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The reliable way to counter Solomon is to deny him clean setup. Track his bishops, move unpredictably when Rook Battery starts, keep an escape route before committing, and spread out when his queen or other area control is ready. Choose defensive items for the threat you actually face and for effects you can activate on time; no item has been established as a universal Solomon counter.
Solomon is newly available following the October 9, 2026 patch, so balance values and item behavior can change quickly. Use the live client descriptions alongside this guide, especially before relying on exact timing or damage assumptions.
Who Solomon is and why his kit is difficult to fight
Solomon is Deadlock’s chess-themed hero. His abilities use bishops, a knight, rooks and a queen, and each piece controls space in a different way. The current hero reference identifies the pieces and their effects, while the October 9, 2026 patch notes record when Solomon became available in-game: Solomon hero reference and October 9 Solomon patch notes.
The matchup is less about finding one hard counter and more about managing where and when you fight. Bishops can prepare delayed hazards, rooks punish predictable lines, and the queen combines area damage with stun. A player who walks into a prepared square or commits without an exit can lose the fight before raw aim or item quality matters.
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These recommendations are tactical deductions from the documented abilities, not an official matchup chart or the result of controlled testing. Solomon is a new release, and the exact values shown in your client should take precedence.
Read every ability as a counterplay problem
| Ability | What Solomon does | What you must deny |
|---|---|---|
| Setup Bishop | Creates bishops that remain in place. Moving a bishop lets it pass through enemies, slowing them and dealing spirit damage; it later activates squares that damage opponents who step on them. Solomon can recall the bishops. | Safe-looking paths through prepared squares and predictable movement that lets a bishop pass through you. |
| Kingside Knight | Promotes an ally, granting barrier and stamina. When self-cast, Solomon becomes a king and gains more barrier but no stamina. The moving piece is invulnerable while traveling. | A direct burst attempt during the piece’s travel and an isolated ally who cannot use the extra protection to reposition. |
| Rook Battery | Sends a pair of rooks forward. They deal spirit damage and immobilize on hit, reflect from a wall, and can be split by Solomon. | Standing still in a straight lane, especially near a wall where a reflected path can catch you. |
| Develop Queen | Summons a queen that damages an area, then releases lines of damaging squares that stun. The hero data describes additional queen movement; the patch notes summarize the ultimate as capable of executing low-health heroes. | Clumping in the affected area, staying low on health inside the pattern, or entering a fight without a route out. |
Read the full current descriptions in the official Solomon reference and the release notes at undeadlock.com. The important practical point is that Solomon layers delayed zones, line threats and hard control. You counter the layer that is deciding the present fight instead of reacting to every animation as if it had the same danger.
Positioning: win the space before you trade damage
Mark bishop locations and treat them as temporary walls
When Solomon places a bishop, note the location immediately. The original placement is not necessarily the final threat: he can move a bishop so it passes through enemies, and he can recall his pieces. The later squares can also punish a retreat route that looked clear a moment earlier. Avoid crossing a marked area simply because the bishop is no longer sitting on its starting point.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsUse an alternate route for a disengage, rotate around the edge of the hazard, or wait until the prepared squares have activated before taking a committed trade. If you must cross, do it with a specific destination rather than drifting through the zone; hesitation gives Solomon time to move the bishop or combine it with another control tool.
Break the line when Rook Battery launches
Rook Battery is a forward line attack that immobilizes on hit and can reflect from a wall. Do not offer a stationary, straight-line target near a surface. Change direction as the rooks are released, and account for the rebound before deciding that a wall has ended the threat.
Small, deliberate lateral movement is safer than a frantic run in one direction. The objective is to make your path difficult to predict while keeping enough control to avoid a bishop square or your own team. If the rooks split, reassess the open lane instead of assuming that dodging the first path has solved the ability.
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Keep an exit open before you enter
Solomon has immobilize and stun in addition to his damage. Before stepping into a room, tunnel or corner to pursue him, identify the route you will use if he starts his control sequence. A fight that is favorable in open ground can become unwinnable when the only exit is covered by a bishop or a rook line.
