Borderlands 4 Reveals Loveless’ Critical Hit and Status Effect Skill System Ahead of September 10
The new Vault Hunter will use RAM, three skill trees, and a digital Wyrm when Version 1.10 arrives on September 10.
Borderlands 4 is turning Loveless into a Vault Hunter built around resource management, precision damage, and timing. Her RAM trait rewards Critical Hits and Status Effects, then lets players cash out that progress with an empowered melee strike or keep it for stronger gun damage. The paid character DLC will arrive on September 10 with Version 1.10.
Gearbox’s latest Steam announcement details Loveless’ backstory, combat style, and three skill trees. Hosts Andrew Reiner and April Johnson spoke with Game Designer Ryan Bailey about the Action Skills and Trait systems behind the new Vault Hunter.
Loveless was once an Anshin hacker who became an assassin after merging her mind with a digital virus of her own creation. That virus can digistruct into a physical Wyrm, giving her a second lethal presence that fights alongside her. The pairing is central to Loveless’ design, with several abilities built around directing Wyrm and keeping its bonuses active.
A separate gameplay overview introduces the aggressive rhythm behind her kit. Loveless uses Corrosive and Radiation damage, spreads status effects across groups, and switches between gunfire, melee attacks, stealth, and Wyrm commands.
RAM turns precision into a choice
RAM fills whenever Loveless scores Critical Hits or inflicts Status Effects. Once the bar is full, her next melee attack becomes an empowered strike with her Techno-Kagi claws, a weapon design inspired by the tekko-kagi of feudal Japan.
The empowered attack consumes the entire bar as an explosive finisher, but spending RAM immediately is not always the best option. Loveless’ gun damage also rises with the bar’s fullness, allowing players to hold onto the resource for a stronger ranged attack. RAM steadily depletes when she stops landing Critical Hits or applying Status Effects, so the system rewards a steady offensive pace.
Her Action Skills add another layer of timing. Functions activate by tapping the Action Skill button a second time and usually provide quick bursts of power with short cooldowns. Executables activate when the button is held, trading longer cooldowns for larger effects. Some skills have one of these options, while others have both.
Loveless’ 3 Action Skills
Plague Star belongs to the Virology skill tree. Loveless creates a massive Shuriken and throws it through enemies, dealing Corrosive Action Skill Damage and applying Contagion. The Corrosive Status Effect Damage continues over time, and when an infected enemy dies, the virus searches for new hosts and passes along part of the original Contagion stacks. Its Executable detonates every active Contagion, consuming the stacks to deal Corrosive Action Skill Damage across an area.
Visual Paradox Nexus is part of Hack / Slash. Activating it raises Loveless’ Movement Speed and Critical Hit Damage for a duration. Killing an enemy during the effect briefly places her in Stealth and creates a Clone where that enemy died, with only one Clone allowed at a time. Its Function sends a Kusarigama Slash through the area for Radiation Melee Damage. If Loveless is already in Stealth, the strike scores a Critical Hit and ends the stealth effect.
Malignant Construct comes from the Manifestation tree and summons the digital Wyrm. Loveless gains Symbiosis Stacks while Wyrm is active, although those stacks deplete over time. Wyrm can restore Symbiosis through kills, while some passive skills add more ways to keep the effect running. The Function teleports Wyrm toward an enemy and deals Radiation Damage around the impact point. Holding the Action Skill button triggers a Breath Attack that deals Radiation Melee Damage.
Loveless’ character short, Uncontainable, follows her shared consciousness with Wyrm during a violent trip into the digiverse in search of Vault data.
Three skill trees support different builds
Virology is the clearest route for Corrosive, Radiation, and Status Effect builds. Contagion can spread through a group as infected targets fall, while Augments such as d://File make Plague Star ricochet and leave Radiation Hazards behind. The replicat.exe Capstone creates three orbiting Shurikens that deliver close-range Corrosive damage.
Hack / Slash combines precision gunplay with melee attacks. The tree supports Sniper Rifle builds that recall the feel of Borderlands 2‘s Zer0, but it also offers close-quarters options. Skills tied to Visual Paradox Nexus can turn its Clone into another source of damage, while the Footwork passive and related abilities support a fast melee-focused setup.
Manifestation is built around active Wyrm control rather than leaving the companion to fight on its own. Players can alternate between Functions and Executables to keep Wyrm moving, attacking, and generating Symbiosis Stacks. Those stacks then feed into passive bonuses that improve Loveless’ side of the partnership.
The complete ability list is available on the official Loveless Vault Hunter page, including the passive skills and Capstones that expand each path.
Version 1.10 arrives September 10
Loveless the Hacker will launch on September 10 alongside Story Pack 2: FL4K and the Last Resort and Bounty Pack 5: Amara and the Vile Shadows. Each part of the release will be available for individual purchase, and the update will raise the maximum level by 10 for every Borderlands 4 player. Version 1.10 will also include balance adjustments for the other Vault Hunters.
The September 10 lineup includes Loveless for $9.99 and Story Pack 2 for $19.99. Bounty Pack 5 is divided into two $5.99 purchases, with Amara and the Vile Shadows covering the repeatable mission and related gear, while Vault Card 5 provides cosmetics and gameplay rewards.
Story Pack 2 is included in the Borderlands 4 Super Deluxe Edition and Vault Hunter Pack. The Bounty Pack Bundle, which includes Bounty Packs 2 through 5, comes with the Deluxe and Super Deluxe Editions. The base game is required for the individual DLC purchases.
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Borderlands 4
Developed by Gearbox Software
See if you have what it takes to go down in history as a legendary Vault Hunter as you search for secret alien treasure, blasting everything in sight.
- Genre Shooter, Role-playing (RPG), Adventure
- Platforms Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 5
- Perspective First person
- Modes Single player, Multiplayer, Co-operative
- Release September 11, 2025
- Publisher 2K
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Age Rating
