Soul economy
Where do Souls come from, how do you collect more, and when do you spend them? With the game’s own tutorial, the numbers in the game files and real match data.
Where do Souls come from?
The breakdown of the Souls a player collected over a match by source.
deadlock-api: Soul sources from the end-of-match stats of 720 players across 60 matches played between November 4–6, 2026 (normal mode, longer than 15 minutes; median length 37 min).
What does this mean?
Earn Souls by killing troopers and players. You can also earn Souls by killing neutrals on the map. Souls are shared among nearby allies.Deadlock tutorial, “Souls”
Almost half of your Souls come from the lane: far fewer come from kills. Losing a team fight stings, but leaving the wave unclaimed in the lane usually costs more.
Kills and assists together are 21%; jungle camps and breakables together are 18%. A player who moves to the jungle when the lane calms down gets noticeably ahead of one who spends the same time waiting.
Net worth grows almost linearly as the match goes on. The curve below is the median player’s net worth minute by minute.
Troopers: last hit, orb and deny
With the game’s own tutorial videos and text. Hover over or tap the video: it plays.
The last shot that kills a trooper gives you the Souls. When the trooper’s health gets low, switch your fire to it; don’t push the wave needlessly.
The game’s tutorial videoWhen an enemy dies, extra Souls drop. You collect them by shooting blue orbs or waiting for them to fly off and vanish.
The game’s tutorial: “Collecting Souls”Enemy orbs are orange. If you shoot the orange orb before they do, you steal the Souls; you gain and the opponent loses.
The game’s tutorial: “Stealing Souls”How are Souls shared?
When a trooper dies, its Souls are split among nearby teammates. The shares in the game files (per person):
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When two players feed from the same wave, the total Souls go up a little, but the amount per person drops almost by half. If one of you in the lane is heading to a fight or a camp, leave the wave to the other.
The rules of collecting Souls in the lane
- Half the orbs are yours. 46% of trooper Souls come from orbs. Make it a habit to shoot the orb after the last hit.
- Shoot the orange orb when you see it. Denies are a small part of total Souls, but every deny is Souls taken from the opponent; the lane gap opens up here.
- Keep the wave close. A wave near your own tower means safe last hits for you and risky denies for your opponent.
- Push the wave when you leave the lane. If you clear the wave before heading to a camp or a fight, no Souls are lost by the time you’re back.
- Last-hit practice: in an empty match, focus only on last hits; also browse the terms in the glossary and the lanes on the map.
The gap isn’t in the rank, it’s inside the match
Normal mode over the last 7 days. Souls per minute is about the same across all ranks; the separation is among players in the same rank.
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What does this mean?
Souls per minute is net worth divided by match length; the fairest way to compare long and short matches. Since everyone is matched with players of their own level, the Souls handed out in a match barely change as rank goes up. What puts you ahead is how big your share is among the 11 other players in the same match.
The shortest way to grow your share is to cut down the last hits and orbs you miss in the lane, and to shorten dead time (waiting at base, walking for nothing).
Your profile shows the Souls and Souls per minute from your recent matches: open your own account in Deadlock Tracker and compare your average with this table.
Source: deadlock-api, player-stats metrics (last 7 days, normal mode). Rank range is based on the match’s average rank. Median: half of players are below this, half above.
Jungle, crates and objectives
Souls from outside the lane: camps, breakables, statues and destroyed objectives.
Jungle camps
The neutral monsters between the lanes are about 11% of total Souls. Camps respawn some time after being cleared; clearing a nearby camp while waiting on the lane turns idle time into Souls.
See camp locations on the map.
Crates and statues
Breakables are 7% of total Souls. Golden statues in the jungle drop a permanent boost (such as health, Spirit Power or fire rate) instead of Souls when broken; it stacks up over the match.
Objectives
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Kill, assist and death loss
The kill reward is shared
Hero kills are 14% of total Souls, assists 7%. According to the game files, the kill reward is split among those who took part:
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What do you lose when you die?
When you die, part of the Souls you carry go to the enemy. In the sample, the median player lost 835 Souls in a match (average 1,180); that’s about 2.9% of net worth. It looks small, but the Souls you lose go to the opponent and the waves flow without you until you respawn.
When you’ve saved up a lot of Souls, spend them before a risky fight: Souls turned into items aren’t lost when you die.
When should you spend Souls?
When you have Souls to spend, go back to base to heal and buy items. Next to every Guardian there’s also a shop you can use until that Guardian is destroyed.
The game’s tutorial: “Shop”Spending rules
- Item prices come in tiers: 800, 1,600, 3,200 and 6,400 Souls. Spend once you’ve saved up enough for the next tier.
- Selling returns half the price. The game refunds half of an item’s purchase price. Selling early items needlessly means lost Souls.
- Upgrading gets cheaper. If you bought an item’s component earlier, its price is deducted when you upgrade.
- Don’t go into a fight holding Souls. Unspent Souls are partly lost when you die; Souls already turned into items aren’t.
- Check which item to buy and when in the item build order guide and the buy time model.
Checklist
- Don’t miss last hits42% of Souls come from troopers; the fate of the match starts in the lane.
- Shoot the orbNearly half of trooper Souls are in the orb. Make shooting the blue orb a habit.
- Deny the orange orbSteal your opponent’s Souls; the lane gap opens up here.
- Fill idle time with campsJungle and crates are 18% of the total; clear them instead of waiting.
- Spend before the fightThe Souls you carry go to the enemy when you die; the items stay.
- Keep up with objectivesTaking down Guardians and Walkers means plenty of Souls and extra item slots.
Frequently asked questions
What are Souls in Deadlock?
Where do most Souls come from?
How do you pick up a Soul orb?
How many Souls do you get back when selling an item?
Next guide
Learn how to spend the Souls you collect: three slots, four tiers, the investment bonus and when to sell.