Is it too far in Tower Control (7-12, Fresh Squiffer)

I almost look like a pro, squiffing towards the Tower, chucking a Suction Bomb ahead of me. Right until I throw a Suction Bomb at the Splatterscope on the perch, and hit the ramp right in front of me. Never mind, no one probably saw that. I retreat to cover the Tower's progress, and when that's almost immediately halted I just go with my flow and head around the side. I'm not sure what I can do there, which probably shows.

My squidmates push the Tower back, as the Splat charger applies pressure in the wrong direction. I lob a bomb or two in that direction before one hits the mark, and the Splat Charger predictably drops down out of trouble. And pops up around the corner. But, in a brief spell of competence, I out-draw her, and whilst hampered by being right-handed. Not too shabby!

I get caught up in the ink after that, but still somehow come out on top, splatting two inklings with one panic-thrown Suction Bomb. And still the Tower trundles on. We're looking good at the moment. On our next push we get even further, and I think I help! I splat the Splat Charger from the side, from the bridge, which is immensely satisfying, and help take some pressure off with another decent splat. I don't quite jump in time to help reclaim a cleared Tower, though.

From the water, straight in to an Inkzooka waiting for me. The amount of teal ink on our turf looks a bit ominous, like the tables are about to be turned. A Splat Bomb Rush rolling our way doesn't help matters, and as the inky pressure continues to build, the Tower keeps eating in to our lead.Yeah, we're in trouble. It's not going to get better with my defence. The aiming under pressure I showed earlier has evaporated!

A Suction Bomb helps, but it's a squidmate who gets us out of immediate trouble, pushing the Tower backwards a bit before hopping off and letting it do its thing. We're still under a lot of inkling pressure, though. Two things happen. One is that the teal inklings go looking for the Tower. The other is that I choose the alternative route out of our base. I think the first thing makes more difference, particularly as I end up in the water, throwing a Suction Bomb under the bridge as I go.

Still, at least we're out of our base and the turf is looking orange. We've all but lost the battle, with under thirty seconds to go and needing to just about get the knockout just to win. We push the battle in to extra time, barely claiming the Tower in time, but it feels like a long way to go, with one attempt, after having been locked down for a couple of minutes. But we can try.

Super-jumping is the way to go. One by one, we super-jump to the Tower and hope to stick to it long enough for the next squidmate to super-jump to replace us. We are helped by a couple of teal inklings, one quite hilariously obvious, falling in to the water instead of jumping on to the Tower, and still we super-jump forwards. It's a bit cheesy normally, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Little by little the Tower continues, and with a Suction Bomb from me, and some rapid shooting by a squidmate, we keep it pushing forwards, all the way to retaking the lead. That was pretty intense, and one of the longest comebacks I've been a part of. Woomy!

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Tags: camp triggerfish, console, fresh squiffer, splatoon, tower control, wii u

Bombs away in Tower Control (6-4, Fresh Squiffer)

Nice shot on the back of my squidmate's head there. If only my aim was that good at a moving target all the time. But wait, I splat the Splatling first try! Nice. I push ahead, brimming with confidence, and the Tower starts coming our way. A really nice Suction Bomb throw catches an inkling off-guard, and it looks like maybe we can make a decent initial push. Then the bombs start flying in. Oh well.

I clear up after an interloper, and don't quite make the jump over the partition, don't quite make it up the inked wall, and then don't quite make it up the inked block. I have been a squid before, honest. I see our interloper has returned, and go to chase her off, but she evades me, supporting the Tower. That's okay, my squidmates return the Tower, sans interloper, and I help it head back the other way.

The bombs start coming again, everything getting quite inky, but this time I have a Kraken ready. I'm pretty sure just chilling on the Tower isn't what the Kraken is best at, but it seems to help. It extends our lead, at least. And I jump off to splat the Splatling at just the right moment, although I relinquish control of the Tower to do so and have to chase it all the way back to the centre.

We have a bit of a tussle in the middle of Kelp Dome for a bit, neither side giving much way, and I hang around until my inner Kraken comes out again. I aim to clear the Tower, but it's cleared before I reach it, and I try to ride it a bit, but my Kraken calms down before I get far. And the bombs come flying in.

I miss a whole bunch of shots, almost looking like the purple team will make a successful bid for the lead, but my squidmates have us covered, and at least I am spreading green ink around. My Kraken charges, which is good, so I head towards the Tower to help it along whilst invulnerable. A Splat Bomb rolls out, though, and I think my Kraken can better help clear the way. So I do that.

