Drifter: Difference between revisions

(37 intermediate revisions by 16 users not shown)

Line 2:

{{Infobox hero

| key = hero_drifter

| voice_actor = Matt Mercer<ref>2026-01-28 - [[Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - Link to Drifter's voice line "I’m exactly who you think I am" in response to speculation about Matt Mercer</ref>

| voice_actor = [[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|Matt Mercer]]<ref>2026-01-28 - [[Kaori (developer)|Kaori]]; [https://discord.com/channels/1231286446472691825 Deadlock Discord] - Link to Drifter's voice line "I’m exactly who you think I am" in response to speculation about Matt Mercer</ref><ref>2026-03-28 - [https://x.com/GripAshford/status/2037907975075983568 Grip Ashford] on [https://x.com/ X] - Photo with Matt Mercer doing the Drifter pose</ref>

| release_date = August 27, 2025

}}{{Quotation|2=If I find someone on their own, God himself couldn't save 'em.}}

| pronouns = He/Him

'''Drifter''' is a [[Hero]] in ''[[Deadlock]]''. Something ancient has arrived in New York... a nameless horror known only as the Drifter. Relentless as time, as certain as death, once Drifter sets his eyes on a victim there's nothing they can do to stop him. They can try to run, but his Bloodscent drives him forward, leading him to isolated prey. Even if they manage to escape it doesn't matter, as Stalker's Mark allows Drifter to appear right behind his enemies before lunging in for the kill with a vicious Rend. Soon Eternal Night comes, and a faint whistling in the breeze will be joined by a chorus of screams.

}}{{Quotation|2=If I find someone on their own, God himself couldn't save 'em.|4=Drifter_upgrade_power3_06.mp3}}

'''Drifter''' is a [[Hero]] in ''[[Deadlock]]''. Something ancient has arrived in New York... a nameless horror known only as the Drifter. Relentless as time, as certain as death, once Drifter sets his eyes on a victim there's nothing they can do to stop him. They can try to run, but his [[Drifter#Bloodscent|'''Bloodscent''']] drives him forward, leading him to isolated prey. Even if they manage to escape it doesn't matter, as '''[[Drifter#Stalker's Mark|Stalker's Mark]]''' allows Drifter to appear right behind his enemies before lunging in for the kill with a vicious [[Drifter#Rend|'''Rend''']]. Soon [[Drifter#Eternal Night|'''Eternal Night''']] comes, and a faint whistling in the breeze will be joined by a chorus of screams.

A feral vampire with ties to Louisiana, Drifter has open contempt for the rules of vampire society, leaving a trail of carnage wherever he goes.

Line 19:

Line 20:

| hero_name = Drifter

| ability_num = 1

| notes =

* T3 upgrade results in ~7% damage increase for the ability, as Drifter's Heavy Melee is roughly equivalent to 2.3x of his Light Melee.

** T3 enables item interactions that are specific to Heavy Melee, i.e. {{ItemIcon|Melee Charge}} or {{ItemIcon|Spirit Snatch}}.

** T3 allows Rend to break {{HeroIcon|Graves}}' {{AbilityIcon|Borrowed Decree}}.

}}

Line 29:

Line 34:

* Damage is divided up into 0.5s intervals, starting immediately as the projectile connects. (This works out to approximately the same overall damage per second stated in the tooltip, just dealt smoother.)

* The projectile can hit [[Denizens]] (if they are not dormant), [[Troopers]], and player-created [[Units]].

* It can hit [[Structures]] if they are not dormant, but will deal no damage to them.

** It can hit [[Structures]] if they are not dormant, but will deal no damage to them.

** Stalker's Mark can be applied to the [[Rejuvenator]], allowing Drifter to teleport to it.

* Stalker's Mark damage over time and teleport components are separate; activating the teleport does not end the bleed effect prematurely. The bleed will last the full duration either way.

* Stalker's Mark can be applied to the [[Rejuvenator]], allowing Drifter to teleport to it.

* Reactivating Stalker's Mark has a short cast time before teleporting.

** If the duration expires during the cast time, Drifter will not teleport to the target.

| interactions =

{{AbilityInteraction | interaction = Slowing Hex | state = partial | text =

Only the second cast (teleporting to the marked target) gets disabled.

}}

Line 41:

Line 49:

| notes =

* Getting an assist on an isolated enemy hero grants the same bonuses as a kill.

* All "On Kill" bonuses, including those from assists, only trigger if the target is considered ''Isolated'' at the moment of death.

* The range for the movement speed near isolated heroes is 80 meters and lingers for about 7 seconds if there is no isolated target in range. 80 meters is roughly the distance between the two opposing blue guardians.

