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- Assassin/Zero Skill Builds
- Gunzerker/Salvador Skill Builds
Note: Underlined skills are more important in regards to each build.
Build 1 - Gunner:
This build is focused on not using the Commando’s Sabre Turret for constant damage, but as a buff for more gun damage (Battlefront (TIER 3)) and also as burst damage (Nuke (TIER 6)). Duty Calls (TIER 4) is better than Overload (TIER 2) for DPS, but if you want to use elemental guns, go for the latter.Also, if you don’t want to use assault rifles, skip both and go for Steady (TIER 3).
Tier 1
- Ready [MAX]- Reload Speed +40%
- Impact [MAX]- Gun Damage +20%, Melee Damage +15%
- Expertise [2/5]- Weapon Swap Speed +28%, Aim Speed +28%, Movement Speed while aiming +14%
Tier 2
- Willing [MAX]- Shield Recharge Rate +75%, Shield Recharge Delay -60%
- Metal Storm [MAX]- Killing an enemy increases Fire Rate +60% and Recoil Reduction +75% for a few seconds
- Onslaught [MAX]- Killing an enemy increases Gun Damage +30% and Movement Speed +60% for a few seconds
- Scorched Earth [1/1]- Add rocket pods to your Sabre Turret
- Longbow Turret [1/1]- You can deploy your turret 10000% further away, Turret Health +110%
- Battlefront [MAX]- When your Sabre Turret is active, Gun Damage +30%, Melee Damage +30%, Grenade Damage +30%
Tier 4
- Duty Calls [MAX]- For non-elemental guns, Gun Damage +25%, Fire Rate +15%
Tier 5
- Ranger [MAX]- Gun Damage, Accuracy, Crit Hit Damage, Fire Rate, Magazine Size, Reload Speed, Max Health all +5%
Tier 6
- Nuke [1/1]- Deploying your Sabre Turret sets off a Nuke
Build 2 - Turreteer:
The Commando’s turret can be a powerful ally, doing much more than the turret from Borderlands 1. This build makes the turret a force while also giving many weapon damage boosts, probably ending up with the highest DPS build for the Commando. If you’re willing to take a DPS hit for shorter turret cooldown, you can skip the Gunpowder tree in favor of the Survival tree in order to get Resourceful (TIER 4).
Tier 1
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- Sentry [MAX]- Shots fired per turret burst +5, turret duration +10 seconds
- Ready [4/5]- Reload Speed +32%
- Impact [MAX]- Gun Damage +20%, Melee Damage +15%
- Healthy [3/5]- Max Health +18%
Tier 2
- Laser Sight [MAX]- Turret Accuracy +50%
- Willing [MAX]- Shield Recharge Rate +75%, Shield Recharge Delay -60%
- Metal Storm [MAX]- Killing an enemy increases Fire Rate +60% and Recoil Reduction +75% for a few seconds
Tier 3
- Onslaught [MAX]- Killing an enemy increases Gun Damage +30% and Movement Speed +60% for a few seconds
- Scorched Earth [1/1]- Add rocket pods to your Sabre Turret
- Longbow Turret [1/1]- You can deploy your turret 10000% further away, Turret Health +110%
- Battlefront [MAX]- When your Sabre Turret is active, Gun Damage +30%, Melee Damage +30%, Grenade Damage +30%
Tier 6
- Double Up [1/1]- Adds a 2nd gun to your Sabre Turret and has both guns fire Slag bullets
Build 3 - The Defender:
The ultimate tank of Borderlands 2, with shield and health boosts as well as a shield for your turret (Phalanx Shield (TIER 3)). Even better is that the TIER 6 skill Gemini allows you to have two turrets – two shields. Get a siren spec’d with some healing skills and you’re basically invincible.
Tier 1
- Sentry [MAX]- Shots fired per turret burst +5, turret duration +10 seconds
- Impact [MAX]- Gun Damage +20%, Melee Damage +15%
- Healthy [MAX]- Max Health +30%
- Preparation [MAX]- Shield Capacity +15%, Regen +2% health while your shield is full
Tier 2
- Willing [MAX]- Shield Recharge Rate +75%, Shield Recharge Delay -60%
- Metal Storm [3/5]- Killing an enemy increases Fire Rate +36% and Recoil Reduction +45% for a few seconds
Tier 3
- Scorched Earth [1/1]- Add rocket pods to your Sabre Turret
- Forbearance [MAX]- Status Effect Duration -40%, Max Health +5%
- Phalanx Shield [1/1]- Get a shield for your turret
- Quick Charge [3/5]- Regenerate 3% of your shield per second for a few seconds after killing an enemy
Tier 4
- Resourceful [MAX]- Sabre Turret cooldown +25%
- Mag-Lock [1/1]- Your turret can stick on walls and ceilings
Tier 6
- Gemini [1/1]- Deploy two turrets!
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- I just have to say: imagine if you didn’t have a max level and you could buy every single Skill in the Skill Trees and have them all maxed out. You would basically be invincible, you’re guns would be completely OP, and you’re turret could kill armies by itself.
- any recommended class mods/shields relics for the tank build?
- I actually built mine up even across the board so I ended up with a sheilded rocket turret that's magnetic. I can't wait until they raise the level cap so I can possibly launch two of the things. The skill trees are really the unsung heroes of this game. Most people focus on gun/mod/relic farming but being able to lay out your skill points in so many ways leading to a large variety of game play is fatastic and addictive.
- Pressure and Grit are amazing for tanking, especially with a +5 Grit mod, for a 40% chance to not die and get half your health back since you can and often will luck out and have Grit Proc again and again and again and again..
- for the gunner if you wanted to put 1 point into preparation so that you slowly regenerate health which skill would you take a point off of?
For those who enjoy exploring the deserted wastelands of Pandora, the world of Borderlands is about to get a Thanksgiving-occasioned expansion. On Turkey Day, the second portion of the Borderlands 2 Headhunter dowloadable content will be released—an expansion that bears the usual Borderlands-styled verbiage.
The Horrible Hunger of the Ravenous Wattle Gobbler—a $2.99 expansion—will bring the usual frenzied shooting action of the shooter role-playing game. Starting off on a game show featuring the usual dark humor in Borderlands, the player will be tasked with going toe to toe with the titular character in the DLC; the Ravenous Wattle Gobber, who is—according to the boorish characters in the game—invincible.
But, it is a good thing that the player is on Pandora—a place where morals aren’t highly espoused for those keen on survival. Available on November 28, fans of the Borderlands mythos have more than just turkey to look forward to this Thanksgiving.
Review - Captain Scarlett And Her Pirate's Booty DLC
Review - Mr. Torgue's Campaign Of Carnage DLC
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SHiFT codes
Enter one of the following codes under your SHiFT account at Gearbox Software to unlock the corresponding bonus. Note: Some codes will expire over time or number of redemptions.
