No shotgun Zer0 info on here?

I’ve ran through the entire game and dlc’s at op8 as shotgun zero bit can’t seem to get through digistruct peak. I’ve tried at least 20 times so far and always die to the assassins. Anyone have any ideas for me ? Maybe a certain skill set up or other gear that could work or do I just need to try something else when it comes to that part ? I can run through dpeak just fine with everyone else and with different playstyles of each toon but shotgun zer0 is giving me a problem. Any help would be appreciated.

Unfortunately, GBX decided to turn off the archive that contained the relevant build information.

Fortunately, I was able to find it again:

https://web.archive.org/web/20150227043501/http://oldforums.gearboxsoftware.com/showthread.php?t=368830

Since the archive does weird things to URLs within posts, here’s the actual build:
http://www.bl2skills.com/assassin.html#505551300050055105515050510000

@Gulfwulf - what are we going to do about all these dead links in the master build lists?
@Raptchur - any chance you might consider porting this build from the web archive link onto the new forums?

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Port them over if possible. Otherwise I’ll just cross them out as dead.

Awesome thanks alot I found it weird that there was nothing here on this playstyle ( none that I could find at least ). But alas , that is pretty much my exact build just with 2 points taken out of two fang and put into fearless. I will try it with 5/5 two fang but i dont think it will make much of a difference.

How does your gear match up with what’s described in that build? It seems like min-maxing your loadout would be particularly important for that build.

Im running with the rustlers twister as my main shotgun, then slag Pimp, boss bekah and my utility slot is either corrosive Pimp , ladyfist, or norfleet for second winds. Max stat antagonist I sometimes switch to blockade for non gun enemies legendary killer com with slang transfusion and I’ve been using the shock bone I didn’t think the deputys badge would matter much either.

Not as polished as Raptchur’s old build, but my spy zero build makes great use of shotguns :slight_smile:


SHOTGUN ZERO IN A NUTSHELL:

With Zero, consider Jakobs shotguns first, then Either Torgue or Tediore (yes, Tediore, i’m not kidding)

The reverse-recoil gimmick of Hyperion Shotgun doesn’t mesh well with the typical Zero techniques of deception shotgun-surprise and taking advantage of OSOK, so they generally don’t perform as well as they usually do.

Bandit shotguns are too inaccurate to consider, except for a few exceptions. They are also quite long to reload and their massive mag doesn’t really help with anything.

try this: http://bl2skills.com/assassin.html#504451500050050155515050510000

Unforseen is a controversial choice, but I like it a lot in shotgun builds

Rising shot, while usually a great skill, doesn’t really work with most shotguns: either the bonus disappears too quickly (Jakobs) or the reload comes too soon and wipes your stacks.

Unless you have a gun with a specific pattern that is messed up by bullet speed change, velocity is a great help with a shotgun build, as spread is dictated by time rather than distance (so velocity is an accuracy boost in disguise) …and it also boosts damage and crit.

Precision is at least 4/5, no discussion. With shotguns, ACCURACY = DAMAGE

The more accurate you are, the more pellets you land, the more damage you do. If you already land all pellets, then it still means more pellets ON CRIT. And if you’re already past that, then change to a more powerful gun that is less inherently accurate to increase your potential, but always consider an accuracy boost as a damage boost.

Aim for crits (that should go without saying)

If you go jakobs, Doc’s is the best prefix for you and coach guns are probably the best choice overall outside of uniques (like the Twister)

If you go Torgue, the Ravager is great and the prefix…actually doesn’t really matter.

The Omen and Blockhead are great, but the basic Tediore Shotgun supreme (quad barrel) also performs much better than people give it credit for. Unlike Torgue and Jakobs, it can match element. it deals more damage than Hyperion while being accurate on the first shot (sustained fire isn’t really Zero’s strong suit). And it is more accurate by far than Bandit, shoots faster and reloads much faster.
If you can match elements, the Shotgun supreme will outperform a Jakobs quad in damage, accuracy, reload speed, mag size, recoil and overall fire rate (provided the target requires any number of shots to kill that isn’t 2)

Shotgun zero needs to manage deception better than most, and take advantage of kunai and death mark.
Use deception to trigger Unforseen decoy, use kunai and trigger Ambush. Don’t wait to get the full deception bonus: you want the cooldown refund more than the small damage increase.
Activate, use everything then shoot as soon as you can. Time your shots properly and aim for crits. Always reload while in deception if your mag isn’t full. Take advantage of Execute as a dash button to get in your enemy’s face for that important first shot out of deception. Prioritize the big targets that can kill you first. Ignore most melee attackers: Suicide units will blow themselves up on your decoy and others will be staggered by your decoy exploding. Always be on the move.

COMS: Legendary Killer is a great go-to. Legendary Hunter is great too, especially if you’re having trouble staying alive.

In non-Legendary COMs, I think the Professional is the best all-around. Get one in Purple: all skills it boosts are great.

Many will propose the Rogue, but the skills it boosts are ok at best, Two Fangs isn’t as good with short mags, and the fire rate bonus is almost irrelevant, especially if you go Jakobs. It’s not bad, but there are better choices.
The Spy COM is also pretty good: it has cooldown, Ambush and can make unforseen strong enough to kill even armored targets on its own (especially if you’re wearing a SHOCK bone)

Bone of the ancient = more cooldown = more Kunai = more 1st shot to the face with ambush on
If you die a lot, consider a skin of the ancient or a Blood of the ancient (with shotgun ammo, especially if you use a quad-barrel like a Ravager or a Shotgun supreme)

The deputy’s badge might sound good but it’s a bit of overkill with Zero, and the cooldown from a bone actually translates into more damage overall.

