Now you may be reading this and wondering what would make this guide good to read? Well for reference, I've completed MOST heists on DSOD with 20ish left. I have created a few builds myself which work on DSOD. I will also be providing a NON-DLC BUILD for those who play but do not own any DLC.

There are 3 Perk Decks that I will talk about. 2 are free but 1 is DLC. Hacker, Leech, and Anarchist. Anarchist is a DLC Perk Deck so I will go over it last for those without DLC.

Hacker

Hacker is probably one of if not the BEST PERK DECK in payday for multiple reasons. While this could be a subjective opinion I will try to state why.

What is hacker?

Hacker is a free perk deck that came out with the release of Joy. In this perk deck you are given a pocket ECM which can be used for both stealth and loud heists. The use for stealth will not be mentioned as this is a loud guide. When using hacker, make sure to have the pocket ECM equipped to properly use it.

Deployable

The Pocket ECM is the most important part of hacker. It is important you understand the function of it. By pressing you "grenade button" your ECM will activate stunning nearby enemies including bulldozers. When the ECM is still active, each kill will grant you small amounts of health each.

How to use hacker efficiently

This will be the most important part to using Hacker as a lot of noobies tend to not use Hacker to its full potential. When using hacker, make to sure NEVER HAVE 2 POCKET ECMS DURING AN ASSAULT. The reasoning for this is to be able to maximize the health you can gain and to also have bursts of "break time" during an assault. Each kill you get without the ECM will lower the cool down for the next ECM. When should you use ECMs though when you still have 1 ECM? Well this will be important depending on the scenario. ECMs are very useful if:

- there are swarms of cops and you are low hp.
- need to use a medic bag
- need to revive teammate
- need to clear a room

There are other scenarios for when ECMs are useful but these are big ones as they can make a huge game changer. Making sure to use your ECMs when approaching 2 ECMs is very important as they can benefit both you and your teammates. Mastering this perk deck will make you a better player and teammate.

Leech

WIP Coming Soon

Anarchist

WIP Coming Soon

This is one of the more important parts of your build especially when playing DSOD.

Use this website to experiment with spending costs in points[pd2builder.netlify.app]

When level 100, you gain a total of 120 skill points. Using each skill point wisely is crucial to surviving for as long as possible and can be the deal breaker when it comes to completing a heist.

I will be listing very good skills and which ones to avoid.

Inspire

You probably know this skill if you've looked around for videos or guides about Payday especially with DSOD. This is probably a skill you should try to avoid. The skill itself isn't bad by any means but there are better ways to spend it. Let's break it down.

The base version of this skill isn't bad as you revive faster and shouting at your teammates makes them overall faster. This is something that you could possibly take and wouldn't be that bad.

The main problem comes in the Aced version. Yelling at down teammates revives them. Hearing this sounds good and by all means it is but is this skill really worth it? That is more up to you, as a new player this is probably okay to take but as you gain more experience and master perk decks (such as hacker) there are just far better strategies for reviving.

By all means, this skill unaced is a pretty good one and could save you but the aced version may be a waste of points that could be better spent elsewhere.

Hostage Taker

Hostage taker is a pretty decent skill in my opinion and is probably worth it. You passively regain HP for having hostages (including jokers) which is already decent enough. Peared with certain perk decks (Hacker and Leech for example) can make your surivability especially in DSOD even longer and save you in many situations. I would only recommend getting the regular version though as the aced feels like a waste of skill points.

Joker

This is a must for DSOD. The base version of this skill is more than enough. This skill allows you to convert 1-2 officers (depending if you have the Aced version of Confident) to your team. These act almost like AI and a shield in a way giving less attention to yourself. Playing solo adds up to 2 more AI with both skills. Having a team of full players and each having both skill allows for a tea of 12 people (8 Jokers, 4 Players) which can make a huge deal. This is definitely a must and I shouldn't need to explain further why it's so good.

Underdog

Underdog Aced is a skill that I barely seen talked about but I think this skill deserves a lot more attention. The aced version allows you to deal 15% more damage and take 10% less damage for 7 seconds when there are 3 or more enemies targeting you. This allows you to tank up just slightly more and deal more damage which can easily reserve your ammo. This skill is probably one of the better skills in all of payday as the buff you get may seem small but in reality it stacks up with a lot of other skills and allows you to live longer.

Die Hard

Another decent skill that I would pick up if you are able to. The base version if probably all you'll need. When taken, you take 50% less damage when interacting with anything which is huge especially stacked with other damage reduction skills and could save you easily. A must have in my opinion for making sure you survive just that extra second or even extra assault.

Surefire

This is a pretty decent skill which could be debated upon but the base version allows you to shoot through body armor. This can help potentially save bullets if you don't have the best aim. Also allows you to make sure you don't waste ammo. Not the best skill but a pretty decent one that could help especially when spraying.

