Borderlands 3 Zane skill tree, abilities and action skills

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Zane looks is a kill skill specialist and shield enthusiast with a medley of action skills

Borderlands 3 Zane skill tree

The best Borderlands 3 Zane build blends his three skill tree branches to make the most out of his ability to use two action skills at once. You lose the ability to use grenades but being able to use two superpowers at once will more than make up for that. His skills trees, Under Cover, Hitman, and Doubled Agent focus on using barriers, deceptions and attacks to overwhelm the enemy while making the most on his ability to double up on action skills. Combine it well and you can make things interesting for the bad guys very quickly. With that in mind, here Zane the Operative's three skill trees and what you can do with them.

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Borderlands 3 Zane Under Cover kill tree

Action Skill

  • Barrier: Drop a deployable barrier that blocks incoming projectiles. Zane and his allies can shoot through the barrier, dealing increased gun damage. Pressing the action skill button or the grenade button while barrier is active picks up and holds the barrier, but the size and bonuses are decreased. 

Skills 

  • Adrenaline: Zane gains increased action skill cooldown rate. This bonus is based on the amount of shields he has. The more percent full, the greater the bonus.
  • Hearty Stock: Zane gains increased maximum shield capacity.
  • Ready for Action: Zane gains improved shield recharge rate and shield recharge delay.
  • Brainfreeze: Whenever Zane scores a critical hit on an enemy, there's a chance they will be slowed.
  • Stiff Upper Lip: Whenever Zane is damaged, he gains damage resistance against that damage type. 
  • Rise to the Occasion: Zane gains health regeneration. The lower his shield is, the higher the bonus. While Zane's shields arefull, he does not receive any health regeneration.
  • Confident Competence: While Zane's shields are active, he gains increased gun damage and accuracy. This bonus is based on the amount of shields he has. The more percent full, the greater the bonus.
  • Really Expensive Jacket: Elemental damage over time effects applied to Zane have reduced duration.
  • Best Served Cold: Kill skill. Whenever Zane kills an enemy, they create a cryo nova, dealing damage to all nearby enemies. This skill has a short cooldown.
  • Futility Belt: Zane gains resistance to non-elemental damage. Kill skill. All elemental damage Zane takes is converted to non-elemental damage. 
  • Refreshment: Whenever Zane damages a frozen enemy with his weapons, he gains some of that damage back as health.
  • Calm, Cool, Collected: Whenever Zane freezes an enemy, his shield instantly begins recharging. If Zane's shields are already full, he regenerates health for a few seconds. If Zane's health is already full, his action skill cooldowns and durations are immediately reset.
  • Nerves of Steel: Zane gains increasing accuracy and handling. The longer his shield is full, the greater the bonus.

Action Skill Augments

  • Charged Relay: Whenever Zane or an ally touches the barrier, they gain increased movement speed and fire rate for a few seconds.
  • Nanites or Some Shite: Zane and his allies gain health regeneration, increased reload speed, and greatly improved shield recharge delay while near his barrier. The lower their health, the more health is regenerated.
  • All-Rounder: Zane's barrier becomes a dome, covering all sides.
  • Redistribution: Zane and allies near the barrier gain increased gun damage for a few seconds after the barrier takes damage. 
  • Deterrence Field: Enemies that touch the barrier take shock damage and are staggered.
  • Distributed Denial: Zane's barrier gains the effects of his currently equipped shield mod. Additionally, shield effects are applied to all allies near the barrier. Bonuses to Zane are reduced. 

Borderlands 3 Zane Hitman skill tree 

Action Skill

  • SNTNL: Send into battle an automated SNTNL drone that continually flies through the environment and attacks enemies with its machine guns. Pressing the action skill button or the grenade button while SNTNL is active causes it to attack the enemy under Zane's crosshairs, if any. 

Skills 

  • Violent Speed: Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane gains increased movement speed for a few seconds.
  • Cold Bore: Zane gains increased weapon swap speed. The next shot fired after swapping weapons deals bonus cryo damage. 
  • Violent Momentum: Zane's gun damage is increased while moving. The quicker he moves, the greater the gun damage bonus.
  • Cool Hand: Zane gains increased reload speed. Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane's reload speed is increased for a few seconds.
  • Drone Delivery: SNTNL will occasionally drop a free grenade based on your current grenade mod while attacking enemies.
  • Salvation: Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane's weapons gain life steal for a few seconds.
  • Seein' Red: Activating an action skill automatically activates all of Zane's kill skills.
  • Violent Violence: Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane gains increased fire rate for a few seconds.
  • Playing Dirty: Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane's next five shots all have a chance to fire an additional projectile.
  • Good Misfortune: Kill skill. Killing an enemy increased Zane's action skill duration. This skill has diminishing returns.
  • Death Follows Close: All of Zane's kill skills gain increased effect and duration.

