theres a very interesting piece of dialogue between drifter and haze respectfully which I’ll quote below.
“OSIC finally coming for me?” - Drifter
“No, we are using you.” - Haze
“If we were coming for you, you’d already be dead.” – Haze
what does this tell us?
drifter for one reason or another, despite his lengthy list of people hes offed is for some reason not on the kill list, and is somehow being used instead by the osic, drifter doesn’t make any other comments on this so we can only really speculate but this is my theory
its a common theory already out there that drifters coat was taken from another vampire, and given an interaction he has with paradox
“What size jacket do you wear?”- Drifter
“Why?” - Paradox
“Well it’s a nice coat.”- Drifter
“All members of paradox wear one.”- Paradox
“You got any friends who don’t mind going missing?”- Drifter
“I can just get you a coat.”- Paradox
“It don’t work like that.”- Drifter
its implied his own coat is stolen, given the accents of red, and design of the his jacket it most likely belonged to another vampire, basically he killed another vampire and we all know drifter has a heavy disdain for the whole of vampire society, and in turn the vampire society is after him
so what does this have to do with haze and the OSIC?
well, its that drifter is somewhat a problem that solves its self, sort of-
because vampires in deadlock are considered a protected species, you cant hunt them without just cause or face some heavy legal ramifications, and given what goes on in the deadlock universe vampires are for sure doing a lot of shady shit and also we don’t know the extent to how far that protection goes, but its implied a lot if not all civilised vampires have a lot of money so they can also probably buy their way out of situations, but as the OSIC is a government body it cannot always directly intervene, the legal process takes a long time to actually get things done, (not that i don’t think the OSIC isnt doing some shady stuff themselves, but the vampires will surely make a ruckus about it if the OSIC started to target them and they already don’t have the best reputation) and also the amount of people needed to actually handle the vampire problem would be a lot, and cost a lot of money, (i like to think the OSIC in some parts is heavily lacking in staff, why haze is offering jobs to a lot of people in the ritual, they need people desperately, but finding quality people who wont instantly die is challenging)
drifter in a sense is a snake that eats other snakes, hes a vampire that kills other vampires, ofc drifter 100% kills other people who are not vampires all the time, but im sure drifter has a heavy bounty on his head in the vampire world, so im sure theres always some rookie newbie or some poor vampiric soul out there trying to find and kill him to get the prestige that killing him would come with and or the money,
OSIC don’t get involved because drifter is doing the illegal thing the OSIC cant publically do, or be thought to be doing, so they turn a blind eye to him, drifter kills vampires, there’s less overall vampires out there killing people, and if someone manages to kill drifter, then its still a win for them, because hey that big threat is now gone
however there is a balance im sure, where the amount drifter kills is calculated and kept track of that the overall impact is a net positive, why kill one vampire that kills other vampires who will kill more people, when you can just let that one vampire stick around rather than having a ton of vampires running around
so as long as the osic sees drifter as useful, he gets to live
but why would haze say anything at all to drifter then? why even give him a hint that he might be being used?
well, haze herself says she knows the OSIC isnt perfect, she loves her job, she does good things, but she doesn’t agree with everything they do, and the drifter situation is probably one she doesn’t really agree with how its being handled,
but she cant betray them, she cant go out of her way to kill drifter, she would probably be fired or worse, but she can bait him, as long as drifter keeps doing what hes doing he has complete immunity, but if he steps out of line, then shed be allowed to act
and if theres something that drifter seems to really hate from some of his voicelines is that he hates being told what to do, his killing is an in the moment thing, its on his terms, when he wants, if he got suspicions he was being used or pawned in someway, i think he would be pissed as hell, he might actively go out of his way to try and spite the OSIC if he was aware and kill a bunch more people, more so than hed usual care to, and then the OSIC would have no choice but to send a sandman out to kill him
tldr: chad sandman haze is attempting to rage bait ancient chud vampire into getting himself killed
edit to add on:
i dont think the rage bait really works for one reason and that is that drifter is surprisingly very humble, he can be egotistical dont get me wrong, but hes highly aware of his own limits (voice lines he says saying mercy isnt one of his weakness, indirect acknowledgement that yes he has weaknesses, and voiceline with infernus commenting that he does not like dealing with fire, and it maybe something that in lore he is weak to in one way or another) and i think he holds his own survival far above his love for killing
so a part of me thinks he gets quiet and the interaction doesnt continue cause he realizes that this is a threat, a tangible one, and while yes hes upset hes being used, if being used keeps him alive and he can more or less just keep doing the same thing, then fine he can abide by their game, besides im sure drifter has outlived other groups or organizations before, so he might have the mentality that he will just keep living long enough that the OSIC eventually collapses or stops existing
Hej hej! To preface this, it is a very loose 'theory'. I just like talking about the finer details, and perhaps my thinking is delusional, but I'd like you all to see it as something to be humored rather than something to be corrected.
