Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Best Victim Builds

Summary

• Each victim in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre game has unique abilities and builds to excel in specific roles for survival.
• Players can maximize survival rates by using tailored builds for characters like Maria, Julie, and Sonny to adapt to gameplay challenges.
• Strategies like building for endurance, proficiency, and toughness, or using specific perks, enhance escape chances and counter family members.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is an online asymmetrical horror experience by Sumo Digital, based on the 1973 film of the same name. In the game, a team of four victims attempts to outsmart and escape a team of three Slaughter family members. Victims must use their perks, tools, and cover to fight, survive, and leave the oppressive family grounds.

“Survivor” players need a good build to escape consistently. The victims are unique and come with unique abilities, stats, and skill trees. Thus, all victim characters have a “role” they excel in. In this article, players will be shown the best build for each character, the best upgrade tree, and receive suggestions for characters and playstyles alike to increase their escape rate to above 50% with ease.

9

Maria Flores

Heal and Endurance Build

Maria Flores is a college student and a passionate photographer. She’s the first to go missing, kidnapped by Johnny in the ARG Petals. Maria survives by weaponizing Grandpa’s affection through her ability, “Sweet Talk,” which locates Grandpa. Upon reaching him and sweet-talking him, the next sonar will reveal family members. However, she is non-beginner-friendly and her reward is insignificant. This changes at max-level, as the next two sonars reveal killers. Maria has the same stats as her sister and fellow “final girl,” Ana. The Meta Perks include:

• What Doesn’t Kill You: Victims get 100% of their health back that was lost through a melee attack if they avoid damage for 15 seconds.
• Choose Flight: Pop adrenaline whenever you run out of stamina to restore 100% of it.
• Stunt Double: Reduces the damage received by 70% when climbing down wells or jumping out of windows.

This build gives Maria a lot of survivability, independent of Grandpa, gives her much-needed endurance, and she can instantly lose killers by jumping down a well without too much punishment. Skill points should prioritize proficiency, endurance, and toughness. More can be put into endurance if needed.

Players can run “Pep Talk,” “Dietician” and “Back For Blood” to heal from “Sweet Talking” and Stabbing Grandpa while reducing the family’s bond and his next 3 feds. Maria excels at “elder abuse” because she is not revealed by Grandpa until she shanks him. This counters blood-harvesting teams who rush Grandpa to level 5. You can make their efforts work for you. It’s high-risk but rewarding, and the heals offset the risk somewhat.

8

Julie Crawford

The All-Rounder

Julie Crawford uses her ability “Ultimate Escape” to reduce stamina drain and disable tracking from Johnny and Cook. She has the highest stealth stat and outmaneuvers the family with high endurance! Players generally should attempt to remain unseen and lose the killer in the cases she is. This will get gamers further than the head-on aggressive approach, in most cases due to her low strength attribute. The meta-perks include:

• No Sell: Reduces the damage of the following three attacks by 80%.
• Slippery: Gain a 15% speed increase for 7 seconds after navigating crawl spaces or gaps.
• Efficient Locksmith: Get a 40% chance to keep a lockpick after using it.

This build gives you a bit of versatility. “No Sell” gives you survivability and “Slippery” gives you a speed boost to get away, and you have a 40% chance of retaining your lockpick after its use due to “Proficient Locksmith.” Further, due to “No Sell,” you can worry less about toughness, capping it at 30 and instead, invest points into endurance and proficiency.

Remove any of the three perks for “Bomb Squad” if there is a trap-based killer, like Hands, Hitchhiker, or Nancy. Additionally, players can go non-meta and build strength and use the Strength perks “Choose Fight” and “Fight Back,” reducing the family’s stamina regeneration while stunning them after winning a close encounter. (Close encounters are determined by strength, health, and button mashing).

7

Sonny Williams

Fast Hands Build

Sonny Williams uses his ability, “Heightened Sense,” to detect noise from anyone nearby, pinpoint their location, and track their footprints. Sonny has the highest endurance in the game and is tied for the second-highest strength, making him good at winning chases, turning off generators, and escaping close encounters. However, he possesses the lowest toughness, meaning the hits you take are more punishing, and you can be one-shot by “Leatherface.” Players should aim to hide, determine threats with their ability, and escape sneakily. The meta-perks include:

• Fast Hands: Gain 75% more progress per tap on the lockpicking mini-game whenever a family member is within 10 meters.
• Highly Skilled: Grants +7 proficiency, freeing up skill points.
• Extra Drip: Heal 3 HP for 12 seconds after using a healing item.

This build makes it easy to open fences and doors and turn valves, allowing players to escape and pump points into their health to survive those chases and heal back up easily when they do with “Extra Drip.” Put Sonny’s skill points solely into toughness and proficiency!

Players can invest points in stealth to make him a “pseudo-Connie” or go right on the skill tree for “No Sell,” “What Doesn’t Kill You,” and “Choose Flight” for better survivability and endurance options.

6

Ana Flores

Unkillable Build

Ana uses her ability, “Pain is Nothing,” to reduce the damage from attacks and falls by up to 80% and to clear poison. She has the same attributes as her older sister but uses them better. Tied for the highest toughness in the game, reflecting her position as a “final girl,” she has indomitable will and good strength, not lacking anywhere as extreme as other characters. The meta-perks include:

• Jump Start: Reduces the stamina consumption of dashing by 50% (dashing is the big chunk of stamina used when you start a sprint).
• What Doesn’t Kill You: Victims get 100% of their health back that was lost through a melee attack if they avoid damage for 15 seconds.
• Slippery: Gain a 15% speed increase for 7 seconds after navigating crawl spaces or gaps.

This has obvious synergy since Ana has reduced stamina consumption and gets a speed boost to get away and heals when she does. Ana should invest skill points into endurance and proficiency for escaping and objectives. Due to Ana’s ability, players generally do not need to build toughness.

