Mar$el
Inkling Commander
Okay now if you didn't already know, I'm a charger main, and yes, I do play E-Liter. This particular weapon gets a lot of flack, and after having quite a bit of experience with this weapon (along with other chargers to supplement this skill), I can strongly state that this weapon is indeed a good weapon and doesn't deserve the high amount of disdain it gets. In particular, I will be talking about the vanilla E-Liter with Ink Mines and Ink Storm.
Starting off the bat with the kit - obviously it's not the greatest, but it still does a considerably nice job of supplementing the weapon with what it needs. Ink Mines are terrific in close range combat, as you can not only place them at flanks, but also set them down where you are while anticipating close 1v1s. From here all you need to do is follow up with 2 taps or a partial charged shot or some combination and you'll come out alive. I prefer partial charges because you still get the reticle to help aim whereas the shot is a little off-centered and tougher to aim with tap shots. Ink Mines do chip damage, they locate enemies, they paint. A better sub than people give credit for.
Now on to the special. Ink Storm provides quite a few things. Firstly, it gives chip damage. This means finishing off weak enemies, while effectively decreasing your charge time. Second, because of it's damage and painting abilites, it zones enemies away from chokes or objectives or flanks, etc. Really anywhere you don't want them to be. Third, it damages enemies past barriers you can't see or snipe, making them move into your line of view or die. Well they die either way ;). And lastly, something that is often overlooked, this thing builds special like crazy. It's got a mere 170p required for special, and it paints really well with it's range (I also think people forget that chargers are decent painters). Smack some tenacity on your build for all those times you outlive your sub-par solo teammates and you'll end up with several storms in a single game.
Now as for the actual main weapon itself - it's still good. It honestly has more range than people perceive (especially given how little people use E-Liter) and you can snipe from some lengthy spots. This makes it a sort of safe and flexible weapon. You don't need to move up to their base to be helpful. Why not just stay in mid where you can further guarantee your safety and still get picks? Of course the long charge time can feel like a major burden, but after so much use, it's really not that noticeable, and given your extra safety in positioning along with a chip damage kit to help you out where it's
harder to get a fatal blow, you'll be all set. Now I don't recommend staying way far back just because you sort of can. Use your range offensively. I always rush to the best sniping spot near mid at the start of each match that helps me not only snipe folks in mid, but also people on the other side of the map. This varies map to map, but with some confidence in aim (and execution of said confidence) it won't matter as much when you put yourself at some more risk. One thing I like to think about and point out is that "my aim doesn't diminish just because I'm using a charger regarded as worse than the others. I still have the same good aim and now my effective killing range increased by a number of lines." This also applies to partial shots giving them more range as well. Chargers are quite flexible weapons given you can output 2 quick partial shots for a kill from a decent distance.
The most important part of making this work is having good aim. If you hit 3/4 of your shots in any given match - that's not good enough. I strongly encourage drilling aim in the firing range. It is you best friend. This goes for every weapon in the game. Here are some drills that helped me with some different types of snaps and just improving my aim overall.
For reference, this is my build. Sub power up is supposed to be swim but whatever.
Well I think that's all I have. If you have any questions or comments or criticism - I'd love to hear it! :)
Starting off the bat with the kit - obviously it's not the greatest, but it still does a considerably nice job of supplementing the weapon with what it needs. Ink Mines are terrific in close range combat, as you can not only place them at flanks, but also set them down where you are while anticipating close 1v1s. From here all you need to do is follow up with 2 taps or a partial charged shot or some combination and you'll come out alive. I prefer partial charges because you still get the reticle to help aim whereas the shot is a little off-centered and tougher to aim with tap shots. Ink Mines do chip damage, they locate enemies, they paint. A better sub than people give credit for.
Now on to the special. Ink Storm provides quite a few things. Firstly, it gives chip damage. This means finishing off weak enemies, while effectively decreasing your charge time. Second, because of it's damage and painting abilites, it zones enemies away from chokes or objectives or flanks, etc. Really anywhere you don't want them to be. Third, it damages enemies past barriers you can't see or snipe, making them move into your line of view or die. Well they die either way ;). And lastly, something that is often overlooked, this thing builds special like crazy. It's got a mere 170p required for special, and it paints really well with it's range (I also think people forget that chargers are decent painters). Smack some tenacity on your build for all those times you outlive your sub-par solo teammates and you'll end up with several storms in a single game.
Now as for the actual main weapon itself - it's still good. It honestly has more range than people perceive (especially given how little people use E-Liter) and you can snipe from some lengthy spots. This makes it a sort of safe and flexible weapon. You don't need to move up to their base to be helpful. Why not just stay in mid where you can further guarantee your safety and still get picks? Of course the long charge time can feel like a major burden, but after so much use, it's really not that noticeable, and given your extra safety in positioning along with a chip damage kit to help you out where it's
harder to get a fatal blow, you'll be all set. Now I don't recommend staying way far back just because you sort of can. Use your range offensively. I always rush to the best sniping spot near mid at the start of each match that helps me not only snipe folks in mid, but also people on the other side of the map. This varies map to map, but with some confidence in aim (and execution of said confidence) it won't matter as much when you put yourself at some more risk. One thing I like to think about and point out is that "my aim doesn't diminish just because I'm using a charger regarded as worse than the others. I still have the same good aim and now my effective killing range increased by a number of lines." This also applies to partial shots giving them more range as well. Chargers are quite flexible weapons given you can output 2 quick partial shots for a kill from a decent distance.
The most important part of making this work is having good aim. If you hit 3/4 of your shots in any given match - that's not good enough. I strongly encourage drilling aim in the firing range. It is you best friend. This goes for every weapon in the game. Here are some drills that helped me with some different types of snaps and just improving my aim overall.
For reference, this is my build. Sub power up is supposed to be swim but whatever.
Well I think that's all I have. If you have any questions or comments or criticism - I'd love to hear it! :)