* The permanent [[Weapon Damage]] per stack is additive with other increases to Drifter's Weapon Damage stat and applies to both Bullet and Melee damage.

}}

Line 48:

Line 56:

| hero_name = Drifter

| ability_num = 4

|notes=* The brief reveal of affected enemies lasts 3 seconds and can be increased by ~~ability duration~~. ~~Base~~ duration being increased ~~by Ability Point unlocks~~ does not increase the reveal duration.}}

| notes =

* The brief reveal of affected enemies lasts {{DataProp|Eternal Night|RevealDuration.Value}} seconds and can be increased by [[Ability Duration]] items. Eternal Night's base duration being increased at Tier 3 does not increase the reveal duration.

* The sprint buff given to Drifter also causes him to build up to his max sprint speed significantly faster, meaning items like {{ItemIcon|Trophy Collector}} and {{ItemIcon|Shadow Weave}} that may normally take a while to gain speed give much more immediate effects.

* Activating Eternal Night while on the ground will instantly stop all of Drifter's movement for the duration of its casting time ({{DataProp|Eternal Night|AbilityCastDelay}}s); However, momentum is preserved when the ability is cast mid-air.

* When it finishes casting, Eternal Night will cause Drifter to instantly disengage from [[Combat]], giving him his Out of Combat [[Health Regen]] and [[Sprint Speed]] regardless of how recently Drifter has damaged or been damaged by an enemy.

** Eternal Night cannot proc {{ItemIcon|Spellslinger}} as the ability causes Drifter to leave Combat before it is considered cast.

| tips =

* Performing a [[Dash Jump]] before casting Eternal Night mid-air will let Drifter retain some movement and land by the time the casting animation is over.

}}

== Street Brawl ==

=== Ability Changes ===

In addition to [[Street Brawl#Heroes|global changes]], Drifter receives the following modifications to his abilities:

==== {{AbilityIcon|Bloodscent|no-link=true}} ====

* Isolation range {{#invoke:StreetBrawlAbilities|change|Bloodscent|IsolationRange}}, from {{DataProp|Bloodscent|IsolationRange}}m to {{DataProp|Bloodscent|IsolationRange|streetbrawl}}m.

=== Item Draft ===

== Backstory ==

Line 56:

Line 83:

== Update history ==

== 3D model ==

===Weapon===

== Gallery ==

File:Drifter card.png|Drifter portrait

File:Drifter Gloat.png|Gloat icon for the Drifter

File:Drifter Critical.png|Critical health icon for the Drifter

File:Drifter.png|Drifter icon

File:Drifter Render.png|Drifter in-game render

Line 65:

Line 99:

File:Drifter TitlePage.png|Drifter poster

File:Drifter Reference Sheet.png|Drifter reference sheet

File:Drifter name.~~png~~|Drifter name typography

File:Drifter Weapon.png|Drifter weapon - ''Crimson Grasp''

File:Drifter ~~Weapon~~.~~png~~|Drifter ~~weapon~~ - ~~Crimson Grasp~~

</gallery>

=== Typography ===

File:Drifter name.svg|Drifter's name typography

File:Drifter brazilian.svg|Drifter's Brazilian Portuguese typography

File:Drifter french.svg|Drifter's French typography

File:Drifter italian.svg|Drifter's Italian typography

File:Drifter polish.svg|Drifter's Polish typography

File:Drifter schinese.svg|Drifter's Simplified Chinese typography

File:Drifter russian.svg|Drifter's Russian typography

File:Drifter spanish.svg|Drifter's typography for Spanish and Spanish-Latin America

File:Drifter turkish.svg|Drifter's Turkish typography

File:Drifter ukrainian.svg|Drifter's Ukrainian typography

</gallery>

=== Removed/Unused content ===

File:Drifter card old.png|Previous Drifter portrait

File:Drifter psd.png|Unfinished Drifter model art

~~File:Drifter Gloat.png|Gloat icon for the Drifter.~~

~~File:Drifter Critical.png|Critical health icon for the Drifter.~~

</gallery>

Line 78:

Line 127:

* Drifter's forward air dash and wall jump animation resembles the pounce animation of the Hunter, a recurring enemy in Valve's [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_4_Dead_(franchise) Left 4 Dead] series. He also previously had other animations similar to the Hunter's attack and run.

* "Prowling in the Hideout" is displayed as one's status in the in-game Friends List when playing as Drifter in the [[Hideout]].

