Moze is one of the playable Vault Hunters in Borderlands 3 and is known as “the Gunner” class. With these various skill trees, you can create powerful character builds for Moze. In this Borderlands 3 guide, you will get an introduction to Moze’s Skill Tree, a complete breakdown of each Skill Tree, and Skill recommendations.
Introduction to Moze’s Skill Tree
Moze’s main Action Skill is called Iron Bear. This giant Mech digi-structs around her, protecting her and making the enemy’s life a nightmare. Iron Bear contains two Hardpoints, allowing you to equip two powerful weapons. These weapons can be found at the top of each Skill Tree, and each Skill Tree has an additional weapon and augments on the sides to unlock.
Iron Bear’s weapons have one augment slot to enhance their capabilities. These augmentations are found on the sides of the Skill Trees and can only be equipped on the corresponding weapon. Each weapon has three augmentations to choose from, but each weapon can only be augmented once. For example, turning a straightforward missile barrage into multiple heatseekers or a giant nuclear explosion.
Gearbox Software provided Moze with a new Action Skill with the Designer’s Cut DLC. This mini-mech called Iron Cub acts as a companion that follows you around. Iron Cub takes up the first Hardpoint slot, while the second slot equips the chosen weapon twice.
You unlock your Action Skills at Level 2 and continuously earn Skill Points after that until you hit the level cap. Tier 1 Skills can be accessed directly. Each Skill Tier beyond that requires a 5-point investment into that Skill Tree, unlocking new Skill Tiers at 5,10,15,20, and 25 points.
Skills can be upgraded 1, 3, or 5 times, increasing their effectiveness with each Skill Point. Class Mods provide additional Skill Points that could double a Skill’s effectiveness and raise a 5/5 skill to 10/5, for example.
- Bottomless Mags: Minigun + Flamethrower
- Demolition Woman: Grenade Launcher + Rocket Launcher
- Shield of Retribution: Railgun + Punch
- Bear Mother: Iron Cub Companion
Complete Breakdown of Moze’s Skill Trees
Moze Bottomless Mags Skill Tree – Borderlands 3
Moze’s Bottomless Mags skill tree focuses on shooting and sustaining that. There are multiple ways to extend the size of your gun’s magazine and refill it.
Starting Action Skill
- Minigun: The Minigun is capable of sustained rapid fire. Firing for long periods causes the Minigun to overheat, rendering it inoperable for a few seconds.
Tier 1 Skills
[Required Points: 0]
- Cloud of Lead (5): Occasionally, Moze’s and Iron Bear’s shots will deal additional Fire Damage and won’s consume ammo.
- Dakka Bear (1): Adds a manned turret to the back of Iron Bear.
- Matched Set (5): Moze’s currently equipped weapon gains a stacking bonus to Magazine Size and Decreased Heat Per Shot for every piece of Equipped Gear that has a matching manufacturer.
Tier 2 Skills
[Required Points: 5]
- Let Off Some Steam: [Augment] Minigun deals more damage as heat increases, and can by fired for longer before overheating.
- Stoke the Embers (3): Increases Moze and Iron Bear’s Fire Damage.
- Redistribution (1): After Moze scores a Critical Hit, she regenerates ammo for a few seconds.
- Scrappy (5): Increases Moze’s Handling. While moving, Moze’s Weapon Swap and Mode Switch Speed are increased.
- Salamander: [Weapon] The Salamander is a flamethrower that deals Fire Damage to enemies at close range. Though the Salamander has infinite ammo, it drains Fuel with use.
Tier 3 Skills
[Required Points: 10]
- General Winter: [Augment] Minigun fires Cryo rounds, which reduce Heat Gain and Fuel Drain, but deal reduced damage.
- Rushin’ Offensive (1): Moze can sprint and shoot at the same time.
- Scorching RPM’s (5): Moze gains increased Fire Rate and Critical Hit Damage.
- Fuel Economy: [Augment] Reduces Salamander’s Fuel Drain. Additionally, Iron Bear’s Movement Speed is increased after damaging an enemy with Salamander.
Tier 4 Skills
[Required Points: 15]
- Exploding Bullets: [Augment] Minigun fires Explosive Rounds that deal increased Splash Damage but its Fire Rate is decreased.
- The Iron Bank (5): Increases Moze’s Magazine Size.
- Specialist Bear (1): Equipping two of the same Weapons on Iron Bear increases the damage they deal.
- Chemical Warfare: [Augment] Salamander now deals Corrosive Damage. Additionally, Salamander’s Melt Damage is increased.
Tier 5 Skills
[Required Points: 20]
- Same for the Road (1): Moze gains infinite ammo for a few seconds after exiting Iron Bear.
- “Click, Click…” (3): Moze gains increased Gun Damage as her magazine empties. The less ammo there is remaining, the greater the increase.
