In any asymmetrical multiplayer game, numerous strategies will arise, and some will inevitably rise to the top as the most efficient. For Killers in Dead by Daylight, three strategies are notorious: slugging, tunneling, and camping.
Camping is a strategy familiar to any FPS player: remaining in one spot for an extended period of time rather than moving about the map. In Dead by Daylight, camping chiefly consists of the Killer remaining near a Survivor on the hook. It can be a lethally efficient strategy with certain Killers, and any Survivor interested in Surviving the Trials and gaining Bloodpoints should know how to counter it.
The Basics Of Camping
To understand how to counter camping, players must first understand why camping occurs. Though some Killers camp carelessly or out of spite, smart Killers camp with a purpose. The primary purpose of camping a hook is to deny other Survivors the ability to rescue their teammate.
When the Killer is camping, the Survivors are forced to make a choice: attempt to rescue the hooked Survivor and likely go down in exchange, or leave the hooked Survivor to die. Many players hate to leave a teammate to die and will thus attempt even the riskiest and most foolhardy of saves, even if it spells doom for the team.
Some Killers will stand directly in front of the Survivor from the moment they hook them (facecamping), others will roam the immediate area to scare off potential saviors (proxy camping). Others will chase Survivors normally but return to the hook if they see that the other Survivors have been slow to rescue and that the hooked Survivor is about to hit the next hook state.
Securing free hook states in this way is incredibly efficient for the Killer and can rapidly turn a game to their favor. The longer it takes Survivors to unhook, the greater the likelihood that the Killer will return to deny the unhook and secure the next phase.
Trading
One common method of counterplay to camping is the trade. In a trade, a Survivor will save the unhooked Survivor in front of the Killer, knowing the Killer will immediately down and most likely hook and camp them. While it might seem like trades are pointless because they leave a Survivor dying on the hook just like before, trades are actually of vital importance.
The newly hooked Survivor gives the rest of the team vital time to finish generators, heal, and complete other necessary objectives. When the moment is right, the team can return to the hook with a plan to rescue the hooked Survivor and hopefully escape together.
The fewer hook states a Survivor has, the more beneficial a trade is, because the newly hooked Survivor will last longer before dying. There's nothing to stop a Killer from camping a Survivor from their first hook until death, but that process takes so long that in many cases, the rest of the team will be able to escape.
It's important to remember that a Killer only has an incentive to leave the hook if there are Survivors elsewhere to chase, so having every other Survivor swarm the area only further will incentivize the Killer to continue camping. Having all three teammates darting like flies around the hooked Survivor is the best way to guarantee the Killer won't stop camping, since no generator progress is being made.
The Best Perks To Counter Camping
There are several perks that help against camping Killers. Without question, the most effective and popular is Borrowed Time (Bill Level 35), which grants the Endurance Status Effect to a Survivor for 12 seconds after they are unhooked. This allows the team to make trades far more safely. The rescuing teammate will likely take a hit during the save, but instead of the rescuer going down to a second hit, the rescued Survivor can position themselves between the Killer and their rescuer. They can then absorb the hit with Borrowed Time and allowing both Survivors to escape.
Kindred (General) is another perk useful against campers. A Survivor who uses it reveals the aura of the Killer whenever they are within 16 meters of the hook. Knowing not only that the Killer is camping, but exactly where and how, gives the team crucial information about how to respond. The Pig crouched behind a rock, the Shape in Tier III patrolling the vicinity, and a facecamping Cannibal all pose vastly different threats to Survivors. Information is the first line of defense against camping.
Coordinated Saves
One of the most difficult and riskiest tactics in Dead by Daylight is the coordinated save, in which multiple Survivors cooperate to rescue a camped Survivor. Depending on what Killer is camping, where the hook is, and what the perks and health states of the Survivors are, a coordinated save can take many forms. Typically, it involves multiple Survivors descending upon the hook at the same time, with one Survivor performing the rescue. Every available teammate must bodyblock and taking hits so that the Killer cannot down anyone.
The Killer can grab a Survivor who is attempting a rescue mid-animation, just like they can grab a Survivor off of generators and other interactable objects. This makes rescuing in a Killer's face risky. A good Survivor can try to mindgame the Killer by starting and canceling the unhook animation repeatedly, trying to fool the Killer into going for a grab and landing a basic attack instead. Coordinated saves can be helpful in this case, with multiple Survivors positioning themselves beside the hook and dividing the Killer's attention.
When To Focus On Gens
Altruism is often jokingly referred to as the true killer in Dead by Daylight. Some players, especially when playing with friends, will try to rescue their teammate no matter what. In some situations and against certain Killers, doing so is a death sentence. Some Killers are simply more deadly than others when camping. For example, The Huntress and Trickster can down Survivors quickly with their ranged weapons, and the Hag and Trapper can make the basement an inescapable death trap.
The most effective camper by far, however, is the Cannibal, capable of downing multiple Survivors with his chainsaw regardless of their health. There is no strategy that will save a Survivor who is being facecamped by the Cannibal, unless the Killer himself makes a mistake. By standing in front of the hook, revving his saw so that he can instantly down any Survivor who gets close, the Cannibal can camp any Survivor to death. "Basement Bubba" is a meme for a reason, and by far the most efficient strategy against a facecamping Cannibal is to do generators as quickly as possible and escape.
Employing this strategy rewards the Cannibal with only a single kill and small amount of Bloodpoints, whereas playing too altruistically will get the entire team killed. If the hooked Survivor has Deliverance (Adam Level 35), Dead Hard (Level 35), and Decisive Strike (Laurie Level 40) they have a slim chance of being able to rescue themselves, but even then a committed Cannibal is unlikely to let their prey escape. Dead by Daylight can be a brutal game when played efficiently, but there's always another Trial.
Dead By Daylight is currently available on PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, and Stadia.