Deadlock Mid Boss Guide: Rejuvenator Buff Explained

The Deadlock Mid Boss is the Mid to Late Game objective that provides a powerful Rejuvenator Buff across your whole team.

Attaining that buff has its risks though, as the boss is powerful and trying to take it gives enough time for the enemy team to contest you if they're alive and round.

The team that secures a buff gets a ton of momentum - if you're ahead, you probably have enough oomph to secure the victory. If you're behind, you might be able to swing the odds back into your favor.

It's comparable to the Roshan of DOTA 2 or the Baron Nashor of League of Legends.

How it Works

At the 10 minute mark of a Deadlock game, the Mid Boss will spawn (same timing as the Spirit Urn).

As it spawns, you'll hear a loud roar sound cue and it will appear directly at the center of the map, with a golden icon.

There are two parts to Mid Boss: killing it and then claiming the Rejuvenator Buff.

1 - Killing Mid Boss

To deal damage to the Mid Boss, your team needs to be in the pit. Any shots or abilities fired from outside will be ignored.

Once you're in the pit, your team needs to deal enough damage to it to surpass its shield regeneration.

Below, you can see the shield bar (on the left) which must be completely emptied in order for the main health bar (on the right) to decrease.

At 60% health, the Mid Boss will roar again, alerting the enemy team that it is being contested.

The shield will continuously regenerate as its taking damage, so it can be a time-consuming endeavor that gives the enemy team enough time to rotate.

2 - Securing the Rejuvenator Buff

Once the Mid Boss dies, the Rejuvenator Buff will fall slowly from the sky like a feather.

Once it lands, a hero can claim it by giving it a heavy punch.

The buff will then be granted to everyone on the team that successfully claimed it.

Now, let's get to the juicy effects that makes getting the buff worth it.

The Rejuvenator Buff (also known as the "Rejuvenation Credit") lasts 3 minutes, and you can see it ticking down at the left side of your screen.

Here are the effects you and your team will have:

• 40/50/60% faster respawn rate for the 1/2/3rd Mid Boss death (further deaths don't increase)

  • After you die once, you lose the buff on respawn

• All Troopers (minions) get 50/70/90% HP for the 1/2/3rd Mid Boss death (further deaths don't increase)

• Teamwide 20% firing rate increase

In combination, these buffs gives your team a ton of end game pressure. Essentially giving you a free teamfight since you have a fast respawn, more pushing power due to having beefier Troopers, and more firepower with the increased firing rate.

Here are a few quick tips to keep in mind when contesting or going for Mid Boss.

1- Before you attempt Mid Boss, consider variables like

• Is your team on the same page?

• Are the majority of lanes pushing in toward the enemy base?

• How many enemy heroes are alive?

  • Are the ones that are alive strong or weak?

  • If they're dead, how long are the death timers?

  • Same logic for your allies

Ultimately, you'll need to weigh all of these things and your ability to evaluate context will improve as you gain experience. But in general, if more of these factors are looking uncertain or unfavorable, it's probably best to call off the attempt.

2 - Understand how your hero can best contribute to a claim or steal

Although there aren't assigned roles in Deadlock, each hero naturally has unique strengths and weaknesses. As with any other situation, you're going to want to put your hero in the best position for them to contribute.

If your team has enough DPS to kill the Mid Boss, you may want to consider playing interference and staying on the high ground to scout for potential stealers.

Or, you can split push a lane that has a lot of pressure to make the enemies choose between contesting the Rejuvenator Buff or losing a lot of their structures.

Lastly, if you have heroes like Dynamo or Seven you can use your ultimates to deter or outright deny access to punching the shard.

3 - Master the art of the parry

Split second decision making can make all the difference in Deadlock, especially when the Rejuvenator Buff is falling and about to hit the ground.

If the enemy team gets access to the pit, try to have someone on your team punch the buff while another protects it by parrying.

Since a heavy melee is the only way to claim the buff, a well-timed parry will save the day and help your team bring home the bacon.

4 - Understand the different access points of the Mid Boss building (The Museum)

Whether your team is initiating the Mid Boss attempt or defending against it, it helps to know all the angles that your enemies can enter from.

Some examples include:

• Dropping down or shooting from the top floor. There's the big window that's right above the Mid Boss.

• There are also smaller ones that give another angle.

• The ground floor has many access points on the different sides of the building, know where to take cover.

• Last but not least, be wary of the one-way airshaft chutes. Since they feed in from the underground level, it's a sneaky way to avoid heroes that are scouting from above.

5 - Go back for Round 2 if the Mid Boss health is low

If there is a long fight at Mid Boss where neither team is able to claim it, remember that its health will stay where it was.

A lot of players assume that it will heal back to full, so you can often go back for a free Rejuvenator Buff, especially at lower levels of play.