Playing 150-250 anarchy?

Borderlands 2 Gaige the Mechromancer
#1

The first time I played gaige I went high stacks and just kinda steamrolled the game but only when I had specific gear.

I want to invest only enough in her anarchy tree to grab discord. Possibly nth degree 1/5

Heavily hit her shock tree and bff tree.

I want to be able to use more guns and actually be able to hit things with her.

I have my characters capped at op0 so far but how effectively would 150-250 stacks play in the op levels? Could she solo raid?

Where is the sweet spot between 150 and 250 that will give me the most oomph while still being able to hit my target fairly well?

Iā€™ve watched derchā€™s skill guide on her so I know where to start gear wise.

Was thinking a shock fastball might be fun. Any exp with that with her?

I plan on going two shock guns, grog ( unless someone suggest something with more utility), and a Florentine/Slagga/utility weapon.

Once I get close enough and discord itā€™s all shock tree from there then filling out bff in uvhm.

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#2

I have never needed to use the maximum of amount of stacks when speccā€™ing into Anarchy. But I always make sure to have more than the minimum (150). Comfortably, 250 is probably the lowest I would go and still deal damage that mattered. (So that would be 2/5) Usually I run it at 3/5 (300 stacks) with my Anarchy/shock build at OP8 and with my Bouncing Bullet Barrage build as well.

Only my Bouncing Bullet Barrage build utilizes The Nth Degree because of how itā€™s made. I usually stop when I can get Rational Anarchist to help get a jump start on building up stacks. The rest goes mainly into the Little Big Trouble tree for shock and elemental use; while only a small portion is left to use in the Best Friends Forever as Iā€™m not really Death Trap reliant in my style of play.

Havenā€™t really used a Shock Fastball too much with her, but it can be effective when used practically. Mostly, I use either a Quasar or Magic Missile depending on my need. But most of the time itā€™s a Quasar. A Storm Front is good too, but ive come to like the Quasar better.

Also donā€™t forget to get a good corrosive weapon in your arsenal. Some of the skills from the Little Big Trouble tree supplement all elements and corrosive is a must for taking on the Peak.

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#3

Good info. Iā€™ve heard somewhere that 300+ is where things start to get silly.

What guns do you use at 300 stacks?

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#4

Yeah, I used to play with them at 350, but then I was like, letā€™s just dial it down a notchā€¦so I moved down to 300. I use 250 when I want about a 50/50 balance on accuracy loss and damage boost.

That depends on which build Iā€™m using. I have two. One is OP8 verified and proven, the other can go as far as OP6.

This one is the one that can go as far as OP6. Iā€™m also in the process of adding an update for the new variations I recently tested for it.

The OP8 build mainly uses the Fibber, Avenger, Kitten, Conference Call, Norfleet, and a few other odds and ends.

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#5

Derch said the best return on nth degree is one point durring his gaige skill guide. Whatā€™s your opinion on that? Noticed you had 5/5.

That seems like an awesome build. I really want to be more accurate with her and go as low anarchy as possible, but was thinking of of her being my first character to op8.

How far can her melee hybrids go?

How high in the op levels can she mob while only using shock weapons with a shock bone? I know bossess and the peak Iā€™d need to match but I really love not having to constantly swap my gear. Thatā€™s one of my main reasons for wanting to get her up.

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#6

Derch was probably going along the lines of min/maxing so that points can be used elsewhere. I used all 5 because of the theme I had going with that build. And Iā€™ve noticed that it makes a difference when mobbing, but not necessarily with overall damage. More along the lines of helping to spread out the damage and trigger more DoTā€™s - which, if you have a Moxxi weapon in hand that means very good health regen. But my OP8 build, Iā€™ll find it to show you, doesnā€™t use it at all.

