Quick Answers

What is the main method of attack for the character Deathtrap in Borderlands 2?

In Borderlands 2, Deathtrap, Gaige's Mechromancer class bodyguard, attacks primarily with a single melee strike using its digistructed claws. For enemies out of melee reach, it fires an accurate electric bolt. Gaige can enhance Deathtrap's abilities through her skills, adding multiple melee swipes and an area-of-effect explosive attack.

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What special abilities does Gaige's skill 'Robot Rampage' add to Deathtrap?

The 'Robot Rampage' skill, part of Gaige's Ordered Chaos skill tree, augments Deathtrap's capabilities. It enables Deathtrap to execute an advanced melee attack using its digistruct claws. During this attack, Deathtrap rapidly spins, brandishing both claws, and unleashes a series of swift strikes.

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How does Deathtrap deal with flying or out-of-reach enemies in Borderlands 2?

In Borderlands 2, Deathtrap combats flying or unreachable enemies by launching a precise electric bolt. This strategy is employed against foes immune to Phaselock, such as Constructors, raid bosses, and Hyperion Turrets. Deathtrap can also distract adversaries, enabling the player to evade combat while it eliminates enemies. Some of Gaige's skills can augment Deathtrap's capabilities.

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What effect does the 'Explosive Clap' skill have on Deathtrap's attacks?

'Explosive Clap' is an upgrade in Gaige's Best Friends Forever skill tree. Deathtrap, upon using this skill, generates an explosion damaging all nearby enemies. The inflicted damage reduces with increasing distance from the explosion's center. The skill's cooldown period is 25 seconds.

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What is the purpose of the 'Make it Sparkle' skill in relation to Deathtrap's abilities?

'Make it Sparkle' is an upgrade in Gaige's Little Big Trouble skill tree. When Gaige uses an elemental weapon to shoot Deathtrap, it charges him with that element, enhancing his melee attacks with additional elemental damage. This skill, especially when paired with Robot Rampage, can significantly boost Deathtrap's damage output. It also alters Deathtrap's appearance, adding glowing blue lights and tall metal fins to his head.

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Abilities

Deathtrap's main method of attack is a single melee strike with its digistructed claws every 1.5 seconds. Against flying or otherwise out-of-reach enemies, Deathtrap will fire a highly accurate electric bolt.

Some of Gaige's skills increase Deathtrap's abilities. Robot Rampage adds a flurry of melee swipes, Explosive Clap adds an explosive attack with an area of effect, Make it Sparkle adds elemental damage to Deathtrap's melee strikes, The Stare adds a ranged incendiary attack, and Buck Up can restore the shields of both Gaige and her allies. Sharing is Caring can graft Deathtrap a copy of Gaige's currently equipped shield, some of which will retain their benefits.

Deathtrap stays on the battlefield for 60 seconds and has a 60-second base cooldown that begins as soon as Deathtrap is removed from action.

Appearance

Deathtrap is a hulking, floating, robotic torso with one large eye, no legs, and massive arms ending in digistructed claws. Parts of its body have small motifs, including a skull, bones, a padlocked heart, and tally marks. Deathtrap's appearance will vary depending on Gaige's single-point skills, with an underlying theme from each skill tree. Yellowish bulk and armor are typical in Best Friends Forever; Little Big Trouble offers various metal spikes and protrusions; and blood-red blades, claws and bones pervade Ordered Chaos.

• Buck Up adds a piece of slightly rusted armor to the chest and a larger one to the right shoulder.
• Upshot Robot, unlike all other appearance-altering skills, does not add any parts. Instead it increases Deathtrap's size, notably its arms, shoulders, and some parts added by other skills.
• Explosive Clap adds pieces of armor to the left upper arm and right forearm.
• Sharing is Caring adds glowing green lights all over, and a sawblade as a cockscomb and a yellow biker-like mask. The lights are cyan if a point is also present in Make It Sparkle; while Sharing is Caring and With Claws make the lights yellow.

• The Stare adds to the back a pair of large three-finned projections or wings.
• Shock and "AAAGGGGHHH!" adds small spikes to the metal plates on the left forearm and right elbow.
• One Two Boom adds spikes of various sizes to the right shoulder.
• Make it Sparkle adds glowing blue lights all over, and two fin-like pieces of metal to the sides of the head, almost like ears. The lights are purple if a point is also present in With Claws.

