Critic my shock gaige build

Borderlands 2 Gaige the Mechromancer
#1

The forums seem a bit deadish but I’ll give it a shot. Help me with this build by telling me what you think, guys.

Skill allocation here:

http://bl2skills.com/mechromancer.html#500150150500540050100500414050150050

LBT - I don’t think DoTs are very good at UVHM+ (but I’ll be happy if anyone would prove me wrong) so I elected to drop those while focusing on Wires Don’t Talk in the LBT tree while the majority of points are in OC for the real damage boosts + stacking. I havn’t really tried Make it Sparkle that much and don’t care to so I put minimal points in LBT but enough for max Wires don’t Talk.

BFF - Some points in BFF for the fairly popular skills plus Made of Sterner Stuff and Buck Up which are personal likes. No points in CuT because I don’t really notice it.

OC - Rational Anarchist is a crutch in solo but pretty good in co-op since hosts tend to not give me time to prestack a little bit. Maxed Nth Degree rather than just a one pointer because I honestly can notice the difference enough to prefer it maxed. It also makes Slagga intensely amazing at slagging a whole room.

Weapons:

Twister - Really powerful weapon, perfect synergy with a shock/anarchy build too.

Slagga - This is my favorite slagging method that with a second-long burst fire, I usually slag EVERYTHING in the room instantly due to the crazy fast rapid fire, amount of projectiles, and ricochets. Magic Missle pales in comparision and coincidentally opens up a slot for a more damaging grenade.

Grog Nozzle - Because sustain. Because the game is horribly imbalanced. Because the game likes to cheese me and I follow the simple principal where I get cheesed, I cheese them right back.

Pimpernel or Fibber - this slot being mid-long range, usually pimpernel early stacks then fibber with more stacks. Fibber’s really great, but Twister honestly does better close-mid range. I do love Fibber for bouncing shots around corners and on ceilings for targets on high ground + behind cover.

Shields:

Blockade - Generally use this for bosses with minimal adds, not much else to use anyway.

Black Hole - My favorite shield, great for mobbing and getting out of FFYL. I like to fast swap to rubi/grog when my shield depletes out of habit because usually if my shield is down, I’m past health gate and the nova damage puts me back at full health already.

Items:

Chaotic Good Necromancer - I find that it’s such a great all-rounder where it boosts DPS and generally feels better due to faster reload times. It also boosts Wires Don’t Talk by a lot, which is perfect. I don’t value the DoTs so Legendary Catalyst kinda sucks (why do people even take it anyway when DoTs suck this much?)

Grenade - Chain lightning because of course. I still havn’t gotten storm front yet so I’d appreciate your thoughts on this one in particular.

Playstyle - I usually fight at midrange, making use of mobility and covers as my best protection and my shield as second best protection. But the general goal is kill them faster so they hurt me less.

My DT summons are usually to give me Buck Up which I honestly like despite what I’ve heard other people say - what I like the most about it is it continues to charge my shield until it hits 100%, meaning it’ll keep shielding me through damage which is just great. I don’t mind the occaisional weirdness like shielding me in FFYL, just the 80% of the time that it works great.

I don’t prestack that much but when I do, it just takes me half a minute to hit 70~ stacks in sanctuary which is more than enough before I head out.

#2

Honestly, after a quick look, I’d stil rather recommend putting the point from Buck Up into Myelin.
Dots are stil good in UVHM, but with your loadout you should do fine (minus the above point, imo).

And depending on which of the 2 shields you like to use the most, MoSS isn’t a good skill either. Could spend those on Evil Enchantress instead.

#3

I’ll second @MidnightNova’s advice.

Buck Up: looks good on paper, terrible when DT tries to recharge your shield while you’re in FFYL instead of helping you gain that second wind. It’s wonky that way, which is tolerable in NVHM (and to some extent TVHM) but a liability in UVHM. Can also be a pain if you’re co-oping with someone who’s build relies on having effectively zero shield most of the time.

MoSS: Electrical Burn has great synergy with Gaige’s shock damage. It’s great fun at level 72 with shock weapons, since you no longer have to worry about weapon swapping to get fire damage on flesh targets.

That’s it. If you’re generally enjoying your build and it fits with your playstyle, there’s not much needs changing. If there’s something about the build that you find a little lacking, it might be possible to address that without making major changes.

One thing you didn’t mention is your current choice of relic(s) - what are you currently using?

#4

The DoT from Storm’s ords is boosted by gun damage, and Gaige just so happens to have the highest gun damage bonus in the game.

So DoTs aren’t good for general play, but if you build for it specifically it can do work.

I usually opt for the Legendary Anarchist (though partly because I don’t go shock only).

  • Makes her really hard to kill
  • Gives you 30% reload speed
  • Stack much faster
  • And a decent bit of gun damage for when you’re at low stack counts

And shock only Gaige is only worth it if you run guns that only come in shock like the Twister or Storm, after that you can’t put enough points in WDT to beat the matching elements bonus. Just food for thought if this is a practical build instead of a thematical one.