* Players under the effect of Drifter's "Eternal Night" ability are able to hear an eerily whistled rendition of [[wikipedia:Hush,_Little_Baby|Hush, Little Baby]], a lullaby typically sung by mothers to their children.<ref>2025-08-18 - [[Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - ''"[Drifter whistles] 'hush little baby'"'</ref>

* Players under the effect of Drifter's "Eternal Night" ability are able to hear an eerily whistled rendition of [[wikipedia:Hush,_Little_Baby|Hush, Little Baby]], a lullaby typically sung by mothers to their children.<ref>2025-08-18 - [[Kaori (developer)|Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - ''"[Drifter whistles] 'hush little baby'"'</ref>

** During the 2025 winter event, one of three Christmas songs would be whistled instead; [[wikipedia:Joy_to_the_World|Joy to the World]], [[wikipedia:Twelve_Days_of_Christmas|Twelve Days of Christmas]], and [[wikipedia:God_Rest_Ye_Merry,_Gentlemen|God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen]].

* Drifter has ~~marks~~ on his ~~arms and hands that seem to be based on the [https://www.openculture.com/2018/08/hobo-code-introduction-hieroglyphic-language-early-1900s-train-hoppers.html Hobo Code]~~.

* Drifter has a variety of symbols on his right hand.

* {{HeroIcon|Lash}} calls Drifter a "[[wikt:murderhobo|murder hobo]]",<ref>{{ConvoCite|hero1=Lash|hero2=Drifter|number=1|hero_quote1=Lash|quote1=So, what are you supposed to be, some kind of murder hobo?}}</ref> a term commonly used to describe RPG players who kill NPCs indiscriminately. Drifter's voice actor [[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|Mat]]<nowiki/>[[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|thew Mercer]] is well-known as the Dungeon Master of the ''[[wikipedia:Dungeons_&_Dragons|Dungeons & Dragons]]'' webseries [[wikipedia:Critical_Role|''Critical Role'']].

== References ==

== Navigation ==

~~[[Category:Heroes]]~~

~~[[Category:Drifter]]~~

Drifter: Difference between revisionsGive feedback

Sleuth (talk | contribs)

