A guide to building your bag like a DGV Pro!
Most top-level DGV players go about building their bags very similarly with distinct "Disc Categories" for the available bag slots. I collected bags from 100 of the top players in the world, and I'll talk through the bag building process and explain the common logic.
The most basic rules of thumb when building a bag:
Speed 11 and Under = "Accurate"
Speed 12 and Up = "Extra Glide"
90% of all discs in top players' bags follow these rules.
The "Accurate" attribute reduces how much your disc wobbles before you release it. This makes a significant difference when you're looking to get a predictable flight path out of your shots. Whether it's a throw-in attempt or you're hoping to perfectly place the disc somewhere, if you're under 100m/330ft away from the basket, you're going to want an "Accurate" disc for the shot. It's not available on Distance discs, so look for it on anything Speed 11 and under.
"Extra Glide" reduces the drag physics on the disc making it fly farther. This works for putters, mids, and fairways too, but it's most important on distance drivers. Get the extra distance boost first and then think about what other attribute you may want for that disc.
There are exceptions and personal preferences, but if you're looking for some basic guidance on how to build your bag, start with these two rules.
Updated: February 2, 2024 from Top 100 Players in Multiplayer World Rankings
Click here to see the full Data Collection
Observations from Feb 2024 WITB Update:
Water Skips are making a splash! The introduction of the Water Skip attribute has the Valley scrambling for new lines and bonus strokes. 89% of all players surveyed had a Water Skip driver in their bag.
The Sapphire (Accurate / Extra Glide) is officially the king of the Fairways. Only 5 months ago, the "favorite" glide Fairway was a toss up between the Sapphire, Musket, Grace, and PD, but the latter 3 molds all dropped off in popularity as everyone is switching to the Sapphire - which makes sense considering it's the farthest flying Accurate disc in the game.
The Guld is a new major player! The combination of reworked disc stats and availability within rewards & pro shop have made the Guld the number one competitor to the Rive. 44 Gulds appear in the 100 players' bags. That's more Gulds than Rivers, Harps, Captains, Warships, Graces or Zeuses!
New molds are hit or miss. Several new molds have been introduced over the past 5 months with some gaining popularity while others are ignored completely.
Popular New Molds: Paradigm, MD1, Core, Hades, Sampo, Spike, Avenger SS
Unpopular New Molds (0 in Top 100 Bags): Adder, X1, Raptor, Manta, FX2, Essence, Archive, Evidence, Malta, Origin, PA1, Logic, Agent, BiteMultiple Bag System Questions: Players can now switch bags in MP after seeing the layout. It raises questions about how players are utilizing the 3 bag system competitively and whether or not the visible bag is their primary or a one-off. Still, I think this analysis is valuable for new and seasoned players alike.
Slot Types & Top Choices
Max Air
Goal: Cover the most air distance
Top Choice: Rive (Light/ Extra Glide)
Usage: 80% (-10% since Aug '23)
Description: It's fun to throw bombs! The L/EG Rive flies farther in the air than any other disc in the game. So many holes become much easier once you have it.
Alternatives:
Rive (Wind Break/ Extra Glide)
8% (-10%)
Captain (Light/ Extra Glide)
8% (+5%)
Zeus (Light/ Extra Glide)
5% (+5%)
Guld (Light/ Extra Glide
3% (+3%)
Max Skip
Goal: Cover the most total distance (Air + Skip)
Top Choice: Rive (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
Usage: 85% (-6% since Aug '23)
Description: There's a reason most top players bag this disc - nothing goes farther. The Zeus and Guld are at least staying in view with a few top players prefering them over the Rive.
Alternatives:
Zeus (Big Skip / Extra Glide
9% (+4%)
Guld (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
4% (+4%)
Roll / Stick
Goal: Fly far and then STOP. Rollers are sometimes useful too.
