Salt the Wound: Borderlands 2’s Best Psycho Build

With the release of the Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC for Borderlands 3, we thought it would be a great opportunity to take a look back at where Krieg got his start. Everyone’s favorite psycho vault hunter remains one of the most unique of all of the playable characters, and we put together what we think is Borderlands 2’s best psycho build!

Krieg’s action skill sends him into a bloodthirsty rage where he drops his guns, grabs his buzz axe, and proceeds to wreak bloody havoc on his enemies. To stay true to this premise, we’ve put together a skill point allocation that emphasizes the use of Krieg’s preferred weapon to the fullest.

First off, we’d like to give a shout out to Borderlands 2 skill calculator for their amazing tool. In the years Gearbox supported the looter shooter, they eventually increased the level cap to 72. We’ve used all 72 points and organized the skills we chose in the order that we think will be most effective at each level.

Skill Point Allocation

To keep things simple, allocate the maximum number of points per skill before moving to the next one.

Bloodlust

• Blood-Filled Guns
  • 5% Magazine Size per Bloodlust stack per level.
• Blood Overdrive
  • Killing an enemy gives 0.5% melee Damage and 0s Grenade Fuse Time per stack per level.
• Taste of Blood
  • 1% damage reduction during Buzz Axe Rampage per stack per level. 10 stacks per kill per level during Buzz Axe Rampage.
• Buzz Axe Bombardier
  • When thrown, your buzz axe now has Dynamite attached to it which explodes on impact.
• Blood Trance
  • Increases the duration of Buzz Axe Rampage by 0.05 seconds per stack per level.
• Boiling Blood
  • Increases the time before stacks start to decay by 0.5 seconds per level.
• Bloodsplosion
  • Killing an enemy causes them to explode with an Elemental Nova of the type killed with. Overkill damage is added, and each stack increases the damage by 5%

Mania

• Empty the Rage
  • 4% melee damage per level. An additional 10% when shields or magazine is empty.
• Feed the Meat
  • 10% max health and 0.5-sec shield recharge delay per level.
• Fuel the Rampage
  • 20% Buzz Axe Rampage cooldown from taking damage per level. Additional 20% per level from health damage.
• Thrill of the Kill
  • Up to 50% per level of overkill damage converts to Health.
• Salt the Wound
  • Taking damage while your shield is down adds a stack of this. It increases your melee damage by 1.5% and shotgun damage by 1% per level.
• Silence the Voices
  • 50% melee damage per level, and a 12% chance to attack yourself with melee attacks.
• Release the Beast
  • Activating Buzz Axe Rampage at or below 33% of your max health, you’ll become a Badass Psycho Mutant with 100% melee damage and 50% damage reduction.
• Pull the Pin
  • When you die you drop a grenade which gives you double XP if it kills an enemy, because why not!
• Light the Fuse
  • Light the Fuse replaces Fight for Your Life, and it’s too hilarious for words, you have to try it out for yourself.

Hellborn

• Fuel the Fire
  • 7% chance per level per fire attack to set yourself on fire. Killing an enemy gives you a 40% elemental effect chance per level.
• Numbered Nerves (only 2 points)
  • 10% damage reduction per level when on fire.

There you have it, Borderlands 2’s best psycho build! If you haven’t played Krieg before, now is a great time to get started. While you’re at it, make sure to check out our other Borderlands guides!