Great build, still very useful

Safe to assume this is a dead guide?

Great build, thank you. Looking forward to read the next chapter.

"Haunted Mines" is a bad map for Hammer. In quickmatch, if I have to play on "Haunted Mines", I choose these talents:

Lethal Blasts
Vampiric Assaults
First Aids
Blunt Force Gun
Giant Killer
Hover Siege Mode
Orbital BFG

Actually, this build works extremely well. If you have a support that can heal, though, I would definitely consider taking Excessive Force at tier 2 over Vampiric Assault. The amount of distance it throws your enemy is absolutely HUGE. Normally it's just to give yourself some breathing room to properly escape, or MAYBE save a teammate if you're feeling daring, but the distance that Excessive Force throws the enemy could serve as an effective getaway all its own.

I'm not exaggerating about the distance, either. The distance is so great, in fact, that often times the enemy completely disengages after being blasted back, because they literally cannot cover the distance you just put between them and you before you get to a safer spot. It is the difference between 'leaving an opening for a getaway' and 'this skirmish is over now, bye.'

It's a more defensive and proactive option that costs some survivability in some ways while graciously providing it in others. Long-term it will keep you at lower HP because it won't recover, but it will keep you safe from a lot more damage due to how many exchanges you can get out of so effectively.

I say both are strong, as both have valid arguments, but I'd go Excessive Force instead, due to its utility and how cleanly it will save your butt throughout the match. My death count tends to stay very low and this will almost definitely play a huge part in that.