How Grades and Pips Work – Dead by Daylight

It can be confusing trying to figure out how and why you did or didn’t rank up in Dead by Daylight. In this guide, we’ll go over how pipping works, what emblems you need to earn at each grade in order to pip, and then look at exactly how you earn the various emblems.

Before we dive into the numbers, let’s take a look at the post-game score screen, so that you can better visualize what we’re going to talk about.

In this image, the player has earned 1 Pip, by getting two Silver Emblems, one Gold Emblem, and one Iridescent Emblems. The white pip indicates the threshold that was reached (1 Pip). You can see the vertical lines on the progress bar that indicate total points earned, in this case 11 (4 for the Iridescent, 3 for the Gold, and 2 for each Silver).

The black marker on the score line is the point below which the player would lose a pip, and the red marker on the right-hand end of the line is the point at which the player would have earned a second pip.

How Pips and Emblems Work

To rank up in DBD, you must earn Pips, which you can get by earning enough Emblem Points in a trial. Emblem points are awarded based on the type of Emblems you earn:

Seasons, Grade Resets and Grade Rewards

Grades are reset on the 13th of each month, when the Season ends. Both your Killer and Survivor ranks will be set to Ash IV. Depending on what grade you reached before the reset, you’ll receive different rewards.

Emblem Points Required at Each Grade

Since there are 4 Emblem categories, you can earn up to 16 Emblem points in a given trial. How many points you need to pip depends not only on total Emblem points, but also on what rank you are. Depending on your total Emblem Points, you can gain 0 Pips (sometimes called Black Pip), 1 Pip, 2 Pips, or even lose 1 Pip if you’re Rank 15 or higher.

Pips Required to Rank Up

The amount of Pips required to rank up depends on your grade:

Losing Pips

If you get a very low emblem score in a trial, you can lose 1 pip. However, if you are already at 0 pips for the tier you are on, you won’t lose anything. In other words, you don’t de-rank due to pip loss — you only lose pips you’ve accumulated towards reaching the next grade.

How Survivor Emblems are Calculated – Pipping by the Numbers

Lightbringer

Lightbringer points are tied to the Survivor objectives in the game: the generators, Exit Gates, and Totems. For this emblem, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 30 points
• Silver – 100 points
• Gold – 190 points
• Iridescent – 270 points

How to Earn Lightbringer Points

Starting value: 0

• 1-100 points: repairing generators (1 point for each 1% of gen progress you contribute)
• 0-33.3 points: being chased while other survivors repair generators (you get up to 100% of these points, depending on the repair progress of the generator)
• 5 points: awarded to all survivors each time a generator is fully repaired
• 5 points: being chased while another Survivor cleansed a Dull Totem
• 10 points: being chased while another Survivor cleansed a Hex Totem
• 15 points: opening an exit gate
• 20 points: cleansing a dull totem
• 50 points: cleansing a Hex Totem

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent emblem in a trial, based on our suggested strategy of doing 2 gens:

Completing 2 generators will grant you 200 points, leaving 70 to go. Cleansing a couple of dull totems will grant an additional 40, leaving 30 to go. Then, being chased a few times while other survivors complete a generator will grant up to 33.3, putting your theoretical total to 273, earning you the Iridescent emblem.

Unbroken

Unbroken points are tied to your survival in the trial. For this emblem, less points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 899 points
• Silver – 799 points
• Gold – 699 points
• Iridescent – 0 points

How You Earn Unbroken Points

Starting value: 0

• 1 point: get put in the Dying State (on the ground) by the killer
• 799 points: die after being alive more than 9 minutes
• 899 points: die after being alive less than 9 minutes, but more than 5 minutes
• 999 points: die before 5 minutes has passed

The Numbers in Action

This emblem is straightforward: if you don’t ever go down (get put in the Dying State) and you escape the trial, you’ll earn an Iridescent emblem. If you go down one or more times, but escape, you’ll earn gold.

If you die in the trial, staying alive at least 5 minutes will earn you Bronze, while staying alive more than 9 minutes will earn you Silver.

Benevolent

Benevolent points are tied to assisting the other Survivors in the game, by healing, unhooking, or otherwise protecting them. In this category, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 25 points
• Silver – 45 points
• Gold – 75 points
• Iridescent – 100 points

How to Earn Benevolent Points

Starting value: 35

• 20 points: unhook a Survivor safely (Survivor is not downed within 10 seconds of being unhooked)
• -30 points: unhook a Survivor who is downed within 10 seconds of you unhooking them
• -10 points: Killer hooks a Survivor
• 10 points: awarded to every Survivor when a Survivor is unhooked
• 1-10 points: heal a Survivor (1 point for each 10% of total healing progress)
• 10 points: take a hit while the Killer is carrying a Survivor
• 10 points: rescue a Survivor from the Killer’s grasp by sabotaging a nearby hook (within 10 meters) — the Survivor must wiggle free after you sabotage the hook
• 30 points: rescue a Survivor from the Killer’s grasp by dropping a pallet on the Killer or blinding them)

Multipliers

• x0.15: bonus added to any points earned in the Basement or after the Exit Gates are powered

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent emblem in a trial, based on our suggested strategy of trying to unhook two survivors:

Unhooking 1 Survivor safely, then healing them, will grant you 30 points. Do that twice, and you’ve earned 60 bonus points, giving you 95 when added to your 35 starting points. Take a hit while the Killer is carrying a Survivor, and you’ll have 105 points and an Iridescent emblem locked in.

