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Deadlock Tiers

Mystic · Projectile

Viscous hero artViscous Build & Counters

Rolls around deflecting bullets. Viscous vexes his opponents through clever evasion and strategic uses of healing, enabling him to withstand the most brutal of enemy attacks.

Updated ·Refreshed daily from public match data·Methodology

Tier

D

Win rate

45.2%▼ 0.6

Games

67K

14% pick

How to play Viscous right now

Viscous wins 45.2% of 67K games, 3.1 pts below the median hero, down 0.6 pts on last week. Consistent across ranks (44.8–46.2%). Struggles into Rat King in lane (38%). Viscous is a mystic (rolls around deflecting bullets). Build around Mystic Expansion, Mystic Burst, Tankbuster, put early points into Splatter, and respect Rat King in lane.
  • Core items: Mystic Expansion, Mystic Burst, Tankbuster, Spirit Snatch
  • Max first: Splatter
  • Hardest lanes: Rat King, Paige, Haze
  • Best teammates: Paige, Rat King, Graves

Last 7 days, all ranks

Viscous stats

Win rate

45.2%

#36 of 41

Pick rate

13.6%

of matches

Ban share

1.4%

of ranked bans

K / D / A

4.4 / 5.9 / 13.6

KDA 3.06

Souls

40K

per game

Hero damage

30K

per game

Win rate, last 30 days

September 12, 2026 → October 11, 2026 · low 43.8% · high 48.7%

Compare Viscous with another hero in the hero comparison tool.

Ranked matches, last 7 days

Viscous by rank

Initiate – Acolyte

45.7%C

4.3K games

Sentinel – Ritualist

44.8%D

4.2K games

Emissary – Phantom

46.2%C

5.1K games

Ascendant – Eternus

51.0%B

883 games

See every hero for your bracket on the Deadlock tier list.

Items by game phase · last 7 days

Viscous build

Buy rate = share of Viscous games where the item was bought; grouped by average purchase time. Late items always show higher win rates because they are bought in longer, often winning games — compare items within the same phase.

Recommended build — buy in this order

The 12 items most Viscous players buy, sorted by when they are usually bought.

  1. 1Mystic BurstMystic Burst5m
  2. 2Melee LifestealMelee Lifesteal5m
  3. 3High-Velocity RoundsHigh-Velocity Rounds6m
  4. 4Spirit StrikeSpirit Strike11m
  5. 5Extra ChargeExtra Charge11m
  6. 6Mystic ExpansionMystic Expansion12m
  7. 7Spirit SnatchSpirit Snatch20m
  8. 8Compress CooldownCompress Cooldown20m
  9. 9TankbusterTankbuster23m
  10. 10Rapid RechargeRapid Recharge24m
  11. 11Superior CooldownSuperior Cooldown26m
  12. 12Greater ExpansionGreater Expansion26m

High-rank build — Phantom and above

What Viscous players in Phantom+ ranked lobbies buy (12K games, last 30 days), in buying order.

  1. 1Mystic BurstMystic Burst4m
  2. 2High-Velocity RoundsHigh-Velocity Rounds4m
  3. 3Mystic ShotMystic Shot8m
  4. 4Express ShotExpress Shot10m
  5. 5Spirit StrikeSpirit Strike13m
  6. 6Mystic ExpansionMystic Expansion15m
  7. 7Improved SpiritImproved Spirit18m
  8. 8Spirit SnatchSpirit Snatch19m
  9. 9Compress CooldownCompress Cooldown21m
  10. 10TankbusterTankbuster21m
  11. 11Superior CooldownSuperior Cooldown25m
  12. 12Greater ExpansionGreater Expansion27m

Laning 0–10 min

Mid game 10–20 min

Late game 20+ min

Situational picks that win

Bought in under 20% of games, but with the highest win rates when they are.

