The demon monster of pain and pleasure has finally made its way into the Dead By Daylight universe. Pinhead, known as The Cenobite in the Entity's Realm, was revealed on streamer Otzdarva's twitch channel as well as released on the Public Test Region for all PC users to evaluate.
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The Cenobite is an extremely mechanical killer, utilizing a multitude of powers to slow down survivors and inflict his suffering. It's worth mentioning the Cenobite's Memento Mori, even though all killers' Moris work basically the same, as it's one of the coolest in the game, and absolutely deserving of such a powerful killer. However, it is time to evaluate those power levels and see what Pinhead can do.
Perk – Hex: Plaything
The newest Hex perk comes with interesting mechanics: if a survivor is hooked while there is a dull totem on the map, the totem will activate. While the totem is active, the hooked survivor is unable to hear the killer's terror radius or see their red stain. Only the survivor who is affected by the hex can cleanse the totem for the first 90 seconds, however, they do see the aura of the totem within a sizeable range.
This perk is not very powerful. It only affects one survivor, and observant players can generally position themselves as to not be snuck upon. It could possibly be useful in indoor maps, but overall it's quite an underwhelming perk.
Add-on – Iridescent Lament Configuration
The first of The Cenobite's more powerful add-ons is the Iridescent Lament Configuration. This add-on hides the aura of the small puzzle box from survivors while the chain hunt is inactive. A strong strategy against The Cenobite is actually finding the Lament Configuration early and simply holding on to it.
It seriously reduces the Cenobite's powers, giving survivors time to get generator pressure, but this add-on will hinder that playstyle greatly. Of course, it is only useful in those situations, but as more people become aware of this dynamic, the more power this add-on has.
Perk – Scourge Hook: Gift of Pain
Dead By Daylight introduced a new type of perk for killers with The Cenobite called Scourge Hook perks. Upon spawning into the map, up to four hooks will spawn as Scourge Hooks, and in this perk's case, they will affect the survivor who has just been rescued from one. Upon rescuing a survivor from the hook, the survivor is afflicted by the hemorrhage and mangled status effects, meaning they bleed more and it takes longer to heal them.
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On top of that, it slows down their own healing and repairing speed by 9% until they are injured again. Overall, it's a solid slowdown perk that, while usable, requires the killer to go out of their way to activate it.
Power – Lament Configuration
The Lament Configuration is one facet of The Cenobite's power. It's a small box that randomly spawns somewhere on the map and can be used by both survivors and the killer. If a survivor picks it up, they will be constantly harassed by chains until they solve it, inviting The Cenobite to teleport to them and begin a chase. If Pinhead himself finds it, he can pick it up and immediately begin a chain hunt on all the survivors, as well as reveal their locations.
Unfortunately, the Lament Configuration power falls to the RNG powers-that-be as to whether it will be more useful to the killer or the survivors. It has a very high potential power for Pinhead, but if a survivor finds it early and just holds on to it, the power is severely hampered.
Power – Summons of Pain
The Summons of Pain is Pinhead's core chase mechanic — and a powerful one at that. Upon activating the power, The Cenobite can summon a chain nearby, and control that chain, trying to attach it to a survivor. If successful, the survivor cannot sprint or use any exhaustion perks, and they are suddenly hit with a second and third chain. To do anything, the survivor will have to break the chains either by performing the action or by using map geometry.
If used correctly, this power is incredible. The Trapper is the only other killer able to completely stop survivors, and this power completely blows him out of the water. While still having some counterplay for the survivors, Summons of Pain is an incredible chase mechanic that really relies on the killer's skill.
Power – Chain Hunt
Chain Hunts are probably where The Cenobite's core powers shine the most. If left untouched, the Lament Configuration will initiate a chain hunt on all survivors. This means they will be interrupted in whatever they are doing and afflicted by the Summons of Pain effect.
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Providing both overall game slowdown as well as map control, survivors always want to be hunting for the Lament Configuration to avoid this power from activating.
Add-on – Greasy Black Lens
The Summons of Pain add-on Greasy Black Lens allows The Cenobite to see the auras of survivors hit by any chains for six seconds. Any add-on that gives the killer information on where survivors are is very powerful. One that comes with the added benefit of interrupting any action they are performing is incredible.
The Greasy Black Lens is probably going to be useful in almost every game played, which makes it a very high-value add-on to have.
Add-on – Impaling Wire
One of the easiest ways for survivors to escape from a chain hunt is by breaking the chains with walls and other map geometry. The Impaling Wire add-on is used when a chain is broken in that way, adding another one that will
try and attack the survivor.
The most common place for this type of interaction to happen is when the killer is actively using the Summons of Pain in a chase around a tile, and this add-on will exponentially boost their slowdown power.
Add-on – Original Pain
Probably one of The Cenobite's best add-ons, Original Pain will put any survivor who breaks free from a possessed chain into deep wounds. The deep wounds status effect is annoying to deal with, as it starts a timer upon which the survivor must mend themselves before being automatically put in the dying state.
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This is especially difficult when a chain hunt has been initiated on all survivors, as constantly having to mend yourself can really slow down the game for survivors, which is one of the best ways for a killer to win.
Perk – Deadlock
Deadlock is one of the most powerful new perks to come out in a while. When a generator is completed, the Entity will block the generator with the most progression for up to 30 seconds, and the killer can see that generator's aura in white.
While strong on its own, this perk in combination with something like Hex: Ruin or Pop Goes the Weasel is ridiculously powerful. Deadlock can be helpful on pretty much any killer and will find use in pretty much every game. It's a very solid perk that every killer main should consider acquiring.
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