Borderlands 4 is bringing four new Vault Hunters named Vex, Rafa, Amon, and Harlowe. All these characters have their own unique play style and three distinct Action Skill trees to tweak their gameplay.
Furthermore, with the addition of new weapon mechanics, such as Licensed Parts and Firmware, the options are limitless in the upcoming game. If you’re feeling confused about what character to pick, we’ve created this guide for you.
1. For People Who Like Arcane, Vex Is a Great Pick for Borderlands 4
Vex is a character who uses the Arcane or Siren to level up her combat skills. Her main Action Skills include the following:
| Siren Action Skill | Effects |
|---|---|
| DEAD RINGER | This is a charge skill that spawns Phase Clone Minions. Two types of minions can be chosen from: Specter and Reaper. The Specter can deal gun damage to enemies, but they’ll stay put in one place. Reaper can move around, taunt enemies, and deal melee damage. |
| INCARNATE | This ability allows Vex to cause Phase Explosions to deal damage to any nearby enemies or restore her health. While this is active, she can also gain movement speed by using the Eldritch Blast. This ability can be ended early to partly reduce the cooldown period. |
| PHASE PHAMILIAR | Vex spawns in a beast-like minion called Trouble, who can be respawned even after being killed. This minion causes an immense amount of damage and can even restore health completely for a short duration. |
All these Siren Action Skills of Vex can be tweaked using the skill tree. For instance, if you want to level up trouble, you can go under the “Here Comes The Trouble” skill tree and get additional passive bonuses of augments. You can check more about them here.
For players who choose characters based on personality as much as power, Vex stands out. She’s sarcastic, cynical, and often hides behind a tough exterior, but deep down she’s a softie. Despite the hardships of her past, she still looks forward to helping others (usually by beating the soul out of their enemies). If you’re looking for a chaotic, witty, goth powerhouse, Vex is the Vault Hunter for you.
2. People Who Favor Swift Movement With Heavy Damage, Rafa Is for You
If you have a strong liking towards a super-soldier with exosuits giving limitless powers, Rafa is the one you need. Here’s how each of his skills works in Borderlands 4
| Exo-Soldier Action Skills | Effects |
|---|---|
| APOPHIS LANCE | This ability gives Rafa an offhand Arm Cannon that reduces his gun handling, but lets him fire Piercing Shock Ordnance Blasts. If any of his APOPHIS Lance charges are left unused, they directly convert into an Action Skill cooldown. You can also hold down the Action Skill button to charge the skill further and deal higher damage, projectile size, or speed. |
| PEACEBREAKER CANNONS | Rafa is equipped with a shoulder-mounted cannon that directly fires at an enemy in front of him to deal kinetic gun damage. This ability can be ended prematurely to refund the Action Skill cooldown as well. |
| ARC-KNIVES | If you want to let go of guns and become a cyber-ninja, this ability equips Rafa with Arc-Knives. These deal heavy melee damage and mark enemies, which in turn increases the damage dealt with each stack. |
Whenever Rafa uses his Action Skills, he enters an overdrive mode that stays for a long duration. During this time, he gains increased movement speed and deals extra damage, making him perfect for players who love fast-paced, hack-and-slash combat. His Action Skill Tree has a lot of tweaks as well, which you can check here.
But all these powers came to Rafa at a cost. When he was young, Rafa was raised in microgravity, which altered his bone density and muscles completely, preventing him from surviving under normal conditions. To break free of this curse and explore beyond, he chose to join the Tediore military force to gain a new kind of exo-suit.
3. Want To Be a Walking Tank? Amon Is All You Need
Those who wish to become a tank that is unfazed by puny projectiles, then be sure to pick Amon. With a large health pool and weapons that cause extreme levels of damage, this character is enough to flatline an army alone. Here’s how his skills work in Borderlands 4:
| Forgeknight Action Skills | Effects |
|---|---|
| ONSLAUGHT | Amon can overload his Forgefist to gain constant shield regeneration and additionally incendiary damage with guns. On top of that, he also gains increased movement speed. You can also press the Action Skill or melee button to dash towards a target to deal incendiary melee damage alongside stagger. However, this stagger effect doesn’t work on bosses. |
| SCOURGE | Amon can equip a Forgeshield that absorbs all damage from the front during Vengeance. The Forgeshield also provides damage reduction whenever the Vengeance Meter is filled. However, the meter depletes if Vengeance isn’t gained recently. Amon can cause Cyro damage using the Forgewave that consumed Vengeance for increased damage. |
| CRUCIBLE | This charge skill launches Forgeaxes that can be thrown at enemies and picked up to reduce cooldown time. You also have two elemental options while throwing the axe: Cyro and Incendiary. Once thrown at an enemy, these axes detonate on dying enemies, dealing damage to enemies in proximity. |
With both Flame and Frost as his powers, Amon is great for clearing hordes of enemies with his skills. Also, he gains Forgeskills depending on his equipped Action Skill to deal Molten Slams or create Firewall. You can learn more about how his skill tree works by clicking here.
Amon got all these skills while being raised in a Vault monster-worshipping cult, but that led to a tragic event that left him as the only surviving member. Thus, he took up the mantle to defeat such monstrous beasts and save others from such a mishap ever again.
4. Those Who Want To Use Cosmic Powers, Harlowe Is the One
Bending laws of physics with unthinkable cosmic powers, Harlowe is a powerhouse in Borderlands 4. Equipped with gravity-based skills, she can chain damage to enemies to kill them with style. Here are the Action Skills she brings to the game:
| Gravitar Action Skill | Effects |
|---|---|
| CHROMA ACCELERATOR | Harlowe can launch an unstable energy orb that passes through enemies and deals Cyro damage to anyone within the radius. If the Action Skill is used again, it causes the energy orb to explode and heavy amounts of radiation damage. |
| ZERO-POINT | This ability lets Harlowe use her HALO Accelerator to place enemies in a stasis (will deal damage to enemies who are immune to it). By activating the Action Skill again, enemies within a stasis will slam enemies down causing small explosions. |
| FLUX GENERATOR | By throwing the Flux Generator, Harlowe creates an energy field that deals Cyro damage over time and entangles them. Furthermore, any ally within the radius will also gain Overshield to protect them. |
While her Action Skills are bonkers, her Gravitar Vault Hunter Trait makes her extra special. By using her Entanglement ability, she can chain together enemies and deal damage to them all simultaneously. Additionally, you can also improve her Action Skills through the skill tree. If you want to know how that works, you can find them here.
Harlowe gains all these powerful abilities thanks to her time as a combat scientist at Maliwan. Her intellect and motive to make better tech to fight in battles give her an edge that only a few can think of.
Hope these explanations help you understand which character you should be picking in Borderlands 4. So, which character are you going to main in the game? Share with us in the comments below!