- 3 Golden Keys: KTWTT-RFW6T-B6B65-JJJJ3-9KJ6Z (Expires: Unknown)
- 5 Golden Keys: CJWJJ-HR5Z9-6JT3J-J3TBT-6TJ6K (Expires: Unknown)
- 5 Golden Keys: CJWBT-RK5F3-JRBR5-JJTBT-BBKWX (Expires: Unknown)
- 5 Golden Keys: 5JCBB-W55R3-BFJXC-JBBBB-RF3CZ (Expires: Unknown)
- 5 Golden Keys: 5BWBT-RX5ZH-FJBJB-JBTJT-CRBWX (Expires: Unknown)
- 25 Golden Keys: WBK3T-BKW6T-TXTRK-JTTBT-C6BS5 (Expires: Unknown)
Successfully complete the game to unlock True Vault Hunter mode.
Ultimate Vault Hunter modeSuccessfully complete the game in True Vault Hunter mode to unlock Ultimate Vault Hunter mode.
Infinite Golden KeysNote: This procedure involves editing a game file; create a backup copy of the file before proceeding. Use a text editor to edit the 'WillowDLC.ini' file in the 'SteamsteamappscommonBorderlands 2DLCPOPremierClubLic' folder. Locate the following lines:
- [GoldenKeys]
- +SourceId=254
- +NumKeys=1
Change the '+Numkeys=1' value from '1' up to '255' to get the desired number of Golden Keys. The Golden Keys can be used to open the Golden Loot chest found in Sanctuary near the Fast Travel terminal. Each time you open the chest, it will use one key and give you rare weapon(s) or item(s) that are scaled to the current level you are at when you open the chest. Note: This glitch was done on an unpatched version of the game.
All promo itemsNote: This procedure involves editing a game file; create a backup copy of the file before proceeding. Use a text editor to edit the 'WillowDLC.ini' file in the 'SteamsteamappscommonBorderlands 2DLCPOPremierClubLic' folder. Locate the following lines and update them to match how they are listed below to unlock all promo items:
- [PromotionalUnlocks]
- +UnlockId=1
- +UnlockId=2
- +UnlockId=3
- +UnlockId=4
Note: Gta 3 hidden packages map staunton island. This glitch was done on an unpatched version of the game.
Duplicating weapons, items, and moneyStart a co-op game with at least one other player. Stand next to another player, and initiate a trade. Give them the desired weapons/items/money you would like to duplicate. Then, immediately quit the game without saving. Since the game did not save after you traded the weapons/items/money, you will still have them, and the other player you traded them to will also have them. The other player can then give you weapons/items/money while using the same method. Repeat this as many times as desired. Note: Do not trade items near an auto save point to prevent the game from accidentally saving while trading the items. -From: Psychotic Elf
Infinite Badass pointsNote: This trick requires a character with at least $3 million. Create a new character, and start a game with both characters. Have the character with $3 million as player one and the new character as player two. Have player one trade $3 million to player two. You will get an extra 167 Badass points added to your profile. Then, have player two give the money back to player one. Next, have player two leave the game. Then, have player two join the game, but first delete the character player two was using, and create a new one before joining the game. Give the new character created for player two $3 million again to get another 167 Badass points. Repeat this as many times as desired. -From: Ian Maesner
Since Badass points are assigned to your profile and not a specific saved game file, it is possible to get an unlimited number of Badass points easily. Create a new character and have a second player join the game as a guest on controller two. Stand in front of the guest character with your main character, and keep activating a trade with each other. Trades count whether you actually trade anything or not. Simply activate 'Trade' without actually offering anything to still have it count as a trade. Do this 50 times to get a total of 166 Badass points. Then, create a new character and repeat the process as many times as desired. You can delete all the unwanted created characters once you are finished using this trick. Note: You can also do this with dueling. Stand in front of the guest character with your main character, and start a duel. Win the duel, and repeat the process. Fifty duel victories will result in a total gain of 166 Badass points. This can be done even quicker by setting up the controller configuration so you can keep tapping [Melee/Attack] without changing your aim at the second player.
Infinite ammunitionThis glitch requires a full inventory and a Vladof rocket launcher. Start with the rocket launcher on the ground. Have a separate gun in your hand that uses one round of ammo per shot. While hovering over the rocket launcher (you should see the 'Full' icon), swap it with the current weapon you are holding. Fire one round with the rocket launcher, then swap back to your other gun. You should now have unlimited ammo, but not unlimited rockets or grenades. Note: Certain weapons that consume more than one round of ammo per shot are also not unlimited, but all your single shot weapons should be. This must be repeated whenever the game is loaded. Additionally, this glitch was done on an unpatched version of the game.
Easy XPIn Tundra Express, complete all the optional quests for Tiny Tina that lead up to the 'You Are Cordially Invited: RSVP' quest. This quest requires you to lure Flesh Stick into Tiny Tina's cave so she can put him in a trap. However, if you just kill him, you will get a large amount of XP, depending on what level you are (level appropriate on the first playthrough is between 1,800-3,000 XP per kill, and the second playthrough is between 2,000-4,500 XP per kill). Once you kill Flesh Stick, just go back to Tiny Tina, and restart the quest. If you are playing with at least one other player, simply have one person stand by Tina while the other player stands by Flesh Stick's spawn, and he should keep appearing. Note: If Flest Stick's stops respawning, you can either go back to the starting area, exit and return; or choose to 'Save and Quit', and then reload the game. Additionally, this glitch was done on an unpatched version of the game.
After completing the 'A Dam Fine Rescue' mission, you will find Sir Hammerlock inside Sanctuary offering a quest called 'Mighty Morphin', which involves taking an injector and injecting Varkid Cocoons with a special serum. Injecting the serum into a cocoon produces a Badass Varkid. Killing one yields around 1,900 XP during your first playthrough, depending on your level. As long as you do not complete or turn-in the quest, you can kill all the enemies, choose to 'Save and Quit', and reload the game to have the enemies respawn. Repeat this as many times as desired.
Quickly reaching Level 50 with new characterDefeat The Warrior with a Level 50 character. When you are given the option to either kill Jack or let Lilith kill him, jump into the lava. The game will then automatically be saved with Jack and The Warrior defeated. Next, choose the 'Save and Quit' option. When you choose to continue the game, you will start near Jack with the requirement to still kill him. Then, invite a character you want to easily level-up to 50. Once they have joined the game, have your Level 50 character kill Jack, wait three seconds, and then reset the game for the Level 50 character so the game is not saved. The new character will receive the XP given for killing Jack, but the Level 50 character's game will not be saved after killing Jack. Repeat this for approximately an hour to get the new character to Level 50.
Better weapons and itemsGo to any slot machine after the game has recently been auto saved. Play the slot machine as many times as desired. If you do not like the weapons and/or items you won, simply quit the game without saving. Then, continue your saved game to still have all the money you spent on slot machine. Repeat this process as many times as desired to get better weapons and items.
