Best Sonny Build in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

If you’ve spent a bit of time with Cook in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, then you’ll no doubt have already heard of his counterpart, Sonny. However, if you’ve yet to pour any XP into the Victim, then you’ll want to do so at your earliest opportunity, simply because, well — he’s an alright character to have on any balanced team. That said, without a boosted Skill Tree and all the bells and whistles that come with it, Sonny, really, isn’t all that different from the rest of the Victims on the roster, much less a viable asset for any hard-working team. So, if you’re intending on sticking around for a while, don’t skip out on Sonny.

Introductory spiel aside, what more do you need to know about Sonny, as well as the abilities and perks that he brings to the table? Well, here’s everything we can tell you about the nodes needed to transform the restless Victim into an all-seeing powerhouse of a survivor. Let’s get right into it.

Ability

Sonny’s Ability is Heightened Sense — a power that essentially allows the player to scan the environment and detect any movement or certain key objects, i.e. a door or a running generator. As you’ll come to learn relatively early on, the Ability doesn’t work all that well for newcomers, as the radius doesn’t stretch all that far, which of course means it’s tougher to pinpoint other Family and Victims’ whereabouts. That said, there is a Modifier you can get your hands on that will ultimately boost said radius, which is the Increased Range node on the Ability Tree. Acquiring this boosts the radius up to 35%, which means you can scan roughly half of the map and keep tabs on just about everything while also working to locate an appropriate exit.

In addition to the Level 3 Increased Range node, you may also want to consider the All-Knowing node, as this will allow you to decipher the types of noises around you, either from a Victim, or a Family member. Either way, you’ll want to get your hands on a top-tier Modifier as soon as you’ve obtained enough XP over a selection of matches. Once done, be sure to put it to good use for the sake of assisting your fellow teammates in their efforts to narrow down the safest escape route.

Perks

As far as Perks go, you’ll want to get your hands on the ones that not only benefit your Heightened Sense Ability, but also the other Victims you’ll be playing with during the game. In short, though, you’ll want to work your way through the Skill Tree and unlock Meter Reader, Radar Detector, and Tai Kwon Door.

• Meter Reader

Meter Reader allows you to see the outlines of not only activate generators around the map, but the Family members using them. Having this employed in your arsenal will give you an idea of where to go, and more importantly, who to avoid along the way.

• Radar Detector

The Radar Detector Perk allows for you to see the outlines of ALL Family members whenever Grandpa uses his signature banshee squeal. Quite useful for any Victim, for sure, but doubly so for someone who already has a heightened sense of hearing.

• Tai Kwon Door

Tai Kwon Door is arguably one of the best Perks to have in your arsenal — especially for those who aren’t overly familiar with the concept of stealth. If, for whatever reason, you’re engaged in a chase with a Family member, then you can slam the door in their faces, leaving them stunned for up to 16 seconds.

Attributes

What’s great about Sonny is that he boasts the highest Endurance stats in all of Texas Chain Saw Massacre, which means you shouldn’t have to worry about applying any Extra Attribute Points to the slider whenever they become available. In spite of his ability to scan the area and knuckle down on any potential threats, however, Sonny does fall surprisingly short in the stealth and toughness department, which unfortunately renders the Heightened Sense Ability relatively useless.

Fortunately, the more you play Texas Chain Saw Massacre, the more you’ll be able to progress through Sonny’s Skill Tree and unlock Extra Attribute Points. Once you’ve maxed out on the Skill Tree and unlocked all of the previously mentioned Perks, you’ll have somewhere in the ballpark or 30 additional points to splash out on your Attribute sliders, at which point you’ll want to boost the Stealth and Proficiency sliders to sit on par with Endurance and Strength. For something a little more balanced, you can also pour a couple of points into the Toughness slider, as this will allow you to withstand greater amounts of damage.

Skill Tree

Like every other character in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, there’ll be a Skill Tree to work through. For the sake of boosting Sonny to become a more versatile Victim, you’re going to want to aim for the right-hand side of the tree, as these nodes tend to gravitate more towards the stat-boosting Perks that you’ll be utilizing on a daily basis. If, however, you fail to unlock any of the aforementioned Perks during the ascension process, simply activate the Respec option and begin the process from scratch. Note that you will not lose any of the XP that you have accumulated so far.

On completing the Skill Tree, you’ll want to assign the Perks to Sonny in the loadout area, and then play several matches in order to level up their overall effectiveness. Granted, this isn’t an overnight thing, so be sure to put in as much work with Sonny as you can — even after maxing out his character level to 10.

So, what’s your take? Do you have any useful tips for Texas Chain Saw Massacre newcomers? Are there any build ideas for Sonny you’d like to share? Let us know your thoughts over on our socials here.