Most Dead by Daylight build lists online were written before 6 October 2026, the day Patch 10.2.0 went live and rewrote 58 perks in one go. A lot of them still recommend Windows of Opportunity as a must-run, still pair Hyperfocus with Stake Out, and still quote the PTB numbers for perks BHVR changed again before release.
This guide is written against the live build, Patch 10.2.1 (a bugfix released 14 October 2026), and every value in it was checked against Behaviour's own 10.2.0 and 10.2.1 patch notes. Nine builds, two of them fully DLC-free, plus the four builds the perk pass broke.
Quick answer. The strongest Killer build on Patch 10.2.1 is still Corrupt Intervention, Pop Goes the Weasel, Grim Embrace and No Holds Barred. None of the four changed in 10.2.0 or 10.2.1. The strongest solo-queue Survivor build is still Off the Record, Will to Live, Sprint Burst and Kindred, and Kindred got better: its Killer-Aura range is now 14 / 15 / 16 metres. What changed is the bench. Unrelenting, Help Wanted and Scourge Hook: Monstrous Shrine are real build perks now, while Hyperfocus plus Stake Out and anything built on Windows of Opportunity are dead.
What patch do these DBD builds apply to?
All values are from Patch 10.2.1, live since 14 October 2026. 10.2.1 contains no perk value changes, only fixes. The ones that touch builds: "Fixed an issue where Decisive Strike failed to trigger when Killers were in the falling state", a Shoulder the Burden Hook State display fix, and a Trickster bug that drained 4 Tokens instead of 2 from Keep Them Waiting. BHVR's own notes still call that perk "Save the Best for Last (Keep them Waiting)", which tells you how sticky the old name is.
The values that actually moved came a week earlier in Patch 10.2.0 (6 October 2026). BHVR's dev note explains the whole pass: "With this release, we are doing a pass on general perks - the perks new players gain access to when they begin their journey." The live notes list 58 perk updates, and some numbers differ from the September PTB. If a guide quotes Dark Sense at 24 metres or Empathic Connection at 40 / 45 / 50%, it was written from the PTB, not the live game.
The Haunted by Daylight event runs on this same build from 13 October to 3 November 2026, so nothing below changes mid-event.
What are the best Killer builds in DBD right now?
Gen control: the build that survives Diminishing Returns
| Perk | Source | What it does on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Corrupt Intervention | The Plague | Blocks the 3 furthest Generators for 80 / 100 / 120 seconds at match start |
| Pop Goes the Weasel | The Clown | For 35 / 40 / 45 seconds after a hook, a manual Generator damage regresses 20% instead of 5% |
| Grim Embrace | The Artist | Blocks all Generators for 6 / 8 / 10 seconds per first hook, then 40 seconds at 4 Tokens |
| No Holds Barred | General Killer Perk | Blocks the most-progressed Generator for 15 / 20 / 25 seconds every time a Generator completes |
Still the highest-ceiling Killer loadout in the game. Since Patch 9.6.0, when several perks change the same value, the game pays them highest-first at 100%, 50%, 25%, 12.5% and 5%. Three of these four perks don't change a regression value at all. They block Generators outright, so only Pop Goes the Weasel pays the tax.
10.2.0 / 10.2.1 verdict: none of the four perks appears in either patch. No Holds Barred is a General Perk, so this build costs three DLC Killers, not four.
Chase and anti-loop: the build Unrelenting finally earns a slot in
| Perk | Source | What it does on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Enduring | The Hillbilly | Reduces Pallet Stun duration by 40 / 45 / 50% |
| Bamboozle | The Clown | +5 / 10 / 15% Vaulting speed and blocks the vaulted Window for 8 / 12 / 16 seconds |
| Keep Them Waiting | General Killer Perk | Up to 6 / 7 / 8 Tokens, each cutting successful Basic Attack cooldown by 5%, to a cap of 30 / 35 / 40% |
| Unrelenting | General Killer Perk | Missed basic-attack cooldown 30 / 35 / 40% shorter, successful basic-attack cooldown 10% shorter |
Unrelenting replaces Coup de Grâce here. The 10.2.0 version cuts missed-attack cooldown by 30 / 35 / 40% (was 20 / 25 / 30%), adds a 10% cut on successful hits, and now counts obstructed attacks too, like hitting a locker lock or a pallet. BHVR's note: "Diminishing Returns allows us to return the long-since-removed successful basic-attack cooldown."