Better mission weaponsWhen turning in a mission that gives you a weapon as a reward, usually the stats of the weapon are randomly generated (and in some cases elements). Thus, if you do not like the weapon you are given after turning in a mission, simply quit the game without saving before the game auto saves. Continue your game, and turn the mission in again to get a weapon with different stats. Repeat this until you get a weapon with desired stats and/or elements. -From: Psychotic Elf
Legendary (orange) loot locationsThe following is a list of Legendary (orange) items that certain bosses and enemies in the game will drop, and the area(s) you can find those bosses/enemies. To increase your chances of getting a Boss or enemy listed below to drop a Legendary (orange) item, play Co-Op with four players. If you do not get the Boss/enemy to drop the item, leave the area and return to fight them again. Keep doing this (farming) until they drop the item(s). Note: There is a very small chance a Boss or enemy will drop a Legendary (orange) item. Thus, it can take a very long time to get them to drop the desired item. It is also possible to get some of these items from other enemies in the game. Additionally, there are certain bosses you cannot fight until you have completed the game (Terramorphous and Vermivorous the Invincible).
Assault Rifles
- Hammer Buster - McNally, The Dust (Mission: The Bane)
- KerBlaster - Midge-mong, Southern Shelf
- Madhous! - Mad Dog, Lynchwood
- Shredifier - Bonehead 2.0, Arid Nexus
- Veruc (Slag) - Mobley, The Dust
Pistols
- Gub - Laney, The Fridge
- Gunerang - Rakk Man, The Fridge
- Hornet - Knuckledragger, Southern Shelf
- Infinity (Caustic) - Doc Mercy, Southpaw Steam & Power (Side Mission: Medical Mystery)
- Logan's Gun - Wilhelm, Snowblind Defile (Mission: A Train To Catch)
- Maggie - Mick Zafod, The Dust (side with Hodunks)
- Thunderball Fists - Captain Flynt, Southern Shelf
- Unkempt Harold - Savage Lee, Three Horns
Rocket Launchers
- Badaboom - King Mong, Eridium Blight
- Bunny - Chubby enemies
- Mongol - Dukino's Mom, Lynchwood
- Norfleet - Vermivorous the Invincible, Tundra Express and Caustic Caverns
- Nukem - Black Queen, The Dust
- Pyrophobia - Incinerator Clayton, Frostburn Canyon (Mission: Cult Following - The Enkindling)
Shotguns
- Conferance Call (Fire) - The Warrior, Hero's Pass
- Deliverance - Tumba, Wildlife Preserve
- Flakker - The Warrior, Hero's Pass
- Sledge's Shotgun - Smash Head, The Fridge
- Striker - Old Slappy, The Highlands - Outwash
Sniper Rifles
- Invader - Saturn, Arid Nexus - Badlands (Mission: Data Mining)
- Longbow - Badass Creeper, Caustic Cavern
- Lyuda (Slag/Shock) - Gettle, The Dust
- Pitchfork (Fire/Slag/Caustic) - Terramorphous, Terramorphous Peak
- Skullmasher - Son Of Mothrakk, Wildlife Preserve
- Volcano - The Warrior, Hero's Pass
SMG
- Baby Maker - Madame Von Bartlesby, Tundra Express (Side Mission: You Are Cordially Invited - Party Prep) / Mad Dog, Lynchwood
- Bitch - BNK3R, The Bunker (Mission: Where Angels Fear To Tread)
- Emperor - The Assassins, Southpaw Steam & Power
- Hellfire - Scorch, Frostburn Canyon / The Warrior, Hero's Pass
- Slagga - Hodunk, The Dust
Shields
- Black Hole - Foreman, Opportunity
- Fabled Tortoise - Blue, Caustic Caverns
- Hide Of Terramorphous - Terramorphous, Terramorphous Peak
- Impaler - The Warrior, Hero's Pass
- Neogenator - Spycho, Frostburn Canyon
- The Bee - Hunter Hellquist, Arid Nexus - Badlands
- The Cradle - Henry, Overlook (Side Mission: Best Mother's Day Ever)
- The Sham - BNK3R, The Bunker (Mission: Where Angels Fear To Tread)
- The Transformer - Pimon, Wildlife Preserve
- Whiskey Tango Foxtrot - Chubby enemies
Grenades
- Bonus Package - Boom Bewm, Southern Shelf
- Bouncing Bonnie - Loot Midgets
- Fastball - Boll, Three Horns
- Fire Bee - Unknown
- Leech (Fire/Shock/Caustic) - The Warrior, Hero's Pass
- Nasty Surprise - Vermivorous the Invincible, Tundra Express and Caustic Caverns
- Pandemic - Badass Constructor
- Quasar - Ultimate Badass Varkid
- Rolling Thunder - Wilhelm, Snowblind Defile (Mission: A Train To Catch)
- Storm Front - Rat Brothers, Bloodshot Stronghold
Class Mods
- Legendary (Siren/Commando/Gunzerker/Assassin) - Vermivorous the Invincible, Tundra Express and Caustic Caverns
- Slayer Of Terramorphous (Siren/Commando/Assassin/Gunzerker) - Terramorphous, Terramorphous Peak
Relic
- Blood Of Terramorphous - Terramorphous, Terramorphous Peak
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Veteran skinsHave a saved game file from the original Borderlands on your hard drive to unlock the Veteran skins for all four characters using the option found under the 'Extras' menu.
Moxxi weaponsIf you keep tipping Moxxi large amounts of money in Sanctuary (over $10,000), she will eventually give you a weapon. Try to tip after she stops talking. Once you get a weapon from her, you can fast travel to another area and then back to Sanctuary. Keep tipping her again to get another weapon. She only gives two types of weapons -- a fire elemental submachine gun and corrosive elemental submachine gun, but they should always have different stats. -From: Psychotic Elf
Carrying an extra item in inventoryThis trick requires two class mods. Once your inventory is full, switch your currently equipped class mod for another one in your inventory (you can then re-equip your original class mod after you have done this). Then, exit the inventory menu to be able to now pick up one additional item, allowing you to have up to 28 items in your inventory instead of the normal maximum of 27.
Getting Golden KeysGolden Keys can be used to open the Golden Loot chest found in Sanctuary near the Fast Travel terminal. Each time you open the chest, it will use one key and give you rare weapon(s) or item(s) that are scaled to the current level you are at when you open the chest. Thus, make sure you do not open the cheat with a Golden Key until you want a rare weapon for the current level you are at. There are multiple ways to get a Golden Key. Certain retailers gave a DLC code to people who pre-ordered the game that included a Golden Key. You can also sign-up for the Gearbox Shift program that is found under the 'Extras' menu in-game to get a Golden Key. Gearbox has also stated they are planning on giving away more Golden Keys through future promotions and events. The news ticker at the Borderlands 2 menus will provide more information about the Golden Key promotions and events.
Good loot farming chestIn the Vault Of The Warrior, you will reach a bridge to walk over the lava (there is a lava fall to the right of the bridge) shortly after entering the area. Jump down the lava hole to the left of the bridge. Once you go down the hole, move forward to find a small cove with a red loot chest on the right. The loot chest contains good items. Once you grab the items, select the 'Save and Quit' option to have the chest refill. Repeat this as many times as desired.