Anarchy is almost a necessity when climbing the OP levels. Iā€™ve heard of people here and there getting by with little to none all the way to OP8, but I think thatā€™s mostly due to being heavy into the BFF tree and DT dependent. My Gaige is currently at OP8. I know a small stack ceiling seems appealing for the sake of accuracy, but in my opinion it needs to be maybe invested in at least 1 point (making it 200). With the right weapons and Close Enough maxed, and practice of course to get used to it, accuracy becomes relative.

Iā€™m unfamiliar with her melee focused builds because I dislike one of her main skills for it. (With Claws) And Iā€™m not much of melee character player (although Iā€™m learning with my Krieg).

Some people may think shock isnā€™t much use, and a few even think itā€™s one of the weaker elements only good for shield stripping. But donā€™t listen to them. Gaige is an absolute powerhouse with shock. It can mow down almost anything no problem. The trouble is the enemies that are resistant to it. (Like UBA shock slags, electrified nomads, and ones like that) And while it can be used to great effect on loaders, corrosive is just much better for that particular situation.

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#7

Couldnā€™t find the screenshot I had of it, but Iā€™m certain [this]
(http://bl2skills.com/mechromancer.html#552010120000250053140551413050151000) was it. Give or take a few points.

With it I used:

  • Antagonist or Blockade shield
  • Legendary Catalyst COM (sometimes Legendary Mechromancer COM)
  • Quasar and/or Magic Missile x4
  • Bone of the Ancients (shock/corrosive) or Sheriffā€™s Badge
  • Fibber (with ricochet barrel type in both shock & corrosive)
  • Avenger (Shock, fire, & corrosive)
  • Kitten (Shock, corrosive, no element)
  • Norfleet (for FFYL)
  • And kept an Unkempt Harold in my backpack for enemies that required it to be killed.

The first build I showed you was made after I had reached OP8. It was a specialty build revolving around certain gear to play with for fun and on lower levels.

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#8

Youā€™re so helpfull right now. Much thanks.

I have a legendary class mod for her at 72 the team elemental effect one and I was planning to just go full damage in the shock tree and get by with as little anarchy as possible. I think the only capstone Iā€™ll grab will be her shield one.

In that skill. I know the hide of terra, black hole and fotf are great, but how about the antagonist? Would he spread enough slag to synergize well?

Yeah, the melee thing might be something I try out at op0 but it looks kinda weird.

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#9

If you do that try to get both Make It Sparkle and Sharing is Caring. And yes, the Antagonist works rather well on DT. The slag balls it dispersed might not be frequent enough so it suggest a magic missile to supplement so you can keep your shock weapon out and going like you want. And I HIGHLY suggest at least 1 point towards stack amount. Gives a little leg up on damage without taking accuracy out too bad.

DO NOT get The Stare or One Two Boom - the Stare has problems and DT is a huge derp with One Two Boom. Shock Storm doesnā€™t have a wide enough range, but works great with one point to help proc Electrical Burn. Buck Up, in my opinion, is counterproductive to using DT. I would prefer him continue doing damage rather than worry about my shield. Potent as a Pony isnā€™t all that helpful and can be avoided if youā€™re trying to stretch your points. Explosive Clap has a looonnggg wind up, but Robot Rampage is good.

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#10

Iā€™m pretty comfortable with her skills and how they work in theory itā€™s just putting it all together at the right anarchy level.

I might play around with swapping shields before I through dt then swapping to a shield for me, but I imagine that will get annoying.

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#11

It does and sometimes an enemy is right in your face while youā€™re in the menu switching them and maybe even sends you FFYLā€¦

Thing is, Iā€™m not Death Trap reliant really. His use for me is either the distraction or sent just milliseconds before I got FFYL so I have more help getting back up. Funnily enough, I never used Anarchy until mid-UVHM where I went back to lower levels for practice in learning how to use Anarchy. Just like you, I didnā€™t want to sacrifice my accuracy, but now I canā€™t use Gaige without it. Sure, her elemental game is strong, but base damage just seems low. Plus I never use slag - mostly because I always forget about it unless specifically using MM for that moment.

