Splatoon 3’s specials are just as important as its wide variety of weapons. A good or bad special can make or break a weapon. The delicate balance between being good enough to see real usage but not seeing heavy nerfs long-term is difficult with a shooter as unique as Splatoon.
RELATED:Best Weapons In Splatoon 3
Many of the specials on this list should see major changes in the coming months. That being said, as things stand right now, all the specials on this list are viable in most situations. With that out of the way, here are the ten best specials right now in Splatoon 3.
10Zipcaster
One of the least exciting new specials, the Zipcaster, offers a brand-new range and threats to anchor weapons that did not exist previously. Prior to the Zipcaster’s inclusion, players would have to go around and flank backline players and approach them from behind or throw a sub-weapon. One of the several new specials that threaten anchors, Zipcaster allows players to grab onto walls and quickly travel to higher ground, offering a brand new offensive approach.
Players can charge forward to backline players or simply get around an enemy push more easily and deal damage. Players can even use this to just offer a distraction before being warped back to their original position.
9Killer Wail 5.1
Another of the specials that force enemies to reposition, the Killer Wail 5.1, is very different from the original Wail in Splatoon 1. The Wail 5.1 fires six separate lasers that track enemies across the map and slowly deal damage over time. While the lasers themselves do not deal significant damage and can be quite easily avoided by either jumping or switching to squid form and going underneath them, they offer invaluable information for you and your team.
The ability to quickly see where enemies are positioned is a major advantage for teams looking to make a push either in Turf War or in ranked game modes like Tower Control and Rainmaker.
8Tenta Missiles
Noticing a theme here? The last of the ‘reposition’ specials are also the most effective damage dealer of the three. Users can target up to 4 enemies as long as they are within the same vision cone. The long completion time of the Special can be spent making a push on the enemy.
The special is somewhat easy to avoid but is incredibly frustrating to deal with, especially for the back line and heavy weapons with heavy meta usage, like the E-liter 4k and the Hydra Splatling. More coordinated teams can run two weapons with Tenta missiles and potentially wipe teams when playing smaller maps.
7Crab Tank
While not at the top of the list, Crab Tank is definitely the most fun of the new specials in Splatoon 3. When active, players transform into an armored crab-like-tank that can fire ink as rapidly and as far as a splatling class weapon, along with the ability to send charged shots a further distance. The downside is players move very slowly while using it, and the more mobile ball form has a long wind-up period before players can actually move.
This special should never be used as a last-ditch effort before death and is best served starting from a safe, backed-up position before activating.
6Wave Breaker
Maybe the most ‘not Splatoon’ special added in Splatoon 3 is the Wave Breaker. When active, players can drop a large beacon device that sends out massive circular shock waves that travel through parts of the map. If the waves make contact with the enemy, it will deal a static 45 damage and mark the enemy for your entire team for seven seconds.
The waves can be avoided by jumping, but this can be quite difficult in the middle of an engagement. Wave Breaker should be thrown in more aggressive positions, ideally near choke points, but also safely surrounded by a part of the map that obscures it.
5Ultra Stamp
Another special returning from Splatoon 2, the Ultra Stamp saw several buffs, ultimately becoming an incredibly frustrating special in the game, but not enough to see heavy competitive usage. Splatoon 3 reduces the hitbox of the weapons, but also heavily improves its thrown form, which can be done by throwing the special like a regular sub bomb.
The Stamp can be deadly in close quarters and congested choke point heavy maps. While Stamp users can be picked off from a distance, its real prowess lies in its very quick turf-covering ability, which can swing Turf War games when used late in games.
Ink Vac is an insanely good special that has been undersold by players thus far in Splatoon 3. While deployed, the Vacuum sucks in enemy ink shot at the player and turns that additional ink into a buff for its eventual bomb form at the end of the special. When deployed at its best form, it becomes a better version of the Booyah bomb.
RELATED:Splatoon 3: How To Use The Ink Vac Special Weapon
Getting players to shoot at you is easier said than done. Where this weapon really shines is on Tower Control and Rainmaker, where the Vac can completely negate an enemy counter-push in the final seconds and single-handedly swing games.
3Big Bubbler
Similar to the Ink Vac’s defensive ability, the Big Bubbler deploys a large bubble shield that teammates can shoot through but enemies cannot. Several special weapons, such as the Reefslider and Booyah Bomb, ignore the bubble, but the bubble does destroy most sub-weapons that come its way. The Bubbler can be destroyed by shooting the top of the bubble.
Like the Ink Vac, the Bubbler is best used by throwing one down on the cart on Tower Control or the checkpoint on Rainmaker, allowing your team to have serious cover when making a game-changing push.
2Triple Inkstrike
When activated, players have up to three beacons that can be fired like a sub-weapon. When thrown, these beacons mark where a missile will land on the map. These missiles explode similarly to the Booyah Bomb and the Ink Vac’s charge.
The Inkstrike’s real advantage is being able to be thrown down in different locations. The downside is the inability to drop into squid form or pull out your weapons for the duration, so Inkstrikes are best served being quickly dropped down before enemies can take advantage.
1Booyah Bomb
The most feared special in Splatoon 2 makes a strong return in the latest game. The ability to quickly drop a wide-ranging area-denying projectile from across the map and quickly clear an objective or even wipe an entire team is insane.
Your teammates can use the down-directional button to ‘booyah’ and increase the size of your bomb projectile. The bomb works great in any game mode, either good for long-ranging turf coverage in a turf war or a game-changing area denial in an obvious target like the cart on Tower Control or the point in Splat Zones. Booyah Bomb is a monster that changes casual and ranked modes for regular and competitive players alike.
NEXT:Steam’s Concurrent Player Count Record Has Been Broken With Over 30 Million Online Users
