After you complete the main story of Borderlands 4, you gain access to the Specialization system, which allows you to customize your character on a completely different level.
With just the addition of a few skills, the way you play your character will feel completely different. In Borderlands 4, the skill trees are extensive, and there’s always room to find the perfect combination to match your playstyle. While the guns you have may also determine your build, it’s only after unlocking the Specialization skill tree that you can have a solid notion of what your character can be.
In our Borderlands 4 guide, we explain what Specialization is and all the Specialization skill trees.
What is Specialization in Borderlands 4?
Specialization is a system that gives you access to new passive skills, but you must first complete the campaign to unlock it. Starting out, your character will be at Specialization level one. If you look at your experience in the bottom left corner of your screen, you’ll notice that you now have an additional purple experience bar for your Specialization level. Although all of your characters have access to the same Specialization nodes and skills, the system offers more options to customize your build. If you create a character at level 30 (an option available only after completing the game once), they will have access to this system as well.
You receive one Specialization point every time you rank up your Specialization level, which you do by gaining experience points. If you want, you can respec Specialization points using a respec machine, but doing so costs 5,000 Eridium, making it way more expensive than changing your regular skill points. As for the Specialization level cap, there isn’t one! You can put as many points into the Specialization trees as you’d like.
All Borderlands 4 Specialization skill trees explained
These Specialization points are spent on nodes to unlock passive skills. The Specialization skill trees have four base nodes and three prestige nodes. The base nodes are available right away. Each three has three passive skills, and you must spend a certain amount of Specialization points on a node to unlock them.
The prestige nodes are interconnected to two base nodes, which means that you need to spend 10 points on two base nodes to unlock one prestige node. Once it becomes available, you can start using Specialization points in the prestige node to unlock its passive skills following the same rule as the base nodes.
Every character can only equip up to four Specialization passive skills. They can be of the same node or from different ones, but to have all four slots, you must first spend 30 points on nodes. Understanding how each base and prestige node can contribute to your build is key when dealing with the Specialization system.
Below, you’ll find a list of all nodes, their prerequisites (if there are any), and their passive skills.
​Survivor​
By putting points into this node, you’ll increase the maximum health and shields of your character. The skills you unlock from this node are focused on survivability, helping you mitigate damage and return to battle.
Sturdy Stuff (1 Specialization point)
Bullets Are Scared Of Me (10 Specialization points)
The Best Defense (20 Specialization points)
Brute
The Brute node is all about damage, more precisely, pumping your gun damage. By investing in this node, you’ll unlock skills in one way or another that will buff the damage you deal with your guns.
Lead or Alive (1 Specialization point)
CQC (10 Specialization points)
Riddle You This (20 Specialization points)
Sharpshooter
As the name implies, the Sharpshooter base node helps you become a better shooter by increasing the reload speed and accuracy of your character. The Sharpshooter skills will raise your potential damage output and reward you for using guns like snipers and assault rifles.
Down But Not Out (1 Specialization point)
In The Zone (10 Specialization points)
One Shot, One Kill (20 Specialization points)
Runner
If you’re playing a melee-based build, this is the perfect node for you. When you put a point in the Runner node, it increases your movement speed and melee damage.
Bear Arms (1 Specialization point)
Bullet Train (10 Specialization points)
Groundbreaker (20 Specialization points)
Gadgeteer
To unlock this prestige node, you need to spend 10 points in the Survivor and Brute nodes. You’ll want to focus on this node if you plan on building your character around ordnances like grenades. Every point in this node increases your character’s ordnance cooldown rate.
Tripwire (1 Specialization point)
Full Spectrum Arsenal (10 Specialization points)
Fragmentation Payload (20 Specialization points)
Killer
This prestige node is one of the best nodes regardless of the build you’re running. You can only unlock it after spending 10 points in the Brute and Sharpshooter nodes. The Killer prestige node increases your critical hit damage and status effect damage. In other words, you kill things faster, because you deal more damage. Simple and effective.
Contamination (1 Specialization point)
Compounding Affliction (10 Specialization points)
Overkill (20 Specialization points)
Daredevil
If you want to focus on your character’s Action Skills, Daredevil is the prestige skill for you. It increases the action skill cooldown rate of your character, and all its skills make your main ability even stronger. Before you can start pumping your ultimate abilities with it, you need to unlock it by placing 10 points in the Sharpshooter and Runner nodes.
Now With Caffeine (1 Specialization point)
I Am A Gun (10 Specialization points)
A Honed Mind (20 Specialization points)
Do you need more help with Borderlands 4? For those who are new to Kairos, check out our beginner’s guide before you get started and our best classes guide to find the right one for your playstyle.