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Spread out without losing mutual support
Area damage and lines of damaging squares become more valuable when several players occupy the same threatened space. Maintain enough separation that one queen pattern or bishop activation cannot affect everyone at once, while keeping teammates close enough to help a controlled ally.
Spacing is an inference from the documented area effects, not a measured Solomon-specific statistic. It is most useful at objectives, doorways and narrow approaches where teams naturally funnel. Assign lanes and alternate routes before the fight so spreading out does not turn into isolated duels.
A step-by-step plan for fighting Solomon
- Before contact, locate his pieces. Look for bishops already placed and note nearby walls that can create a Rook Battery rebound. Check whether Solomon has a clear line to a teammate he could promote with Kingside Knight.
- Choose the fight location. Prefer open ground with two exits over a narrow corridor. If the only approach crosses a prepared square, clear another angle or wait for the hazard to become less useful.
- Start with movement, not a stationary poke. Enter on a diagonal or changing line so a rook release does not meet a predictable target. Keep your camera and crosshair ready to identify the active piece.
- React to the first control attempt. If a bishop moves through you or a rook connects, stop trying to win the damage race and use your planned exit. A slow or immobilized target is exactly what Solomon’s follow-up is designed to punish.
- Reposition when the queen appears. Move out of the damaged area and the lines of squares rather than waiting to see whether the next pattern reaches you. Teammates should rotate together through separate lanes.
- Only chase after the control layer is spent. If Solomon used a rook, bishop movement or queen sequence to start the fight, pressure him while that tool is unavailable, but do not pursue through the remaining hazards.
- Reset the map state. After the engagement, check whether bishops remain, whether your route is still blocked and whether Solomon can recall or move a piece. Do not reuse the same path on the next approach without looking again.
Item choices: buy for the threat and the action you can execute
Deadlock’s mechanics guide advises choosing items for the fight and the action they enable, rather than automatically buying a higher tier because it is affordable. It also distinguishes passive effects from active effects that require a timely button press. Read the current guidance at Deadlock’s mechanics guide.
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Ask what actually caused your deaths. If you were immobilized by a rook, prioritize a response you can activate before or during that line. If you survived the initial hit but lost teammates to the queen’s area pattern, mobility, spacing and a way to remain useful while repositioning may matter more than another damage upgrade. If bishops repeatedly cut off your retreat, improve the route and timing first; no purchase fixes a path you continue to walk through.
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Consider your role as well. A frontliner may need an effect that lets them enter and leave control zones, while a backliner may gain more from reliable range and a defensive button. The correct choice depends on the fight, your hero and your ability to use the item under pressure.
Counterspell is a timing-based option
The current Counterspell reference says its next parry protects against damage and effects from enemy abilities and items: Counterspell item reference. That makes it a candidate for a player who can reliably time a parry against the relevant Solomon threat.
Counterspell is not established as a uniquely effective or universal Solomon answer. The available sources do not provide a tested matchup recommendation, and a mistimed active leaves you with the same positioning problem. Practice the timing in the current client and select it only when its parry fits your hero’s plan.
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Avoid a fixed Solomon shopping list
There is no supported list of items that automatically wins this matchup. Build around the ability deciding the next fight, confirm the current item text, and account for whether you can press an active effect while moving, aiming or communicating. A theoretically strong item that you forget to activate contributes less than a simpler passive that consistently changes your decisions.
Team tactics that reduce Solomon’s value
Call the hazard, not just the hero
Use short, actionable calls: “bishop on the left,” “rooks out,” “queen pattern,” or “back route blocked.” Teammates need to know where the danger is and which movement is safe. Calling only “Solomon here” does not tell an ally whether to hold, spread or retreat.
Preserve multiple routes through objectives
Do not funnel the whole team through one doorway or ramp when Solomon can prepare that area. Keep an alternate entrance available and leave enough room for a controlled player to disengage without crossing another ally’s path. This is a practical inference from his deployed hazards and area control.
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Use control windows for coordinated pressure
If Solomon spends a control ability to initiate, decide in advance who will pressure him and who will protect the retreat. A durable initiator still needs team follow-up; the general mechanics guidance explains why survivability alone does not replace coordinated damage and positioning. Read that context in the mechanics reference.
