After reviewing the best Exotics, Aspects, and Subclasses for Hunters in Season of the Plunder, it's time to examine the Best Hunter Builds currently available in the game. Arc 3.0 arrived with a bang, but now that every subclass has been reworked, you can create fantastic builds with each elemental subclass.
For this list, we will consider both PVE and PVP builds. We will not be using seasonal mods for any of the builds we will mention, so they are not dependent on them.
Note: It should be noted that while the new Hunter Exotic "Gyrfalcon's Hauberk" is a fantastic exotic, it's been disabled for almost half of the season, and while a fix is stated for mid-October, we don't think a build based on it deserves to be on the list at the moment.
5. Masked Killer Build (Best for PVP)
Make you enemies feel chills with this build.
Build details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZL0GF3dyqw&t=233s
Stasis is a very tactical subclass, and it shines in PVP. This build focuses on map control and determining the timing of encounters with other guardians. To accomplish this, you will use the Mask of Bakris exotic, which increases your Stasis Dodge, clocks you while in use, and grants you extra damage from Arc weapons and to frozen or slowed targets.
You will be dodging and using melee and grenades to slow down your enemies. This will give you an advantage in 1v1 battles and help you get the kill. The Super is powerful because it can disperse enemies, block their path, or guide them into a difficult corner.
The Aspects complement the general build, as the Touch of Winter improves your grenades and the Winter's Shroud slows combatants. Touch of Winter also bestows a Stasis crystal on your grenades, which benefits you in two ways: it reduces the damage you take when using the Whisper of Chains Fragment, and it increases your grenade recharge rate when shattering it if you have the Whisper of Shards Fragment equipped.
What Masked Killer Build Excels In:
- Give you the upper hand in encounters by slowing or freezing enemies
- Controlling the map with grenades or the Super
- Super is strong against roaming supers
Build Details:
- Subclass: Revenant
- Super: Silence and Squall
- Abilities: Gambler’s Dodge, Withering Blade, and Duskfield Grenade
- Aspects: Winter’s Shroud, and Touch of Winter
- Fragments: Whisper of Chains, Whisper of Endurance, and Whisper of Shards
- Exotic Armor: Mask of Bakris
- Weapons: Ark shotgun or SMG
- Mods: Weapon Mods
4. DPS Solar Monster Build (Best for PVE)
Dominate your enemies with the power of your Super.
Build details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t23xfxjnZGg
This build is based on getting a high DPS and recovering your Super as quickly as possible. This build is especially useful for Raids, Dungeons, and Grandmaster Nightfalls, where you will face difficult bosses that must be defeated.
You'll be using the Star-Eater Scales exotic for extra damage when you get 4 orbs of power after getting your super to overcharge it for this build. You will also use your Armor Mods, Aspects, and Fragments to try to regain your Super fast. You can also use the Bad Juju exotic Pulse Rifle, which grants you Super energy after each kill, to speed up the recovery of your Super.
To regain your Super faster, you will have two main options. The first option is to use Kinetic or Harmonic Siphon, which grants Orbs after killing enemies with weapons, while the second option is to use Hands-On, which grants bonus Super energy after melee kills. For the second, Knock 'Em Down restores melee energy after melee kills while Radiant, and you gain Radiant after melee kills while the Ember of Torches Fragment is equipped.
This build is not higher on the list because it serves a very specific purpose, but it may not feel as good in general gameplay or PVP.
What DPS Solar Monster Build Excels In:
- This build will get you the best DPS you can get for Hunters
- You still get to use your weapons for DPS because of how quick you use your super
- You can regain your Super quickly
Build Details:
- Subclass: Gunslinger
- Super: Blade Barrage
- Abilities: Knife Trick, Gambler’s Dodge, Healing Grenade
- Aspects: Knock ‘Em Down, On your Mark
- Fragments: Ember of Singeing, Ember of Beams, Ember of Torches, Ember of Solace, Ember of Empyrean
- Exotic Armor: Star-Eater Scales
- Armor Mods: Kinetic Siphon or Harmonic Siphon, Hands-On, Font of Might
- Weapons: Whiterhoard, Bad Juju Pulse Rifle
3. Disorienting Strike Build (Best for PVP)
Don't give your enemies a chance to breath with this build.
Build details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_TByboFIi8&t=458s
This is a very interesting build based on mobility, disorienting enemies, and killing them before they can react. You will be using the good mobility that Arc 3.0 gives you and the Gemini Jester exotic armor to pull the rug out from under the enemy and move in for the kill.
