Bethesda’s Fallout video game series has long provided players with class-free development, giving them the freedom to create seemingly endless combinations of perks and skills. Fallout 76 continues that tradition with a more extreme method. In this title, characters start out with no advanced skills or attributes at all, and instead can be built up entirely from scratch.
Yet, as always, attributes and perks are not all that matter in the Fallout universe. Appalachia offers a huge variety of weaponry, armor, gadgets, and much more to help you build a character and playstyle that suits you best. In these exciting builds, all of those factors come together in a variety of creative and super fun ways.
Strolling through the nuclear wasteland can take a toll on your health. Players who dedicate themselves to the science of protection, however, will find that bullets and lasers will do little to a fine suit of Power Armor. The Full Metal Tank build requires a certain amount of Intelligence, but only enough for the Armorer and Fix It Good perks. Power User is a decent perk, but Fusion Cores are easily obtainable so running out isn’t usually a problem.
The biggest downside to this build is that Power Armor and heavy guns all take a ton of resources to maintain. Understandably, scavenging junk is not everyone’s favorite reason for playing Fallout.
9 Chem-Fiend
When guns and gear fall short, Fallout 76 provides us with a plethora of performance enhancing chems. Chem-fiends mainly just need Endurance and Luck to make the most of their chems. These can be used for virtually any style of play, but melee combat benefits the most due to the Strength and Endurance benefits from alcohol. Buffout and Psycho are fundamental for melee, while chem-fiends who prefer ranged combat can get big boosts from Calmex or Orange Mentats.
Unfortunately, while the bonuses from chems are powerful at earlier levels, a high-level character dedicated to their use won’t be as effective as a more focused build. It’s usually better to use your perks for things that directly improve your damage or durability, but it’s certainly fun to take this route instead!
8 Ninja
Stealth is an extremely useful skill throughout the brilliant Fallout series. Anyone can use it to surprise an enemy, or simply avoid their detection from a respectable distance. Ninjas take this to the extreme by maxing out their Agility and Strength for rapid and deadly blows. Essentially, you will need the Sneak, Escape Artist, and Light Footed perks, as well as those for melee sneak attacks. Thrown melee weapons are a must too.
The clear drawback to this build is that there’s not much you can do if you’re caught sneaking around. Ninjas have to use light armor for stealth, so they’re just not good at taking damage. A build for players confident in their evasive skills.
7 Gunslinger
Sometimes you don’t need a flashy build. Sometimes you just need an awesome gun. If you’re playing Fallout 76, it’s more likely that you’ll need several. Gunslingers are amazing for soloing, given their ability to carry a wide variety of lightweight weaponry. On top of the damage perks, Gun Runner and Modern Renegade are great for this build, while Packin’ Light is a must-have for carrying capacity.
Pistols generally aren’t great at range, so this build is typically more effective in close combat. The risks that go with that, however, keep this build from being as effective as some others, since pistols have low ammo capacity and are typically weaker than rifles.
6 Mad Scientist
For players less interested in simple gun-toting violence and more focused on causing AOE mayhem, the mad scientist works wonders. This build requires max Intelligence and also quite a lot of Luck and Perception. The Science and other crafting perks are essential, and be sure to work on Super Duper as soon as you get to level 50. Maximizing your grenade and chem production is vital, after all.
While this build is capable of putting out some massive DPS, it is very much a glass cannon. Even Power Armor can’t protect the mad scientist very well, making them extremely vulnerable to attacks from enemy players.
5 Sniper
Some people don’t like taking damage, or they just enjoy the challenge of long range marksmanship. It’s important to max out Perception early on for this build, but Luck and Strength also have useful perks. Long Shot and Sniper are the basic perks for accuracy, while Better Criticals, Grim Reaper’s Sprint, and Psychopath will help maximize your action points in V.A.T.S.
However, snipers can get into big trouble if they wander into open combat. When multiple enemies start chasing you down, running away can sometimes be the only option. Their guns are also some of the heaviest in the game, limiting how many they can carry.
4 Healer
If you play in a group, being a healer will make you the unquestioned MVP. Charisma provides perks for reviving other players, bonuses for having more and more teammates, and even giving those teammates the benefits of some items you use on yourself. The Bodyguards perk will help you build your armor and resistances, while Friendly Fire and Team Medic will enable you to heal your friends.
Clearly, if you don’t play in a team regularly, then this build isn’t going to be very useful. Even when you are in a team, though, healers are extremely vulnerable compared to most other builds and are always targeted first in PVP.
3 Beast
Perhaps Fallout 76’s best build for new players, beasts have the versatility to take on any situation. Strength and Endurance need to be maxed out together, with the rest of your attribute points going to Agility and Luck. While Power Armor may be tempting for this build, it really only reduces the effectiveness of your stealth. The Barbarian, Ironclad, and Evasive perks provide significant boosts for unarmored characters.
This build doesn’t have a lot of downsides, but it can be easy to feel tougher than you are. Running straight into a line of gunfire is still a bad idea, as beasts are designed to deal heavy DPS rather than tank damage.
2 Soldier
An extremely well-balanced build with max Perception and high Agility, soldiers can operate effectively in stealth. They also have no difficulty taking out multiple enemies very quickly with automatic rifles. To do this, you’ll need the Commando perks along with Ground Pounder for efficiency, Tank Killer to get through enemy armor, and Tormenter to target limbs much more often.
Carry weight is the only real issue for soldiers, which is why they’re one of the very best builds in Fallout 76. Rifles are some of the heaviest weapons in the game and there are no perks to reduce their weight, meaning soldiers must choose their weapons very carefully.
1 Mutant
One of the strangest features in Fallout 76 is the ability for players to acquire mutations. Some mutations can be useful for certain builds, but the mutant doesn’t hold back. Starched Genes will prevent Radaway from curing mutations, while Class Freak will mitigate their negative effects. Talons, Twisted Muscles, and Speed Demon are generally the best mutations for melee, but there are many more.
Overall, the mutant gets more benefits to melee combat as opposed to ranged. There are all kinds of mutations, though, and players who choose this build aren’t limited to any particular weapon style. That adaptability, as well as the powerful boosts from mutations, makes this the best build in Fallout 76. which is why it is highly recommended for players interested in expeditions in the more recent expansions.
