How to counter Abrams in Deadlock
Gun hero. Counter items for lane, mid and late game, and tips for the hero you play.
Updated for patch 10-05-2026. Counter profile from 2026-10-06.
Threat profile
Tanky melee brawler. Siphon Life drains your health into his, Shoulder Charge drags you into a wall for a stun, Infernal Resilience regenerates the damage he takes, and Seismic Impact leaps in and stuns everyone he lands on.
Key principle
Abrams wins long fights by healing. Get anti heal before anything else, then bullet armor, and never stand with your back to a wall when Shoulder Charge is up.
Lane phase items≈ 0-10 min
- Battle Vest his gun and melee are most of his damage.
- Rebuttal parry his heavy melee to heal and hit him back.
- Healbane if you deal spirit damage, this cuts his healing early.
- Return Fire he fights at point blank and soaks damage on purpose, so he feeds it a lot.
- Reactive Barrier gives you a barrier the moment Shoulder Charge or Seismic Impact hits you, and later upgrades into Indomitable.
- Slowing Hex silences Shoulder Charge so he can't engage or escape.
- Spirit Strike your melee hits lower his spirit resist, so your team's spirit damage cuts through his tankiness.
Mid game items≈ 10-25 min
- Counterspell How to use: press parry the moment Shoulder Charge is about to hit you. You won't get dragged or stunned, and he's left standing next to you with his escape used. It also works on Seismic Impact if you parry just before he lands. Don't waste it on Siphon Life, just walk out of that range.
- Toxic Bullets anti heal for gun heroes, he is almost unkillable without it.
- Decay stronger anti heal for long fights.
- Knockdown cast it as he jumps for Seismic Impact, the stun lasts longer on airborne targets.
- Bullet Resilience solid armor once his gun comes online.
- Metal Skin only stops bullets. His melee and abilities still hit you, so it's best once he builds a heavy gun.
- Tankbuster your big ability hits deal extra damage based on his current health, great against his huge health pool.
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Late game items≈ 25 min +
- Inhibitor cuts his damage by 30% and his healing by 40%.
- Indomitable cleanses the next Shoulder Charge or Seismic Impact stun.
- Juggernaut melee resist, slow resist, and he fires slower when he shoots you.
- Cursed Relic locks him out of abilities and items for over 3 seconds.
- Plated Armor deflects part of his bullets.
- Crippling Headshot headshots lower his bullet and spirit resist and cut his healing by 35%.
- Spirit Burn for spirit heroes, a big spirit burst sets him on fire and cuts his healing by 70%.
Patch note
10-05-2026: Infernal Resilience T3 up +8% to +9% (a bit tankier), but Seismic Impact T3 Unstoppable window cut 6s to 5s, so your Knockdown/CC on the landing lands a touch more reliably. General: dashes and light melees no longer pause gun cycle time, which helps his high cycle weapon, respect his DPS a beat more. Anti heal stays the priority.
Tips for your hero against Abrams
Apollo
- Bait Shoulder Charge, then Riposte his melee windup; Sigil poke from range and never brawl him where Siphon Life out sustains you.
Bebop
- Hook him out of a dive and Sticky Bomb burst before Siphon Life heals it back; keep him at Uppercut range, not in melee.
Billy
- Don't melee brawl the lifesteal king; use Rising Ram to reposition, not to commit, and silence him mid Seismic Impact.
Calico
- Kite with Leaping Slash and Gloom Bombs; never sit in Siphon range, and Return to Shadows reset when he dives.
Celeste
- Stay airborne above his melee; Light Eater amp your burst and drop him before his extended fight sustain kicks in.
Drifter
- He's rarely an isolated frontliner, so don't Bloodscent hunt him; Rend for anti heal backed burst and Stalker's Mark out of Seismic.
Dynamo
- Kinetic Pulse him out of a dive; save Singularity for when he commits Seismic so his whole team eats it too.
Graves
- Grasping Hands roots him out of Shoulder Charge; Deadheads chip his regen while you kite, but bring anti heal.
