All Vault Hunters in Borderlands 4, Ranked

You boot up Borderlands 4 on Kairos and you’re met with four brand new Vault Hunters. Each one brings special skills, traits, and style. You have to pick who fits your play the most. Some Vault Hunters wreck solo runs, while others shine in co-op. The game drops them at launch. They are Vex the Siren, Rafa the Exo-Soldier, Harlowe the Gravitar, and Amon the Forgeknight. All have three Action Skills, branching skill trees, augments, and capstones. Some rank them based on damage, survivability, and how fun they feel. Below you’ll see them in order from best to good picks, so you know who to try first.

4. Amon the Forgeknight

Amon brings big tank energy and melee damage, but trades off speed. His Forgeskill power makes his abilities stronger, with extra effects depending on which one he picks. His Action Skills include Onslaughter, melee rocket fists plus mobility. Additionally, Scourge, which is shield plus area defense plus fire/ice damage, and Crucible, throws elemental Forge-axes, causing big damage combos. He tanks hits well, so he stays alive on the front lines. 

Amon’s Scourge shield can soak insane punishment, perfect for protecting squishy teammates. His Crucible axes deal elemental splash damage, letting him wipe groups if you land good throws. Onslaughter looks flashy, with super-fast rocket-fist dashes. His best skill trees let you spec into pure tank, melee brawler, or elemental juggernaut. 

His trees are Iron Wrath, which is tanking, huge shields, and defense. Anvilbreaker, which is melee brawling with rocket fists, and Elemental Forge, which is an elemental axe built with fire and ice coordination. Iron Wrath makes him unkillable, turning him into a walking wall for raid bosses. Anvilbreaker unlocks his melee potential, chaining rocket fists into brutal combos. Elemental Forge lets you throw flaming or freezing axes, adding splash AOE for group fights. He thrives in co-op gaming as the tank, who protects others while still dealing damage. He’s the steady anchor in chaotic battles.

3. Harlowe the Gravitar

Harlowe plays differently because she blends science, area control, and team buffs. Her Entanglement power connects enemies, so when you hit one, others take damage too. Her Zero-Point skill lifts enemies into the air. Then it slams them down hard. Chroma Accelerator, which is Cryo plus Radiation blast. Flux Generator, which is an area field giving allies shields while hurting enemies. 

Her Entanglement trait makes mob farming crazy efficient since enemies drop like dominoes. She’s one of the best for controlling choke points, especially with Flux Generator active. Zero-Point is flashy and satisfying, literally juggling enemies before slamming them into the ground. Her Cryo plus Radiation combo keeps enemies slowed while draining health, which saves ammo. As a support character, she’s the friend you want on your squad when raids get overwhelming.

Harlowe’s skill trees are Quantum Flux, which is crowd control and chaining damage, Gravitas, which is team buffs, shields, and heals, and Disruptor, which is Radiation debuffs and armor breaking. Quantum Flux dominates mob fights since every hit spreads across linked enemies. Gravitas makes her the ultimate co-op pick, letting her heal allies, shield them, and buff damage at the same time. Disruptor specializes in Radiation builds, turning armored enemies into melted piles. With her, every firefight feels tactical, since you’re constantly manipulating the battlefield. 

2. Rafa the Exo-Soldier

Rafa earns high marks for raw versatility and trait strength. His Trait, Overdrive, boosts movement speed and damage every time he uses an Action Skill. His skills are Apophis Lance, which is an arm cannon with piercing shock blasts, Peacebreaker Cannons, which are shoulder turrets with continuous fire, Arc-Knives, which are melee blades that mark enemies, stack bonus damage, and trigger Blade Fury. Rafa feels powerful early on because Peacebreaker gives steady damage output. Solo or co-op, he works well for players who love to run and gun.

Rafa’s arm cannon melts shields, making him the go-to against armored enemies. His Arc-Knives are perfect for close quarters, stacking bleed-style debuffs that shred bosses. Peacebreaker Cannons fire nonstop, so your team is never left unprotected. His skill trees lean into brute force, mobility, or precision, so you can mold him how you like. Compared to others, Rafa feels like the safest pick for new players since he doesn’t demand much setup.

His skill trees include Warpath, which is raw damage buffs and heavy weapons. Bladestorm, which is melee bleed builds using Arc-Knives and Overdrive Core, which is mobility, cooldown reductions, and crit focus. Warpath turns Rafa into a DPS machine, making his Peacebreaker Cannons feel like mini-bosses themselves. Bladestorm focuses on chaining Arc-Knife strikes, stacking bleed effects that ramp damage absurdly fast. Overdrive Core is about speed, slide-shooting, and insane crit chaining, perfect for hyper-aggressive players. 

1. Vex the Siren

Vex sits at the top of many rankings because she mixes damage with support very well. Her Trait, Phase Covenant, changes her Action Skills and melee damage to match her gun’s element. So if you carry a fire weapon, her melee burns; if you take an ice weapon, she freezes. Her Action Skills include Dead Ringer minions Specter or Reaper, Incarnate, which is an AOE blast plus heal, and Phase Phamiliar, which summons Trouble, her cat companion. She also gets lifesteal, which helps when the fight gets messy.

Vex’s cat Trouble isn’t just cosmetic; it tanks aggro and deals solid elemental damage. Her Dead Ringer minions scale with skill tree choices, so you can build a small army. She dominates in elemental matchups, melting bosses weak to her chosen element. Her lifesteal works best with SMGs or shotguns, letting her heal as she fights. Above all, her versatility makes her thrive in multiplayer games.

Her three skill trees are split into Cataclysm, which is pure elemental destruction, Covenant, which is team support and lifesteal, and Phantasm, which is summon-focused builds. Cataclysm boosts elemental damage over time, letting you stack burns, shocks, or poison clouds. Covenant focuses on survival, making your whole squad tankier through shared healing bursts. Meanwhile, Phantasm buffs Trouble and your Dead Ringer minions, turning fights into chaotic pet wars. In solo, Cataclysm shines, but in co-op, Covenant keeps teammates alive in raids. The match will have you on your feet long after you complete the gameplay.