One catch: Keep Them Waiting and Unrelenting both cut the successful-hit cooldown, so under Diminishing Returns the smaller bonus is paid at half. The missed-attack half of Unrelenting stacks with nothing, and that's the half that wins chases on M1 Killers. If you'd rather keep a lunge perk, Coup de Grâce (The Twins) is unchanged: +2 Tokens per Generator completed, each spent on a 70 / 75 / 80% longer lunge.
Information: find them, hit them, snowball
Lethal Pursuer (The Nemesis) reveals every Survivor's Aura for 7 / 8 / 9 seconds at match start and adds 2 seconds to every other Aura reveal. Nowhere to Hide (The Knight) reveals Survivors within 24 metres of a Generator you kick for 3 / 4 / 5 seconds. A Nurse's Calling (The Nurse) shows Survivors healing or being healed within 28 / 30 / 32 metres. Surge (The Demogorgon) regresses every Generator within 32 metres by 6 / 7 / 8% when you down someone with a Basic Attack.
Lethal Pursuer multiplies the other three instead of just adding to them: Nowhere to Hide becomes a 5 / 6 / 7 second read.
10.2.0 verdict: all four untouched. A free swap got much better: Bitter Murmur now shows Survivors within 20 metres of a completed Generator for 10 seconds (was 16 metres and 5 seconds), and every Survivor for 16 / 18 / 20 seconds once the last Generator pops (was 5 / 7 / 10).
The leave-the-hook build: new in 10.2.0
| Perk | Source | What it does on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Scourge Hook: Monstrous Shrine | General Killer Perk | 4 random hooks plus the Basement hooks become Scourge Hooks; while you are at least 24 metres from a Survivor on one, unrepaired Generators regress at 150 / 175 / 200% speed |
| Make Your Choice | The Pig | Unhooking while you are more than 32 metres away makes the rescuer scream, reveals them and leaves them Exposed |
| Corrupt Intervention | The Plague | Same early-game cover as above |
| Lethal Pursuer | The Nemesis | Finds the next target the second you walk away from the hook |
This build comes straight from a thread in r/deadbydaylight today. Asked which licensed Killer to buy for perks, one player pointed out that Make Your Choice "might see a bit of a comeback if Monstrous Shrine sees more play, since both require you to be a fair distance away from hook to trigger." That's the whole idea. Before 10.2.0, Monstrous Shrine only sped up sacrifice progress. Now it turns every Scourge Hook into regression for as long as you stay away, and Make Your Choice punishes whoever comes for the rescue.
It needs a Killer who can hook and then leave fast. On a slow Killer you won't make the 24-metre radius in time to matter.
The DLC-free Killer build 10.2.0 made good
| Perk | Source | Before 10.2.0 | Live on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agitation | The Trapper | 6 / 12 / 18% Haste while carrying | 14 / 16 / 18% Haste |
| Iron Grasp | General Killer Perk | Wiggle 4 / 8 / 12% slower | Wiggle 10 / 11 / 12% slower |
| Whispers | General Killer Perk | Whispers within 48 / 40 / 32 metres | Whispers within 28 / 26 / 24 metres, plus 5% Haste outside that range |
| Brutal Strength | The Trapper | Break and damage actions 10 / 15 / 20% faster | Unchanged |
Nothing here costs money. The Trapper is a base Killer and the other two are General Perks. Three of the four got better, and the Agitation and Iron Grasp buffs land almost entirely on Tier I and Tier II. That's the theme of this patch.
What are the best Survivor builds in DBD right now?
Solo-queue survival: the four slots that stop a tunnel
| Perk | Source | What it does on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Off the Record | Zarina Kassir | 30 / 35 / 40 seconds of Endurance after unhook, with no Aura, no Scratch Marks and no Grunts of Pain |
| Will to Live | General Survivor Perk | For 40 / 50 / 60 seconds after an unhook, a Skill Check frees you from the Killer's grasp and stuns them for 4 seconds |
| Sprint Burst | Meg Thomas | +50% Haste for 2 seconds, then Exhausted for 60 / 50 / 40 seconds |
| Kindred | General Survivor Perk | Everyone sees everyone while a Survivor is hooked, plus the Killer within 14 / 15 / 16 metres |
Two of these four are General Perks, which means the two strongest anti-tunnel tools cost only Bloodpoints. Will to Live deactivates once the Exit Gates are powered and disables itself after use. If it never triggered against a falling Killer, that was the bug 10.2.1 fixed. Kindred is the slot solo players underrate: it's the only perk that shows your teammates whether someone is already heading to the hook.
10.2.0 verdict: only Kindred changed, and it was a buff. The Killer-Aura range went from 8 / 12 / 16 to 14 / 15 / 16 metres, so Tier I nearly doubled.