Time is running out for the purple team, and although we trade bombs for a bit, we keep control of the Tower by hopping on and off, right until an Inkzooka spoils our fun. The purple team have one last push to get right across the map for the victory, but they barely get a few metres before being stopped. That means we win, woomy!

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Tags: console, fresh squiffer, kelp dome, splatoon, tower control, wii u

Blasted Slosher in Rainmaker (12-8, Blaster)

Using the boxes to shield me from the Rainmaker's bursting shield is a pretty good idea. Maybe not so good that it puts me in to the sights of most of the purple inklings, but never mind, lesson learnt. By the time I return, which really doesn't take the long, the purple team have made an aggressive push. With that covering Killer Wail, they'd undoubtedly get further too, had I not chosen to jink down the corridor to flank them through the gap.

I nearly get a quad. If my initial shot was better, I would have. Silly purple inklings, being so close to each other, getting a solid lead. But we stop them all as a team, and now we get a chance to push back. I hope my Killer Wail does something, even without splats, and I head around the side to provide some flanking support. I kinda get caught up with the E-litre 3K, but my little Blaster wins that spat, and turning back catches another inkling in my sights.

Off to find the Rainmaker, and although I don't catch her with a solid blast, my Killer Wail pushes her in to our ink so we can stop the push. We grab the Rainmaker, and I try to blaze a path, just to the side of a Killer Wail. But the Rainmaker gets stopped behind me, and my path carries me in to the Slosher. I work my way forwards and behind the Rainmaker as it comes back our way, surprising it somewhat, but the E-litre 3K by its side evades me. I pretty much waste a Killer Wail on this little feud, only to be sloshed aside once again.

Stopping another purple push, closer than ever to their goal, I head back towards the middle hoping to catch some inklings unaware. I think I do a good job of splatting the E-litre 3K off a threatening perch, but I don't hear that double-hit in time, and a second inkling, the Slosher of course, drops down to splat me in return.

Still the purple team push. Still we just about hold them off. A Killer Wail on top of our base seems unpleasant, but we can sneak out from that. Rather easier than getting out of sight of the E-litre 3K, who looks to splat me clean through a solid wall. Not much you can do about that, really. I try the left corridor for a change, which gets me splatted by the Dual Squelcher for a change, who looks to be mostly inking turf to charge her Killer Wail. I suppose it's a tactic, if one I consider pretty cheesy.

We get one last shot at the Rainmaker as the battle enters extra time. I try to sneak around the side, but am stopped by the Slosher. Stopped, but not splatted, thanks to my Bubbler. I head the other way to support my squidmates more directly, and almost splat the Slosher, but the battle ends a split-second too soon for that, as we lose the Rainmaker. Oh well.

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Tags: blaster, console, rainmaker, splatoon, walleye warehouse, wii u

Carrying the Rainmaker (6-9, Blaster)

Holding back a little doesn't do me any favours here, but at least it indirectly gets me to where the Rainmaker is, albeit it heading towards our podium. As my Killer Wail charges bursting the Rainmaker Shield, it seems like a good time to use it and grab the Rainmaker. Even getting a little stuck on a corner, I get much further than I would have thought. Nice!

My squidmates catch up to my run, burst the Rainmaker's Shield, and get even closer to the knockout by the time I'm super-jumping their way. They are stopped short again, but our lead looks pretty solid. The green team make the good decision to focus on splatting us before the breaking the Rainmaker free, and in the mess of ink that comes our way, I don't realise for a second that I survive the first explosion. Not the second, though.

Hopefully we can defend this lead. Well, hopefully we can extend our lead to a knockout, but that can get tricky in the Warehouse. It's not helped by my aiming rather lacking still. I keep insisting on using the Carbon Roller and Tri-slosher most often, whose requirements for aiming are delightfully loose, and it is normally a little startling to return to a blaster or charger, at least initially. But practice keeps me vaguely competent.

At the very least, keeping the turf purple will prevent easy movement by the green team, which really is a good defence. Holding back to keep the channels purple, instead of pushing for splats, doesn't get me in to too much trouble. Indeed, the Rainmaker comes to me instead, in a corridor where I would be rightly embarrassed if I missed, at least on the second shot.

Bursting the Rainmaker is a doddle with just my Blaster unopposed. I see a purple path ahead of me. Why not grab the Rainmaker again? Why not indeed. Inking the top of the shortcut block is complicated by the recoil of the Rainmaker, but I squid up to head around the side. Somehow, I once more get further than I reasonably expected, and end with a splat. I also recognise that pushing the Rainmaker towards your opponents is also a good defence.

