Best Fallout 76 Melee build: Perk cards, weapons, stats, and more

The best Fallout 76 Melee build utilizes the Chainsaw as its primary weapon to obliterate irradiated foes in the post-apocalyptic wasteland. This build uses two key perks: Barbarian and Slugger. The former boosts your Damage Resistance based on your total Strength, while the latter increases the damage output of two-handed melee weapons, like the Chainsaw.

This guide covers everything you need to know about the Fallout 76 Melee build, including its best SPECIAL stats, perk cards, weapons, armor, and mutations.

Note: Some aspects of this article are subjective and solely reflect the writer's opinion.

Best stats and perks for Melee in Fallout 76

At the beginning of the game, you have one point assigned to each of the SPECIAL attributes: Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. You gain one point per level on your way to Level 50, which you can allocate to any of these attributes. Each attribute can have a maximum of 15 points.

Here's the best SPECIAL attribute setup for the Fallout 76 Melee build:

Strength: 10
Perception: 1
Endurance: 11
Charisma: 10
Intelligence: 1
Agility: 9
Luck: 9

You'll have five points left to allocate, which you can invest into Intelligence to boost your experience gain and level up faster. Beyond that, feel free to distribute them as you see fit to experiment with different perk cards.

Legendary perks can increase your SPECIAL attributes or provide powerful bonuses to your character. You can equip up to six Legendary perk cards, with slots unlocking at Levels 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, and 300. Additionally, each Legendary perk can be leveled up to a maximum of Rank 4 using Perk Coins obtained by scrapping normal perk cards.

Read more: 5 best melee weapons in Fallout 76

The best Legendary perks for Melee (Image via Bethesda Softworks || falloutbuilds.com)

Use the following Legendary perks for the best Fallout 76 Melee build:

Legendary Luck: Rank 4
Taking One For The Team: Rank 4
Legendary Intelligence: Rank 4
Legendary Strength: Rank 4
Master Infiltrator: Rank 4
Brawling Chemist: Rank 4

Based on the number of points allocated to each SPECIAL attribute, you can assign a corresponding number of perk cards. For example, if you have 15 points in Strength, you can assign up to five Rank 3 perk cards.

The best perks for Melee (Image via Bethesda Softworks || nukesdragons.com)

These are the optimal perk cards for the Fallout 76 Melee build:

Strength

Barbarian: Rank 3
Slugger: Rank 3
Incisor: Rank 3
Expert Slugger: Rank 3
Master Slugger: Rank 3

Perception

Refractor: Rank 1

Endurance

Ironclad: Rank 5
Fireproof: Rank 3
Radicool: Rank 1
Rejuvenated: Rank 2

Charisma

Party Boy: Rank 3
Strange In Numbers: Rank 1
Suppressor: Rank 3
Tenderizer: Rank 3

Intelligence

Nerd Rage!: Rank 3
Stable Tools: Rank 3

Agility

Action Boy: Rank 3
Thru-Hiker: Rank 1
Adrenaline: Rank 5

Luck

Bloody Mess: Rank 3
Serendipity: Rank 3
Ricochet: Rank 3
Class Freak: Rank 3
Starched Genes: Rank 2

Also read: 5 best Energy Weapons in Fallout 76

Best weapon and armor for Melee in Fallout 76

The Chainsaw in Fallout 76 (Image via Bethesda Softworks || Artikuna/YouTube)

As mentioned, the best weapon for the Melee build is the Chainsaw with the Vampire's Legendary weapon effect in Fallout 76. You can modify it with the Dual Bar and Flamer mods, as they significantly increase the weapon's damage output.

The Secret Service Armor set (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

For the armor, use a full set of Secret Service Armor with the Unyielding Legendary Mod. This mod boosts all your SPECIAL stats (except Endurance) by three when your health is low.

Best mutations for Melee in Fallout 76

The best mutations for Melee (Image via Bethesda Softworks || Artikuna/YouTube)

These are the best mutations for the Fallout 76 Melee build:

Adrenal Reaction
Bird Bones
Carnivore
Egg head
Grounded
Herd Mentality
Marsupial
Scaly Skin
Speed Demon
Twisted Muscles

Check out our Fallout 76 Sniper build guide.

The melee build focuses on maximizing your strength and damage resistance to survive up-close encounters and obliterate enemies with weapons like the chainsaw. With the right perks, legendary effects, and mutations, you'll be a nearly unstoppable force in the wasteland.

FAQs about Fallout 76 Melee build

Q1) Is a melee build good in Fallout 76?

Yes, melee builds are very strong in Fallout 76, as they can dish out high damage and be very tanky. However, they can struggle against enemies you can't reach easily.

Q2) What is the best melee weapon in Fallout 76?

There isn't a single "best" melee weapon in Fallout 76, but top contenders include the Vampire's Chainsaw for survivability and the Plasma Cutter for one-handed damage.