Shields is whatever. I like the Blockade with Zero.

Grenade is to taste too, but a source of slag and healing is always welcome, transfusions are always a great pick.

Try to carry different types of guns too. At least one sniper or AR for shots outside shotgun range. A slag gun might be handy, as well as a Moxxi gun, just in case.

… I might edit that later if I think of other things to add

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To build on what Chuck said ( which is all bang on, by the way ) :

  • Unf0rseen used to be controversial before the patch, but it now shouldn’t be, as it’s amazingly powerful, even at OP8. I am its biggest fan.
  • Shock BoA for most areas ( for my playstyle), with a corrosive Bone for robots ( to go with a corrosive gun…obviously ). There are no other relics : cooldown = DPS and survivability.
  • The Hunter is the best all-around COM - the Killer is great, but the Hunter is much better for survivability.
  • Using the Twister is a fine choice for the Peak, except for Assassin Wot, who’s resistant to shock ( he’s the guy with Zer0’s voice ). Oney is resistant to explosive btw, so I tend to default to corrosive with the Assassins ( besides, they often spawn with turrets, surveyors, loaders and BAR-TNKS ).
  • Chuck’s build looks perfect to me, but that removes any possibility of what I just said about melee, so a corrosive Omen might just do the trick ( or the SG Supreme? )

If you’re not aware of the elemental peculiarities of the Peak, let me know.

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And here I was wondering what my adventures on Pandora were going to be this evening; Bandit Shotgun Zer0 coming up! (He’s parked at OP3, and won’t otherwise be going after the peak, but we’ll let the dice decide where he goes).

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I think you meant to say, “This is intriguing. Shotgun, my masterpiece. Challenge accepted.” :stuck_out_tongue:

How did it go?

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Alright all sounds great I’ve only used the shotgun supreme once so I’m definitely going to give that another try to match elements. The legendary hunter was my first pick but I felt that extra crit damage from the killer would go along way but I think id rather have the extra cooldown from the hunter. Thanks DeputyChuck all is great advice I will use.

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Yeah I kind of noticed that everything is somewhat weak to corrosive right ? That was the whole reason I started running with just the twister and corrosive pimp and not matching elements I wasn’t sure if the digistruct copies had the same weaknesses as the main game counterparts.

He ran with the following (borrowed from Gaige):

  • Corrosive Dog
  • Slag Roksalt
  • Shock Jolly Roger
  • Fire Teeth of Terra

Meh… it works, but wasn’t that enjoyable? I like to add Be Like Water to the mix because often the combat becomes laying into them to get them slagged and de-shielded. I’m often hurt by this point, so I go into Decepti0n, throw Kunai, and Execute. It won’t necessarily kill them, but it does put me back on offense, and now they’re stunned, slagged, marked for death, marked for gun damage, and bowing their head where I can lay into it with my shotgun of choice. It’s just more tedious than I’m used to with Zer0.

It is the Bandit weapons though. Outside of these one-off things, the only shotguns my assassins have played with for the last few years anyway have been Jakobs. They’re generally more one-shot material, and that’s what I’m used to playing with Zer0? Don’t get me wrong though - I love shotgun Gaige with Bandit shotties.

For funsies though, I went to OP8 Digistruct Peak with a slag bladed Rubi, Landscaper, shock Wanderlust, and corrosive Chopper. That wasn’t enough to get past Dukino’s Mom, but was otherwise good to go to get me there (there’s not enough ammo in the world to feed that Chopper on a peak run).

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I like this skill, although it does take some practice. When you get into the rhythm though… :man_dancing:

The Jolly Roger should work, but it’s definitely better on other characters.

Why don’t you try the shotgun supreme now and compare them ? :slight_smile:

My Zer0 experience is limited with him currently sitting at the end of TVHM only, but I think Sledge’s shotgun would be a good choice for a Bandit-flavored surprise shotgun blast. Apart from the usual Bandit stats its burst fire gimmick makes it comparable to a Jakobs Quad, but it can also have an element. I didn’t actually have one on Zero, but the corrosive one found by my Sal wrecked things hard for a long time (found from Smash-Head on the Normal Mode mission kill, it was in use up to and through Ore Chasm), so Zer0 might do good damage with it as well. Why didn’t you try that one too - is yours somehow unsuitable as a main damage dealer (e.g. slag)?

The only enemies that have the same weaknesses as their off-Peak counterparts are robots ( obv. corrosive ).

Most flesh is typed neutral : neither weak nor resistant to any element.

The problem is spiderants : it depends which kind, as each one has different resistances. On average, shock is best and particularly on the ones that matter : slag centurions, Scorch, and Black Queen. Corrosive works fine, but shock is better.

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Sledge’s shotgun gets most of it’s power from the double blast gimmick.

But deception, ambush and OSOK only apply to the first shot. And Two fangs plays weird with that too. So that’s 4 skills that don’t like it, and they are among the most important of that playstyle.

You get better results with a single more powerful blast. Among Bandit shotguns, the Jolly Roger is probably the best on Zero.

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Ah, too bad. As I said, I don’t have a lot of Zer0 experience yet. Thanks, though.
In the meantime, I’ve been running through the Fridge with Zer0 over and over so I could try it myself, but RNG isn’t cooperating. Two Gubs and a Logan’s Gun from Laney, two Gunerangs from Rakkman, and a Badaboom from Rakkman’s chest, no Sledge’s Shotgun. Y’know, the usual.

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Alright as much as I thought then. I’ll continue to use the twister but I’m definitely going to try the shotgun supremes again. Thanks for the help you guys!

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