In Deadlock the in-game currency is called souls, and they decide how quickly you assemble your key items. When an enemy trooper dies, a floating soul orb rises above it. Simply killing the trooper is not enough: to claim the full reward you have to shoot that orb in time and «confirm» it. This last-hitting mechanic is what the entire early game revolves around.

A mirror mechanic runs alongside it — denying. Your opponent can shoot your orb before you do and take away part of the souls. That is why laning in Deadlock is not passive farming but a constant duel over every orb. Whoever wins the soul trade reaches the items they need first and gains a power lead before the first team fights.

How to confirm souls

The orb does not appear instantly: after the trooper dies it slowly floats upward and stays vulnerable for a short window. Your job is to hit it with a single precise shot. What matters here is not rate of fire but timing and composure — there is no need to yank your aim around or dump the whole magazine. A calm single shot at the right moment beats a panicked burst.

You can confirm orbs with your gun or with a melee attack if the sphere hangs right next to you. Keep at least one round in reserve for the moment the trooper dies — reloading exactly as the orb spawns costs you dozens of souls over a lane.

Denying enemy souls

Denying means shooting the enemy's orb. If you get there first, the enemy receives only part of the reward and the rest burns away. Protecting your own orbs matters just as much: watch that your opponent does not «steal» your confirms from under your nose.

Strong laners constantly split their attention between two tasks: confirm their own orbs and deny the enemy theirs. This creates a rhythm in which you shoot one orb, then the other in turn. If your opponent denies aggressively, it is sometimes better to hold your shot and punish them with hero damage for stepping in too close.

Laning tips

Control the creep equilibrium: a position where your troopers die under your Guardian gives you the safest confirms. At the same time, do not forget building damage — last-hitting should not pull your attention entirely away from pressuring the Guardian and from your own survival.

Train your eye: the height and speed of the rising orb feel different from hero to hero because of weapon spread and recoil. A few matches of deliberate last-hitting and denying practice will give you more of an edge by the ten-minute mark than almost any single item.

The main rule is simple: do not chase every orb at the cost of your life. Steadily confirming 70–80% of orbs without dying is almost always better than risky farm that ends with a trip back to base and lost time.