Borderlands games are known for their co-op gameplay, however, which Vault Hunter do you pick when you are going to play the game by yourself? In this article, I’m going to answer the question; who is the best Borderlands 3 solo character?
Borderlands 3 Vault Hunters
Borderlands 3 has four playable characters. Each of them has its own unique play style and abilities. While the overall structure of their skill trees is the same, it’s their action skills and passive skills that give them their uniqueness. Also, all the skill trees handle the augment skills a bit differently. Basically, you can distinguish the Vault Hunters by their archetype. This along with their action skill determined which character I wanted to play. Therefore, I made a quick breakdown of each of the playable characters:
Moze
Moze is the Gunner, a Soldier Class. If you like to shoot non-stop and blow stuff up Moze is the character for you. She has a giant Mech which you can equip with various weaponry. Moze’s action skill, Iron Bear, is super strong and acts like a panic button. When you activate Iron Bear, you are basically invincible!
Amara
Amara is the Siren, a Mage Class. If you like punching people in the face or using magic spells then Amara is the character for you. She can perform a giant slam attack, shoot magic projectiles, or lock enemies in place. She is great at crowd control but here skill tree is a bit more complex, however, if you learn to master Amara, she is a force to be reckoned with.
Zane
Zane is the Operative, an Assassin Class. If you like your gadgets as much as James Bond then Zane is the character for you. He has an attack drone, an energy shield, and a Digi-clone to help him out. Zane is your master of all treats, he can make any weapon work.
FL4K
FL4K is the Beastmaster, a hunter class. If you like hunting and pets then FL4K is the character for you. FL4K has 1 of 3 pets at their side at all times. Additionally, FL4K can Cloak, send out flying monsters, and supercharge one of their pets. FL4K is your glass cannon class.
Best Borderlands 3 Vault Hunter
So who is the best Borderlands 3 character that you should play? I’m going to look at how the Vault Hunter’s skills can benefit you as a solo player and possibly a new player that’s looking for a good starting character.
#1 – Zane
This is where I deviate from other articles. While Zane was supposedly one of the weaker Vault Hunters early on in the game’s life cycle. Gearbox Software made a lot of changes to the Vault Hunters including Zane. These days he is actually a really powerful Vault Hunter.
Zane is the only character that can equip 2 action skills and Zane has some cool gadgets at his disposal. If you need solid protection, Zane has an impenetrable barrier that will also boost your shots. His other 2 action skills can function on their own once you activated them. So if the combat is intense you don’t have to micro-manage them but if you want to, you can. Because Zane’s action skills all have multiple augments that can change up their abilities.
Each of Zane’s skill trees contains health regeneration in some shape or form. Zane is very versatile, he can be the min/max character where you can have a very active play session but also a more laid-back experience. You can augment your action skills to add to your survivability but also boost your damage output.
Want to learn more about his skills check out Zane’s Skill Tree. Looking for inspiration, check out these Zane Builds.
#2 – Moze
In most early best character guides you will find Moze at the number 2 position. If you want a solid shooter experience, Moze can definitely provide that. Her action skill can function as a panic button. Because her mech, Iron Bear, has its own health gauge you can activate it if your own life bar reaches a critical level. With the skill ‘auto bear’ you can enjoy the company of your mech just a bit longer as it will stay on the field with you for a little while. Moze does rely more on shields than on health.
Want to learn more about her skills check out Moze’s Skill Tree. Looking for inspiration, check out these Moze Builds.
#3 – FL4K
Most of the early articles you will find about this topic will also suggest FL4K but mostly because he was the strongest Vault Hunter early on in the game’s life cycle. FL4K is the only playable character that has a pet. This little sidekick has multiple advantages.
First off, the pet will help you in combat, dealing damage against your enemies. Secondly, the pet can draw aggro from your enemies, this way, not all the guns are aimed at you. Thirdly, the Spiderant pet provides you with constant health regeneration. And as fourth, you can select the skill ‘Lick the Wounds’, now your pet can revive you once you are down in ‘fight for your life’ mode.
Having a pet is great but you don’t have to rely on your pet to keep you up on your feet. FL4K’s stalker skill tree is packed with passive skills that will keep your health bar full.
FL4K’s action skills don’t require pinpoint accuracy in the heat of the battle. So when you get overwhelmed by enemies in certain combat zones you won’t get penalized. However, FL4K can be a bit of a glass cannon so you have to use those skills to your advantage.
Want to learn more about their skills check out FL4K’s Skill Tree. Looking for inspiration, check out these FL4K Builds.
#4 – Amara
Amara isn’t the worst character in the game. It’s just that I’m not recommending her as a solo starting character. She can definitely punch her way through any combat zone, however, you got to know what you are doing.
Amara can use her phasegrasp to lock enemies and pull them out of the fight for a moment. This does give you the chance to turn the odds in your favor. This requires a higher sense of awareness of what’s going on in the combat zone.
Her Phasecast is unforgiving, which you can interpret in 2 ways. Yes, it’s powerful but if you miss, you miss. No auto-aim or homing effect like FL4K’s Rakk Attack.
Amara’s 3rd action skill, PhaseSlam, sets her up for close-quarter combat. A very active playstyle. Yes, you can steamroll over your opponents but you need to keep going at it to benefit from your skills.
Want to learn more about her skills check out Amara’s Skill Tree. Looking for inspiration, check out these Amara Builds.
Conclusion
The best Borderlands 3 solo character is definitely Moze because Iron Bear wrecks everything and can be used as a panic button. Personally, I would also recommend Zane because he can make any weapon work. I wouldn’t recommend Amara as your starting character as the learning curve is a bit higher but once you master her, she can be devastating. FL4K has always been the glass cannon character of the bunch unless you utilize their fourth skill tree from the Director’s Cut.
How to Play?
Want more tips for Borderlands 3, then check out this Beginner Guide that goes over all the fundamentals.