Easy Badass tokensTo easily get Badass tokens early in the game, use the following methods:
Dueling: Defeat players 50 times while dueling to complete this challenge and get 166 total Badass points. To easily do this, have two players unequip any mods and shield from their character. Then, initiate a duel by having one player melee the other player. Take turns defeating each other until both players have 50 duel wins each.
Reviving: Revive a downed player 50 times to complete this challenge and get 166 total Badass points. To do easily do this, have two players that can kill themselves. Find or purchase a Tediore weapon. These weapons are thrown and explode when reloaded. Unequip any mods and shield from your character. Then, stand in a corner, shoot the Tediore gun once, and reload. You will throw the gun into the corner and hurt your character when it blows up. Once you go down, have the other player revive you. Then, have the other player do the same thing with their character. Repeat this until both players have 50 revives each.
Selling: Sell items 50 times to complete this challenge and get 166 total Badass points. To easily do this, go to any vending machine and sell an item, then buy it back for the same price you sold it, and then sell it again. Repeat this until you have completed the 'Wholesale' challenge.
Trading: Trade with another player 50 times to complete this challenge and get 166 total Badass points. To easily do this, have two players keep activating a trade with each other while standing next to each other. Trades count whether you actually trade anything or not. Simply activate 'Trade' without actually offering anything to still have it count as a trade. Do this 50 times to complete the 'Psst, Hey Buddy..' challenge.
To summon the secret Dexiduous The Invincible Boss, you will need 99 Eridium shards and to have successfully completed all the main story missions in the 'Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt' downloadable content. Then, deposit between 20-25 Eridium shards in the four totems scattered around Hunter's Grotto. Look for a totem with a black furnace full of purple Eridium at its base. The totems are located in the following areas in Hunter's Grotto:
Totem 1: It is in the far southern corner of the Grotto, in the slightly more narrow passage with lots of native wall paintings.
Totem 2: Travel west to a tribal camp on a high cliff overlooking the water. It is in the center of the western section of the Grotto.
Totem 3: It is east of the large gap in the map where the first totem was located. Cross over to the eastern section across the gap, and look for a camp in the center with elevator access. Use the elevator, and you will exit out to another camp with the totem out in the open.
Totem 4: It is directly north of the third totem. Travel up to the cliff and jump off, and you will be able to see it near the water and another small cluster of buildings below.
Once you have lit all four totems, travel to the center of the northern section of Hunter's Grotto. Look for a new totem with four lit torches. Pull the lever when you are ready to fight him. Dexiduous The Invincible spawns in the center of a large plain, with only a single rock to mark its location. You will first fight a few waves of enemies, and then Dexiduous The Invincible will appear. Note: If you leave the game or area, you will lose any spent Eridium, and must complete every step to summon Dexiduous again.
Hidden QR codeIf you look on Mad Moxxi's pizza boxes, there is a QR code. When you scan the code, it says: 'Wise man say, forgiveness is divine but never pay full price for late pizza. -Captain Picard.' -From: Psychotic Elf
Defeating The Warrior easilyWhen you begin the battle with The Warrior, let him immediately kill you. You will then spawn behind a shielded barrier protecting The Warrior. Climb up on the rocks to the left to get above the shielded barrier, allowing you to shoot The Warrior from a distance without him harming you. Note: After defeating The Warrior, leave the area, and return to the area for him to respawn.
Dark Souls Easter EggIn Caustic Caverns, go to the far eastern area of the map. Once you find the unique Crystalisk monster named Blue, run north across the corrosive green waters to the small island with a lone tree out in the distance. You must be at a high enough level to make it across, as you will take a lot of damage while running across the water. If you are using Salvador (the Gunzerker), you can activate his Gunzerk ability to gain health. On the island, you will find a bonfire. Sitting nearby is a Knight named Solitaire, a reference to the Knight Solaire in Dark Souls. You can also find a phantom spirit.
Dr. Tannis Easter EggDr. Tannis, the Dahl Corporation scientist, could be found riding a fish while a dramatic soundtrack played in Treacher's Landing in the original Borderlands by shooting five barrels in a specific order. This can also be done in Borderlands 2. Fast travel to Sawtooth Cauldron. Go forward, and jump off the cliff to reach Sawtooth Stilts. Then, turn left, and go through Smoking Guano Grotto. You will eventually reach the Main Street Reservoir area. Continue until you are at the very edge of the map, on a beach overlooking the reservoir. Scattered around the beach are five colored barrels. Shoot them in the following order to activate the Easter Egg:
- Blue barrel: Next to the arid plant-life near the water.
- Red barrel: Turn around to face the huts; the barrel is at the left hut.
- Green barrel: Turn around again, and look out at the reservoir. Move closer to the edge of the water, and look out at one of the small islands.
- Yellow barrel: On the left, behind a wooden barricade.
- Purple barrel: On the right, near a pile of tires.
Once you reach Sanctuary Hole after Chapter 9 (it can be accessed from the northeast area of the map in Three Horns Divide), you will find a cliff that drops off into a huge hole on your right behind a building close to the end of the town you go through immediately after entering Sanctuary Hole. It does not look like you can drop off the edge, but there is an area you can drop onto. Drop down to this area to reach the entrance to Caustic Caverns. You can also reach the entrance to Caustic Caverns by progressing through Sanctuary Hole normally. Once you enter Caustic Caverns, go to the 'Guardian Ruins' at the northwest corner of the map. Find the mine carts on the train tracks, and turn right just before you reach the huge door at the end of the train tracks. Then, go straight, jump over the two cube blocks, and immediately turn left to enter a cave with a bunch of Minecraft blocks. Keep smashing the blocks to enter a secret Minecraft area. There are Minecraft style enemies in this area. You can fine a special Minecraft head and skin for your character by defeating the enemies and smashing the blocks in this area. There is a different head and skin dropped in this area for each character. The enemies also drop rare loot. If you do not get the desired head and skin for a character and/or do not like the loot you got, you can choose to 'Save and Quit', and then continue your game to get different loot in this area.
Se7en Easter EggWhenever you open a box in The Dust, there is a small chance you will get this special Easter Egg. Inside the box, you will find a gun called 'Neutralizing Gwen' and a female skull. Just as it is opened, Handsome Jack will exclaim; 'What's in the box? What's in the box?' In Se7en, at the climax of the film, there is a famous scene where Brad Pitt yells, 'What's in the box?' when he is faced with a mysterious package. The gun's name, 'Neutralizing Gwen' is a reference to the actress Gwyneth Paltrow who plays Brad Pitt's girlfriend.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Easter EggsOnce you reach Sanctuary, talk to Dr. Tannis in the Crimson Raiders HQ to unlock the 'Splinter Group' Level 14 side-quest. The description of the mission reads: 'Patricia Tannis has hired you to find and kill four dangerous mutated escapees from the Wildlife Exploitation Preserve. They're hiding out in Bloodshot Stronghold, but be careful; they are well-armed, and color-coordinated.' If the mission is not available, try completing some more story missions, and keep checking back after completing each one until you are given the mission. To gain access to their Sewer hideout, you must pretend to be a pizza deliveryman. Use the intercom, and the sewer grate will open. After jumping down, you will enter the Rat's Nest. Interact with the table ahead to place a pizza to attract the mutants. Once they reveal themselves, you will see their referential names: Lee, Dan, Mick, and Ralph. They are indeed color-coordinated, have shells on their backs, and use the same weapons as their corresponding turtle. Additionally, after turning the mission in, the mission debrief says 'References!' This entire mission is a reference to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, who are four talking turtles that starred in their own series of comics, movies, and cartoons. Each has their own ninja weapon, are color-coordinated, and named after classical Italian painters.