That said, Mina Ha has some weird, weird implications in her backstory and interactions. Like, she's fucked up somehow.
Referencing the wiki, here are some lines I collected that gave me cause for thought;
When Deselecting Mina;
Mina: "I have a whole life to build after my parents botched my turning, so no, I'm not helping you right now. I'm a little busy."
When Mina Dies in Lane with Drifter (as an ally);
Drifter: "They took out that pathetic excuse for a vampire!"
When Mina is Killed by Doorman's Ultimate;
Doorman; "Mina, Mina, Mina. Your future was stolen from you by an assassin’s bullet and replaced with the promise of eternal youth. We both know how well that’s turned out for you. You’re a child, just learning to play a game that others have spent hundreds of years perfecting. You are destined to fail."
I will admit, these can be seen as her being unfit for Vampire Society, and I will not deny that. But I do also want to offer the idea that it also implies something is fundamentally wrong with her vampirism. What's the chance everyone looks down on her not only because she's the youngest of the bunch, but also because there is just something not right with her?
Her referring to her turning specifically as "botched" rather than the life she mentioned beforehand felt kind of telling to me. As if it wasn't her sudden new position in the Vampiric hierarchy that was fucked up, but the process of being turned itself was, and trying to build a life off of said "botched turning" was the hard part. Then comes Drifter, who describes her as a "pathetic excuse for a vampire", as though her vampirism by itself is somehow screwed.
I found this specifically kind of strange as he simultaneously (kind of?) sees some sort of potential in her, as he has a line on kill where he attempts convincing her to get out of Vampire Society.
"The Vampire Nation is a Ponzi scheme, Mina! The sooner you realize that, the better."
Implying her efforts would be wholly wasted, no matter how she tries, but simultaneously implies she could do still well outside of Vampiric Society. They won't ever accept her, due to either how new she is, or how screwed she is.
But the thing is, age changes. You get older over time, and at some point she could, theoretically, be at the top given many generations. But everyone is so incredibly determined that it is just downright impossible or unattainable for her, so much so that even given the time and effort, it might never be plausible anyways.
And by everyone, I mean;
Doorman: "You're a nobody, Mina. You don't have a chance at becoming Viscount." / "...You are destined to fail." / "I can't believe she thinks that she can be Viscount!"
Drifter: "Kid like you is never gonna be Viscount."
Mirage: "One day you'll grow up and realize your folly."
The Patron: "The Vampire Nation will never make someone like you Viscount of New York!"
These are the more direct lines, but there are many others that are so, incredibly condescending towards her. Albeit those are more than likely all comments on the fact she is young, spoiled and borderline delusional.
Now as for what might be wrong with her, I'm honestly pretty inconclusive. There are lines from other characters that imply it could be the immortality aspect, but this falls somewhat flat in my opinion due to gameplay reasons. She also seems to missing a bunch of conversational interactions, so perhaps there is more that we just aren't seeing yet.
Even if this is very unlikely (as it most certainly is tbh) I do like thinking about the chances that there is even just a little bit more to her than just "spoiled little asshole who does fashion and probably throws temper tantrums" because it would be preeeettty interesting.
Maybe when the Venator comes around and we see some more Drifter interactions too, there'll be more to go off of regarding Vampires, what they can do, and how the Vampire nation does function behind the scenes. It feels kind of bad that so much of her lore is kind of walled off by the fact we don't near as much about Vampirism in general as we should, but that is always subject to change and rambling like a maniac makes for a great way to fill the void of the unknown.
That's all I've got, really. I just like thinking about her. If you could not tell.