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 {{Infobox hero
 | key = hero_drifter
-| voice_actor = Matt Mercer<ref>2026-01-28 - [[Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - Link to Drifter's voice line "I’m exactly who you think I am" in response to speculation about Matt Mercer</ref>
+| voice_actor = [[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|Matt Mercer]]<ref>2026-01-28 - [[Kaori (developer)|Kaori]]; [https://discord.com/channels/1231286446472691825 Deadlock Discord] - Link to Drifter's voice line "I’m exactly who you think I am" in response to speculation about Matt Mercer</ref><ref>2026-03-28 - [https://x.com/GripAshford/status/2037907975075983568 Grip Ashford] on [https://x.com/ X] - Photo with Matt Mercer doing the Drifter pose</ref>
 | release_date = August 27, 2025
-}}{{Quotation|2=If I find someone on their own, God himself couldn't save 'em.}}
+| pronouns = He/Him
-'''Drifter''' is a [[Hero]] in ''[[Deadlock]]''. Something ancient has arrived in New York... a nameless horror known only as the Drifter. Relentless as time, as certain as death, once Drifter sets his eyes on a victim there's nothing they can do to stop him. They can try to run, but his Bloodscent drives him forward, leading him to isolated prey. Even if they manage to escape it doesn't matter, as Stalker's Mark allows Drifter to appear right behind his enemies before lunging in for the kill with a vicious Rend. Soon Eternal Night comes, and a faint whistling in the breeze will be joined by a chorus of screams.
+}}{{Quotation|2=If I find someone on their own, God himself couldn't save 'em.|4=Drifter_upgrade_power3_06.mp3}}
+'''Drifter''' is a [[Hero]] in ''[[Deadlock]]''. Something ancient has arrived in New York... a nameless horror known only as the Drifter. Relentless as time, as certain as death, once Drifter sets his eyes on a victim there's nothing they can do to stop him. They can try to run, but his [[Drifter#Bloodscent|'''Bloodscent''']] drives him forward, leading him to isolated prey. Even if they manage to escape it doesn't matter, as '''[[Drifter#Stalker's Mark|Stalker's Mark]]''' allows Drifter to appear right behind his enemies before lunging in for the kill with a vicious [[Drifter#Rend|'''Rend''']]. Soon [[Drifter#Eternal Night|'''Eternal Night''']] comes, and a faint whistling in the breeze will be joined by a chorus of screams.
 A feral vampire with ties to Louisiana, Drifter has open contempt for the rules of vampire society, leaving a trail of carnage wherever he goes.
@@ Line 19: / Line 20: @@
 | hero_name   = Drifter
 | ability_num = 1
+| notes =
+* T3 upgrade results in ~7% damage increase for the ability, as Drifter's Heavy Melee is roughly equivalent to 2.3x of his Light Melee.
+** T3 enables item interactions that are specific to Heavy Melee, i.e. {{ItemIcon|Melee Charge}} or {{ItemIcon|Spirit Snatch}}.
+** T3 allows Rend to break {{HeroIcon|Graves}}' {{AbilityIcon|Borrowed Decree}}.
 }}
@@ Line 29: / Line 34: @@
 * Damage is divided up into 0.5s intervals, starting immediately as the projectile connects. (This works out to approximately the same overall damage per second stated in the tooltip, just dealt smoother.)
 * The projectile can hit [[Denizens]] (if they are not dormant), [[Troopers]], and player-created [[Units]].
-* It can hit [[Structures]] if they are not dormant, but will deal no damage to them.
+** It can hit [[Structures]] if they are not dormant, but will deal no damage to them.
+** Stalker's Mark can be applied to the [[Rejuvenator]], allowing Drifter to teleport to it.
 * Stalker's Mark damage over time and teleport components are separate; activating the teleport does not end the bleed effect prematurely. The bleed will last the full duration either way.
-* Stalker's Mark can be applied to the [[Rejuvenator]], allowing Drifter to teleport to it.
-* Reactivating Stalker's Mark has a short cast time before teleporting.
 ** If the duration expires during the cast time, Drifter will not teleport to the target.
+| interactions =
+{{AbilityInteraction | interaction = Slowing Hex | state = partial | text =
+Only the second cast (teleporting to the marked target) gets disabled.
+}}
 }}
@@ Line 41: / Line 49: @@
 | notes       =
 * Getting an assist on an isolated enemy hero grants the same bonuses as a kill.
-* All "On Kill" bonuses, including those from assists, only trigger if the target is considered ''Isolated'' at the moment of death.
 * The range for the movement speed near isolated heroes is 80 meters and lingers for about 7 seconds if there is no isolated target in range. 80 meters is roughly the distance between the two opposing blue guardians.
+* The permanent [[Weapon Damage]] per stack is additive with other increases to Drifter's Weapon Damage stat and applies to both Bullet and Melee damage.
 }}
@@ Line 48: / Line 56: @@
 | hero_name   = Drifter
 | ability_num = 4
-|notes=* The brief reveal of affected enemies lasts 3 seconds and can be increased by ability duration. Base duration being increased by Ability Point unlocks does not increase the reveal duration.}}
+| notes =
+* The brief reveal of affected enemies lasts {{DataProp|Eternal Night|RevealDuration.Value}} seconds and can be increased by [[Ability Duration]] items. Eternal Night's base duration being increased at Tier 3 does not increase the reveal duration.