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#12

The stack ceiling depends on how you compliment it. If you have both DT capstones, he can pretty much carry you through so little to no Anarchy is needed.
The same for LBT. If you max EE and WDT, EB coupled with the Chain Lightning are going to tear through flesh mobs. But, as it wont work against armor, get some Anarchy to help your corrosive guns.

But for your guns do damage, some Anarchy is needed as it is the only boost Gaige has. 150 is enough for regular play but I recommend at least 200 as @Ninja_Mrrr suggested.
If you desire to climb the Peak, 200 is the min as EB wont work there. The best guns for Gaige work well with Anarchy, like the Hail and the Fibber, so it is safe to go as high as 300 stacks.

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#13

I cap at 250 for most of the game and end up maintaining 200-250 with Discord. I donā€™t usually feel the need to go higher.

Nth Degree should be maxed or not used at all - but only if youā€™re running a gun-focused build ( meaning very few points towards DT ). I personally love it and never play without it.

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#14

Iā€™ve limited my OP 3 Gaige to 250 stacks and can still ADS well enough to be effective with her Lyuda without discord, but some of that is probably due to the bullet-split pattern. She can be incredibly effective with either a ricochet Fibber or Hail as well with Nth Degree and CEā€¦taking Piston down with a single Fibber burst, for example.

Her build, FWIW, and used with a Leg. Catalyst class modā€¦generic shock build, nothing remarkable AFAIK.

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#15

Out of curiosity, why leave MiS aside?

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#16

I really only toss DT out when things get too hairy to deal with on my own, and havenā€™t paid too much attention to him in general. That said, it may be worth at least trying itā€¦Iā€™d forgotten that itā€™s a single point and that I already have access to it. I could pull a point out of either SaAAA or WDT (her shock Bone should easily cover the missing damage) and see how it goes.

I fully admit that her build may have areas that could stand refiningā€¦I basically just stuck points in stuff that seemed to make sense while she was lvlā€™ing up and Iā€™ve ran with it as-is since she hit 72. I really do like playing her and I should take a harder look at her build, if only to hopefully make the Peak a bit easier on her (sheā€™s the one Iā€™ve struggled with the most there). Iā€™ve been thinking about asking about in the Gaige threads to see what others have to say but havenā€™t got around to it yetā€¦that will change soonā€™ish tho, I think.

Good catchā€¦thanks!

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#17

Thanks everyone. Was without internet for a while.

I started her up today and sheā€™s at the bunker right now. Been using a lot of Jacobs shotguns.

Iā€™m starting to see a rang between 175-225 that I like to discord around in.

As far as speck goes Iā€™m still a bit iffy on how to go about it.

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#18

For a Jakobs-centered build I would start with this. Obviously that leaves 5 points to fill in BFF or perhaps Electrical Burn

The trick is the COM

  • Leg Anachist ( although the negative accuracy might ruin it )
  • Leg Mechro ( the buff to Smaller, Lighter, Faster in both could be an issue with shotguns though - maybe fixed with an allegiance relic )
  • Prodigy ( but only CuT is useful ).
  • The Leg Robo could work but itā€™s pretty boring.

The Leg Mechro would probably be my first choice. Then the points in Myelin could go to More Pep and leftover points into Electrical Burn ( playing to SaA ).

Iā€™m very interested to see what others suggest for a Jakobs build - I normally run things like CC, Hail,

Tagging @MidnightNova - I know sheā€™ll have a kickass Jakobs build.

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#19

Iā€™d go for this as well.

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#20

Actually, and apologies if it sounds like blatant self promotion, I made a casual Jakobs allegiance build. The only time the element comes looking is from her own Skills and the choice of grenade. And the Anarchy stacks average at 80~90. Iā€™ll try to dig it up later, itā€™s a OP0 build, but in its current state it should work up to OP4 (emphasis on should).

What I can say, I feel Prodigy is for the best in that sort of build. Jakobs is about accuracy, and this COM does surprisingly well negating the accuracy pentalty granted by Anarchy. MP and IO are not a must at op0, but definetly a help with their line of fire arms.

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