Best Hybrid Billy Build in Deadlock

Billy is a close-ranged bruiser who works best when fighting in the middle of Deadlock's teamfights. He beats enemies down with his trusty bat and sprays bullets with his rapid-fire SMG, and if he ever needs to catch enemies who are running away, he can reel them back in with the chains from his Ultimate.

There are quite a few ways to build Billy in Deadlock, but if you want to make the most out of his kit, a hybrid setup that buffs his Melee and Bullet Damage while giving him the defenses he needs to stay alive is the ideal way to go.

Deadlock: 10 Best Weapon Items, Ranked

Sometimes, a powerful weapon can be stronger than any ability if it is buffed in the correct way!

Posts

By Mehrdad Khayyat

Hybrid Gun/Melee Billy Build in Deadlock

While Billy isn't the strongest laner in the game, he becomes a nightmare to deal with once he gets enough items. He deals a ton of burst damage with his first ability, Bashdown, and his SMG has one of the highest primary weapon DPS values in the game. This build uses both in equal measure, giving players the best of both worlds without making Billy too weak on one side.

Best Early Game Items for Billy in Deadlock

Spirit Strike	Light or Heavy Melee attacks against a hero deal bonus Spirit Damage and reduce the target's Spirit Resist.
Mystic Burst	Dealing enough Spirit Damage in one hit adds additional Spirit Damage to your attack.
Extra Charge	Grants an extra ability charge and bonus Spirit Power for charged abilities.
Melee Lifesteal	Melee attacks heal you.

These items are mostly here to buff Bashdown, which is Billy's strongest source of damage early on. Later on, these items will be upgraded to their stronger variants.

Optional Early Game Items for Billy in Deadlock

Monster Rounds	Deal more Weapon Damage and gain bonus Bullet Resist against NPCs.
Battle Vest	Gain Bullet Resist and Out-of-Combat Regen. When above 65% Health, gain bonus Fire Rate and Weapon Damage.
Healing Rite	Heals you or a target ally. Healing is canceled after taking damage from a hero or objective.
Rebuttal	Parrying a melee attack heals you, returns damage to the attacker. And grants you bonus Melee Damage.
Extra Health	Gain bonus Health.
Melee Charge	Gain Heavy Melee Distance, Melee Damage, and Bullet Resist. Your next Heavy Melee Attack deals increased damage.

Buy these items according to your lane match-up and how well you're doing. Monster Rounds is great for farming minions and side camps, and you should consider getting it if you're up against stronger laners like Yamato and Mirage. Vitality items that provide regeneration are great when fighting oppressive laners.

Mid Game Core Items for Billy in Deadlock

Lifestrike	Gain bonus Melee Damage and Health. Melee attacks slow enemies and heal you.
Rapid Recharge	Gain two bonus ability charges, faster cooldown time between charges, and more bonus Spirit Power for charged abilities.
Spirit Snatch	Light or Heavy Melee attacks against heroes deal bonus Spirit Damage and steal Spirit Resist and Spirit Power. Also grants bonus Health and Melee Damage.
Berserker	Gain bonus Weapon Damage as you take damage. Also grants bonus Bullet Resist.
Cold Front	Activate to release an ice nova that damages and slows enemies.

You should ideally have all of these items before the late game starts, and which ones you get first depends on how the match is going. Lifestrike is a safe first buy since it gives you damage, utility, and healing, but if you have a big lead against a team full of squishy targets, then get Spirit Snatch first.

Cold Front is a great tool for following-up an initiation or chasing down retreating targets. It combos well with Billy's Ultimate and his second ability, Rising Ram. Spirit Items in general are great for increasing Billy's burst potential, provided they synergize with his kit.

Optional Mid Game Items for Billy in Deadlock

Fortitude	Grants Bonus Health. If you haven't taken damage in the last 14 seconds, you regenerate a percentage of your max Health per second.
Tankbuster	Dealing more than a set amount of Spirit Damage in one hit will cause that attack to deal bonus flat damage and a percentage of the enemy's max Health as Spirit Damage.
Warp Stone	Use to teleport straight ahead and gain Bullet Resist.
Knockdown	Gain Bonus Health and Ability Range. Use to Stun enemies after 2 seconds; stun duration is doubled against airborne targets.
Hunter's Aura	Gain bonus Health and Sprint Speed. Reduce the Bullet Resist and Fire Rate of nearby enemies. This effect is tripled against lone heroes.

These are also good mid-game items for Billy. If you have slots to spare, or if you think you don't need any of the Mid Game Core Items listed above, grab one of these instead.

