Glossary
The language of the Cursed Apple. Every term your teammates will shout at you, explained.
New to the lingo? Your teammates will use these terms constantly. Bookmark this page and check back whenever someone says something you don't understand.
A
AssassinA hero built to ambush and delete priority targets — excels at 1v1s and picks, folds if caught out.
Active (item)An item with an ability you trigger manually, usually on a cooldown. As opposed to passive stats that are always on.
AoEArea of Effect — damage or effects that hit everything in a zone, not just one target.
B
BackdoorAttacking an objective without your troopers reaching it first. Structures are far more vulnerable when troopers aren't tanking for you.
Base GuardianThe paired duo of structures defending each lane's entrance to the base. Both must die to unlock the Shrines.
BoonA small permanent stat increase earned as you level — base bullet damage, melee damage, health and spirit power. Boons quietly decide how fast those stats scale through the game.
BroadwayThe middle lane (blue). Shortest route between bases, touches all four districts.
Broker, TheA merchant feature from City Never Sleeps that trades high-tier items for Corrupted versions — stronger, with random downsides attached. Currently not available in standard/ranked matches.
BurstDealing a large amount of damage in a very short window. Burst heroes try to kill before the enemy can react.
C
CarryA hero that scales hard into the late game and 'carries' teamfights once fed. Needs protection early.
CC (Crowd Control)Effects that limit an enemy's ability to act — stuns, slows, sleeps, knockups, silences.
Comeback BonusHidden help for the losing team. When you're behind in net worth, you earn bonus souls and fight with extra resists inside Unstable Rifts — the further behind, the bigger the help.
Curiosity ShopThe in-game item shops scattered around the map (green icon). Where you spend souls.
D
DenyShooting an enemy trooper's floating soul orb before the enemy secures it — stealing the souls for yourself. (Shooting your own team's orb instead confirms it for you.)
DoTDamage over Time — effects that deal damage in ticks across several seconds instead of all at once.
DPSDamage Per Second — sustained damage output over time, as opposed to burst.
DiveAttacking an enemy under their structure, taking structure damage to secure the kill. High risk, high reward.
F
FrontlinerA durable hero who plays at the front of fights, soaking damage and disrupting the enemy team so the carries can work.
FeedingDying repeatedly and giving the enemy team souls and momentum. 'Stop feeding' means stop dying.
G
GankAmbushing an enemy laner with help from a rotating teammate. A surprise attack with numbers advantage.
GreenwichThe right side lane (green). Runs between the Theater and Chinatown districts.
GuardianThe first defensive structure in each lane. Fires a laser at the closest target.
H
Harass / PokeDealing small amounts of damage to the enemy laner to wear them down, without committing to a full fight.
HauntsNeutral creatures in the jungle between lanes. Killing them gives bonus souls. Come in easy, medium, and hard tiers.
Hero VotingDeadlock's community-driven release system. Players vote in the pre-match lobby to decide which announced hero releases next — winning-team votes and daily first wins count double.
J
JungleThe areas between lanes where neutral Haunts live. 'Jungling' means farming Haunts instead of laning.
K
KitingAttacking while moving away from a chaser — staying at max range so they can't hit you back.
L
LaneOne of the three paths (York, Broadway, Greenwich) where trooper waves fight. Players 'hold' lanes.
Last-hitLanding the killing blow on a trooper. In Deadlock, melee-killing a trooper auto-secures its souls.
M
M1Mouse button 1 — your primary fire. 'M1 build' means a build focused on weapon damage rather than abilities.
Mid-bossThe neutral boss at the center of the map. Killing it grants the Rejuvenator (team revive credits).
Missing / MissA callout warning that an enemy hero has left their lane and is unaccounted for — they may be rotating to gank you.
N
Net WorthYour team's total souls earned — the game's scoreboard for who's actually ahead. Comeback bonuses scale off the net worth gap.
O
OomOut of mana — in Deadlock context, out of stamina or ability charges. 'I'm oom' means you can't fight.
P
PatronEach team's final objective. Two health bars — deplete both to win the match. Only exposed after both Shrines fall.
PeelProtecting your carry by CC'ing or damaging enemies that dive them. 'Peel for me' means help me survive.
PickKilling an isolated hero — usually to remove them before an objective fight starts.
PingThe communication system — marking locations, enemies, and objectives on the map for your team.
PokeSee 'Harass'.