• Anarchy adds two large curved blades that protrude from either side of the neck. Because the skill point is needed to progress into the tree, these blades accompany all further changes in Ordered Chaos.
• Robot Rampage adds two curved blades to the lower chest, smaller in size than those added by Anarchy.
• Discord adds three claws to the right hand.
• Rational Anarchist adds to the chest a chained accessory that appears to be part of a spinal column with a few short ribs.
• With Claws adds glowing red lights all over, and a red-eyed demonic skull with two spikes over the original head.

Through careful point expenditure, Deathtrap may have all visual additions from gamechangers when Gaige is level 53, and by level 63 reach one capstone skill. At level 72, the character is one point shy of having 12 out of 13 gamechanger additions plus two capstone skills. Likewise, she may have two capstone skills, but not the third tree's gamechanger. At level 80 you can get all the apperence changing skill exept one of the capstone, exactly 3 skill points off

Notes

• During actual gameplay, Deathtrap is capable of flying not only up to areas out of reach by Gaige, but also through obstacles to get to enemies. It will go through buildings, walls, vehicles, and even through the floor.
• Deathtrap can be healed directly by gunfire from a Siren if they have invested in Restoration.
• Deathtrap's electric bolt inflicts shock damage and is similar to the arc from an exploding electric barrel. Therefore, kills made with this attack count towards the "Not Full of Monkeys" challenge and the Hyperion Contract 873 shock objective.
• There are several scenarios where Deathrap can interfere with mission elements:
  • In missions such as You Are Cordially Invited: RSVP, Deathtrap can kill mission-related AI classed as an enemy, failing the mission or similarly it can take an unwanted choice of which character to kill such as in My Husband the Skag.
  • With missions like Toil and Trouble, it is possible for Deathtrap to destroy mission-related objects like Boombringer, possibly interfering with bonus objectives, in this case to turn away from the explosion.
  • In The Talon of God, if Deathtrap was active when the moonshot button is activated, it will kill Handsome Jack immediately. This interrupts Jack's final speech and prevents Lilith or a character from killing Jack.
• Deathtrap exhibits bugged behaviour in Statuesque, where it will continuously strike at statues, even after they break.
• If Deathtrap destroys a varkid pod with its electric bolt (it won't use its normal claw slash against them), the evolved varkid spawns immediately, and grants no EXP. Other attacks, like Explosive Clap, destroy the pod normally.
• Deathtrap exhibits a glitch when fighting Wilhelm and other bosses, instead of fighting with its claws, it will repeatedly shoot Wilhelm with its ranged lightning. If Wilhelm gets within melee range of Deathtrap, Deathtrap will stop attacking while Wilhelm uses his melee. This is somewhat beneficial, as Deathtrap can serve as a distraction.
• Deathtrap does not have a physical hitbox to a character unless Sharing is Caring has been invested into.
• When attacking enemies that are immune to Phaselock (including but not limited to Constructors, raid bosses, and Hyperion Turrets), Deathtrap will only use its electrical bolt and will never attempt to use any melee strikes or secondary abilities, even if it can actually reach them.

Trivia

• Deathtrap was built by Gaige as a science fair project. It was originally designated the "Mechanized Anti-Bully Deterrent," or "Project DT," but was subsequently changed to "Deathtrap" when Gaige learned that her project design was stolen by a classmate, Marcie Holloway.
• Gaige uses her cybernetic arm to digistruct Deathtrap into existence.
• While Deathtrap is described as being digistructed just like its claws, the claws seem to be purely energy based while the machine is metallic.
• Gaige's official profile states that fighting airborne enemies is one of Deathtrap's weak points, while it is actually one of its main strengths, since its eye bolt will never miss and does moderate damage.
• Deathtrap is capable of appearing in front of the player in menu screens along with being present in rendered cutscenes. This extends to players which are playing with a Gaige.

Gallery

Deathtrap concept art

Deathtrap design art

Deathtrap and Gaige render

The Stare

Explosive Clap