Hex Rakk Flakker (A Rakk-focused explosive Fl4k build)

Borderlands 3 FL4K the Beastmaster
#1

Update
17/10/19 Hotfix has majorly impacted this build with nerfs to Hex and Flakker. I’m in the process of experimenting with different gear to find the new best combo. Would love to hear some ideas and thoughts from the community!

Introduction

I love glass cannon builds and being able to deal masses amount of damage at crazy speeds. The obvious choice with Fl4k is to use a Fadeaway build but with the recent nerfs and it starting to become a little boring I wanted to try something new out, and that’s how Hex Rakk Flakker was born. Fadeaway builds are also rather weak at mobbing and I wanted to try and create a build that would show Fl4k isn’t just the boss-killer of the four classes. It has three ways of dealing huge busts of AoE damage with a Recurring Hex, Rakk Attack and Flakker on rotation. It’s superb at mobbing and still crazy strong at boss fights and is an absolute blast to play. I tested it out on TVHM Mayhem 3 by myself and I was able to finish all the Proving Grounds before the 25 minute mark. Be warned though, you will most likely blow yourself up whilst clearing rooms out in seconds!

Necessary Gear

Below is the necessary gear needed to bring this build to life. This will allow for the core rotation of the build to be spammed.

Anointed Flakker with +125% Splash Damage on Action Skill End

Anointed shield (I use Stop-Gap or Transformer) with +20% Action Skill Cooldown Rate on Action Skill End

Anointed Recurring Hex with +1 Grenade on Action Skill Start

Artifact (I use Snowdrift Deathless) with +30% Grenade Damage and +33% Area-Of-Effect Damage

Skill Points

Click here or here to see the build. One key thing to mention is that most Rakk builds people use will focus on keeping your pet alive and health regeneration for both you and your pet but I chose to completely avoid that due to wanting to maximise damage and also using a Deathless relic.

Rotation

  1. Hex.
  2. Rakk.
  3. Flakker.
  4. Repeat.

Explanation

The Hex is thrown first as it is then followed up by the Rakk which regenerates the grenade. This ensures that you will never run out and can keep on going forver. With Rakk then being used, your Flakker’s Anointed skill triggers and +125% Splash Damage is activated. This is what makes the build so stupidly strong as it affects not only your gun but your Hex and Rakk too and that combined with the buffs from my artifact means everything gets instantly melted, bosses included.

Conclusion

There’s really not too much explaining needed to be done with the build but if anyone has questions or wants to discuss something then please do. I’m on PS4 otherwise I would have created the guide with some pictures of my gear and maybe even a clip or two showing it all off in action but I did try to make it clear and easy to understand. I hope you enjoyed reading the guide and you’ve been inspired to give the build a go. Please say if you’ll be trying it out as I would love to know your thoughts!

PS: I understand that it’s quite a specific build and requires a lot of anointed gear to maximise. It can definitely be tried out with any decent Flakker and Grenade but it won’t perform as well. The specifcs in this build is what makes it excel due to the crazy splash damage bonuses and your infinite combo of three powerful AoE splash damage sources.

2 Likes
#2

It’s hard enough getting a Recurring Hex, but getting an ANOINTED Recurring Hex seems impossible. I wish I had one.

1 Like
#3

That’s true and for others in the same situation you can use any strong grenade and the Tag and Frag Guardian skill. It won’t be infinite spam but it will still last you long enough to get through content. And if you were to run out you can still use Rakk and Flakker for a lot of damage.

#4

Had me excited until i read the needed gear. If i ever find it i will for sure try this out tho.
I’ve had lots of hex grenades and flakker drops, but none anointed.

And I’m not using guardian ranks until they give us the option to disable it, which they probably never will

#5

I don’t have the gear, but I love the creativity on display!

#6

I have yet to see a single Anointed legendary/unique grenade…that’s a lottttttt of farming for a Hex.

#7

Sorry! The build definitely requires a lot of specific things and I know most people won’t have them but I really felt like sharing and explaining the build with others.

Whilst what I put under necessary gear is very important and fully maximises the build you could definitely get away without needing the anointed perks if you don’t care about reaching the build’s maximum potential. For example a normal Recurring Hex or even another good grenade could be used alongside a non-anointed Flakker. But it will definitely be a lot weaker and you may find other builds to be a lot stronger. This build excels when all the components are there.