I head back the same route, along with our E-litre 3K, who shows more caution than me. I am feeling confident now, after all, and although I stand still on top of a Splat Bomb, I manage to get my Killer Wail fired. It doesn't catch the super-jumper, not lasting quite long enough, but it bursts the Rainmaker's Shield, splatting the Splat Bomber in return. I'll take that trade.

We can wait to see which way the Rainmaker comes, made easier by their needing to ink the turf first. I see something squid my way, and although I think the first shot is good, it takes a second to make it count, a second that lets them splat me back. So it goes. The Rainmaker is stopped anyway, and a squidmate grabs it. Maybe by accident. Still, it gives him a mystical deflection bonus against Inkzookas, which I lack.

With precious few seconds remaining, our Rainmaker carrier heads backwards. Hopefully we won't regret this decision, and it seems he's judged the situation well. The green team aren't close enough to force a mistake. I think I even have time for a little victory dance. Woomy!

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Tags: blaster, console, rainmaker, splatoon, walleye warehouse, wii u

The Rainmaker's not going far (13-9, Carbon Roller Deco)

Sneaking across the gap on Flounder Heights works when the other team isn't rushing to control the objective. To be honest, I'm surprised I'm not splatted from the side when I'm trying to splat the inkling on the ledge. But it just takes a little longer before I'm caught.

The Rainmaker stays where it is for a bit longer, but is eventually grabbed by a squidmate. I surge forwards, hoping it will follow my ink, but the progress seems somewhat sluggish. Maybe stuff is happening I can't see. I ink some turf towards the podium anyway, and the Rainmaker does start pushing forwards, and gets a decent distance, if not unsurmountable. It's a good start, at least.

Returning to give chase to the green Rainmaker takes me one way and another, but I avoid most attention. What I do forget is my Seekers, for some reason, which would have been rather helpful in catching up with a Rainmaker squidding down a straight corridor. Silly me. Bumping in to the other Carbon Roller gets me nowhere but back to base, and then I only have eyes for the Rainmaker. I'm lucky to sneak under the flicking Carbon Roller to get the splat too.

I'm rather conscious of the Splatterscope aiming down at me, so squid to the other side of the building to be less of a target. This would work better if I could flick ink high enough, and not drop through grates. I try to make the best of the situation, helped by my squidmates effectively sending inklings my way. I'm not quite quick enough to do the opposite favour for them, though, and our Rainmaker is stopped again.

Some battling occurs around the top of the Heights. At one point I send a Seeker towards the Rainmaker that works out much better than intended, splatting the Rainmaker as soon as it is grabbed. The green team get their own back, when their Carbon Roller appears just as I try to take control. The Rainmaker starts coming back our way, but gets mired in blue ink, letting me sneak around a blast to stop it again.

I dodge a Killer Wail, just about clinging to the roof, whilst the Rainmaker sits idle, and splat the Carbon Roller to make everything look safe. It only looks safe, mind you, and inklings appear from two sides when I decide it safe to grab the Rainmaker and run. The Rainmaker really isn't making it far across the roof, one way or the other.

An Inkzooka threatens, but pushes himself off the roof. A Killer Wail surges across us. The Inkzooka carrier reappears, probably not expecting me to have waited. A Splattershot can't dislodge me. The Rainmaker can, quite easily. And with a few seconds to go, the green team manage to pass their previous best position. Not enough to beat our lead, which we haven't increased since, but I feel it worthy of mentioning anyway.

The green team are stopped short, and can't reclaim the Rainmaker to push the battle in to extra time. Early pushes from both sides pretty much settled the battle, after which we fought mostly on the roof. Good battle, everyone!

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Tags: carbon roller deco, console, flounder heights, rainmaker, splatoon, wii u

Charging back in Rainmaker (13-6, Tri-slosher)

I try not to charge directly in to trouble to start the battle, which pretty much works. But I pretty much only get behind the purple team when they push the Rainmaker, and even then my initial cautious approach has my lagging somewhat behind the action. At least I pop my Bubbler in time, and splat a threatening Inkzooka, at which point my squidmates stop the Rainmaker. But the purple team have taken a fairly commanding lead, for Urchin Underpass.

As the Rainmaker Shield looks quite purple as I head towards it, I am dubious as to whether we can fight back effectively. A squidmate's Killer Wail helps to start with, getting the purple inklings away and the Rainmaker in to our tentacles. And we're all around the Rainmaker for the push back, each of us lending our support.