Generator efficiency: finish before the Killer finds a rhythm
Déjà Vu (General) shows the three closest Generators and repairs them 4 / 5 / 6% faster. Prove Thyself (Dwight Fairfield) adds 6 / 8 / 10% per other Survivor within 4 metres, capped at 18 / 24 / 30%, for everyone in range. Resilience (General) now adds 7 / 8 / 9% to repairing, healing and Totem actions while injured (was 3 / 6 / 9%). Adrenaline (Meg Thomas) heals one state and gives 50% Haste for 4 seconds when the Exit Gates power.
10.2.0 verdict: Resilience's Tier I more than doubled. Hyperfocus itself wasn't touched, but both of its enablers were, so the old Hyperfocus gen build is gone. See the broken-builds section below.
Altruism and healing: the build 10.2.0 created
| Perk | Source | Before 10.2.0 | Live on 10.2.1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| We'll Make It | General Survivor Perk | +100% healing others for 30 / 60 / 90 seconds after an unhook | Same bonus for 70 / 80 / 90 seconds |
| Better Than New | Rebecca Chambers | Healed target cleanses and heals 12 / 14 / 16% faster | 40 / 45 / 50% faster |
| Empathic Connection | Yoichi Asakawa | You heal others 25 / 30 / 35% faster | 30 / 35 / 40% faster |
| Resurgence | Jill Valentine | 50 / 60 / 70% healing progress after unhook | Unchanged |
Before 10.2.0 this was a meme loadout. Now it's the clearest case of the patch creating a build instead of just adjusting one: Better Than New more than tripled. Watch the PTB trap, though. Empathic Connection was 40 / 45 / 50% on the PTB and shipped at 30 / 35 / 40%. BHVR's reason: "Some of the healing perk buffs on the PTB overlapped too much with other healing perks." Empathic Connection and We'll Make It both speed up healing other Survivors, so Diminishing Returns pays the smaller one at half anyway. That's why the fourth slot here is Resurgence, which hands out healing progress instead of changing healing speed, and doesn't share the penalty.
The DLC-free Survivor build
Resilience, Kindred, We'll Make It and Dark Sense are all General Perks, unlocked on every Survivor through the Bloodweb. All four were buffed or reworked in 10.2.0. Dark Sense is the big one. After a Generator is completed, whenever the Killer comes within 20 metres of you, for 13 / 14 / 15 seconds you see Pallets and Windows within 32 metres, the other Survivors and the Killer. The PTB version was 24 metres, 8 / 8 / 10 seconds and a 24-metre Pallet range. BHVR moved Windows of Opportunity's job into it on purpose: "Learning maps and pallet spawns is core to improving at Dead by Daylight, so we want this to be available to anyone joining us in the Fog with a general perk!"
Which DBD builds did Patch 10.2.0 break?
Four, plus one that people expected to break and didn't.
Hyperfocus plus Stake Out. Stake Out now swaps your basic Skill Checks for special ones worth +4% progress while you hold a Token. The live version dropped the PTB's extra penalty for missing, but the special checks don't trigger other Skill Check perks. BHVR: "The Special Skill Check is more difficult and no longer activates other Skill Check perks." This is Not Happening lost its Great-zone bonus before launch too, "Due to it's synergy with Hyperfocus." Both enablers are gone. One player's verdict on the new This is Not Happening: "It's basically light born for surv."
Anything built on Windows of Opportunity. It now shows only Windows within 24 metres, adds 10% Window vault speed, and goes on a 40 / 35 / 30 second cooldown after every vault. BHVR kept the PTB version, explaining that Windows "was doing too much and overshadowing other perks". Five Moves Ahead now shows only Pallets, so it no longer covers the gap either. Run the new Dark Sense instead. Full before-and-after in our Windows of Opportunity rework breakdown.
Shoulder the Burden builds. Taking a teammate's Hook State now leaves you Injured and Broken for 160 / 140 / 120 seconds (it used to be Exposed for 60 / 50 / 40 seconds). The PTB rule that switched the perk off for every Survivor in the lobby was dropped before launch.
Self-Preservation stacking. Elusive went from 20 / 25 / 30 seconds to 13 / 14 / 15.
Not broken: Borrowed Time. The PTB's passive Deep Wound mend was reverted completely. Live Borrowed Time works exactly as it did before 10.2.0. Our PTB-to-live breakdown covers every change BHVR made between test and release, and the full 58-perk change list has the rest.
Why are old perks worth running at Tier I now?
This matters most if you build on a budget, and hardly anyone covers it.
