The Pig is Dead by Daylight’s stealth killer with a built-in slowdown mechanic. She uses Reverse Bear Traps to force survivors to waste time searching Jigsaw Boxes instead of doing gens, and her Ambush attack lets her catch survivors off guard and deny loops.
Pig is one of the most versatile killers in the game. She can play stealthy, she can pressure gens with traps, and she can end chases with Ambush. Let’s break down how to play her effectively.
The Pig’s Power: Jigsaw’s Baptism
The Pig has two main abilities: Reverse Bear Traps and Ambush Dash.
Reverse Bear Traps (RBTs)
What they do: The Pig puts Reverse Bear Traps on downed survivors. Trapped survivors must search Jigsaw Boxes to remove the trap before it kills them.
How it works:
- You start with 4 Reverse Bear Traps
- When you down a survivor, press M2 to put a trap on their head (takes ~3 seconds)
- The trap is inactive until a generator is completed
- Once active, the survivor has 2.5 minutes to remove the trap by searching Jigsaw Boxes
- There are 4-5 Jigsaw Boxes on the map (random spawns)
- Survivors must search boxes until they find the correct key (random)
- If the timer runs out, the trap kills the survivor instantly
- Traps also kill survivors if they try to leave through exit gates while trapped
Key concept: Reverse Bear Traps are SLOWDOWN, not kills. Trapped survivors waste time searching boxes instead of doing gens. The kill is a bonus if they’re unlucky or make mistakes.
Ambush Dash
What it does: The Pig crouches, becomes stealthy, and can dash forward with a roar to attack survivors.
How it works:
- Press Ctrl (PC) to crouch (you become Undetectable - no red stain, no Terror Radius, no Heartbeat)
- While crouched, hold M2 to charge an Ambush Dash
- Release M2 to dash forward at high speed with a roar
- You can attack during the dash
- Dash lasts ~2 seconds and covers ~10-12 meters
Key uses:
- Sneaking up on survivors at gens
- Denying loops by dashing around obstacles
- Catching survivors off guard
- Mind games at pallets
Crouching and Stealth
The Pig can crouch to become Undetectable.
While crouched:
- No Terror Radius (survivors don’t hear your heartbeat)
- No red stain (survivors can’t see your glow)
- You move at 90% speed (slower than 115% normal)
- You can use Ambush Dash
- Survivors can still see you visually
When to crouch:
- Approaching gens to sneak up on survivors
- Hiding your red stain at loops
- Setting up Ambush Dashes at pallets
- Patrolling stealthily
When NOT to crouch:
- Chasing in the open (you’re slower)
- When survivors already know your location
- When you need to close distance quickly
Reverse Bear Trap Strategy
Reverse Bear Traps are Pig’s main slowdown tool. Use them strategically to waste survivors’ time.
When to Place Traps
Early game: Trap the first survivor you down. This forces them to search boxes instead of doing gens, buying you time to pressure others.
After hooking: Down someone, hook them, then trap them. They have to search boxes after being unhooked.
On strong survivors: Trap survivors who are good at looping or who you suspect are carrying the team. Get them off gens.
Before important gens pop: If there are 2 gens left and you down someone, trap them. Once the next gen pops, their trap activates and they’re forced off gens.
Save traps for value: You only have 4 traps. Don’t waste them on survivors who are about to die or when all gens are done (traps don’t activate if all gens are done).
Trap Activation Timing
Traps are inactive when placed and only activate when a generator is completed.
Key strategy: If you trap someone and NO gens have been completed yet, their trap won’t activate until the first gen pops. This means they can do gens while trapped, but once a gen completes, they’re forced to search boxes.
Advanced play: Trap survivors when gens are at 80-90% completion. When the gen pops, their trap activates immediately and they waste time searching boxes.
How Traps Slow the Game
Each trap forces survivors to:
- Search 1-4 Jigsaw Boxes (random which box has the key)
- Each box takes 12 seconds to search
- Average: 2-3 boxes = 24-36 seconds wasted
- Worst case: 4 boxes = 48 seconds wasted
Math: If you trap 3 survivors, that’s 72-108 seconds of survivors NOT doing gens. That’s huge.
Trap Kills
Traps kill survivors if:
- The timer (2.5 minutes) runs out
- They try to leave through exit gates while trapped
Reality: Good survivors almost never die to traps. Trap kills are rare. The value is the TIME wasted, not the kills.