A few theories about Shiv's oversized keychain amulet/reliquary exist currently. Many have thought he may be a vampire or werewolf and I've seen some think his amulet may give him his supernatural anger/hunting prowess.
One of my theories is Shiv may have simply been someone with anger issues and the amulet helps him channel/control his rage. (In my opinion, his anger is likely supernatural in some way in of itself keychain or no.)
Grey Talon has put faith in Shiv turning his life around when no one else has, why? Maybe the amulet is keeping Shiv in check in a way he himself cannot currently. Maybe Shiv has a lot of unchecked rage that he struggles to manage and the amulet is helping him utilize it instead of becoming uninhibited by it. Maybe the amulet is insurance if Shiv veers off onto the wrong path again.
Perhaps 'the beast' that was mentioned in removed voicelines was meant to be a curse put on him or perhaps it's something that gave him supernatural levels of rage. With the beast concept, it's easy to assume the amulet was meant to manage it in some way. Although, I'm not sure the devs are keeping the beast... It is a fun idea to play with regardless.
May edit this,I wrote it first thing in the morning so forgive any incoherence and typos
I know minimal things about the Deadlock lore and have been finding out things just from playing the game. I have a theory on Billy, though.
Noticed something in the hideout the other day. There’s a painting of another person with a goat head, I was originally assuming an ewe.
Apparently Billy had a voice like saying “Goat horns get zero respect in this city. It’s all Ixian this, ram horns that.” Rams are sheep. This made me entirely rethink what I had seen.
The painting was definitely a woman with a sheep head in what sort of looked like religious attire? It looks way more like a sheep than a goat. So, if it is related to religion… This all makes sense now. Sheep are the “norm.” Billy chose to be a goat because he wanted to be different and perhaps look more punk/“satanic.”
Wild Sheep (including rams): Ovis aries musimon.
Wild Goats/the goat that Billy resembles: Capra aegagrus, specifically a Bezoar ibex. The nails in his horns really resemble their horn ridges!
Content Warnings | Religious persecution, human experimentation, historical + systemic violence
Synopsis | Why I believe Drifter is not a "regular" vampire and instead is based off of a lycanthropic creature from Slavic/Baltic folklore, and a breakdown of what I believe to be his backstory
Word Count | 2.7k
Notes | This theory is just for fun and mostly based off of vibes with some loose research to try and support said vibes
I believe that Drifter is some type of creature commonly seen predominantly in Slavic folklore as opposed to being a vampire typical to modern, western interpretations.
These creatures have several names (wurdalak, vukodlak, vrykolakas, and many others). They're shape shifters that possess characteristics resembling westernized depictions of werewolves and vampires, though the volkolak is one singular entity. One common belief is that these creatures, in life, take on a more wolfish appearance, and upon death, can sometimes reanimate, shedding these traits to instead resemble a more stereotypical vampire-like form and set of behaviours, rising from the grave to feed on the blood of the living.
I will be going over information I found that leads me to believe this. I’ll also be laying out the bare-bones structure of what I think happened in his human life.
Drifter's Age
1. Drifter’s Physical Age
Based on Drifter’s physical in-game appearance, he looks to be somewhere in his 30s. We can also assume that vampirism, at least in the Deadlock universe, does not typically cause significant aesthetic changes to a person after being turned, and that it ‘freezes’ their physical age. This is a common trope in modern vampire media, and seems to be the trope that is being used in-game. It’s possible that there is nuance to this, but we don’t have an example of it as of yet, so we won’t dwell on it for the time being.
Going with this, that would mean Drifter was turned around his 30s, matching his physical appearance. We will use 30 (give or take) as his age for the sake of this theory going forward.
Now that we have his physical age, we can look at his literal age.
2. Drifter’s Literal Age
I want to remind you, as it’s easy to forget this in the moment; Deadlock is set somewhere in the 1900s, likely around the 1940s-1970s. That’s a relatively wide range, especially in a century that had a vastly different style decade-to-decade. However, it’s hard to pinpoint because Deadlock takes a lot of creative liberties and isn’t always historically accurate. So, I think trying to determine the exact decade, let alone year, is mostly pointless; having a general time frame will work for now.