Late Game Items for Billy in Deadlock

Crushing Fists	Gain Heavy Melee Distance, Melee Damage, and Bullet Resist, and every 7 seconds, your next Heavy Melee Attack deals more damage. Melee damage restores ammo and applies a stacking Bullet Resist debuff. If a target reaches max stacks, they are Stunned.
Leech	Gain bonus Spirit and Bullet Lifesteal, bonus Health, Weapon Damage, and Spirit Power.
Colossus	Gain bonus Health and Weapon Damage. Activate to gain extra Bullet and Spirit Resist, and slow the movement and dash speed of nearby enemies. Your model size grows by 20%.
Bullet Resilience	Gain Bullet Resist. When your Health drops below 30%, gain even more Bullet Resist.
Escalating Resilience	Gain Max Ammo, bonus Health, and Weapon Damage. Each time your bullets hit, gain a stacking Bullet Resist buff.
Counterspell	You can now parry incoming abilities and items. A successful spell parry heals you and grants bonus Movement Speed and Spirit Power.

Sell any lower-tier optional items for these ones once the late-game phase starts. Leech is an excellent pick in nearly every match-up thanks to the stats it provides, but if you don't need more survivability, go with Crushing Fists instead. Keep in mind that Bashdown counts as a Melee attack, and when fully upgraded, items that affect Heavy Melee Attacks will affect Bashdown too, albeit at a reduced rate.

The rest are there to help you survive in close matches. Colossus is a great general pick, but if you want to play more into Billy's SMG, get Escalating Resilience.

Gun Items for Billy

Close Quarters	Gain Melee Resist. Deal additional Weapon Damage to nearby enemies (15 meters or closer).
Rapid Rounds	Gain bonus Fire Rate.
Backstabber	Gain reduced footstep noise and bonus Health. Hitting enemies from behind with your weapon or melee inflicts Spirit Damage over time and reduces the Bullet Resist of enemies. You and your teammates will be able to see enemies through walls and gain bonus movement speed while targets are debuffed.
Fleetfoot	Increases your sliding distance and Bullet Resist, and you no longer get a movement penalty while shooting. Activate to increase your Movement Speed and Slow Resistance.

Speaking of Billy's SMG, these items will help him shred enemies more quickly once Bashdown goes on cooldown. Billy's weapon fires very quickly, but it deals low damage per shot and has a short effective range. You'll always want to be near or next to your target to make hitting shots easier.

Get any of these items at any time you see fit. Rapid Rounds is great if you end up buying Monster Rounds early on. Close Quarters is also a good pick if you're confident that you can win extended early game fights.

Gun Item Upgrades

Burst Fire	Gain bonus Slide Distance and Fire Rate. When one of your bullets hit an enemy hero, briefly gain bonus Fire Rate and Movement Speed.
Point Blank	Increases your health and Melee Resist. When you are close to a target, gain bonus Weapon Damage and your bullets slow enemies.
Weighted Shots	Gain increased Weapon Damage, Spirit Resist, and Debuff Resist. However, your Bullet Velocity and Stamina Recovery are reduced.
Intensifying Magazine	Increases your Max Ammo. Your Weapon Damage increases as you continuously fire your weapon.
Headhunter	Gain bonus Health and Weapon Damage. Your next headshot against a hero heals you, grants a brief Movement Speed buff, and deals bonus damage.

Get these items if you have the money and slots to spare. Buy one or two of these in the mid or late-game stages to round up your build and cover up any potential weaknesses.

Always try to clear boxes or jungle camps in Deadlock whenever there's downtime in between minion waves.

Skill Priority and How to Play Billy in Deadlock

Billy works best in a brawl. His third ability, Blasted, increases his Weapon Damage and lets his melee attacks reload bullets into his weapon. This means that as long as you can hit melee attacks, you'll never need to reload mid-fight. Blasted is what makes gun items great on Billy despite him relying heavily on melee attacks to burst enemies down.

With that said, players can either max Blasted or Bashdown first. When choosing between what to prioritize, keep these in mind:

Melee hits while Blasted is active give you bonus max and current health. You'll be healing every time you hit a melee attack, and the skill's third upgrade increases the amount of health you gain, giving you more staying power on top of your lifesteal effects.
Bashdown's power increases significantly when paired with items that increase Heavy Melee Attack damage, but only when you unlock its third upgrade.
Rising Ram's first upgrade is great for cutting its cooldown in half. Always get it early.
Chain Gang's second upgrade significantly increases your Bullet and Spirit Resist while the ability is active. Consider getting it early to survive big teamfights more often.

Here are some more tips on how to play Billy:

Laning with Billy can be rough if you don't have a teammate with high lane pressure. Good partners include Bebop, Kelvin, Mirage, Vindicta, and Paradox (once she gets her ultimate).
Always stay in melee range, and weave light or heavy melees between SMG bursts.
You can shoot, melee, and use abilities while Chain Gang is active.
When you knock enemies up with Rising Ram, either hit them with a melee attack or shoot them. Mix things up so you don't get parried.
Level 2 Blasted will refresh Bashdown's cooldown when used.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image