User:Daemmerung/Personae Dramatis

These are finger exercises for wiki editing, really. The only thing less interesting than a static build is a static build at level 69, where all of the builds start to converge. After a certain point I stopped logging these silly things. (Probably about the same time that I stopped making substantial, constructive wiki edits.)

The First Four
My first four characters I played to completion: level 69, all missions turned in, all weapon proficiencies maxed. Once I played them out one way, I respecced them and played them out another way. They spent long hours making purple lobster salad in the DLC3 endgame, and amassed damned good gear as a result.

I don't play this way any more. I don't max characters, and I rarely respec them except strategically, as part of an overall development process (e.g., Hunters getting into and out of Swipe, or Sirens getting into and out of Spark). If I want to try something new, I'd rather grow a new character, because much of the fun for me is handling the development process.

Loot Giant, the Berserker

 * | Eridian Berserker - Berserker COM
 * Boom-free challenge build, a more interesting way to buff Eridian proficiency than coups-de-grace while farming with a Blast Master
 * Melee Berserker was my very first character's PT1 career. Was interesting to return to it after taking all four characters to PT2.5. Kind of a coda to the game
 * | Blast Master - Blast Master COM
 * Somewhat unusual in including Iron Fist and Bash, good for stomping Scythids and dazing lone badasses or bosses
 * May trade in Pay Back for Heavy Handed as well
 * 2/5 Loaded plus a Bombardier COM yields two complete salvos from a Spread rocket launcher

I had to take four characters to L69 and PT2.5 and take up farming Crawmerax before one of them finally found an Atlas Ogre with non-negative recoil reduction. But now that my Zerker has such... holy overkill, Batman.

More recent, more specialized Berserkers of mine:
 * Jesse the Body
 * Mr. Smashy
 * Panzerfaust
 * Raketemensch
 * Salvador (yeah, I went there)
 * Trog

Mordenkainen, the Hunter

 * | Killing is my business... - Assassin or Truxican Wrestler COM
 * My quotidian shotgunning Hunter build, sufficiently flexible to run Sniper or Scavenger as well
 * I spec in and out of Gun Crazy to keep this build fresh
 * | Eridian Wrestler - Truxican Wrestler or Assassin COM
 * L69+4 is overkill for any Eridian-focused Hunter build, including this one
 * Fast Hands included for wielding a non-Eridian weapon with a melee bonus, e.g. a spiked Hyperion Butcher or razored Jakobs Unforgiven. I haven't tested to see if this skill improves weapon equip speed, which would be a blessing when using Eridians
 * Carrion Call included for spamming the bird; Caliber included as long as there's a non-Eridian sniper rifle in the quiver for Carrion Call
 * 5/5 Ransack obviates running Scavenger
 * Ranger, Hunter, or Survivor are all also possible, with or without Lethal Strike

The Hunter seems to be the most useless character for Eridian weapons, since so many of his skills are bullet- or weapon-specific, and he doesn't have recourse to Uncle Roland's Sovereign 18-in-1 Universal Remedy aka Heavy Gunner. All you can do is pump the Rogue tree and hope for Lady Luck to be kind.

More recent, more specialized Hunters of mine:
 * Camposaurus
 * Harvey Birdman
 * Mackie Messer
 * Sling Blade

Karrnage, the Soldier

 * | Army Of One - Shock Trooper COM, typically, but also works with all the usual suspects
 * A solo soldier's build, favoring shotguns
 * Still missing 2 skill points from PT1 Robolution and PT2 Moxxi. If I get around to chasing those points I imagine I'll fill out Barrage with them
 * | Eridian Trooper - Shock Trooper or a mat3 Heavy Gunner COM
 * Gedankenbuild, completely untested; a note to myself for when I get back to this class, nothing more
 * Metal Storm is of questionable utility for Eridians, where increasing ROF is not an absolute form of the good; however, it is necessary for access to Refire and Guided Missile. One might replace it with the useless (to Eridians) but innocuous Impact, or a co-op player could burn this entire branch in exchange for Cauterize, Aid Station, and more Supply Drop
 * I have not tested the effectiveness of Refire with Eridian weapons, many of which deal small-scale splash damage
 * Just enough Supply Drop to expedite grenade spamming
 * Update: no longer a Gedankenbuild! See instead  Zapp

I originally built this character to test Carnage shotguns with maxed Scattershot, Overload, and Metal Storm, hence the name. He is the proud owner of an underwhelming Atlas Champion COM (mat1, and +4 to Grit, ugh) that just barely exceeds Heavy Gunner's damage bonus; I run it only occasionally, and only for style.