I get a lucky splat from sloshing, I pop my Bubbler to help us feel safer, and the purple team are not to be seen as our Rainmaker carrier surges through the grate, snatching the lead away from the purple team immediately. Nice! A bit more sloshing and inking gets the Rainmaker almost on top of the podium, and it's only Inkstrikes that stops us from getting the knockout. I didn't quite expect us to come back so convincingly so quickly, but that was excellent!

Now the purple team are in trouble. Their first return is thwarted effectively, not getting far past the middle, and we start to tussle around the centre of the map. I push higher, hoping for the knockout still, but have to wait a bit before the Rainmaker comes close to the podium. But it does get closer to their base than to ours, the purple team's saving grace being the one-way route out of their side to effectively reset the Rainmaker occasionally.

We very nearly surpass our lead, and get the knockout, but my little squidy legs don't let me catch up to the purple inklings chasing the Rainmaker, neither does my bucket quite have the reach to slosh them. I should have stopped sloshing and squidded through the ink for a moment instead. But it's no loss, and more an assertion that the first time wasn't a fluke. Woomy!

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Tags: console, rainmaker, splatoon, tri-slosher, urchin underpass, wii u

One way in Rainmaker (4-0, Tri-slosher)

I want to get behind those chargers as soon as possible. I have a path to do that, as long as the yellow team aren't faster than me. And I mostly make it. Some ink splashes up as I pass an opening, and I wonder if I'm going to be followed.

Of course, in retrospect, I'm not being followed, because that wall can't be inked, so it shouldn't be a surprise that the inkling is waiting for me. Even so, and despite the ambusher wielding a Carbon Roller, I somehow survive and turn the splat around.

I turn back to look for the chargers, and am happily surprised to instead see the Rainmaker squid past me. Nice! And the Splatterscope finds me, which is nice, as we are cosily close, just right for my bucket.

Some ink from behind would be more of a problem were my Bubbler not charged, and it just about lasts by the time I slosh around enough to find the retreating inkling. The main problem seems to be keeping up with the Rainmaker.

The Rainmaker is dropped, but nearby. I try to get past, so that I can keep the pressure on the yellow team, and, after bumping my beak a couple of times on the shield, manage to do that. I slosh ahead as a squidmate grabs the Rainmaker, and together we ink our way to the podium.

Well, that was quick, and it looks like all the yellow team were active. I guess we just got lucky with a blitz manoeuvre. Woomy!

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Tags: console, rainmaker, splatoon, tri-slosher, urchin underpass, wii u

Lending a supporting bucket in Rainmaker (6-2, Tri-slosher)

Ooh, we have the firepower in this battle, with three shooters and my bucket against two Rollers, a Splatterscope, and one shooter. This should swing in our favour, unless the charger has elite aim and stops us at range with brutal efficiency.

I take a circuitous route to the bottom the Towers, looking to flank the charger. Instead, I run in to the Splattershot looking to flank us, the Rainmaker, and get just far enough past the Dynamo Roller to avoid its flick. Can I get the Splatterscope too? Almost! Which is a fancy word for no.

I hit the other side on my return, where the Rainmaker is sitting. I get there just after the Shield bursts, which is good timing, and just as a Killer Wail is aimed not in my direction, also good timing. I splat the Wailer, and the fallen Dynamo Roller, before my squidmates catch up.

We squid the Rainmaker up the wall as an efficient group, and surge ink forwards as the green team come down the ramps. I put my body in the way, getting splatted totally intentionally to protect the Rainmaker, and not just charging ahead recklessly, but still the Rainmaker doesn't quite get to the podium.

As the green team are splatted as they splat us, we remain mostly in control. Super-jumping gets us back to the Rainmaker quickly, and as there is green pressure surpassing that of my bucket, I take the precaution of holding back as my squidmates super-jump my way.

With that extra support, we burst the Rainmaker's Shield, and make the final push as a team. Woomy! That was pretty smooth.

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Tags: console, moray towers, rainmaker, splatoon, tri-slosher, wii u

Squid down in Rainmaker (14-9, Tri-slosher)

Wait a minute, something's not right. They have an extra inkling! I suspect we're going to lose this battle, but it's good to see us all surge ahead with dogged determination. I try to flank, but am easily spotted and splatted, and already we're on the back foot. But the purple team have obviously seen us short-squidded, and are perhaps a little over-confident. My bucket splats most of them as they push towards our podium.

