Custom Mode is an unlockable mode in Dead Cells that allows the player to adjust runs in a multitude of ways. This game mode is available by absorbing the Customization Rune, obtained from killing a unique Elite Zombie at the start of Ramparts, but some configurations are available only by beating the game at harder difficulties.

This mode allows limiting the item, mutation, and outfit pools, enabling and disabling meta modifiers, such as amount of flask charges, adding starter items with varying qualities, adjusting the timer settings, and more. Some options prevent the player from obtaining achievements, they are marked with . This mode only allows using items that have been unlocked through the Collector in Normal Mode. However, items unlocked or obtained in Custom Mode still carry over to Normal Mode.

When in a custom run, the Custom Mode icon is visible above the minimap.

Custom Mode has a set of controls (shown for keyboard use) that will help navigating through the mode:

• Q and E: Quick swap between main categories
• Space: Confirm
• Esc: Back

Default Presets

There are 9 different presets to choose, and 10 available preset slots for custom configurations. Currently, the preset slots cannot be renamed.

Speed Run

Permanent timer, all items unlocked... How fast can you go?

This preset keeps all unlocked items enabled and permanent timer that ticks everywhere aside from loading screens.

Preset details:

• All unlocked items are enabled
• No starting equipment
• Meta Modifiers
  • Maximum number of potions: The highest one unlocked
  • Gold Reserves level: The highest one unlocked
  • Recycling Level: The highest one unlocked
  • Forge Level: The highest one unlocked
  • General Upgrade: Everything but Hunter's Grenade is enabled
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Permanent Timer

I love Brutality

Only Brutality based weapons and skills are unlocked

This preset only keeps every unlocked Brutality items; items with dual attributes that have Brutality are also unlocked.

Preset details:

• All unlocked Brutality items are enabled
• No starting equipment
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer

Tactics for the win

Only Tactics based weapons and skills are unlocked

This preset only keeps every unlocked Tactics items; items with dual attributes that have Tactics are also unlocked.

Preset details:

• All unlocked Tactics items are enabled
• No starting equipment
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer

Survival is my jam

Only Survival based weapons and skills are unlocked

This preset only keeps every unlocked Survival items; items with dual attributes that have Survival are also unlocked.

Preset details:

• All unlocked Survival items are enabled
• No starting equipment
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer

Closer to the danger

Only melee weapons and skills are unlocked

This preset only keeps every unlocked melee weapon and shield items. Legendary weapons are disabled in this preset.

Preset details:

• All unlocked melee and shield items are enabled
• Starting equipment
  • Weapon Slot 1: Rusty Sword
  • Weapon Slot 2: Wooden Shield
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer
  • Legendary weapons disabled

Careful hunter

Only long range weapons are unlocked. Now with unlimited ammo!

This preset only keeps every unlocked ranged weapon items. Legendary weapons are disabled in this preset, and unlimited ammo is enabled.

Preset details:

• All unlocked ranged items are enabled
• Starting equipment
  • Weapon Slot 1: Rusty Sword
  • Weapon Slot 2: Wooden Shield
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer
  • Unlimited ammo enabled
  • Legendary weapons disabled

The plague

Everything is designed to kill you as quick as possible: no health potions, Malaise multiplied, exploding monsters and doors. No problem.

This preset, as the flavor text blatantly explains, is made to the game significantly harder.

Preset details:

• All unlocked items are available
• No starting equipment
• Meta Modifiers
  • Maximum number of potions: 0
• Miscellaneous Modifiers
  • Default Timer
• Malaise Modifiers
  • Number of Malaise points inflicted by a monster attack: 5
  • Percentage chance that food is infected: 0%
• Gameplay Modifiers
  • THE CHERRY ON THE CAKE: Enemies drop a bomb when they die.
  • TRAPPED DOORS: Doors explode.

One hit, one kill (yours)

One hit and you're dead.

This preset disables most items and set the Cursed Sword as a starting equipment.

