Calico, AKA Nano from the Hero Labs of Deadlock, has officially entered the roster with some massive changes. While the changes are not as groundbreaking, these make her playstyle quite different. She serves as an assassin with lots of in-and-out potential for the team. However, like every other Deadlock hero, you need the right items to master her. In this guide, we have compiled the best Calico build you can try in Deadlock that utilizes her abilities through some solid item combinations.
Best Calico Item Build in Deadlock
Note: You can find this build in Deadlock by searching ‘Beebom Calico Build‘ (ID: 197217) in the Public Builds section. You can either directly use our guide or copy it and edit it as per your need, from the game’s Browse Build section.
Best Laning/Early Game Items
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Calico in Deadlock struggles during the laning stages due to a lack of damage. To compensate, get Mystic Burst and Hollow Point Ward early. These items will increase both weapon and spirit damage. If you are playing closer to the enemy, get Close Quarters and Spirit Strike. Spirit Strike combines well with the slash and bomb combo, giving an early nuking opportunity.
For some survivability, get Melee Lifesteal and Extra Health. Ammo Scavenger is a perfect item for players who do not want a close melee range fight. If you are using the gun more, get Restorative Shot. You can also opt for the Restorative Locket, as you can incur a lot of charges during your Ava form.
Best Core/Mid-Game Items
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Calico requires a lot of sustain to get in and out of fights so getting the Enchanter’s Barrier, Spirit Lifesteal, and Enduring Speed can be perfect. All of these items give her a bonus shield and lots of healing capabilities. But what about damage?
Well, you can go for the Cold Front right away if you want to rush into a fight and combine your skills to mow down the enemies easily. However, if you want to scale your damage early, rush the Torment Pulse. Get Mystic Shot for a guaranteed blow, and with a flex slot open, you can opt for the Mystic Vulnerability. You can either sell the Mystic Burst or Extra Health if you are out of slots.
Best Late Game Items
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To make the pulse damage stronger and use your skills for a devastating blow, get Escalating Exposure. If you do not have enough souls, imbue the Surge of Power and Superior Cooldown on the bomb. You can easily melt down enemies with these items.
To increase the damage of the slash, get the Spirit Snatch first. You can also go for Spiritual Overflow if you prefer to hit the enemies with the gun before entering the fight. It will give you a bonus fire rate and spirit power.
Best Calico Luxury Items
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Towards the later game, Diviner’s Kevlar should be your first item. This will upgrade your sustainability while giving you bonus spirit power. You can get the Colossus first for more vitality or go for the Crippling Headshot and Spellslinger Headshots for more damage boost.
Best Calico Situational Items
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One of the biggest threats Calico faces is stuns and knockdowns. The playstyle can mess up if she is caught off guard before turning to Ava. To fix that issue, you can get the Reactive Barrier. It helps you with an additional shield when stunned or slowed. If you want to play the game in Ava mode, you can also get the Return Fire and feel invincible.
As Infernus and some other negative buff heroes can hinder your transformation, you can get Debuff Remover. Get Healbane if the enemy team has strong healing. While Calico’s ultimate is more than enough for kiting purposes, you can get Ethereal Shift, making it even harder for enemies to kill you.
Deadlock Calico Build: Abilities and Unlock Order
Here is a detailed overview of all Calico abilities and the Ability Point Order in which you must unlock the abilities in Deadlock:
All Calico Abilities
- Gloom Bombs: Throw a cluster of bombs that detonate after a delay, dealing Damage. Enemies hit by multiple bombs take 50% damage.
- Level 1: +20 Damage
- Level 2: -3s Cooldown
- Level 3: +2 Bomb Count
- Leaping Slash: Dash forward before slashing all enemies in a circle, dealing Light Melee Damage. If the ability hits at least one target, heal a small amount of health.
- Level 1: +30 Heal Amount
- Level 2: +50 Damage
- Level 3: -50% Cooldown On Hit
- Ava: Turn to shadows and possess Ava. You gain Movement Speed and become Hidden on the Minimap, but cannot attack or cast abilities. Cannot be used for 5s after taking damage from an enemy hero.
- Level 1: +20s Buff Duration
- Level 2: +25% Move Speed bonus
- Level 3: -15s Cooldown. Gain 30 Health Regen during Ava.
- Return to Shadows: Instantly turn to shadows, becoming immune to target casts, gaining Movement Speed, and dealing Damage. After 3s, return from the shadows, dealing Damage again.
- Level 1: -30s Cooldown
- Level 2: +80 Damage
- Level 3: Reset all cooldowns and gain 30% Damage Amp for 5ss.
Calico Ability Point Order
If you are playing Calico, your primary role is to get forward and shut down enemies one by one. The best part about Calico’s kit is her escape abilities. However, Ava does not give you enough advantages apart from the mobility. This is why upgrading the bombs on priority is important.
Combine the bombs with a slash to guarantee kills early on. The slash also helps you heal, which increases your survivability. If you get the items from our Calico build, you can easily dish out a lot of damage combined with the slash. It will also heal you enough to keep on fighting.
However, before you max out the slash or bomb, you will need T3 on the ultimate. A fully maxed-out ultimate will give you bonus spirit power damage amplification on top of a cooldown reset. This is ideal with Calico’s already strong combination skillset.
That ends our Deadlock Calico build that you try in any ranked or casual lobbies. Have you tried our build yet? Do tell us what you think about the build in the comments below.