Power SpikeA moment your hero suddenly gets much stronger — a key ability upgrade, a big item, or a level breakpoint. Play around your spikes, respect the enemy's.
ProcAn effect with a random chance to trigger when conditions are met (short for 'programmed random occurrence').
PushAdvancing a lane by killing enemy troopers and hitting structures. 'Pushing' is how lanes turn into map control.
R
Ranked ModeThe competitive ladder with skill-based matchmaking and a visible rank. Street Brawl matches don't affect it.
Rat / RattingIgnoring teamfights to push waves and objectives solo — classic split-pushing. (Also: Deadlock's newest hero is literally named Rat King.)
RejuvenatorThe crystal dropped by the mid-boss. Breaking it grants team revive credits — dead heroes revive on the spot.
Rotate / RotationMoving from your lane to another lane or objective. Good rotations win games.
S
SandboxThe practice mode — test heroes, items and builds with no stakes and full control over the environment.
ShrineDefensive structures inside each base (two per team). Both must fall before the Patron is exposed.
Sinner's SacrificeMelee-only gambling machines in jungle camps — time your melee hits in a timing minigame for a soul jackpot. 15 machines across 11 sites; nothing to do with the Soul Urn.
SkillshotAn ability you have to aim — it goes where you point it, not who you click on.
SnowballTurning an early lead into runaway momentum — getting fed, then using that power to take more and more of the map.
Soul OrbThe glowing orb dropped when a trooper dies. Shoot or melee it to collect souls. Yours are green, the enemy's are orange.
Soul UrnA recurring event — carry the urn to the opposite side for courier souls plus four permanent Golden Statue buffs. The courier can fight but can't use ziplines, teleporters, or parry; a melee hit or stun drops the Urn.
SoulsDeadlock's currency. Earned from troopers, objectives, and Haunts. Spent on items at Curiosity Shops.
Split-pushPushing a lane alone while your team pressures elsewhere, forcing the enemy to choose what to defend.
SquishyA hero with low health and resists — easy to burst down if you can reach them.
StaminaThe resource for dashing, dodging, and sprinting. Shown as pips. Always keep one banked.
Steam VentMap feature added in City Never Sleeps — vents that conceal you from enemy heroes (allies can still see you) and block hero-targeted abilities, with a small health regen boost. Concealment breaks when you deal or take damage.
Street BrawlDeadlock's 4v4 single-lane mode — best-of-five rounds, no farming, randomized item drafts each round, exclusive Legendary items. No effect on your ranked MMR.
Super TroopersUpgraded troopers: destroying a side Shrine upgrades that side lane's troopers into Super Troopers (destroying both Shrines upgrades the blue lane too). Tougher, stronger pushers.
SupportA hero focused on healing, shielding, or CC'ing for the team rather than dealing damage.
T
T1 / T2 / T3Ability upgrade tiers — each ability can be leveled through three tiers, each one adding a new bonus or transforming how it works.
TankA durable hero that soaks damage and starts fights. Hard to kill, lower damage.
TeamfightA large fight involving most or all of both teams, usually around an objective.
TeleporterPaired doors by the underground Secret Shops that move you across the map. Usable from match start; ~4s channel, brief speed boost after.
ThrowHanding a lead back to the losing team — bad positioning, greedy plays, or a lost teamfight that erases your advantage.
TradeExchanging damage with the enemy laner. 'Winning the trade' means you dealt more than you took.
TrooperThe AI minions that march down lanes and fight each other. Your main soul source early.
U
UltShort for Ultimate — a hero's fourth ability. The big playmaker, on a long cooldown.
Unstable RiftA recurring king-of-the-hill objective on a random side lane — both teams fight over a capture zone, and the winner gets team souls plus a wave of super Rift Troopers. Rifts favor the losing team.
UnstoppableA status effect that blocks crowd control — stuns, slows and displacements won't land while it's active.
W
WalkerThe giant robotic lane boss — the strongest lane structure. Killing one gives your whole team an Extra Item Slot.
WaveA deployment of troopers marching down a lane. Waves are the heartbeat of lane pressure — manage them and you manage the map.
Wombo ComboTwo or more ultimates combined for a devastating teamfight play. See the Combos section on the heroes page.
Y
YorkThe left side lane (yellow). Runs between the Haunted Lot and Plaza districts.
Z
ZiplineThe fast-travel lines along each lane. Speed increases as you destroy enemy structures.