RUBI GUIDE
BORDERLANDS 2
The RUBI
The Rubi is a Unique Maliwan pistol that you get as a reward for an optional quest, and it’s widely considered one of the best healing tools in the game, second only to the Grog Nozzle.
Getting the gun is extremely easy and requires no DLC, and min-maxers can wait until the endgame to claim it since it still does respectable damage. Let’s go over the reasons why it’s so good.
What Makes the RUBI Strong
The Rubi is one of the best healing weapons in Borderlands 2 thanks to its 12% life steal.
It’s important to know that you don’t need to shoot with the Rubi to recover health. You just need to be holding it when your damage hits an enemy.
This means you can fire with another weapon or throw a grenade, then quickly switch to the Rubi before the damage hits the enemy to recover health.
For example, you can shoot with a weapon like the Unkempt Harold or throw a Chain Lightning grenade, then swap to the Rubi just before the impact. When it hits, you’ll heal based on the damage dealt, making it extremely effective for survivability.
This effect also isn’t affected by the weapon’s level, so even a low-level Rubi remains useful throughout the entire game.
TIPS
- Pair it with slow but powerful weapons, like the Unkempt Harold and Nukem, so you have enough time to swap before they hit your enemies
- Get it with the Evisceration prefix if you’re playing a melee build
Advantages
- Insanely good healing output
- Easily obtainable
Disadvantages
- Heavily outclassed by the Grog Nozzle once it’s available
- Low damage on its own
How to Get the RUBI
To get the Rubi, all you have to do is complete the Rakkaholics Anonymous side quest, which you can get from Mordecai following the main story quest Wildlife Preservation.
At the end of the quest, you’re given the choice of turning it in to either Mordecai or Moxxi. Make sure to turn in the quest to Moxxi, who will reward you with a level-appropriate Rubi.
Best Farming Method
- Preparing the Save
- Progress through the “Rakkaholic Anonymous” quest
- Go to Moxxi at the end, not Mordecai
- Check your Rubi
- Talk to Moxxi, but don’t confirm the reward yet
- Inspect the Rubi
- If you’re not satisfied with it (e.g. you want a specific prefix)
- Force close the game (Alt+F4 or home button on console)
- Reload the game and turn the quest in again
- Inspect and repeat until you get the version you want
- If you’re satisfied with it
- Claim your reward
- That’s it, congratulations!
Best Prefix for the RUBI
Evisceration is the best prefix for the Rubi, but only because this lets melee characters take full advantage of its healing.
Alternatively, a Binary Rubi is also good if you actually plan on using it to deal damage or to apply slag.
Best Builds for the RUBI
The Rubi is mainly used for healing rather than damage, and it doesn’t depend on any specific build. Because of that, you can keep it in your loadout on any character and use it whenever you need to recover health, making it a reliable tool in most situations.
KRIEG
Krieg benefits from the Rubi as a reliable way to recover health outside of his melee abilities. While many of his builds focus on close-range damage and self-healing, the Rubi gives him an extra safety option when using guns or grenades. By throwing a grenade or dealing damage, then quickly switching to the Rubi, he can instantly heal, making it especially useful in tough fights! See the Krieg Build to learn more.
When the RUBI is NOT Ideal
The only time the Rubi isn’t a good choice is when you’re using very specific low health builds. Outside of niche builds, the Rubi is an amazing healing weapon to have at any difficulty, regardless of its level.
Compared to other Weapons
RUBI vs GROG NOZZLE
The Grog Nozzle has a much higher lifesteal (65%) than the Rubi (12%), and it’s often a permanent upgrade for players who aren’t using the Rubi for damage. Even its slag application is more consistent than the Rubi.
Despite this, the Rubi still wins in accessibility, as you can get it at around the midpoint of the base game’s campaign. Read the Grog Nozzle Guide is you are interested.
RUBI vs OTHER MOXXI’S GUNS
Weapons like the Kitten, Good Touch, Bad Touch, etc. all have a low lifesteal bonus of around 2-5%, so they don’t offer the same utility as the Rubi. With that said, some of them (e.g. Kitten) are decent primary weapons on their own.