It’s important not to let Survivors get hooked and then die without being unhooked, since you’ll lose 10 points each time this happens. It’s also important that you don’t unhook a Survivor while the killer is nearby, unless you have Borrowed Time or are willing to bodyblock the Killer, since you’ll lose 30 points if the Killer downs that person within 10 seconds of you unhooking them.

Evader

Evader points are tied to running and hiding from the Killer. In this category, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 230 points
• Silver – 380 points
• Gold – 560 points
• Iridescent – 880 points

How to Earn Evader Points

Starting value: 100

• 1 point: earned for each second spent in the Killer’s Terror Radius, multiplied based on your distance from the Killer:
  • x6: within 5 meters
  • x2.2: within 10 meters
  • x1.1: within 20 meters
  • x0.5: within 30 meters
  • x0.3: within 25 meters
  • x0.1: within 64 meters
  • x0: further than 64 (this is rare, since you’re almost never in the Terror Radius while being 64+ meters away from the Killer — occurs with some Legion addons or the Plague’s Dark Devotion perk)
• -10 points: being hit by the Killer while in a chase
• 50 points: stunning the Killer with a Pallet

Points are also earned for each second in a chase with the Killer:

• 1 point: per second, 0-15 seconds
• 25 points: per second, 16-30 seconds
• 60 points: per second, 31-45 seconds
• 125 points: per second, 46-60 seconds
• 250 points: per second, for every second past 60 seconds

These points are then multiplied depending on your distance from the killer:

• x1.2: within 5 meters
• x0.6: within 20 meters
• x0.3: within 45 meters
• x0.1: within 60 meters

Other Multipliers and Important Info

• x2: bonus added to any points earned in a chase that you win (you win a Chase if it ends without you being hit)
• 5 seconds: length of time out of chase required for a chase to “end”
• 15 seconds: how often points are “banked” in a chase (if you get hit or downed 25 seconds into a chase, you’ll only earn the points from the first 15 seconds of the chase)

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent emblem in a trial, based on our suggested strategy of getting in at least two chases:

Let’s say you get chased by the Killer two times. The first time, the chase starts while you’re within 20 meters of the killer, and they get within 5 meters after the first 15 seconds — you’ll bank (15 x 1 x 0.6) = 9 points. Then, you loop them around a pallet for another 15 seconds while relatively close to them (within 10 meters) — you’ll bank (15 x 25 x .6) = 225 points. Let’s say you even manage to hit the Killer with the Pallet, which will earn you another 50 points.

If you were to escape at this point, losing the Killer for 5 seconds, you’d multiply your total of 284 by 2, giving you 568 points, with 212 to go for an Iridescent emblem. You can imagine how one more similar chase (even if you eventually lost it) would earn you Iridescent.

How Killer Emblems are Calculated – Pipping by the Numbers

Gatekeeper

Gatekeeper points are earned by preventing generators from being repaired for the first 9 minutes of the match. For this emblem, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 10 points
• Silver – 15 points
• Gold – 25 points
• Iridescent – 35 points

How to Earn Gatekeeper Points

Starting value: 0

Gatekeeper points are earned once a minute for the first 9 minutes:

• 5 points: earned if 5 generators remain
• 4 points: earned if 4 generators remain
• 3 points: earned if 3 generators remain
• 2 points: earned if 2 generators remain
• 1 points: earned if 1 generators remain
• 0 points: earned if 0 generators remain
• 10 points: granted if the Exit Gates were never opened.

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent Gatekeeper emblem in a trial.

There’s a number of possible iterations of point earning here, but they boil down to the same thing — you need to stop Survivors from doing generators. If no generators pop for the first 7 minutes, you’re home free with an Iridescent emblem (5×7 = 35). More realistically, you can try and prevent Survivors from doing more than one generator for the first 7 minutes: if just 1 generator is finished within 2 minutes, you can let another one go at minute 7 and still earn an Iridescent emblem ((5×1) + (4×6) + (3×2) = 35). If Survivors finish a gen in the first minute, you’ll have to keep the rest of them up until minute 8 ((4×8) + (3×1) = 35).

Devout

Devout points are earned by sacrificing and killing Survivors. Letting them bleed out doesn’t count, but Moris and Reverse Bear Traps do. For this emblem, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 1 points
• Silver – 4 points
• Gold – 8 points
• Iridescent – 10 points

How to Earn Devout Points

Starting value: 0

• 2 points: awarded for a Survivor disconnecting
• 1 point: earned when every Survivor has been hooked once
• 1 point: earned when you have hooked Survivors 9 times
• 2 points: awarded for each Sacrifice or Kill (Mori, Reverse Bear Trap)

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent Devout emblem in a trial.

