Splatoon 3 has quite an interesting array of weapons due to its ink-based nature. Brushes and Rollers are arguably some of the most unique weapons in the game, but that doesn’t mean other weapons don’t shine. In fact, the last remaining ‘odd’ weapon has to be the humble bucket – otherwise known as Sloshers.
Sloshers do exactly what you’d expect – at least at first. Sloshers are buckets of paint that you fling at people, the ground, and just about everything in between. They are powerful but require a very specific playstyle to use well. They have a bunch of strengths, and a bunch of weaknesses, but end up being buckets of fun when all is said and done.
More Splatoon 3 content:
Roller Guide | Splatling Guide | Brush Guide | Stringer Guide | Splatana Guide
What Are Sloshers?
Sloshers come in many varieties, although you’d be forgiven if you thought all Sloshers followed the formula set by your entry-level Slosher, the Slosher (creatively named, we know). Some sloshers are short ranged, others are long-range, heck, the occasional few are downright explosive. All you need to know is that they are typically very slow, and are excellent at inking large areas in a jiffy.
How To Use Sloshers In Splatoon 3
Sloshers are incredibly simple to use. You press ZR and you fling ink. That’s it. There are no more controls to learn, you just fling ink and have a good time. Of course, there is a knack to flinging ink, but there is only one button you need to know, and it’s the aforementioned ZR.
Sloshers love elevated terrain, and you absolutely want to make your way to these locations as quickly as possible. This will not only extend your range, but due to your arcing projectiles, it will allow you to splat enemies encroaching on your turf. Since Sloshers are excellent at getting coverage, being elevated also lets you cover more space with your buckets of ink.
There are some things to bear in mind when playing with Sloshers, however. Firstly, you are very slow when flinging ink. Your movement speed tanks whenever you pull that trigger, and this makes you a sitting duck in a combat scenario. Secondly, Sloshers use a lot of ink. You will find yourself refilling your tank constantly with Sloshers, so build gear to help alleviate this and be prepared to sit in your ink for extended periods.
How To Use The Slosher
The Slosher is the first Slosher you will get your hands on, and thankfully, it’s one of the best. The Slosher is fairly short ranged, eats a lot of ink per fling, but has excellent coverage, can throw ink out at a decent speed, and can splat enemies in two hits.
Because of how the Slosher works with its projectiles, you can use the terrain to your advantage. Enemies hiding behind corners or on ledges above (or below) you are easy targets, and more often than not you can damage (or even splat) enemies without them being able to effectively retaliate.
Sub
Splatbomb is one of the better Subs in the game. It has enough damage to instantly splat anyone caught in the AOE, it can be thrown a hefty distance, and it can be used to disrupt longer-range enemies, like Chargers or Splatlings. This lets you move in for the splat yourself. A powerful tool with lots of uses. Use it often.
Special
Triple Inkstrike is a great Special that only gets better as you learn how to use it. Triple Inkstrike is excellent once you start to learn how to lead enemies. Basically, you need to throw this where the enemy is going, not where they are. Not only that, this Special has a lot of range, once again mitigating the Sloshers main weakness. A great complement to an excellent weapon.
How To Use The Tri-Slosher
The Tri-Slosher is very much in the same school of thought as the Slosher. Important to note, however, this is not an upgrade. It is more of a side grade that might appeal to you more depending on your style.
The Tri-Slosher takes a hit to both its damage, range, and ink consumption but makes up for it by providing a much higher rate of fire. This allows the Tri-Slosher to be more aggressive, and since it still splats in two hits, you can get some shocking quick splats once you get in range.
Other than that, the Tri-Slosher operates very much like the standard Slosher, which isn’t a bad thing at all.
Sub
Unfortunately, its Sub is pretty underwhelming. Toxic Mist is a pretty middling Sub at best, and whilst you can use it to hinder movement and whatnot, you are probably best saving your Ink for flings. It just doesn’t do enough in our opinion.
