Our Borderlands 3 guide shows you how to build Zane step-by-step to make him into a force to be reckoned with by using his clone to have you running circles around enemies, dispatching them at literal lightning speed.
Table of Contents
1)INTRODUCTION
2)SPEED DEMON BUILD
3)ETERNAL BARRIER BUILD
INTRODUCTION
Zane was our first pick when we first began out Borderlands 3 journey. Check how that went in our review. He is essentially an evolution of Zero from Borderlands 2 and as the man himself says – they even went to the same assassin school. He probably sports the most versatile skill set and our Zane build focuses on defense and movement.
With that being said, our builds are great for solo play and co-op, allowing you to stay alive while running literal circles around your enemies. So let’s get right into it.
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Borderlands 3 - Zane Character Trailer: "Friends Like Zane"
SPEED DEMON BUILD
This Zane build utterly focuses on his digi-clone and SNTNL drone abilities. While you might think that every Zane build centered around survivability should include his shield, that’s not exactly the case – especially for solo play. Invest in both Hitman and Double agent skill trees, giving more of a priority to drone skills that increase offensive stats and healing.
Flash meets Doomsday Build
This setup favors high-speed movement and is not only useful but insanely fun to play. Have SNTNL up and running whenever possible as he will harass enemies while boosting your abilities – enabling you to mow down enemies at insane speeds. Should you ever fall under severe fire, get a breather by popping off your digi-clone to confuse enemies and quickly reposition yourself.
A great benefit of the clone is that his kills will also grant you second wind if you are bleeding out. Augment skills on the clone are further aimed toward survivability. A portion of the damage received by the clone will go into Zane’s shields while damage to Zane’s health will instead transfer to the clone – awesome, right?
Due to high mobility, this Zane build is best used with one medium-ranged weapon and something like a high-powered shotgun. Since you’ll be on the move most of the time, you’ll be switching between the two very often and killing enemies non-stop in a spectacular fashion.
ETERNAL BARRIER BUILD
Our second Zane build focuses on his clone and shield abilities. In fact, it amplifies it to such a degree that you’ll almost never need a second wind. To that end, you should distribute your skill points equally between the Under Cover and Double Agent skill trees. Although both skill trees will end up fully upgraded, small advantage should be given to skills in the Under Cover skill tree because they will also somewhat increase your damage output.
This Zane build makes both his shield and the digi-clone abilities fully viable for constant use and will enable you to mitigate and avoid damage from multiple angles. You can easily use it to set up choke points and reposition yourself behind the barrier when necessary. It supports both stationary, defensive playstyle as well as a high mobility one where you can use your digi-clone for quick reposition.
Eternal Barrier Build
For the shield, its best to use the Nanites or Some Shite and the Retaliation augments for ultimate co-op benefits. The former will increase health regeneration, reload speed and reduce shield recharge delay for both Zane and his allies. The latter will increase Zane’s and ally damage when in close proximity to the barrier.
For the clone ability, use the Which one’s real? and the Schadenfreude augments for increased survivability. This will make the enemies target your clone when he is summoned and the damage dealt to him will restore Zane’s shield. An additional benefit of this build is that it will significantly boost your Cryo damage and applying it to enemies will heal you. This means that you will greatly benefit from using Cryo weapons which will offer some additional crowd control when they freeze the enemies.
This Zane build is, despite its co-op benefits, still fully viable for solo-play as it significantly boosts his survivability – making Zane into a literal tank that can steamroll all over the pesky Borderlands bandits with ease.
FAQs
What's the best build for Zane in Borderlands 3? ›
Zane Best Build - Freeze Shut Down
Freeze enemies in place with the Freeze Shot Build. Centered on Zane's Cryo and Barrier Support Skills, this build will balance your survivability and DPS! Using his Action Skills will allow you to tank as much damage as you can, while also dishing it out to enemies.
His action skills include a SNTNL drone that flys around and attacks enemies with a machine gun, a deployable Barrier shield, and a Digi-Clone that simultaneously distracts enemies and dishes out damage and which Zane can teleport to switch places with.
