Hello and welcome to the awesomeness that is the commando!

This build is based around the idea of using one skill tree build and then switching gear around to adapt to different situations. Primarily, it focuses on using Class Mods and Relics to maximize the damage potential of specific weapons and/or weapon types.

I'm also currently working on a series of videos that illustrate this particular build's effectiveness for general mobbing gameplay. All gameplay footage is at UVHM OP8 Difficulty.

Here's how I'm going to spec the Commando:


Why do you spec this way?:

Convenience. I very rarely ever have to respec. I can easily switch class mods, guns, shields or whatever else I need in the moment. You also have to consider that Axton's greatest strengths are:

-Grenade/Splash Damage
-Fire Rate
-Recoil Reduction
-Durability
-Reload Speed
-Shield Recharge Delay

The goal is to maximize those strengths and improve upon damage output as much as possible. That is why skills like Metal Storm, Steady, Battlefront, Ready and Pressure are Maxed out. Each skill either boosts Grenade Damage, Gun Damage, Recoil Reduction, Fire Rate, Reload Speed, Shield Recharge Rate/Delay, etc. You get the Idea.

About the Videos Below:

The first video goes over the Spec I chose in more detail. It explains why I chose the skills i chose and how they improve DPS.


The second video just shows what class mods you can use with this Spec.

Recommended Class mods

1. Legendary Soldier Class Mod

Arguably one of the best and most versatile Class Mods for the Commando. Pretty much better than 90% of Axtons other class mods, except in very specific situations.

2. Legendary Ranger Class Mod

This is pretty much like the Legendary Engineer, except the buffs are achieved from kill skills. In my opinion, it's probably better than the Engineer if you can keep the Kill Skills active simply because
Metal Storm provides a Fire Rate and Recoil Reduction bonus and at 10/5, the Gun Damage boost from Onslaught equals that of Battlefront.

3. Expert Veteran Class Mod

This is mainly for Tediore Reload style setups. It also works ok with other weapons if you need them.

4. Heavy Gunner Class Mod

Ever want to have a Fire Rate of 30+ with the Infinity? This class mod will allow you to fire bullets much faster than any class mod. The bonuses come from the inherent fire rate bonus and the boost to Metal Storm skill.

5. Expert Grenadier Class Mod

Mainly for Grenade Builds. I use one with +5 to Impact because I don't spec in to the Grenadier Skill. Highly recommended for use with the Fastball grenade mod.

6. Chaotic Evil Ranger Class Mod

Great for Sniper setups and weapons that excel from Critical Bonus. So essentially anything made by Hyperion or Jakobs.

Recommended Shields

1. The Sham

Virtually absorbs all bullets fired at you. Ideally, you'll want one with 94% absorb chance, but around 86% or so is just as good really. It should be mentioned that the sham really starts to come alive with the Quick charge skill, as the Sham doesn't need to fully recharge to absorb bullets! This is why killing enemies while your shields are depleted is so important! Very Rare, recommended you farm from either Pyro Pete or Bunker himself.

2. The Bee

The standard for mass murder on Pandora. Equip one of these with virtually any weapon for a massive damage increase! Highly Recommended and Relatively Easy to Farm!

3. The Antagonist

I use this when pretty much when the Sham isn't going to cut it. It's really great throughout DLC3 and 4. High Capacity, Reflects bullets, and fires homing slag balls. Not to mention it's extremely easy to acquire! What more could you want?

4. The Blockade

Decent Capacity, Recharge Delay/Rate. Plus a flat damage reduction to boot! Another great Alternative to the Sham if you don't want to cry yourself to sleep farming Bunker.

Recommended Relics

1. Bone of the Ancients

Possibly Superior to 95% of all the other class mods out there. The reason for this is because of the boost to Cooldown rate and Elemental Damage increases are multiplicative where regular Gun Damage increases are multiplicative. You're going to want one of these in all elements except Slag. Relatively easy to acquire compared to other Relics.

2. Blood of the Ancients

A great alternative to the Bone of the Ancients. Great for weapons or setups where you'll be consuming alot of ammo for a particular weapon type. Also easy to acquire.

3. Sheriff's Badge

Optimal for Pistol Builds. Increased Fire Rate + Gun Damage! The boost to FFYL time is also decent.

4. Deputy's Badge

Great with all shotguns. While not the best Class Mod Damage per bullet. The reload speed increase and flat damage increase are respectable.

Recommended Grenade Mods

1. Magic Missile

A great grenade for slagging and they deal alot of Damage. Obviously you'll want the x4 version. If you can't get it, the Blue x2 version works great as well. Acquired from Mages in DLC4.

