Dead by Daylight Wiki


The Executioner
Name Pyramid Head
Game Alias(es) "Red Pyramid Thing"
Gender Man
Origin None (Creature, Manifestation of Guilt)
Realm Silent Hill
Power Rites of Judgement
Power Attack Type Special Attack

(Trail Attacks)

Weapon Great Knife
Movement Speed 115 % | 4.6 m/s
Alternate Movement speed 92 % | 3.68 m/s

(Charging Torment Mode)


110 % | 4.4 m/s

(Torment Mode)

Terror Radius 32 metres
Height Tall
DLC CHAPTER 16: Silent Hill
Voice Actor Jean-Baptiste Garnier (BHVR)
Cost 500 Auric Cells
Breathing
Menu Music
Terror Radius Music

Pyramid Head or "The Executioner" is one of 40 Killers currently featured in Dead by Daylight.

He was introduced as the Killer of CHAPTER 16: Silent Hill, a Chapter DLC released on 16 June of 2020.

He originates from the video game franchise Silent Hill, specifically Silent Hill 2 (2001).


Overview

Merciless and unforgiving, The Executioner brings his own form of twisted justice to The Fog, tormenting Survivors with hazards around the map. Hooks are an effective tool, but nothing punishes quite like a Cage of Torment. All hope will swiftly fade the moment Pyramid Head raises his mighty blade to deliver the Final Judgment.

The Executioner is a map-manipulation Killer, able to torment Survivors with the hazards he creates. Affected Survivors will be vulnerable to his special Hook, the Cage of Atonement and his special mori, Final Judgment.

His personal Perks, Forced Penance, Trail of Torment, and Deathbound, allow him to aggressively defend his prey while deceiving and tracking Survivors.

Difficulty Rating: Very Hard
(These Killers require a high amount of practice and understanding, inexperienced Players are likely to find little success when using them)


Lore

A sadistic and merciless executioner, Pyramid Head is fixated on dispensing punishment through pain.

Encumbered by the steel frame upon his head and with a hulking great blade in tow, he stalked the hellish corridors of Silent Hill, committed to a duty that no one truly understood. Where he trod, even monsters fled for the shadows, and those who crossed his path fell victim to unrestrained acts of aggression.

When his duty was complete and his presence no longer needed, he prepared for the long rest — and yet, his skills were required elsewhere. The Fog that streamed over him was somehow different than that he was accustomed to in Silent Hill, as if each wisp contained the nerves of a creature, writhing, seeking him out.

There was an unspoken agreement in that moment. The billowing cloud was an invitation to duty and sadism, and Pyramid Head, taking a step into The Fog, accepted his obligation once more.


Load-out

Unique Perks

The Executioner comes with 3 Perks that are unique to him:

Deathbound Those whose lives are intertwined in darkness are destined to suffer together.

Whenever a Survivor finishes healing another Survivor for the equivalent of 1 Health State, Deathbound activates:

  • Causes the Healer to scream and reveal their location.
  • Causes the Healer to suffer from the Oblivious Status Effect whenever they are farther than 16/12/8 metres from the other Survivor.
Deathbound deactivates after the Healer loses a Health State.
Forced Penance Those who stand in the way of duty will suffer harsh judgement.

Survivors who take a Protection Hit suffer from the Broken Status Effect for the next 60/70/80 seconds.

Trail of Torment You guide your victims along a path of pain and punishment.

Performing the Damage Generator action on a Generator activates Trail of Torment:

  • Grants the Undetectable Status Effect until the Generator stops regressing.
  • The Aura of the damaged Generator is revealed to all Survivors in yellow.

Trail of Torment has a cool-down of 60/45/30 seconds.

Prestige

Prestiging The Executioner will automatically add Tier I of his Unique Perks to the inventories of all other Killers and unlock the ability for their higher-tiered versions to spawn in their Bloodweb.

Prestige The Executioner twice more to automatically add Tier II and Tier III respectively into the other Killers' inventories.

Weapon: Great Knife

The Great Knife is the Primary Weapon of The Executioner.
A massive chef's knife to reap affliction and misery from his victims.

