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Best Marathon Vandal Build — Season 2 Loadout

A complete Marathon Vandal loadout — primary and secondary weapons, weapon mods, shell cores, implants, and a Cradle stat-track plan — engineered from the Vandal’s playstyle and cross-referenced against real in-game stat values. Browse the full Vandal shell data and every weapon behind these picks.

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GOAL
RANK TARGET
EXPERIENCE
WEAPON PREFERENCE
TEAM
BUILD REPORT
Vertical Aggressor
This build weaponizes the Vandal's Microjets and Amplify to dictate engagement angles, dropping onto targets from above and contesting vertical space that most Runners can't reach. The loadout is deliberately forgiving — extra Microjet charges, passive reload on slide, and aggressive implant stats mean you can commit hard to an entry and still recover from a mistake.
A
LOADOUT GRADE
RANKED VIABLE
Weapons
Impact HAR
PRIMARY
The Impact HAR's 24 damage per shot at 400 RPM in the Mid range bracket delivers strong burst efficiency during the brief windows Vandal creates with Amplify's handling boost. For an aggressive entry playstyle that closes distance fast via Microjets, a hard-hitting mid-range AR that rewards landing shots over sustained spray matches the Vandal's burst-combat rhythm. The 18-round magazine is workable, especially with the Stopping Mag prestige mod to address that constraint.
BRRT SMG
SECONDARY
At 1000 RPM with a 45-round magazine in the CQB bracket, the BRRT SMG is the finisher after the Impact HAR opens a fight. When Microjets land you inside CQB range, this weapon erases whatever health pool remains. The 11 damage per bullet is compensated by the sheer volume of fire at close quarters — it turns proximity into a hard advantage.
Weapon Mods
CHIP SLOT
Slip Protocol (Superior)
Vandal is constantly moving — Microjets, slides, repositions. Slip Protocol Superior's massive stability and accuracy increase while moving directly capitalises on this, tightening Impact HAR shots during the aggressive airborne or sliding entries that define this playstyle. Exact bonus values are unconfirmed, but the effect is directionally perfect for a shell that never stands still.
MAGAZINE SLOT
Stopping Mag (Prestige)
A custom prestige mod for the Impact HAR, the Stopping Mag increases magazine size and reload speed — directly addressing the Impact HAR's 18-round magazine constraint. Exact figures are unconfirmed, but plugging the reload and capacity gap means longer sustained pressure during aggressive entries without being caught in a critical reload animation mid-fight.
BARREL SLOT
Steady Barrel (Superior)
Greatly increases stability, ready speed, and accuracy while moving — three stats that directly serve an airborne aggressive playstyle. The ready speed improvement tightens weapon swap timing after Microjets land, and the moving accuracy bonus stacks with Slip Protocol Chip for a layered accuracy-while-mobile system. Exact values unconfirmed but the combined effect is highly directional.
OPTIC SLOT
Oracle Lens (Superior)
Greatly increases ADS speed, accuracy while moving, and ADS accuracy — all three axes matter for a Vandal who is ADS-ing mid-air or immediately after landing. Amplify already boosts ADS/handling speeds; Oracle Lens stacks directly onto that, compressing the window between landing from Microjets and being on-target. Exact values unconfirmed.
GRIP SLOT
Snapshot Grip (Enhanced)
Slightly increases accuracy while moving and ADS speed — a lower-rarity slot filler that nonetheless reinforces the core mobility-accuracy thesis of this build. Every fractional ADS speed improvement compounds with Amplify's handling boost and Oracle Lens, making the transition from airborne repositioning to on-target faster. Exact values unconfirmed.
Shell Cores
Microjet Efficiency Package
PASSIVE
An additional Microjet charge that generates less heat is the single highest-value core for this playstyle. Vertical movement is this build's primary engagement tool — a second Microjet charge means two jumps for repositioning, harder-to-track airborne aggression, and more exit routes when a fight goes sideways. The reduced heat on the extra charge directly addresses the Vandal's main self-imposed survival constraint.
Adrenal Core
PRIME
While Amplified, movement abilities generate even less heat, and Cardio Kick extends Amplify's duration. This synergises with the Dexterity Cradle track's Full Throttle perk (Cardio Kick at run start) — every slide or sprint that triggers Cardio Kick becomes a micro-extension of Amplify. This turns the 30-second Amplify window into a sustained combat state rather than a cooldown-gated burst.
Mechanized Holsters
PASSIVE
Power sliding reloads ballistic weapons from reserves and recharges a portion of volt weapons' battery. Vandal slides constantly — between cover, after landing from Microjets, transitioning positions. This turns movement into passive reload management, eliminating the vulnerability window of a manual reload after a hard entry. The Impact HAR's 18-round magazine makes this especially impactful.
Implants
HEAD
Pinata (Enhanced)
Agility: +10, Fall Resistance: +10, Heat Capacity: +5, Loot Speed: +10
Reported stat values are unconfirmed but sourced — Agility and Heat Capacity are both direct Vandal combat stats. Agility amplifies movement speed that Amplify and Microjets already push, while Heat Capacity gives more headroom for chaining Microjet jumps before overheating. Fall Resistance pairs with the vertical aggression playstyle — landing hard from height should never be a liability.
LEGS
Graceful Landings V4 (Superior)
Melee Damage: 20, Agility: 20, Fall Resistance: 50%
Agility 20 and Fall Resistance 50% are the two stats that most directly serve aggressive vertical entry. Agility compounds with Amplify and Pinata for a stacked movement profile. Fall Resistance 50% means dropping from maximum Microjet height is never punishing. The Frenzy Matrix passive — defeating a hostile increases tactical recharge and sprint speed — creates a positive feedback loop: kill something on entry, get faster, cycle Disrupt Cannon back sooner.
TORSO
Survival Kit V2 (Enhanced)
Firewall: 10, Hardware: 10, Self-Repair Speed: 15, Revive Speed: 10
These are confirmed stat values for a confirmed implant. For a solo aggressive runner who is constantly taking angles and committing to entries, a layered survival profile matters more than a single-axis bonus. Firewall 10 and Hardware 10 both contribute to damage absorption, while Self-Repair Speed 15% ensures the passive recovery between fights is meaningfully faster — the 'forgiving margin for error' the playstyle explicitly calls for.