2. Meteor Shower/Bonus Package

Who doesn't like Mirv grenades, especially mirv grenades that spawn 9+ child grenades twice! Both the Bonus Package and Meteor Shower are the best in their class!

3. FastBall Grenade

Thanks to the buff from the 100k Loot Hunt event hosted by Gearbox and 2K, you now have possibly one of the most powerful grenades in the game now. Great for Slag and Tag type setups.

Recommended Pistols:

1. The Infinity

An Infinity with a Fire Rate of 9.0 and up can achieve a fire rate of 30.0+ when used with the Heavy Gunner Class Mod and the Sheriff's Badge. Add a Bee Shield and watch the Fire Works. Keep in mind the Fire rate for this game caps at 30 on consoles. :)

2. The Hornet

A pretty nice Corrosive pistol that gets a boost from Grenade Damage bonuses. It essentially packs a good punch and is easy to achieve a very high fire rate with sheriff's badge. Very ergonomic, very low recoil while ADS.

3. Double Penetrating Unkempt Harold

Very powerful pistol. One of the best if not the best pistol in the game. Very high DPS. Enhanced by bonuses to Grenade Damage. I specify the Double Penetrating prefix as it's vastly superior to the other versions.

4. The Lady Fist

Another weapon that benefits greatly from High Fire Rate, Low Recoil and a Bee Shield. Provided you can consistently get Criticals, it easily passes the Unkempt Harold with 40 Million damage per shot. Keep in mind that's not for an Elemental version as an Elemental would actually deal even higher damage.

5. The Logan's Gun

This one is mainly for utility. When combined with the sham shield, you can regenerate rocket ammo by shooting your feet. Saves you alot of money and hassle of buying or obtaining rocket ammo otherwise.

6. The Grog Nozzle

The Ideal healing weapon. Very useful in higher difficulties. Healing can be achieved through firing the gun, holding the gun while enemies experience DoT damage and from grenades detonating on or near an enemy.

Recommended Shotguns:

1. The Interfacer

A very, very powerful shotgun if you are good at getting Critical Hits. Possibly one of the most powerful weapons in the game and the standard raiding weapon for Gunzerkers everywhere. Great on commandos too! Practiceable is highly recommended.

2. The Carnage

While not the most powerful Torgue Shotgun, it can pack a punch once Metal Storm is active. Also not as dangerous as the Swordsplosion as their are no child swords to run into and die.

3. The Swordsplosion

Essentially the Sister weapon to the Carnage, and arguably a better option. Boosted by Grenade damage and the child swords can really ruin an enemies day with a pretty decent explosion radius. Then again, be careful not to run into the child swords.

4. The Omen

A very good shotgun in it's own right and probably the most powerful reload for all Tediore Shotguns. Comes in All elements.

Recommended Assault Rifles:

1. The Ogre

Probably the Best Assault Rifle for Axton. Boosted by Grenade damage and is capable of an impressive rate of fire.

2. The Seraphim

Basically very similar in Damage per Bullet to Etech assault rifles. The key advantages are that it works better with the bee and it has a superior critical bonus. However, the quality of this gun is greatly effected by parts. It's recommended to obtain one as pictured. Always in Fire.

3. The Veruc

While this rifle comes in all elements, it's recommended in Corrosive. This is simply because it's excellent against wide targets like Loaders or other enemies that are vulnerable to corrosive damage.

Recommended SMGS:

1. The Slagga

An excellent gun for Slag and Tag play and an extremly useful weapon in virtually any difficulty. High slag chance, fires 3 projectiles and has an impressive magazine capacity.

2. The Avenger

The possibly the most powerful tediore reload in the game, however very difficult to master. Very useful for regenerating SMG ammo overtime as well.

3. The Baby Maker

A very powerful and stable tediore SMG when it comes to accurately targeting and hitting enemies. Lower ammo consumption per reload and exceeds the power of Etech Tediore Plasma Casters.

4. The HellFire

A decent SMG. Pretty powerful with impressive DoT and high Fire Rate. Damage is boosted by Grenade as well as Gun Damage Bonuses.

5. The Sandhawk

The most powerful and easy to use SMG in the game when paired with the Bee Shield. An essential tool for most players that run Bee Builds.

Recommended Snipers:

1. The Volcano

A fairly powerful Sniper Rifle that is the only one known to be boosted by both Grenade and Gun damage bonuses. Recomended as it can be very easy to acquire.