More recent, more specialized Soldiers of mine:
 * Hydraulic
 * Streetsweeper
 * Wuestenfuchs
 * Zapp

Lili von Shtupp, the Siren

 * Eridian Warrior Princess - an Eridian build, obviously. For a more recent take, see instead  Ariel
 * R.I.P. Tura Satana - a melee-centric build. Recently reprised as  Bitchslap
 * Bullet Hose-beast - an antidote to the two other builds. No longer a Gedankenbuild, qv  Hosebeast

0 Combat Rifle proficiency and proud of it, man! At the time, deliberately avoiding a weapon proficiency seemed daring. What can I say?

More recent, more specialized Sirens of mine:
 * Annie Oakley
 * Ariel
 * Bitchslap
 * Hosebeast
 * Silk Spectre

More retired characters
Like the first four, all level 69 and at endgame, but with neither maxed proficiencies (been there, done that) nor tons of loot (bored with Farmory, bored with Craw).

I wish that the late game were more than just endless runs through the DLC3 loot buckets. I'm not really a DLC3 fan: for me, it lacks the replay value of the main game.

Harvey Birdman, the Hunter
My first Hunter, Mordenkainen, started out his career with Focus and Deadly, going down a "Glass Cannon" path, and only learned to love the Bird after a late-in-life respec. Harvey Birdman instead spent his first twenty points entirely within the Rogue tree.

In retrospect, I wish I'd developed Shotgun instead of Pistol proficiency, as that would have been a more interesting close combat option for a Rogue-focused character. I corrected that with a later character, Mackie Messer.

Panzerfaust, the Berserker
Berserker who wished he wes a Hunter, with Pistol and Sniper Rifle proficiencies in addition to the traditional Rocket Launcher. Development strategy: Rapid Reload, then Revenge, then start cranking the Tank tree until the first decent explosive weapon appears, whereupon Endowed. In practice, he was lucky enough to find decent blast weapons fairly early, before even filling out Revenge, as well as a Bombardier with ammo regen.

Sniper rifles and revolvers are both excellent explosive weapons, since even when they don't proc per se they will generate an explosive event. Panzerfaust made quite a powerful non-Brawling character.

Trog, the Berserker
Berserker who wished he was a Soldier, with Shotgun and Combat Rifle proficiencies, and not particularly keen on explosives other than grenades a-plenty. Unlike Panzerfaust, not at all averse to berserking (hence the name).

Development strategy: Hardened, then a little Juggernaut, then a little Bash, then Rapid Reload and Revenge in the Blaster tree, then back to the Tank tree.

I discovered that a mat3 Berserker class mod stacks very nicely with 5/5 Hardened and a spiked shotgun, enough so that I put no points in the Brawler tree at all until PT2. Melee out of Berserk mode as much as possible to build weapon proficiency. Also, even without any of Brick's rocket skills, I just liked Rocket Launchers too much to pass them up. Every rocket fired is a grenade saved for later.

Parked characters
While these characters have not reached maximum level or completed all the DLC, they are nevertheless no longer in active play. The DLC doesn't hold my attention, and there are always more character combos to try.

Silk Spectre, the Siren
Siren who wished she was a Hunter, with Sniper Rifle and Pistol proficiencies. Harvey Birdman (q.v.) found a decent low-level Specter classmod while speed-running PT1 DLC3, so I built this character specifically to use that mod. Development strategy: straight shot down the left side of the Assassin tree, then a little Spark and a little Diva, then more defense-oriented Controller and Resilience and Blackout. The Hunter philosophy of "kill it before it kills you" works nicely with a Specter, and Phasewalk is a great way both to get into position and get out of trouble. I really miss sniper rifle ammo regen, though. Also, sniping with 8/5 High Velocity has probably destroyed any Hunter sniping skills that I might once have had.

Currently L63, mid DLC4 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in. Wanted: Dead! incomplete (Hera and Ceresia): possibly farmable for better Specter classmods?

Mackie Messer, the Hunter
Originally planned as the logical complement of Panzerfaust: a Hunter who wished he was a Berserker, with Shotgun and Rocket Launcher proficiencies. Remake of Harvey Birdman, but moving to Assassin instead of remaining a Ranger.

