Splatoon 2 Inkbrush Nouveau Kits and Discussion

[Otter Power]

I've only gotten to play a few matches with this thing (90% of our players are in Splatfest so you can't get one match anymore :/), but I really love it. How come there's no discussion on this board yet?

Nouveau was a big main of mine in S1 before I moved to Inkbrush. And while I'm not the most keen on Ballers, the special is pretty awesome for the Inkbrush, since, if you're any good at sneaking into bases, you can always come out from behind the woodwork with an invincible time bomb. And while everyone harps on ink mines for this weapon, I find them excellent once you break into the enemy base (which the brush is GREAT at), and preemptively set them up in their routes out of a spawn-camp for a more secure suppression. You can even set them on your trail as you run into the enemy base, checking if anyone is following. I also like to leave them on places I like to flank -- if I see that my mine is still there, it means it's a great alleyway for me to get in. And if anybody is, inversely, taking the flank, me and my whole team will know. The creativity potential for these things is great!

At the moment (the Japan + OCE queues are dead in the water. You seriously can't get one game because Japan is in splatfest.) I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to run on it. My set for now is...

+
+
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As with my other main, sploosh, this thing benefits really nicely with Ninja Squid. In situations where you have a turf advantage, it really levels the playing field when it comes to getting right up close to an opponent. The Ink Saver Main + Rec is pretty amazing on what's already an ink-efficient weapon, and lets me use my running for great lengths of time when confusing people around obstacles. I'm not exactly sure if I want one or two mains' worth, though, I haven't gotten to test much because Splash Mob is beginning to hate me.

Two other things I've been considering are SCU and Tenacity. As I've mentioned, ballers from behind with this thing are really brutal, and can also be good in just cracking open the base of some teams. I'm just not sure which is better, since in tenacity's case I find myself outlasting my team very often, whether I've made a big escape or am waiting in a really weird hiding spot they won't look for me. While SCU helps a lot more in General, Tenacity means I don't have to give the enemy team as much buffer.

Some thoughts on other abilities:

- Often if I'm running home I get nicked by a stray bomb. When you're running this fast it's hard to keep watch on everything, so it could be a good fallback.

- If you're new to brush or a S1 brush player looking to get back in to them, you might consider Ink Res -- but don't, because a recent buff made it so that the inkbrush isn't affected by enemy ink whilst running!

- If, one day, this ability is ever worth running, it would be on this weapon. There's not that much around at the moment that will threaten you with tracking or thermal ink (pfffff), so for now it's not worth giving up precious slots for.

So what are your guys' thoughts on the weapon? Loadouts and tips and stuff you'd like to suggest? I've really taken to it like a squid to ink, and really wanna see more discussion on it!

 

[Dessgeega]

There hasn't been much discussion because the general consensus is that it's pretty terrible. Almost every opponent outranges the weapon and it has no sub or special to provide reach like the vanilla Inkbrush does. If you love this brush, more power to you, but it's probably going to vanish from general use in the coming week.

 

[MINKUKEL]

There hasn't been much discussion because the general consensus is that it's pretty terrible. Almost every opponent outranges the weapon and it has no sub or special to provide reach like the vanilla Inkbrush does. If you love this brush, more power to you, but it's probably going to vanish from general use in the coming week.

Probably (but then again, 50% of weapons see only major use in the weekend of release), but I have seen it much more than the usual weapon of the week.

I'll probably keep it in rotation. I'm not running any specific abilities with it because I'm usually upgrading/grinding/leveling/rolling etc. abilities, but if I get some decent gear with Special Saver, I'll probably be sure to use that first and foremost. Even though it's only a 160p weapon, I find there's little issue with the ink usage, but I do end up wishing I had a Baller all the time. Since I tend to play quite aggresively with the Inkbrush, I usually end up with a lot of kills, but also a decent amount of deaths, draining my charge quite frequently.

As much as people here don't care for it, I've seen a lot of people being quite effective with it already. While testing the weapon yesterday I was never the only person with the Inkbrush N, and most of them were doing very well with it. We'll see how this weapon fares later on, but it's kind of inaccurate to say it's a complete dud so far.