You can also fight an enemy named Flinter by proceeding through the Rat's Nest in Bloodshot Stronghold. Once you reach an area with multiple objects that you can interact with, you must interact with each item a certain number of times in a specific order. Turn the wheel two times, press the button on the TV three times, pull the switch on the ground three times, and then pull the lever on the wall to the right of the switch on the ground three times. After a few seconds, Flinter will appear. He will drop some rare loot once he has been defeated. Flinter is a reference to Splinter from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. He was the four turtles martial arts teacher.
The Lord Of The Rings Easter EggTo unlock this special event, you must first travel to the starting area in the game; Claptrap's Place. Inside Claptrap's Place, pick up the special hidden item in his fireplace. You must then travel to a special enemy called Geary on the volcano in Eridium Blight. You cannot fast travel to reach Geary or die on your way to him. You must follow a specific path to reach him; you can use vehicles. To reach Geary with the special item, starting from the fireplace where you obtained it, go to each area in the following order: Claptrap's Place, Southern Shelf, Three Horns – Divide, Three Horns – Valley, The Dust, and Eridium Blight. You must then go to the volcano in the north-west area of the map. Travel up the volcano using the ramps to jump over the lava flow to reach Geary. Once you find Geary partially up the volcano, do not attack him. Geary is a psycho bandit that will die with one hit, but will also drop rare purple head items. Thus, you can keep returning and killing Geary to farm rare heads for the characters, as he will always respawn in the same area, even if you do not follow these specific steps to reach him. Let Geary hit you once, but only once. If he hits you more than once, this special event will reset, and you must start over from the beginning. Additionally, Nova/Spike shields will kill Geary and reset this special event. After Geary attacks, he will jump off the cliff into the lava. Then, three Rakks will fly over near you and drop three loot chests. One of the chests will always contain purple loot. You can repeat this special event as many times as desired. This side mission is a reference to The Lord Of The Rings series of books by J.R. Tolkien, in which a hero takes a secret ring from a fireplace and travels to a volcano to dispose of it —- until it is stolen by a psychopath who falls into the lava anyway. The heroes are then rescued by three birds from the erupting volcano.
Top Gun Easter EggTo get a side mission with a lot of Top Gun references in it, talk to Loggins at Ellie's Garage in The Dust. Loggins is a reference to Kenny Loggins, the musician who recorded the song 'Danger Zone', which was the main theme in the Top Gun movie. In the side mission, Loggins wants revenge against his former flight squad of auto-gyro pilots. Top Gun is all about Air Force pilots. To take revenge, you will need to burn down the squad's volleyball court with a fire-element weapon. In the movie, there is a famous scene in which the pilots play volleyball to Kenny Loggins’ 'Playing With The Boys' song. To reach the area with the volleyball court, you will need to jump off a huge rock to arrive in Goose's Roost. Goose is best friends with Tom Cruise's character in the film.
A Game Of Thrones references ('Tiny Tina's Assault On Dragon Keep' DLC)Start the 'Winter Is A Bloody Business' quest, which requires you defeat an evil prince named 'Jeffrey', who is a reference to Joffrey. There will be a couple of guards in a throne room that resembles the one in King's Landing. The two guards are named 'Canine' and 'Molehill', a reference to the Hound And The Mountain.
Dark Souls references ('Tiny Tina's Assault On Dragon Keep' DLC)The 'Lost Souls' side quest contains several references to Dark Souls. An undead hero named 'Crestfallen Player' is waiting near a bonfire and states he has died 'eighty times' and another player keeps invading his game and stealing his souls. Once the souls are retrieved, a glowing red knight named '-=n00b_killer=-' will appear. Kill him, and the Crestfallen Player will say that '-=n00b_killer=-' repeatedly backstabbed him while he drank from his flask. Once the side quest is over, he says 'It can be hard out here on Pandora. You'd better hold onto your humanity as best you can.'
Easy 'Build Buster' achievementThere is a Constructor that always spawns in the Hyperion base in The Highlands. Fight your way through this area until you reach a bridge. During your first playthrough, the Constructor that spawns will be around Level 20. The higher your own level, the easier it will be to destroy it quickly. Shoot the Constructor with a rocket launcher, and throw some grenades at it. If you are using Salvador (the Gunzerker), activate the Gunzerk ability with two rocket launchers equipped to destroy it very quickly. You can make the Constructor respawn by leaving and re-entering The Highlands area, or quitting to the main menu and then continuing.
Easy 'Definitely An Italian Plumber' achievementOnce you reach Eridium Blight and are at a high enough level to handle the enemies, go to the southwest corner of the map near the exit to Hero's Pass (you will pass through a Hyperion gate on the way). Immediately after going through the Hyperion gate, veer off the road to the right, and go up the hill. There will be a lot of Bullymongs and Rakts in this area. Kill them all, and there is a chance that a rare Mong named Donkey Mong will randomly appear. He is a difficult Level 28 enemy that throws barrels. If he does not appear, simply choose to 'Save and Quit', and try again until he appears. Once he appears, kill him to get the 'Definitely An Italian Plumber' achievement. Note: There is also a chance for another rare Mong to appear named King Mong. He is Level 27 and also difficult to defeat. Both Donkey Mong and King Mong drop good loot. Donkey Mong is a reference to Nintendo's Donkey Kong.
Easy 'Feels Like The First Time' achievementIn Arid Nexus - Badlands, go to the northeast area on the map to find Fyrestone. This is the place where the original Borderlands started. Look for a red building in the desert. Get on top of that building to find a red chest. Open the chest to get some good loot and the 'Feels Like The First Time' achievement.
Easy 'Goliath, Meet David' achievementLow level Goliaths can be found in the Frostburn Canyon area. A good place to find them is at the Blisterpus Camp in the north center area of the map in Frostburn Canyon. You will discover this area automatically by following the story missions. Use the Fast Travel station to quickly reach this area. A Goliath is a humanoid looking enemy with a white, burning mask. They spawn randomly, but there is a good chance to find a bunch of them in Frostburn Canyon -- even if you have already completed this area. To make enemies respawn, you can either leave the area and re-enter it, or quit to the main menu and then choose to continue. Shoot off the Goliath's mask, and he will enter rage mode. You must now protect him so that he can kill enemies. Killing enemies is what gives him XP and makes him level up. Kill the strong enemies that would cause him a lot of harm, and weaken the small ones so he can get easy kills. Once the Goliath reaches the rank of 'Fatal God-Liath' (displayed below his health bar), kill him to get the 'Goliath, Meet David' achievement. Note: It is recommended you do not attempt this until you at least reach Level 15.
