Time-to-splat in Splatoon 3 is shockingly high in many cases. Lots of weapons can splat you in a single hit, and the ones who can’t, have more than enough ‘oomph’ in other areas to down you before you can comprehend what’s going on. This is especially true for beginners to the game/series.
If you want to be able to be a bit more cagey, perhaps a smidge more defensive or supportive, then Splatoon 3 has a weapon that might be up your alley – Brellas. Brellas are one part umbrella and one part shotgun. They are tanky, powerful, and a blast to play once you get a feel for their intricacies.
More Splatoon 3 content:
Roller Guide | Splatling Guide | Brush Guide | Stringer Guide | Splatana Guide |
What Are Brellas?
Brellas are shotguns with deployable shields. Brellas largely operate in the same way across the board, although there are some slight changes between each entry. As a general rule, however, they like to get in people’s faces and splat them with powerful shots and an unshakable defence.
How To Use Brellas In Splatoon 3
Brellas have two modes of fire. You can either tap fire your Brella by pressing ZR, and this will fire your Brella. If you hold ZR, however, you will deploy your Brella as a shield. This will prevent you from firing, but it will also protect you, and any allies standing behind it. If you hold ZR for long enough, the Brella shield will launch off of your Brella and act like a mobile shield that pushes in the direction you were facing.
Do note that you can fire through your own Brella!
Brellas are excellent at pushing territory with your team, and keeping that team alive whilst doing it. They are incredibly powerful tools at the right time, but they do have some downsides that keep them from a truly dominant force.
Firstly, they are all slow firing. This makes them very unforgiving as every miss will drastically increase your chance of being splatted in return. Not only that, but for the most part, they also have terrible range. If you aren’t in your opponent’s face, you aren’t doing anything.
Topping all of that off is the lack of coverage Brellas provide. They don’t ink effectively for the most part, and this funnels them down one very specific path. If you enjoy that path, then this weapon will be a blast. If you want a bit more freedom, you may be left feeling a bit disappointed here.
How To Use The Splat Brella
The Splat Brella is the perfect middle ground when it comes to Brellas. It does everything you want a Brella to do, but it doesn’t do any one part outstandingly. This makes sense as it is also the first Brella you will get your hands on. It has great damage and its shield is very effective, however, its range is pitiful and against multiple enemies, it may struggle to protect your team.
Not only that, but the Splat Brellas shield HP isn’t the highest, meaning it will collapse after a short period if enough enemies concentrate their fire.
Sub
A common weakness of Brellas is their inability to ink. This is resolved instantly with the Sprinkler. Throw this somewhere, and walk away. It really is that simple. It doesn’t help with the Splat Brella’s ranged problem, unfortunately (although we have something else for that…)
Special
Triple Inkstrike rounds out the Splat Brellas kit with a powerful ranged tool that can be used to splat enemies, displace stationary targets, and generally be a nuisance. This lets the Splat Brella reach out and touch enemies who are out of range, and helps elevate the Splat Brella nicely.
How To Use The Tenta Brella
If you want to be a fortress, then the Tenta Brella is for you. In exchange for clunkier movement and higher ink consumption, the Tenta Brella provides you with a barrier that can easily protect multiple teammates. Not only that, but the Tenta Brella’s shield can take much more punishment before breaking, making it an excellent tool for pushing.
Like with the Splat Brella, the Tenta Brella can also launch its shield, allowing your team to run behind it whilst it inks a trail through your opponent’s turf, making it a nightmare to deal with when used correctly. Throw in OHK damage at close range and a longer range than the Splat Brella, and you have yourself a very powerful piece of kit.
Sub
The Tenta Brella is a support piece through and through, and this is backed up by the Squid Beakon. You can place three of these things down, and they act as a spawn point for your team. This is incredibly useful if you have pushed into enemy turf as you can hide these in little nooks to allow your team to reinforce or even start new offensives with zero downtime.
Special
The Tenta Brella is already a monstrously powerful defensive tool, but it is made even more potent by the Ink Vac. This allows you to absorb any Ink (or bombs) thrown your way. The more you absorb, the more powerful your retaliation will be. Once the Special is fully charged (or the timer runs out), you fire off a powerful explosive bomb with a variable AOE. This can devastate enemy teams if they get caught out by it.
How To Use The Undercover Brella
The Undercover Brella is the polar opposite of the Tenta Brella. Instead of being a team-boosting fortress of death, the Undercover Brella is more of a solo-players excursion into the Brella line. Losing the ability to launch your Brella, as well as taking a hit to both range and damage, the Undercover Brella makes up for this by allowing you to fire freely with the Brella deployed.
This makes fighting an Undercover Brella user a nightmare, as enemies are at a massive disadvantage. Of course, the Undercover Brella is weaker as a whole, so it can break if enough shots are absorbed, but in a 1v1 scenario, the Undercover Brella is very hard to deal with from the front.
The downside is that many of the more powerful weapons in Splatoon can break your shield in a single hit, leaving you exposed. Blasters in particular are a nightmare as they operate in the same circle as you, have longer range, and can destroy your Brella and splat you before you get a chance to fight back. Ouch.
This makes the Undercover Brella a hard pick as against the wrong match-up, you are basically dead weight in a fight.
Sub
Ink Mine is a bit of utility that the Undercover Brella didn’t need. It tags enemies who walk over them, but that’s about it. This Sub is great for loadouts that are a bit more static, but not so good on a close-combat scrapper like the Undercover Brella.
Special
Thankfully the Reefslider comes in and saves the day. The Reefslider adds some much-needed speed, range, and damage to the Undercover Brella. This lets you get into the thick of things, disrupt the enemy, and then get to work with your Brella. Excellent for breaking through an entrenched position or pushing a group of enemies back.
That’s all we have on Brellas. Keep an eye out for future weapon guides. Happy splatting!