Power: Rites of Judgment

Unable to retrieve the Power description or unable to display it. It can be added to the Datatable/Loadout. Otherwise Please contact Jouki

Power Trivia

Movement Speeds:

Main Article
  • Charging Torment Mode: 3.68 m/s
  • Walking Torment Mode: 4.4 m/s


Rites of Judgment a.k.a Torment Mode:

  • Activation/Cancellation time: 1 second
    • This refers to how long it takes The Executioner to switch modes and put his Great Knife into the ground / pull it back out.
  • Power duration: 5 seconds
    • The Power Gauge will pause its Depletion process whenever The Executioner stands still or is falling from a ledge.
  • Power Recharge rate: 0.25 c/s
  • Power Recharge time: 20 seconds
  • Killer Instinct duration: 3 seconds


Cages of Atonement:
In terms of "Hook Stage" duration, Cages of Atonement have the same basic stats as Hooks.

  • Rescue Interaction time: 1 second
  • Relocation Trigger radius: 10 metres
    • This refers to the radius within which The Executioner must remain of a Cage of Atonement to trigger the Relocation mechanic.
  • Relocation Trigger timer: 3.5 seconds
    • This refers to how long The Executioner must remain within the Relocation Trigger radius for the Cage of Atonement to relocate to another part of the Trial Grounds.
  • Relocation "Hook Stage" Cool-down: 10 seconds
    • This refers to how long the game pauses the Entity Progression on a caged Survivor after their Cage of Atonement relocates.


Punishment of the Damned:

  • Attack open time: 0.3 seconds
  • Attack hitting time: 0.6 seconds
    • This refers to how long the attack will apply damage for after its initiation.
  • Attack cool-down time: 2.25 seconds
    • This applies to successful, missed, and obstructed hits.
  • Attack immunity buffer time: 1 second
    • This refers to how long a Survivor is shielded from further damage of the same attack when hit, since it is a propagating Attack trail.
  • The Punishment of the Damned Attack Trail will spawn with a delay of 0.267 seconds.
    The individual Attack Trail Elements will spawn with a time offset of 0.033 seconds between each element to simulate a propagating attack wave.
  • Attack Trail length: 8 metres
  • Attack Initiation penalty: -20 %
    • This refers to by how much an attack will drain the Power Gauge for.


Torment Trail:
The Torment Trail is comprised of several individual Trail Elements that connect together to form the Torment Trail as a whole.
The Game also distinguishes between "normal" and "restricted" Trail Elements.
The latter refers to Trail Elements that were placed within restricted zones, to which special rules apply.

  • Maximum number of normal Trail Elements: 100 Elements
    • This refers to how many normal Trail Elements can co-exist in the Trial Grounds, before the oldest ones are recycled when a new Torment Trail is being placed.
  • Maximum number of restricted Trail Elements: 25 Elements
    • This refers to how many restricted Trail Elements can co-exist in the Trial Grounds, before the oldest ones are recycled when a new Torment Trail is being placed.
  • Distance between individual Trail Elements: 0.8 metres
  • Live time of individual normal Trail Elements: 75 seconds
    • This refers to how long normal Trail Elements remain in the Trial Grounds before they despawn.
  • Live time of individual restricted Trail Elements: 3 seconds
    • This refers to how long restricted Trail Elements remain in the Trial Grounds before they despawn.
  • Aura Reveal range of Trail Elements: 32 metres


Restriction Zones:

  • Within 4 metres of Hooks and Generators
  • Within 3 metres of the Hatch
  • Within 3 metres of the Exit Gate switch
  • Anywhere within the Basement
  • Anywhere on a staircase

Add-ons for Rites of Judgment

Icon Name Description
Black Strap A nylon strap that was used to restrain a victim to a metal frame. The colour makes it difficult to see the blood-soaked into it.
  • Increases the reach of Punishment of the Damned Attacks by +0.5 metres.


Copper Ring Found in the basement of Brookhaven Hospital. It's engraved with a picture of a spider.
  • Increases the duration of Rites of Judgement by +1 second.

"I was locked up inside the basement's basement. It was so small and dark, and I was so afraid. I dropped my precious ring. But I'll never ever go back there."

Dead Butterfly A butterfly found on a bed at Wood Side Apartments. It's frail and nearly falls apart when touched.
  • Reduces the Recovery time of Rites of Judgement by -2 seconds.