I usually run a low level slag betty since I don’t run a slag weapon, and even the Slagga suffers at a certain range with 400 stacks, mainly in open areas. I don’t need a chain to heal and the betty doesn’t suffer from reduced accuracy and is great for slagging (which is really only needed for UBAs at 400 stacks).

  • The Hail and Conference Call are also good weapons on Gaige, with the Hail also able to very easily replace the Grog+Chain combo.

A quick trip to trip to Pete’s bar with a Norfleet is really fast and efficient at stacking. It should also be easy to convince randoms for at least one failed round if they want a free DPUH in the future.

If you want to stick with shock only then I don’t really have any skill tree suggestions, except that Myelin and Preshrunk Cyberpunk should have 5/5 and that I personally like Explosive Clap as its good for de-aggro.

Juicebox needs to put 5/5 in Myelin, but I do agree with him that it’s a good skill. Even with 5/5 BSS and 10/5 UF I still take it and think it’s worth it. The couple times he charges you in FFYL, a shock cactus, an enemy, etc… is worth it when he does do it correctly. Although it is bad if you coop with a melee Zero or FotF Krieg. And it’s fun to glitch out once in a long while.

Why would you want this if you’re not running a DoT build? Ditto for @VaultHunter101’s suggestion.

#5

About the DoT thing: OP stated that they’d heard DoT wasn’t viable n UVHM+ so they’d kind of skipped it. I’m just suggesting that it’s worth re-evaluating that stance. The fixes Gaige got in the 2015 update have changed the picture a bit (even more so for Maya!).

#6

I’d still say it’s worth the points even less so than MoSS. Without a build specifically built around the Storm or Chain Lightning, DoTs will do worthless amounts of damage and thus don’t help make up for the fact Juicebox isn’t using matching elements.

#7

Buck Up: looks good on paper, terrible when DT tries to recharge your shield while you’re in FFYL instead of helping you gain that second wind. It’s wonky that way, which is tolerable in NVHM (and to some extent TVHM) but a liability in UVHM. Can also be a pain if you’re co-oping with someone who’s build relies on having effectively zero shield most of the time.

Yeah, I already explained I’m aware of this issue but find that it’s rarely a problem for me and if I’m in FFYL, I’m not going to rely on DT to get me second wind so nothing of value was lost.

MoSS: Electrical Burn has great synergy with Gaige’s shock damage. It’s great fun at level 72 with shock weapons, since you no longer have to worry about weapon swapping to get fire damage on flesh targets.

I really don’t think DoTs are any good in this game and I’ve still not seen anything to convince me otherwise. I also did a fair amount of reading up on Electrical Burn and various status applications via Gaige’s LBT tree which point to no DoTs.

One thing you didn’t mention is your current choice of relic(s) - what are you currently using?

Ah, I thought it was a given that I’d use a shock bone.

#8

a video

Not going to lie, this video gave me a very poor impression of DoTs via the Storm rifle. It was horrifically slow.

I usually opt for the Legendary Anarchist (though partly because I don’t go shock only).

Makes her really hard to kill
Gives you 30% reload speed
Stack much faster
And a decent bit of gun damage for when you’re at low stack counts

I like that com too, it’s nice QoL stuff all-around but I just find chaotic good necro an overall better fit for the build while keeping to aesthetics (shock).

I usually run a low level slag betty since I don’t run a slag weapon, and even the Slagga suffers at a certain range with 400 stacks, mainly in open areas. I don’t need a chain to heal and the betty doesn’t suffer from reduced accuracy and is great for slagging (which is really only needed for UBAs at 400 stacks).

I have a magic missle grenade mod for that same need, yeah. Only blue though. Damnit, wizards.

A quick trip to trip to Pete’s bar with a Norfleet is really fast and efficient at stacking. It should also be easy to convince randoms for at least one failed round if they want a free DPUH in the future.

Don’t have norfleet.

And shock only Gaige is only worth it if you run guns that only come in shock like the Twister or Storm, after that you can’t put enough points in WDT to beat the matching elements bonus. Just food for thought if this is a practical build instead of a thematical one.

You caught me, it’s a thematic build that revolves around shock. But while I’m an odd person for being both very practical yet having a taste for flair, I like creating builds with certain style but I will always min-max that build to the fullest. Good thing, though, Twister and shock Fibber are more than enough to carry the build.

#9

About the DoT thing: OP stated that they’d heard DoT wasn’t viable n UVHM+ so they’d kind of skipped it. I’m just suggesting that it’s worth re-evaluating that stance. The fixes Gaige got in the 2015 update have changed the picture a bit (even more so for Maya!).

It was more like trying to use DoTs and feeling like there is both no need for it and is a hindrance when it’s simply better to remove the enemies as quickly as possible via burst, which is what anarchy stacks are really good at providing. I read up on it hoping for a change of opinion and found even more reasons to hate DoTs.

