If you’ve logged a few hours of Deadlock during the holiday season, you’ve almost certainly run into other players running around with festive character skins: Think snow-capped hoods, tinsel-wrapped weapons, and ugly Christmas sweater character outfits that stand out in every match. You might have even found yourself wondering how to get Christmas skins in Deadlock without falling for the dozens of scams that pop up every December promising free unlimited skins. I’ve spent the last three holiday seasons grinding Deadlock events to collect every Christmas skin released so far, so I’ve tested every single method I’m sharing here, and cut out all the scams and useless tricks that waste your time or put your account at risk.
How to Get Christmas Skins in Deadlock Through Official Event Challenges
Every December, Valve rolls out a limited-time Deadlock holiday event that runs for roughly three weeks, from mid-December to the first week of January. The core of this event is a set of daily and weekly challenges that anyone can complete for free, no paid purchases required. Challenges range from super simple tasks like playing 5 matches in any game mode to more specific goals like getting 10 eliminations as a strength hero or healing 20,000 HP in support roles. You don't need to purchase any battle pass tiers to unlock event-exclusive Christmas skins via these challenges, which is a common misconception I see new players spread all the time. Each completed challenge gives you holiday tokens, which you can exchange in the dedicated event shop for Christmas skins, emotes, sprays, and weapon cosmetics. Some of the rarest Christmas skins, like the 2023 Wraith Snow Angel skin, are only available as a reward for completing all 8 weekly event challenges, so you can’t buy them even if you want to. You can track your challenge progress directly in the game’s main menu under the “Events” tab, and the game will send you a notification as soon as you unlock a new skin to claim.
Paid Unlock Options for Rare Deadlock Christmas Skins
If you’re wondering how to get Christmas skins in Deadlock without grinding, these paid options are the fastest legitimate way to get the exact skin you want. If you don’t have time to grind every daily challenge, or you have your eye on a premium limited-edition skin, there are a few legitimate paid ways to unlock Christmas skins too. First, the holiday event’s premium battle pass track usually costs $9.99, and it includes 3 to 4 exclusive Christmas skins alongside other cosmetics like profile banners and custom kill effects. All paid purchases go directly through Valve's official store, so you never have to share your account credentials with third parties to unlock these skins. You can also buy individual Christmas skins directly from the in-game store during the event, with prices ranging from $2.99 for common skins to $14.99 for ultra-rare legendary variants. Most Christmas skins are only available for the duration of the holiday event, so they won't come back for at least 12 months if they get re-released at all. I learned this the hard way when I skipped the 2022 Abyssal Knight Christmas skin, and it still hasn’t been added back to the store as of 2024. The store also runs occasional flash sales during the event, where you can get 20 to 30% off select Christmas skins, so it’s worth checking the store daily if you’re waiting for a discount on a specific skin.
How to Earn Free Christmas Skins From Community Drops and Giveaways
You don’t have to grind challenges or spend money to get Christmas skins in Deadlock, either. Official community drops and giveaways are a surprisingly easy way to unlock free festive skins, and I’ve gotten two of my favorite Christmas skins this way over the years. The most reliable sources for legitimate free skins are:
- Official Deadlock Twitch channel drops during holiday event streams: Link your Steam account to Twitch, watch 2 hours of official holiday streams, and you’ll automatically earn a random Christmas skin dropped directly to your in-game inventory
- Valve's official X (Twitter) and Discord giveaways: Follow the official Deadlock accounts, react to or retweet giveaway posts, and you could win a code for a free premium Christmas skin, no purchase required
- Partnered content creator giveaways: Verified Deadlock content creators often run giveaways for Christmas skin codes during the holiday season, as part of their partnership deals with Valve
Never enter a giveaway that asks for your Steam password, email login, or payment information, as these are almost always scams. Legitimate giveaways will only ask for your Steam ID to send the skin directly to your account, or they’ll send you a code you can redeem directly on Steam’s official website. I recommend turning on notifications for the official Deadlock Twitch channel and Discord server during the holiday event, so you don’t miss out on drop or giveaway announcements.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Unlocking Deadlock Christmas Skins
Even if you stick to legitimate methods, there are a few common mistakes that can make you miss out on the skins you want, or even put your account at risk. First, don’t waste your time on third-party skin trading sites that claim to sell cheap Deadlock Christmas skins outside of the event. Almost all of these sites are fake, and they’ll either steal your account information or send you a skin that doesn’t actually exist. I’ve had multiple friends lose their Steam accounts to these sites after trying to buy a discounted Christmas skin, so it’s just not worth the risk. Second, don’t use any mods or hacks that claim to unlock all Christmas skins for free. Valve actively bans accounts that use unauthorized mods to unlock paid or exclusive cosmetics, so you will lose access to your entire Steam game library if you get caught. Third, don’t wait until the last day of the event to start completing your weekly challenges. Most weekly challenges take 3 to 5 matches to complete, and if you wait until 24 hours before the event ends, you almost certainly won’t have enough time to finish them all. I made this mistake in 2022, and I missed out on the Phantom Ugly Sweater skin that I’d been wanting all month, so don’t repeat my error.
At the end of the day, learning how to get Christmas skins in Deadlock doesn’t have to be complicated, and you don’t have to spend a lot of money (or any money) to get the festive looks you want. Stick to official in-game challenges, trusted paid options from the in-game store, and verified community giveaways, and you’ll be able to build a full collection of Christmas skins before the holiday season ends. If you ever run into issues with a skin not showing up in your inventory, or you’re not sure if a giveaway is legitimate, you can always reach out to Valve’s official support team for help, they usually respond to holiday event queries within 24 hours during the event period.