Easy 'So Much Blood!' achievementYou can only unlock this achievement with the Gunzerker class. You must Gunzerk continuously for 90 seconds to get the 'So Much Blood!' achievement. To do this, max out 'Filled To The Brim', 'Lasts Longer', and 'Yippee Ki Yay' in the Gunzerker's Rampage skill tree. It also really helps if you have a class mod that increases any of those three skills. Then, find an area with lots of enemies to kill. A good place to try this at is the Bandit's Circle Of Slaughter in The Fridge at Fink's Slaughter Factory. It is recommended you try this once you can easily kill the enemies in this area. All the Bandits in Round 1 are human, so try using fire-based elemental weapons. A quick regenerating shield also helps a lot since you will not have much time to run and hide for a recharge. You must keep getting kills quickly to build and keep your Gunzerker charge. If you are near the end of the round and do not think you will get the achievement, choose to 'Save and Quit', and then continue to try again. If you complete Round 1, you will not be able to play it again unless you enter someone else's game.
Another good area to get the 'So Much Blood!' achievement at that has a lot of low level enemies is in Frostburn Canyon at the Blisterpus Camp in the north center area of the map. Kill as many enemies as possible in the starting area, then move into the cave with the Spiderants.
Easy 'Sugar Daddy' achievementOnce you have $10,000 or more, go to Moxxi at the bar in Sanctuary. Put $10,000 in her tip jar to get the 'Sugar Daddy' achievement. Then, quit the game without saving. When you continue your saved game, you will still have all the money you tipped Moxxi.
Easy 'Thresher Thrashed' achievementTerramorphous is an enemy that you have to kill during a side mission called 'You. Will. Die. (Seriously.)'. This missions becomes available after competing the game for the first time. Talk to Tannis in the Crimson Raiders HQ (Sanctuary) to start the quest. Then, travel to Thousand Cuts to enter Terramorphous Peak. Entering this area costs four Eridium. Before starting the fight with Terramorphous, it is recommended you are at Level 50 with all SDU's from the black market purchased to carry more ammunition. It helps to have a high Badass rank and some good Level 50 equipment. Try this in Normal mode, and not in Vault Hunter mode. It is much easier to do this in a four player Co-Op game because if you die in solo mode, Terramorphous' health will completely be refilled. It is recommended if you do this in solo mode that you use a Level 50 Gunzerker with two rocket launchers equipped while in Gunzerk mode. Shotguns and slag weapons are also very helpful, especially slag grenades. Since Terramorphous deals heavy damage, you will probably go down a few times. Kill one of the tentacles while in Last Stand mode to automatically get revived. When he comes out of the ground, quickly throw a bunch of slag grenades, and attack him with your strongest weapons. His weak spots are shown as yellow glowing dots. Attack them for critical hits. Jump around a lot to dodge incoming attacks from other tentacles. When you stay behind Terramorphous, he will not be able to attack you. Always walk in big circles around him while keeping some distance. Defeat him to get the 'Thresher Thrashed' achievement, along with some really good loot, including the legendary (orange) 'Slayer Of Terramorphous Class Mod'.
Easy 'Token Gesture' achievementUse the 'Easy Badass tokens' cheat to quickly get the 'Token Gesture' achievement.
Easy 'Tribute To A Vault Hunter' achievementOnce you reach Sanctuary, you can find Michael Mamaril hanging around some of the town's major landmarks. He can be found inside the Crimson Raider's HQ and near the News Stand, Claptrap's Corner, Zed's Clinic, and other random locations around the city. Once you find him, talk to him, and take the weapon he offers to get the 'Tribute To A Vault Hunter' achievement. You can only get one weapon per visit, but he will reappear after story missions. Try to keep finding him around Sanctuary to get more rewards from him.
Easy 'Well That Was Easy' achievementIn Thousand Cuts, go to the northwest area on the map to find a crazy bandit named Face McShooty (he should appear as '!' on the map) pacing around near the edge of a cliff asking you to shoot him in the face. Accept the 'Shoot This Guy In The Face' mission from him, and then shoot him in the face to get the 'Well That Was Easy' achievement. The commentary from the bandit is also probably a reference to the 'In the face' line from The Hangover movie.
Easy 'What Does It Mean?' achievementIn The Highlands, go to the industrial complex in the southwest area of the map. The entrance is to the north of the 'Highlands - Outwash' map exit. There is also a Catch-A-Ride station infront of the camp, and turrets at the top of the entrance. From there, go straight until you reach a cliff, then go right and up and around the building. Proceed straight until you reach another cliff after going over a bridge. Before going over the bridge, you must fight a Constructor enemy. At the edge of the cliff, look down, and you should see a tent. Get near the tent, and move around it to trigger a double rainbow and get the 'What Does It Mean?' achievement along with some funny commentary by either Claptrap or Jack. This achievement is a reference to the Double Rainbow viral YouTube video. -From: deathmule
Steam achievementsSuccessfully complete the indicated task to unlock the corresponding achievement. To view your achievements and stats in Steam, select 'Community', 'My profile', 'View all my games', then the game and view stats.
- A Road Less Traveled: Completed the mission 'The Road To Sanctuary'.
- Always Improving: Reached level 25.
- An Angel's Wish: Completed the mission 'Where Angels Fear To Tread'.
- An Old Flame: Completed the mission 'Hunting The Firehawk'.
- Arctic Explorer: Discovered all named locations in Three Horns, Tundra Express, and Frostburn Canyon.
- Better Than Money: Purchased 5 items from the black market.
- Better Than You Were: Reached level 10.
- Blight Explorer: Discovered all named locations in Eridium Blight, Arid Nexus, and Sawtooth Cauldron.
- Bombs Away: Completed the mission 'Toil And Trouble'.
- Bounty Hunter: Completed 20 side missions.
- Build Buster: Killed a Constructor without it ever building another bot.
- Can See My House From Here: Completed the mission 'Bright Lights, Flying City'.
- Capped Out..For Now: Reached level 50.
- Challenge Accepted: Completed level 1 of all non-level-specific challenges with a single character.
- Cool Story, Bro: Defeated Jack.
- Cute Loot: Killed a Chubby.
- Decked Out: Had Purple-rated gear or better equipped in every slot.
- Definitely An Italian Plumber: Killed Donkey Mong.
- Did It All: Completed all side missions.
- Dragon Slayer: Completed the mission 'Best Minion Ever'.
- Farewell, Old Girl: Completed the mission 'Wildlife Preservation'.
- Feels Like The First Time: Opened the chest at the bus stop in Fyrestone.
- First One's Free: Completed the mission 'My First Gun'.
- Friendship Rules: Revived someone from 'Fight for Your Life!' that is on your friends list.
