When do the new Deadlock heroes come out?

One at a time, on Tuesdays and Fridays at 2:00pm PT, from October 2 to October 20, 2026. Rat King came first on October 2 and Baba followed on October 6. The rest arrive on October 9, 13, 16 and 20.

How do I vote for the next Deadlock hero?

Vote in the pre-game lobby before each match. Votes from the winning team count double, and so do votes from your first win of the day. The more you play, the more votes you cast.

Will all six City Never Sleeps heroes be released?

Yes. The vote only decides the release order. All six heroes will be playable by October 20, 2026.

What are the new heroes' abilities?

Valve reveals each hero's kit when they release. So far Rat King and Baba are out; the other four kits are still under wraps, and we'll publish a full guide for each one on release day.

City Never Sleeps Heroes: Release Dates, Vote and What We Know

The City Never Sleeps update (September 29, 2026) added six new heroes to Deadlock. Instead of releasing them all at once, Valve is rolling them out one at a time, and players vote on the order.

We’ll update this page after every release. Each hero gets a full guide (abilities, upgrades, build and tips) on the day they come out.

Release schedule

Release	Date (2:00pm PT)	Hero
1	Friday, October 2	Rat King, out now
2	Tuesday, October 6	Baba, out now
3	Friday, October 9	Vote in progress
4	Tuesday, October 13	Vote in progress
5	Friday, October 16	Vote in progress
6	Tuesday, October 20	The last remaining hero

Valve doesn’t publish the vote standings, and the official result is only known when the hero goes live. Valve called the October 6 vote “a close contest” before Baba took it.

How the hero vote works

Where: in the pre-game lobby before each match.
Winning team bonus: votes from the team that wins count double.
First win of the day: also counts double, and stacks with the winning-team bonus.
More matches, more votes: every match you play adds to your influence.
Nobody loses: the vote only sets the order. All six heroes release by October 20.

The six heroes

Rat King (released October 2)

The cryptic ruler of New York’s rat warrens, who wants to turn Long Island into a rat nation called Ratannia. He’s a scrappy brawler who shreds bullet resist with rat swarms and buffs his team with a banner. Read the full Rat King guide →

Solomon

A chess-themed strategist who aims to put his opponents in checkmate. His in-game role tags are Strategist, Focused and Checkmate, and his animations reference famous chess games. He’s voiced by Carl Lumbly.

Nurse Harrow

A strict and intimidating medical figure. The role tags (Strict, Terrifying, Savior) suggest a hero who keeps allies alive while terrifying the enemy.

Baba (released October 6)

Central Park’s pigeon lady, inspired by Baba Yaga, the folklore witch whose hut walks on chicken legs. Deadlock’s version rides a park bench that sprouts legs. She steals enemy spirit power with Threadsap, splashes brews that shield allies or silence and burn enemies, and her ultimate turns a whole team into pigeons. Read the full Baba guide →

Deadman Danny

An aviation-themed hero built around explosive, high-flying play. His role tags are Reckless, High-flying and Explosive, and early files named him “Airheart”, a nod to Amelia Earhart.

Violet

The game’s first painter-themed hero. Violet’s voting poster reads “Flow like ink down the page…”, and the character model carries drawings of other heroes. Role tags: Ambitious, Nimble, Creative.

What else City Never Sleeps changed

The update also:

reworked the map’s three lanes and the four districts between them (see the map overview),
replaced every jungle camp with nine new haunt families (see districts, camps and spawn timers),
added tough crates that need a heavy melee, plus new areas like the Bell Tower and Sunken Plaza, and
introduced the Broker, a temporary merchant who appears around the 30-minute mark and trades high-tier items for powerful “Corrupted” versions with random drawbacks.