5 Survivors You Should Unlock First

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home March 2, 2025 6 Views 15 Min Read
5 Survivors You Should Unlock First
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Dead by Daylight is packed with all sorts of different characters and perks. For new players, it can be quite overwhelming to figure out where they should start. Some perks are undoubtedly much better than others, and having the best loadout possible will increase the player’s chance of survival. Whilst each Survivor comes with their unique perks, some Survivors, in particular, have an incredibly strong load out and are worth prioritizing over others.

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These characters can either be bought with Auric Cells, or unlocked with Iridescent Shards. Auric Cells cost real money, and Iridescent Shards take a lot of time to gather, so it’s fair that players will want to be careful about what they spend their currency on. To get the most bang for their buck, players should consider unlocking these Dead by Daylight Survivors first.

Updated on March 1, 2025, by Rhenn Taguiam: Newcomers to Dead By Daylight who get easily frustrated by choosing a “weak” Survivor might realize they’ve just chosen the wrong character – and it can really take a while to find a comfortable pick given the game’s vast roster. Among the game’s available Survivors, and with other teammates who are also picking their choice of Survivor, just who is the most ideal pick for beginners? Thankfully, there are must-try unlocks for the strength of their Perks, with abilities that give Survivors advantages on chases, Generator repairs, and more technical aspects.

5

Jill Valentine

She’s Hunted By Nemesis For A Reason

Jill Valentine

Appears in

CHAPTER 20: Resident Evil

Role

Founding Member of STARS

Unique Perk 1 Blast Mine

Activate this Perk after repairing a Generator for 40%, which will:

  • Install a Trap that stays active for a while
  • If the Killer damages the rigged Generator, the Trap explodes and stuns the Killer while also blinding all other Survivors for a while in the radius
  • Trapped Generators are revealed to other Survivors as a yellow aura

Unique Perk 2 Counterforce

Totem cleanses happen 20% faster, and:

  • Cleansed Totem gives a stackable Cleansing Speed boost
  • Cleansing a Totem will reveal the Aura of the nearest next Totem for a short while

Unique Perk 3 Resurgence

After being Unhooked or Unhooking oneself will grant a significant Healing progress

Players who got through Resident Evil 3 with Jill Valentine know she’s a force to reckon with, and such is Jill’s situation in Dead By Daylight. Unlike other Survivors who focus on outrunning enemies and detecting them, Jill is more of a proactive protagonist – ensuring that Killers will have an annoying time taking them down as long as she’s on the battlefield. Jill’s Counterforce alone ensures she can cleanse Totems much faster, giving the team windows of opportunity to use more unique skills.

Meanwhile, Resurgence can give players a second wind to deal with Killers for the rest of the match, as Unhooking themselves will grant a massive Healing progress that can get Jill back in the fight in no time. Perhaps most interesting is her Blast Mine that she can install in a Generator she repairs for 40%. Despite being a one-off ability, the Killer who kicks the rigged Generator will be stunned for 4-seconds – which might not be a lot of some, but could be crucial seconds for the team to regroup, finish repairing Generators, or get time to set up even more traps.

4

Laurie Strode

No Tricks, No Treats, Just Survival

Laurie Strode

Appears in

CHAPTER 2: The Halloween Chapter

Role

Determined Survivor

Unique Perk 1 Decisive Strike

After being Unhooked or Unhooking oneself, Laurie can use this action to:

  • Succeed a Skill Check to stab the Killer and escape, which stuns the Killer for a short while
  • Successful activation turns Laurie into the Obsession
  • Deactivated when Exit Gates are activated
  • Deactivated for the rest of the Trial after its first use
  • Deactivated when performing a Conspicuous Action and will remain deactivated for the rest of the Trial
  • +100% Initial Obsession Chance

Unique Perk 2 Object of Obsession

Whenever the Killer reads Laurie’s Aura:

  • The Killer’s Aura is revealed to Laurie
  • Action Speeds for Repairing, Healing, and Cleansing are increased for a short duration
  • As the Obsession, location is revealed to the Killer for a while every 30 seconds

Unique Perk 3 Sole Survivor
  • +100% Initial Obsession Chance

When another Survivor is killed or sacrificed, Laurie gets 1 Token, where:

  • Each stack grants an additional radius where Killers can’t use Aura-reading abilities
  • Up to 3 Token stacks

If they are the Last Survivor Standing, this Perk gives:

  • +75% Repair Speed
  • +50% Hatch and Gate Opening Speed

Perhaps one of the progenitors of the Sole Survivor trope in fiction, it makes sense for Laurie Strode of Halloween fame to become a Survivor whose focus is to bring the Killer’s attention to them. Their skills are focused on distracting the foe hopefully long enough to ensure the rest of the team manages to secure the objective. It’s what makes Decisive Strike such a powerful Perk to obtain, as transferring this to the right Survivor ensures they have a fighting chance against Killers who love to hook them.