One problem without the anointed grenade is you won’t be able to go infinite with the rotation but to be honest everything dies so quickly with this build you don’t need to spam them if you have the damage bonuses (Splash Damage and Area-Of-Effect). I kill anything instantly with just a Rakk and Flakker combo and the grenade is just overkill and for larger mobbing (I usually throw the grenade left and shoot my Flakker right and my Rakk down the middle for example).

The main problem though is that without the Splash Damage increase from an Anointed Flakker the overall damage from all sources will be a lot weaker. With it my Rakks and Flakker gain over a 150% damage (the anointed 125% and the 33% from my artifact) increase and the grenades are pushing 200% (has an extra +30% and also extra from Guardian points). Just one of those is incredible damage and now imagine all 3 being spammed. One option though is to find any weapon with the Splash Damage anointment and keep it in your hand (I have a Roisen’s Thorns with it too I use against Armour) whilst you spam only Rakks with the occasional grenade. It will still perform decently for mobbing (Rakks will kill most enemies in 1 go except for stronger enemies that will need 2) and you can focus the rest of the build for taking down bosses.

Let me know if you do try the build without the BIS gear because I’m interested in knowing if it will still perform well. I guess it will still be good but not as crazy OP as the perfect build above. Hopefully you do eventually find the pieces and get to give it a proper go :slight_smile:

1 Like
#8

Thank you! I spent a decent amount of time trying to think about a fun and exciting but effective build I could work towards once I decided I wanted to move away from Fadeaway and then I spent an even longer amount of time getting all the pieces together as you could imagine! It was definitely worth it though as I’m having an absolute blast blowing everything up.

I did make a lengthy post above by the way exploring the idea of running a much weaker version of the build without the anointed versions of the gear which you might be interested in reading.

1 Like
#9

I’m sure playing NVHM mayhem 3 i could get away not having all the anointed versions.

I may have missed it in your OP, but what COM do you run?

#10

Give it a go and let me know!

And I didn’t mention my COM as it’s not a vital part of the build for the core rotation of the Hex, Rakk and Flakker combo. However a good COM can allow the build to be flexible. I personally use a Bounty Hunter one as it’s the best COM for bosses and this build doesn’t need further improvements with mobbing in mind. I managed to get one rolled with +18% Weapon Critical Damage and +31% Assault Rifle Damage and I pair it with an Anointed Fire Rowan’s Call with 100% Weapon Damage Increase on Action Skill End (this is superb with Rakks) and it means I can swap away from my Flakker combo and still be effective. One particular example that comes to mind is Graveward.

If you’re interested, my other two weapon are an anointed Shock Crossroad with 1 Extra Rakk and an Anointed Corrosive Raisen’s Throns with 125% Splash Damage on Action Skill End. I don’t really use these much as my Flakker and Rowan’s Call destroys everything but I like having the Shock and Corrosive option if needed and the anointed perks still benefit the build.

1 Like
#11

Can you repost the skill trees? The link just takes you to the Fl4k page.

#12

Hey there! Someone told me about the issue with the Skill Trees link on Reddit too. Here is a new link on BL3Zone that shows the skill guide.

I’m sure most of the community here has seen the Hotfix nerfs today and it’s affected this build with major nerfs to the Hex and Flakker. I haven’t had the opportunity to jump on the game yet to see how this build feels since the nerfs but I’m sure it will be a lot weaker. I’m going to try and test out replacement parts to see if a new spamming combo can be found that meets the previous power level of the build. I’m currently considering Stormfront (paired with a Transformer) and Cluster-F*ck for the Grenade Slot and a Hive for the main weapon with the same Anointed Perk of 125% Splash Damage Increase if the Flakker still doesn’t server a purpose in massive burst damage after initial grenades and Rakks have been used. I’m interested in hearing ideas from anyone else though. I’m sure this build can live on in some form but I don’t think it will be as strong and it will definitely need a name change ha! :stuck_out_tongue:

#13

Just as i had started using this build they nerf the 2 main items to hell a couple days later. If you find another great combo expect a nerf a few weeks later :confused: