Last Epoch: Best community builds for 1.0

One of the hardest decisions in Last Epoch is which build to play. As there are 15 masteries and multiple build variations, it can be hard to choose the best ones. Thankfully, players have been brewing up top-tier builds that can totally change the game

Here are five popular builds definitely worth playing in Last Epoch Patch 1.0.

1) Sentinel: Healing Hands Paladin Build

The Healing Hands Paladin build proves healing is underrated. You can heal yourself and your allies, but this build increases your survivability and tankiness. So, if your primary concern is dying, this build lowers your chances. Most of the time, anyway.

Your clear rate is a little slower than most high-damage builds, but you can still easily clear mobs with your AoE abilities despite their small size. And you have decent single-target damage as well. What I love about this build is if you’re not great at mechanics or tend to walk right into danger, your healing and tankiness can mitigate these mistakes, making it great for beginners.

If you’re after more of an endgame Sentinel build, the Nova Hammer Paladin build is fun, beginner-friendly, and does incredible AoE damage. Because you’re wielding multiple neverending hammers, you feel like an in-game Thor. The downside is this build doesn’t deal significant single-target damage, so beating bosses can be painful.

2) Acolyte: Bleed Warlock Build

The Bleed Warlock build causes pure chaos and mayhem across the map. It is an endgame build, meaning you’ll need to be at least level 70 to play it, but other than that and the need for uniques and mana management skills, this build is way too fun to play.

You will open up chasms across the map that deal AoE damage and your single-target damage is pretty great. If you want to see your screen covered in splashes of red and bright lights, this build provides the perfect visuals. This is mechanically intense, but it’s fantastic if you can balance using your mana and get used to rotations.

3) Primalist: Explosive Thorn Shaman Build

Even before Last Epoch launched on Feb. 21, the Explosive Thorn Shaman build was among the best and most popular because it’s beginner-friendly, easy to play, and deals heavy damage. Now that Patch 1.0 is out, I can happily say this is still one of the best Shaman and most popular Primalist builds.

Besides the Thorn Shaman’s significant AoE damage and easy-to-understand playstyles, one of the many reasons it’s so popular is you don’t need a separate leveling build. You can work on this build as soon as you hit level four and unlock your totems, which means no respeccing or relearning how to play your character for the end game. Basically, as you level and grow, so does your Thorn Shaman. The downside is it can be repetitive because you only use one button and can’t tank as much damage as a Sentinel. 

4) Rogue: Explosive Ballista Falconer Build

While the Falconer mastery wasn’t available during Last Epoch’s early access period, it’s certainly making up for it with this Explosive Ballista Falconer build. Like all Rogue builds, this Falconer one is fast-paced and focuses on using your Ballista and Falconer skills to deal damage. Best of all, there’s a node you can use where your damage scales based on dexterity, so it’s worth taking because you become incredibly mobile and deal even more damage.

Unfortunately, this build is squishy, so you won’t be able to tank damage or make many mistakes, like stepping in AoE damage pools, and you’ll have to manage your mana. But once you get the hang of the gameplay, you almost forget her drawbacks.

5) Mage: Hydrahedron Runemaster Build

If you enjoyed the Hydra Sorcerer build in Diablo 4, you’ll enjoy playing this Hydrahedron Runemaster build in Last Epoch. Not only do you get Hydra’s and high damage abilities, but you’re also fast, have extraordinary defensive abilities, and quite literally set the world on fire.

But the drawbacks with this build mean you must be mindful of your positioning, especially with your hydras and defenses, and manage your runes. In addition, this build focuses more on skill rotations than button smashing or one-button gameplay, so it can be challenging to master. However, the benefits of this build make up for its complexities.

Truthfully, there are so many builds that are incredible and fun to play, but these are just some of the higher-ranked, popular builds from across all five classes in Last Epoch.