Deadlock Patron
Learn the siege: Troopers, Guardians, Walkers, Mid Boss, and the two Patrons.
A Deadlock match ends when you destroy the enemy Patron. Hidden King and Archmother are the two named base bosses from the Old Gods, New Blood overhaul. You do not walk into a Patron on minute one. Troopers push the lane, Guardians are the first defenses, Walkers sit deeper with an arsenal of defensive moves, and only then does the base open. Mid Boss remains on Valve's remaining-art list even after City Never Sleeps, which means the objective still exists while its model and layout keep getting work. Read this siege order before you dive a Patron with no Troopers and no shop spend.
Siege order from Troopers to Patron
Troopers spawn from base and fight down a lane. Last hits spawn extra soul orbs, so the wave is both a clock and a wallet. If your Troopers die under the enemy Guardian for free, you are donating map control. If you freeze and last-hit, you fund the shop that later kills Walkers. City Never Sleeps did not retire this loop. It dressed the city around it.
Guardians are the first lane defenses. Steam news after City Never Sleeps still lists Guardians and Walkers among important remaining art and layout work, even though both are live objectives. That remaining-work note is about presentation, not about whether you have to kill them. Clear the Guardian with a wave, do not solo it for style points while the other lanes lose Towers of their own.
Walkers before the base
Walkers are deeper than Guardians and bring a kit of defensive moves. Official and community mechanic writeups treat them as the last lane gate before you look at a Patron. A Walker fight is where bought items start to show. If your team arrives with no souls spent, you will lose the siege even if you won the laning screen.
Reset after a Walker. Spend, heal, and take the next wave rather than diving a Patron at 20 percent health with no Troopers. Ziplines exist so that reset is fast. Street Brawl skips this entire structure; if you want the short format, leave this page and read that one. Ranked games still use the full siege.
Hidden King, Archmother, and Mid Boss
Hidden King is one of the two overhauled base bosses. Destroying the enemy Patron wins the match, period. Archmother is the second Patron. Old Gods copy presents her as the Patron who has always guided the founders' hands and is welcomed home in the overhaul. You do not pick which Patron you face by queueing a mode; each base has its occupant.
Mid Boss is still on Valve's remaining-art list after City Never Sleeps. Play it as a map objective that can swing souls and tempo, and do not expect the model to be final. Contest it when your Walkers are safe enough that a lost fight will not donate the next structure. For the economy that funds these sieges, read Souls & Shop. For guns and melee that actually deal the damage, read How to Play.
When to take Mid Boss versus a Walker
Mid Boss is a tempo prize. If your Guardian is already down and the enemy Walker is exposed, walking Mid Boss instead of the Walker donates the next structure. If both Walkers are healthy and a teamfight is about to break in the middle of the city, Mid Boss is the correct greed only when you can finish it before the next wave hits a building. Valve still lists the Mid Boss model among remaining art work, so expect the silhouette to change while the objective stays.
Hidden King and Archmother do not require a special queue. Each base has its occupant from the Old Gods overhaul. Bring Troopers. A Patron with no wave in front of it regenerates faster than a shop-full team can punch. Spend souls before the base, not after you already started the dance. If your team is missing a heavy melee user, Tough Crates on the way in are a detour; skip them and buy from base instead. For the city those sieges cross, read The Cursed Apple. For the guns that actually chip a Patron, read How to Play.
Who should hit what in a five-person siege
One player holds the wave so Troopers actually arrive. One player watches the side street for a collapse. The rest punch the structure. If everyone dives the Patron while the wave dies at the door, you lose the dance. Heavy melee users can crack a crate on the walk in only if the fight is already over. Gun players with falloff stay closer than Uptown instincts suggest once you are inside a base interior.
After a failed Patron hit, zipline to base as a group. Split recalls are how you get picked in the new districts. Spend, then take the next Guardian or Walker that is actually exposed. Mid Boss during a lost Walker is a throw. Ranked games punish that harder than Standard, which is why the first week after an invite belongs in Standard. Official Patron names remain Hidden King and Archmother from the Old Gods overhaul, linked under Sources.