 

[seaWEED]

Meh. I main Inkbrush (s+ in sz) and the nouveau looked disgusting. The baller is... uhhhh... decent, but the sub really kills it. The splat mines are bad for the inkbrush because it is a slow-killing weapon. If you rolled a mine with the OG and got an indirect, then it's only a 4 hit kill, making it a close range octobrush. You can put the mines on a flank and protec the flank, but you're screwed if you get in a pickle. If you're in a pickle with the OG, then you can use your splashdown.

 

[Dessgeega]

I think the utter lack of discussion in this thread kinda proves my point by now :P

 

[AllToonedUp]

I think this weapon has a better kit than the vanilla version because while Splat bombs and Splashdown is a really good kit, it doesn't really help the Inkbrush's viability since it's range is super short. With Nouveau you can use Ink Mines to track your enemies down while you can hide and wait to ambush them, and use Baller for brief invincibility when you need to. I feel this is more of a niche, but tricky support weapon. Baller is almost always good for weapons that can attack immediately and is more suited for CQC. And guess which weapon has both criteria's :p

I don't expect people to pick this up unless if the brush gets buffed in a later patch because of it's confusing playstyle, but oh well. As for subs, here's what I say works from most to least useful:

Ink Saver Main helps your tank not run out so quickly, which is especially good for when you need to run away while holding ZR.
Special Power Up helps Baller become more durable and deadly.
Sub Power Up increases the range of Ink Mines.
Ink Recovery is almost always a good option for most weapons.
As a last resort and if you can't really get the hang of this weapon, Quick Respawn since it's still an Inkbrush which can have difficulty killing.

 

[Либра]

I don't know, with the current Splashdown meta going on and Splat Bombs actually extending their reach, I don't see how this variant can be more viable than the base version. And I fail to see how static traps like the ink mine actively increase its range in a versatile way, but maybe I haven't spent enough time in the lab with all the chemicals messing with my brain to see that yet, ehehe. :D

All jokes aside, I can sorta see your point but differently. Ink Mines are a weird sub in their own right. They can be either super useful or super useless depending on your luck, though relying on that poor man's Echolocator does not help it if it can't deal enough damage. The Baller seems like a fun addition to it on paper, but I can't see how you can actually finish off most enemies who are aware of it since the explosion radius is rather small. All in all, it can be a fun harasser to mess around with, but the weapon can't hold its ground in a competitive setting and I'm struggling to see good Nouveaus in Turf yet.

And this short paragraph is more or less the reason why people ain't really discussing it yet, but if you want to dive in like a crazy harasser, bomb defense and comeback would certainly help. Quick respawn, not so much, tbh. Especially with Ink Mines in its kit and its low damage output, getting accidental kill assists will happen quite a lot, so you're better off investing in something else instead.

 

[Elecmaw]

It has the same problems the S1 Inkbrush Noveau had- no way to work around it's lack of range. Now with the Inkbrush already being a weapon with little range it'll have serious problems dealing with 1vs1's, especially in a meta with no shortage of short-ranged weapons.

Once an enemy steps on a mine and they play smart they'll immediately backpedal, and unlike something like the rapid it can't give chase without putting itself in danger. Likewise, the moment Nouveau steps out of baller it has to make sure to OHKO the target because if it doesn't it'll likely get destroyed by anything that outranges it.

Really just about any advice i could give is to switch over to the regular set instead of this one, as it can actually put up a fight.

 

[MINKUKEL]

I think the utter lack of discussion in this thread kinda proves my point by now :p

IDK, I still see it used online.

 

[AllToonedUp]

I don't know, with the current Splashdown meta going on and Splat Bombs actually extending their reach, I don't see how this variant can be more viable than the base version. And I fail to see how static traps like the ink mine actively increase its range in a versatile way, but maybe I haven't spent enough time in the lab with all the chemicals messing with my brain to see that yet, ehehe. :D

All jokes aside, I can sorta see your point but differently. Ink Mines are a weird sub in their own right. They can be either super useful or super useless depending on your luck, though relying on that poor man's Echolocator does not help it if it can't deal enough damage. The Baller seems like a fun addition to it on paper, but I can't see how you can actually finish off most enemies who are aware of it since the explosion radius is rather small. All in all, it can be a fun harasser to mess around with, but the weapon can't hold its ground in a competitive setting and I'm struggling to see good Nouveaus in Turf yet.