Mackie shared Mordy's skills in falconry, but not his taste in weapons. The character ended up taking Combat Rifle and SMG proficiencies as well, making it a 0 Pistol, 0 Sniper Rifle build. As a result, proficiencies are rather dilute; also, overleveling has been a persistent challenge, pursuing so many side quests for their weapon rewards.

Development strategy: start with several points in Swipe to feed the automatic weapons. End up with 16 points in the Rogue tree (Bird of Prey 1/5), respecing midway to reallocate all the Swipe points into Aerial Impact once a few ammo SDUs were acquired. Then 10 points into Sniper; after that, Gunslinger, aiming to reach first Predator, then Relentless (for automatic weapons) ASAP. Eschewing all weapon-specific skills closely delimits the paths available through the Sniper and Gunslinger trees, and makes Trespass unobtainable (unless one were to waste 5 points. Smirk is a waste of points).

Ran all of PT1 other than the final Destroyer confrontation with his very first classmod, a 560 Hunter (found even before the starter Survivor was given) and Wee Wee's Super Booster.

Currently L62, starting DLC4 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in. Wanted: Dead! incomplete (Hera): possibly farmable?

Jesse the Body, the Berserker
Full-automatic-weapon specialist Berserker, with SMG and Combat Rifle proficiencies. On Silk Spectre's PT1 escape from Thor on the Salt Flats, one of the Lance dropped a low-level Ogre, and I wanted to see what a low-level Berserker could do with same. Development strategy: pump the Blaster tree to get Master Blaster ASAP. Challenge: eschew Pistols, Shotguns, and Sniper Rifles.

Character ended up running Centurion stacked with a Muscleman shield most of the time, particularly once he outgrew the Ogre. Hey, it fits the name (originally chosen after the minigun-wielding character in Predator). I was a Gunzerker before Gunzerking was cool!

Currently L62, starting DLC4 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in. Wanted: Dead! incomplete (Hera): possibly farmable?

Wuestenfuchs, the Soldier
A classic Rifleman, played solely to enjoy the voice-acting of Borderlands auf Deutsch. ''Sei gegruesst, Reisender! Helena Pierce hat mehr Jobs fuer dich in New Haven! Vorsicht:'' German-speaking Scooter just isn't the same.

No proficiency in Pistol, SMG, or Eridians.

Currently L55, mid DLC3 (PT2).

Camposaurus, the Hunter
A classic Sniper, played auf Deutsch like Wuestenfuchs. Proficiencies in Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, and Launcher only.

Currently L53, starting DLC3 (PT2).

Mr. Smashy, the Berserker
A classic punch-time Berserker, played solely to enjoy hearing Brick roar ''BLUT! BLUUUUT!!'' I was going through a phase. Proficiencies in Shotgun, Combat Rifle, and Launcher only.

Currently L53, in early DLC3 (PT2).

Bitchslap, the Siren
A melee-oriented Firefly/Defender, played to experiment with Siren melee skills. Proficient only in Pistol, Shotgun, and Launcher.

Character still needs tuning. Siren skill combinations are rather subtle when you're trying a hand-to-hand build. I should probably un-park this one.

Currently L53, in early DLC3 (PT2).

Sling Blade, the Hunter
A classic Gunslinger, played to capture that overpowered Gunslinger experience, and to complement the Sniper experience of Camposaurus. Proficient only in Pistol and Launcher. Pistol proficiency maxed.

With maxed pistol proficiency, I am even less likely to bring this character out of retirement than most, which is a pity because he made an excellent Ransack-spamming Scavenger. Funny how demotivating that is.

Currently L58, in the endgame of DLC3 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in.

Hydraulic, the Soldier
A Rifleman, played to get the hang of controlling Borderlands with a Razer Hydra. Proficient in SMG, Combat Rifle, and Sniper Rifle only.

Currently L53, in early DLC3 (PT2).

Streetsweeper, the Soldier
A pure Commando, played because I didn't know what I was doing when I ran Karrnage so long ago, and to complement the Rifleman experience of Wuestenfuchs and Hydraulic. Proficient only in Shotgun and Launcher.

Currently L58, in the endgame of DLC3 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in.

Annie Oakley, the Siren
A quasi-Specter, for most of her career running a Defender with a Pistol focus, played to test the Hydra with a more precise playstyle. Recent convert to Specter. Proficiencies in Pistol, Launcher, and (yeah) Sniper Rifle; also some small trash proficiencies also picked up in PT1, oh the shame.

