The fantasy-themed loot-centric shooter, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands thrives on the various equipment players acquire throughout their playthrough. Gearbox Software has added an extra level of advancement and customization with the addition of Hero Stats. Hero Stats pay homage to attribute points from tabletop RPGs, with classic names like Strength and Wisdom. However, the effects of these Hero Stats tie directly into the combat system of the Borderlands franchise and operate similar to Badass Ranks from Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, providing statistical bonuses to the player. Unlike prior statistical boost mechanics, the Hero Stats of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands do not contain any random elements, giving players complete control over this progression system.
As players explore Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, a Borderlands game with a D&D paintjob, they will acquire more Hero Points to allocate to these Hero Skills. Players shouldn't worry about putting these Hero Points into the wrong Hero Stats, as these allocation can be easily reassigned in-game. Altogether, Hero Stats are just another method available to players to specialize their character's build.
During character creation, players will start with 10 Hero Points to spend on their Fatemaker's Hero Stats. In addition to these original 10, players will also gain one hero stat every time they level up. This happens for every level the player progresses, all the way to max level. This nets the player 49 total Hero Points they will be able to allocate into their Hero Stats, providing players with the ability to max two of the six attributes, with 9 Hero Points left to distribute.
Hero Stats in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
In Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Hero Points can be used to raise any Hero Stat. Hero Stats start at 10 and can be raised all the way up to a total of 30 points. Each Hero Stat augments a different aspect of the character, with each allocated point contributing a linear increase in the associated statistic. Below is a list of all Hero Stats in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and how each Hero Point allocated affects the Fatemaker:
- Strength - +1.25% Critical Hit Damage per Hero Point
- Dexterity - +2% Critical Hit Rate per Hero Point
- Intelligence - +1% Spell Cooldown Rate per Hero Point
- Wisdom - +2% Status Effect Damage
- Constitution - +2.5% Maximum Health and Maximum Ward
- Attunement - +1% Action Skill Cooldown Rate
The Best Background's in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
After players choose their starter class in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, they will be prompted to choose a Character Background for their Fatemaker. Unlike other aspects of the Hero Stats system, this is a permanent choice players make that will have a major impact on their character. Each background will raise and lower the starting value of various Hero Stats associated with that background. This also adjusts the maximum value of that stat. This means that Village Idiot not only raises the character's starting Strength to 18, but also increases the maximum for Strength to a gigantic 38. Below is a list of all five Character Backgrounds and the stat adjustments associated with them:
- Village Idiot: +8 Strength (+10% Crit Damage) and -3 Intelligence (-3% Spell Cooldown)
- Raised By Elves: +2 Dexterity (+4% Crit Rate) and -4 Constitution (-10% Max HP/Ward)
- Failed Monk: +4 Wisdom (+8% Status Damage), +2 Intelligence (+2% Spell Cooldown), -4 Strength (-5% Crit Damage), and -2 Dexterity (-4% Crit Rate)
- Recovering Inventory Hoarder: +5 Attunement (+5% Skill Cooldown), +2 Intelligence (+2% Spell Cooldown), -2 Dexterity (-4% Crit Chance), and -2 Constitution (-5% Max HP/Ward)
- Rogue Alchemist: +8 Wisdom (+16% Status Damage), -5 Constitution (-12.5% Max HP/Ward), and -2 Dexterity (-4% Crit Chance)
Of all of the character backgrounds in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, the best options are Village Idiot and Rogue Alchemist, with Raised By Elves and Failed Monk gaining honorable mentions. Village Idiot is the strongest of the two options, giving a net +5 Hero Stats and providing a hefty +10% Crit Damage. The reduction to intelligence is minimal and can be brushed aside by even some spellcaster builds. An Intelligence-invested Village Idiot is only 5% Spell Cooldown behind an Intelligence-invested Failed Monk or Recovering Inventory Hoarder. With the cooldowns of many spells in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, a -3 in Intelligence is a very small penalty to pay for most builds. Village Idiot will likely be favored by most players, especially for Stabbomancers and Brr-zerkers.
Rogue Alchemist is the go-to for any build focused more on Status Effect Damage than Critical Damage. This Background comes at a severe Consitution Penalty but can be overcome with tactics and sheer damage output. At 38 Wisdom, Rogue Alchemists will be dealing an additional 56% Status Damage. This is an insane amount of damage output for builds focused on Status Conditions. Rogue Alchemists have a leg up on Failed Monks, as the +2% Spell Cooldown is likely not worth the -8% Status Damage.
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is available now on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, and PC via the Epic Games Store.
