Deadlock’s hero pool has been in flux since the City Never Sleeps update added six heroes and rebuilt the map in late September and October 2026. To cut through the noise, this tier list is built from ranked match data covering October 24 through November 7, 2026 – a sample of 379,008 matches, weighted primarily by win rate with pick rate as a secondary factor. If a hero moved tiers since the previous patch, we’ve noted it.
S+ Tier: The Two Best Picks Right Now
Only two heroes sit in S+ right now, and they got there in very different ways. Baba, one of the six heroes introduced in City Never Sleeps, leads the entire roster with a 56.8% win rate, though a 14.8% pick rate means plenty of players still haven’t learned the matchup. Graves is the more established threat: a 54.9% win rate paired with a massive 39.5% pick rate makes him the single most-played hero in Deadlock right now, down slightly from a flat S tier last patch but still the hero you’re most likely to see on either team.
S Tier: Still Meta-Defining
S tier is where the City Never Sleeps shake-up really shows. Kelvin (54.4%) and Paige (53.6%) are the roster’s steady veterans, both built around zone control and burst damage that punishes teams for grouping up. Rat King, the last of the six new heroes to release on October 20, has cooled from S+ to a flat S but is still picked in 47% of all matches – easily the most-played hero among the new additions. Seven and Victor both jumped up from A tier, giving the current meta five viable heroes at the very top instead of the usual two or three.
A Tier: Strong, Reliable Picks
A tier is deep and arguably the safest place to pick from if you want a hero that won’t get banned or counter-picked out of the game. Ivy slipped from S tier but remains a reliable 52.8% win rate pick. Abrams, Haze, Wraith, Dynamo, and Lash round out the list of consistently strong veteran heroes, while Apollo and Drifter – the latter jumping up from B tier – are the two best picks for players still learning the rebuilt map’s new sightlines and rotation routes.
How the Six New Heroes Shook Out
Of the six heroes City Never Sleeps added, the spread is wide. Baba is the standout at S+. Rat King sits at S. Deadman Danny, Nurse Harrow, and Violet have all settled into B tier – solidly playable without being must-picks. Solomon had the roughest start of the six, launching in D tier, but has since climbed to C as players figure out his timing windows. If you’re picking up a new hero for the first time, Baba and Rat King are the two worth prioritizing.
Who to Avoid Right Now
At the bottom, a few heroes dropped hard since the last patch. Sinclair, The Doorman, and Mina all fell from C tier into D, while Grey Talon, Pocket, and Rem round out the weakest picks in the game right now. Mirage remains the single worst hero by win rate at 41.6%. None of these are unplayable in the right hands, but they’re an uphill climb in the current meta compared to the S and A tier options above.
For the full story on what caused this shake-up – the new heroes’ staggered rollout, the rebuilt New York map, and the Broker merchant event – see our breakdown of the City Never Sleeps update. Deadlock is free to play on Steam, and if you’re stocking up on PC games for the rest of the year, a Steam Wallet Code (US) or a browse through our Action games catalog is a good place to start.
