Looping is a key maneuver in Dead by Daylight. Running the wrong way as a killer can allow a survivor to escape your grasp, and similarly, for a survivor, you can land right in the hands of a killer if you make a bad decision whilst navigating obstacles. Here are some tips on looping.
In Dead by Daylight, there are several different obstacles that you will have to run around when pursuing other players. A good way to become more efficient at the game is to memorize these map loops so you can become more familiar with the ways in which you can catch other players out.
First Things First
If you are new to the game, there are a few things to remember when playing and trying to loop:
- A killer has a cooldown after an attack, so you can get a bit more distance from them again if they fail to hit you.
- Both survivors and killers can vault windows, but killers will vault them more slowly as a disadvantage.
- As a survivor, you can feign/fake to vault windows in an attempt to get the killer to strike and waste their opportunity, sending them into cooldown.
- Certain killers have particular attacks that can be further reaching, so it's best to familiarize yourself with the killers as well to ensure that you don't use the wrong looping moves at the wrong time, otherwise you will get caught.
- When looping in a chase, you will want to stay as close to the walls and obstacles as you can because this shortens the amount of time you take trying to go around things in your way. If you, for instance, turn a corner with too wide a gap, a killer can loop closely to the wall and gain distance.
How to Loop the Different Tiles
The different walls and shacks that you come across in the game maps are commonly referred to as tiles, and there are four main types. You will encounter T+L walls, Shacks, and Jungle Gyms with two variations.
We will go over the looping directions for both the survivors and the killers.
T+L Walls
Survivors: With this type of tile, you want to loop through both windows, which are depicted in blue. As mentioned above, killers climb through them more slowly, so you can gain some ground by successfully vaulting through them both.
A killer is most likely going to avoid vaulting but will still have to make it around the wall, by which time you can vault through the next one and try to make your escape if you think you have shaken them. When it's safe, you can make your exit.
Killers: From the bottom left to the top right, you will want to make an S shape between the walls. As aforementioned, vaulting isn't your strong suit, so whilst a survivor is vaulting, you want to be snaking around so that you are catching them on the other side of their vault.
The top of the T and the bottom right of the L are common double back spots, so try to keep as tightly to the wall as possible.
The Shack
Survivors: Your best bet with this one is to avoid the pallet marked in orange and stick purely to the window (blue). Once in the shack, circle around the top right-hand corner, continually vaulting through the window.
If it looks dicey, you can head towards the bottom exit and use the pallet, but only if it looks as though the killer will get you. If not, leave the pallet and exit the shack. If the killer catches up again, try vaulting back through to slow him down.
Killers: Your path will be very similar to the survivor's path. Circle the top right corner and follow their lead. You can also come through the entrance with the pallet to try and break their cycle as they vault through the window. If you get stuck in the loop and make no traction, use the entrance to stagger the survivor's movements.
The top and bottom of the shack are common double back spots, so keep your wits about you when turning the outside corners.
Related: How long do Scratch Marks last in Dead by Daylight?
The Jungle Gym (First Type)
Survivors: Your primary route with this is going to be to enter through the bottom left, vault through the window (blue), and follow the gym around to the right, and back out through the opening with the pallet (orange).
This will also be your loop, so continue this until the killer has either made a wrong turn or has been slowed down enough, then you can make your escape through whichever opening is closest at the point you feel is safe.
Killers: This one can be a bit trickier for those in the role of killer. Rather than looping, one method is to try and lay in wait at the bottom right-hand corner. When you see the survivor then start to come up into the center of the gym, you can tail them and see where they go from there.
The aim here is to catch them off guard and swipe them as they are running past the corner. You can also try waiting by the top left window, but that can be a common double back spot. You have to be a bit more patient with this tile.
The Jungle Gym (Second Type)
Survivors: This is one where you have the upper hand most of the time. The best course of action is to enter from the bottom left, come up past the pallet (orange), and turn right, continuing to vault through the window (blue).
If you find that the killer has caught up to you, you can then proceed to circle up to the top of the L and loop back round to the window, vaulting it again. There are, admittedly, quite a few corners for you to cut the killer off at. So, just keep vaulting the window and using the L shape until safe.
Killers: Unfortunately for you guys, this is an advanced version of the first gym which doesn't leave you with as many options. You can try following the survivor and vaulting if you think it will be worth the trek, however, your best bet is to try to stay as central as possible.
The top and bottom of the right-hand L shape and the middle of the lower T shape are common double back spots, which is why the center is easier to control. Beware of the pallet to the right, however, as if the survivor chooses to throw it down, you could lose them whilst smashing it.
The survivor essentially has to make it down the corridor shape in the middle of the gym. Keep tracking back around to get them either coming back round from the window vault, or coming back round from one of the lower corners back into the corridor.
Some Remaining Tips
The Routes
The real trick is to see if you can use a mix of the routes shown above to really throw the other player off of their game. Although the directions above are useful in those situations, they are not hard and fast. Play around with all of the routes and see which allows you to traverse them the fastest.
Pallets
It may seem tempting to throw down a pallet straightaway as soon as you're being chased, but it can more often than not prove better to wait until you have done a few circuits, and then a pallet can be used later to break the pattern.
Obstacles can be placed at opportune times when you're not being chased as well so that you can create what are called long walls. Long walls help you get a nice long run away from the killer. Killers are always slower, so a survivor gets an instant one-up on them when no quick turns are needed.
These patterns will take practice, so just be patient. Being familiar with the gyms, the killers, and the maps themselves is a big component in escaping more often.
Looking for more content? Check out the best Dead by Daylight survivors.
Published: Jan 31, 2022 01:27 pm