Sneaky Bastard

This is a skill that if you are able to I would recommend. I would try go for the base version of this skill to save on a lot of points when bundled with "Low Blow" Each detection under 35 -> 5 you will get extra dodge for every 3 detection between those. This allows you to not take damage sometimes as implied by "dodge" and can easily be a passive bonus if you play good enough. Paired with hacker and you can have up to 70% dodge easily.

Low Blow

This perk deck works similar to "Sneaky Bastard" but instead of dodge you get a crit chance. Crit chance allows you to deal a lot of more extra damage to enemies which adds up a lot paired with some other skills. This can allow you to shred bulldozers within seconds and save you in many scenarios.

Unseen Strike

A skill that I would call useful as you gain a crit chance for not taking damage for 4 seconds.The same reasoning for wanting Low Blow also applies to this skill as it can stack giving you an even higher crit chance.

Nine Lives

The aced version is a must for DSOD. You are given only 1 down in DSOD but with Nine Lives aced you are given an extra down making it technically 2 Downs.

Well now that you've ready a lot about Payday 2 strategy and the key aspects of optimizing gameplay, I will provide a free build that works with DSOD.

Primary: AK5 Rifle
Attatchments:
Barrel: CQB Barrel
Barrel EXT: The Bigger the Better Suppressor
Boost: Concealment
Foregrip: Belgian Heat Handguard
Magazine: Vintage Mag (if you want to use a lazer) IF NOT then Tactical Mag.
Secondary Sight: 45 Degree Ironsights
Sight: Surgeon Sight
Stock: Caesar Stock

Secondary: 5/7 AP Pistol (Make sure to follow Payday 2 on the steam store to unlock this and others)
Attachments:
Barrel: TiN Treated Barrel
Barrel EXT: Champion's Surpressor
Boost: Concealment Boost
Gadget: Micro Laser
Magazine: Extended Magazine

Skills[pd2builder.netlify.app]

Perk Deck - Hacker

Throwable - Pocket ECM

Deployable - Medic Bag

In order to properly use all the knowledge you've used, you must understand how Payday 2 works.

Enemies

Swats

Swats or heavy swats are pretty easy to deal with. Given the right build these guys should easily be no problem only taking a few bullets (or even one) to kill. Make sure to get 2 of these guys hostaged so that you can turn them into jokers. Make sure to also help your teammates get jokers as well.

Shields

Shields are somewhat easy to deal with but can be an inconvenience. Easy counters are grenade launchers, snipers, or weapons like the 5/7 AP Pistol that was mentioned in the build. (Good shield counter)

Snipers

Snipers are somewhat hard to deal with at times. They usually have red lasers pointing near you so that you know where to look toward. Make sure to take cover when you notice snipers. Try take care of them asap as they can easily shred you if you aren't careful enough.

Medics

Medics aren't too bad but make sure to look out for them. Especially near bulldozers as they can easily give a bulldozer full HP if you aren't careful enough. They can easily waste your ammo if you aren't careful so always prioritize getting these guys.

Tasers

These guys aren't too bad but they can also shred your ammo easily and get you knocked if you aren't careful enough. They will stun you if you don't pay close attention which will cause you to shoot without control.

Cloakers

These guys are extremely sneaky and can knock you down in an instance. Bring something like electric brass knuckles to make sure that they don't knock you and stun you in place.

Bulldozers

These guys have multiple forms but they all are similar. They are extremely tanky and can kill you very fast. I recommend you to have some shield so that if they try shoot you, you don't get killed or take lots of damage instantly.

Health Management

When playing it's important to know how to keep up your health and shield. Shield is especially important as it protects you from any damage. If your shield gets shot you take 0 damage unless it's a sniper as they go through shield. It's important to take advantage of skills and perk decks to keep your health and shield up (Bullseye, hostage taker, hacker, etc).

Playing DSOD is no easy task as you can see form this guide. Playing Payday 2 isn't the easiest either depending on the difficulty.

There are very important things you must acknowledge and understand when playing DSOD.

Making Space

Now if you've never heard this term you may be confused but I'll explain real fast. "Making space" in Payday 2 is basically making room for you the breathe. To properly make space you must utilize everything you have. For example, if there are a lot of cops in one area and you need to make space for objectives, if you have Hacker equipped use your pocket ECM to easily kill all the enemies and make space for yourself and your teammates. Other options in making space could be things such as concussion grenades or anything to stun/kill groups of enemies.

Using skills and perks

As you've read, skills and perk decks are extremely important. It's important to use everything properly and like i've said, if you're using a perk deck like hacker PLEASE USE YOUR POCKET ECM, it makes heists so much more easier and helps your team a lot.

For any other questions feel free to leave a comment and I'll edit this guide. Good luck on DSOD