Even running Defender/Pistol instead of Specter/Sniper, this character felt too much like Silk Spectre, so a little boring. But there's part of me that still wants to see what a Siren with 5/5 Spark can do with a high-quality Chimera. Parked, but not forgotten.

Currently L54, having finished PT2.

Raketemensch, the Berserker
A pure Bombardier, originally with no skills in the Brawler tree at all. Proficient in all weapons save Eridians; however, had to maintain balanced proficiencies in all non-Launcher weapons, so any weapon with a proficiency 2 levels higher than another could be used. This limitation made the character's inventory ridiculously unwieldy, even while shuffling entire classes of weapons in and out of Moxxi's Bank. Parked him for a long while.

Recently respec'd to get out of Master Blaster and start brawling between rocket salvos. Now carrying only shotguns and launchers.

Currently L54, having finished PT2.

Current characters
Still in play. Fresh and fun!

Hosebeast, the Siren
A pure Mercenary, played to capture another legendary overpowered playstyle (qv Sling Blade). Proficient only in SMG, Combat Rifle, and Pistol, with Pistols further limited to repeaters only.

A Mercenary carrying a HX-bodied Malevolent Stinger is amazing.

Keeping her in play because somebody needs to farm better Eridians for Zapp and Ariel.

Currently L59, in the endgame of DLC3 (PT2). Loot Larceny completed but not turned in.

Zapp, the Soldier
A pure Shock Trooper, played to specialize in Eridian weapons.

Character was bootstrapped with Pistol and Sniper Rifle proficiencies. At L19 he moved to using a pair of low-level Eridian Lightnings as his primary weapons. At present his Eridian proficiency is four times that of his Pistol proficiency, and his loadout 100% Eridian. He still carries a few plain-iron firearms in inventory for Shock Badass Spiderants/Scythids and the like.

All the very best Eridian weapons are shock weapons: the Lightning, the Thunder Storm, the Wave Blaster, and the Rifle. Shock Trooper amplifies these weapons' damage, while buffing Grenadier for supplying Incendiary and Corrosive elements where necessary. (Shock Trooper also buffs Refire, which in theory is also useful for supplying missing elements; however, it is not yet clear whether Refire is triggered by Eridian weapons fire.) The Rifle (from DLC3) also allows full-speed movement, which is nice when running through a pack of Spiderants while trying not to engage them.

With no skill points invested in Impact, Scattershot, Assault, or Supply Drop, the character has been free to buff the turret more fully than my Soldiers usually do.

Character has depended heavily on Eridian weapons found by other characters in order to maintain a power level commensurate with game progress, not to mention having access to the Eridian Rifle pre-DLC3.

Currently finished PT2.

Ariel, the Siren
A pure Tempest, played to specialize in Eridian weapons, because why should Zapp have all the fun?

Like Zapp, bootstrapped with Pistol and Sniper Rifle proficiencies. Unlike Zapp, also has some Launcher proficiency, because a Siren can't spam Longbow grenades like Soldier can, and also because she will probably pick up High Velocity at some point. At L19 she started carrying a pair of low-level Lightnings and a Wave Blaster, all cast-offs from Zapp's loadout.

While most of my Sirens start with Spark to buff the early-game skag-burning weapons such as The Clipper, Ariel respecced all of those points into Quicksilver once she hopped onto the Eridian bandwagon. This gives her a completely ordinary and un-Sirenly feel when playing with non-legendary elemental weapons. She gets Corrosive from a Defiler (a lucky vending machine find), and Incendiary from an elemental launcher and grenades.

Character is completely dependent on Eridian castoffs from other characters, as she has never found one in her own gameplay. (For most characters, that would be a cause for celebration....)

Currently L36, having finished PT1.

Salvador, the Berserker
A Gunzerker; that is, a Blast Master. And if we ever get more information on Maya, I guess I'll find time for one more Siren in BL1....

Proficiencies in Combat Rifle, SMG, and some Launcher.

Strategy similar to Jesse the Body. Rapid Reload, then Revenge. One point in Wide Load upon finding first Bombardier classmod; one point in Liquidate upon finding first Blast Master classmod. Otherwise, Hardened, then Juggernaut, then one point in Die Hard, then Payback. In order to reach Master Blaster, three more points are needed in the Blaster tree: I have to decide whether Endowed (offense, and synergizes with Bombardier) or Cast Iron (defense, and seems more in the spirit of Salvador's namesake) would be more appropriate.