Special
Inkjet on the other hand is fantastic and gives the Tri-Slosher something it has been missing – range. Inkjet launches you into the air, gives you a powerful ink launcher, and lets you fly around blasting enemies from a very advantageous position. Once the timer runs out, you are launched back to the location you activated the ability, letting you escape from dangerous situations with ease.
How To Use The Sloshing Machine
The Sloshing Machine is a huge step up from other Sloshers – which is saying something because we already like the other Sloshers in this guide. The Sloshing Machine is in a league of its own, however, and this is thanks to an amazing loadout and a powerful main weapon.
What makes it odd is that the Sloshing Machine doesn’t fling ink in the traditional sense. Instead, the Sloshing Machine fires ink out in a spinning, linear projectile that goes further than other Sloshers and deals more damage. This allows the Sloshing Machine to operate at medium range with relative ease.
Unfortunately, one of the downsides of this linear projectile is that the Sloshing Machine takes a noticeable hit to its ink potential. You can ink, it’s just not very effective and it will munch through your ink reserves whenever you try. Not only that, but the Sloshing Machine is also comparatively slow, making it far less effective at close quarters.
Thankfully the Sloshing Machine has access to some of the best tools in the entire game to make up for its minor shortcomings.
Sub
Firstly, we have the Fizzy Bomb. This thing is hands down one of the best Subs in the entire game because it can be used to do so many things. You can ink, you can pressure enemies, can disrupt anchors, and more. Heck, you can shake the bottle to make it even more explosive. An all-around excellent item.
Special
This is then followed up by the phenomenal Booyah Bomb, which gives the Sloshing Machine even more range, and a massive AOE to boot. The Booyah Bomb is disruptive at worst, and deadly at best. Any weapon with access to the Booyah Bomb is instantly elevated – not that the Sloshing Machine needed it!
How To Use The Bloblobber
The Bloblobber is another interesting weapon that mixes up the Slosher formula. Instead of launching ink, the Bloblobber fires off bounces balls of ink. This has a few benefits, firstly, it can cover really well – if somewhat unpredictably. Secondly, it has a lot of range. In fact, it more than doubles the range of many Sloshers, making it pretty darn handy when in a scrap.
There are downsides, however. Firstly, the Bloblobber is slow. The projectiles move slowly and deal low individual damage. This means enemies can very easily avoid the projectiles at long range, and up close, they are hard to aim due to how clunky the weapon is. That being said, if you can land your blobs, you can kill an enemy in a single fling – you just need four blobs to land on target.
Sub
Unfortunately, the Bloblobber doesn’t have the best Sub since it’s stuck with the Sprinkler. This Sub is great on some weapons, but on the Bloblobber, it feels like it doesn’t do enough. You already have great coverage, and what you need is a bit more combat potential. Even Toxic Mist would have been preferable here.
Special
This is made up somewhat by the excellent Ink Storm which not only covers a large area in Ink but also debilitates any enemy caught in it, making them easy targets for your Bloblobber. Without this, the Bloblobber would likely have been a hard sell. With it, it’s a bit easier to swallow.
How To Use The Explosher
The Explosher takes what the Sloshing Machine does, and then does it with a bigger bang. The Explosher has very high damage, an excellent range, and due to the exploding nature of your ink, can cover exceptionally well. The downside? The Explosher is incredibly slow, making it useless in close combat situations.
Not only that, all of that extra power is wasted since it still requires two hits to splat, making it no more effective (in theory) than many of its competitors. The final nail is the shockingly high ink consumption. You will drain your reserves faster than you can blink. A lot has been sacrificed for the bonus range and damage, and frankly, we don’t think it was worth the trade.
Sub
Point Sensor does fit the Explosher very well, however. Due to the exploding ink, the Explosher is excellent at pressuring enemies hiding behind corners or walls. The Point Sensor lets you (and your team) spot and track enemies, making the Explosher more effective.
Special
We’ve already talked about Ink Storm and it’s no different here. Ink Storm is an excellent Special and it does help push the Explosher up a few notches. It’s just a shame the Explosher itself is such a tricky weapon.
That’s all we have the Splatoon 3’s Sloshers. Keep an eye out for future weapon guides. Happy Sloshing!