Exception: If you pressure survivors hard and they don’t have time to search boxes, traps can kill. But don’t rely on this.
Protecting Jigsaw Boxes
You can patrol Jigsaw Boxes to catch trapped survivors searching them.
Box camping strategy:
- Note where boxes spawn at the start of the match
- After trapping someone, patrol boxes
- Catch them searching and chase them away
- Their trap timer keeps ticking while you chase them
- Repeat until trap kills them or they finally remove it
Warning: Box camping is effective but BORING and frustrating for survivors. It’s also not great for learning chase skills. Use it sparingly.
Ambush Dash Strategy
Ambush Dash is Pig’s anti-loop tool. Use it to catch survivors at loops and deny pallets.
How to Use Ambush Effectively
Ambush at loops: When a survivor is looping you at a jungle gym or short loop:
- Crouch
- Charge Ambush while approaching the loop
- Dash around the corner and hit them
Why it works: Survivors expect you to walk around normally. Ambush lets you cover distance quickly and catch them off guard.
Mind games at pallets:
- Approach a pallet while standing
- Crouch suddenly (survivors think you’re going to Ambush)
- Stand back up and M1 them if they commit to a vault or drop
- Or actually Ambush if they wait
Ambush through pallets: You can Ambush through dropped pallets and hit survivors on the other side. The dash is fast enough to catch them.
Ambush Roar Warning
When you charge Ambush, Pig makes a loud roar that survivors can hear.
This is a huge downside: Survivors hear the roar and know you’re about to dash. They can react and dodge.
How to work around this:
- Charge Ambush out of sight (behind walls)
- Use the roar as a mind game (survivors panic and make mistakes)
- Mix up Ambush with normal M1 attacks so survivors don’t know when you’ll dash
Ambush at Gens
Crouch and sneak up on survivors at gens. Get close, charge Ambush, and dash at them. They don’t hear you coming until the roar, and by then it’s too late.
This is one of Pig’s best strategies - stealth gen grabs with Ambush.
Early Game Strategy
Pig’s early game is about placing traps and building slowdown.
Opening sequence:
- Patrol gens normally - Check 3-4 gens, look for survivors
- First chase - Find and chase someone
- Down and trap them - Put a trap on the first person you down
- Hook and patrol - Hook them, patrol gens
- Repeat - Down and trap 2-3 more survivors
Goal: Get 2-3 survivors trapped as quickly as possible. This creates massive slowdown as they search boxes.
Don’t waste time crouching early: You need to find and down survivors fast. Crouch when approaching gens, but don’t crouch-walk across the entire map.
Mid-Game Strategy
Mid-game is where Pig’s slowdown shines. Survivors are trapped and wasting time searching boxes.
Patrol between gens and boxes:
- Check gens for progress
- Check boxes for trapped survivors
- Chase anyone you find
Interrupt box searches:
- If you see someone searching a box, chase them away
- Their timer keeps ticking while you chase
- Repeat until they’re forced off gens entirely
Place remaining traps: If you still have traps, use them on downed survivors. More traps = more slowdown.
Snowball potential: If multiple survivors are trapped and searching boxes, pressure gens hard. They can’t do gens efficiently while trapped.
Endgame Strategy
Pig is one of the WEAKEST endgame killers.
Why Pig struggles endgame:
- Reverse Bear Traps don’t activate if all gens are done
- Survivors with inactive traps can leave freely
- No built-in endgame power like NOED or Blood Warden
Endgame strategy:
- If someone’s still trapped and the last gen is about to pop, try to down them BEFORE the gen completes. Their trap will still be active.
- Use Ambush to catch survivors at exit gates
- Patrol between gates with stealth
- Accept that Pig’s strength is early/mid game, not endgame
Trap at exit gates: If someone has an active trap, they CANNOT leave through exit gates or the trap kills them. This gives you some endgame pressure, but only if you trapped them before all gens were done.
Best Perks for Pig
Pig wants perks that help her track survivors, slow gens, and capitalize on her traps.
Top Tier Perks
Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance - Hooking on scourge hooks regresses the gen with most progress. Pig hooks survivors frequently, so this gets tons of value. Also activates Reverse Bear Traps when gens pop from regression.
Deadlock - Blocks the gen with most progress for 30 seconds when a gen completes. Buys you time to pressure other areas. Synergizes with Pig’s slowdown.