Preset details:

• Items and mutations unlocked
  • Cursed Sword
  • YPhaser
  • Grappling Hook
  • Killer Instinct
  • Melee
  • Combo
  • Open Wounds
  • Parting Gift
  • Velocity
• Starter equipment
  • Cursed Sword
  • Phaser
  • Grappling Hook
• Meta modifiers
  • Maximum number of potions: 0
  • Gold Reserves level: 0
  • Recycling level: 0
• Miscellaneous modifiers
  • Item quality: Disabled
  • Legendary weapons: Disabled
  • Paid items: Disabled
  • Free items: Disabled

Some men just want to watch the world burn...

Only fire based objects are unlocked.

This preset focuses on fire-related items. All mutations are disabled with this preset. Otherwise, there are no additional configurations.

Preset details:

• Items unlocked
  • Pyrotechnics
  • Torch
  • Firebrands
  • Fire blast
  • Flamethrower Turret
  • Wolf Trap
  • Corrupted Power
  • Phaser
  • Vampirism
  • Grappling Hook

Equipment

This category is used to limit the item, mutation, and outfit pools. Enabling less than 20 items will disable achievements. Mutations won't affect this requirement.

In the "Random Outfit" section, there are two options - "Enable random outfit", which starts every run with a randomly picked outfit; and "Randomize outfit on every level", which starts every level with an outfit picked randomly.^[a]

Available controls:

• Q and E: Swap between item categories
• X: Enable/Disable all items from a category
• Space: Enable/Disable an item
• Esc: Back

Starting equipment

This option allows adding items with varying quality right at the start of every run. Items added to starting equipment loadout is automatically equipped.

Additional controls:

• Y: Change the quality of the starting weapon
• X: Clear the starting equipment loadout
• Space: Choose

Advanced Options

This category allows enabling/disabling various modifiers, either functional or fun. Unchecking options with specific status (e.g. number of potions) means that the game will use the status of that option in the current save file.

Meta Modifiers

There are 4 modifiers and a General Upgrade box available.

• Maximum number of potions, from 0 to 4
• Gold Reserves level, from none to 5
• Recycling level, from none to 2
• Forge level, only none and Advanced
• General Upgrade
  • Random Melee Weapon
  • Random Starter Bow
  • Random Starter Shield
  • Restock
  • Merchandise Categories
  • Specialist's Showroom (Disabling this will remove the room from Prisoner's Quarters, changing the level generation.)
  • Explorer's Rune
  • Recycling Tubes

Miscellaneous Modifiers

There are 21 modifiers here, 9 of them disable achievements when enabled. Some modifiers are available after beating the game on harder difficulties.

• Fixed seed
  • Allows you to input specific seeds to limit the level generation.
  • Disables lore rooms when used, so it can potentially change level generation on a seed.
  • Unlocked when the player has obtained 4 Runes: Vine, Teleportation, Ram and Spider.
• Timer configuration
  • Allows you to change how the in-game timer works.
    • Default timer: The timer stops when entering special rooms and pausing the game.
    • Semi-permanent timer: The timer stops only when entering special rooms.
    • Permanent timer: The timer won't stop aside from loading screen sequences.
• Number of active Boss Cells
  • Enabling this will remove the Boss Cell Tube from the spawn room.
• Curse level of Cursed Chests
  • From 0 to 999.
• Starting amount of gold
  • From 0 to 50,000.
• Increase the maximum number of mutations
  • From 4 to 11.
• All weapons and skills are colorless
  • Shop categories still filter according to the underlying gear color(s) as usual.
  • Gear automatically equipped at the start of a run by the Starting Equipment option (if enabled) will not actually be colorless.
    • Gear provided by the Recycling Tubes will be colorless, however.
• Authorize the use of 2 weapons or items of the same type
• Use the old shop categories
  • Shops will allow you to choose weapons based on the type of object rather than their colors
  • Unlocked when the Merchandise Categories upgrade has been unlocked.
• Percentages of objects with specific qualities
  • Available qualities:
    • + quality
    • ++ quality
    • S quality
  • The percentage for each quality cannot go higher than their gauge's progress in Legendary Forge.
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Normal" difficulty.
• Disable Legendary weapons
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Normal" difficulty.
• Disable Minor Forge
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Normal" difficulty.
• Legendary items only
• Health fountain never break
  • The health fountain will always be available in the areas of difficulty "Hard" and higher.
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Normal" difficulty.
• Curses leave you with 1HP instead of killing you
  • Curses will no longer one shot you.^[b]
• Unlimited ammo
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Hard" difficulty.
• Disable paid items
  • This includes shops and items behind golden door
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Hard" difficulty.
• Disable free items
  • This includes items found on the ground, in chests, lore room or altars
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Hard" difficulty.
• Disable Modifiers
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Very Hard" difficulty.
• Disable the one-hit protection mechanic
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Very Hard" difficulty.
• Disable Mutations
  • Unlocked when beating the game at "Very Hard" difficulty.