- Molten Roar: [Augment] The Salamander burst-fires 3 projectiles with increased Fuel Drain, the first of which leaves a large Fire area.
Tier 6 Skills
[Required Points: 25]
- Forge (1): Moze constantly regenerates ammo for her currently equipped weapon.
Moze Demolition Woman Skill Tree – Borderlands 3
Moze’s Demolition Woman skill tree focuses on doing splash damage by increasing the size and damage output of explosions for both Moze and Iron Bear. There are skills that increase the longevity that Moze can stay alive, prolonging the time she has in Fight For Your Life and increasing the fuel capacity for Iron Bear. A noteworthy perk is that there is a skill that allows Iron Bear to act on its own as a sentry turret.
Starting Action Skill
- V-35 Grenade Launcher: The V-35 is a semi-automatic grenade launcher. Its grenades are not affected by Moze’s equipped grenade mod.
Tier 1 Skills
[Required Points: 0]
- Fire in the Skag Den (5): Whenever Moze deals Splash Damage, she deals bonus Fire Damage. This Skill Receives Mayhem Scaling.
- Deadlines (3): Firing Iron Bear Weapons drains less Fuel. Killing an enemy while Iron Bear is active increases Fuel. This skill has diminishing returns.
- Grizzled (5): Kill Skill. Killing an enemy reduces Moze’s remaining Action Skill Cooldown Time. This skill has diminishing returns.
Tier 2 Skills
[Required Points: 5]
- Shaped Charge: [Augment] Direct hits with the V-35 deal increased damage.
- Means of Destruction (3): Whenever Moze deals Splash Damage, there is a chance to add ammo to her currently equipped weapon’s magazine with a smaller chance to return a grenade.
- Torgue Cross-Promotion (5): All Splash Damage dealt by Moze has a change to double in size.
- Stainless Steel Bear (5): Iron Bear gains additional armor and increased Maximum Fuel.
- Vanquisher Rocket Pod: [Weapon]The Vanquisher Rocket Pod is a rocket launcher capable of rapid-firing volleys of unguided explosive rockets.
Tier 3 Skills
[Required Points: 10]
- Musical Chairs: [Augment] Occasionally, the V-35 fires a Singularity Grenade that pulls in nearby enemies before exploding.
- Pull the Holy Pin (3): Moze’s grenades have a chance to score a Critical Hit, dealing greatly increased damage.
- Auto Bear (1): After Moze exits Iron Bear, it will remain deployed in place for a short time. While Auto Bear remains active, it will target and attack nearby enemies until its duration ends, then it will charge at an enemy and self-destruct.
- Active Tracking: [Augment] The Vanquisher Rocket Pod now fires homing rockets and has increased Reload Speed. Hold down Fire Button and aim at enemies to designate up to 6 target. Releasing Fire Button launches a volley of homing rockets at the designated targets.
Tier 4 Skills
[Required Points: 15]
- Lock and Speedload: [Augment] The V-35’s Reload Speed is greatly increased and it now fires a 5-round burst.
- Vampyr (5): Whenever Moze damages an enemy with a grenade, for every enemy hit, she restores a portion of her missing health.
- Why Can’t I Carry All These Grenades (3): Increase Moze’s grenade carrying capacity.
- Target Softening: [Augment] The Vanquisher Rocket Pod deals greatly reduced damage per rocket, but fires in a 6-rocket spread. Additionally, enemies hit by Vanquisher Rocket Pot rockets take increased damage from all sources.
Tier 5 Skills
[Required Points: 20]
- To the Last (1): Moze gains the ability to throw grenades while in Fight For Your Life. If she threw a grenade before gaining Second Wind, a grenade is refunded.
- Explosive Punctuation (5): When Moze deals Splash Damage, her Action Skill Cooldown Rate is briefly increased.
- Hammerdown Protocol: [Augment] Instead of a volley of conventional rockets, the Vanquisher Rocket Pod launches a single rocket with a nuclear warhead, dealing massive Radiation damage.
Tier 6 Skills
[Required Points: 25]
- Short Fuse (1): Whenever Moze deals Gun Damage, there is a change of a secondary explosion centered on the target. This Skill Receives Mayhem Scaling.
Moze Shield of Retribution Skill Tree- Borderlands 3
Moze’s Shield of Retribution skill tree is a risk and reward tree. There are a lot of skills that keep you in the fight, however, the closer you are to dying, the more damage you can do. So, do you like living on the edge?
Starting Action Skill
- Railgun: The Railgun fires electrified high-velocity projectiles that deal Shock Damage.
Tier 1 Skills
[Required Points: 0]
- Selfless Vengeance (5): Whenever Moze reloads, she loses a small portion of her health and grants additional Fire Damage to her an her allies’ rounds for a few seconds.