To be fair though, I actually do like how DoTs help with healthgating since I can drop a couple, have any moxxi weapon equipped and be past health gate quickly. But just that.

#10

I didn’t say it was going to be anywhere near just normally shooting, simply that this is the best you can get with DoTs on her. And ~21 million DoT damage a second isn’t bad, plus the damage the Storm does.

So this would be an optimized thematic build. :wink: Though I would have rather had all Pangolin parts on my Blockade, as aposed to all Dahl.

Most E-Tech are a good enough substitute. Namely a Tediore one.

I make them myself too, but usually people that come asking for advise aren’t as well informed as we are. So because of that I just like to cover all my bases and add useful info where I can.

#11

http://bl2skills.com/mechromancer.html#550020110000350025150510413150151050
This is my level 72 Gaige running a L. Catalyst, Bee, Chain Lightning and shock BotA. Weapons are a Shock Twister, GN, Casual Swordsplosion and shock Redundant Fibber with ricochet barrel (or a DPUH if I feel the need for more firepower). Since the October 2015 update to Gaige’s LBT tree I’d say that to get the best benefit from WDT you really should take both EE and EB- the three have a great synergy. I tend to use shotguns a lot on Gaige so I don’t get a lot of use out of The Better Half but having Cooking Up Trouble helps deal with the health loss from 5/5 BSS, although I’ve actually run Gaige w/o BSS at all by going with Fancy Mathematics and more points in Unstoppable Force. For a change of pace I’ll put on her TN Necromancer com and equip an Infinity (she has a level 68 Discharge Infinity that she can still get some use out of). I can understand why DoT damage might not appeal to you but let me ask: you say you’ve read up a lot on DoT’s, but have you actually tried a DoT build for yourself to see how it appeals to you?

#12

The OP already has specced in Wires Don’t Talk. Since the last hotfix it does the intended damage. Should be a no-brainer to go for EE or EB.

#13

you say you’ve read up a lot on DoT’s, but have you actually tried a DoT build for yourself to see how it appeals to you?

.

It was more like trying to use DoTs and feeling like there is both no need for it and is a hindrance when it’s simply better to remove the enemies as quickly as possible via burst, which is what anarchy stacks are really good at providing. I read up on it hoping for a change of opinion and found even more reasons to hate DoTs.

In case you actually read it but didn’t get it, I tried EB/EE and didn’t like it.

#14

Something I need to know - is there any report on how Shock Storm scales? I don’t want anecdotes, I want factual numbers. Everytime I google it, it’s always something along the lines of “I heard it sucks”. What I’ve heard, personally, is it scales badly. But how badly?

For example, I read a really informational thread on nth degree which solidified my trust in it. What about shock storm?

#15

There’s numbers in a spread sheet linked from this post:

The damage numbers vary based on parts and accessories, of course, but the following ranges give a good picture of progression. These are for levels (from left) 50, 61, 72, and OP8:

image

Here’s how the electrocute dmg/s varies across the same levels (min-max again):

image

Here’s a direct link to the full spread sheet on Google Docs: Borderlands 2 Sniper Rifle Stats List - Google Sheets

#16

Shock Storm as in the skill, not the rifle.

#17

D’Oh! Sorry - had the sniper stuck in my head from earlier discussion.

There was some testing done after the October 2015 update; not sure if it included specific numbers on Shock Storm though. A quick browse through the forum only pulls up the stats on Electrical Burn proc chance. Maybe @Chuck80, @MidnightNova, or @Adabiviak know of something?

#18

I don’t have a problem with shock storm’s damage. It scales well in UVHM… it used to scale very badly, but with the latest patch, it’s not an issue anymore.

The real problem with it is not the damage: it’s that the radius of the explosion is much too small for it to be dependable IMO.

I don’t have anything specific to add as far as data goes, only my personal recommendation to skip it.

On DoT builds: They work GREAT, but you have to understand the DoT mechanics and chose your gear with that in mind. A shock bone, Catalyst COM and Chain lightning are mandatory… But they’re really the only thing you need.

Electrical burn is, IMO, Gaige’s strongest skill.

I’ve routinely cleared whole rooms within a few seconds using only a slagga and a couple CL. I see things die that I didn’t even know were there.

Armored enemies are a bit harder and bosses are a real challenge… But flesh enemies just melt, it’s not even funny.

My DoT Gaige clears flesh maps faster than my Salvador.

In short, DoT builds don’t suck if you do them right.

If you don’t LIKE playing a DoT build, that’s a different story :stuck_out_tongue:

I’ll have a look at your build when I get home from work. :slight_smile:

2 Likes
#19

Is this in OP8?

OP8 is where builds go to die.

#20

At OP8 enemies don’t melt as dramatically as what I described (which is at OP2), but the build is certainly still plenty viable.

I mean… UBAs die in about 1.5 Seconds at OP2, so I would expect them to die in roughly 4-5 seconds at OP8. And that’s from DoTs ALONE (as in: stop shooting and just watch them burn) so with a more proactive playstyle, it’s even faster.