Malaise Modifiers

There are 4 Malaise-related modifiers here. All of them disable achievements when enabled. This set of modifiers is available upon beating the game at "Expert" difficulty.

• Enable Malaise
  • This applies to: Normal, Hard, Very Hard, Expert and Nightmare difficulties.
• Disable malaise
  • This applies to: Hell difficulty
• Potions no longer heal infections
• Percentage that food is infected
  • From 0 to 100

Gameplay Modifiers

There are 11 modifiers available here. All of them disable achievements when enabled.

• FOLLOW THE LIGHT: The level is plunged in darkness.
  • This modifier turns every biome dark, with lights everywhere. This modifier basically spreads Forgotten Sepulcher to the rest of the island.
• THE CHERRY ON THE CAKE: Enemies drop a bomb when they die.
• TRAPPED DOORS: Doors explode
  • This modifier makes doors drop a bomb upon destroying it by any means.
  • Bombs dropped from doors have much larger radius than normal bombs.
• BLOODLUST: Keep killing enemies or die.
  • You'll lose health gradually when not killing enemies. You'll be healed and the constant health loss will stop for a bit after killing an enemy.
• VENOMOUS: Every wound also poisons you.
  • Self-explanatory, all enemy attacks will apply poison damage.
• HITCHCOCK: Birds, birds everywhere!
  • This modifier heavily boosts flying creatures' spawn rate (Bats, Kamikazes, and Buzzcutters) across all non-boss biomes.
• FOG: Warning, deadly invisible monsters may be hidden by dense fog, travel at your own risk.
  • This modifier spreads fog across all non-boss biomes, even when there are no Maskers around.
• SHARP SHOOTERS: Take cover!
  • This modifier boosts spawn rates of ranged mobs (e.g. Archers and Inquisitors) across all non-boss biomes.
• SPIKERS: Time for some mushroom hunting...
  • This modifier spreads the Impaler enemy across all non-boss biomes.
• JUMP: You can jump multiple times in the air.
  • You can have 4 additional jumps with this modifier.
• ADAPTATION: This item will be replaced by another one (same type) of your main color between each level.
  • The quality of the new weapons will be retained from the previous weapons.

Notes

• Gameplay modifiers that alter the mob spawning, like HITCHCOCK and SPIKERS, won't work when at least 2 of them are used simultaneously.

Trivia

• Some Gameplay Modifiers originated from Streamer Mode. Some of them are:
  • THE CHERRY ON THE CAKE
  • TRAPPED DOORS
  • BLOODLUST
  • VENOMOUS
  • JUMP
• Custom Mode was originally meant for players to re-lock items they don't want to use. But it ended up with broader modifications to runs.

History

• 1.1: Introduced.
• 1.2: Custom Mode can now be unlocked in the Ramparts.
• 2.5: Multi-binding is now a Custom Mode option that disables achievements.
• 2.8: Cursed chest's maximum curse can now be increased to 999.
• 3.0: Legendary Only is now a Custom Mode option that disables achievements.

Footnotes