Is Zane a good character in Borderlands 3? ›Zane is very versatile, he can be the min/max character where you can have a very active play session but also a more laid-back experience. You can augment your action skills to add to your survivability but also boost your damage output. Want to learn more about his skills check out Zane's Skill Tree.
Who is the strongest boss in Borderlands 3? ›Troy is arguably the best boss in the entire game. The story around him was masterfully done, and the mechanics of the scene were fantastic. This boss fight has the greatest weight as well.
What weapons are best for Zane? ›Zane: He can rock any weapon because he is just insanely good. However, he really shines with single pellet weapons. Because of his skill 'Playing Dirty', he can basically double the damage output. FL4K: Is really good with multi-pallet weapons like shotguns.
What is the best class mod for Zane? ›Seein' Dead is by far the best Class Mod for Zane and always will be. Introduced in the Moxxi DLC (and it only drops from there) you can simply activate your kill skills on hit and they have 25% increased potency.
How old is Zane in bl3? ›Zane Flynt, The Operative
He's very much a loner despite being extroverted. To become a Vault Hunter, he left his happy retirement. Age: 50s.
The Super Soldier shield is great for builds that require the MNTS Cannon ability. What makes this shield great is that it can give a bubble shield that prevents damage. This shield can be activated by activating the MNTS Cannon on Zane. The immunity really helps to increase Zane's survivability in most instances.
Can you throw grenades as Zane? ›Zane can equip two Action Skills at once, though choosing to do so will replace his ability to toss grenades. To help you decide if Zane is the right Vault Hunter for you, here's a brief overview of his three skill trees: Doubled Agent, Hitman, and Under Cover.
Who is the best playable character in Borderlands 3? ›Overall, Moze is probably the best among the four Borderlands 3 characters since she excels at mobbing and bosses, whereas the others typically specialize in one or the other.
Is Zane or FL4K better? ›
any character is designed to beat this game solo. Therefore any character is designed to loot'n'grind in the lategame. I like the playstyle of Zane but for laid-back gaming I would say FL4K is the way to go. It's personal preference really, I like Zane the most with a clone/drone build.
What is the fastest character in Borderlands 3? ›The Fastest Borderlands 3 Build. Our Zane build is pretty much the fastest Build in Borderlands 3. It's optimized for maximum Movement Speed which at the same time increases your Damage, thanks to the Violent Momentum Passive.
What is max level bl3? ›Borderlands 3 Max Level Cap. The current max level in Borderlands 3 is capped at level 72. When you reach the maximum level cap, you won't gain any experience points (XP) that count towards your character's level progression. Therefore, you won't be able to unlock new skill points beyond that point.
What is Zane's golden weapon called? ›Status. Zane's Golden Wiggly Fang is a weapon used by Zane. It is an elaborate weapon resembling the Golden Star Hammer, but with the black base replaced by a blade-tipped chain.
How do you use Zane clone? ›Spawn a Digi-Clone of Zane. This Clone stays in place, but distracts and fires at enemies. Pressing [Action Skill key] while the Clone is active causes Zane and the Clone to swap places.
What is multiverse final form Zane? ›Description. The Multiverse Final Form Zane Cosmetic Pack imagines what Zane the Operator would've looked like if he never became a Vault Hunter! In the "Assassin One" outfit, Zane fully embraced the killer edge provided by technological enhancements to become the most fearsome hired killer in the galaxy.
What is Zane's fourth skill tree? ›Zane's 4th Skill Tree: The Professional
Colder Shoulder: Converts Zane's MNTIS Shoulder Cannon damage to cryo, but deals reduced damage. Additionally, Zane gains increased cryo freeze rate. Brain Drain: Whenever Zane kills an enemy with a critical hit from his shoulder cannon, two charges are instantly returned.
Build Description
This is a Zane Build by Moxsy where you work together with your clone rather than just relying on the damage from your clone. The Zanezerker build is a tribute to the Gunzerker from Borderlands 2 as you won't have to reload and can just keep shooting.
