What is an Exhaustion Perk In Dead By Daylight?

Dead by daylight can be a terrifying game. If you are not aware of what it is, dead by daylight is a multiplayer horror game that puts one killer against four survivors. However the most fascinating part of dead by daylight is the fact that they draw their characters from the most famous franchises in horror. Films such as Scream, Saw, and Halloween, all have characters in the game. 

One of the most unique parts of the game is how detailed and complex it can be. You are able to customize either your killer or your survivor to have different perks which will increase your chance of being successful in your game. However there are different types of perks that you can use and each have a different mechanic that is crucial to understand in order to fully utilize the perk to its highest potential. The perk type that we will be discussing today is the exhaustion perk that is used with survivors. 

What is an exhaustion perk you may ask? An exhaustion perk is a perk that grants you circumstantial tools that help you out run the killer. They are used on survivors and cause the exhaustion status effect. Exhaustion perks are mostly used during chases and are effective at making a quick escape from the killer. They can be the make or break of any chase if used correctly which is why they most often find themselves in survivors builds. 

It is also important to understand exhaustion perks if you are a killer because they’re sole purpose in the game is to evade you. Learning how to counter these perks will give you an extra advantage when it comes to the trial. And if you are able to counter exhaustion perks it takes out an entire perk slot that could have been used to help their team mates which gives you a very large advantage. 

Now I previously mentioned that exhaustion perks cause the exhausted effect but that raises the question, what exactly is the exhaustion effect? Since exhaustion perks allow you to gain quick movement to evade the killer you cannot use them multiple times in quick succession. So the exhaustion status effect is given which prevents you from using any exhaustion perks until that status goes away. It usally has a timer and the length of that timer is determined by the exhaustion perk that you are using and it will be defined in the description of the perk. 

The exhaustion status effect prevents you from using other exhaustion perks. So if you have two exhaustion perks in your load out, which ever one activates first, you will have to wait until your exhaustion clears before you can use either again. The exhaustion status effect doesn’t go away regardless of what you are doing. Instead it only decreases when you are not sprinting. So if you are walking, crouching, or doing a generator it will slowly decrease. But your exhaustion will remain the same while sprinting. This is in order to ensure that you cannot use multiple exhaustion perks during the same chase, otherwise that would become unfair.

Exhaustion perks need very specific conditions in order to be activated. Some of the following are the most common exhaustion perks that will most likely be in a survivors load out 

Sprint burst 

this is one of the most common exhaustion perks and it is obtainable through the survivor Meg Thomas. In order for it to activate all you have to do is sprint. And then you get large boost of speed. As a consequence you earn the exhausted status effect and this effect decreases while not sprinting. 

This perk is most often used to quickly evade the killer while doing a generator. Another thing survivors are able to do is to sprint at the beginning of the round, and then allow the exhausted status effect to dwindle down to one percent, and then continue to sprint. So when sprint burst is needed a survivor can quickly stop sprinting for one second and gain their sprint burst back and make a quick escape. It is a difficult perk to use correctly and efficiently, but when done correctly it will aid in your efforts as a survivor. 

Lithe

lithe is also another common perk that you will often find in survivors loadouts. It is another exhaustion perk and when used will cause the exhausted status effect. The length that this effect lasts is determined by the rarity and level of the perk. 

In order to activate lithe a survivor has to vault over an object while running. This will grant a burst of speed that lasts 3 seconds. It is a great perk that can build great distance between yourself and the killer. Because not only does the killer have to find away around what you vaulted, but they also have to close the distance that you have made and by the time they do hopefully you have found another place to loop or you have found a good hiding place in order to evade the killer. 

Dead Hard 

    This is by far the most annoying perk for killers to face off against mostly because at the most crucial points of a chase, this is the perk that comes into play and can reset the entire chase. Dead hard is available when a survivior is injured and is not exhausted. If the survivor presses the active ability button then dead hard activates 

    What is dead hard you might be wondering? It is a perk that grants a sudden dash of speed. It is very brief. But when you press dead hard a swing is not able to connect. Meaning if they are mid swing and you press dead hard the hit will not connect. It is a very vesatile perk and when used correctly it can create lots of distance between you and the killer. 

    How to use dead hard is difficult. It is all about timing. You want to time it so it is right when they are about to swing. If you get this correct than the killer has to wait out the time penalty for missing a swing and they also have to close the distance that you had just made. It is also very beneficial if you dead hard towards a jungle gym and or a pallet. This way you completely reset the entire chase. 

Conclusion 

    Exhaustion perks are a very useful tool for any survivor to quickly escape a chase. However when not in use you lack a perk slot that could have been used to serve your team. It is a risk and reward gameplay mechanic that also puts a thorn in killer's sides. I hope today you learned more about the mechanic, the perks, and how they work.