Grey Talon
- Charged Shot him before he closes; drop an Spirit Snare on his dive path and never let him reach melee.
Haze
- Sleep Dagger his engage; Bullet Dance melts him, but bring anti heal or Siphon negates it, and Smoke Bomb kite.
Holliday
- Bounce Pad off his dive; Spirit Lasso him out of Seismic and poke with Powder Keg from range.
Infernus
- Afterburn out DoTs his regen; Flame Dash to kite, keep anti heal up, and Concussive Combustion his ult windup.
Ivy
- Kite and heal your carry, not yourself into his brawl; Air Drop the carry onto him only with anti heal committed.
Kelvin
- Frost Grenade slows his dive; do NOT let him fight in your Frozen Shelter heals, he out sustains them. Bring team anti heal.
Lady Geist
- Essence Bomb plus Life Drain beats his regen only with anti heal up; don't get caught at melee where Siphon refunds him.
Lash
- Ground Strike him out of the dive; Death Slam him from height where his melee and Siphon can't reach you.
McGinnis
- Wall him off from your backline; turrets chip his regen but bring Healbane, and never nest fight him at melee.
Mina
- Burst and Sanguine Retreat before Siphon out sustains the trade; anti heal makes your burst stick.
Mirage
- Tornado and Scarabs from range; Traveler onto him after he burns Shoulder Charge, never at melee range.
Mo & Krill
- Combo ult drains through his regen with anti heal; Sand Blast him out of a dive and Burrow to reposition.
Paige
- Bookwyrm chips him at range; Captivating Read locks his dive, but bring anti heal or he heals it all back.
Paradox
- Time Wall his dive path; Kinetic Carbine stun shot him mid Shoulder Charge and Swap him into your team.
- Flying Cloak kite; Affliction out DoTs his regen and never brawl him where Siphon refunds melee.
Rat King
- Swarm him before you shoot so your LMG hits harder. Pop Royal Pestments when he Shoulder Charges in, and bring anti heal.
Rem
- Naptime his engage; Lil Helpers heal your team, but bring anti heal so his lifesteal doesn't outlast yours.
Seven
- Lightning Ball stun his dive; Storm Cloud punishes him if he brawls in it, but anti heal is mandatory.
Shiv
- Bloodletting keeps you alive while bleed ticks him, but slot Decay so Siphon can't out heal the bleed; then Killing Blow the low.
Silver
- Wolf form burst him fast; Entangling Bola grounds him, but anti heal is mandatory or Siphon negates your damage.
The Doorman
- Door him off from your team; Luggage Cart him out of Seismic and never let him brawl inside your space.
The Magnificent Sinclair
- Confuse his target with illusions; Rabbit Hex his dive and chip from range where Siphon can't refund melee.
Venator
- Snap Trap his dive path; Gutshot poke from range, and never let the brawler reach your dual guns at melee.
Victor
- Brawl him inside Aura of Suffering, he wants to be close anyway. Pain Battery fills fast from his melee, so fire it back mid fight.
Vindicta
- Assassinate him from max range; Stake Hook him out of a dive and never let him reach you at melee.
Viscous
- Cube your dived ally to deny his burst; Puddle Punch away and Goo Ball through him with anti heal up.
Vyper
- Kite with Slither and ammo stack from range; Petrifying Bola locks his dive, never brawl at melee.
Warden
- Don't melee trade in lane, Siphon Life refunds his melee damage as HP.
- Binding Word AFTER he commits Shoulder Charge, with no movement left he is a sitting duck.
- Last Stand on Abrams is a death sentence if Seismic Impact is down, he has no way out of the tether. Willpower can still shrug the Shoulder Charge slow, but its cleanse is weaker now, so prefer Dispel for the real DoT windows.
Wraith
- Telekinesis lift him out of a dive and Full Auto him down; anti heal so his regen doesn't outlast it.
Yamato
- Crimson Slash out sustains his Siphon in a duel; Power Slash burst and Flying Slash to reposition, anti heal both ways.