Dead by Daylight - best Trapper build (December 2023)

The Trapper is the very first Killer that was introduced when Dead by Daylight was first released back in 2016. So it makes sense that we'd start off our Killer Guide with its most iconic and original character. With The Cenobite Killer (AKA Hellraiser) now available, as well as the newest Killer, Ridley Scott's Alien, we don’t doubt that a ton of new fans will be heading to the asymmetrical horror game in order to introduce themselves to the game’s mechanics.

What better time to teach new fans about The Trapper, as well as the other Killers in Dead by Daylight? To understand The Trapper and how best to use him effectively, you’ll first have to understand his power, add-ons, and perks - so keep reading!

Dead By Daylight the Trapper perks

The Trapper has three unique perks that can be unlocked for other Killers via the Bloodweb.

• Unnerving Presence - Skill check odds are increased by 10%, with Skill check success zones reduced by 40/50/60% for all Survivors repairing, healing, or sabotaging within your Terror Radius
• Brutal Strength - You break Pallets, Breakable Walls and damage Generators 10/15/20% faster.
• Agitation - While carrying a Survivor, your Terror Radius in increased by 12% and your Movement Speed is increased by 6/12/18%.

What are the best builds and perks for the Trapper?

We would go with the following perks for the best possible Trapper build:

BBQ & Chilli (The Cannibal Perk)

• A deep bond with The Entity unlocks potential in one's Aura reading ability. After hooking a Survivor, all other Survivors' auras are revealed for four seconds when they are farther than 40 metres from the hook.

Corrupt Intervention (The Plague Perk)

• At the start of the Trial, the 3 Generators located farthest from you are blocked by The Entity for 120 seconds. It deactivates prematurely if a survivor is put into the dying state.

Pop Goes the Weasel (The Clown Perk)

• A deep bond with The Entity unlocks great strength. After hooking a Survivor, Pop Goes the Weasel activates for the next several seconds:
• The next Generator you damage instantly loses 25 % Progression.
• Regular Generator Regression applies afterwards and Pop Goes the Weasel deactivates.

Infectious Fright (The Plague Perk)

• Whenever a Survivor is put into a dying state by any means, all other Survivors within your Terror Radius will scream and reveal their location for 4/5/6 seconds.

Save The Best For Last (The Shape Perk)

• You become obsessed with one Survivor. Each time you hit a Survivor other than your Obsession with a Basic Attack, Save The Best For Last gains a token up to a maximum of 8 tokens:
• Gain a stackable 5% cooldown reduction on successful attacks per token up to a 40% maximum.
• If you hit your Obsession with a basic attack, you will lose tokens.
• If you kill your Obsession, you can neither gain nor lose tokens.

No Way Out (The Trickster Perk)

• For each Survivor you hook for the first time, No Way Out gains 1 Token.
  Once the Exit Gates have been powered, No Way Out activates:
• When a Survivor interacts with an Exit Gate Switch, you receive a Loud Noise Notification and The Entity blocks both Exit Gate Switches for 12 seconds and an additional 6/9/12 seconds per Token in your possession, up to a combined maximum of 36/48/60 seconds.

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Dead By Daylight Trapper powers

The Trapper’s power is called Bear Traps.

The Trapper starts each trial (unless you’ve equipped certain add-ons) with a single Bear Trap. There are 8 other Bear Traps scattered around the map which Trapper can pick up to use. You can only carry 1 Bear Trap at a time, and as such, can only place 1 Bear Trap at a time. When Trapper sets a trap, he now gains a 7.5% Haste effect for 5 seconds after doing so.

When a Survivor steps into a Bear Trap, they will become momentarily immobilised - aka they won’t be able to move until they get out of the trap. They will have a chance to escape, but the amount of times they need to try and escape can be modified by add-ons.

The Trapper can also be caught in his own traps, stunning him for a moment so that he can free himself. If he is carrying a Survivor at the time when he is caught, the Survivor will be dropped.

Dead By Daylight Trapper best add-ons

There are a lot of Add-Ons for The Trapper, and it’ll feel like you’ll need to get to know them all to get some use out of him. But that isn’t the case at all, and why we’ve given you a list of the best add-ons that’ll make your time playing The Trapper not just effective, but fun.

For you that is, not the Survivors you’ll be playing against.

Stitched Bag - Stitched Bag lets The Trapper start the game with 2 additional Bear Traps, as well as increase the traps he can carry up to 2. This helps with setting up places to run Survivors towards, as well as locking down areas where you know Survivors are going to go. Other versions of this add-on are Trapper Sack and Trapper Bag, with the latter being particularly useful for players who haven’t got too many Ultra Rare add-ons just yet.

Tar Bottle - This add-on dyes the colour of the Bear Traps completely black, making it harder for Survivors to see. The Tar Bottle is particularly useful on maps like Yamaoka and Dead Dawg Saloon as they are fairly dark maps with bushes that can easily be used to hide your Bear Traps. The Logwood Dye is also fairly useful, as it dyes your Bear Traps a brown-reddish colour.

Honing Stone - Survivors caught in a Bear Trap using this add-on will be immediately inflicted with the Dying State if they free themselves. This is excellent for players who want to have a more ‘loose’ Trapper that doesn’t need to worry about getting to their Bear Traps as soon as humanly possible and potentially losing their prey. It does come with some risks, but the pros far outweigh the cons.

Oily Coil - The disarm speed for Survivors is tremendously increased. Overall, Survivors will have 6 chances to escape The Trapper’s Bear Traps, with the 7th try being impossible to not escape from. Even so, the disarm speed of the Survivor’s attempt to escape is incredibly slow with this add-on. Imagine pairing it with Honing Stone!

Dead By Daylight Trapper tips and tricks

• The Trapper is a 4.6 movement speed Killer, which is the average speed of most Killers, so don’t be afraid to get into a Chase with Survivors if need be.
• Trap places where you know Survivors are going to be running through a lot, such as near Windows, Pallets and Generators. That said, if you want to have a really big brain, then put your traps in bushes, the corners outside of the Killer Shack and sometimes...just smack bang in the middle of the map. You’d be surprised at how many times it works.
• The Trapper is not a speedy Killer that flits from one Survivor to the other, but someone who takes his time to set-up his area of Bear Traps and run Survivors into them. So don’t stress if a Generator or two gets done before you grab someone.
• Because The Trapper isn’t a fast Killer, the perk Corrupted Intervention (which blocks off a selection of Generators for up to 60 seconds per trial) is great for allowing The Trapper to set up his Bear Traps
• Basement Trapper is an incredibly strong build for The Trapper. The build involves two perks: Iron Grip and Agitation. Iron Grip makes it so that you can carry Survivors for longer, and Agitation makes you move faster. With this you can carry Survivors to the Basement. Then all you need to do is trap around the Basement, making it near impossible for Survivors to help their friends without getting trapped themselves. Warning: Survivors will, understandably, be quite mad at this.
• Another The Trapper build, which is more meme-related than an actual solid build, is Christmas Tree Trapper. You don’t need anything for this build apart from patience as all you need to do is put a Survivor on a Hook and then grab your other Bear Traps and start putting them around the Survivor, making them your very own Christmas angel. Aw.

That's all you need to know about the best The Trapper builds in Dead by Daylight. Be sure to check back regularly to see how your build could be improved. In the meantime, check out the killers we wish to see in Dead by Daylight soon, or some games like DBD for when you need a break.