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Other than Decisive Strike, Laurie’s two other Perks ensure they always have the Killer’s attention. Object of Obsession is a nifty Killer detector that can give Laurie and the team a short window of escaping the Killer once their location is discovered. And Sole Survivor ensures death is an advantage, as each Survivor dying gives Laurie an undetectability radius and being the Sole Survivor grants her a much-needed speed boost to finish the last berth of the match.

3

Kate Denson

A Singer Whose Voice Is Her Salvation

Kate Denson

Appears in

CHAPTER 8: Curtain Call

Role

Hopeful Songbird

Unique Perk 1 Boil Over

While the Killer is carrying the player, they:

  • Struggle Effect on the Killer will have more strength
  • +33% to Wiggle progression upon landing if Killer has to drop from a height

Unique Perk 2 Dance With Me

Rushed Actions to vault a Window or exit a Locker will Suppress the creation of Scratch Marks for a short duration

Unique Perk 3 Windows of Opportunity

See Auras of Breakable Walls, Pallets, and Windows at certain meters

After country singer Kate Denson is teleported to the Fog, she has to use her “connection” with nature to find a way to get out. This is reflected in her slate of abilities that give her ways of outlasting Killers early on, even if some of her Perks fall flat in comparison. Her shining glory is with her Windows of Opportunity, as always seeing the Auras of obstacles they can traverse can be a saving grace in high-stakes chases.

Unfortunately, Kate does suffer from lackluster secondary Perks. The Suppression of Scratch Marks from Locker exits and Window vaults could be useful for Kate players who know how to confuse the Killer with their chase paths. Meanwhile, Boil Over can be Kate’s get-away-from-jail card for Killers who recklessly carry her on heights.

2

Zarina Kassir

A Journalist Who Got More Than What She Bargained For

Zarina Kassir

Appears in

CHAPTER 15: Chains of Fate

Role

Plucky Documentarian

Unique Perk 1 For the People

Use the Active Ability while healing another Survivor without the Med-Kit to:

  • Trade 1 Health State with another Survivor
  • Become Broken for a while
  • Become the Killer’s Obsession, if not already
  • -100% Initial Obsession Chance

Unique Perk 2 Off the Record

After being Unhooked or Unhooking oneself, this Perk will:

  • Prevent Killers from seeing their Aura, if there’s an attempt to read it
  • Suppress Grunts of Pain when Injured
  • Get Endurance (cancels if performing a Conspicuous Action)
  • Deactivates when Exit Gates are activated

Unique Perk 3 Red Herring

Repairing a Generator for at least 3 seconds will:

  • Highlight it in yellow until it’s fully repaired
  • Highlight it in yellow until Zarina chooses another Generator to repair
  • Highlight it in yellow until Zarina hides in a Locker, which triggers a Loud Noise Notification for the Killer if they are in the activated Generator’s location

Zarina Kassir is a journalist through and through, and she wants her stories to help those in need – even if it means venturing into the Fog to retrieve them. In Dead By Daylight, Zarina will use her street smarts to help players outwit Killers – even when they think they have the upper hand.

Among Zarina’s Perks, players might not like the Red Herring as much due to its nature. Zarina’s last-touched Generator will be highlighted until she starts choosing another one, and the Killer at the Generator’s location will hear a Loud Noise if Zarina enters a Locker – regardless of whether she’s not in the vicinity. Meanwhile, For the People is a spectacular sub-healing power, as Zarina can “trade” her health with another Survivor – useful if the party has designated strengths. Lastly, Off the Record is Zarina’s ace in the hole, as this makes sure she gets extra survivability after being hooked – the Killer won’t see her aura for a while after being Unhooked and even get Endurance afterwards, giving her a chance to escape.

1

Feng Min

Competitive E-Sports Player With A Knack For Survival

Feng Min

Appears in

CHAPTER 4: Spark of Madness

Role

Focused Competitor

Unique Perk 1 Technician

Repairing Generators will grant these effects:

  • Reduce Repair noise audible range
  • Suppress the Loud Noise Notification and explosion during a failed Skill Check
  • Failing a Skill Check will instantly regress the Generator by an additional percentage of its total possible Progression

Unique Perk 2 Lithe

Rushed Vault will provide the Lithe condition:

  • +50% Haste for 3 seconds
  • Become Exhausted
  • Cannot use Lithe when Exhausted

Unique Perk 3 Alert

Killers who perform Damage or Break Actions will trigger Alert:

  • Killer Auras are revealed to players for a few seconds

Players who feel like they should transform the horrors of Dead By Daylight into a sport would easily get in the headspace of Feng Min, whose title of Focused Competitor is easily justified by her backstory as an E-Sports player pressured by fame into accidentally going into the Fog. Despite this setback, Feng Min is determined to leave this horrid realm using her unique skills – Perks make her a must-unlock for players who want to dominate matches easily.

Feng Min is the perfect choice for players who like focusing on the objective. Technician can suppress the noise during and after Skill Check fails, making it less punishable to players. However, players should grab Feng Min to get access to her other two Perks: one where the Killer’s Aura is highlighted whenever they Break or Damage something (Alert), and another where a Rushed Vault gives Feng Min a much-needed speed boost to outrun Killers who are trying to chase her (Lithe).

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