Bomb Launcher

The Bomb Launcher is a special weapon in Splatoon 2. It lets the user launch the included sub weapon further than they may be able to throw them and without using ink.

Appearance
The Bomb Launcher itself consists of a half-pipe that holds the bombs and a separate ink tank. The half-pipe is light blue and wraps around to the user's back from their right arm. There is a launching mechanism with black compartments at the back end of the half-pipe. The separate ink tank is attached below the half-pipe's back end and is similar in appearance to a normal ink tank. However, the Bomb Launcher's ink tank has red caps instead of black ones. Before being thrown, the bombs are inside gashapon capsules. The top of each capsule is transparent while the bottom changes color to match the user's ink.

Splatoon 2
The Bomb Launcher allows the player to throw an unlimited amount of bombs during the special's duration without using up any ink. The bombs thrown depend on the type of launcher used, and are as follows:


 * Autobomb
 * Burst Bomb
 * Curling Bomb
 * Splat Bomb
 * Suction Bomb

Players using Bomb Launcher can still attack normally with their main weapon. The remaining bombs thrown during the special do not fill the special gauge after time is up.

Differences from Bomb Rush
While this special weapon is very similar in function to the Bomb Rush from Splatoon, there are some key differences between the two.


 * Whereas Bomb Rush was locked to the loadout's current sub weapon in Splatoon, any weapon in Splatoon 2 can potentially have any type of Bomb Launcher. This means that kits with a sub weapon that is not a bomb, like Sprinklers, can have the Bomb Launcher. In fact, there are no Bomb Launcher sets in which the sub weapon matches the type of Bomb Launcher.
 * Unlike in Splatoon where Bomb Range Up affected the range of the bombs thrown, Splatoon 2's equivalent ability, Sub Power Up, does not affect the Bomb Launcher.
 * Bombs from the Bomb Launcher can be charged up to allow them to be thrown further. An uncharged bomb has the same distance as a thrown sub weapon with no Sub Power Up, while a fully charged bomb is thrown at the same distance as a sub weapon with the maximum amount of Sub Power Up.
 * When a Bomb Launcher special ends, there is a one-second period where the game does not accept any input from . (This also prevents the player from throwing clams in Clam Blitz.)

Special Power Up
Equipping Special Power Up with any Bomb Launcher increases its duration. The following table shows the duration increase for the Curling-Bomb Launcher, Splat Bomb Launcher, and Suction-Bomb Launcher:

Data

 * Without the aid of Special Power Up, the Splat-Bomb Launcher, Suction-Bomb Launcher, and Autobomb Launcher can launch eleven uncharged bombs within the duration, or seven if they are all fully charged. The Curling-Bomb Launcher can launch twelve uncharged, or eight fully charged. The Burst-Bomb Launcher can launch seventeen uncharged, or ten fully charged.
 * With the maximum amount of Special Power Up, the duration of most Bomb Launchers increases to eight seconds, allowing the Splat-Bomb Launcher, Suction-Bomb Launcher, and Autobomb Launcher to launch fifteen uncharged bombs within the duration, or nine if they are all fully charged. The Burst-Bomb Launcher can launch 23 uncharged, or fourteen fully charged. The duration of the Curling-Bomb Launcher increases to 8.66 seconds and can launch sixteen uncharged, or ten fully charged.
 * The Burst-Bomb Launcher provides a 50% increase to throwing rate compared to throwing Burst Bombs normally, taking twenty frames instead of thirty.
 * Most bombs take twenty frames to fully charge, though Burst Bombs take fifteen frames instead.
 * Unlike other launchers, Curling Bombs launched behave differently from its sub weapon version. Charging up the Curling-Bomb Launcher only increases the speed of its bombs, where charging up the sub weapon version shortens the travel distance and increases the size of the explosion.

Quotes
"These launch the included bombs without consuming any of your ink. The longer you hold, the farther you'll throw the bombs."

- Sub & Special Guide

"Allows you to throw the included bombs without consuming ink. The longer you hold down, the farther you will throw your bombs."

- Splatoon 2 Sub & Special Guide🇪🇺


 * Notes

Strategy
For competitive tips about the Bomb Launcher

Trivia

 * The Bomb Launcher is designed after the Ultra Machine, a batting toy made by Nintendo in 1967. This is likely referenced in their Japanese name, Bomb Pitchers.
 * While on the Bomb Launcher's rail, the bombs are inside gashapon capsules, and the two halves of the capsule can be seen being discarded as each bomb is thrown
 * As visible in the promotional image, the Bomb Launcher has its own ink reservoir, explaining why throwing bombs during the special does not drain the player's ink.
 * Although difficult to hear (except in Recon mode), while active, the Bomb Launcher plays a chiptune version of Bomb Rush Blush, despite how the song is named after its predecessor, the Bomb Rush.
 * No brushes or splatlings have a Bomb Launcher as their special.
 * There are no weapon sets with Curling Bomb, Fizzy Bomb or Torpedo paired with Bomb Launcher.
 * The weapons with the smallest special gauges for Bomb Launchers are the Aerospray MG and Bamboozler 14 Mk II at 160p each. While the largest are the Firefin Splat Charger and Firefin Splatterscope at 220p each.
 * Unlike any other weapon in the SS undefined, the Bomb Launcher's bombs are thrown from the left side of the player and not from the right side.
 * Before the release of the Bamboozler 14 Mk II, data mining had already revealed in-game data for the Burst-Bomb Launcher, including images for its weapon icon.
 * Burst-Bomb Launchers also appeared in the Octo Expansion as a canned special before the release of the Bamboozler 14 Mk II.
 * There were meant to be three weapons with Autobomb Launcher as their special, not two. However, the Tri-Slosher Nouveau ended up getting released with the Ink Storm due to fudged datamining.
 * The Bomb Launcher's icon was used as a placeholder icon for the Triple Inkstrike.