Lead Ring Found in a refrigerator. It's engraved with a disgusting, bloated face.
  • Increases the duration of Torment Trails in the environment by +10 seconds.


Cinderella Music Box A music box with a figure from the fairy tale Cinderella, found inside a suitcase adorned with stickers from multiple destinations.
  • Increases the duration of Torment Trails in the environment by +15 seconds.


Forgotten Videotape A videotape of two lovers vacationing in Silent Hill.
Despite its sentimental value, it was left behind in the Lakeview Hotel.
  • Reduces the Recovery time of Rites of Judgement by -3 seconds.


Leopard-Print Fabric A shred of pink, leopard-print fabric. It's difficult to tell what it was used for.

"It doesn't matter who I am. I'm here for you, James." — Maria

Spearhead The sharp, rusted tip of a spear.
It is flaked with blood from its last victim.
  • Increases the duration of Rites of Judgement by +1.5 seconds.


Wax Doll A doll carved from wax, handcrafted by a prisoner who would soon face their judgement.
  • Increases the reach of Punishment of the Damned Attacks by +1 metre.


Burning Man Painting A diagram of the Lakeview Hotel. Red flames are painted over this place of guilt.
  • Increases the reach of Punishment of the Damned Attacks by +1.5 metres.


Mannequin Foot The smooth grey foot of a mannequin, brutally torn from its leg.
  • Increases the duration of Torment Trails in the environment by +20 seconds.


Misty Day, Remains of Judgment Unable to retrieve the Add-On description or unable to display it. It can be added to the Datatable/Loadout. Otherwise Please contact Jouki
Tablet of the Oppressor A metal tablet engraved with Aztec figures.
  • Increases the duration of Rites of Judgement by +2 seconds.


Valtiel Sect Photograph A photograph of two figures in red hoods.
Entitled Crimson and White Banquet for the Gods.
  • Reduces the Recovery time of Rites of Judgement by -4 seconds.


Crimson Ceremony Book A book about an ancient god. Author unknown.
  • Survivors hit by Punishment of the Damned suffer from the Haemorrhage and Mangled Status Effects for 80 seconds.

"Speak! I am the Crimson One! The lies and the mist are not they, but I!"

Lost Memories Book A book about the history and legends of Silent Hill and the surrounding area.
  • Survivors suffer from the Oblivious Status Effect for 15 seconds when affected by Torment.

"They called this place 'The Place of the Silent Spirits'."

Rust-Coloured Egg An old-looking egg, coloured reddish orange, about the size of a quail's egg.
  • Injured Survivors suffer from the Blindness Status Effect for 60 seconds when affected by Torment.

"James... you made me happy." — Maria

Scarlet Egg A fresh egg, strikingly red in colour, about the size of a quail's egg.

"I've never been so scared in my whole life! You couldn't care less about me... could you?" — Maria

Iridescent Seal of Metatron A talisman with an odd design inscribed on it.
The Entity's influence seems to have altered it.
  • The Auras of all other Survivors suffering from Torment are revealed to you for 6 seconds after sending a Survivor to a Cage of Atonement.

"This magic square, with strong protective and dispelling properties, is called the 'Virun VII Crest' or the 'Seal of Metatron'."

Obsidian Goblet An ancient looking goblet carved from pure obsidian.
  • Grants the Undetectable Status Effect while standing on Torment Trails in the environment.

"Forgive me for waking you. But without you, I just can't go on." — James Sunderland


Achievements

Main article: Achievements

There are 2 Achievements related to The Executioner:

Icon Name Description
Adept Executioner Playing as The Executioner, achieve a Merciless Victory using only his 3 Unique Perks: Forced Penance, Trail of Torment, and Deathbound
Cleansed in Agony Playing as The Executioner, ensnare a total of 30 Survivors in Cages of Atonement.


Cosmetic Options

Players can choose from a variety of Cosmetic options to customise The Executioner:

Base Cosmetics

Default

Icon Name Body Rarity Description
Pyramid Head Common A manifestation of guilt, this punishing force took shape in the nightmares of the tormented.
Butcher's Apron Common Born from the unhinged minds of his victims tormented by guilt.
Great Knife Common A massive chief's knife to reap affliction and misery from his victims.

