Main Weapon Question

[Jayy]

It seems obvious to main a specific weapon and have the desire to perfect that weapon as much as you can. Thats what Im trying to do, but what is like, idk, the criteria I guess, in establishing a weapon as your main?

I go through long stints of doing really well with like 4 different weapons: n zap, splattershot jr and pro, tri slosher, yet I'll still run into the same issue of losing HARD for an X amount of games after doing so well with each one. A lot of the time I can't figure out why. And I think thats why I cycle through the weapons.

It makes me wonder if I haven't found my weapon yet or if thats just the nature of the game. But it doesn't seem to have brought me closer to figuring out my "main."

Of the 4 I mentioned I have the most fun with the tri-slosher but I don't feel like I am better with it over any of the other 3 considering the up and down nature of winning and losing with each one.

Thoughts?

 

[MindWanderer]

There's significant debate over whether one should in fact "main" a weapon in Splatoon. If you're good with the N-Zap, Jr., and Pro, that covers basically all shooters. I'd play around with all of them and see what you like. You can also choose based on the map and mode; for instance, the '85, Jr., and Forge Pro are very strong in Clam Blitz but, for instance, I prefer the Custom Jr. and normal Pro in Splat Zones. You're still early, so don't paint yourself into a corner (pun not intended) just yet.

 

[thundasi]

weapons are tied to game type and stage imo. i like duelies or tri slosher for for most moray towers games. port mack/walleye warehouse i like the sloshing machine cause its linear and tight so Stingray is most effective.Reef I love my ink storm.

 

[clefable]

For turf wars i use the slosher deco, but I've recently just been using aerospray since I've been needing money and i find that it does that well. I play ranked a little more than turf, and for that i use the octobrush nouveau or heavy splatling (typically heavy for tower control and octobrush for the others). I can't really find myself to just stick to one weapon for everything like some people prefer doing. Using the same thing every time would get boring i guess?
The only thing i deliberately avoid are chargers, can't use them to save my life. My hands are much too shaky to aim well, probably why i use brushes so often. My only criteria is that they must be easy to aim, and if it's not a brush, it needs good range.

 

[Mar$el]

I used to think I main a weapon or weapons but then I realized I just jump around a lot. If I really wanna win then I'll probably go with the N-Zap 85 as it's really flexible but before getting good at that weapon I would switch based on map and mode between range blaster and certain chargers and such. But now I just decide I wanna learn a weapon and I play it all the time and have fun using it. Right now I'm doing the Slosher Deco, and have been doing quite well with it. If your focus is fun then do what's fun. If you wanna go all in every match and win all the time then you should have some variety (not too much) so you can choose what will fit. I'd say some good weapons to know how to play really well in the current meta are the N-Zap 85, Sloshing Machine, Tri-Slosher, Forge Pro (And vanilla), and the range blaster (although it's weak to ink armor so be careful against zaps and tri sloshers and such).

 

[Dessgeega]

You're talking turf, right? Turf is chaos and the outcome can change in the last 30 seconds. Don't worry about that TOO much, focus more on your own performance in each match. Are you consistent in painting or kills?

A lot of players main 2-5 weapons for different modes and situations. It's a combination of knowing what works well in the metagame and using what feels best to you.

 

[BBGrenorange]

Pick a weapon that you enjoy, and that you're at lease moderately good with - because if you enjoy it, you're more motivated to get better.

Losing streaks happen all the time, just get used to them.

Stuff about map and mode has already been said.

 

[Wallflowercat]

I have a tendency to "main" dapple dualies, but that particular weapon doesn't have grenades until you reach your special. Each weapon has its perks and not-perks. I agree that it's good to become familiar with a few different weapon types, especially because of ranked and salmon run. I actually find salmon run to be a great way to force yourself into trying something new. Then you can take it to turf wars to see its strengths and weaknesses, and once you start to improve you can try it in ranked! Plus learning new weapons can make the game more challenging and interesting and makes it so there's always something new to learn.

 

[Padre]

Dont main one weapon, pick ones that suit the mode and maps.

I love brush on turf warehouse, but hate brush turf bumptrack. :)

 

[The Salamander King]

Everyone else is telling you to use something that feels natural to you eh?


WELL NOT ME

Just use the meta. If you think you're cool by using a different weapon, you're not, you're just a burden to your teammates, AND BY GOD I WANT GOOD TEAMMATES IN SOLO QUEUE.