When you dodge near enemies, the Gemini Jester disorients them and removes their radar. To use this effectively, close in on them with Blink, doge to disorient them and remove their radar, and then kill them with a shotgun and a melee. Your abilities are important here because Blink is difficult to counter, Gambler's Dodge restores your melee, and Combination Blow restores your melee when you kill the enemy.
You will be using Lethal Current for the aspects, which increases your melee range, jolts the target, and creates a damaging aftershock after dodging. We'll combine that Aspect with the Flow State you gain after killing a jolted enemy, which will speed up your dodge charge.
What Disorienting Strike Build Excels In:
- Aggressive play in PVP
- Disorient enemies to gain the upper hand
- Gain back health after finishing enemy with a melee
Build Details:
- Subclass: Arcstrider
- Super: Arc Staff
- Abilities: Blink, Combination Blow
- Aspects: Lethal Current and Flow State
- Fragments: Spark of Ions, Spark of Discharge, Spark of Shock and Spark of Focus
- Exotic Armor: Gemini Jesters
- Weapons: Arc shotgun and SMG
- Mods: Quick Charge, Invigoration
2. Can’t Touch Me Arcstrider (Best for PVE)
Let them touch you if they dare.
Build details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E4hbXrzKMM&t=361s
This build has been very popular in the community in the past, but especially since Season of the Plunder's release. Arc 3.0 brings some new tools to the Arcstrider arsenal, allowing for very powerful builds.
For this build, you will be using a lot of the Arc 3.0 verbs, so you will be using jolted, blind, and amplified frequently. The loop is to dodge near enemies to reclaim your melee, then damage enemies to jolt them and blind them. Killing a jolted target amplifies you, increasing the speed with which your dodge recharges.
You could also make this build safer by swapping out the Liar's Handshake for the Assassin's Cowl. While you will lose some power because of this, you will gain a lot of survivability.
What Can’t Touch Me Arcstrider Excels In:
- Offensive PVE playstyle
- Great and easy to proc loop
- Versatile if you change Liar’s Handshake for Assassin’s Cowl
Build Details:
- Subclass: Arcstrider
- Super: Arc Staff or Gathering Storm
- Abilities: Gambler’s Dodge
- Aspects: Lethal Current, and Flow State
- Fragments: Spark of Resistance, Spark of Ions, Spark of Recharge and Spark of Feedback
- Exotic Armor: Liar’s Handshake or Assassin’s Cowl
- Weapons: Of your choosing
- Armor Mods: Powerful Friends, Radiant Light
1. One with the Nightstalker (Best for PVE)
No one will ever see you coming.
Build details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTxLF2niixg&t=1s
While Arc 3.0 has transformed Arcstrider from a weak to a very viable subclass, it is difficult to compete with the Void subclasses, which have long been a staple of Hunters and have become even more powerful with the release of their 3.0 versions.
This build is centered on invisibility to maximize survivability in endgame PVE activities. We recommend that you use The Sixth Coyote and have high mobility so that you can almost always use your Dodge ability to become invisible at will. This will allow you to revive allies and disengage from battles when necessary. This has resulted in some crucial saves in Raids, Grandmaster Nightfalls, and Dungeons.
You can use different exotics with this build. For example, if you swap The Sixth Coyote for Omnioculus, you will gain more survivability and a second smoke grenade; you can even put Orpheus Rig on to regain Super energy and improve the Super.
What One With The Nightstalker Excels In:
- Amazing Survivability
- Great for high-end PVE activities
- Gives invisibility for your team
- You can use different exotics with the build
Build Details:
- Subclass: Nightstalker
- Super: Moebius Quiver
- Abilities: Gambler’s Dodge, Vortex Granade
- Aspects: Vanishing Step and Trapper’s Ambush
- Fragments: Echo of Leeching, Echo of Dilation, and Echo of Persistence
- Exotic Armor: The Sixth Coyote or Omnioculus
- Weapons: Of your choosing
- Armor Mods: Reaping Wellmaker, Well of Tenacity, and Font of Wisdom
That concludes our list. There are more builds to discover, as well as variations on the ones we have ranked today. But these are the ones you can rely on if you want to feel powerful for the season's reminder. While there should be no major changes for next season, Bungie can make or break a build with a few sentences in one of their TWABs. So, keep an eye out for changes and updates for the upcoming season.
