Splatoon 2 As Someone New(ish) to S+...

[ChaosChao]

It's clear I need to up my game to rise the ranks to X even further. I just got to S+0 on Clam Blitz today which was the last mode I hadn't gotten to S+ on. Any advice going forward on this long climb to X rank?

PS: Refer to my signature for stats and stuff. :3

 

[J'Wiz]

One thing about the move from S to S+ that most people have trouble catching up on is the fact that you shouldn't be scared of getting splatted. It doesn't mean you should mindlessly rush in, which I admittedly have troubles not doing lately, but it also means you should get accustomed to taking risks. There are so many people who are too scared to make a push. This gives the enemy a chance to regroup and counterattack.

I wish I could remember the match I had with you so I could think of personal specifics. It's just that there has been so many Dualie Squelcher players lately that it's difficult to remember certain ones.

 

[ThatOneGuy]

Well, unfortunately we play polar opposite weapon types. You tend to play dualie squelchers / Jet Squelchers in general. Which are hardcore support weapons that shouldn't be taking too many risks. And then I play the blaster, which is a hardcore offensive weapon that wants to take risks in order to win.

(I haven't seen your game play, so I might be wrong)
But the jet squelchers and dualie squelchers are great weapons at staying alive. Thanks to their generous range, and the dualie squelcher's additional dodge roll (which are pretty much lagless).

So you're probably just going to control the stage and make sure the map doesn't get handed over to the enemy team. And you're probably going to have to charge up specials to repel their pushes. For clam blitz, you're probably going to have to get the revenge clam or make some plays yourself sometimes though.

Spoiler: X rank in General

Some things about X rank though,

You're going to have to paint for your team. As a support player, that's your role on the team. Just make sure the area around you is nice and pretty in your team's color, so that you can make your gunfights easier. Will you win every gun fight? Unfortunately no, (unless you're a legend at dualie squelchers or something). But as you get more experienced with your weapon, you'll find out ways to approach every enemy and win gunfights much more consistently.

The reason why I say "Paint" a lot is because in a lot of solo games, I look at the map, and it's the enemy team's color. Which means we have no control over the objective, disadvantaged gunfights, and they likely have specials because they knew how to cover the map. And as you can see, it's an uphill battle. Even though the enemies might be the same or even lower skill level than us.

But where the paint really helps out is with your aggro / slayer players. Who can't paint for themselves and they appreciate having paint on their side so they can win most matchups.

Lastly, don't worry about your number in X rank. It fluctuates all the time, and stressing out about it, only lowers your rank. Just worry about how you're performing in every match.

ie: "Am I dying too much?"
"Am I painting enough for my team to take advantage of"
"Did I get enough kills this game"
"Are my specials doing anything"
"How can I prevent getting picked off like that"
"Was that my fault, or someone else's fault for us losing" (most of the time you want to say "Yeah I could have been better")

I hoped this helped (Even if it was a bit late)

 

[ChaosChao]

Well, unfortunately we play polar opposite weapon types. You tend to play dualie squelchers / Jet Squelchers in general. Which are hardcore support weapons that shouldn't be taking too many risks. And then I play the blaster, which is a hardcore offensive weapon that wants to take risks in order to win.

(I haven't seen your game play, so I might be wrong)
But the jet squelchers and dualie squelchers are great weapons at staying alive. Thanks to their generous range, and the dualie squelcher's additional dodge roll (which are pretty much lagless).

So you're probably just going to control the stage and make sure the map doesn't get handed over to the enemy team. And you're probably going to have to charge up specials to repel their pushes. For clam blitz, you're probably going to have to get the revenge clam or make some plays yourself sometimes though.

Spoiler: X rank in General

Some things about X rank though,

You're going to have to paint for your team. As a support player, that's your role on the team. Just make sure the area around you is nice and pretty in your team's color, so that you can make your gunfights easier. Will you win every gun fight? Unfortunately no, (unless you're a legend at dualie squelchers or something). But as you get more experienced with your weapon, you'll find out ways to approach every enemy and win gunfights much more consistently.

The reason why I say "Paint" a lot is because in a lot of solo games, I look at the map, and it's the enemy team's color. Which means we have no control over the objective, disadvantaged gunfights, and they likely have specials because they knew how to cover the map. And as you can see, it's an uphill battle. Even though the enemies might be the same or even lower skill level than us.

But where the paint really helps out is with your aggro / slayer players. Who can't paint for themselves and they appreciate having paint on their side so they can win most matchups.

Lastly, don't worry about your number in X rank. It fluctuates all the time, and stressing out about it, only lowers your rank. Just worry about how you're performing in every match.

ie: "Am I dying too much?"
"Am I painting enough for my team to take advantage of"
"Did I get enough kills this game"
"Are my specials doing anything"
"How can I prevent getting picked off like that"
"Was that my fault, or someone else's fault for us losing" (most of the time you want to say "Yeah I could have been better")

I hoped this helped (Even if it was a bit late)

I find myself focusing too hard on covering ground and dying or getting into fights...and dying. How do I find a happy medium between the two and stay alive?

 

[OctoKid]

The happy medium you're looking for is whatever advances the goal most in a given situation.

There are very crucial moments in the game where it's worth, frankly, the entire team risking death just to have the chance of taking back control even for a second and not letting the opposing team wipe away an advantage. Then there are moments where staying alive matters more, like increasing an existing advantage.

Anyway, learn to avoid people, and you will find they're often surprised by this. People seem to expect to engage in one-on-ones, but actually, it's mostly a waste of time, and it's very easy to sneak away. Rainmaker's fun for this.

Also, tailor your equipment to the mode and stage because it makes a big difference.

Good luck!

 

[Spaceswitchmars]

I find myself focusing too hard on covering ground and dying or getting into fights...and dying. How do I find a happy medium between the two and stay alive?

It seems like you are trying to paint in places where the enemy currently is (IE -- painting yourself into fights with the other team). You don't really want to paint ahead of your aggro players unless it's from a safe spot or it's easy for you to escape. This kind of goes to @ThatOneGuy's point about risk taking. If you're painting yourself away from your frontline players and into the enemy's frontline, you're taking an unnecessary risk.

A lot of this comes down to map awareness. Make sure you're keeping tabs on where the enemy is moving based on where your teammates are, where they're dying/killing, where they're likely to be and where the map control is changing. You can do this both by observing the battle as you go and by checking your map often. As a support player, you should usually be in safe enough positions where you can check your map safely most of the time.

Greater awareness comes with experience, and it's very much a skill just like anything else in this game. As is learning how to stay alive as a support player.

For now, I'd say follow where your aggro players are going (especially blasters as they can't paint for themselves at all) and try to turn 1v1s into 2v1s in your favor -- all while painting for everyone.

Oh, and if an enemy rushes you down but an aggro player comes to help you, try to stay alive, but don't run away from that 2v1. As an aggro player, nothing annoys me more than when I come to help a teammate, and that support player runs away to the other side of the map, turning what would have been an advantage into, at best, a 50/50 fight... but often just putting me at a disadvantage.

So stay safe, but the best way to stay safe is by always thinking, "how can I most help my team in this moment."