Most played ability upgrade paths

Viscous skill order

Most popular53.7% win3.3K games
SplatterSplatter12··5·7·····
The CubeThe Cube··3·····91011·
Puddle PunchPuddle Punch···4···8···12
Goo BallGoo Ball·····6······
Option 254.5% win1.7K games
SplatterSplatter··34·6······
The CubeThe Cube····5····101112
Puddle PunchPuddle Punch12·····89···
Goo BallGoo Ball······7·····
Option 351.0% win1.6K games
SplatterSplatter12··5·7·····
The CubeThe Cube··3········12
Puddle PunchPuddle Punch···4···8····
Goo BallGoo Ball·····6··91011·

Viscous abilities

Splatter1Splatter26s cooldown

Throw a ball of goo that deals damage and leaves puddles of goo behind that apply movement slow to enemies in the radius.

Cooldown 26sCast Delay 0.001sMove Speed 28%Damage 55Puddle Duration 10s
  1. 1 AP+36.0 Damage and +1.5m Radius
  2. 2 AP-14s Cooldown
  3. 5 AP+1 Bounces and improved Spirit Scaling

The Cube2The Cube42s cooldown

Encase the target in a cube of restorative goo that protects from damage, and increases health regen. Target is unable to take any new actions while cubed. Can be used on self. Press Jump / mantle to escape early.

Cooldown 42sDuration 3sCast Delay 0.1sHealth Regen 40Buff Duration 8s
  1. 1 APIncreases Move Speed and Stamina Recovery
  2. 2 AP+25 Health Regen and +1s Duration
  3. 5 APRemoves all non-ult Debuffs and -20.0s Cooldown

Puddle Punch3Puddle Punch24s cooldown

Materialize a fist in the world that punches everyone in the area, applying knockup. Punching an enemy deals melee damage and applies slow. Enemies can Parry this attack. You and your allies have increased Air Control.

Cooldown 24sCharges 1Charge Delay 1.7sDamage 20Move Speed 24%Slow Duration 3sDuration 0.6s
  1. 1 AP+1 Charge and +20 Damage
  2. 2 AP+1.5m Radius and +60% Lifesteal
  3. 5 AP-14.0s Cooldown and now deals Heavy Melee Damage

Goo Ball4Goo BallUltimate150s cooldown

Morph into a large goo ball that deals damage and stuns enemies on impact. The ball grants large amounts of Bullet and Spirit resist, bounces off walls and can double jump.

Cooldown 150sDuration 11sCast Delay 0.55sDamage 110Stun Duration 0.5sSpirit Resist 35%Bullet Resist 35%
  1. 1 AP-25s Cooldown
  2. 2 AP+70 Damage and +20% Resists
  3. 5 AP+7s Duration, +0.3s Stun Duration, and +0.2 Spirit Scaling

Same-lane win rate · last 7 days

How to counter Viscous

Viscous has the hardest time in lane against Rat King, Paige, Haze. Items that work best into Viscous: Rescue Beam, Express Shot, Weapon Shielding.

Hardest lanes for Viscous

Viscous wins lane vs

Best teammates

Viscous vs every hero — full counters table →

Last 30 days · win-rate gain over other items in the same games

Best items against Viscous

Rescue BeamRescue Beam3,200 souls · 43K games+1.055.3% winExpress ShotExpress Shot3,200 souls · 73K games+1.051.6% winWeapon ShieldingWeapon Shielding1,600 souls · 36K games+0.951.2% winLong RangeLong Range1,600 souls · 98K games+0.752.7% winKinetic DashKinetic Dash1,600 souls · 82K games+0.752.1% winHollow PointHollow Point3,200 souls · 72K games+0.753.8% win

Compared with the other items bought into Viscous, these ones lift their owner's win rate the most — good picks when you are laning against or chasing Viscous.

Most-played in-game builds · last 7 days

Popular Viscous builds

Community builds from the in-game build browser, ranked by how many games used them. Search the build ID in-game (Hero Builds → search) to import it.

