The Siren Vex in Borderlands 4 offers some of the most creative build paths in the series, but few setups feel as satisfying—or as deadly—as her Reaper-focused Dead Ringer build. This configuration emphasizes summoning spectral allies that shred enemies while Vex supports them with gunfire, melee damage, and layered sustain. Whether you’re tackling story missions or farming bosses, the Reaper build lets you sit back while your minions do the heavy lifting.
Why the Reaper Setup Works Best for Vex
The Dead Ringer skill tree turns Vex into a commander of spectral warriors—Reapers and Specters—that inherit her attunement and benefit from her skill boosts. The Reaper variant shines because it combines:
- Sustained survivability through health regeneration and overshields.
- Melee and curse damage scaling for brutal burst potential.
- Minion synergy, where every additional summon amplifies overall damage.
- Ease of use — you can focus on gunplay while your Reapers keep enemies distracted and weakened.
This build is ideal for players who enjoy a hybrid of summoner gameplay and direct combat, with plenty of passive power once your setup is rolling.
Best Skills and Augments for the Build
These are the most crucial Dead Ringer abilities and their roles in the build:
- Fell Inscriptions (5/5): Boosts melee damage and maximum health for both Vex and her minions, making Reapers tougher and deadlier.
- Coven (Augment): Spawning a Reaper triggers healing for Vex and her allies, an invaluable sustain tool.
- Cursed Blade (5/5): Vex’s melee attacks apply a Curse, causing enemies to take kinetic status effect damage whenever they’re hit with gunfire.
- Extra Cursed (1/1): Extends the Curse effect to Reaper melee strikes, with extra power on crits.
- Grave Quickening (5/5): Kill Skill that reduces action skill cooldown, letting you resummon Reapers faster.
- Blood Sacrifice (1/1): Procs Kill Skills whenever a Reaper dies—turning losses into bonuses.
- Obedient Fiends (5/5): Flat boost to all minion and command skill damage.
- Ancient Rites (5/5): Grants stacking minion damage for each active Reaper, snowballing your offense.
- Dark Pact (Capstone): The defining capstone. Lets Vex equip two augments, fully restores Reaper health, and buffs their movement and attack speed.
Recommended Augments
- Hellish Harvest: Reapers slam enemies in an AoE, dealing heavy melee damage and healing from each target hit.
- Coven: Retain this as a flexible option for sustain, especially in mob-heavy fights.
Best Specializations for the Reaper Build
To unlock the build’s true potential, slot in melee-oriented specializations:
- Bear Arms: Melee damage benefits from all gun damage bonuses.
- Groundbreaker: Stores non-melee damage and unleashes it in a devastating melee burst.
- The Best Defense: Increases damage dealt based on shield or health fullness.
- I Am A Gun: Action skill damage scales with gun damage buffs.
With these, every bullet, knife throw, and Reaper strike feeds into a brutal loop of stacking multipliers.
Best Weapons and Gear
Your gear choices make or break this build. Focus on items that enhance minion longevity and amplify melee/gun damage.
- Weapons:
- Wombo Combo (assault rifle) excels thanks to its rapid-fire rate and extra Rip Rocket ordnance.
- Shotguns or assault rifles with kinetic scaling work well for stacking curse damage.
- A Penetrator Augment Throwing Knife is an optional but devastating bonus, guaranteeing crit synergy with curses.
- Shields:
- Super Soldier Shield offers overshield uptime, movement speed, ammo regen, and fire rate boosts—perfect synergy for aggressive minion play.
- Class Mod:
- Teen Witch stands out for lifesteal, keeping both Vex and her minions alive while fueling nonstop pressure.
- Ordnance:
- Slippy grenade scales off melee damage, turning explosive ordnance into another damage source tied to your build’s strengths.
- Firmware:
- Action Fist (+15% melee, +10% action skill damage).
- GOOJFC (faster cooldowns + action skill damage).
- Reel Big Fist (+15% melee).
Together, these ensure your Reapers hit harder, faster, and stay on the battlefield longer.
Quick Tips for Reaper Vex
- Maintain Reaper Uptime: Always aim to have all charges active. With Diener, you can field up to four minions at once.
- Curse Everything: Use your Phase Knife (via Haruspex) to tag enemies, letting both you and your Reapers deal amplified damage.
- Time Dark Pact: Use it right before engaging bosses or large enemy waves—it turns your minions into a temporary unstoppable force.
- Cycle Augments: Swap between Coven (for sustain) and Hellish Harvest (for AoE burst) depending on the fight.
- Stack Recurrence: Keep firing or striking to build up Recurrence stacks, boosting minion and personal damage over time.
The Vex Reaper Dead Ringer build thrives on synergy. Every summon, curse, and melee dagger you throw amplifies the damage of your spectral army. Your Reapers tank aggro, apply status effects, and stack melee damage while you play the role of both support and executioner. With layered sustain from Coven, overshields, and lifesteal mods, you stay healthy even in the toughest encounters.
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For players who want a commanding, aggressive, yet safe playstyle, this is one of the most complete builds Vex can offer in Borderlands 4. Play Now!