Every character in game uses more modern terms for NYC, specifically Manhattan, which is where the game is set. Other places outside of the USA are referenced, and even specific locations within NYC are called by name; we know that despite the aforementioned creative liberties, a lot of the physical setting has a high degree of real-world accuracy. This is important because Drifter is one character who uses a very outdated name for New York, and when compared to the other characters and the rest of the game, it’s clear this is was intentional.
“New Amsterdam” was established in the 1620s and had received its first name by time 1626. It was first named “New York” in 1664, a few decades later, and aside from very briefly being named “New Orange” from 1673-1674 after being reclaimed by the Dutch, it once again reverted to its current, permanent name. This implies that Drifter was most likely around or familiar with New York when it was still called New Amsterdam if he continues to call it by that name over 300 years later.
He could have been born just about any time before 1664 based on all of this, but there’s a lot of historical events from the 1600’s that makes me feel like he was born within that century. I’ll go into this momentarily, but note; according to this theory, Drifter would be at least 330 years old.
Part II: Historical Context — Lycanthropy and Witchcraft in the 16th-17th Centuries
1. Lycanthropy
Lycanthropy has existed to some capacity for millennia, one of the first known references appearing in the Epic of Gilgamesh (c. 2100 BCE). Across several cultures, not just ones rooted in Christianity, lycanthropic afflictions were often seen as forms of divine punishment. This theme was, however, very common and maintained within 16th-17th century Christianity as well.
This was also around the time period when belief in werewolves and witchcraft surged, and ultimately started to become linked.
2. Witch and Werewolf Trials
The era of European witch trials really began in the 1400s with the Valais trials in whats now modern-day Switzerland. These trials marked the first instance of a systemic witch-hunting campaign. These trials spread throughout Europe during the 18th century, peaking in the 1600s.
Werewolf trials were closely connected to witch trials, as lycanthropy was often treated as an alternate for of witchcraft, or otherwise connected to pacts with the Devil, as with typical witchcraft.
3. Medical Explanations
Since the 4th century, lycanthropy has had a wide range of medical explanations, such as rabies, porphyria and hypertrichosis, just to name a few. In 1597, King James VI published a book which contained arguments on whether lycanthropy was a mental/physical condition instead of a supernatural one. The arguments in favour of it being a physiological or psychological affliction was based off of beliefs in the Humoral system.
Humorism was a system of belief that tied personality and certain conditions to the balance of the four humours: blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. An excess of black bile was associated with melancholy.
In Daemonologie, King James’ book, one of the arguments made was that claims of lycanthropy could be connected to individuals who had an imbalance of melancholy, as the symptoms could lead to delusions of transformation where one may perceive things in such a way where they believed themselves, or possibly others, to be turning into animals.
While this idea existed for some time previously and was now present in a major publication, the idea of lycanthropy being a sickness instead of a curse of sorts did not become culturally dominant until after the 1650’s. I think mentioning the existence of these beliefs is important given the context; the idea would not have been popular enough to have a significant affect on the court of public opinion when it came to persecuting suspected werewolves, but I do think it still plays some sort of role in events that may have occurred within Drifter’s backstory.
Part III: Regional Origins
1. Western vs Eastern European Folklore
When doing research for this theory, it became important for me to make distinctions between two sets of folklore. While there are many similarities, there are also key differences between western (specifically Germanic/French) folklore and eastern (Slavic/Baltic) beliefs around lycanthropy.
In Slavic/Baltic folklore, werewolves and vampires were essentially the same creature. While specifics can vary, generally speaking, a volkolak was a creature that showed wolf-like behaviours and traits in life, which, in some circumstances, could potentially reanimate after death, rising as a pale blood-drinking creature that has shed the wolfish features and resembles a more “typical” vampire. This reanimation was especially likely if the person lived a sinful life, died violently or prematurely, or received an improper burial.
2. Livonian Descent
I think that Drifter is Livonian specifically. There’s quite a few reasons why I think this. Thematically, there’s a lot of things that line up historically and seem to fit Drifter well. Werewolf trials hit Livonia hardest around the 1650s and were the most popular form of witch trial at this time, which is around the time I believe Drifter died.
There’s also the subject of Livonian Paganism. While most of Europe had already been Christianize, there was still a small amount of Livonians who tried to maintain their ancestral practises and continued to practice the paganistic beliefs that had been nearly wiped out after the Northern Crusades. These people heavily resisted Christianization efforts and the church, and maintained their folk beliefs well into the 1600s. They, not surprisingly, were persecuted as witches and many of them would end up as victims of witch and werewolf trials.