+* The sprint buff given to Drifter also causes him to build up to his max sprint speed significantly faster, meaning items like {{ItemIcon|Trophy Collector}} and {{ItemIcon|Shadow Weave}} that may normally take a while to gain speed give much more immediate effects.
+* Activating Eternal Night while on the ground will instantly stop all of Drifter's movement for the duration of its casting time ({{DataProp|Eternal Night|AbilityCastDelay}}s); However, momentum is preserved when the ability is cast mid-air.
+* When it finishes casting, Eternal Night will cause Drifter to instantly disengage from [[Combat]], giving him his Out of Combat [[Health Regen]] and [[Sprint Speed]] regardless of how recently Drifter has damaged or been damaged by an enemy.
+** Eternal Night cannot proc {{ItemIcon|Spellslinger}} as the ability causes Drifter to leave Combat before it is considered cast.
+| tips =
+* Performing a [[Dash Jump]] before casting Eternal Night mid-air will let Drifter retain some movement and land by the time the casting animation is over.
+}}
+== Street Brawl ==
+=== Ability Changes ===
+<!--For fresh data see [[Deadlock:Street Brawl Ability Changes]] -->
+In addition to [[Street Brawl#Heroes|global changes]], Drifter receives the following modifications to his abilities:
+==== {{AbilityIcon|Bloodscent|no-link=true}} ====
+* Isolation range {{#invoke:StreetBrawlAbilities|change|Bloodscent|IsolationRange}}, from {{DataProp|Bloodscent|IsolationRange}}m to {{DataProp|Bloodscent|IsolationRange|streetbrawl}}m.
+=== Item Draft ===
+{{HeroStreetBrawlItems|Drifter}}
 == Backstory ==
@@ Line 56: / Line 83: @@
 == Update history ==
 {{Update history}}
+== 3D model ==
+{{3D_Model|Drifter}}
+===Weapon===
+{{3D Model|Drifter Weapon|size=240px}}
 == Gallery ==
 <gallery>
 File:Drifter card.png|Drifter portrait
+File:Drifter Gloat.png|Gloat icon for the Drifter
+File:Drifter Critical.png|Critical health icon for the Drifter
 File:Drifter.png|Drifter icon
 File:Drifter Render.png|Drifter in-game render
@@ Line 65: / Line 99: @@
 File:Drifter TitlePage.png|Drifter poster
 File:Drifter Reference Sheet.png|Drifter reference sheet
-File:Drifter name.png|Drifter name typography
+File:Drifter Weapon.png|Drifter weapon - ''Crimson Grasp''
-File:Drifter Weapon.png|Drifter weapon - Crimson Grasp
+</gallery>
+=== Typography ===
+<gallery>
+File:Drifter name.svg|Drifter's name typography
+File:Drifter brazilian.svg|Drifter's Brazilian Portuguese typography
+File:Drifter french.svg|Drifter's French typography
+File:Drifter italian.svg|Drifter's Italian typography
+File:Drifter polish.svg|Drifter's Polish typography
+File:Drifter schinese.svg|Drifter's Simplified Chinese typography
+File:Drifter russian.svg|Drifter's Russian typography
+File:Drifter spanish.svg|Drifter's typography for Spanish and Spanish-Latin America
+File:Drifter turkish.svg|Drifter's Turkish typography
+File:Drifter ukrainian.svg|Drifter's Ukrainian typography
+</gallery>
+=== Removed/Unused content ===
+<gallery>
 File:Drifter card old.png|Previous Drifter portrait
 File:Drifter psd.png|Unfinished Drifter model art
-File:Drifter Gloat.png|Gloat icon for the Drifter.
-File:Drifter Critical.png|Critical health icon for the Drifter.
 </gallery>
@@ Line 78: / Line 127: @@
 * Drifter's forward air dash and wall jump animation resembles the pounce animation of the Hunter, a recurring enemy in Valve's [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_4_Dead_(franchise) Left 4 Dead] series. He also previously had other animations similar to the Hunter's attack and run.
 * "Prowling in the Hideout" is displayed as one's status in the in-game Friends List when playing as Drifter in the [[Hideout]].
-* Players under the effect of Drifter's "Eternal Night" ability are able to hear an eerily whistled rendition of [[wikipedia:Hush,_Little_Baby|Hush, Little Baby]], a lullaby typically sung by mothers to their children.<ref>2025-08-18 - [[Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - ''"[Drifter whistles] 'hush little baby'"'</ref>
+* Players under the effect of Drifter's "Eternal Night" ability are able to hear an eerily whistled rendition of [[wikipedia:Hush,_Little_Baby|Hush, Little Baby]], a lullaby typically sung by mothers to their children.<ref>2025-08-18 - [[Kaori (developer)|Kaori]]; Deadlock Discord - ''"[Drifter whistles] 'hush little baby'"'</ref>
 ** During the 2025 winter event, one of three Christmas songs would be whistled instead; [[wikipedia:Joy_to_the_World|Joy to the World]], [[wikipedia:Twelve_Days_of_Christmas|Twelve Days of Christmas]], and [[wikipedia:God_Rest_Ye_Merry,_Gentlemen|God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen]].
-* Drifter has marks on his arms and hands that seem to be based on the [https://www.openculture.com/2018/08/hobo-code-introduction-hieroglyphic-language-early-1900s-train-hoppers.html Hobo Code].
+* Drifter has a variety of symbols on his right hand.
 * {{HeroIcon|Lash}} calls Drifter a "[[wikt:murderhobo|murder hobo]]",<ref>{{ConvoCite|hero1=Lash|hero2=Drifter|number=1|hero_quote1=Lash|quote1=So, what are you supposed to be, some kind of murder hobo?}}</ref> a term commonly used to describe RPG players who kill NPCs indiscriminately. Drifter's voice actor [[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|Mat]]<nowiki/>[[wikipedia:Matthew_Mercer|thew Mercer]] is well-known as the Dungeon Master of the ''[[wikipedia:Dungeons_&_Dragons|Dungeons & Dragons]]'' webseries [[wikipedia:Critical_Role|''Critical Role'']].
 == References ==
 <references />
 == Navigation ==
 {{Hero Navbox}}
-[[Category:Heroes]]
-[[Category:Drifter]]