aim; a Marksman such as Infernus or Grey Talon wants good aim and spacing. Try a hero in the Hideout's practice range or the Sandbox first, as TheGamer suggests, and see Beginner's Guide for the rest.

8:35 Settle on a few heroes early if you want to play Ranked. Ranked lets you pick only heroes you have won 15 Standard games with, and you need at least three, under Valve's Jul 30, 2026 Matchmaking Update. See Ranked and Matchmaking.

Frequently asked questions

What is the easiest hero in Deadlock? Seven is the Deadlock hero outlets most often call easiest: Esports.gg, TheGamer and Dot Esports all recommend him, and the game files rate him at complexity 1, the simplest.

What hero should I play first in Deadlock? In Deadlock, start with Seven, Victor or Abrams: outlets recommend them and they won about 51% to 55% of matches in deadlock-api's Oct 2026 data.

Is Ivy good for beginners in Deadlock? Dot Esports recommends Ivy to new Deadlock players, but the game files rate her complexity 3 because she relies on linking with an ally; she won 52.9% of matches from Oct 15 to Oct 25, 2026.

What Deadlock heroes should beginners avoid? In Deadlock, outlets call Celeste, The Doorman, Lash, Yamato, Paradox and Viscous hard to learn (Dot Esports, TheGamer), and Warden and Mirage had the lowest low-rank win rates in Oct 2026.

Is Grey Talon still good for beginners in Deadlock? Grey Talon was a 2024 beginner pick in Deadlock, but in Oct 2026 he won only 45.1% of Ranked games and Dexerto rates him C tier.

What is the strongest hero in Deadlock for low ranks? Graves had the highest Deadlock win rate in Ranked games averaging Initiate to Seeker, 55.3% from Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026, ahead of Kelvin and Victor at 55.2%.

Sources

• The best 3 heroes for beginners in Deadlock, Esports.gg (Connor Knudsen), Sep 26, 2024
• Beginner Tips And Tricks For Playing Deadlock, TheGamer (Tanay Sharma), Aug 31, 2024
• Deadlock tier list: Best characters and heroes ranked, Dot Esports (Elizbar Ramazashvili), Aug 25, 2026
• Deadlock Tier List: Best characters to pick in the 2026 meta, Dexerto, Oct 9, 2026
• Deadlock Seven Guide, Mobalytics, undated, read Oct 26, 2026
• Deadlock Victor Guide, Mobalytics, undated, read Oct 26, 2026
• You Can't Kill Victor, Valve, Aug 29, 2025
• Matchmaking Update, Valve, Jul 30, 2026
• deadlock-api: hero stats, all normal matches, Oct 15 to Oct 25, 2026, deadlock-api (measured), read Oct 26, 2026
• deadlock-api: hero stats, Ranked, Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026, deadlock-api (measured), read Oct 26, 2026
• deadlock-api: hero stats, Ranked, average badge Initiate to Seeker, Oct 15 to Oct 26, 2026, deadlock-api (measured), read Oct 26, 2026
• deadlock-api: heroes, deadlock-api (game files), read Oct 26, 2026
• The Only Beginner’s Guide You Need for Deadlock (Updated), Metro Deadlock, Oct 1, 2026 (video)
• Deadlock Gameplay: Full Bot Match (4K 60fps), IGN, Aug 30, 2024 (video)
• DEADLOCK ... For Noobs (2 Years Later), Macro, Oct 19, 2026 (video)
• The ONLY Seven Guide You ACTUALLY NEED in Deadlock, DuckFilms, Nov 4, 2024 (video)