like the magic-wielding Siren and heavy hitters like Brick—each Hunter has unique branching skill trees that can make each playthrough completely different.

Although every character has their own strengths and weaknesses, some of the Vault Hunters from Borderlands games stand out as being the most fun to play as. For some, this might be due to interesting skill combinations, while others stand out for their larger-than-life personalities that color every battle. Whatever your combat preferences are, some of the playable Borderlands characters are in a league of their own.

10 Claptrap the Fragtrap

The Wisecracking Robot From Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

After acting as the silly sidekick character in the franchise, the series' one-eyed, one-wheeled, talkative robot got his moment in the spotlight in The Pre-Sequel. In the game, the ever-present character Claptrap becomes a Vault Hunter, armed with an appropriately hilarious list of skills and dialogue lines.

To be clear, Claptrap isn't the most fun to play because of his skills, which are fairly standard; he's fun to play because he and his skills are hilarious. One of the character's abilities grants him a large buff, for instance, but only if his allies (or enemies) "high-five" him by meleeing him. Leave him hanging, and he may break down sobbing that he just wants to be loved. Only choose this little guy if you're a fan of puns like "Hey everybody! Check out my package!" and "Cryo me a river!"

9 Gaige The Mechromancer

The Mechanic And Her BFF Deathtrap From The Borderlands 2 DLC

Gaige was added to Borderlands 2 as a DLC character, bringing her science project and best friend, Deathtrap, with her. In combat, Gaige can call on the massive anti-bullying mech to fight alongside her, with the giant making quite a sight next to the twin-ponytailed teenager.

The mech-aided Vault Hunter is a divisive one, described as being easy to play but difficult to master. She can be used as a huge damage dealer by decking out Deathtrap in offensive skills, or she can be used for more nuanced play with skills like Anarchy that are more useful the more of them she has stacked. Either way, summoning a large robot into battle is a blast.

8 Mordecai the Hunter

And His Trusty Companion Bloodwing From Borderlands

Mordecai from the original Borderlands game set the stage for FL4K and his pets and even Borderlands 4 and her spectral cat companion, Trouble. The original Vault Hunter was a literal hunter who fought alongside his trusty companion bird, Bloodwing.

The character is a soft-spoken sharpshooter, whose skills with long-range gun firing perfectly complement his bird's attacks. The two worked as a team to take down enemies, and the combination was a winning one despite the relatively limited skill trees of the first Borderlands game.

7 Axton The Commando

The Turret-Wilding Soldier From Borderlands 2

I have to it, I had forgotten all about Axton until I asked my husband who his favorite Vault Hunter was. While the character has a fleshed-out background story as a former Dahl soldier forced to go AWOL when he was discharged and sentenced to death by firing squad, his personality is simply not as memorable as many of the more colorful characters in the series' history.

However, what Axton lacks in personality, he makes up for with some excellent gameplay. The Commando's fighting style revolves around his deployable Sabre Turret, which can be upgraded to act as an offensive or defensive ally, or as a distraction. When fully upgraded, the turret can act almost like a second character, providing Axton with buffs and assists that can make or break a battle.

6 Athena the Gladiator

The Shield-Wielding Ex-Crimson Lance Fighter From Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

Athena first appeared in The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC for the original Borderlands as an ally to the player. She shows up again as a playable character in The Pre-Sequel, revealing more of her background as an assassin and operative of the elite Atlas soldiers, the Crimson Lance. Luckily, by the time we meet her, the formidable Athena is on the player's side.

Athena's Kinetic Aspis action skill lets her use her shield in a way that no other Borderlands character does. When activated, Athena holds her shield up to absorb damage, then throws it at enemies as a powerful projectile. Athena is one of the best ive roles in the series, with the tactical nature of her skill trees helping the whole team, increasing damage at the cost of her own health, or harnessing elemental damage.