Augments 

  • Winter's Drone: Converts SNTNL's primary weapons to cryo damage.
  • Bad Dose: SNTNL occasionally shoots out a beam of radiation that weakens enemies and buffs Zane. For every weakened enemy, Zane's movement speed and fire rate are increased. Weakened enemies have decreased movement speed and attack speed.
  • Static Field: SNTNL emits a static field that sends a shock beam to nearby enemies, draining their shields and replenishing Zane's.
  • Boomsday: SNTNL adds a rocket pod to is primary weapons, allowing it to shoot rockets as well as machine guns. 
  • Almighty Ordnance: Hold down the action skill button or the grenade button while SNTNL is deployed to paint a target area. SNTNL fires a missile barrage at that area, and if an enemy is killed, Almighty Ordnance's duration is reset. This can only be used once per action skill use.

Borderlands 3 Zane Doubled Agent skill tree

Action Skill

  • Digi-Clone: Spawn a Digi-Clone of Zane. This clone stays in place, but distracts and fires at enemies. Pressing the action skill button or the grenade button while the clone is active causes Zane and the clone to swap places.  

Skills 

  • Synchronicity: Whenever one or more of Zane's action skills are active, he gains increased gun damage for each active action skill.
  • Praemunitus: Zane and his Digi-Clone gain increased magazine size.
  • Borrowed Time: Zane gains increased action skill duration for every action skill.
  • Dannybroak: Kill skill. Whenever Zane kills an enemy, he and his digi-clone receive increased gun damage and gain health regeneration for a few seconds. 
  • Fractal Frogs: The Digi-Clone throws a copy of Zane's current grenade mod when it is first activated. If the Digi-Clone is killed, it drops a free grenade. Kill skill. Killing an enemy while the Digi-Clone is active gives the clone a chance to throw a grenade.
  • Duct Tape Mod: The first shot fired from Zane's gun has a chance to also fire a grenade. The more grenades in his capacity, the higher the chance.
  • Quick Breather: Whenever Zane swaps places with his clone, his shield immediately begins recharging.
  • Pocket Full of Grenades: Kill skill. After killing an enemy, Zane gains grenade regeneration for a few seconds.
  • Old-U: Press the action skill or the grenade button during Fight for Your Life if Digi-Clone is active to destroy the clone and immediately gain a Second Wind with full health.
  • Supersonic Man: Whenever one or more of Zane's action skills are active, he gains increased movement speed for each active action skill.
  • Like a Ghost: Zane and his Digi-Clone gain a chance to ignore bullets. This chance is increased for a few seconds after activating an action skill. This effect stacks.
  • Boom. Enhance.: Whenever Zane summons his Digi-Clone, it consumes up to three grenades. For every grenade consumed, the Digi-Clone gains increased gun damage, max health, fire rate, and reload speed.
  • Trick of the Light: Zane deals bonus damage to enemies that aren't targeting him.

Augments

  • Binary System: Whenever Zane swaps places with his clone, a cryo nova is triggered around Zane and his clone. 
  • Schadenfreude: Whenever the clone takes damage, Zane's shield is restored by a portion of that damage.
  • Which One's Real?: Enemies are more likely to target the clone for a few seconds after it's summoned and after swapping places. 
  • Doppelbanger: Hold down the action skill button or the grenade button to end the action skill early. When Zane's action skill is ended, the clone exploded, dealing fire damage to all nearby enemies. The more action skill time remaining, the greater the damage.
  • Digital Distribution: If Zane takes health damage while the clone is active, a portion of that damage is shared to his clone instead.
  • Double Barrel: The clone is equipped with a copy of Zane's current weapon when activated. Swapping places with the clone causes Zane and his clone to gain increased gun damage. 

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Austin Wood
Austin Wood

Austin freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree, and he's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize that his position as a senior writer is just a cover up for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a focus on news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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