2. The Pimpernel

Possibly the most powerful Sniper Rifle in the game when either aiming at an enemies crotch or knee. Damage applies twice on the initial hit and the spawned projectiles. It's possible to crit with all five of the spawned projectiles with practice.

3. The Lyuda

High Fire Rate and Impressive Critical Bonus. It's more like a high powered Assault Rifle than a Sniper Rifle. Ammo consumption can be an issue though if you're not careful. Still, a highly recommended weapon, especially against loaders.

Recommended Launchers:

1. The Tunguska

Decent-Impressive power, just don't be close when it goes off. It's highly recommended to have the sham equipped while using it. Go for dippity prefixes as Torgue launchers take an eternity to reload. Fun to spray and pray with.

2. The Nukem

"Come Get Some!" "Hail to the King Baby!" A worthy tribute to Duke Nukem. Probably better than the tunguska and less dangerous to use as the rocket can directly hit enemies. Also for go reload speed so you can put out rockets as quickly as possible.

3. The Topneaa

Essentially the "poor mans" Norfleet. Impressive power and fire rate for a Launcher. It becomes very powerful when paired with the metal storm! Like other Vladof Launchers, it also has a chance to not consume ammo when you fire.

4. The Norfleet

The favorite of Vault Hunters and Doom Space Marines everywhere. Ridiculously powerful, you can use only this weapon with the Sham and virtually play through the game on any difficulty. That is, if you can get one. Difficult to obtain but definitely worth it.

Recommended Weapons:
1: Ogre/SwordSplosion/Carnage/DPUH
2: Baby Maker (Element Generalized to Typical Mob within an Area)
3: Norfleet/Topneea
4: Logan's Gun/Grog Nozzle

Recommended Gear:
Class Mod: Legendary Soldier
Grenade Mod: Magic Missile
Shield: Sham/Blockade
Relic: Bone of the Ancients (Element Matched with Norfleet, or Generalized to Area)

Recommended Weapons:
1. Baby Maker / Plasma Caster / Omen
2. Avenger
3. Topneea / Norfleet / Etc
4. Grog Nozzle / Logan's Gun

Recommended Gear:
Class Mod: Expert Veteran
Grenade Mod: Magic Missile
Shield: Sham/Blockade
Relic: Bone of the Ancients (Element Matched with Tediore Weapons)

Recommended Weapons:

1. Infinity (9.0+ Fire Rate required)
2. Double Penetrating Unkempt Harold (or any other kind of Unkempt Harold)
3. Topneea
4. Grog Nozzle

Other Pistols worth Mentioning:
-Lady Fist - Rapid Fire Crits!
-Hornet - Great Corrosive Pistol, Low Recoil, good damage. Enhanced by Splash Damage Bonus
-Little Evie - Great for improving Cooldown Rate

Recommended Gear:
Class Mod: Heavy Gunner
Grenade Mod: Magic Missile
Shield: The Bee / Antagonist
Relic: Sheriff's Badge

Recommended Weapons:
1. Volcano
2. Pimpernel
3. White Death/Lyuda
4. Topneaa (or other rocket launcher)
5. Grog Nozzle

Recommended Gear:
Class Mod: Legendary Soldier or Chaotic Evil Ranger
Grenade Mod: Magic Missile
Shield: The Bee
Relic: Bone of the Ancients / Blood of the Ancients

Video:

Recommended Weapons:
1. Slagga
2. Baby Maker / Omen
3. Topneaa (Rocket Launcher of your choice)
4. Grog Nozzle

Recommended Gear:
Class Mod: Expert Grenadier
Grenade Mod: FastBall
Shield: The Sham / The Blockade
Relic: Bone of the Ancients / Stockpile Relic

Video:

I'll add some frequently asked questions, comments, etc as comments or questions come in:

(Insert Your Questions/Comments Here!)

Gearbox:
I'd like to thank Gearbox for creating a game where I've put at least 1,000+ hours into both on console and pc. It's been a great run and I'm looking forward to both more DLC and future titles within the Borderlands universe.

Gearbox Forums/Borderlands 2 Forums/SevenSins Gaming Community:
I'd like to thank the following for all of the very knowlegdable members on all of these sites that have helped me both improve and have more fun with the game. It's keeps me motivated to always know that their are other people to play with and how great the Borderlands 2 community is as a whole.

Valve:
While I haven't been on Valve/Steam for very long, I do think it was great to come here. Additionally, i like how everything integrates so seamlessly. Thanks for allowing me to publish this guide too!