- Goliath, Meet David: Allowed a Goliath to level up four times before killing him.
- Got The Band Back Together: Completed the mission 'The Once and Future Slab'.
- High-Flying Hurler: Killed a flying enemy with a thrown Tediore weapon.
- Highlands Explorer: Discovered all named locations in The Highlands, Thousand Cuts, and Wildlife Exploitation Preserve.
- How Do I Look?: Unlocked 10 customization items.
- Identity Theft: Completed the mission 'The Man Who Would Be Jack'.
- Knowing Is Half The Battle: Completed the mission 'Data Mining'.
- New In Town: Completed the mission 'Plan B'.
- No Man Left Behind: Completed the mission 'A Dam Fine Rescue'.
- Not Quite Dead: Reached level 5.
- Phased and Confused: Phaselocked 100 enemies.
- Sabre Rattler: Killed 100 enemies with the Sabre turret.
- Sky's The Limit: Completed the mission 'Rising Action'.
- So Much Blood!: Gunzerked continuously for 90 seconds.
- Sugar Daddy: Tipped Moxxi $10,000.
- Thresher Thrashed: Defeated Terramorphous the Invincible.
- Token Gesture: Redeemed 25 tokens.
- Tribute To A Vault Hunter: Got an item from Michael Mamaril.
- Unseen Predator: Remained in Zero's Deception mode for ten seconds straight.
- Up High, Down Low: Gave Claptrap a high five.
- Urban Explorer: Discovered all named locations in Sanctuary, Opportunity, and Lynchwood.
- Well That Was Easy: Completed the mission 'Shoot This Guy in the Face'.
- Went Five Rounds: Completed Round 5 of any Circle of Slaughter.
- What does it mean?: I can't even capture it on my camera.
- Wilhelm Screamed: Completed the mission 'A Train To Catch'.
- World Traveler: Discovered all named locations.
The following achievements require the 'Captain Scarlett And Her Pirate's Booty' bonus downloadable content:
- Treasure Hunter: Complete the mission 'X Marks the Spot'.
- Gadabout: Discover all named locations in Oasis and the surrounding Pirate's Booty zones.
- Completionist: Complete all Pirate's Booty side missions.
The following achievements require the 'Mr. Torgue's Campaign Of Carnage' bonus downloadable content:
- Explosive: Complete the mission 'Long Way To The Top'.
- Motorhead: Complete all Campaign of Carnage side missions.
- Obsessed: Collect 10 pictures of Moxxi in Campaign of Carnage.
The following achievements require the 'Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt' bonus downloadable content:
- Face Off: Completed the mission 'The Fall of Nakayama'.
- Done That: Completed all Hammerlock's Hunt side missions.
- Been There: Discovered all named locations in Hammerlock's Hunt.
The following achievements require the 'Tiny Tina's Assault On Dragon Keep' bonus downloadable content:
- I Totes Planned That Boss: Slew Mister Boney Pants Guy.
- Yaaaaaay: Introduced thyself to the White Knight.
- Shorty, You So Best: Completed thy quest by rescuing yonder queen.
- Girl's Gotta Eat: Fed thy noble queen 3 times during one visit to her quarters.
- It's Like That One Video: Showed thine worst enemy, the abomination known as 'The Darkness,' who is the nerdiest of them all.
- They Was All 'Hey That's Mine': Unsheathed 5 swords from Immortal Skeletaurs without leaving the area.
- Dang Girl You Ace At This Game: Won the most challenging round in Murderlin's Temple.
- Hmmmmm: Wielded the Mysterious Amulet.
- Keep Rollin' Rollin' Rollin': Demonstrated your skill, or lack thereof, at rolling the magical treasure orb of many sides.
- Make it Raaaaaid: Vanquished the Ancient Dragons of Destruction.
I found an early level gun that I really enjoyed playing with. It was a pistol with infinite ammo, and high damage. It let me just dump for a couple of hours and I found the whole thing to be a ton of fun. Then I hit a point where it just wasn't cutting it anymore and I threw it into my shared stash. Now I feel like I have to creat a new low level charecter and get him to the point where I unlock the stash, but it takes SO long to get there, just so someone has that gun on them at all times. Did anyone else get super attached to a low level gun? Am I just a crazy person?
There is a boss in Borderlands 2 so tough you probably won't be able to kill it. But there's a quest to kill it anyway. It's called 'You.Will. Die. (Seriously.)'
The boss is called Terramorphous the Invincible, and he earns his name. This gargantuan thresher serpent thing emerges from the rock with a roar that echoes throughout his cliff-side home, Terramorphous Peak in the Thousand Cuts area. Its knock-back attack sends you flying high into the air, probably to your death. It hits hard enough to kill you outright. Its tentacles, many of which protrude from the ground, nag at your already frayed concentration. And the number of hit points it enjoys.. well, let's just say, there are enough of them to make the player feel very, very insignificant.
'If you don't curse the design team at least five times on the way to beating this guy, we haven't done our jobs,' says producer Randy Varnell with a smile.
Terramorphous was conceived after Borderlands developer Gearbox Software saw how players enjoyed taking on Crawmerax the Invincible (no relation), the crab worm raid boss from the superb The Secret Armory of General Knoxx downloadable add-on. The mission to kill that beast was called 'You.Will.Die.' You see what they're doing here.
Crawmerax was pretty much the hardest challenge the first Borderlands had to offer, and required a group of four maximum-level players all with high-level gear to take it down. Terramorphous is like that, except he's even more of a bastard.
A raid boss comes on the disc this time because Gearbox wants to include enough end-game content to keep players who've hit the level 50 cap playing for years after launch. The developer has already revealed one of the new mechanics designed to do this, the unique Badass system and its infinite levels of profile-wide progression. We're at Gearbox's Dallas headquarters to see the rest.
What Is The Max Lvl In Borderlands 2 Release
:: Teamfight Tactics guide: Strategies for how to play Teamfight Tactics
'If you don't curse the design team at least five times on the way to beating this guy, we haven't done our jobs' - producer Randy Varnell.
'Once you hit that end game, what are you doing? That's what Crawmerax was,' Varnell says.
'You can fight Terramorphous multiple times and he's going to drop different loot every time. Some of the best gear in the game, great legendary items, will drop from this guy. He has specific items that only drop from him in the game. There are some legendaries you'll only find from him.
'A lot of the end-game pull is that four-player co-op challenge at a high level against a really tough-to-fight boss. He is designed to be impossible. I'm not going to say he's not soloable, because I know how well gamers break games, but he really is tuned for that end-game, four-player co-op fight, testing your build and your gear and your equipment and your ability to work together as a team. His rewards are great. So, if you are that end-game player, this is your challenge right here.'
Borderlands 2 Max Level Mod
One end-game raid boss, though, won't be enough to keep the hardcore happy. Varnell mentions 'game changers'. Each character class has one: a unique ability deep down at the end of a skill tree, only available at level 50 and designed to, as the name suggests, change the way you play.
