Back 4 Blood: Easy Solo Nightmare Melee Tank Build

To start, this is the overview of my deck, and I will explain what each cards are for, feel free to change them to your own playstyle – whatever works for me, may not work for you.
For example, you can swap for some movement speed cards like Run like Hell if you wish.

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DPS Related Cards:
1. Slugger – +5% Health, +10% Melee Stamina Efficiency, +20% Melee Attack Speed
2. Brazen – +15% Melee Stamina Efficiency, +20% Melee Attack Speed
3. Meth Head – Each Melee swing grants 5% Melee Speed and 5% Melee Stamina Efficiency for 6 seconds, stacking up to 10 times. Your Melee Attacks no longer stick in tough enemies.
4. Adrenaline Fueled – When you kill an enemy, gain 5 Stamina instantly and an additional 7 Stamina over 7 seconds, stacking up to 5 times.

This group of cards is about melee attack speed and stamina efficiency.
Basically, swing your melee weapon faster = higher DPS, more/infinite stamina = more/infinite swinging = more/infinite DPS(!!!)
Who cares about health or damage taken if you ROFL-stomp everything before they have a chance to even touch you?

Direct damage cards:
8. Spiky Bits – +15 Melee Damage, +20% DR while using a Melee Weapon
9. Mean Drunk – +40% Melee Damage, Your Melee Attacks cause cleave through enemies dealing damage in a large area.

Flat and percentage damage increase on your melee weapon. Not much to say, just press LMB.

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Some more survival cards:
5. Vanguard – Melee Kills heals 1 HP
6. Battle Lust – Melee Kills heals 1 HP and 0.125 Trauma
7. Face Your Fears – Heal 1 Temporary Health whenever you kill a Ridden within 2.5 meters.

These cards are very straightforward – you bring a melee weapon, kill some zombies, you replenish your health; if you are maxed out, you get temporary overheal.
The only restriction is to make sure you are not losing more HP than you gain from it. Holding off a horde at a doorway is an easy way to utilize this.
Trauma healing is just icing on the cake.

10. Fresh Bandage – Heal 15 Trauma every level and restore HP
11. Durable – +15% Trauma Resistance, +10 Health, +20% Fire Resistance
12. Fanny Pack – +15% Trauma Resistance, +1 Support Slots (Healing Item Slots)
14. Scar Tissue – Take 1 less damage from all Ridden, +50% Acid Resistance

Fresh Bandage is basically a must-have card. Trauma resistance is the most important since it saves you money long term, and prevents losing a run because you end up with 40 max health at the finales.
You don’t pay anything to restore your trauma, if it is a short map and you didnt take anymore trauma damage, you just saved yourself the cost of a first aid station. Did I mention that it heals you up fully too?
More money = more upgrades for surviviability (Team Health/Better healing items) or DPS (upgrade grenades).

the Fire and Acid resistances from the cards are also nice to have, just in case.

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15. Breakout – Breakout: Hold E to free yourself from Grabs, +50% Breakout Cooldown Reduction. (Base 60s).

More useful than you might think – since you are playing pure melee, you’ll be walking into grabs all the time for maximum Rambo-ness.
With this card, you don’t have to rely on AI (or human bots) to come free you. It leaves nothing to chance – no more agitating AI pathing, reaction delays, or the need to carry stun guns.
Remember you most likely want to carry a toolkit instead of a stun gun, this card lets you do both.

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FREE SLOT:
13. Motorcycle Helmet – +15% Damage Resistance, +10 Health
OR Fleet of Foot/Run Like Hell – +12% Move Speed, +15% Sprint Speed
OR Double Grenade Pouch – +2 Offensive Slots (Grenade slots)
OR Screwdriver – +50% Use Speed, +10% Stamina

Honestly, this is a personal pick. +10HP & +15% DR probably will save you a few healing items and Team Health upgrades hence money, but I found that I didnt actually need it on Nightmare. It may be a good QoL on No Hope but that’s another discussion.

Personally I prefer +2 grenade slots. Extra utility slots are great as they are expensive to buy in-game – +1 support slot = 1500 copper saved. Having these 3 extra slots save you 4500 coppers, and the RNG of which one you get in shops. It also allows you to hoard ultility supplies right away from early game, for when you need them.

Otherwise consider Quality of Life cards, like movement speed or use speed.
Movement speed lets you move around and away from danger more effectively.
Since YOU are the only human, YOU do all the objectives and actions. Besides, doing them faster = less chance of getting hit & less time getting worn down by hordes.
Obviously you can also take Multitool instead, your choice. I prefer extra stamina for meleeing and sprinting with Screwdriver.

But do as you wish. It is your choice.

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE:
On Nightmare, zombies may have corruption cards that give them acid/fire/explosive heads, in that case you do need to be careful.

AVOID fireaxe and hatchet because they ALWAYS swing downwards from head and trigger the volatile explosions. That will eat your health and give you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ of trauma extremely quickly.
One easy way to avoid that is to use a machete, crouch down, aim and swing at the torso/legs.

That aside, the Fire and Acid resistances from the cards are nice to have, just in case.
If that still poses a problem to you, consider using a Burn Card for more elemental/trauma resistances.

Anyone melee oriented will be unstoppable – Evangelo, Holly, Sharice
But this build pretty much works on everyone.

As already mentioned, try to AVOID fireaxe and hatchet because of their overhead swings. You will have a bad time when volatile ridden corruption card is played.
That aside, i prefer higher RoF over damage for melee weapons.

As far as I could tell, you can also carry pub lobby with this build because you are so tanky. That aside, this build is pretty much bulletproof for every cleaner if you just want to unlock ZWAT suits for all of them.
Have fun.