5 Lilith The Siren

The First-Ever Siren From Borderlands

Lilith is a key player in all the Borderlands games, handling everything from founding the Crimson Raiders in Borderlands 2 to literally moving planets in Borderlands 3. The character was one of the original Vault Hunters and the first playable Siren in the franchise. (She was also the first character I played, so I may be a bit biased.)

Lilith's Siren skill in the first game was the Phasewalk, which allowed her to go invisible and move faster for a brief period, ending in a blast that hurt anyone around her. The Phasewalk could be ended with a melee attack, and various melee boosts made it ridiculously fun to go invisible only to reappear in the middle of the battlefield with an explosive melee hit.

4 Zane The Operative

The Delightfully Charming Dual-Ability Wielder From Borderlands 3

Zane is hands down the most charming and funny character to play as in the Borderlands series, with a quip at the ready for any situation. He's so charming, in fact, that he managed to entice me away after unfailingly playing as the Siren character in all three previous games. The Vault Hunter is a perfect choice for the undecisive player, being the only character in the entire franchise able to equip two action skills at the same time (giving up grenades to do so).

Similarly to Axton, Zane's action skills fall into the defensive (putting up a barrier that protects himself and allies), offensive (summoning shoulder cannons or a rocket-launcher-equipped drone), and decoy (placing a Digi-Clone to distract enemies). The ability to combine two of these makes Zane extremely versatile and turns him into an excellent ally in a co-op playthrough.

3 Zer0 The Assassin

The Mysterious Possibly-Not-Human Mercenary From Borderlands 2

No one is sure who (or what) Zer0 is, except maybe the resident evil scientist Patricia Tannis. The character speaks entirely in haikus, has a full-body outfit, and expresses himself in holographic emoticons displayed atop his helmet. The one thing that we do know about Zer0 is that he's an extremely fun character to play.

Zer0 has an odd dual specialty, excelling both in up-close combat thanks to his sword and in long-range combat due to his sniping expertise. Depending on which ability path you choose to follow, Zer0 can either deal out powerful long-distance crits or devastating killing melee blows. Either way, his "decepti0n" action skill ensures that the enemies' attention is focused elsewhere while he zooms around the battleground.

2 Maya The Siren

The Fun Phaselock Magician From Borderlands 2

Maya the Siren becomes incredibly important to the story in Borderlands 3, but in the second game, she's just a Vault Hunter like the rest of the team. Maya takes the concept of the Siren introduced by Lilith in the first game and elevates it to one of the most fun playable characters in the series.

Maya's Phaselock action skill enables her to essentially lift enemies in a bubble, rendering them immobile for a bit while damaging them. At higher levels, the skill gains additional effects, like elemental damage and spreading to additional enemies if the original Phaselocked enemy dies. The skill can even be changed to turn enemies into allies instead of bubbling them, or pull enemies in and explode, allowing for some fun and chaotic plays.

1 Krieg the Psycho

The Unhinged Profanity-Spouting Brawler From The Borderlands 2 DLC

Like Gaige, Krieg wasn't part of the base Borderlands 2 game, arriving instead as a DLC character. The Psycho has gone on to be one of the most beloved characters in the franchise, thanks in part to his unique melee focus and in part to his tendency to yell ridiculous lines like "I am the conductor of the poop train!" and "I'm losing blood, gimme yours!"

There's something incredibly satisfying about running enemies through with a melee weapon while on fire.

In a game all about guns, Krieg goes against the grain and relies on his trusty buzz axe, instead. Krieg's skills are just as unhinged as him, with one entire skill tree relying on him being on fire. There's something incredibly satisfying about running enemies through with a melee weapon while on fire and yelling about having the shiniest meat bicycle.

The character of Krieg is the kind of fun writing that fans were worried would be lost if Borderlands 4 is truly more serious, Gearbox wanted it to be. Hopefully, the continuation of the Vault Hunters saga will still have its share of Kriegs, who's one of the most fun characters to play as in the entire series.