By our count of the live 10.2.0 notes, at least six perks had their Tier I and II values raised while Tier III stayed exactly the same: Agitation, Iron Grasp, Kindred, No One Left Behind, Resilience and We'll Make It. Resilience went from 3 / 6 / 9% to 7 / 8 / 9%. Iron Grasp went from 4 / 8 / 12% to 10 / 11 / 12%. We'll Make It went from 30 / 60 / 90 seconds to 70 / 80 / 90.
In practice, a Tier I Resilience is now worth 78% of a Tier III one instead of 33%. If you've been saving Bloodpoints to push starter perks to Tier III before you build, spread them across the Bloodweb instead. Our Bloodpoint cap and farming guide covers where the Bloodpoints come from.
Which perk names changed, and why is your copied build missing one?
If you paste a build from a 2024 video into the in-game search and get nothing back, this is why. Several perks were renamed when their licences changed:
- Deadlock is now No Holds Barred
- Save the Best for Last is now Keep Them Waiting
- Decisive Strike is now Will to Live
- Object of Obsession is now Bound by Obsession
- Sole Survivor is now Down to the Last
- Coup de Grace is now spelled Coup de Grâce
- Jolt is now Surge
The last one goes the opposite way from what most guides say: Jolt was the temporary unlicensed name, and Surge is the original. The 10.2.1 notes themselves use both the old and new names (Decisive Strike, "Save the Best for Last (Keep them Waiting)"), so expect to see both for a while.
How do you build around Diminishing Returns?
Diminishing Returns has applied to repeated modifiers since Patch 9.6.0. When several perks, Powers, Items or Offerings change the same value, the game sorts them highest-first and pays 100%, 50%, 25%, 12.5% and 5%. Only Add-on modifiers are excluded.
The practical rule: don't run four perks that do the same maths. With four regression perks, the fourth is worth an eighth of the first. Mix categories instead: blocking plus regression, Haste plus Aura reading, Endurance plus Exhaustion. That way every slot keeps full value. 10.2.0 made this more important, because two of the patch's biggest buffs (Unrelenting and Help Wanted) cut the same successful-attack cooldown as Keep Them Waiting. Our Killer perk tier list and Survivor perk tier list both rank perks with this penalty applied.
FAQ
Did Patch 10.2.1 change any perks? No. 10.2.1 (14 October 2026) only contains fixes. For builds, that means Decisive Strike now triggers on a falling Killer, Shoulder the Burden shows Hook States correctly, and The Trickster no longer drains 4 Keep Them Waiting Tokens when he should drain 2. Every value change in this guide came from 10.2.0 on 6 October.
Is Help Wanted worth running after 10.2.0? Yes, on the right Killer. It now compromises up to 3 Generators instead of 1. When a compromised Generator is completed, you get 25% shorter successful-attack cooldowns and every unrepaired Generator regresses at 150% speed for 70 / 80 / 90 seconds. It comes from The Animatronic. Don't pair it with Monstrous Shrine, because both change passive regression speed and only the stronger one gets full value.
Is the new Whispers Haste worth a perk slot? Do the maths. A 4.6 m/s Killer with 5% Haste moves at 4.83 m/s, so crossing 100 metres takes 20.7 seconds instead of 21.7. That's about one second saved. It's real on M1 Killers with no mobility power and close to nothing on Blight or Billy.
Do I need a Generator slowdown perk on every Killer build? In practice, yes. Skipping it is the most common build mistake in the game. Run at least one regression or blocking perk. Two is normal.
Can I run these builds without buying any DLC? Two of the nine are fully DLC-free. Beyond those, No Holds Barred, Keep Them Waiting, Unrelenting, Scourge Hook: Monstrous Shrine, Will to Live, Kindred, Resilience, We'll Make It, Dark Sense, Déjà Vu and Iron Grasp are all General Perks, so a large part of the meta costs only Bloodpoints.
Which single perk should a new Killer buy first? Corrupt Intervention from The Plague. It blocks the three furthest Generators for 80 to 120 seconds at the start of every match, or until you down your first Survivor, and a new Killer can't create that time on their own. Our Generator regression perk ranking covers what to buy second.
Where can you find more Dead by Daylight guides?
Want more Dead by Daylight guides? Every build here is kept in sync with the live patch and refreshed the day BHVR publishes new notes.
- Best Killer Perks in DBD 2026
- Best Survivor Perks in DBD 2026
- Unrelenting, Fire Up and Distressing after 10.2.0
Sources: Patch 10.2.0 notes and Patch 10.2.1 notes published by Behaviour Interactive, plus unchanged perk values as documented on the official Dead by Daylight community wiki. Last verified 16 October 2026 against live Patch 10.2.1.