- Security Bear (1): Iron Bear gains a bubble shield that reduces damage taken. The shield deactivates if it sustains too much damage, reactivating after a short cooldown.
- Armored Infantry (5): While Moze’s shields are active, she gains Damage Reduction and increased Gun Damage.
Tier 2 Skills
[Required Points: 5]
- Hell on Rails: [Augment] Railgun now fires superheated rounds that deal Fire Damage, but have increased Fuel Drain per shot.
- Drowning in Brass (5): Kill Skill. Killing an enemy grants Moze a stack of Drowning in Brass. For each stack of Drowning in Brass, Moze’s Fire Rate is reduced but Weapon Damage is increased for both her and her allies.
- Thin Red Line (3): A portion of Moze’s health is removed and cannot be restored, but her Maximum Shield is increased by the same amount.
- Vladof Ingenuity (5): Moze’s Maximum Shield is increased and she gains resistance to Shock Damage.
- Bear Fist: [Weapon]The Bear Fist is a pneumatic-driven fist that deals massive damage to a single target at close range.
Tier 3 Skills
[Required Points: 10]
- Capacitive Armature: [Augment] When Railgun hits an enemy, it chains to nearby enemies, dealing reduced Shock Damage to more targets.
- Full Can of Whoop-Ass (1): Entering Iron Bear causes Moze’s and her allies’ shields to immediately begin recharging at an increased Shield Recharge Rate.
- Experimental Munitions (1): Whenever Moze scores a Critical Hit, she deals bonus Fire Damage.
- Wild Swing: [Augment] Whenever Bear Fist hits an enemy, it deals random Bonus Elemental Damage to that enemy and all enemies nearby.
Tier 4 Skills
[Required Points: 15]
- Corrosive Sabot Round: [Augment] Railgun now fires a specialty round that deals reduced damage and explodes after a short delay. Railgun shots have reduced Fuel Drain and the Magazine Size is increased.
- Behind the Iron Curtain (3): Moze’s Shield Recharge Delay is reduced, and her Shield Recharge Rate is increased.
- Desperate Measures (3): Moze’s Gun Damage is increased depending on how low her health is. The lower her health, the greater the increase.
- Close the Distance: [Augment] Instead of punching, Bear Fist now launches its fist forward and grabs enemies at greatly increased range, pulling them back to Iron Bear.
Tier 5 Skills
[Required Points: 20]
- Phalanx Doctrine (5): Kill Skill. After killing an enemy, Moze gains a stack of Phalanx Doctrine. For each stack of Phalanx Doctrine, Moze’s Maximum Shield and Gun Damage are increased. Each stack lasts 30 seconds. There is no stack limit.
- Force Feedback (1): Whenever Moze scores a Critical Kill, her shields immediately begin recharging.
- Shockhammer: [Augment] Bear Fist is now capable of sustained and rapid fire, punching as long as the Fire Button is held. Additionally, Bear First has reduced Fuel Drain and deals Bonus Shock Damage with each hit.
Tier 6 Skills
[Required Points: 25]
- Tenacious Defense (1): Whenever Moze’s shield is fully depleted, she instantly restores a portion of her shield, and her Gun Damage is increased for a short time. This skill can only trigger after Moze’s shields have fully recharged.
Moze 4th Skill Tree – Borderlands 3
The Bear Mother skill tree really wants you to double down on using incendiary weapons, as igniting enemies will trigger multiple skills. While some skills trigger when applying a status effect, there are a few that trigger when using incendiary weapons. The Capstone skill will cause your Iron Cub not to consume fuel, which will result in it lasting longer on the battlefield. This has great synergy with an augment that gives you increased damage for every second Iron Cub stays in action. Having multiple weapons with the same element can also stack damage.
STARTING ACTION SKILL
- Iron Cub:
- Moze summons Iron Cub in place of Iron Bear. Iron Cub equips two of whatever weapon is equipped in the remaining Action Skill slot. While deployed, Iron Cub follows Moze and will target and attack enemies for the duration.
- Skills that affect Iron Bear affect Iron Cub. Iron Cub still uses Fuel, but uses less of it and deals less damage (because it’s smaller).
TIER 1 SKILLS
[Required Points: 0]
- Biofuel (5):
- Whenever Moze or Iron Bear ignites an enemy, they both regenerate health for a short time.
- Health Regen: Up to +0.7% per sec
- Iron Bear Armor Regen: Up to +0.5% per sec
- Duration: 8 seconds
- Big Surplus (3):
- While Moze’s Action Skill is cooling down, she deals bonus Incendiary Damage. This Skill Receives Mayhem Scaling.