You might think that it's a good idea to use that Inkbrush in Rainmaker, but your team does not, and let me tell you, carrying an underperforming player isn't fun.

A message from your friendly neighborhood Salamander.

 

[※Zachary]

I look at it this way, use a weapon that you can average around 16 splats with during each game. Whether that be turf or ranked. You need a weapon that can you push the objective with in ranked, but splat enough that it's an easy wipe.

 

[Jayy]

I look at it this way, use a weapon that you can average around 16 splats with during each game. Whether that be turf or ranked. You need a weapon that can you push the objective with in ranked, but splat enough that it's an easy wipe.

16 splats average good lord. I’m happy when I average 8-10. Guess I REALLY haven’t found my weapon yet. Then again I’m still trying to find my sweet spot of ink coverage to splat ratio as well.

Though I feel I get way more splats in ranked so maybe I’m just thinkin in a turf war mind set.

 

[Dessgeega]

Everyone else is telling you to use something that feels natural to you eh?


WELL NOT ME

Just use the meta. If you think you're cool by using a different weapon, you're not, you're just a burden to your teammates, AND BY GOD I WANT GOOD TEAMMATES IN SOLO QUEUE.

You might think that it's a good idea to use that Inkbrush in Rainmaker, but your team does not, and let me tell you, carrying an underperforming player isn't fun.

A message from your friendly neighborhood Salamander.

Kinda horrible advice here. There are weapons that are less viable, yes, but someone mindlessly using the "best" weapons can be just as much of a detriment if they don't enjoy it or know how to use it and as such don't perform well. You sound like you blame your teammates for their weapon choices and other factors, which is never a good practice. Any given player needs to be aware of the meta and find what works for them while still being enjoyable to play. A quote from Hitzel, a top player:

"Learn what's proven to work and dominate. Combine it with what you're good at, believe to be the best, and want to make work in a way that can legitimately survive in the wild. You must first know the rules before you can break them — poetic license isn't free."

Zachary's advice isn't great either. 16 splats a game is slayer territory and that's fine if that's your role, but there are pros that don't get that many because there's more to the game than just killing. Defense and map control and yes, playing the objective are also factors in winning the game. And if you're getting lots of kills in ranked mode, it also means you're not pushing the objective to decisive knock-out wins, your kill count doesn't matter as much if you kill foes at crucial moments and knock out in the first 2 minutes. 8-10 splats per match is a perfectly fine metric by the standards of most.

 

[※Zachary]

16 splats average good lord. I’m happy when I average 8-10. Guess I REALLY haven’t found my weapon yet. Then again I’m still trying to find my sweet spot of ink coverage to splat ratio as well.

Though I feel I get way more splats in ranked so maybe I’m just thinkin in a turf war mind set.

Ohhh.... I actually find 16 splats to be very little. I average 24- 29 in ranked. The best I've done is 31. :P

You are correct about Turf War. It is less consistent to reach large amount of splats in only 3 minutes. I average around 14-18 splats.

Best of luck finding a great weapon for your self! I recommend trying an N-ZAP.

Stay Fresh!

 

[Mar$el]

You can do quite well with any weapon you choose. Maybe not as much as a top level weapon but if you can find your role and have fun you're gonna do better. I started using the Slosher Deco which by most is considered pretty bad but I started getting shines on it. I've seen people do very well with low tier and meta weapons alike. Good gloogas, dynamos, carbons, and alike. I just played with a really good E-Liter on Zones Blackbelly and he barely died and got a good amount of kills.

 

[Dessgeega]

Ohhh.... I actually find 16 splats to be very little. I average 24- 29 in ranked. The best I've done is 31. :p

You are correct about Turf War. It is less consistent to reach large amount of splats in only 3 minutes. I average around 14-18 splats.

Best of luck finding a great weapon for your self! I recommend trying an N-ZAP.

Stay Fresh!

Spoiler: Is this your 31?

