Rainmaker

 is one of the three Ranked Battle modes in Splatoon, alongside Splat Zones and Tower Control. It was announced in the Splatoon Direct on May 7th 2015 and was added into the game on August 14th 2015 at 7PM PT.

History
was first announced in the Splatoon Direct on May 7, 2015. However, its description was extremely vague and only a picture of the itself was released. The weapon was later shown in action in a Japanese Splatoon commercial that was released in late July 2015. A few months before the mode was released; a general gameplay description for it was leaked on Twitter. was then released on August 14, 2015.

Description
"In, both teams compete to snag the . Once you've got it, the goal is to carry it into the other team's base! So as soon as the battle begins, grab that ! It's guarded by a shield, though, so you'll need to bust it out first. Once you snag it, head for the other team's base. And be quick about it! If you run out of time or get splatted, the will be dropped. Its shield will also reactivate. The is crazy heavy, so you can't Super Jump while carrying it. Your teammates will have to watch your back! The  can also shoot ink like an Inkzooka, so you can clear a path! The closer you get to the enemy base while holding the, the lower your goal distance will drop. If the battle ends without anyone carrying the  to the goal, the team with the lowest goal distance will win!"

- In-game description



is similar to Tower Control in that it requires teams to move a certain object to a point in the other team's base. However, in, only one player may have control of the , and they themselves must control where it goes. The device is encased in a shield similar to a Zapfish's bubble in Octo Valley, and must be freed before it can be captured. If one team bursts the shield, all Inklings of the other team caught in the blast radius are instantly splatted. Touching an intact shield causes a small amount of damage.

explosion timer
The player who holds the must carry it to the goal in the other team's base within 60 seconds or the  will explode, splat the carrier and every friendly player in the blast radius, and cover the ground with enemy ink. The marker displaying the time remaining will appear above the carrier's head. Retreating with the to the player's side of the stage past the enemy team's lowest goal distance will cause the  explosion timer to tick faster than normal until the player returns to the enemy team's lowest goal distance. The explosion timer will also tick faster than normal when the carrier is in a prohibited area.

Firing the
The itself is capable of shooting large twisters of ink, similarly to an Inkzooka. The has similar attributes to a Charger-class weapon, due to it having a charge mechanic. The shots that it can fire range from a small twister to a large tornado-like twister depending on the length of time that the button is held down by the player. At maximum charge, the twister is lethal, allowing the carrier to have a form of defense against enemy fire.

The carrier should note that shots from the  will not consume ink, and therefore they will not need to consider refilling their ink tank when defending or attacking.

Tracking the
The player holding the has the mode's icon marking them for everyone to see above their head alongside the explosion timer, making them a huge target. This even applies when swimming in ink, with additional glow where the carrier swims, so carriers must be cautious of their surroundings.

While the player or other friendly player has the, the mode's icon will appear on the Wii U GamePad at all times. While the enemy team has the, the mode's icon will appear and disappear in one second intervals, on the GamePad and, and on the TV screen whenever the player does not have a line of sight to the carrier.

effects on the carrier
Because the is so heavy, the player holding it cannot Super Jump, nor can they use any of their sub or special weapons. The player's Movement Speed and Swim Speed are reduced by 20%. The Special Gauge does not charge while carrying it. If it is dropped, its shield will reform around it. It can then be recaptured by any player on both teams.

If the player has the and splats themselves by falling off the map while behind the halfway point, the  will reset its position by respawning in the center of the map. This will not happen when the player splats themselves by falling of the map over the halfway point and the will regenerate its shield where the player fell from.

After firing a twister of ink, the has knockback effect on the player. The pushback from firing the can be used to go through enemy ink reasonably quickly, so if the player is stopped without a chance of making a new path, firing the  behind repeatedly can get the player a little extra push before being splatted.

Overtime Rules
Overtime will begin when:
 * The winning team loses control of the less than 15 seconds before end.
 * The losing team has 10 seconds to pick up the after the winning team loses control of it.
 * The losing team is in control of the.

Overtime will not begin when:
 * The winning team is in control of the.
 * The winning team loses control of the more than 15 seconds before end.
 * The losing team was in control of the and loses control of it, less than 15 seconds before end.
 * The has not been touched for the whole match (in this case, Random team will win).

Overtime will end when:
 * The winning team gains control of the.
 * The losing team loses control of the.
 * The losing team carries the past the winning team's score, giving them the victory.

Other info:
 * The status of the 's shield (popped or not) does not matter.

Bursting the 's Shield
The 's Shield has 1000 HP, but many weapon types have a damage multiplier applied when they hit the Shield. The values are as follows:

With Damage Up
Unlike against Inklings, weapons do not have a damage cap when hitting the 's Shield with Damage Up buffs. This means that Damage Up can be used to pop the Shield faster than normal. The time gains for each weapon can be seen in the charts below.

Prohibited Areas
Prohibited areas are areas in certain stages that penalize the wielder for entering while carrying the. As the penalty, the explosion timer will tick faster, just like when retreating with the  behind the enemy team lowest goal distance.

If the player runs out of time or gets splatted in the prohibited area, the will respawn in the center of the map.

Stages that have prohibited areas are Walleye Warehouse, Saltspray Rig, Arowana Mall, Flounder Heights, and Piranha Pit. The prohibited areas in these stages are shown in the following overviews, indicated with the icon.

Battle Tips

 * In the battle, there usually some indirect areas to goal. They can help either keep the enemy from  goal, or help get to  goal.
 * Enemy can't always see the, so if you stay out of view, there is a better chance of reaching goal faster and quieter.

Trivia

 * The weapon resembles a tiger/fish with a nozzle in its mouth, known in Japan as a Shachihoko.
 * Details of were datamined on June 21st, 2015.
 * Images of being played on an unnamed stage were revealed in the July 24th Japanese Splatoon trailer detailing future updates.
 * The itself is the only weapon that cannot be bought or equipped.
 * After 60 seconds, or when a player approaches their own base, the will explode and it will say "The  Inksploded"❌/"Splatted when the  exploded!".
 * A player going towards their own Spawn Point with the brings up a "Warning! Don't Retreat!" message and causes the 's explosion timer to decrease more quickly. They cannot enter their own Spawn Point, bouncing off the surrounding force field as if they were an enemy. If they get splatted while behind their team's goal, the  will reappear at the center of the stage.
 * When in motion, the carrier will be expressionless. When still, they make a big smile.
 * bears a strong resemblance to Team Fortress 2's Capture The Flag mode, where a team needed to grab the objective from enemy's base and bring it to their base. However, in Splatoon they need to grab the objective in the middle and carry it to the enemy's base onto a goal. Some maps include a custom-version that functions identically to Capture The Flag, with a intelligence in the middle that needed to be carried to enemy's base.
 * It is possible to get splatted by the 's shield. This happens by an inkling getting squished between the shield and a wall as the shield expands or when the explosion timer ticker runs out and the wielder and those in the player's team who are around the blast radius will get splatted.