Even though Livonian folkloric beliefs held a lot of parallels to other Slavic/Baltic folklore, there were differences as well. Unlike many other beliefs, in Livonian folklore werewolf like creatures were not inherently viewed as evil, or as creatures associated with the Devil; Livonian pagans didn’t even believe in the Devil or other Christian figures.
Lycanthropic entities were actually viewed as, if anything, morally ambiguous figures who fought against evil spirits and protected towns’ agriculture from evil forces and witchcraft that sought to sabotage harvests.
Still, pagans accused of lycanthropy or witchcraft would be forced into confessions, as was common for anyone accused. They’d be forced to adjust these confessions to fit into Christian models of witchcraft.
This fits as a major contributing factor to Drifter’s current views of societal systems and humanity as a whole, I think; seen as monstrous by dominant, oppressive systems, yet neutral or even beneficial to his native culture.
3. Thematic Link in Livonian Folklore
Overall, the idea of lycanthropy being a “contagious” curse is a slightly more modern concept, but Livonian folk belief does have something that seems similar. There’s the belief that lycanthropy can be passed to another person via a drink and a toast. This came from a Livonian man accused of being a werewolf in 1992, so it’s not exactly in line with this theory. I don’t thing that specific method of becoming a werewolf actually has anything to do with Drifter outside of being a thematic hint to his potential origins.
4. Alchemical Link in Livonian Folklore
A longer standing idea in Livonian folklore is the idea that a special beer and formula could trigger lycanthropy. Alchemy has had ties to lycanthropy for a long time, mentions of concoctions, salves, brews, etc having been linked to the phenomena since ancient Greece.
Part IV: Traits Drifter May Have Shown in Life
I think Drifter likely showed many traits in life that would have been connected to lycanthropy and/or witchcraft across both western and eastern European superstitions.
I stated earlier that, in Deadlock, it’s likely that a more modern, ‘freeze the appearance’ type of vampirism is what’s being used. I still think that’s true, but I also think Drifter’s case is unique. If he is in fact a volkolak, there’d be a window between his death and reanimation where he’d have shed certain features. I don’t think they went away entirely, but became slightly less exaggerated or less ‘wolfish’.
The traits I’m going to list aren’t all of the traits that were associated with witches or werewolves. They’re just the ones I think relate to Drifter.
Physical Indicators
Sharp and/or curved nails
Swinging, bounding strides
Mild hunch in posture
Low-set ears (Deadlock’s art style complicates this one, but I think it’s likely he had low-set ears)
Personality Indicators
Defiance
Outspokenness
Reclusiveness
“Antisocial” behaviour
Social Indicators
Accusations were more common among:
Poor individuals
People with ‘outsider’ status
People who failed to attend church
Anyone linked to local misfortunes or unexplained violence (which would often be linked to people with the above personality traits regardless)
Witch’s/Devil’s Marks
Any skin irregularity (scars, moles, calluses, birthmarks, etc) could be used as “proof” of being linked to werewolves or witchcraft. Many of these things, like scars and calluses, were more common among poorer people too since they often had to jobs that were more likely to result in someone getting these things.
Anthropologist Margaret Murray would propose that these marks were actually linked to the tattoos of a pagan group which would be persecuted due to their belief systems. This theory (1921) has been discredited, and didn’t directly link back to things already discussed, but I do think the symbolism of it matters at least a little:
A dominant culture demonizing symbols common/significant within a minority group
Forced religious conversion
Persecution of indigenous (pagan) traditions
These themes parallel things seen in the situation of Livonian paganism and is tied to the overall time period.
Part V: Symbolism Connecting Drifter to Livonian Paganism
Here are more symbolic/circumstantial pieces of evidence that ties Drifter to this area of culture and time period.
Livonian Paganism
persisted among peasants in the 1600s
was condemned in 1637, when vicars were ordered to report practitioners
viewed werewolves neutrally or positively
was suppressed violently by Christian authorities
Church/state punished pagans with:
fines
humiliation
loss of rights
and, in severe cases involving witchcraft accusations, execution
Drifter embodies themes shared by:
folklore (lycanthropy = humanity vs wildness)
social conflict (persecution of minorities)
personal trauma from oppressive hierarchical structures
This cultural landscape supports the idea that Drifter was a Livonian pagan born around 1620.
