Many famous monsters and villains from popular horror media have featured as Killers across various DLC chapters in Chapter VI: A Nightmare on Elm Street DLC. He is based on the 2010 remake version of the iconic slasher. According to Dead By Daylight lore, Freddy returned to Springwood after being attacked and killed by angry parents and continued to terrorize Quentin in his dreams. The Entity took them both mid-chase. As a Killer, Freddy has some of the most complicated mechanics in Dead By Daylight. He can ively put Survivors to sleep, set traps, teleport to objectives, and even avoid being stunned by Pallets.
Like all other Killers in Dead By Daylight, The Nightmare has two main powers and three unique Perks that can eventually be unlocked for all other characters. He can use his Dream Demon powers to remain stealthy and set traps for unwitting Survivors, and he can use his signature clawed glove as a basic attack weapon. His powers can be improved upon with dozens of Add-On items in his Bloodweb. The Nightmare is considered a Hard-difficulty Killer who may be tough for newcomers to get comfortable using, and he is one of the scariest Killers to play against in Dead By Daylight for his ability to sneak up on players and keep the pressure high. Here's everything players should know about The Nightmare's abilities and strategies for playing him effectively in Dead By Daylight.
How To Build Freddy Krueger In Dead By Daylight
When players choose The Nightmare as their selected Killer in Dead By Daylight, they will need to master his basic attack and abilities. His basic attack is a simple swipe of his famous Claw Glove. His special power is called Dream Demon, and there are several facets to this ability. Dream Demon keeps Freddy invisible to Awake Survivors. They can still hear his Terror Radius but won't be able to see him until he is within 16 meters. Between 16 and 32 meters, they will only see him intermittently, making it more difficult for them to win Chases.
Dream Demon also has a ive Micro-Sleep ability. Every 60 seconds, Survivors fall asleep, plunging them into the Dream World. In the Dream World, Survivors experience the Oblivious Status Effect. They can't hear Freddy's Terror Radius and can only hear the Lullaby. They will not be able to discern the direction of the Lullaby, allowing Freddy to sneak up on them. Additionally, Survivors can see and be affected by Dream Traps while in the Dream World. Freddy can also force Survivors into the Dream World with successful Basic Attacks. Survivors must either be awakened by another Survivor, fail a Skill Check, or find their personal alarm clock on the Trial Grounds to wake up.
The Nightmare is granted three other abilities by Dream Demon. The first is Dream Snare, which is a trap that can be placed directly in front of Freddy. Survivors who run into this trap will be Hindered as long as they are in its Area of Effect and for about three seconds after fleeing the area. Hindered slows them down, making them easy to hit. Freddy can place a Dream Pallet at any available location. When this false Pallet is dropped by a Survivor in a Chase, it is instantly destroyed and won't stun Freddy. Finally, Freddy can use Dream Projection to teleport to any Generator within his view, making it easy to find Survivors and stall progress.
The Nightmare has three unique Perks, primarily related to speeding up his actions and preventing Survivor escape. Like other characters, once The Nightmare reaches levels 30, 35, and 40, his Perks begin to appear in the Bloodwebs of other Killers. While none of the three are particularly strong, some of Freddy's personal Perks can work well with most Killers in the Dead By Daylight roster. The Nightmare's personal Perks are:
- Fire Up: Each time Survivors complete a Generator, the Killer gains a stackable 3/3.5/4 Action Speed bonus to picking up and dropping Survivors, breaking Pallets and Breakable Walls, damaging Generators, and vaulting Windows, up to 15/17.5/20%.
- Me: Each time the Killer hits their Obsession with a Basic Attack, Me gains one Token. Opening times for both Exit Gates is increased by four seconds per Token, up to 8/12/16 additional seconds. The Obsession is not affected by this speed penalty.
- Blood Warden: As soon as at least one Exit Gate is opened, Blood Warden activates. The Auras of Survivors standing within the Exit Gate area are revealed and, once per Trial, hooking a Survivor while Blood Warden is active blocks the exits for all survivors for 30/40/60 seconds.
While Me is not particularly strong, some players like using Fire Up and Blood Warden on both The Nightmare and other Dead By Daylight Killers. Players should consider adding other Perks to their Nightmare build that for his weaknesses, like halting Generator progress and healing, and lean into his strengths, like pressuring Survivors. Good alternative teachable Perks that work well with The Nightmare and capitalize on his abilities as a stealthy Dead By Daylight killer include:
- Discordance (The Legion): Any Generator within 64/96/128 meters of the Killer that is being repaired by two or more Survivors is highlighted yellow and triggers a Loud Noise notification only the Killer hears.
- Hex: Ruin (The Hag): All Generators automatically regress at 100/150/200% of the normal Regression speed when they are not being repaired. This effect lasts as long as the associated Hex Totem is standing.
- Pop Goes the Weasel (The Clown): After hooking a Survivor, the next Generator the Killer damages instantly loses 25% of its progress. Regular Generator Regression applies after.
- Save the Best for Last (The Shape): Each time the Killer hits a Survivor other than the Obsession with a Basic Attack, Save the Best for Last gains one Token (up to eight Tokens). The Killer gains a stackable 5% cooldown reduction on successful attacks per Token, up to a maximum of 40%. Hitting the Obsession with a Basic Attack causes Save the Best for Last to lose 4/3/2 Tokens.
- Thrilling Tremors (The Ghost Face): After picking up a Survivor, all Generators not being Repaired are blocked by The Entity for the next 16 seconds.
Players can also use any standard meta Perks when playing as The Nightmare, like Hex: No One Escapes Death and Spies from the Shadows. They will want to experiment with the options they have available and find the build that works best for them.
Dead By Daylight players can use Add-Ons found in The Nightmare's personal Bloodweb to increase his power. The best options increase his ability to find Survivors and make him harder for Survivors to see until it is too late. These include:
- Green Dress: Slightly increases the Regression Penalties for Repair, Healing, and Sabotage actions. When failing a Skill Check for any of these actions, the Survivor's Aura is revealed to The Nightmare for three seconds.
- Unicorn Block: Interacting with a Dream Trap afflicts Survivors with Blindness for 60 seconds.
- Pill Bottle: Survivors see The Nightmare intermittently at a reduced distance of 12 to 24 meters. The Nightmare is invisible to Survivors beyond 24 meters and to all Awake Survivors while carrying another Survivor.
- Red Paint Brush: All Survivors start the Trial in the Dream World, and failing a Skill Check will no longer wake them up.
- Black Box: Recently opened Exit Gates are blocked for Survivors in the Dream World for 15 seconds.
Killers are limited to whatever items appear randomly in their Bloodweb, so it is a good idea to experiment with different Add-Ons to find a combination that works best for the player's preferred style and selected Perks to capitalize on The Nightmare's wide range of stealth abilities.
Dead By Daylight is available for PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Stadia, & Nintendo Switch.