It sounds like you're the slayer on your team, which is great if that works for you, but if you're getting that many splats you're not playing the objective and as such still likely to lose if the enemy gets one good push. Your advice isn't exactly applicable to someone still learning the game, especially since you say nothing about HOW to achieve those kills or win matches. "git gud" is both shorter and more punchy if that's what you're going for :P

 

[Spaceswitchmars]

Your advice isn't exactly applicable to someone still learning the game, especially since you say nothing about HOW to achieve those kills or win matches. "git gud" is both shorter and more punchy if that's what you're going for :p

From what I can gather from that 31 splat game, get those kills by only playing low level/rank players and get 8 ink armors to pad the kill/assist stats with cheap ink armor "splats."

What I think is actually going on here is that our young friend Zachary is confusing the idea of "average" with the idea of "often." Just because you often get 24-29 splats doesn't mean you average 24-29 splats.

I have a hard time believing someone whose splat high is 31 averages in the upper 20s. That would mean there's not a single 4 splat KO to pull the average down. And with no abundance of 30-40 splat games to even out the random low splat game, a 24-29 splat average is pretty close to impossible.

The good news here is that this misunderstanding of what "average" means actually makes Zachary's advice better. If he's not expecting someone to average 16 kills, but instead expects that person to often reach 16 kills, that's much more doable. In most (not every) role, you should be able to get a decent amount of splats in a game on the regular. If you never do, well, that's a possible issue unless you're doing other stuff really well.

Now, Zachary is probably a better player than I am, but I will say that splat averages tend to go down the higher you climb the ranks. If this youngblood is still pulling regular 24-29 splat games against 1900+ power levels, excellent. That's some good slaying. Just remember that your lower-splat teammates are probably doing objective-based stuff that helps equally.

 

[Elecmaw]

You only ever need to worry about your team comp if you're planning on playing in teams, when you're playing solo you can basically rock any weapon you do best with.
And even then N-Zap '85 is considered to be the best weapon of the game, and as such is desirable in any team comp. If you have to main any weapon, stick to that one. I wouldn't get too concerned about this if i were you :)

And really, losing streaks happen to everyone. My record is currently standing at 19-31, a week earlier those numbers were flipped around. This game has it's ups and downs.

 

[ThatSquidYouKnow]

Everyone else is telling you to use something that feels natural to you eh?


WELL NOT ME

Just use the meta. If you think you're cool by using a different weapon, you're not, you're just a burden to your teammates, AND BY GOD I WANT GOOD TEAMMATES IN SOLO QUEUE.

You might think that it's a good idea to use that Inkbrush in Rainmaker, but your team does not, and let me tell you, carrying an underperforming player isn't fun.

A message from your friendly neighborhood Salamander.

Having fun? In my kid’s game? It’s more common than you’d think.

Honestly though, let people enjoy the game. As much as you’d like to pretend Splatoon is some hyper competitive game only the elite can master, when it comes down to it it’s just a kid’s game. Stop taking yourself, the game, and the ranked mode so seriously and relaaaax.



As to the main thread, I’d give advice but every one else has already said it better than me so /shrug

 

[The Salamander King]

Kinda horrible advice here. There are weapons that are less viable, yes, but someone mindlessly using the "best" weapons can be just as much of a detriment if they don't enjoy it or know how to use it and as such don't perform well. You sound like you blame your teammates for their weapon choices and other factors, which is never a good practice. Any given player needs to be aware of the meta and find what works for them while still being enjoyable to play. A quote from Hitzel, a top player:

"Learn what's proven to work and dominate. Combine it with what you're good at, believe to be the best, and want to make work in a way that can legitimately survive in the wild. You must first know the rules before you can break them — poetic license isn't free."

Zachary's advice isn't great either. 16 splats a game is slayer territory and that's fine if that's your role, but there are pros that don't get that many because there's more to the game than just killing. Defense and map control and yes, playing the objective are also factors in winning the game. And if you're getting lots of kills in ranked mode, it also means you're not pushing the objective to decisive knock-out wins, your kill count doesn't matter as much if you kill foes at crucial moments and knock out in the first 2 minutes. 8-10 splats per match is a perfectly fine metric by the standards of most.

You took that seriously? That was (or should have been) an over exaggeration of my feeling for people that bring known terrible weapons into S+ Ranked. If you want a serious piece of advice, I'll say the same thing. Don't play awful weapons. It's as simple as that.

Here is a quick list of weapons I hate seeing on my team:
Flingza Roller
Foil Flingza Roller
Any Inkbrush
Carbon Roller
Goo Tuber
Tentabrella

I think that's it for now, but it may lengthen or shrink depending on patches and so on.