Zane lies to Aphmau, saying he has a crush on a meif'wa girl, and Aphmau quickly asks if it's Kawaii-Chan. Not much is mentioned between the two after. In Falcon Claw University, the two get a job at the cafe. The whole episode is called "Rude...But Kinda Cute," clearly hinting at their relationship.
What accent is Zane Borderlands 3? ›As anyone who's played Zane knows, the man has a pretty thick Irish accent, and uses plenty of Irish slang.
How do you get Zane ONI head? ›
You can get these heads for Zane by competing (side) missions or they can randomly drop from any loot source. You can also get Heads & Skins from the slotmachine in Moxxi's bar aboard Sanctuary 3.
How do you get Zanes shoulder cannon? ›The skill also boosts Zane's cryo freeze rate, a setup that is sure to make for some even more powerful cryo Zane builds. “Brain Drain,” on the other hand, makes Zane regain shoulder cannon charges whenever he gets a kill via a critical hit.
What do grenade mods do for Zane? ›This skill gives Zane a chance to also fire a grenade with the first shot fired from his gun.
Is Zane Irish bl3? ›Right off the bat we discover that Zane is Irish, and has had plenty experience with numerous different occupations in his time.
Who is the most op character in Borderlands? ›In Normal Mode, Gaige the Mechromancer is generally considered the "most powerful" thanks to her robot. Axton the Commando would probably be considered second "most powerful" because of his turret and more universal playstyle.
Who is the strongest person in Borderlands? ›Whether fans are playing her themselves against Nine-Toes or fighting bandits at her side, Lilith is the ultimate Vault Hunter. She's become the face of the series and she even has her own cult.
What boss should I farm bl3? ›Graveward is one of the best bosses to farm in the game, considering you can choose to spawn directly next to the boss arena. Along with this, the Graveward fight can be extremely easy and with the right built can even be killed in seconds.
What is Zane's heart? ›Zane's power source, also referred to as his heart and the power capacitor, is a mysterious blue substance formerly used to power Zane and later P.I.X.A.L..
How is Zane the ice elemental? ›Zane is a Nindroid (ninja robot) created by the Dr. Julien in his hidden workshop in Birchwood Forest. Dr. Julien brought Zane up like a son, teaching him lots of useful life skills, and Zane gained his Ice Power after a random visit one night by an old man, the Elemental Master of Ice.
Who did Zane work for? ›Eventually, Zane grew tired of constantly moving and avoiding the countless assassins on his trail. He returned to Pandora, and ended up being recruited by the Crimson Raiders, who needed help in taking down the Children of the Vault in Borderlands 3.
What class is Zane in Borderlands 3? ›
Description. Zane, The Operative is one of the playable characters in Borderlands 3. Zane is the Assassin class of the game. He is the James Bond-like guy, Zane is wealthy and has a lot of gadgets to his disposal.
Does Borderlands 3 really have a billion guns? ›Lock, Load, LOOOOT! There are over one billion guns in Borderlands 3, and every fight is an opportunity to add to your arsenal. Some guns launch exploding sawblades, some never need to be reloaded, others grow legs and pursue enemies on foot when you throw them.
What is the fastest gun in Borderlands 3? ›Possibly the fastest firing gun in the game, the Tizzy pistol can easily plow through enemies like they are nothing. This gun can also come in a X2 and X3 variant that will unleash even more mayhem on the battlefield. The downside to this weapon is that it can eat through ammo faster than any other gun in the game.
What is bl3 max level? ›The current max level in Borderlands 3 is capped at level 72. When you reach the maximum level cap, you won't gain any experience points (XP) that count towards your character's level progression.
How old is Zane Borderlands 3? ›Zane Flynt, The Operative
He's very much a loner despite being extroverted. To become a Vault Hunter, he left his happy retirement. Age: 50s.
In Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, Salvadore is pretty much the "most powerful" due to the extreme synergies (read: unbalance) of his skills. Some people do feel Kreig the Psycho is the "most powerful" though due to his ability to pretty much become invincible with the right person playing him.
Who is the best starter in Borderlands 3? ›Moze the Gunner – best new Borderlands 3 class for beginners
Moze the Gunner is an ideal choice for beginners – if Borderlands 3 is the first in the series you've played, pick Moze.