Rat King, a Deadlock hero

October 5, 2026 Patch NotesMinor Update

BalanceReviewed October 30, 2026

A short update that reins in two heroes. Rule, Ratannia! loses cooldown, radius, charge time and damage reduction while Rat King’s grenade and swarm get small buffs, and Sinclair’s gun, regen and copied ultimates are weaker.

  • 2Heroes changed2 nerfed
  • 1Gameplay changes

Hero Changes at a Glance

Nerfed2 heroes

Counts are distinct heroes and items. Select a hero or item to jump to its changes.

Hero Changes

Nerfed2 heroes

Nerfed

Rat King

15 changes
  • Increased: Rule, Ratannia! Cooldown 130→160
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! Damage Reduction 20%→15%
  • Increased: Rule, Ratannia! T1 No longer gives -20s cooldown (Total cooldown 110s→160s)
Show all 15 changes
  • Scrap Grenade Fixed some bugs with bouncing targeting
  • Increased: Scrap Grenade Damage 65→70
  • Increased: Scrap Grenade T2 Damage 65→70
  • Decreased: Rat Swarm Base Cooldown 28s→24s
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! Radius 24m→20m
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! Charge Duration 12s→10s
  • Rule, Ratannia! Bonus Move speed no longer scales with Spirit
  • Rule, Ratannia! Now falls faster while charging
  • Rule, Ratannia! T1 +1m/s Move Speed to +2m/s Move Speed
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! T2 No longer grants +8s Charge Duration (Total charge duration 20s→10s)
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! T2 Flag Duration +8s→+5s
  • Decreased: Rule, Ratannia! T3 Damage Reduction 15%→10% (Total Damage Reduction from 35% to 25%)
Why it matters

Rule, Ratannia! is up far less often and protects his team less; slightly stronger Scrap Grenade and Rat Swarm don’t offset that.

BuildsHow to PlayHow to Counter

Nerfed

Sinclair

9 changes
  • Decreased: Base HP Regen 2→1
  • Decreased: Gun Falloff range 25-61→20-60
  • Decreased: Gun Reduced bullet base damage 17.76→16.5
Show all 9 changes
  • Vexing Bolt Now does half damage to objectives
  • Decreased: Spectral Assistant Gun falloff range 25-61→20-60
  • Decreased: Rabbit Hex Radius 6.5m→6m
  • Decreased: Rabbit Hex T3 +3m Radius→+2m
  • Decreased: Audience Participation Copy duration 12s→9s
  • Increased: Audience Participation Copied cooldown 40%→60%
Why it matters

Less gun damage, range and regen, a smaller Rabbit Hex and a shorter, slower copied ultimate cut his damage and utility.

BuildsHow to PlayHow to Counter

Gameplay Changes

Troopers

  • Fixed bugs that were causing troopers to walk too slowly in lane
Why it matters

Lane troopers walk at their normal speed again after a bug slowed them down.

Official Sources

Steam announcement
Meta ReportView current hero performance and tier list. Hero BuildsPopular builds and item timings for every hero. Item LibraryCurrent stats and effects for every shop item. Counter Item HelperWhat to buy against the enemy team.

Official patch information is sourced from Valve’s Steam announcements and Deadlock developer forums. Impact analysis is provided by Deadlock Item Builder and may change as data becomes available. Not affiliated with Valve.

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