What is Venator's role?

He's a weapon-scaling hunter who sets up and executes single targets. Soften with Consecrating Grenade, stun with Gutshot near a wall, lock them down with Hex-Lined Snap Trap, and finish with Ira Domini.

How does Ira Domini work?

It loads your crossbow with three stakes that deal massively increased weapon damage. The final stake is blessed, dealing bonus pure damage and executing low-health enemies at the 8% threshold.

How do I land Gutshot's stun?

You have to hit an enemy near a wall. The blast pushes targets back, so fight in corridors or against objects; a wall hit stuns for 0.6s and adds bonus weapon damage.

Do Hex-Lined Snap Traps hit NPCs?

No. The trap only springs on players, and enemies can disarm it by shooting it. Place it on escape routes and chokepoints rather than trying to trap creeps.

Can Venator escape danger on his own?

Not on his own—he has no dash or movement ability. His survival comes from trapping an escape path ahead of time and playing behind his team.

Marksman

Venator Guide — Abilities, Builds & Strategy

Venator is a methodical monster hunter whose entire kit is built around setting up a kill and then finishing it. Open with Consecrating Grenade to set enemies on fire, cut their healing, and soften a whole area before you commit. Steer fights toward walls so a Gutshot can land the stun and the bonus damage that make it a real playmaker. Drop Hex-Lined Snap Traps on chokepoints and escape routes to freeze a target in place and reveal them for your team. When someone is low and trapped, Ira Domini loads three heavy stakes and the final blessed bolt executes anything under the threshold. He rewards patience and positioning over flashy aggression—pick your moment, then go all in.

Quick Summary

Venator is a marksman hero in Deadlock, the hybrid MOBA-shooter by Valve. With 820 max health, 63.492 weapon DPS, and 3 stamina,Venator excels at ranged damage output.Core strengths: He punishes heroes who rely on healing, because Consecrating Grenade cuts incoming healing and adds constant burn pressure. Squishy backliners with no mobility get stuck by Hex-Lined Snap Trap and deleted by Ira Domini before they can react. Anyone who fights in tight corridors and around walls is a free Gutshot stun target. Heroes who try to disengage at low health run straight into the execute threshold on the blessed stake.. Key weakness: Mobile heroes that dash or blink out of Snap Traps and around walls blunt his whole setup—if they refuse to stand near a wall, Gutshot never stuns. Long-range poking heroes out-trade him in lane and stay outside the reach of his medium-range gun. He has no dash or escape tool, so any diver who reaches him before his trap is placed wins the exchange. Dispel, CC-immunity, and debuff-resist items strip the burn, immobilize, and stun that his kit depends on..Find Venator's abilities, builds, matchups, and tier ranking on GameGoldLab.

Venator Base Stats

Role: Marksman
Max Health: 820
Max Move Speed: 6.4
Stamina: 3
Base Health Regen: 2
Light Melee Damage: 50
Heavy Melee Damage: 125

Venator Weapon Stats

DPS: 63.492
Sustained DPS: 37.942
Bullet Damage: 8
Rounds Per Second: 7.9365
Clip Size: 33
Reload Time: 2.8s
Bullet Speed: 1588
Can Crit: Yes

Venator Abilities

Ability 1: Consecrating Grenade
Ability 2: Gutshot
Ability 3: Hex-Lined Snap Trap
Ability 4: Ira Domini

Venator Guide — Strategy & Tips

Quick Answer: Venator is a methodical weapon-scaling hunter: burn and anti-heal with Consecrating Grenade, steer fights into walls for Gutshot stuns, and lock targets down with Hex-Lined Snap Trap. Save Ira Domini to execute low-health enemies with three heavy stakes. Play patient, pick your moment, and always keep an escape route trapped.

Early Game

Early on, lean on Consecrating Grenade as your main poke. Bounce it into the creep wave and onto the enemy hero so they stay burning and can't heal up between trades. Poke with 51:20's rapid fire at range, but don't overextend, because he has no dash or mobility tool to escape a collapse. Tuck a Hex-Lined Snap Trap on the lane entrance or the corner you'd retreat through so a gank gets held in place. Chip them down, keep the heal cut active, and only step forward when your trap is already armed behind you.

Mid Game

Mid game is where Gutshot becomes your playmaker. Force fights near walls and objects so the shotgun stun lands, then follow it with grenade and bullets on the frozen target. Roam with your team and set Snap Traps on jungle entrances and objective pits to catch rotations and reveal them. Ira Domini comes online here for picking off retreating heroes—use it to delete a low target rather than to start a fight. Keep your grenade available for the enemy's healing-up moment, since the burn and reduced healing swing longer fights.

