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The Shape, famously known as Michael Myers, was the first licensed Killer introduced to Dead by Daylight, bringing a chilling presence to the game. Known for his methodical stalking, The Shape builds up his ferocity as he tracks his prey, making him a formidable and terrifying force that systematically eliminates players. This guide aims to enhance your gameplay with The Shape by detailing the most effective builds and add-ons available in 2025.
Updated on January 13, 2025, by Siddarth Narasimman: Despite being considered one of the weaker killers, Michael Myers remains a favorite among new players. Recent buffs in Patch 8.4.0 have revitalized his gameplay, making it an opportune time to explore the best strategies and equipment for this iconic horror character.
The Shape: Best Non-Teachable Build (2025)
Playing The Shape without access to teachable perks presents a unique challenge, yet it's far from insurmountable. This build utilizes Save the Best for Last to shorten chase times, while Sloppy Butcher slows down the game by inflicting debilitating status effects. To finish strong, Hex: No One Escapes Death and Bitter Murmur work together to reveal and incapacitate any remaining Survivors during the endgame, without the need for additional stalking.
- Save the Best for Last (The Shape) – Earn a token each time you hit a non-Obsession Survivor, up to eight. Each token reduces your basic attack cooldown by 4%, up to a 32% maximum. Hitting the Obsession costs you two tokens.
- Hex: No One Escapes Death (General Perk) – Once the final generator is powered, Survivors become Exposed, and you gain a 4% Haste effect until the Hex Totem is cleansed.
- Bitter Murmur (General Perk) – Upon generator completion, the auras of nearby Survivors are revealed for 5 seconds. After the last generator, all Survivors' auras are shown for 10 seconds.
- Sloppy Butcher (General Perk) – Inflicts Mangled and Hemorrhage status effects on hit, slowing healing by 25% and causing regression if healing is interrupted.
The Shape: Best Build (2025)
This build is designed to hinder generator progress while providing a strong start, crucial for The Shape who struggles with early-game mobility. By focusing on a group of generators, you can effectively control the game's pace with Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance and Deadlock. Lethal Pursuer helps in quickly locating Survivors to stalk, giving you a solid early game advantage. Coup de Grâce enhances your ability to navigate loops, an area where The Shape often faces difficulties.
- Lethal Pursuer (The Nemesis) – See all Survivors' auras for 9 seconds at the start of the match, with an additional 2 seconds on all aura-reading instances.
- Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance (The Artist) – Start with 4 tokens; hooking a different Survivor on a Scourge Hook consumes one token and causes the generator with the most progress to regress by 25%.
- Deadlock (The Cenobite) – When a generator is completed, the one with the highest progress gets blocked for 25 seconds and is revealed by a white aura.
- Coup de Grâce (The Twins) – Gain two tokens per completed generator. Use one token to extend your lunge attack distance by 80%.
The Shape: Best Add-Ons (2025)
Memorial Flower
Memorial Flower, a common add-on, enhances The Shape's stalking efficiency with an 11% increase in stalking rate, making it an essential choice for any build.
Dead Rabbit
Despite its eerie nature, Dead Rabbit is valuable as it reduces your Terror Radius by 25% in Evil Within II. However, it increases the radius in Evil Within III, making it best paired with perks like Monitor and Abuse to manage your presence on the map.
J. Myers Memorial
This add-on boosts your stalking gain rate by 25%, making it a top choice for quickly reaching higher Evil Within states. It's commonly used with the Tombstone Piece to mitigate the latter's drawbacks.
Hair Bow
Hair Bow increases the threat level during Evil Within III, ideal for applying continuous pressure across the map. Combine it with J. Myers Memorial for sustained high-level gameplay.
Tombstone Piece
Tombstone Piece stands out as The Shape's most powerful add-on, enabling instant kills upon reaching Evil Within III, bypassing the need for hooking. This surpasses even the Ultra Rare Judith’s Tombstone by avoiding the accompanying speed penalty.
Lock Of Hair
Lock of Hair extends Evil Within III by 40 seconds and increases the stalking rate for this state. While the Hair Bow is often preferred, Lock of Hair is a strong alternative, especially when combined with Lethal Pursuer and J. Myers Memorial.
Fragrant Tuft of Hair
Although Fragrant Tuft of Hair reduces your stalking rate by 200%, it provides infinite Evil Within III, eliminating the need to manage your power. This allows for constant instant-down capabilities without stalking.
