What is the Best Hero Class in Fortnite STW?

There are currently four main classes of Heroes in Fortnite STW. This guide will introduce you to each hero class in Fortnite to help you choose the best option.

Soldier

They're primarily based around ranged combat and are the best class to use if you want to use mainly guns. Being the easiest and first class that players are introduced to, soldiers are a stable class to use in the end game portion of the game. 

Pros: They boast arguably the strongest DPS in the game, staying well out of danger to do so. 

Cons: They don’t have the melee capabilities or survivability of a ninja, mobility of an outlander, or the controlling style of a constructor. 

Weapons

Assault weapons

The stereotypical main weapon of any soldier. Arguably the best versatile weapon in the game, soldiers use assault weapons the best. Fast DPS is good for killing hordes of husks and is decent in taking bosses due to their potential in single target damage. They generally have good aim, with minimal recoil so they are compulsory for any good soldier, especially since they benefit the soldier class perks. The downside of most assault weapons are their ammo consumption, so be mindful of your supplies in missions.

The Siegebreaker (one of the most versatile and balanced weapons in the game)

The Grave Digger (one of the highest damage assault rifles with decent accuracy)

The Nocturno (similar to the Siegebreaker, however you need to buy the founder's edition).

Shotguns

Shotguns are the best clearing guns in the game outside of explosives. Their damage is one of the highest in terms of burst, and a good shotgun can oneshot any average husk. They generally want to be up close to about medium range to utilise its damage to the fullest potential. They also have decent impact damage most of the time, so you can stagger or stun some enemies depending on your shotgun.

Their fire rate can be tedious at times, but if you can hit your shots (which isn’t difficult) shotguns are one of the best types of guns in the game. Remember that not every soldier can use shotguns, so be sure to pick heroes that have the perks that benefit shotguns.

The Helium Shotgun (arguably the best shotgun in the game for damage and spread)

The Bear (a versatile and balanced shotgun).

Pistols

Pistols are one of the weakest guns in the game due to the fact that they are generally outclassed by every single other weapon. The only good thing about them is the fact that they are so fun to use (and are my favorite weapons). Some mythic heroes can use pistols effectively, so keep an eye out for heroes in the store that have pistol perks. I personally use Calamity, she's a lot of fun but isn't really the best soldier, so ultimately it's up to your preferences.

The Bald Eagle (one of the hardest hitting weapons in the game period, but fire rate and reload is terrible)

The Last Word (fast fire rate and great for clearing large amounts of husks)

The Tiny Instrument of Death (a meme and arguably one of the best weapons in the game).

Sniper rifles

Sniper's are the most straight forward weapons in the game. You want a long range, hard hitting gun, that can pretty much oneshot. Most snipers do this, but there are a few that have high fire rates. Do not invest in these snipers, because despite this, there are no benefits in using them. If you want a rapid-fire weapon, use an assault rifle, they are much better. Same advice as before: look at the perks of your particular soldier, take a look especially at Raiders as they have been recently reworked into being a sniper soldier subclass.

The Ol' Betsy (one of the hardest hitting weapons in the game)

The Super Shredder (a shotgun spread sniper, which is extremely versatile)

The Neon Sniper Rifle (a gimmicky weak sniper, however, it has an interesting infrared scope that can also shoot through walls).

Explosive weapons

Explosive weapons are quite balanced and are very convenient in taking down massive hordes of enemies and taking down smashers. Be wary that instead of ammo they instead use durability and thus have very limited shots despite having a smaller crafting cost. But they are essential for late game missions due to their capabilities. It's a bit difficult to suggest good explosive weapons due to the fact that they are all pretty unique and balanced.

The Vacuum Tube Launcher (extremely good impact, can stun pretty much any mod except bosses)

The Noble Launcher (arguably the best clearing launcher in the game).

Abilities

Debilitating Shots – Hitting a target temporarily increases the amount of damage he or she takes. Can stack up to three times.

Make It Rain – Landing a headshot increases the commando’s rate of fire for a short time.

Grenades – Allows the player to craft and use grenades.

Proximity Mines – Allows the player to craft and deploy proximity mines.

Final Basic Tips, Strategies, and Things To Look Out For

Always craft weapons and ammo in missions so you can increase your score during the mission.