Top Choice: Rive (Roll / Extra Glide)
Usage: 77% (+3% since Aug '23)
Description: The Roll attribute keeps discs from sliding or skipping which comes in handy when you want to stick a tight landing area. Rollers are the preferred shot for some on a few holes like DT6, OH4, and OW8.
Alternatives:
Rive (Roll / Wind Break)
8% (-1%)
Ballista Pro (Roll / Extra Glide)
5% (-4%)
Zeus (Roll / Extra Glide)
4% (+2%)
CloudBreaker 2022 (Roll / Extra Glide)
4% (+0%)
Straight Air
Goal: Point and shoot and fight a crosswind.
Top Choice: Rive (Extra Turn / Extra Glide)
Usage: 54% (+0% since Aug '23)
Description: The Straight Air disc gives players a different flight path for long bombs that can be easier to control or even go farther on certain holes compared to the Max Air discs when any amount of fade could cause trouble.
Alternatives:
Guld (Extra Turn / Extra Glide)
1% (+1%)
Zeus (Extra Turn / Extra Glide)
1% (+0%)
Cloud Breaker/DD3 (Wind Break / Extra Glide)
1% (+0%)
Straight Skip
Goal: Big Distance without the fade.
Top Choice: Captain (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
Usage: 20% (+17% since Aug '23)
Description: What used to be a fringe Disc Type is now a staple with 60% of players choosing to bag one. The TS Rive was the king of this category, but the Captain and Paradigm are new on the scene and in higher demand (the Hades is one to watch too).
Alternatives:
Paradigm (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
16% (+16%)
Rive (Big Skip / Extra Turn)
10% (-10%)
Could Breaker/DD3 (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
7% (-7%)
Hades (Big Skip / Extra Glide)
4% (+4%)
Water Skip
Goal: Cash in new "Must Get" eagles & find some other uses for it here and there.
Top Choice: Rive (Water Skip / Extra Glide)
Usage: 28% (+28% since Aug '23)
Description: A totally new category, but one that's become a "must" with 89% of top players bagging a WS Distance disc. The Rive is the most popular, currently, but the Guld is basically just as popular. Try it out on: LS5, OH6, and PB3. These discs can be used as utility throwers on non-water shots too when you need different distance/shot shape.
Alternatives:
Guld (Water Skip / Extra Glide)
27% (+27%)
Rive (Water Skip / Wind Break)
10% (+10%)
Captain (Water Skip / Extra Glide)
7% (+7%)
Zeus (Water Skip / Extra Glide)
6% (+6%)
Workhorse
Goal: Go as far as possible with "Accurate" control
Top Choice: Sapphire (Accurate / Extra Glide)
Usage: 71% (+31% since Aug '23)
Description: The Accurate attribute reduces pull-back wobble and increases predictability. The Accurate + Extra Glide combination is best here. The Sapphire is the farthest flying Fairway, and it's become the dominant mold in this category with all the other contenders dropping off.
Alternatives:
Musket (Accurate / Extra Glide)
32% (-5%)
Grace (Accurate / Extra Glide)
8% (-12%)
PD (Accurate / Extra Glide)
7% (-6%)
Ace Runner
Goal: Run the basket with less risk from wind or going long
Top Choice: Musket (Accurate / Roll)
Usage: 61% (+6% since Aug '23)
Description: Players need the Accurate attribute for ace runs, but they have a choice between air control (Wind Break) or ground control (Roll). Wind Break will increase the likelihood players hit their target, and Roll will decrease the risk if they miss. The trend in preference for Roll in this slot has only increased since the last WITB.
The category has long been dominated by the Sapphire and Musket, and the introduction of a few interesting molds like the FD3 , Stag, Bear, and Flow hasn't changed that much. If a player is bagging more than one of any disc type, it's most likely two Ace Runners.
