If you're playing, you're probably looking for the best Dead By Daylight The Cenobite build. Otherwise known as Pinhead from Hellraiser, this killer is described as a ‘summoning’ Killer who uses his ability to ensnare, slow down, and annihilate Survivors with their chains.
The Cenobite is a unique killer as they use mechanics such as being able to teleport their chains in a way similar to The Nurse, as well as teleport towards Survivors like The Nightmare when certain conditions are met. With so much to know about The Cenobite, you might be wondering where to start. Thankfully, our handy guide on the best builds for this summoning Killer will let you know just where to begin.
Dead By Daylight Cenobite killer perks
The Cenobite has three unique perks that can be unlocked for other Killers via the Bloodweb.
Scourge Hook: Gift of Pain
Four hooks (Scourge Hooks) are highlighted in white. When a Survivor is placed on these hooks and is later unhooked, they suffer from the Mangled and Haemorrhage status effect until they are healed.
After they are healed, Survivors suffer from a 7/8/9% Healing and Repair speed penalty until they are injured again.
Hex: Plaything
Each time a Survivor is hooked for the first time - and if there is a Dull Totem available - this perk activates. When activated, Survivors suffer from the Cursed and Oblivious status effect and will continue to do so until this totem is cleansed.]
However, only the Survivor who is suffering from the Hex can cleanse it for the first 90 seconds. The affected Survivor is also able to see the Hex Totem as long as it’s in a range of 24/20/16 metres.
Deadlock
When a Generator is completed, the Entity blocks the Generator with the most progression for 20/25/30 seconds. You can see this Generator highlighted in white.
What is the best Dead by Daylight Cenobite build and perks?
We would go with the following perks for the Best possible Cenobite Build:
Hex: Plaything
If at least one Dull Totem is remaining in the Trial Grounds, Hex: Plaything activates on a random Totem each time a Survivor is hooked for the first time: The hooked Survivor suffers from the Cursed and Oblivious Status Effects until Hex: Plaything is cleansed.
For the first 90 seconds, only the Cursed Survivor can cleanse the Hex Totem. The Aura of Hex: Plaything's Hex Totem is revealed to the Cursed Survivor within 24/20/16 metres. All effects of the Hex Perk persist until its Hex Totem is cleansed or blessed.
Hex: Face the Darkness
Once you injure a Survivor by any means, if there is still a Dull Totem remaining on the Map, Hex: Face the Darkness activates and lights it, cursing that Survivor: All other Survivors will scream every 35/30/25 seconds if they are outside of the Killer's Terror Radius, revealing their Auras for 2 seconds each time.
Hex: Face the Darkness deactivates when the Cursed Survivor either enters the Dying State or becomes Healthy, extinguishing its Totem. Hex: Face the Darkness is disabled for the remainder of the Trial if Survivors manage to cleanse its Hex Totem.
Lethal Pursuer
At the start of the Trial, the Auras of all Survivors are revealed to you for 7/8/9 seconds. Extends the duration of a Survivor's Aura being revealed to you by +2 seconds. Lethal Pursuer benefits from its own effect.
Sloppy Butcher (General Killer Perk)
Wounds inflicted by Basic Attacks cause Survivors to suffer from haemorrhage and Mangled Status Effects. Increases the Bleeding frequency of injured Survivors by 50/75/100 %. Increases the Regression rate at which partial Healing Progression is lost because of haemorrhage by 15/20/25 %. Both Status Effects are removed once the Survivor is fully healed.
Alternative Dead By Daylight Cenobite builds
- Sloppy Butcher
- Hex: Face the Darkness (The Knight)
- Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance (The Artist)
- Corrupt Intervention (The Plague)
This particular Cenobite build is for players who like to "butcher" their victims than rather take notice of other things like destroying generators. This build will let you only focus on downing Survivors one by one without fail and making them beg for mercy once they come into contact with you.
Dead By Daylight Beginner Cenobite build
- Deadlock (The Cenobite)
- Whispers
- Sloppy Butcher
- Hex: Plaything (The Cenobite)
Dead By Daylight Franklin's Hoarder Cenobite build
- Hoarder (The Twins)
- Franklin's Demise (The Cannibal)
- Pop Goes The Weasel (The Clown)
- Trail of Torment (The Executioner)
The Lament Configuration, the puzzle box that Pinhead offers to humans to solve for a pleasant "reward", is in the game but it is hard to locate it because it has no aura. With this build, it will be easier to locate the box in no time.
The Cenobite power
The Cenobite's power is called Summons of Pain. They also have a secondary ability called Lament Configuration, named after the box The Cenobite carries into the trial.