- Bonus Damage: 5% of Gun Damage
- Really Big Guns (5):
- Iron Bear gains increased Damage
- Iron Bear Damage: +4%
TIER 2 SKILLS
[Required Points: 5]
- Double Time (3):
- While Moze’s Action Skill is active, she and Iron Bear gain increased Movement Speed.
- Movement Speed: +4%
- Harmonious Havoc (5):
- Moze gains increased Gun Damage for each weapon, shield, and grenade that matches the element of her gun.
- Gun Damage: +2% per matching item
- Explosive Fury (3):
- Moze and Iron Bear gain increased Status Effect Damage and Status Effect Chance.
- Status Effect Chance: +9%
- Status Effect Damage: +5%
- Fuel for the Fire [Action Skill Augment]
- Whenever Moze or Iron Cub inflicts a Status Effect on an enemy, Iron Cub’s armor is restored.
- Armor Restored: +12% of Max Armor
TIER 3 SKILLS
[Required Points: 10]
- Baby Nukes: [Augment]
- Whenever Iron Cub is deployed or destroyed, it triggers a nuclear explosion, dealing massive Radiation Damage
- Damage: 21564
- This Skill Receives Mayhem Scaling.
- Fired Up (1):
- Whenever Moze or Iron Bear applies a StatusEffect to an enemy, she gains increased Fire Rate for a short time. This effect stacks.
- Fire Rate: +5%
- Duration: 12 seconds
- Max Stacks: 5
TIER 4 SKILLS
[Required Points: 15]
- Nitrotrinadium Engines (5):
- Iron Bear gains increased Maximum Fuel and Action SKill Cooldown Rate.
- Maximum Fuel: +5%
- Action Skill Cooldown Rate: +4%
- Never Going to Give You Up (5):
- Whenever Moze or Iron Bear applies a Status Effect to an enemy, Iron Bear gains Fuel. This skill has diminishing returns.
- Fuel Returned: Up to +5%
- My Little Friend [Augment]
- Iron Cub spawns with an Incendiary Vladof Assault Rifle in addition to Iron Cub’s other weapons.
TIER 5 SKILLS
[Required Points: 20]
- Efficiency Engine[Augment]:
- Moze gains increased Gun Damage. The longer Iron Cub has been active, the greater the bonus
- Gun Damage: +0.5% per second
- Feature Creep (1):
- Iron Bear gains increased Damage and Damage Resistance.
- Iron Bear Damage: +18%
- Iron Bear Damage Resistance: +45%
- Limit Break (3):
- Moze gains increased Action Skill Cooldown Rate whenever she or Iron Bear inflicts a Status Effect on an enemy. This effect stacks.
- Cooldown Rate: +4%
- Duration: 12 seconds
- Max Stacks: 10
- Superior Firepower (1):
- Whenever Moze or Iron Bear inflicts a Status Effect on an enemy, they gain increased Status Effect Damage.
- Status Effect Damage: +20%
- Duration: 8 seconds
- Max Stacks: 5
TIER 6 SKILLS
[Required Points: 25]
- Running on Fumes (1):
- Whenever Moze or Iron Bear ignites an enemy, Iron Bear does not consume fuel for a short time.
- Duration: 6 seconds
Best Moze Skills
Here is a list of skills you should consider when creating your ultimate Moze Build.
Best Bottomless Mags Tree Skill
- Redistribution: Must Have Skill because of Health & Ammo Regen
- Scorching RPM’s: Great skill especially for Mech Builds
- Specialist Bear: Great to boost your Iron Bear Damage. You can mixup the Augments.
Best Demolition Woman Tree Skills
- Fire in the Skag Den: Must have Skill that even received Mayhem Scaling.
- Stainless Steel Bear: Great Skill for you Mech
- Means of Destruction: Great ammo regen ability
- Pull the Holy Pin: Great Synergy with other skills and Moze’s Mine Sweeper Class Mod
- Vampyr: Great Health Regen when focusing on Grenades
- Short Fuse: Best Capstone because it also gets Mayhem Scaling.
Best Shield of Retribution Tree Skills
- Then Red Line: Good Skill for a URAD Build because you don’t sacrifice your Shield or Artifact
- Phalan Doctrine: Good for a Bloodletter Build
Best Mother Bear Tree Skills
- Big Surplus: Must have skill as it also gets Mayhem Scaling
Moze Action Skill Cooldown
Moze’s Action Skill has a very long cooldown, but there are ways to bring that down.
- Obtain the Guardian Rank perk: Topped Off, to significantly reduce your Action Skill Cooldown.
- Use 3 or more Skill Points on Grizzled.
- Use the Gunner-Specific Anoint that reduces your Action Skill Cooldown over the generic cooldown anointment.
- Get Action Skill Cooldowns on your Class Mod
- Explosive Punctuation isn’t as effective, and Skill Points are better used elsewhere.
