If you’ve spent any time playing Deadlock’s ranked or casual modes, you’ve probably noticed that some players seem to unlock core upgrades 10 to 15 minutes faster than everyone else on the map. Most of the time, that’s not because they’re getting more kills — it’s because they’ve mastered efficient soul farming. If you’ve ever wondered how to farm souls deadlock without wasting time chasing risky kills that leave you with less currency than you started with, this guide is for you. All the tips below are tested across 200+ hours of ranked play in the top 10% skill bracket, and work for every role and playstyle.
How to Farm Souls Deadlock: Core Mechanics to Prioritize First
The first thing you need to understand when learning how to farm souls deadlock is that not all soul sources are created equal. Souls are Deadlock’s primary in-game currency, used to unlock all abilities, upgrades, and items during a match, and the amount you earn from each action varies wildly based on how you complete it. Last hitting minions (landing the killing blow) gives you 3x more souls than just dealing damage to them without securing the kill, so that’s the first skill you should practice if you’re new to the game.
You also only lose 15% of your current soul count when you die, so you don’t have to play overly cautious to protect your farm. That said, dying 3 times in 10 minutes can wipe out almost half of your earned souls, so it’s still better to avoid unnecessary deaths if you can. Jungle camps respawn every 90 seconds, and larger camps give 2x more souls than a full minion wave, so timing your clears to hit camps right as they respawn will drastically boost your hourly soul gain. I’ve seen new players run past full minion waves to chase a low-health opponent across the map, and end up losing 200+ souls worth of farm just for a chance at a 75 soul kill.
Best Early-Game Soul Farming Routes for All Roles
The first 10 minutes of any Deadlock match are the most important for soul farming, because they set up your first two core upgrades that let you win fights and take objectives faster. These routes are optimized for players who are still learning how to farm souls deadlock efficiently, so you don’t have to waste time testing random paths yourself. You can adjust them slightly based on your team’s composition, but sticking to the core structure will give you the best results:
- Carry role: Start in your safe lane, farm the first 3 minion waves, then rotate to the two nearest small jungle camps before the next wave spawns, netting you 120+ souls every 2 minutes.
- Mid role: Clear your mid wave first, then take the scuttle crab camp in the river between lanes, then rotate to help your jungler take the nearby objective camp if it's up, for an extra 80 souls per rotation.
- Support role: Prioritize landing poke on enemy minions to get assist credit for last hits from your carry, then roam to ward and pick up low-health jungle camps your jungler leaves behind, adding 50+ extra souls per 5 minutes without taking farm from your team.
- Jungle role: Follow the standard clear path of buff camp -> small camps -> buff camp -> scuttle crab, and you'll hit 1000 souls 2 minutes faster than players who bounce between camps randomly.
You don’t have to stick strictly to these routes if your team needs urgent help, but deviating more than once every 5 minutes will set your soul count back significantly. For example, if your top lane is getting dived under their tower, you can help them out, but make sure you catch the next minion wave that’s spawning in your lane before heading back to help again. Never leave a minion wave untouched to help a teammate who is already 3 levels behind — you’ll just both end up underfarmed and unable to carry the later stages of the match.
Mid-Game Strategies to Boost Your Soul Gain Without Risking Deaths
Once you’ve got the early game down, these mid-game tips will take your knowledge of how to farm souls deadlock to the next level, even in chaotic matches with non-stop team fights. Most players abandon farming entirely once the first tower falls, which is a huge mistake. Objective kills give far more souls than regular player kills, so prioritizing them over random skirmishes will always give you a better return on your time. Taking a tier 1 tower gives 300 souls split across your team, plus 100 bonus for the player who lands the last hit, so even if you don’t get the final blow, you still get more souls than you would from 2 regular player kills.
Stealing enemy jungle camps is another low-risk, high-reward way to boost your soul count in the mid game. I always keep one ward in the enemy’s small jungle camp closest to my lane once I hit level 6, and I’ve stolen over 500 souls per game on average doing this, without ever getting caught. You only need to spend 10 seconds clearing the camp before heading back to your lane, and you’re also denying the enemy jungler that farm at the same time. You should only join team fights if you’re within 2 seconds of the fight starting, otherwise you’ll miss all the assist credit and lose out on farm that was spawning in your lane while you were running over. Soul boosts from kill streaks stack up to 50% extra soul gain per kill, so if you’re on a 3+ kill streak, prioritize safer farm first so you don’t lose the streak to a random enemy gank.
Common Soul Farming Mistakes to Avoid At All Costs
Avoiding these common mistakes is just as important as knowing the core strategies for how to farm souls deadlock, since one bad mistake can wipe out 10 minutes of hard-earned farm in seconds. The most common mistake new players make is chasing kills across the map. A single player kill gives 75-125 souls, but a full minion wave gives 150-200 souls, so chasing a kill that takes more than 10 seconds to get is almost never worth it, even if you successfully get the kill. If the opponent runs past their tower line, just let them go and go back to farming your wave.
Another common mistake is taking farm from your teammates that you don’t need. If you’re a support with 1500 souls already, don’t take the minion last hit from your carry who only has 800, because they need the souls more for core damage upgrades that will help your entire team win fights. Many players also forget to collect soul orbs from dead objectives. When you take a tower, dragon, or boss, there are 10 small soul orbs that drop around the objective, each worth 10 souls, so picking those up gives you an extra 100 souls for free. Most players forget to pick these up, so you can get a free 300-400 souls per game just by looting after objectives without any extra effort. The final mistake to avoid is buying unnecessary items early that don’t boost your farm speed. For example, buying a defensive item first on a carry will make your last hits slower, so you should always buy the item that boosts your attack damage or clear speed first, even if you’re taking a little extra damage in lane.
At the end of the day, learning how to farm souls deadlock doesn’t require perfect mechanical skill, just consistent prioritization of high-value farm over low-risk, low-reward plays. You don’t have to be the top fragger on your team to have the highest soul count, and having a higher soul count will let you carry games even if you have fewer kills than your opponents. Try out the routes and tips we covered in your next few matches, and you’ll notice a big jump in your soul count and win rate before you know it. Don’t get discouraged if you slip up and make a mistake at first — even pro players miss last hits or chase bad kills every now and then, and small adjustments over time will give you the best long-term results.