Vandal Cradle Build — Season 2 Stat Plan

Free respec · resets each season
Primary investment in Dexterity for movement flow and the Cardio Kick synergy with Adrenal Core, with secondary investment in Endurance to push Heat Capacity and enable sustained chained Microjet usage without overheating.
DEXTERITY TRACK
14 ENERGY
PERK · Full Throttle
Full Throttle grants Cardio Kick effects at the start of every run, which feeds directly into Adrenal Core's 'Cardio Kick extends Amplify duration' mechanic from the very first engagement. The path through Loot Siphon at 5 Energy (Tactical energy from containers — efficient for solo play) and Slider at 11 Energy (slide generates less heat — synergises with Mechanized Holsters core) means every step of this track is useful, not just the capstone.
ENDURANCE TRACK
9 ENERGY
PERK · Heat Dissipation
Vandal's primary self-limiting mechanic is Heat. Microjet Efficiency Package reduces heat per jump, Adrenal Core reduces movement heat during Amplify, and Heat Dissipation at 9 Energy means heat recovers more quickly between bursts. This allows more frequent Microjet chains mid-fight without needing to fully cool down, which is the core of the aggressive vertical entry gameplan. Quick Vent at 3 Energy is the sensible on-ramp — heat recovery starts sooner after any heat-generating action.
STRENGTHS
+Stacked Agility from Graceful Landings V4 (Agility 20) and Pinata Enhanced (sourced at Agility 10) compounded by Amplify creates exceptional vertical mobility that is hard to track or punish
+Mechanized Holsters core converts every power slide into a passive Impact HAR reload, eliminating the critical reload vulnerability window after aggressive entries
+Adrenal Core plus Full Throttle Cradle perk means Amplify can be extended through active play rather than being a fixed 30-second window — experienced players who manage Cardio Kick triggers can sustain the overcharged state significantly longer
WEAKNESSES
The Impact HAR's 18-round magazine (partially mitigated by Stopping Mag and Mechanized Holsters) still creates reload pressure against multiple targets — solo play means no teammate to cover the window
Heat management remains the ceiling on Microjet aggression — even with Microjet Efficiency Package, Endurance Cradle, and Adrenal Core stacked, reckless chaining without Amplify active will force an overheat at the worst moment
RANKED NOTE
This is a casual-optimised build with no ranked constraints applied — it is viable in Solo A ranked where Vandal sits, but the Microjet Efficiency Package and Mechanized Holsters cores are comfort-focused rather than min-maxed for ranked scoring pressure.
⬢ Build Analysis
This build is built around a single thesis: Vandal's ceiling is its vertical access, and this loadout removes every friction point that limits how often and how aggressively you can use it. Microjet Efficiency Package gives a second jump with reduced heat. Adrenal Core cuts movement heat during Amplify. Endurance Cradle's Heat Dissipation accelerates recovery between chains. That's three layers of heat mitigation working simultaneously so your Microjets are available for entry, escape, and repositioning without hard cooldown gates. The Impact HAR at 24 damage and 400 RPM hits hard enough that Amplify's ADS handling boost makes it genuinely snap-on-target during airborne engagements — Oracle Lens and Steady Barrel stack on top of that for a triple accuracy-while-moving system. Mechanized Holsters is the hidden backbone: every slide reloads the Impact HAR from reserves, which means your post-entry repositioning slide is also your reload animation. Graceful Landings V4's Frenzy Matrix passive then accelerates Disrupt Cannon recharge on a kill, closing the loop. Full Throttle Cradle means you enter every run already in Cardio Kick, feeding Adrenal Core before you even fire a shot. This is not a one-trick build — it's a system.
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