Gamers can build “No Sell” to counter Leatherface’s overhead or use “Bounce Back Better” instead of “What Doesn’t Kill You.”

Do not build multiple cooldown reductions for an ability. Unless it is necessary, it does stack and is a flat number.

5

Danny Gaines

Disable and Tamper Build

Danny Gaines is the boyfriend of the missing Maria Flores. Consumed by guilt for failing to accompany Maria on her wildflower trip, he ventures to Newt, Texas alone and is captured by Nancy. Danny uses his ability “Study and Tamper” to analyze objects around the map before tampering with an exit, which keeps it open longer for himself and his allies. Killers are unable to shut down a tampered exit, they have to wait it out (except Hands). He is tied with Connie for the highest proficiency and overall has superb base stats, only lacking strength, which may make close encounters tougher. The meta-perks include:

• Stunt Double: Reduces the damage received by 70% when climbing down wells or jumping out of windows.
• Tae Kwon Door: The stun from doors lasts 8 seconds.
• Bomb Squad: Gives victims the ability to disable traps without bone scrap.

These perks give you a chance to escape, fight back, and counter trap-based killers. Without a Hands on the other team, he is difficult to counter. Family may solely target him before he finds the items he needs or gains enough knowledge. Danny’s skill points should be used for endurance, proficiency, and toughness.

If there is a Hands on the other team, players will need two valves or two fuses to counter his “Ripstall.” Tampered exits stay tampered, so players should put the other one on as fast as possible before Hands can “Ripstall” again. If done right, the family has no retort. Additionally, Danny can backstab Hands if he does not leave and force a valve exit with the perk “Hare or Meat.”

4

Leland McKinney

Fight and Distract Build

Leland has the best strength of all the characters, making him excellent at winning close encounters, stunning, and kicking generators. However, his low toughness and stealth can make him slow to do things without making noise, and it is unforgiving if he gets caught by more than one family member. Leland is best played aggressively, using bone scrap and “Life Saver” to distract family players. The meta-perks include:

• Choose Fight: The stun from sneak attacks and close encounters is 5 seconds longer (strength also affects the stun timer).
• Slippery: Gain a 15% speed increase for 7 seconds after navigating crawl spaces or gaps.
• What Doesn’t Kill You: Victims get 100% of their health back that was lost through a melee attack if they avoid damage for 15 seconds.

These perks let you hassle the family and escape, creating distractions for your team while being difficult to kill, making for memorable plays. Leland’s skill points should be invested in toughness and proficiency.

Players can build “No Sell” to counter Leatherface’s overhead or “Bounce Back Better” instead of “What Doesn’t Kill You.” Additionally, with “No Sell,” players can disregard toughness entirely and focus solely on strength and proficiency. This is only recommended for experienced players.

3

Virginia Lynn

Attribute Build

Virginia Lynn left her nursing career behind and set off to Newt, Texas in search of her missing son, Jesse. Instead of finding Jesse, she saw the missing Maria Flores, barely clinging to life. Surrounded and captured, she found herself in a waking nightmare. Virginia uses her “Boon” to blind the family players and contaminate blood buckets to prevent them from feeding Grandpa. Virginia has arguably the best stats in the game. The meta-perks play into this:

• Tougher Stuff: Grants +7 toughness.
• Highly Skilled: Grants +7 proficiency.
• What Doesn’t Kill You: Victims get 100% of their health back that was lost through a melee attack if they avoid damage for 15 seconds.

This Virginia build gives her an insane number of attribute points, making her durable and fast at escaping. She can also escape chases by blinding the family or use her “Boon” to simply heal. Virginia’s skill points should be used in her toughness, endurance, and proficiency to highlight her strengths.

2

Connie Taylor

Escape Build

Connie Taylor is a sharp, skilled farm girl. Connie uses her skill and ability “Focused” to open a door in three taps. Tied for the highest base proficiency and possessing the second-highest stealth makes her an escape artist. Able to not make noise and win in as little as two minutes, if the family is not coordinated. However, poor HP and strength make her a bad character in prolonged chases or confrontations. The meta-perks include:

• Choose Flight: Pop adrenaline whenever you run out of stamina to restore 100% of it.
• Efficient Locksmith: Get a 40% chance to keep a lockpick after using it.
• Bomb Squad: This allows you to dismantle killer traps.

This build focuses on helping her lose chases and escape quickly, something she does better than the rest. Connie’s skill points should be used for proficiency, endurance, and toughness to survive and lose killers in chases and escape.

Whenever there are no trap-based killers, put on “Extra Drip” or “Saboteur.” You could go right on the skill tree instead for other great perks like “Tougher Stuff,” “What Doesn’t Kill You,” and “Jump Start.”

1

Wyatt Dunn

Swiss Army Knife Build

Wyatt is a Swiss Army knife. He uses his ability “Knife Throw” to break windows, disable traps, and stun killers. At level 3, he can switch off the generator and car battery instantly, even across the map! Wyatt is tied for the highest toughness and the second-highest strength. However, he has the lowest stealth in the game. The meta-perks include:

• Highly Skilled: Grants +7 proficiency, freeing up skill points.
• Choose Fight: The stun from sneak attacks and close encounters is 5 seconds longer (strength also affects the stun timer).
• Dauntless: Reduces the damage received by 70% when climbing down wells or jumping out of windows.

These perks allow players to stun family members with their knives at range and win close encounters if needed. Players can also retrieve knives and escape quickly. Wyatt’s ability and versatility make him arguably the best character in the game. Wyatt should invest his points into toughness, endurance, and proficiency.

Wyatt can swap the perk “Highly Skilled” for “Seeing Red,” which highlights all killers whenever he hits one with a knife.