Borderlands The Pre-Sequel: Choosing the Best Class

With Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel available for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, players venture onto the moon with one of four classes, each of whom work for series villain Handsome Jack. Conquering the satellite won’t be easy, as you’ll deal with a number of enemies looking to stop you at all costs.

This is where knowing each of the four character classes proves useful. All four of Handsome Jack’s mercenaries bring something to the table, whether it’s strength, speed or a little something extra. On that note, here is a quick guide that lets you know each character’s best attributes, which will no doubt prove useful when it comes to picking the right member for your online squad and conquering the moon one chunk at a time.

Run wild on Elpis with Prima’s Borderlands Beginner and Advanced tips.

Get the complete, official guide to Borderlands the Pre-Sequel, available now.

Let’s start with Athena, whom you might have seen in the 2009 Borderlands 2 DLC, The Secret Armory of General Knoxx. Athena is more of a tank class, meaning she can carry an impressive amount of firepower, whether letting loose with a pair of assault rifles or going with something heavier like a rocket launcher.

In regard to her action skill, she utilizes the Kinetic Aspin. With this, she generates a shield similar to Marvel superhero Captain America. She’s able to use it to deflect bullets (ideal if you’re surrounded by enemies or trying to penetrate a heavily fortified base), as well as lob it towards enemies like a lethal Frisbee. From there, it’ll bounce around targets before eventually fading, leaving her to use whatever weapons she has on hand, until it’s recharged and ready to go once more.

Another veteran who previously appeared in Borderlands 2 (as a Hyperion Engineer/Loader during the End of the Line mission), Wilhelm is a welcome addition to the team, a Cyborg type who has a lot in common with Axton. He can summon a deployable attack drone at any time, as well as increase his strength through boosting, which is helpful when trying to get the jump on a nearby enemy.

With his Cyborg add-ons, Wilhelm is best for those looking to get the most from their Skill Trees, as players can increase his speed and firepower with a number of boosts, as well as adding modifications to make him a better combatant all around.

As for Wilhelm’s special ability, he relies on the Wolf and Saint. With this, two drones (instead of one) provide an assist. The first works as an offensive guard, firing upon adversaries, while the other allows him to recharge his energy, keeping his health and shields in check. As a result, he gets the best of both worlds.

Those who prefer to build up their skills as a Borderlands fighter would do best to stick with Wilhelm.

Lock and load, partner. This former Sheriff of Lynchwood, who first appeared in Borderlands 2, is perfect for players who like heavy firepower. She has no problem going into battle and filling bad guys full of lead. Still, with a bumped-up fire rate, reload speed and gun damage, that doesn’t mean she can’t nail someone on the fast draw.

In addition to her guns, Nisha can also use a whip to get close to her enemies. She has the best melee range of all four characters (especially when you consider Claptrap’s weak distance), even though it can’t kill most of her foes. However, it can distract them long enough for someone to score a fatal blow.

Nisha’s Action Skill is Showdown. Once activated, you’ll be able to identify nearby enemies and take them out with ease, using the right analog stick to target them. The skill lasts for about six seconds, and you’re able to take out as many foes as you can within this time range, so we suggest saving it for crowds.

Finally, Borderlands veterans won’t need an introduction to Claptrap. Finally playable for the first time in the series, this talkative little robot packs a wallop on the battlefield, mainly due to the variety of weapons he carries.

Claptrap is best when it comes to tactics, as he can survey nearby enemies and help ambush them with a group. His melee strike, which is basically him comically throwing his robot arm, does little damage, but with others in tow, he can bring down the toughest foes.

If you need to see just how tactical Claptrap gets, launch his Action Skill, the vaulthunter.exe. With it, he can deduce which Vault Hunter is best for each situation, providing data such as where an enemy’s weak spot is, or where any nearby weapons are. Once certain details are highlighted and stored, Claptrap can then mimic said action style himself, such as Nisha’s quick-draw capability or Athena’s shielding. He’ll also get a quick refill of shield and health, so try and save it for when he’s low.

Despite being the weakest character in the group, Claptrap shouldn’t be ignored.