The Deadlock Kelvin build guide will be helpful for newcomers who are starting to enjoy Valve’s third-person shooter MOBA game. Kelvin is difficult to master and not exactly built for beginners. However, with the correct build and understanding of your abilities, you can not only support your team but also have a high-fragging match.
Kelvin’s character design is very intimidating., and according to his lore, he is a scientist who came back from the dead. In the game, he carries with him his ice grenades and a mysterious object which is the possible source of his freezing powers.
Kelvin is for those who have a very good understanding of Deadlock’s mechanics. His abilities are extremely effective but knowing how and when to use them takes time. In fact, he is considered a weak Hero in the early game, but with the proper Deadlock Kelvin build, you can change the tide of the match in the later stages.
How to play Kelvin in Deadlock
Kelvin is equipped with freezing abilities that slow down enemies, damage them, and heal your team. Frost Grenade, Arctic Beam, and Frozen Shelter are his core abilities. Moreover, he has been given additional movement capability with his Ice Path ability. It is important to have a good understanding of your Hero before you move on to your preferred Deadlock Kelvin build.
Kelvin’s abilities in Deadlock explained
- Frost Grenade - Kelvin throws a grenade that damages and slows enemies in its blast radius. (Cooldown is 22s)
- Ice Path - Kelvin moves in the air creating his own ‘Ice Path’ that you can manually control. (Cooldown is 38s)
- Arctic Beam - Kelvin shoots a freezing laser from his gun that increasingly slows down enemies. (Cooldown is 24s)
- Frozen Shelter - Kelvin creates an impenetrable Ice Dome around him that slows enemies and heals allies. (Cooldown is 127s)
Deadlock Kelvin build: Items Explained
Multiple items in The Curiosity Shop can help you get your preferred Deadlock Kelvin build on the road. Having said that, here are some of the best items that you can pick based on early, mid, and late game to get the best Deadlock Kelvin build that maximizes his potential.
1) Early game
The basic items to buy for Deadlock Kelvin build during the early game:
- High-Velocity Mag: +30% Bullet Velocity, +12% Weapon Damage, +50 Bullet Shield Health
- Sprint Boots: +2m/s Sprint speed, +1 Health regen, +4% Weapon damage
- Extra Charge: +1 Bonus Ability Charge, +10% Cooldown reduction for charged abilities, +6% Weapon Damage
- Mystic Burst: +40 Spirit Shield Health, +6% Weapon Damage, 35 bonus Spirit Damage for abilities dealing 80 or more damage in a single hit (Passive - cooldown of 6.2s)
- Mystic Reach: +16% Ability range, +6% Spirit resist
- Spirit Strike: +12% Melee damage, +80 Spirit shield health, +0.8 Health regen, Passive - when performing a light or heavy melee attack against a Hero you get increased Spirit damage (52) and apply -12% Spirit resist for 11s (Cooldown is 8.5s)
2) Mid game
The basic items to buy for Deadlock Kelvin build during the mid game:
- Enduring Speed: +1.4m/s Move speed, +2m/s Sprint speed, +75 Bonus health, +1.5 Health regen, Passive - reduces the effect of enemy Movement slow by 40%
- Fleetfoot (Active): +90 Bonus health, +25% Slide distance, Passive - reduces the Movement speed penalty while shooting, and when activated get +3m/s Movement speed and +30% temporary ammo for 4s (Cooldown for activation is 19s)
- Healbane: +75 Bonus health, Passive - your spirit damage applies (-40%) healing reduction and you get a large heal (350) if an enemy Hero dies under this effect
- Improved Cooldown: +16% Cooldown reduction, +1.5 Health regen
- Enchanter’s Barrier: +300 Spirit shield health, Passive - while you have a spirit shield gain +20 Spirit power and +8% Cooldown reduction
- Mystic Vulnerability: +6% Spirit resist, Passive - when the target takes Spirit damage they receive (-12%) Spirit resist for 6s
- Veil Walker: +200 Bullet shield health, +200 Spirit shield health, +12% Ammo, +10% Weapon damage, Passive - walking through a cosmic veil grants you stealth (for 5s), increased invisible movement speed (3m/s), restore all bullets and spirit shields, and bonus fire rate (30%) for your next magazine.
3) Late game
The basic items to buy for Deadlock Kelvin build during the late game:
- Rapid Recharge: +2 Bonus ability charges, +55% faster time between charges, +25% cooldown reduction for charged abilities, +12% weapon damage.
- Improved Reach: +35% Imbued ability range, +25% Non-imbued ability range, +12% Spirit resist, +8 Spirit power
- Mystic Reverb: +15% Spirit lifesteal, +15% Spirit resist, +15% Ability range, Passive - imbue an ability to apply slow in a radius (18.4m) around the target (50% Movement slow) and deal an additional percentage (40%) of the damage dealt to enemies around the target after a short delay (3s) (Cooldown of Passive is 6.2s)
- Improved Burst: +100 Spirit shield health, +8% Weapon damage, Passive - abilities deal bonus spirit damage (9% max health bonus damage) if they deal 125 or more damage in a single hit. (Cooldown of Passive is 5s)
- Improved Spirit: +21 Spirit power, +3 Health regen, +1m/s Sprint speed, +100 Bonus health
- Escalating Exposure: +15% Spirit resist, +125 Bonus health, -15% Spirit resist on Spirit damage, Passive-dealing spirit damage applies a stacking spirit amplifier (+6% per stack) that increases your spirit damage for 15s (0.7s max frequency per target)
- Soul Rebirth: +15% Cooldown reduction, +12 Spirit power, Passive - if you die, you respawn at your death location after 4s with partial health (50% health)
- Boundless Spirit: +60 Spirit Power, +300 Bonus health, +15 Health regen, +25% Weapon damage, +2m/s Sprint speed
- Superior Cooldown: +32% Imbued ability cooldown reduction, +24% Non-Imbued ability cooldown reduction, +4 Health Regen.
- Toxic Bullets: +100 Bonus health, Passive - your bullets build up bleed on enemies causing them to lose a percentage of their current health over time (5%/sec and 25% buildup per shot) and apply Healing Reduction (65%) on the bleeding targets for 3s.
- Alchemical Fire (Active): +225 Bullet shield health, +14% Weapon damage, +11 Spirit power, when activated you throw a flask that explodes on contact, creating an area (10m) that does increasing Spirit damage per second (47) and gives your team additional Weapon damage (50%). Max Spirit DPS is 99, the activation duration is 5s, and the activation cooldown is 28s. Deals 40% less DPS vs non-heroes.
- Spiritual Overflow: +20% Fire rate, +15% Cooldown reduction, +10% Spirit lifesteal, Passive - Gain bonus Spirit power (+45 and 27% buildup per shot) by charging up with your bullets on enemy Heroes. Duration is 18s.
A combination of these items and a few other conditional ones will give you your preferred Deadlock Kelvin build. Do note that the cost of each item should always be considered while building your Hero, and managing your earned Spirits carefully will give you the best Deadlock Kelvin build.
Read more Deadlock articles here:
- Deadlock Dynamo build guide
- Deadlock Grey Talon Build guide
- Deadlock Haze Build Guide
- Things players would love to see in Deadlock
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