Surveillance - Gens being repaired are highlighted in white. Shows you where survivors are working. Helps you patrol efficiently and sneak up on survivors.
Whispers - Hear a sound when survivors are within 32 meters. Helps you find survivors to trap early. Great for patrolling.
Strong Perks
Hex: Ruin - Gens not being repaired regress at 200% speed. Pairs well with Pig’s traps - survivors waste time on boxes while gens regress.
Pop Goes the Weasel - After hooking, kick a gen to regress it by 30%. Reliable slowdown.
Corrupt Intervention - Blocks the 3 farthest gens for 120 seconds. Forces survivors toward you early. Gives you time to trap survivors.
Lethal Pursuer - See all survivors at the start for 9 seconds. Find your first chase quickly and start trapping.
Make Your Choice - Survivors who unhook others become Exposed for 60 seconds if you’re 32+ meters away. Pig can crouch away from hooks and surprise returning survivors with Exposed hits. This is Pig’s teachable perk.
Hangman’s Trick - Survivors repairing generators within 32 meters of a hook scream and reveal their location. Helps you find survivors to chase and trap.
Sample Builds
Slowdown Build (Best for Pig):
- Scourge Hook: Pain Resonance
- Deadlock
- Surveillance
- Pop Goes the Weasel
Stealth Build:
- Make Your Choice
- Whispers
- Surveillance
- Lethal Pursuer
Beginner Build:
- Whispers
- Sloppy Butcher
- Surveillance
- NOED
Box Control Build (Controversial):
- Hex: Ruin
- Surveillance
- Whispers
- Hangman’s Trick
Best Add-Ons
Pig’s add-ons modify her Reverse Bear Traps, Ambush, and Jigsaw Boxes.
Top Tier Add-Ons
Tampered Timer (Purple - Very Rare) - Reverse Bear Trap timers are reduced by 30 seconds (from 2.5 minutes to 2 minutes). Puts more pressure on trapped survivors. Increases trap kill potential.
Crate of Gears (Purple - Very Rare) - Adds 1 extra Jigsaw Box to the map (5 total instead of 4). Survivors have to search more boxes on average. More slowdown.
Jigsaw’s Sketch (Green - Rare) - Reduces Ambush charge time. Faster Ambush = harder for survivors to react. Great for anti-loop.
Combat Straps (Green - Rare) - Reduces time to crouch and stand up. Makes Pig more fluid in chases. Essential for stealth play.
Strong Add-Ons
Bag of Gears (Yellow - Uncommon) - Moderately increases Reverse Bear Trap timer pressure (reduces timer). Cheaper version of Tampered Timer.
Interlocking Razor (Yellow - Uncommon) - Survivors searching Jigsaw Boxes are injured if they miss a skill check. Punishes survivors who panic and fail checks.
Workshop Grease (Yellow - Uncommon) - Slightly reduces Ambush charge time. Budget version of Jigsaw’s Sketch.
Last Will (Yellow - Uncommon) - Slightly increases number of Jigsaw Boxes. More boxes = more slowdown.
Avoid These Add-Ons
Amanda’s Letter (Pink - Ultra Rare) - You only have 1 Reverse Bear Trap, but you can see survivors’ auras within 12 meters while crouched. Losing 3 traps KILLS Pig’s slowdown. Almost never worth it.
Video Tape (Pink - Ultra Rare) - All Jigsaw Boxes are revealed to survivors at the start. This HELPS survivors find boxes faster, which is BAD for you. One of the worst add-ons in the game.
Sample Add-On Combos
Slowdown Build: Tampered Timer + Crate of Gears (shorter timers + more boxes)
Ambush Build: Jigsaw’s Sketch + Combat Straps (fast Ambush + fluid movement)
Budget Build: Bag of Gears + Workshop Grease (decent slowdown + faster Ambush)
Stealth Build: Combat Straps + Last Will (fast crouching + more boxes)
Playing Against Good Survivors
Good survivors make Pig work harder, but she’s still strong with the right adjustments.
They remove traps quickly: Some survivors get lucky and find the key in 1-2 boxes. Accept this and move on. The slowdown still bought you time.
They split on gens: Pig struggles with gen pressure. Run regression perks and patrol efficiently.
They predrop pallets: Use Ambush to mind game pallets or zone survivors into dead zones.
They avoid trapped areas: If survivors avoid Jigsaw Boxes in your patrol area, that’s fine. They’re still wasting time traveling to distant boxes.