Pleased owner of a low-end HLK24 Draco, courtesy of a red weapons chest in the Tetanus Warrens.

Currently L36, having finished PT1.

Yaz, the Berserker
Yet-another-Zerker. A Warmonger, built for coop and to experiment with maxed Payback.

Proficient in Shotgun, Launcher, and Machinegun.

Currently L36, having finished PT1.

Full Metal Jack, the Berserker
Yet another Blast Master, this one expressly created to race up the Gearbox BTest 2 Leaderboard - was briefly #2 for Week 1.

Proficient in Machinegun, SMG, and Launcher.

Currently L56, having finished PT2. In early DLC3.

Death from afar, the Hunter
Yet another Sniper, which like Full Metal Jack was created to play on the Leaderboard.

Proficient in Sniper rifle, Shotgun, and Launcher.

Currently L54, having finihed PT2.

Tiny fists, the Siren
A Tormentor, another pass at a melee Siren like Bitchslap.

Proficient in Pistol, Shotgun, Sniper Rifle, and Launcher. (Basically, all the weapons that don't invite Quicksilver.)

Currently L36, having finished PT1.

Sixteen tons, the Berserker
A pure melee Berserker. By pure melee, I mean no bullets other than those used to explode barrels and fuel tanks: nothing but fists, blades, grenades, and rockets (including Carnage shotguns).

Trivially proficient in Pistol via early-game melee with a L1 BLR Fanged Repeater found in Fresh Off The Bus, and retained for the entire game to shoot barrels. Proficient in Shotgun via melee with bladed weapons, and via many Carnage rockets. Proficient with Launcher, with six points invested in the Blaster tree to access Wide Load.

Most prized possession: a L28 ZPR100 Steel Carnage with the blade accessory.

Currently L36, having finished PT1. Punched the Destroyer back into its home dimension. The purple tentacles proved problematic, since he couldn't shoot them off.

Ghetto kid, the Hunter
A traditional Assassin, my first attempt at a melee Hunter grown from scratch.

Proficient in Shotgun, Pistol, and Launcher, all the best corrosive weapons.

Only solo character of mine in a long time to put down Mad Mel without a trip through the New-U. Assassin plus corrosive Helix Launcher plus getting out of the Runner before it blew up under me did the trick.

Character ended up not doing too much melee. Got seduced into a very Gunslingery path via a double-accessory Lady Finger in the early game-- at L13, he was killing L15 Larval Crab Worms in the Lost Cave with a L2 weapon, have to love that critical bonus-- and only respecced later. So I'm considering this character a poisoner, and starting over for pure melee.

Currently L36, having finished PT1.

Mini Shank, the Hunter
A pure melee Truxican Wrestler, similar to Sixteen Tons the pure melee Berserker, and operating under similar rules: nothing but bird, blades, bombs, and rockets (including Carnage shotguns). Bootstrapped pre-L29 as an Assassin sans Killer.

Proficient in Shotgun via melee with a bladed weapon and Carnages, and in Launcher.

Development strategy: first point in Swift Strike to help against Nine Toes. Next five points into Deadly. One point in Lethal Strike, one point in Riotous Remedy, then off to the Arid Hills and the Lost Cave. Three more points in Lethal Strike, then fill out Swift Strike. Then alternate between Out For Blood, Riotous Remedy, Lethal Strike, and Focus (for rocket launchers and Carnages). PT2 will start with one point in Predator, then five to Aerial Impact.

Farmed Fresh Off The Bus for a bladed weapon, but gave up after his inventory filled and he'd gained two quick levels from nothing but looting challenges. Even at L3, the very first unshielded entrance into Fyrestone was rough. Having a bladed weapon at the outset helps enormously.

Toughest fight so far was against Sledge, because instead of trusting the lethality of blade-enhanced 4/5 Lethal Strike, I hung back and tried to singe him to death with a very weak incendiary triple launcher. Old Sniper habits die hard, it seems. After multiple passes through the New-U I finally got a clue and got in character: dropped Sledge's shields with the bird and a shock contact grenade, set him on fire with another contact grenade, closed in for hand to hand, and took him down in five or so strikes.

Currently L36, having completed PT1. Severed The Destroyer from this dimension with the blade on Sledge's Shotgun.