Earning an Iridescent Devout emblem requires you to earn every possible Devout point: 2 per kill, the 1 point from 9 total hooks, and the 1 point for hooking each Survivor once. Basically, you need to hook and kill all 4 Survivors, and it’s actually pretty important to let Survivors unhook each other (since you don’t gain Devout points when someone gest to Phase 2 on their first hook).

Let’s say you manage to hook 3 of the Survivors 3 times each: that’s 2 points per kill, plus 1 point for 9 total hooks, for a total of 7 points. Even if you’d hooked the 4th Survivor once, that’s only one more bonus point, bringing you to 8. As you can see, you need to hook all 4 Survivors at least once, and you need to get all 4 kills. It’s OK if people die on hook once you’ve gotten 9 total hooks, but if you camp 2 Survivors and they both die on their first hook, it will be impossible to get 9 total hooks, so keep that in mind.

Malicious

Malicious points are earned by injuring or downing Survivors and also via Survivors reaching hook states. Points are lost if Survivors escape your grasp or heal. For this emblem, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 11 points
• Silver – 22 points
• Gold – 30 points
• Iridescent – 36 points

How to Earn Malicious Points

Starting value: 0

• 1 point: awarded for a sucessful hit
• 2 point: earned for each new Hook State reached by a hooked Survivor
• -1 points: lost each time a Survivor is healed
• -1 points: lost when a Survivor escapes your grasp

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent Malicious emblem in a trial.

The numbers for this one can get a bit confusing thanks to the point lost when a Survivor heals. Since a healthy Survivor grants 2 points per chase (one for injuring, one for downing) let’s take a look at the total points earned from chasing and hooking one Survivor 3 times while assuming that only the first chase grants 2 points: You’ll earn 2 points for each hook state for a total of 6, and you’ll earn 2 + 1 + 1 = 5 points for catching them 3 times, for a total of 11 points earned for chasing and hooking a Survivor 3 times. With that in mind, you can kill 3 Survivors and earn 33 points, meaning you only need to catch and hook the 4th Survivor once to earn over 36 points.

For clarity’s sake, let’s look at how many points you’d have if you caught and hooked each Survivor twice. 4 x (2 x 2) = 16 hook state points plus 4 x (2 + 1) = 12 points, for a total of 28 points. You still need 8 points here, so you’d have to catch and hook 3 survivors (3 x (1 + 2) = 9) to get an Iridescent emblem. To sum it up, you need to make sure at least 3 Survivors die on hook, and catch the other Survivor at least once.

Chaser

Chaser points are earned by finding and chasing Survivors, and lost by camping near the hook. For this emblem, more points is better.

Emblem Breakpoints

• Bronze – 650 points
• Silver – 1230 points
• Gold – 1800 points
• Iridescent – 2550 points

How to Earn Chaser Points

Starting value: 0

• 5 point: awarded for finding a Survivor and beginning a chase
• 55 points: awarded for hitting a Survivor
• -3 points: lost each second you spend within 16 meters of a hook (after 10 seconds)
• -7.5 points: lost each second you spend within 8 meters of a hook (after 10 seconds)

Once you begin a chase, you will earn points if you end the chase by hitting the Survivor. If you lose sight of the Survivor, you have 5 seconds to find them again, or the chase ends. Chases that end with the Survivor getting away grant no points.

• 90 points: earned for a chase that ends within 15 seconds
• 60 points: earned for a chase that ends within 30 seconds
• 50 points: earned for a chase that ends within 45 seconds
• 40 points: earned for a chase that ends within 60 seconds
• 30 points: earned for a chase that ends after more than 60 seconds

The Numbers in Action

Let’s take a look at how you might earn an Iridescent Chaser emblem in a trial.

To make things simpler, we’ll examine how many chases you’d need to win while assuming each chase ends within 15 seconds. A successful chase that ends within 15 seconds grants 5 + 90 + 55 = 150 points, so you’d need to win exactly 17 sub 15-second chases to earn the 2550 points you need for an Iridescent Chaser emblem. Killers that frequently or exclusively insta-down Survivors will have to either slug and let Survivors get back up, or settle for a Gold emblem in this category.

However, you don’t actually have to end every chase within 15 seconds. In fact, as long as you end every chase within 45 seconds, you need just over 23 successful chases to earn the Iridescent emblem. Given that you should almost never be chasing a Survivor for 45 seconds without hitting them, this is a fairly attainable goal. It takes two successful chases to down a Survivor without any insta-down abilities, so 4 x 3 x 2 = 24 potential chases if you catch and hook each Survivor 3 times, with two hits per hook.

We hope this guide was helpful! Please leave any suggestions or questions you have in the comments below.