Take Axton, Borderlands 2's soldier, for example. His base skill sees him deploy the Longbow Turret. But progress all the way down his skill tree and you'll unlock the Nuclear Detonation ability, which triggers every time you deploy the turret. It looks as over-the-top as it sounds, complete with a modest mushroom cloud effect. Combine this with the Longbow skill, which teleports your turret to wherever your crosshairs are aiming, and you have a pinpoint-precision nuke at your disposal. Combine all that with the skill that lets you pick up the turret after it's been thrown (which reduces the cooldown on your nuke), and you can get into a faster, devastating loop of throw, nuke, pick-up, throw, nuke, pick-up. 'It changes up the dynamic of the soldier quite a bit from just a turret shoot type of class,' Varnell says.
Take Zer0, the Assassin class, as another example. Zer0's hook is that he can disappear - as you'd expect from a rogue type - allowing him to stealth around the battlefield and attack with enormous bonuses to damage. Make your way to the bottom of the Bloodshed tree, though, and you unlock skills that let you stay in this Deception mode potentially indefinitely. From Deception, make a dash kill within five seconds and you reset the countdown. So, you can, if you're good enough, chain kill after kill after kill without decloaking. It's tricky, though. In the Playground, Gearbox's unhindered developer environment used for testing Borderlands' new toys, marketing chief Adam Fletcher does well to chain four kills.
One of Salvador's game-changing skills is quintessentially Borderlands, and quintessentially Gearbox. At the bottom of the Brawn (tanking) tree is the 'Come at me, Bro' skill. Salvador gives the enemy the finger, with both hands, aggroing the lot (you'd be annoyed, too). That sounds like bad news for Salvador, but Come at me, Bro instantly brings him up to full health and reduces damage taken by 90 per cent for a few seconds. Occasionally, Salvador laughs maniacally. He likes the attention.
And finally there's Maya, the Siren class. Work your way to the bottom of her Harmony tree and you'll unlock Scorn. This sees Maya throw out an orb of energy that slowly flies past enemies, covering them in slag, Borderlands' inappropriately-named substance that increases damage taken. The trick is to avoid hitting enemies with the orb - harder than it sounds - and maximising the number of bad guys it flies past - also tricky. Nail it, though, and you can take down even the toughest enemies with just a few shots.
'True Vault Hunter Mode is more than just difficulty. You now need to use all the tools and all of the tricks you learnt in normal mode, and that's how you survive' - lead designer Jon Hemingway.
Powerful skills are nothing without powerful enemies to use them against, of course. While Borderlands 2's normal difficulty will present a decent challenge to players, it's more about teaching the player how the character classes work, how the enemies work and how the guns work in a fun 40-odd hour blast 'em up. It's not until you beat Borderlands 2 on normal that you'll pit your skills against a real test.
Borderlands 2's second play-through is called True Vault Hunter Mode. Like the second play-through on Borderlands, TVHM is harder with tougher enemies. But where the first game simply tasked the player to increase their hit points and do more damage with better guns against enemies with more hit points and better guns, a second play through of Borderlands 2 requires the player to think. The AI works differently using unique behaviours. More enemies use shields. More wear armour. More are Badass class. There are enemies that only appear in TVHM. To defeat them you'll have to put those top-tier abilities to good use. And in co-op, which automatically scales up the challenge depending on how many are in your party, understanding how different classes work together is essential.
Varnell has a couple of examples. A skilled Maya player can use the Scorn ability to fire off an orb so it just misses all the on-screen enemies, slagging them all. Then it's up to the other players to do the damage. Salvador can use Come at me, Bro to taunt all the enemies in the battlefield. Then, just at the right time, Axton deploys his turret with the Nuclear Detonation ability in tow. It's the only way to be sure.
'With all the skill trees, we always have the fun button, as we call it internally, where you do something cool,' Varnell explains. 'But for the core guys, you're seeing all these additional tactics are coming up. We want the guys who are really deep into game to feel reward for having these new, more advanced skills available to them.'
Some Borderlands fans may be sceptical of the challenge offered by True Vault Hunter Mode. Those who rinsed the end-game will know that on the second play-through, the enemy scaling was a little off. In short, eventually, players overpowered the environment.
'That is not a problem this time around!' lead designer Jon Hemingway tells me when I follow this up with him. 'True Vault Hunter Mode is more than just difficulty. You now need to use all the tools and all of the tricks you learnt in normal mode, and that's how you survive.
'We all felt it needed to be more than just turning up the dials. More than just more damage and more health and ta-daa we're done. For example, more enemies have shields. That seems like a really small thing, but it now makes shock more viable. So if you're playing in co-op, get someone with a shock gun and their job is to bring down the shields. Enemies will have more armour on them. So don't shoot them in the armour bit. You're going to have to aim a little bit better and hit the sweet spots.
'We've spent quite a bit of time thinking about it. We've given you a whole chest of tools. Now, if you want to survive, use them all. First game, you don't need them all. Have fun, but learn them all. And now it's time to separate the men from the boys. That's what True Vault Hunter mode is all about. It's much more than difficulty. It's tactics.'
Gearbox ends its show with a futile attempt on Terramorphous' life. First, Fletcher tries to solo him as Axton. A powerful attack sends him flying high into the air and off the map. He's dead. He tries again, this time with a friend. They last a minute or so, the huge tentacles and devastating attacks making short work of their pointless effort. I glance at the beast's life bar. It hasn't changed.
But Terramorphous can be killed if you're working in a group that knows what it's doing. 'You'll need a Siren in your party that has the ability to heal,' Varnell says, 'and a Gunzerker that has the ability to taunt and take damage from big attacks. Watch for the tells, knock-backs and big attacks. Like all great raid fights, you learn the rhythm of the fight and where he is and develop a strategy against that.'
'We're all huge Diablo fans. You can't make a game like Borderlands without having played Diablo' - lead designer Jon Hemingway.
Gearbox has made no secret of the influence Blizzard's loot-hungry Diablo series has had on Borderlands. The first game was, at its base, Diablo with guns. Four character classes. Four-player co-op. More encounters than you can count. And more guns than any game ever released. 'We're all huge Diablo fans,' Hemingway tells me. 'You can't make a game like Borderlands without having played Diablo.
'Some of the obvious similarities and things we borrowed from were the loot. Kill guys, get better loot. One of the other ones is defining who you are. In Diablo 2, lots of terms started to emerge as people found similar builds. There's the Amazon class. If you used a javelin with her though, you were a Javazon. People came up with a whole language for identifying players. We started to see things like that.
'Around the office right now, one of the names for the common builds for Zer0 the Assassin is shotgun ninja. Grab yourself a good Jacob's shotgun, stealth in behind them and backstab with a shotgun. It's spectacular fun.'
Most of us loved Borderlands for the same reason we loved Diablo: the unending loot, the unending desire to optimise your character, and the fun you had doing it. People are still playing Borderlands some three years after launch. Gearbox hopes Borderlands 2's end game will keep you hooked for closer to a decade. Just expect to die trying.
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