Late Game

Late game he plays as a backline hunter who detonates one target at a time. Open teamfights with Consecrating Grenade to strip healing off their front line and steer the fight into a wall so Gutshot can stun a key hero. Keep Snap Traps down on flank paths so a diver gets caught and revealed before they reach your carries. Save Ira Domini for the moment a squishy target drops low, then land three blessed stakes to execute through the threshold. Stay behind your tanks, because once he's caught with his long cooldowns down he has no way out.

Combos

Lead with Consecrating Grenade to burn and anti-heal, then walk the target toward a wall—Gutshot's wall stun locks them for the follow-up burst. Kick a Hex-Lined Snap Trap onto their escape path before you push so they can't disengage. Once they're immobilized and low, pop Ira Domini and land the third blessed stake to execute. Against a cornered enemy, Gutshot first to stun, grenade onto the stuck hero to stack burn, then stake them down. If you only have the trap up, spring it first, then work the wall stun into the sequence.

Strong Against

He punishes heroes who rely on healing, because Consecrating Grenade cuts incoming healing and adds constant burn pressure. Squishy backliners with no mobility get stuck by Hex-Lined Snap Trap and deleted by Ira Domini before they can react. Anyone who fights in tight corridors and around walls is a free Gutshot stun target. Heroes who try to disengage at low health run straight into the execute threshold on the blessed stake.

Weak Against

Mobile heroes that dash or blink out of Snap Traps and around walls blunt his whole setup—if they refuse to stand near a wall, Gutshot never stuns. Long-range poking heroes out-trade him in lane and stay outside the reach of his medium-range gun. He has no dash or escape tool, so any diver who reaches him before his trap is placed wins the exchange. Dispel, CC-immunity, and debuff-resist items strip the burn, immobilize, and stun that his kit depends on.

Synergies

He pairs best with heroes who can root, slow, or hold enemies still so his Gutshot and Snap Trap land for free. A crowd-control or wall-creating teammate turns any fight into an execution setup for Ira Domini. Heroes who initiate or reveal let him line up grenade on a clumped team to stack burn and anti-heal. A frontline tank to stand behind covers his total lack of escape, and a healer keeps him alive through the long cooldowns on his grenade and ultimate.

Common Mistakes

Firing Gutshot in open ground instead of near a wall—you lose both the stun and the bonus weapon damage, which is the entire reason the ability exists.
Popping Ira Domini to open a fight instead of to finish a low target; the blessed stake's real value is the execute, not the engage.
Wasting Hex-Lined Snap Traps on random spots or trying to trap NPCs—the trap only springs on players, so place it on escape routes and chokepoints instead.

Matchup Notes

vs Wraith — She out-ranges and out-bursts you in lane, so keep a Snap Trap on your retreat path and force the fight to a wall before you commit to Gutshot.
vs Infernus — His burn and sustain trade evenly with yours; land Consecrating Grenade to cut his healing first, then wall-stun him with Gutshot to win the exchange.
vs Vindicta — She pokes from long range where your medium-range gun can't answer, so close distance behind cover and trap her landing spot so she can't fly away.
vs Haze — Her burst punishes your lack of escape, so trap the angle she has to push and Gutshot-stun her against a wall before she can start shooting.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Venator's role?: He's a weapon-scaling hunter who sets up and executes single targets. Soften with Consecrating Grenade, stun with Gutshot near a wall, lock them down with Hex-Lined Snap Trap, and finish with Ira Domini.
How does Ira Domini work?: It loads your crossbow with three stakes that deal massively increased weapon damage. The final stake is blessed, dealing bonus pure damage and executing low-health enemies at the 8% threshold.
How do I land Gutshot's stun?: You have to hit an enemy near a wall. The blast pushes targets back, so fight in corridors or against objects; a wall hit stuns for 0.6s and adds bonus weapon damage.
Do Hex-Lined Snap Traps hit NPCs?: No. The trap only springs on players, and enemies can disarm it by shooting it. Place it on escape routes and chokepoints rather than trying to trap creeps.
What are Venator's pronouns?: He/Him.
Can Venator escape danger on his own?: Not on his own—he has no dash or movement ability. His survival comes from trapping an escape path ahead of time and playing behind his team.