When levelling schematics, especially with soldiers due to their versatility with their weapons, try and find one or two weapons you love to use and primarily focus on keeping them maxed out (make sure you do not evolve the weapon too soon or you won't be able to craft it). I personally recommend an assault weapon and a sniper, but it's ultimately up to you.

Make a trap tunnel or a shooting point in your base or builds. This will help keep you safe, and provide good positions to shoot from. Experiment with your builds to ensure where you like to shoot from.

If you really want to use melee weapons, try and focus more on crowd control weapons like hammers as this provides survivability.

Once you're in the middle to the later stages of the game (about 50 onwards), try and have elemental weapons for each type of enemy (i.e fire against nature, nature against water, and water against fire), while also having your main weapon as energy type damage.

Constructor

This class is the strongest but it is also one of the more complicated. Everything you do revolves around traps and enemy manipulation. It'll take some time to learn the different terrain, where to build your tunnels, and how to manage them if enemies break through. 

Pros: They have a higher health pool, alongside the soldier class, making them hard to kill as you fix and place traps.

Cons: A constructor's weakness is its combat capabilities. They are slow and most of their weapon perks aren't as good as the other classes. In a mission that doesn't require defense building, an example being exterminations, you won't be as effective.

Weapons

Rocket Launchers

Constructors benefit most from explosive weapons. They use durability instead of ammo so making them sunbeam is a complete waste in the long run. Their damage radius and clear speed compliment the playstyle that is necessary for the constructor. You can build them easily but make sure you always farm for the materials in every mission as they break easily.

The Quad launcher boasts a hard hit and good fire rate

The Noble launcher can be charged up to do high damage.

A Vacuum tube launcher provides decent crowd control with its high impact damage, which can hold a Smasher in place.

Hardware melee weapons

Hardware weapons are the slowest melee weapons in Save the World. They do have high impact damage which is necessary is stunning, knocking down, or interrupting husks in missions. This does not affect mini-bosses or bosses. They’re very good for large hordes as they usually have high radius damage and crowd control is very beneficial in defense missions. 

The Lead Sled, a fast hammer with heavy attacks

Mr. Red has high DPS and is brutal with a full critical rating.

The Vindertech Slammer is another fast hammer and its heavy attack has an amazing clear rate. 

Club melee weapons

I don't recommend Club weapons until Save the World expands its roster more.

Traps

These are your tools of the trade. Every trap has used and you need to focus a lot on leveling them if you want to main a constructor. They’re versatile and if you place them well, you won’t have to do anything for the whole mission.

Since they are all useful, I will only ask that you consider launcher traps. Knocking back husks means you have more control over their movement. An example is a trick called a stall room, you create a single room full of traps in every direction. Wall launchers throw enemies in, making them spend more time walking out again. Little uses like these make the constructor a powerful class.

Abilities

B.A.S.E – Deploys a large holographic cube in the environment; anything built inside it costs fewer resources for the constructor.

Pre-Planning – Makes structures built by the constructor stronger.

Containment Unit – Deals persistent damage to enemies within the B.A.S.E. area.

Plasma Pulse – Area-of-effect grenades that deal damage for a short period of time.

Basic Tips and Strategies

Make sure you have resources for your explosive weapons, they clear faster than most ranged weapons and can turn a mission around.

I recommend leveling one rocket launcher at a time. Even if they're different, their damage remains high as a collective, and you want to focus more on your schematic experience on traps.

Watch David Dean's or Aidan Harris' trap tunnel videos. They'll help get you started on the art of trap tunneling. They teach basics, their thoughts on trap placements, and they are constantly updating their strategies when it comes to clearing hordes.

Learning what each enemy does and what can stop them comes in handy. An explosive husk will throw their gasoline at a wall or player so having a vast layer of floor or ceiling traps can kill them early. A smasher mows down walls but cannot charge down a slope. So building a slope directs them away from the battle. Simple strategies like these make a big difference. 

MEGA Base Kyle is arguably one of the strongest constructors out there. He gives an extra range in B.A.S.E which is good for any mission.

Outlander

Other classes perform perfectly fine in gathering. This job is best served for solo players who don’t want to rely on others to farm.

Ninja

The Ninja is capable of dealing a lot of damage in neat ways but is less efficient than the Commando.