The class system in Remnant: From The Ashes is incredibly flexible and permits a lot of customization and unique builds. As players begin experimenting with the varying combinations of gear, mods, and abilities to achieve overpowered builds, a few have already come to dominate the fan boards.
Some are fun to play but may have a moment or two where they struggle, others are designed with the end game in mind and limp along in the first part, and others still are broken monstrosities that turn this game into a slugfest.
Updated on September 24, 2021, by Ben Baker: With recent expansions, there have been a number of changes and additions to the game. Some of these changes have impacted Remnant From The Ashes builds. It’s too early to see if some of the best builds have been dethroned by these changes, but there are some new ways to play that are proving fun. For instance, the Labyrinth set of armor can now be used to dramatically increase DPS potential. This is great news for Remnant from the Ashes hunter builds that rely on burst damage through criticals. Changes to cooldowns have also made sustainable life leech possible and let’s not forget the really popular Eye of the Storm weapon shaking up the meta. If you’re considering diving back in you should really try some of the new best Remnant builds.
15 Reliable
The Reliable is a straightforward Remnant From The Ashes Ex Cultist build that can handle just about any difficulty. The key is to ramp up the damage of the Devastator’s weapon mod Skewer. To accomplish this players need to upgrade the weapon, get all three pieces of the Labyrinth set, the Galenic Charm, Gift of the Iskal, and Ring of Supremacy.
Combine these pieces of equipment with key traits like the Executioner and Kingslayer and this build can deal absurd damage. Granted this is largely geared towards bosses but having a handy secondary like the SMG+ with a Swarm Mod can deal with groups very easily. It’s simple, not terribly hard to set up, and works like a charm.
14 Underestimated
The Underestimated build is one of the more popular Remnant From The Ashes builds right now and one you should definitely try. The Underestimated centers around the new weapon Eye of the Storm. The key is to hit every enemy in a group at least once with a regular shot. Then you trigger the Weapon Mod Static Field Shot and watch the sparks fly.
Labyrinth Set will boost damage dramatically. Galenic Charm, Gift of Iskal, and Ring of Supremacy also do wonders. Then it’s a matter of amassing relevant skills like Kingslayer, Spirit, Quick Hands, and so on. This works bests with groups but can hold its own against bosses.
13 Vampire
This is a melee tank build that sustains itself through lifesteal via the Riven. The build is all about getting up close and going on the offensive, in fact being defensive with this build will get you killed. For those who like aggressive playstyles, this is one of the best Remnant builds for it.
The Riven is an obvious must, Butcher’s Fetish, Band of Strength, and Leech Ember. It’s important to have a piece of the Twisted set and two from Scrapper. The Scrapper pieces boost melee damaged and the Twisted will provide health regeneration along with bonuses for getting back to full health.
12 Stormcaller
Dubbed the Destiny 2 build of Remnant From The Ashes, this build can be a lot of fun. The key is the Beam Rifle with the Stormcaller Mod. This mod when triggered will unleash a storm of lightning strikes and reduce incoming damage by 50 percent.
Boosting damage through the usual means such as the Labyrinth set and Galenic Charm are recommended. You should also have a secondary weapon with the Blink Token Mod for quick escapes. There are some enemies that can bear the brunt of the storm and be dangerous in melee.
11 Unbreakable
Unbreakable is a phenomenal build that works well in solo but really shines in co-op either defensively or offensively. On offense, players use the Beam Rifle with the Veil of the Black Tear Mod with the Void Set. On defense the SMG with Howler’s Immunity and also the Void Set.
In fact, the Void Set is really what brings this build together. It will either provide an offensive buff or a defensive one. This build offers the flexibility to play aggressively or hold back and act as the tank. It’s a fun and adaptive build for any scenario or team setup.
10 Pure Scrapper
This build has taken what makes the Scrapper great and expanded upon it. The Pure Scrapper focuses on strong melee and close-ranged combat to blast and hack apart enemies. Unfortunately, melee is brutal in this game, so expect a long hard battle from beginning to end.
Maxing out the shotgun and falling back on the Petrified Maul when you absolutely have to is key to this build. The Void armor will give you some stopping power when your health drops. The key is to blow the enemy apart before they have the chance to hit you.
9 Pure Ex-Cultist
The Pure Ex-Cultist is a little more durable because they fight at mid-range. The reason they don’t rank higher is that this build focuses on their support abilities as well which is useless if you’re flying solo.