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Do not have every teammate chase at once. One player can maintain pressure while another tracks the queen and remaining control tools. When the threat expires, collapse together; until then, keep the route open.
Assign a control tracker
Give one teammate responsibility for watching Solomon’s queen and major control effects. That player can announce when it is safe to advance and when the team must hold space. Everyone else can focus on damage, vision and their own escape instead of reacting independently to the same animation.
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Lane or small skirmish
Do not stand in the same predictable lane as your partner. If a bishop is placed behind you, identify a forward exit before trading. Keep enough distance that a single slow or immobilize does not let Solomon damage both players at once, but remain close enough to punish him if he misses the control attempt.
Objective contest
Approach from two angles rather than stacking at the entrance. One group can draw attention while the other watches the alternate route and the bishop placements. If Develop Queen starts, leave the damaged area first; contesting the objective while stunned or low on health gives Solomon the conditions under which the ultimate can execute vulnerable heroes, as summarized in the patch notes.
Chasing a retreating Solomon
Check the ground before following. A retreat can be bait if bishops remain behind him or if a wall gives Rook Battery a rebound angle. Chase only when your team has an unobstructed exit and enough health to survive a control attempt. Otherwise, take the space he surrendered and wait for the next safe window.
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Defending a narrow entrance
Do not turn the entrance into a queue. Hold offset positions, leave a second path and designate who will call the queen pattern. If the front player is immobilized, the next player should move around rather than stand directly behind the disabled ally.
Troubleshooting: why a counterplay attempt failed
- “I dodged the bishop, then died on the retreat.” You may have avoided the moving piece but crossed its later activated squares. Recheck the full hazard area and choose a different exit.
- “The rooks hit me after I reached the wall.” The ability can reflect from a wall. Break the line earlier and account for the rebound instead of treating the surface as cover.
- “Our team scattered and still lost.” Spacing without a shared route creates isolated targets. Spread across planned lanes, keep communication active and regroup after the control sequence.
- “Counterspell did nothing.” Its value depends on a successful, timely parry. Verify the current item behavior and practice the trigger against the specific ability you are trying to answer.
- “We won the first exchange but lost the chase.” Solomon’s pieces can continue to shape the ground after the initial damage. Check for bishops, walls and queen availability before pursuing.
Keep the live client as the final authority
Solomon was newly released on October 9, 2026, and the hero reference, patch notes and item descriptions may change as balance adjustments arrive. The documented effects support the positioning and coordination principles here, but they do not establish permanent damage values, cooldowns, win-rate claims or a universally correct build. Before a ranked session, open the current Solomon and item descriptions in-game and adjust your timing to what is actually displayed.
The individual mechanics remain the useful constant: bishops make routes unsafe, rooks punish straight lines, Kingside Knight changes the durability of a target, and Develop Queen makes clumped or low-health teams vulnerable to area control and stun. Fight where you have space, move with purpose and make your team respond to the active threat together.
Quick pre-fight checklist
- Where are Solomon’s bishops, and which squares could become dangerous?
- Which wall or surface could create a Rook Battery rebound?
- What is my escape route if I am slowed, immobilized or stunned?
- Are we spread enough to avoid losing several players to one area pattern?
- Which item effect answers the threat we actually expect, and can I activate it on time?
- Who will call the queen and tell the team when to advance?
- Has Solomon spent the control tool that would stop our follow-up?
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Deadlock’s chess-themed hero?
Solomon is the chess-themed hero. His kit uses bishops, a knight, rooks and a queen, according to the current hero reference.
Is Counterspell a guaranteed Solomon counter?
No. Counterspell can parry the next damage and effects from enemy abilities and items, but its usefulness depends on timing, and no source establishes it as a universal or uniquely effective Solomon counter.
Should the whole team spread out against Solomon?
Use planned spacing and alternate routes so one area pattern does not affect everyone, while staying close enough to help a controlled teammate. Spacing is tactical guidance inferred from Solomon’s area effects, not a measured matchup statistic.
What should I do when Solomon uses Develop Queen?
Leave the damaged area and its lines of damaging squares, keep an exit open and avoid remaining low on health inside the pattern. Re-engage only after the control sequence is no longer deciding the fight.
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