They ignore traps: Some survivors do gens while trapped, hoping to remove it later. Pressure them hard - if their trap activates and they’re mid-chase, they might not have time to search boxes.
They’re in a SWF: Comms let them coordinate trap removal and call out your position. Counter by applying pressure quickly and using stealth to catch them off guard.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Wasting traps on survivors about to die: Don’t trap someone on death hook. They’re about to be sacrificed. Save traps for survivors who will stay in the game.
Camping Jigsaw Boxes all game: It works, but it’s boring and teaches bad habits. Learn to chase and pressure gens.
Crouching too much: Crouching makes you slower. Use it strategically, not constantly.
Not using Ambush: New Pig players forget to Ambush. Use it at loops and gens.
Trapping after all gens are done: Traps placed after all gens are done will NEVER activate. Don’t waste them.
Telegraphing Ambush: Survivors hear the roar. Mix up Ambush with M1 attacks so they don’t know when you’ll dash.
Not tracking trap timers: Keep track of which survivors are trapped and how long they’ve been searching. Pressure survivors with low timers.
Map-Specific Tips
Indoor Maps (The Game, Lery’s, Midwich, RPD) - Strong for Pig. Tight corridors make Ambush deadly. Stealth is easier. Jigsaw Boxes are harder to find.
Open Maps (Coldwind, MacMillan, Autohaven) - Decent for Pig. Ambush is weaker in open areas. Use stealth to approach gens. Jigsaw Boxes are easier to find.
Large Maps (Mother’s Dwelling, Red Forest) - Rough for Pig. Huge maps mean longer patrols. Survivors can spread out and avoid you. Run slowdown perks.
The Game (Saw Map) - THE Pig map. Fits her theme perfectly. Multiple floors, lots of boxes, tight corridors. Very strong for Pig.
Multi-Level Maps - Good for Pig. Jigsaw Boxes spawn on different floors, making them harder to find. Ambush works well in stairwells.
Why Play Pig?
Pros:
- Built-in slowdown (Reverse Bear Traps)
- Stealth (no Terror Radius while crouched)
- Anti-loop (Ambush Dash)
- Versatile playstyle
- Fun mind games
- Adorable snoot to boop (community meme)
Cons:
- Weak endgame
- Ambush roar telegraphs your dash
- Traps are RNG-based (survivors can get lucky)
- No built-in mobility
- Requires good trap management
- Survivors can power through traps
The Boop the Snoot Meme
Pig has a unique community tradition: Boop the Snoot.
What it is: Survivors who crouch and approach Pig without running are “asking to boop her snoot” (pet her snout). Friendly Pig players let survivors boop, then let them go or farm together.
You don’t have to participate, but it’s a fun community thing. If a survivor crouches and approaches you at the start of the match, they might be asking to boop.
Advanced Tips
Crouch at hooks to hide your Terror Radius: After hooking someone, crouch and leave. Rescuers won’t hear your heartbeat and might think you left.
Ambush around corners: Charge Ambush while out of sight, then dash around corners to surprise survivors.
Fake Ambush charges: Charge Ambush, then cancel and M1. Survivors expect the dash and make mistakes.
Trap high-value survivors first: Trap strong loopers or survivors carrying toolboxes. Get them off gens ASAP.
Use stealth to interrupt heals: Crouch and sneak up on healing survivors. Ambush them for free hits.
Track box spawns: At the start of the match, note where Jigsaw Boxes spawn. Patrol them later when survivors are trapped.
Pressure trapped survivors in chases: If you’re chasing someone with a trap, they’re forced to choose: remove the trap or keep running. Either way, they’re not doing gens.
Final Thoughts
The Pig is one of Dead by Daylight’s most unique killers. She combines stealth, slowdown, and anti-loop into a versatile and fun playstyle.
Pig rewards smart trap management and strategic play. Use Reverse Bear Traps to waste survivors’ time, Ambush to deny loops, and stealth to catch survivors off guard.
Don’t camp Jigsaw Boxes every game - it’s effective but boring. Learn to chase, pressure gens, and use Pig’s full kit. You’ll have more fun and improve as a killer.
Practice your Ambush timing, track your traps, and enjoy the slowdown. Pig might not be top-tier, but she’s incredibly satisfying when played well.
Good luck, and may your traps always activate at the perfect moment.
Last Updated: Patch 9.3.0 - November 2025