Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel’s Claptrap spits rainbows and goes full pirate ship

By Adam Rosenberg September 24, 2014

borderlands pre sequel the 001 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Read our full Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel review.

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel‘s October 14, 2014 release on PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 is fast-approaching and developer 2K Australia’s been kind enough to share a peek at each of the four playable characters’ skill trees ahead of time. Much like what was done with Borderlands 2, prospective Pre-Sequel players can figure out how they’d like to initially level up Athena, Wilhelm, Nisha, and Claptrap using a handy skill calculator.

This amounts to our first real look at how longtime non-player comic relief character Claptrap shapes up as a beast-blastin’, loot-sleuthin’ action hero. His VaultHunter.EXE action skill seemingly bestows him with abilities randomly selected from among the Vault Hunters of the previous game(s). It’s also implied that the effects of that action skill are in some way conferred to other players in the party.

Related: Sir Hammerlock and Mister Torgue tour through what’s new in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

His “Boomtrap” skill tree is topped off with “Livin’ Near the Edge,” which boosts Claptrap’s fire rate and reload speed stats based on how low his health and shields are. It also turns him into some manner of pirate ship. The “Fragmented Fragtrap” tree leans more in the direction of big explosions, with the top-level “Rainbow Coolant” skill releasing a Rainbow Nova that “consists of all elements, is humongous in size, and makes your team super happy.” It also shoots laser.

Lastly we have the support tree, “I Love You Guys!,” which caps off with the skill “HIGH FIVES GUYS.” Use it by hitting the melee button to request a high five from your teammates. All high-fivers enjoy temporarily boosted gun damage, fire rate, and health regeneration. And if Claptrap is left hanging, he still gets a boost to gun damage and health regen “because screw you guys!”

You can fiddle with the skill trees of Claptrap and his companions on Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel‘s official website.

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Former Digital Trends Contributor

Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

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