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The first licensed Killer to arrive inDead by Daylight, The Shape – more commonly known asMichael Myers– is a ruthless Killer with a dark obsession. Stalking Survivors from afar, The Shape can increasingly build his ferocity by tracking his prey before going in for the kill. This relentless pursuit is what makes The Shape so terrifying, as he eliminates players one by one.
ThisDead by Daylightguide will highlight some of the best builds for players torun on The Shape. This also includes teachable and non-teachable perks alike for players of varying experience so that they can make the most out of their experience playing as this sinister character.
Updated on June 07, 2025, by Mark Sammut: As his last update came courtesy of Patch 8.4.1, The Shape has not gone through major changes since then. While most long-time players likely already own Michael Myers, newer fans might not have added the original Killer to their lineup, but they might want to change that (especially while he is on sale). Consequently, a section going over how to unlock The Shape has been added.
The Shape: Best Non-Teachable Build (2025)
Without access to the perks of otherKillers inDead by Daylight, playing The Shape can lead to a challenging trial, but not an impossible one. This build makes use of Save the Best for Last to cut chase times short while using Sloppy Butcher to passively slow down the game. Finally, Bitter Murmur and Hex: No One Escapes Death allow the Killer to decimate any players still standing in the endgame, without needing to stalk Survivors for an instant down.
The Shape: Best Build (2025)
This build focuses on slowing down generator progress with a variety of perks while getting a solid boost at the beginning of the game, as The Shape has little map mobility, and is also the worst killer in the early game. The Shape’s focus should be territorially guarding a cluster of nearby generators, keeping track of their progress, and decimating them with The Artist’s Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance and The Cenobite’s Deadlock.
Meanwhile, The Nemesis’s Lethal Pursuer allows The Shape to quickly find the Survivors and stalk them to ensure a strong start for the weakest early-game killer. Finally, Coup de Grâce enables The Shape to better play around loops where he would otherwise struggle.
The Shape: Best Add-Ons (2025)
Memorial Flower
The best Michael Myers add-on, at the common rarity, is without a doubt the Memorial Flower. While this add-on is nothing spectacular, the11% increased stalking rateis a nice bonus to The Shape’s slow stalking speed.
While this macabreoffering to The Entitymay seem like a bad trade, the Dead Rabbit’sdecrease of the Terror Radius by 25%in Evil Within II is massively helpful. However, since it also increases the Terror Radius in Evil Within III, it’s recommended that you run this add-on alongside a perk like Monitor and Abuse, or another perk that changes the Terror Radius, to avoid alerting Survivors too early.
J. Myers Memorial
This is The Shape’s second-best add-on as it grants a flat25% bonus to his stalking gain rate.It is often paired with the Tombstone Piece to alleviate the negative side effect of needing increased time to reach Evil Within III.
Hair Bow
The Hair Bow is a great add-on to increase the threat level of The Shape, which is during Evil Within III. Pairing this with the J. Myers Memorial add-on is a solid way to consistently apply pressure on the map with multiple Evil Within III activations.
Tombstone Piece
Arguably The Shape’s strongest add-on, the Tombstone Piece allows Michael toimmediately kill any Survivor, regardless of their hook state, upon reaching Evil Within III – effectively functioning likean old Memento Mori.
This brutal ability can quickly turn the tide of a game and outclasses the Ultra Rare Judith’s Tombstone add-on by omitting the speed debuff that accompanies it.
Lock Of Hair
Lock of Hair adds 40 additional seconds to Evil Within III, 10 more than the Hair Bow, while increasing the stalk rate for Evil Within III. The Hair Bow is generally the better option but the Lock of Hair is also a viable option for players that opt to run Lethal Pursuer and J. Myers Memorial.
Fragrant Tuft of Hair
Though The Shape’s stalking rate is reduced by a whopping 200%, this add-ongrants infinite Evil Within III. As such, you will never have to worry about managing your power, and you can insta-down Survivors without needing to stalk them first.
AsDead by Daylight’s first licensed character, The Shape set the standard for future DLC characters who are based on other properties. Due to his age and iconic status, both as a movie figure but also as part ofDBD’s history, Michael Myers is likely one of the most owned Killers; for a couple of years, it seemed like everyone had him. However, as more and more DLC characters debuted, and new players joined the ever-growing community, Myers might have slipped slightly down the pecking order, especially since he is not regarded as one of the best Killers.
If you are relatively new toDead by Daylightand are interested in giving the original movie slasher Killer a try, you will need to spend money to purchase some Auric Cells. As with all licensed characters, The Shape cannot be obtained using Iridescent Shards. Assuming he is not on sale, which happens frequently enough,Michael Myers can be unlocked for 500 Auric Cells, which costs $4.99.
Alternatively,you can pick up “Chapter 2: Halloween Chapter” for $7.99, granting you access to The Shape and Laurie Strode (as a Survivor), along with three cosmetic pieces for the latter. Laurie is arguably abetter Survivorthan Myers is a Killer, and chapters are cheaper than buying both characters individually. That said, if you are just interested in The Shape, a solo purchase makes more sense (especially when the Killer is on sale).