Prestige

Icon Name Body Rarity Description Additional Notes
Blood-Soaked Pyramid Head Rare A manifestation of guilt, this punishing force took shape in Cheryl's dreams and tormented her with nightmarish visions of gore. Prestige Level 6 Reward
Gory Butcher's Apron Rare Born from the unhinged minds of his victims that he tormented with brutal and sanguinary methods. Prestige Level 5 Reward
Bloodthirsty Great Knife Rare A massive, bloodstained chef's knife to reap affliction and misery from his victims. Prestige Level 4 Reward
Perk Charms
Prestige Level 7 Reward Prestige Level 8 Reward Prestige Level 9 Reward
A keepsake gained upon mastery of a particular skill.

In-Game Store

Expand to view content
Thumbnail
Contains
Name
Collection Name
Release Date
Price
Forge Born
21 August 2020 (Friday)
Description
Straight from the fiery forge, an inferno of cruelty and malice rages.
1080
⇓ Expand ⇓
Piece
Name
Collection
Molten Pyramid
A red-hot slab of metal burning endlessly at extreme temperatures. Pain is atonement.
Piece
Name
Collection
Third Degree
Fiery rage courses through his veins, scorching his vestments and peeling skin from muscle.
Piece
Name
Collection
Inferno Blade
A searing blade that lights the night, warning of the blistering pain to come.
Thumbnail
Contains
Name
Collection Name
Release Date
Price
Pyramid Blight
26 October 2021 (Tuesday)
Description
The putrid serum took hold of the creature born from a dark wish, rotting with putrid ways to punish the guilty.
1080
⇓ Expand ⇓
Piece
Name
Collection
Putrid Pyramid Head
Dribbling with fetid, foul discharges.
Piece
Name
Collection
Foul Apron
A vile mass of fetid secretions, festering in his entrails.
Piece
Name
Collection
Rancid Knife
A massive knife dripping with sour, rotting matter.
Thumbnail
Contains
Name
Collection Name
Release Date
Price
The Corrupted
16 June 2020 (Tuesday)
Description
Born from a dark wish, his purpose was to find and punish the guilty.
1080
⇓ Expand ⇓
Piece
Name
Collection
Venous Pyramid Head
A venous head pulsating with the will to execute the guilty consciousness of his victims.
Piece
Name
Collection
Executioner's Apron
He pierced his victims' psyche, wearing shredded leather and barbed wire.
Piece
Name
Collection
Corroded Great Knife
A massive chef's knife wielded to reap torment from guilty victims.


DLC

Main Article: Downloadable Content

The Executioner is part of 1 DLC:


Change Log

Patch 4.0.2

  • Nerf: disables The Executioner's ability to see Survivors inside of a Cage of Atonement.
  • QoL: added a system that relocates Survivors inside of a Cage of Atonement should The Executioner stand within a 5 metres radius of the Survivor.
    • This system was to prevent camping a Survivor in a Cage, as hook-related Perks and their effects did not benefit Survivors being rescued from a Cage of Atonement.
  • QoL: relocated Survivors will have their Sacrifice progress paused during the relocation process and for a few seconds after relocating.

Patch 4.3.0

  • Nerf: cancelling Rites of Judgment now applies the same slow-down for the same duration as activating it (3.68 m/s for 1 second).
    • During this time, The Executioner is also prevented from initiating a Basic Attack.
  • Buff: reduced the cool-down after using Punishment of the Damned to 2.25 seconds from 2.75 seconds.

Patch 6.6.0

  • QoL: removed the HUD elements when performing The Final Judgment to allow for a more cinematic experience when killing Survivors this way.

Patch 7.1.0

  • Nerf: increased the required range of the relocation mechanic for Caged Survivors to 10 metres.

Patch 8.1.0

  • Indirect Buff: significantly reduced the time it takes to send Survivors to a Cage of Atonement.
    • This change coincides with the introduction of the Cage of Corruption exclusive to 2v8, which functions identically to the Cage of Atonement.