The fourth purple inkling is behind the Rainmaker, quashing my teal ink's effect on the shield. But as he tries to get around to splat me, my ink hits the shield, which hits the inkling, sending him to his doom. I'm counting that as a quad. Plus, the Rainmaker is there, no purple team around, so I grab it and make a dash. I get surprisingly far too, only thwarted by a slight lack of ink and a metal bracket. So it goes.

Undeterred, I squid back, where we are putting up a good fight for the Rainmaker. I head around the side, causing some disruption, and inking the way ahead nicely, hoping my squidmates are taking advantage by carrying the Rainmaker. Kind of! But the Rainmaker is naturally slower, and one of us should be escorting it. Getting the podium doesn't mean much without the Rainmaker.

I head back and help stop the purple Rainmaker, getting myself stopped in the process, but that lets me approach from a better angle. Well, theoretically. Higher turf is good, in front of the Rainmaker's blast isn't so good. At least I ink that path to appear above the Rainmaker, so I can get back to the action more quickly, several times in a row. And I need to. The purple team naturally are attacking aggressively.

On one particular push, the purple team seem confident that they'll reach the podium. I disavow them of this notion. All of them. But I suspect the newly extended lead will be a touch more difficult to overcome. A squidmate grabs the Rainmaker to give it a go, but is stopped efficiently by the returning purple team.

The battle is almost over. But not quite! We enter extra time, relieving the purple team of the Rainmaker and managing to burst it free for one last push. If only I was quicker with my Bubbler, maybe we could have pushed it back a bit further. Even so, we put up a damned fine battle for being down a squid, and we refused the purple team the knockout. That deserves a little woomy.

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Tags: console, moray towers, rainmaker, splatoon, tri-slosher, wii u

Going long in Rainmaker (15-6, Tri-slosher)

Ooh, an E-litre 3K on the green side. Can I beat the Carbon Rollers to the centre, sneak around the side, and splat the charger from behind? Nope, as a green ink trail appears before I get to the centre. It turns out to be the E-litre 3K's shot, but I decide to head directly towards the perch anyway. I get the splat, but meet a Carbon Roller in the process. I get a nice hug from him.

Start again. A Beakon has been handily placed, even better so given where the Rainmaker is heading. The E-litre 3K misses me as I wait for a super-jumper, and the shot alerts me to move around behind the Rainmaker's Shield. I burst the Rainmaker but don't grab it, heading instead for the E-litre 3K, who isn't quite expecting my Bubbler, and from there support a conscientious squidmate's push. It goes quite well, until I avoid one inkling to run in to another.

Our Rainmaker carrier doesn't get too far. I look to push a bit, but don't get far either, preferring to retreat whilst Echolocated. I could burst the Rainmaker as I wait, but decide to get behind the green team instead. But, of course, the E-litre 3K can stay right at the back, which poses an extra layer of difficulty. I'm up for the challenge.

The E-litre 3K's aim isn't S+ tier, thankfully, so my dodging helps keep me relatively safe, and I end up doing laps when Echolocated, because it seems like the right thing to do. I splat a Carbon Roller who joins in, and Disrupt the E-litre 3K, but don't do much more than suppress their fire. That would help more if we had the Rainmaker. Which we don't. I should see where it is. Or I could arse around where I'm not wanted a bit more.]

A couple more splats, another Echolocation, and the Rainmaker comes to me. That's the spirit! It all gets a bit manic, as the Rainmaker pushes forwards with two spearheading inklings, but I assure you I know exactly what I'm doing. I also know what I could be doing, which is going back to get the dropped Rainmaker, but I get splatted before that happens.

The green team grab the Rainmaker and get it over the ledge to push us back, which is a good move. Beakons helps us get back to the action quickly, and I consider heading right around the back to surprise the green team. Getting Echolocated rather dampens my mood about that, so I just turn towards the Rainmaker, and get some splats from behind that way instead. Disruptors help, one slowing down the Rainmaker so that it doesn't get too far.

I leave the Rainmaker again for my excellent squidmates, have a bit of trouble with walls, but get around the back of, well, maybe not the green team, as no one is here. But I realise the error my of ways, and head straight back to the actual action, where I am brutally splatted instantly by an Inkzooka. Nice!

There's just time to be hilariously splatted again, before the battle ends with my squidmates in control. Woomy!

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Tags: console, rainmaker, splatoon, tri-slosher, urchin underpass, wii u