The build has the ex-cultist fight with an Assault Rifle with the SMG on standby. The main damage from this build will come from the occasional critical thanks to the Executioner trait and Hunter’s Mark mod. But, until that critical triggers, you’re doing what you can to stay alive and whittle down opponents.
8 Pure Hunter
The Pure Hunter is the strongest out of the pure archetypes but still struggles compared to other more unique builds. This build relies upon long-range combat with the sniper rifle or Ruin against bosses with SMG as secondary for groups, which is where it struggles.
The Blind Token mod is great for staying away from enemies and Hunter’s Band increases your weak spot damage. If you’re in a group this is a powerful build, but flying solo is going to be rough.
7 Scrapper Blaster/Slasher
This build gives players a hybrid character that can blast enemies to pieces with the shotgun or carve them up with melee weapons. It’s adaptable based on playstyle, so, if the player is great at dodging, they rely more on melee and wear Akari armor, whereas those not so great at dodging roll with Void and shotgun and just take a few more hits.
The gear is meant to boost damage, and the traits are meant to increase survivability to create a balance. Helpful traits are things like Keeper’s Blessing, Glutton, and Bark Skin. If you have good survivability, go with Corrosive Aura for a weapon mod. If you die a lot, then go with Mantle of Thorns.
6 Just Melts
Just Melts is a build that specializes in group kills and can hold its own against bosses, which means it does alright solo but is meant for teams. The Weapon is the Assault Rifle and SMG with Hot Shot augmentation on the rifle.
Grab traits like Trigger Happy to boost fire rate, Quick Hands to raise reload speed, and Vigor for survivability. Wear Bandit armor to avoid burning through all of your bullets. There’s really not much to this playstyle, just throw as many bullets at the enemy as possible and watch the bodies fall.
5 Boss Melter
The Boss Melter is an entirely opposite concept to the Just Melts build. With this build, you’ll want the Beam Rifle for the awesome DPS against a single target. Use Devouring Loop for those occasional big hits on critical chance, and then something for survivability like Ezlan’s Band.
Radiant Armor will boost your critical hit chance and damage after a critical hit which is great with Devouring Loop. Ditto with Hunter’s Mark weapon mod, Executioner, and Kingslayer traits. Just turn your beam on the boss and hope for critical hits to kick in and they’ll drop. Like the Just Melts it’s a one-trick pony, but a Just Melts with a Boss Melter makes for a great duo.
4 Hunter Sniper
This turns the player into a long-range sniper with some crowd clearing ability. The main weapon is the Particle Accelerator for single target DPS with SMG for groups. Rings are Stone of Balance for a boost to damage and Hunter’s Band to boost the weak spot damage.
Any trait to further increase long-range damage and Quick Hands for reload speed with Mother’s Blessing to give you some survivability. The Weapon mod Blink token is good for avoiding the enemy and Flicker Cloak gives a handy shield so pick according to playstyle.
3 Ex-Cultists Critical
This one takes the critical hit chance builds and applies it to the Ex-Cultist for great mid-range lethality. Ruin, Devastator, or the Assault Rifle are weapons of choice. Radiant Armor gives bonuses to criticals. Gunslinger Charm for the amulet or Pocket Watch if you’re terrible at dodging.
The rings give the build versatility, Devouring Loop always for the high critical hit damage and use Stone of Balance for raising damage against bosses or go with Braided Thorns against groups for better critical hit chance after a kill.
2 Endgame Melee
This one is ludicrously fun and actually viable for the endgame. The Akari Armor is worn for the damage boost when successfully dodging. Beam Rifle with Hot Shot to initiate burn and soften up the enemy. Melee weapons are World Breaker for group clearing and Riven for life-stealing on bosses.
You have to have the rings Razor Stone and Devouring Loop. Devouring Loop for the critical hit boost, and Razorstone to cause enemies to bleed. Also, use the Pocket Watch for stamina sustain. The idea is to hopefully apply burn with the rifle before closing in and slicing it up with criticals. If they survive the melee onslaught, the burn and bleed will wear them down.
1 One-Shot Sniper
This is by far the strongest build in the game so far. The idea is to max out the sniper rifle, so give it a Hot Shot Augment. Your secondary and melee will not matter. Your rings are important, get Heartseeker to give you a 100% chance to get a critical when shooting an enemy unaware, and bring Devouring Loop to raise your damage by 300% when you get a critical. Traits are Executioner and Kingslayer to raise your critical chance and damage and Shadow Walker to avoid detection.
Essentially, you just sneak up on an enemy and kill it in one shot, including bosses. If you are discovered, your critical chance will be high enough for you to shred alerted enemies in one or two hits.