With Summons of Pain, The Cenobite can open a gateway and control a hook and chain that springs out of it. To do so, players must press their Ability button to open a gateway, with it effectively working like The Nurse’s ‘Blink’ power. Only, instead of teleporting, The Cenobite throws out a gateway. Players then must use the gateway to shoot out chains and bind Survivors.
When hit by a Chain, the Survivor suffers from the Incapacitated status effect - making them unable to run, repair generators, unhook other Survivors and more importantly: be unable to escape through the Exit gates.
click to enlarge
+ 4Survivors can break the chains that hook into them, and these chains can break if they go through solid objects like walls.
As for the Lament Configuration, this is a small box that - if left alone - will eventually initiate A Chain Hunt on Survivors. A Chain Hunt will occasionally summon chains to pull at Survivors, preventing them from doing anything and forcing them to break the chains.
If a Survivor picks up the Lament Configuration, the Chain Hunt will cease. However, the Survivor holding the box suffers from the Oblivious status effect and cannot place the box down. They must solve the Lament Configuration to remove it from their possession. The downside is that The Cenobite will be able to teleport to the Survivor opening the box.
If The Cenobite picks up the box, another Chain Hunt is activated and all Survivors who are instantly bound by chains will scream - letting The Cenobite know their location.
click to enlarge + 4Best Dead by Daylight Cenobite add-ons
Each Killer comes with several different Add-Ons that’ll either improve the Killer’s base kit or change it entirely for more fun and engaging gameplay. The Cenobite is no exception to this, so we’ve picked out the best Add-Ons for you to choose from.
Slice of Frank - This add-on causes Survivors to suffer the Exhausted status effect when carrying the Lament Configuration. This is pretty effective as Survivors can’t drop the box when they pick it up, and makes them waste an Exhaustion perk if they have one. This is particularly detrimental to Survivors who want to hold the box hostage, as that means they have to rely solely on their vision.
Bent Nail - Bent Nail provides a +100% increase in Bloodpoints for Chain Bound Score Events. However, it decreases the number of additional Chains generated when Survivors are hit with a Possessed Chain Attack to +1.
Original Pain - The Cenobite’s kit already slows Survivors and their progression down quite a bit. But with the Original Pain add-on, it gets a lot worse for Survivors who break free from their chains. When they break free, they suffer from the Deep Wound status effect, meaning they need to heal before continuing.
click to enlarge + 4Greasy Black Lens - This add-on allows The Cenobite to see the Aura of Survivors who are hit by chains for 6 seconds With this, The Cenobite can effectively see Survivors at all times, depending on what perks you run with this add-on. We recommend I’m All Ears and/or BBQ & Chilli.
Iridescent Lament Configuration - This add-on is a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, Survivors not being able to see the Lament Configuration if they are 16 meters away can be extremely effective on big maps, but on smaller maps, the effects are pretty useless. Still, it’s worth running if you’re going to be putting a map offering down.
click to enlarge + 4The Cenobite tips and tricks
- The Cenobite shouldn’t go looking for the Lament Configuration - you can’t see the aura of the box like Survivors. It wastes time when you could be getting Survivors off Generators.
- Hex: Ruin is a very helpful perk for The Cenobite as Survivors can be yanked off Generators through the use of the Chain Hunt. This helps slow Generators down in a significant way and will give The Cenobite more of a chance to turn the tides in their favour.
- Chaining Survivors with your Summons of Pain works significantly better the closer the Survivors are. If you chain Survivors who are further away, this gives them time to break away before you’ve even had the chance to catch up and effectively means you’ve just wasted a whole lot of time.
- The Cenobite’s power is one big slow-down, and it only gets more oppressive after Survivors are sacrificed. If you want to screw Survivors over even more, use more slowdown perks like Pop Goes the Weasel, Corrupt Intervention and as mentioned previously, Hex: Ruin.
- You don’t always need to use your teleport ability when Survivors are using the Lament Configuration. Clever Survivors will pick up the box and solve the puzzle somewhere far from their team, giving them the chance to get Generators done. If that’s the case, ignore them and keep on chasing the Survivors. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t teleport to them.
- Survivors can still vault and throw Pallets down even if they are chained, so be aware of this when trying to knock Survivors down during a chase near a Window or Pallet.
So that's all you need to know about the best The Cenobite 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.
Additionally, be sure to check out the latest Dead By Daylight codes to redeem, alongside a tier list to see where each killer ranks. Also, you can check out our Dead By Daylight guides hub as well as all the latest info on the newest Killer to join the roster, infamously murderous doll, Chucky.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Guides and Dead by Daylight page.