Rick Grimes has stepped into the Fog, and he brought more than just his sheriff’s hat and a scowl. With the Dead by Daylight x The Walking Dead crossover, Rick comes equipped with three brand-new perks that reflect the kind of survivor he’s always been: strategic, selfless, and kind of a pain for Killers to deal with.
If you like to loop Killers, support teammates from the shadows, or turn the tide of a chase by sheer grit, Rick’s perks have something for every playstyle. But to make the most of them, you’ll want the right perk builds to go with his kit. So, this guide explains Rick Grimes’ perks in Dead by Daylight and the strongest builds to pair with them.
Rick Grimes Perks in Dead by Daylight
Before we discuss specific builds, here’s a quick rundown of Rick’s three teachable perks:
- Apocalyptic Ingenuity: After rummaging through or unlocking two chests, Rick can rebuild broken pallets as “Fragile Pallets” using the ability key for a limited time; their aura’s reach is within 24/28/32 meters. These break upon being dropped but can still stun the Killer.
- Come and Get Me!: After unhooking a Survivor, Rick can suppress pools of blood and scratch marks for nearby injured Survivors within 24 meters by crouching and activating the perk with the ability button, while revealing his aura and screaming for 5 seconds.
- Teamwork: Toughen Up: When Rick is injured and a teammate stuns or blinds the Killer within 24 meters, his grunts of pain, scratch marks, and blood pools are completely hidden for 20/25/30 seconds.
Each perk encourages a supportive and coordinated playstyle, but they shine even brighter when combined with the right secondary perks.
Best Build for Apocalyptic Ingenuity
- Playstyle focus: Environmental control, item farming, and survivor utility.
This perk turns Rick into a kind of makeshift handyman, giving you the ability to repurpose broken pallets into single-use stunners. That can be game-changing to survive late-game or save teammates with smart pallet use. But to get value, you have to open or rummage through two chests first.
Ideal perk combinations:
- Plunderer’s Instinct: Helps you find nearby chests by hinting at their auras.
- Ace in the Hole: Results in a 100% chance that any item you pull from a chest comes with at least one add-on, usually make medkits or flashlights far more valuable. There’s 50 50 chance of having a second uncommon add-on.
- Appraisal: Lets you rummage through opened chests again for second items, which gets you closer to activate Apocalyptic Ingenuity sooner.
- Optional: Pharmacy: Guarantees an emergency medkit from your first chest. Bring a Shiny Coin to increase the number of chests on the map.
Why it works: This build lets Rick double as a looter and utility player, and sets up fragile pallets in places where others have burned through key loops. It’s mainly useful in late-game chases when normal pallets are already gone.
Best Build for Come and Get Me!
- Playstyle focus: Protecting teammates and redirecting pressure to yourself.
This perk draws heat away from your teammates, and that means it requires guts. You can use it to distract opponents from injured Survivors. The second you unhook someone, you can crouch and activate the perk to completely suppress their trails. The trade-off? You scream and light yourself up to the Killer for five seconds.
Ideal perk combinations:
- Sprint Burst: Lets you make a quick getaway after activating the perk, right asset to dodge the Killer after revealing your aura and give a breathing room to Survivors to recover from injuries.
- Dead Hard: Gives you a small burst of endurance to survive a hit in case you’re caught right away.
- Vigil: Reduces debuff durations like Exhausted or Broken for you and allies.
- Optional: Distortion: Prevents your aura from being revealed for a limited time, potentially nullifying the risk of “Come and Get Me!” if timed right.
Why it works: It’s a sacrificial protector build—you become the bait while your team escapes or heals. It’s risky, but good enough with the right pull off.
Best Build for Teamwork: Toughen Up
- Playstyle focus: Stealth survival, coordinated team saves, map awareness.
This perk only works when you’re injured, and another Survivor stuns or blinds the Killer nearby. Once that happens, your scratch marks, blood, and pain sounds all vanish for up to 30 seconds; it’s very powerful but team coordination matters more than anything here.
Ideal perk combinations:
- Wiretap: Place it on a generator to help your teammates track the Killer’s movement, so they know when and where to pull off a stun for you.
- Aftercare: Reveals the aura of teammates you’ve helped, and yours to them, ideal for coordinating blinds and stuns.
- Boon: Shadow Step: Bless a totem to set up a zone where you and your teammates leave no scratch marks or auras to escape from the Killer’s eyes.
- Optional: Plot Twist: If things get intense, you can enter the dying state and bounce back to full health after hiding, allowing you to reset stealth mode.
Why it works: With the right timing, this Rick Grims build makes him nearly invisible to Killers after a coordinated stun. It’s not good to equip in solo play, but in swf (survive with friends) lobbies, it can make you a complete ghost.
Bonus Tips
- Fragile Pallets Still Stun – Even though they break after use, they can buy time in a chase.
- Communicate Well – If you’re playing with friends, tell them when you’re activating Come and Get Me! or Toughen Up. These perks thrive on cooperation.
- Map Knowledge Helps – Especially with Toughen Up and Apocalyptic Ingenuity, knowing chests spawn locations and where pallets break can make or break your value.
- Not Just for Rick – Once unlocked, Rick’s perks can be used on other survivors; consider combining Come and Get Me! with distraction-based builds on David, Meg, or Cheryl.
Rick Grimes brings something rare to Dead by Daylight’s Survivor roster with bold leadership, tactical support, and situational stealth. To rebuild pallets on the fly, take the heat for teammates, or ghost Killers after a smart stun, his perks bring layered, creative playstyles to the table that reward smart decisions and team coordination.