Trivia

  • The Executioner was the thirteenth licensed Character to be introduced to Dead by Daylight.
    • He is also the first video game licensed killer.
  • The Executioner was the second non-human Killer featured in Dead by Daylight, being a physical manifestation of James Sunderland's guilt.
  • The Executioner was the fifth Killer to have a special chase music.
  • Cages of Atonement are internally referred to as "Deathbeds".
  • The Executioner is the tallest Killer in the game based on absolute model-height.
  • The Executioner possesses an unused model of a tongue in the Game Files.
    • The Executioner's tongue originally appears in Silent Hill 2, when he grabs James Sunderland by the throat in a boss fight.
    • The Executioner's creator, Masahiro Ito, explained that it "[s]trictly speaking [is] something like a tongue.
      [He] used [the] word tongue for [the sake of] convenience.
      There is no way the helmet is his actual head.
      Also, the bottom left of the front plate of Pyramid Head's helmet is turned up."[1]
  • Unlike all other Killers and due to the size of his head, The Executioner does not have any animations for looking upwards or down at the ground. Instead, the position of his left hand shows whether he is looking up or down.
  • The Executioner is the first and only Killer to receive a Power that affects a Survivor's Sacrifice Process.
  • The Executioner is one of just a few Killers with the base-kit ability to kill Survivors using his Power.

Mori

  • The Executioner, in a technical sense, was the third Killer to have two Memento Mori animations.
  • The Executioner was the first Killer with two entirely different Moris.
    • The Executioner's default Mori features him lifting a Survivor up with his right hand, then wrapping them in barbed wire and twisted steel before finally piercing them with his Great Knife.
    • The Executioner's Final Judgment features him simply cutting the Survivor in half lengthwise with his Great Knife with an overhead swing.
  • The Executioner was the first Killer with a Mini-Mori ability.
  • The Executioner's default Mori appears to be partially inspired by a kill animation in Silent Hill 2, where he grabs James Sunderland by the throat in a boss fight.

Voice Actor

  • The Executioner is voiced by Jean-Baptiste Garnier, who at that time worked as the Senior Sound Designer on the Game.
    • The Executioner shares his voice-actor with The Oni, The Twins (Victor), and partially with The Blight.

Gallery

In-game assets

Official art

Models

Screenshots

References

THE KILLERS
BASE GAME /
CHAPTERS 1 — 3
Trapper
Wraith
Hillbilly
Nurse
Shape
Hag
CHAPTERS 4 — 8
Doctor
Huntress
Cannibal
Nightmare
Pig
Clown
CHAPTERS 9 — 14
Spirit
Legion
Plague
Ghost Face
Demogorgon
Oni
CHAPTERS 15 — 20
Deathslinger
Executioner
Blight
Twins
Trickster
Nemesis
CHAPTERS 21 — 26
Cenobite
Artist
Onryō
Dredge
Mastermind
Knight
CHAPTERS 27 — 32
Skull Merchant
Singularity
Xenomorph
Good Guy
Unknown
Lich
CHAPTERS 33-34
Dark Lord
Houndmaster
Ghoul Animatronic
THE SURVIVORS
BASE GAME /
CHAPTERS 1 — 2
Dwight Fairfield
Meg Thomas
Claudette Morel
Jake Park
Nea Karlsson
Laurie Strode
CHAPTERS 3 — 7
Ace Visconti
Bill Overbeck
Feng Min
David King
Quentin Smith
David Tapp
CHAPTERS 8 — 13
Kate Denson
Adam Francis
Jeff Johansen
Jane Romero
Ash Williams
Nancy Wheeler
CHAPTERS 13 — 18
Steve Harrington
Yui Kimura
Zarina Kassir
Cheryl Mason
Felix Richter
Élodie Rakoto
CHAPTERS 19 — 23
Yun-Jin Lee
Jill Valentine
Leon Scott Kennedy
Mikaela Reid
Jonah Vasquez
Yoichi Asakawa
CHAPTERS 24 — 27
Haddie Kaur
Ada Wong
Rebecca Chambers
Vittorio Toscano
Thalita Lyra
Renato Lyra
CHAPTERS 28 — 32
Gabriel Soma
Nicolas Cage
Ellen Ripley
Alan Wake
Sable Ward
Troupe
CHAPTERS 32.5 — 34
Lara Croft
Trevor Belmont
Taurie Cain