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The Inkbrush - Not as bad as You Think

The Inkbrush - Not as bad as You Think

So, the inkbrush! When you hear that, do you like it or hate it? I used to hate this weapon, but after lots, and lots, and lots, and LOTS of battling with it, I have learned a few things about how to be (at the least) decent with the inkbrush!

Inkbrush??

Before you use the inkbrush, understand what it is! The inkbrush is NOT a roller. Don't treat it as such. If anything, the inkbrush is a mixture of the roller and the slosher. It can roll like a roller, and flick ink like the slosher. The inkbrush is just simply: a brush.

How do you effectively play with this brush thing??

So, you can run around with an inkbrush, right? Treat it like a roller, right?
WRONG!
You need to flick the ink. You need to rapidly be pressing that ZR button if you want to properly use this thing! The only time you should be 'rolling' with this weapon is if you need to make a hasty escape or get to somewhere quickly. However, even just swimming in ink allows you to move faster than rolling with an inkbrush. So, rolling with an inkbrush should really only be used under dire circumstances.
Now, flicking ink. Seems simple right? Reminder that you have to RAPIDLY press the ZR button, which can be a bit hard if you don't have the hands of a God.
I find the best way to flick ink is to jump while doing so. It makes you a bit harder to hit and gives you a higher range.

Strengths and Weaknesses!

For this, I might as well start out with the weaknesses.

  • You don't have the greatest range. It's decent range, but it's not very helpful when you go up in close combat with something with just a TINY bit more range than you. You can't go face to face with a Jet Squelcher! That's just insane! Stay away from face-to-face close range combat unless you are COMPLETELY sure you can beat the opponent.
  • Also, you don't really deal much damage. You do about 20 damage when rolling into someone (Which you should never do!) and about 28 damage when flicking ink. You will need at least 4 or 5 hits on an opponent in order to splat them.
  • If you're cornered, what are you going to do? You can't escape.
Now, despite the inkbrush's MANY weaknesses, it has it's fair share of strengths as well!

  • You are literally able to move at super speed. If you direly need to run away, rolling may be your only option. You can quickly escape from a bad situation!
  • It's super light, making it easy to walk around with.
  • It has the fastest ink shake! Fast enough to keep a kraken at bay without it being able to splat you! (Doing that is really fun, by the way.)
  • It looks adorable. Sorry I just have to say that.
  • If someone gets to close, you can literally wack them in the face and escape.
  • A really good sub and special!
The Sprinkler Sub :sprinkler:

The normal inkbrush comes with the sprinkler sub weapon. It's not an offensive weapon by any means, but if people aren't careful, they can be easily splatted by it.
The sprinkler uses about 80% of your ink, so it's very ink consuming. Be careful about others when you place one down.
Place sprinklers in hard to reach places! If you place it on a wall, weapons without a long range can't break them. This comes in handy when playing splat zones or even in just regular turf war!

The Inkstrike Special :inkstrike:

The infamous inkstrike is the special with the normal inkbrush. It's a bit dangerous to use out in the open, as your a sitting duck as you set it off.
When in doubt, strike in the middle. If you take control of the middle of the map, your team can quickly take over the map!
Hide behind a wall when using the inkstrike so no one can attack you. Also be sure to quickly inkstrike! You want to get back into action as soon as possible!

Gear Abilities

There are a couple different gear load outs you can use with the inkbrush!

:ability_damage: Damage up! This ability can pretty much be good for most weapons, but it's especially helpful with the inkbrush. Especially since the inkbrush is quite weak!

:ability_defenseup:Defense up! When flicking ink, you are out in the open and can easily be flanked. With a few defense up gears, you can take a few extra hits.

:ability_inksaversub: Ink saver sub! This comes in handy if you use the sprinkler a lot!

:ability_swimspeed: Swim speed up! Might as well add to your speed, right!

What modes??


The inkbrush can be used for a couple of gamemodes!

  • Turf War: The inkbrush is great for turf war! With the inkstrike AND the sprinkler, you'll be spreading like no other! I remember playing a match and getting over 2100 points while I was using the inkbrush!
  • Splat Zones: The inkbrush is absolutely great for splat zones as well! Placing a sprinkler can pressure the other team, and you can inkstrike the zones! You can be a sneaky ninja, placing sprinklers and flanking the other team!
  • Tower Control: Tower control is maybe not a good mode for the inkbrush. Sprinklers on the tower can help, and you can inkstrike to clear an area so you can ride the tower through. I really don't recommend going into a tower control match with the inkbrush.
  • Rainmaker: It's not the best idea at all to head into Rainmaker with the inkbrush. While the sprinkler can break the shield, that's really all you can do with it. Inkstrikes are also a bit helpful, but seriously. It's not a good idea to play with the inkbrush during Rainmaker.

Overall Tips and Tricks!

So there's not much more I can explain to you about the brush, but I do have some tips and tricks!

  • You can flick ink so fast, you can stop a kraken from splatting you! It's not the best idea, because if you mess up, you will be splatted, but if the kraken is heading straight towards you, you can stop it!
  • Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, head straight for foes! Your best bet to splat an opponent from behind, while they are not paying attention to you!.
  • One strategy to try on certain maps (like Blackbelly Skatepark) is to roll to mid and place down a sprinkler.
  • Or another strategy you can do is to head down the back ways and flank your opponents from their own side, because they'll most likely be at mid!
  • You can use sprinklers as bait! When most people see a sprinkler, they'll go for it right away. In the time it takes them to break the sprinkler, you can splat them!
  • Similarly, standing in a sprinkler will give you a quick pseudo-invincibility.
Thank you for reading!! <3
Author
spammu
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Latest reviews

Awesome! This is really helpful! It gives a lot, and I mean a LOT of useful tips that will most likely improve my performance, since I'm already an Inkbrush player.

Also, I used to play Project M, so I don't have much problem with flicking the Inkbrush, I actually prefer it over the Octobrush.
I thought that Inbrush was bad but this guide was good at explaining how to use it, so I might try it out again soon
I thought that the inkbrush was bad, so I might use it in the future instead of Splattershot Jr., thanks
Great Ink brush guide!! This guide gives great tips and must-do's on the Ink brush. It also has great strategies for each game mode and different situations.
(for reference, i am an inkbrush main)

this guide has a lot of viable tips, such as keeping hidden, flanking enemies and assassinating enemies when using the inkbrush as this is the most effective way of using this weapon. another subject covered in this guide is the subject of ink flicking, and the fact that having a good trigger finger can make your rate of ink-flinging very fast, fast enough to quickly splat people and fend off krakens. this is a benefit of the inkbrush that many seem to overlook due to lack of practice with the inkbrush. i also completely agree that where the inkbrush shines is in turf wars. it can cover so much ink, with an average of 1,000 points per round when you really get some practice with it. it is an absolute inking machine in turf wars.

some of the recommendations i found to be a little lackluster in highlighting the inkbrush's abilities, however. an example of this is when it is recommended not to use the inkbrush in rainmaker mode. to me, this is one of the modes that the inkbrush excels in, because of its speed and ability to make paths for your team to follow , quickly secure the rainmaker, and get into the enemy base by following your inktrail. no other weapon has this advantage (i'm not considering the rollers because they are much slower than even the octobrush). despite this, though, this is a pretty good overview of the inkbrush, and it gives a good idea of what kind of playstyle to adopt when using it.
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