AndrewChicken's NEW Fistcous Build (Annotated)50.0%284 games
Lomein VISCIOUS edit45.1%257 games
Viscous - Spirit-Initiator [62% WR] [tracklock.gg]43.1%248 games
Concerns of The Deep? I'm Punchin'50.9%230 games
Spirit Ballin 4.141.9%203 games
Concerns of The Deep? I'm Goopin'48.0%175 games

Recent Viscous changes

September 16, 2026 — Minor Update - 09-16-2026
  • • Alt fire damage growth reduced by 10%
  • • Splatter detonation cooldown reduced from 0.15 to 0.12
  • • Splatter T1 reduced from +2m to +1.5m
  • • The Cube cast range reduced from 26m to 20m
  • • Puddle Punch cooldown increased from 21s to 24s
  • • Goo Ball T3 now also increases spirit scaling by 0.2
July 28, 2026 — Minor Update - 07-28-2026
  • • Splatter damage reduced from 70 to 55
  • • Splatter spirit ratio reduced from 0.8 to 0.7
  • • Splatter base bounce count increased from 1 to 2
  • • Splatter T3 bounce count reduced from +2 to +1
  • • The Cube T3 reduced from -25s Cooldown to -20s
  • • Puddle Punch slow duration reduced from 4s to 3s
  • • Puddle Punch slow increased from -20% to -30%
  • • Puddle Punch cooldown reduced from 24s to 21s
  • • Goo Ball T2 increased from +10% Resists to +20%
July 9, 2026 — Minor Update - 07-09-2026
  • • Splatter T3 spirit scaling reduced from +1.0 to +0.9

About Viscous

Base stats (level 1)

Health
780
Health regen
2/s
Move speed
7.2 m/s
Sprint speed
1.6 m/s
Stamina
3
Light melee
63
Heavy melee
116

Viscous lore

The Bermuda Triangle was never a myth, it was a shadowline nexus deep underneath the Atlantic Ocean. For the most part, the things that escaped this astral gate were benign (like Nessie), but now something dark and predatory known only as The Adversary hunts the seas... and ocean denizens are scared to death.

One of those inhabitants, a psychic sea anemone, wants to do something about it. Summoning an ectoplasmic goo body to traverse the surface, Viscous is desperately trying to summon the Patrons in order to keep The Deep safe from the horror that lurks below.

Official in-game biography.

Viscous voice linesListen to all 2,267 lines, grouped by situation.▶

Viscous FAQ

Is Viscous good in Deadlock right now?＋

Weak this patch. Viscous is D tier (#36 of 41) with a 45.2% win rate over 67K games in the last 7 days. Viscous wins 45.2% of 67K games, 3.1 pts below the median hero, down 0.6 pts on last week. Consistent across ranks (44.8–46.2%). Struggles into Rat King in lane (38%).

What is the best Viscous build?＋

Most Viscous players buy Mystic Expansion, Mystic Burst, Tankbuster, Spirit Snatch — the four items bought most often. Start with Mystic Burst, High-Velocity Rounds, Melee Lifesteal in lane, then Mystic Expansion, Spirit Snatch, Spirit Strike by mid game.

Who counters Viscous?＋

In lane, Viscous has the lowest win rate against Rat King (38.2%), Paige (39.1%), Haze (39.5%). Viscous does best against Shiv (53.0%), Solomon (51.4%), Pocket (50.7%).

How do you counter Viscous?＋

Pick a hero that wins the lane into Viscous — Rat King, Paige, Haze do best this week — and build Rescue Beam or Express Shot, which win more often than other items when Viscous is on the enemy team.

What should I max first on Viscous?＋

The most common skill order puts points into Splatter first; it wins 53.7% of 3.3K games. Full order is in the skill order table above.

Other Mystic heroes

Baba build →

Mystic — cackling, beady, hexing, with a heavy artillery weapon.

Celeste build →

Mystic — performer, disruptive, dazzling, with a burst fire weapon.

Dynamo build →

Locks down the enemy team. Dynamo keeps himself and his allies healthy while waiting for h

Graves build →

Mystic — morbid, area denial, necromancer, with a pistol weapon.

Lady Geist build →

Sacrifices health then drains it back. Expending health to achieve devastating effects is

McGinnis build →

Controls the battle with combat turrets. Precise placement is everything for McGinnis, whe