Alternatives:
Sapphire (Accurate / Roll)
25% (+9%)
Sapphire (Accurate / Wind Break)
25% (-1%)
Musket (Accurate / Wind Break)
13% (-4%)
Fair-In: Throw-in Fairway
Goal: Bridge the throw-in gap between the Throw-In Mid and the Ace Runner.
Top Choice: Explorer/Instinct (Accurate / Roll)
Usage: 35% (+11% since Aug '23)
Description: There's a lot of diversity in this slot as players are picking between overstable (Explorer, Pioneer, Instinct) and understable (River, Vandal) discs while choosing Wind Break or Roll attributes. They all have the same goal, though: increase throw-in percentages between 200-300ft.
Alternatives:
River (Accurate / Roll)
23% (+2%)
Explorer/Instinct (Accurate / Wind Break)
11% (-1%)
River (Accurate / Wind Break)
7% (-1%)
Fairway Skip
Goal: Unlock ace run potential and maximize accurate distance.
Top Choice: Sapphire (Accurate / Big Skip)
Usage: 18% (+1% since Aug '23)
Description: This is the most common disc type to fill the last slot in top players' bags, but less than 50% of top players are bagging one. Other common utility type discs are Wind Break Distance discs (Recoil or Sword) or an overstable Fairway (Pioneer or Saint Pro).
Alternatives:
Grace (Accurate / Big Skip)
11% (+2%)
Musket (Accurate / Big Skip)
7% (+1%)
Mid-In: Throw-In Midrange
Goal: Don't miss under 100ft!
Top Choice: Fuse (Accurate / Wind Break)
Usage: 67% (+3% since Aug '23)
Description: The biggest difference between top players and casual players is the ability to reliably throw in from 50 to 150ft. The Throw-In Midrange is the main disc players use to accomplish this goal. It's important to pick a mold that works for you and learn it. The Fuse has long been the king of this category, but it's losing footing to the Claymore and a few other molds.
Alternatives:
Claymore (Accurate / Wind Break)
21% (+7%)
Svea (Accurate / Wind Break)
5% (-3%)
Compass (Accurate / Wind Break)
5% (+1%)
MD1 (Accurate / Wind Break)
4% (+4%)
Glide Midrange
Goal: Longer throw-ins and specific ace runs
Top Choice: Warship (Accurate / Extra Glide)
Usage: 29% (-10% since Aug '23)
Description: This disc is mostly used to maximize the distance potential out of the 2nd midrange slot. It's useful for ace running some holes or getting a little more distance than the Throw-In Mid provides. The Glide Mid category is overall down due to a rising trend to bag a 2nd Accurate / Wind Break Mid instead (see: Reese, MM93, Dan, Wertonen, etc.). The thinking behind two Acc/WB mids is that one is used for powered down shots at multiple distances and the other is better for full power sends at the edge of its range.
Alternatives:
Fuse (Accurate / Extra Glide)
18% (-4%)
Trust (Accurate / Extra Glide)
15% (-3%)
Compass (Accurate / Extra Glide)
9% (+1%)
Claymore (Accurate / Extra Glide)
9% (-4%)
Putters
Goal: Put the Discuit in the Basket
Top Choice: Hope
Usage: 53% (+17% since Aug '23)
Description: Putters are the least useful molds in the game since putting with the Throw-In Mid is basically the same. Some players use putters as throw-in discs since Putter molds inherently have some Wind Break built in. Others look for a stable, longer-flying putter like the Harp or Razor Claw as a utility approach disc. The introduction of the Accurate / Wind Break Hope in W2 of Global League S3 really gave the mold a huge bump, and it knocked the Pure out of the top spot for the first time since the game was introduced. The percentages here are strictly by mold since there's so much variety in mold/attribute combinations.
Alternatives:
Pure 50% (-5%)
Harp 37% (-3%)
Keystone 16% (-3%)
Razor Claw 5% (-1%)
This was compiled in February 2024 from 100 Top Ranked players in either Global Rankings or the MP World Leaderboard.