And this short paragraph is more or less the reason why people ain't really discussing it yet, but if you want to dive in like a crazy harasser, bomb defense and comeback would certainly help. Quick respawn, not so much, tbh. Especially with Ink Mines in its kit and its low damage output, getting accidental kill assists will happen quite a lot, so you're better off investing in something else instead.

Maybe "more viable" wasn't the right thing to say but rather "I think this weapon while not more viable than the vanilla Inkbrush, still has the tools to survive in ranked despite its questionable kit." I've played with it during Rainmaker I've had relatively good results with it. And Ink Mines aren't meant for damage, they're to control the area and ambushing when a person steps on them. Not to mention that Baller is a good special for harassing people when they get too close and/or are cornered + the fact that brushes are good for inking a path for a person holding the Rainmaker.

My point is that I see it more as a niche CQC weapon that's decent in it's own right, but to each his own I suppose.

 

[Либра]

Maybe "more viable" wasn't the right thing to say but rather "I think this weapon while not more viable than the vanilla Inkbrush, still has the tools to survive in ranked despite its questionable kit." I've played with it during Rainmaker I've had relatively good results with it. And Ink Mines aren't meant for damage, they're to control the area and ambushing when a person steps on them. Not to mention that Baller is a good special for harassing people when they get too close and/or are cornered + the fact that brushes are good for inking a path for a person holding the Rainmaker.

My point is that I see it more as a niche CQC weapon that's decent in it's own right, but to each his own I suppose.

Oh, I think you misunderstand. I'm one of the (arguably fewer) people who likes Ink Mines and uses them quite a lot and with success, actually. On my weapon, it serves either as an alarm for when I want to move somewhere else on the map but want to keep my "eyes" on that spot, and as a crappy burst bomb replacement. And sometimes when I'm close, just as a pre-chip-damage trap so a half-charge is enough to pick them off in one shot. :D My gripe was more with the Inkbrush itself not dealing enough damage for follow-ups. That is, on paper. That is, when they are pitched against me. That is, when they're in my team - in turf. If you were able to make the niche weapon work for you - good on ya! I'm not able to give a "in actual combat" verdict based on my inability to play the Ink Brush, so all I had to go by was how well my teammates and opponents performed with it, and with how skewed it is, skill-wise, it ain't always the most reliable way to tell.

 

[AllToonedUp]

Oh, I think you misunderstand. I'm one of the (arguably fewer) people who likes Ink Mines and uses them quite a lot and with success, actually. On my weapon, it serves either as an alarm for when I want to move somewhere else on the map but want to keep my "eyes" on that spot, and as a crappy burst bomb replacement. And sometimes when I'm close, just as a pre-chip-damage trap so a half-charge is enough to pick them off in one shot. :D My gripe was more with the Inkbrush itself not dealing enough damage for follow-ups. That is, on paper. That is, when they are pitched against me. That is, when they're in my team - in turf. If you were able to make the niche weapon work for you - good on ya! I'm not able to give a "in actual combat" verdict based on my inability to play the Ink Brush, so all I had to go by was how well my teammates and opponents performed with it, and with how skewed it is, skill-wise, it ain't always the most reliable way to tell.

Yeah I agree that Inkbrush in general has a bunch a problems such as its poor range and questionable damage. But the issue with this weapon isn't necessarily it's setup but the fact that Inkbrushes specialize in.... Nothing really. It stems more from the fact that the brushes (save octobrush) aren't really good close combat weapons and speed is the only thing that saves it from "garbage tier" like weapons such as the Goo-Tuber and Tenta Brella.

 

[Padre]

I feel that making most out of this forces you to change your playstyle from standard brush too much.

Its like a brush, but with escape methods sticked onto it. I dont know how well that will work with the meta.

It feels like for turf war fun, not ranked. Hopefully Im wrong.

 

[the]

It feels like u basically gotta place mines at corners and below ledges and semi-camp them. The short range meta of this game actually helps in that ppl usually won't trigger your mines from too far away, so it's often possible to lay a beatdown on them if you're close by. This is good for ambushing someone, then using the opening their death creates to push forward. However in practice it is more difficult because this weapon is exceptionally poor at fighting more than one person at once, and that may happen very often in certain maps.

 

[The Salamander King]

How to do well with either Inkbrush:


Switch to any other weapon (except Tentabrella)