MOBA games have a reputation for being complex, featuring many nuances that can intimidate new players. Although Valve’s latest MOBA/hero-shooter hybrid, Deadlock, is far more approachable than a traditional MOBA like Dota 2, there are still things in the game, such as Spirit Power, that can confuse new players.
Think of Spirit Power as fuel for your hero’s abilities. With more Spirit Power, your abilities can deal more damage, have a longer crowd control duration, or have a bigger range. In rare instances, it can also increase your character’s stats, such as movement speed or even ammo size. It can all get overwhelming fast, but don’t worry; we’ll explain everything you need to know about Spirit Power and how it works right here.
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What is Spirit Power in Deadlock?
In a nutshell, Spirit Power makes your abilities stronger. The more power you have, the more damage your character can deal. In Deadlock‘s Curiosity Shop, you can use Souls to purchase items in three categories.
Items from the Weapon tab increase your weapon damage, Vitality items add more health, and Spirit items add more Spirit Power.
Each category of items is also split into different tiers based on their buying cost. Buying items from different tiers also adds a base amount of Spirit, Health, or Damage to your hero. For example, buying Spirit items that cost 500 Souls will add 4 extra Spirit Power to your hero. On the other hand, buying items that cost more than 6,300 Souls will grant you 16 extra Spirit Power.
You can check your total Spirit Power by holding Tab and hovering your mouse over your hero’s portrait. Your total Spirit Power will be shown under the Ammo Size with a purple star.
How Does Spirit Power Work in Deadlock?
Spirit Power in Deadlock primarily affects the hero’s abilities. Some heroes benefit more from having a higher Spirit Power as it makes their abilities scale better in the late game. You can get Spirit Power by buying different items or even by breaking boxes and statues scattered all over the map.
When you have a Spirit Power item, it doesn’t simply add a flat amount or percentage to your ability damage. It works differently for different heroes and abilities. You can easily identify abilities influenced by Spirit Power by looking for a purple star next to them. If an ability doesn’t have a star, it won’t be affected by Spirit Power.
For example, Wraith’s first ability, Card Trick, does 100 Damage at the base level. However, since the damage of the ability scales with Spirit Power, stacking up on Spirit items will increase its damage significantly.
To calculate how much Spirit Power affects an ability’s damage, you need to consider the ability’s Spirit scaling modifier. You’ll find the number by pressing Alt on your keyboard and hovering over the ability icon. The formula for calculating final damage is:
Final Damage = Base Damage + (Spirit Power x Spirit Power scaling modifier)
Some items in Deadlock are also affected by your total Spirit Power. For instance, the Shock Damage from Tesla Bullet does 30 Spirit Damage at the base level, which increases with your total Spirit Power.
The effectiveness of Spirit Power depends on the character using it. Each character in Deadlock has unique abilities, and Spirit Power can affect them differently. Some characters might see a significant increase in damage with Spirit Power, while others might gain more ammo or health.
Best Spirit Power Items in Deadlock
Now that you know what Spirit power is and how it works, you’re going to need some good Spirit items. Extra Charge is a great early-game item. It gives you an extra ability charge and makes your charged abilities cool down faster. This item can help you fight better, especially at the early stage of the game.
Mystic Reach is another good early pickup. It makes your abilities reach further and do more damage. It also adds Spirit Resist, which means you’ll take less damage from abilities that deal Spirit damage. Both Extra Charge and Mystic Reach can be upgraded to a higher tier as you progress through the game.
Quicksilver Reload is an interesting Spirit Item many heroes can utilize because of its unique effect. When you buy it, you can imbue it with one of your abilities so that whenever you use the ability, your weapon reloads automatically. Using this item with Haze’s Sleeping Dagger lets her dish out insane levels of damage without reloading mid-brawl.
Other good Spirit items include Extra Spirit, a basic early-game item that gives you a little more Spirit Power, health regeneration, and bonus health. Mystic Burst is another interesting option. It makes your abilities do more damage, and it also has a special ability that adds bonus Spirit Damage to abilities that do 80 damage or more in one hit, making it an excellent choice for heroes like Dynamo with a strong nuke early on.
But before you buy items in Deadlock, remember that different Spirit items have different perks and benefits. Choose items that not only increase your Spirit count but also add something to your hero’s toolkit. Deadlock encourages players to experiment with different builds with its unique hero design. Trying out different items on your hero will help you get better at the game and dominate your foes on the battlefield.