Part VI : Drifter and Alchemy
1. Thematic Parallels
Alchemy and lycanthropy share an obsession with:
transformation
imbalance
attempts at control over human nature
2. Livonian Context
As mentioned earlier, Livonian folklore includes:
salves used for transformation
ritual beers
spoken formulas
early accounts of contagious lycanthropy
Alchemy fits neatly into this already ritualistic, substance-based transformation lore.
3. The Symbols on Drifter and the Red-Gloved Man
The marks on Drifter’s hand, and on the strange man in the portrait above the hideout fireplace, resemble alchemical symbols:
antimony (animal nature)
manganese (transition, alloy creation)
aqua vitae (life essence; humoral balancing agent)
Aqua vitae, a distilled spirit, was considered a purifier, medicine, pain reliever, solvent, preservative, and carrier of the “secret of life”—especially relevant to humoral imbalance theories like melancholic excess.
These symbols strongly suggest:
Drifter was experimented on
someone sought to manipulate his humoral or supernatural balance
alchemy played a direct role in his transformation
4. The Hobo Symbol Possibility
One of Drifter’s markings resembles a hobo sign (“there’s no use going this way”). These symbols originate in the 1870s, so they likely:
were added later by Drifter, or
are coincidentally similar, or
visually echo the portrait man’s symbols intentionally
Given Mina’s matching red gloves to the portrait, the man is likely tied to vampire creation in general.
Part VII: Life Timeline
Birth (~1620)
Born to a poor Livonian pagan family still practicing ancestral faith.
Childhood/Early Life
He likely displayed minor traits associated with werewolves. His father may have shared similar traits and hunted, reinforcing suspicion from Christian authorities.
Livonian pagans were defiant toward Christianization even after being condemned in 1637.
Family Persecution (c. 1637)
Drifter’s parents were likely punished and possibly executed. His father may have been accused of lycanthropy or witchcraft; his mother of witchcraft alone. Signs supporting accusations:
physical traits
pagan religion
low socioeconomic status
potentially being an only child
Torture would have extracted confessions. This trauma would profoundly shape Drifter.
Drifter Becomes a Wanderer
He retains his real name during this human period, still holding onto his humanity and ideals instilled by his parents.
Encounter With an Alchemist
At some point, Drifter meets the alchemist (or someone tied to him) and becomes a subject of experimentation involving:
transformation
humoral theory
ritual substances
possibly the beer+formula method from Livonian folklore
This experimentation is likely what made him a true volkolak.
Accusation and Execution (~1650s)
Eventually he is accused of lycanthropy (and possibly witchcraft), tortured, condemned, and burned at the stake.
This explains Drifter’s fear/discomfort with fire.
Vindicta’s similar execution and related voicelines strengthen this interpretation.
Reanimation
His:
violent death
improper burial (Christian rites for a pagan = improper)
and altered nature
cause him to reanimate as a vampiric volkolak.
Arrival in the New World
At some point after rising, he reaches New Amsterdam—before it became New York—leading him to retain the old name.
Here begins his growing hatred of humanity.
Later Centuries
He spends much time in:
the Carolinas
Virginia
Louisiana
Southern folklore involving spirits, voodoo, and shapeshifters appeals to him, enabling him to prey on fear.
Extra: “Hush Little Baby”
The song Drifter whistles in-game sounds similar to an altered version of "Hush Little Baby". The tune originates in the early 1900s Southern USA. Drifter may favor it because:
it evokes memories of his mother
it mirrors themes of reassurance, loss, and transformation
it ties his past to his present through haunting familiarity
Conclusion
Bringing all evidence together:
Drifter was likely a Livonian pagan born around 1620, persecuted for his beliefs and suspected lycanthropy, experimented on by an alchemist, transformed into a volkolak, executed by burning in the 1650s, reanimated as a vampiric entity, and eventually migrated to New Amsterdam and later the American South.
This is a simplified version of a 4000+ word document I made based off of the notes I collected while researching for this theory. If you'd like to read that version, you can find it here.
