Competitive:N-ZAP '85

Unofficial

Gear abilities
Gear abilities provide different effects in battle that benefit the player with their equipped weapon. This is a guide to gear abilities in relation to the weapon. Strategy, synergy, viability, and purpose may be written here.

Use
As an Ink Armor-based support weapon, the N-ZAP '85 is an all-rounder with no obvious weaknesses. Suction Bombs can be used similarly as Splat Bombs, including clearing areas, such as perches or the Tower, of opponents. However, there are key differences: Ink Armor allows its user's team to either initiate a push, to recapture a Splat Zone for example, or maintain one, such as while locking out the opponent.
 * It outranges the Splattershot Jr. and outdamages the Kensa Undercover Brella, allowing it to be more aggressive against opposing slayers than either of the two.
 * It is more ink efficient than either the .96 Gal or the H-3 Nozzlenose D.
 * It is more mobile than the .96 and has Suction Bombs, while the .96 Gal has no bombs with which to either apply pressure or zone out opponents.
 * It has both more mobility and a lower special gauge requirement than the H-3 Nozzlenose D (200p vs. 220p).
 * The primary tradeoff for being a Jack-of-all-trades is the lack of a major strength among its supportive capabilities; it is not the most efficient at turfing, the most effective at providing support fire, or the fastest at building up Ink Armor.
 * Ink Saver (Sub) can allow for more frequent Suction Bomb use but not quite enough to spam bombs (without a very high investment).
 * Special Charge Up can speed up the process of building up the special gauge for Ink Armor but not as quickly as with some other Ink Armor-based weapons.
 * One unique advantage the N-ZAP '85 possesses over most other weapons it its inherent mobility, particularly while firing (0.84 units per frame). Use this to strafe while firing to avoid opponents' shots, buying time to splat the opponent with a (usually) weaker main weapon.
 * Run Speed Up can increase this mobility advantage even further.
 * They can attach to surfaces, allowing both more room for error when aiming and the planting of craftier traps, such as underneath a grate.
 * They take two seconds after attaching to a surface to detonate, as opposed to one second for a Splat Bomb.
 * They inflict more damage from a direct hit and have a larger overall radius of damage.
 * Time the activation of Ink Armor carefully; it takes up to two seconds to activate Ink Armor, which lasts for at least six seconds.
 * Try to activate Ink Armor when most or all teammates are active. Slayers, who risk getting splatted more often, benefit from Ink Armor more than anchors do.
 * Upon activation, Ink Armor will protect its user and their teammates except for those either carrying the Rainmaker or using either Baller or Booyah Bomb.
 * Also, players protected by Ink Armor lose it upon gaining possession of the Rainmaker.
 * A support player, such as an N-ZAP '85 user, is often expected to carry the Rainmaker while their slayer teammates provide protection up front while turfing a path of ink. Therefore, while Ink Armor will not protect the Rainmaker carrier, it will still benefit their teammates, so cast Ink Armor just before picking up the Rainmaker whenever possible.

Synergy
The N-ZAP '85 is good at turfing and building up Ink Armor but has relatively weak damage. Therefore, it makes a good complement to – and is well complemented by – a slayer, particularly one whose weapon has trouble turfing, such as a Splattershot Pro or a blaster. Multiple Ink Armors used by the same team do not stack. Therefore, it would be redundant for a team to have more than two Ink Armor users.
 * Turfing while following a teammate builds up Ink Armor and provides friendly turf to which a teammate can retreat whenever needed.
 * Cooperate with the teammate using both the main weapon and Suction Bombs when engaging an opponent: attack from different angles, or force the opponent to come within range of the teammate's weapon.
 * If your teammate gets splatted and an opponent is still present, then determine how weakened they are before deciding whether to continue engaging or retreat. If more than one opponent is present, then consider retreating – via super jumping if necessary – to maintain Ink Armor progress.
 * If another Ink Armor user is on the team, it is advised that one be the more aggressive while the other remain in the support role based on the main weapons present. For example, an N-ZAP '85 should be used more aggressively than a Splattershot Jr. but not as aggressively as a Tri-Slosher.
 * In general, when two Ink Armor-based weapons are on a team, the user of the more aggressive weapon should activate Ink Armor first, freeing them to engage the opponent without potentially losing both a potential Ink Armor and special gauge progress. For example, an N-ZAP '85 user should activate their Ink Armor first if their teammate has a Splattershot Jr., but they should let a Tri-Slosher wielder use their Ink Armor first instead.

Countermeasures

 * Other Ink Armor-based support weapons each have at least one specific advantage over the N-ZAP '85:
 * The Splattershot Jr. has faster turfing, a lower special gauge requirement, and a larger ink tank, the latter which more easily enables bomb spamming.
 * Both the .96 Gal and H-3 Nozzlenose D outrange and overpower the N-ZAP '85. The .96 Gal also has a lower special gauge requirement.
 * The Kensa Undercover Brella has a shield for protection and Torpedoes for both zoning and distracting opponents.
 * While the N-ZAP '85 stands better against slayer's weapons than the Splattershot Jr., most slayer's weapons still have an advantage in a one-on-one, particularly in terms of damage. However, be wary of any Suction Bomb traps an opposing N-ZAP '85 might plant while retreating, such as around a corner or underneath a grate.
 * Keep an eye on the HUD to know when the opponent's N-ZAP '85 has Ink Armor ready to use, and both watch and listen for when it is activated.
 * The best way to prevent the opponent from using armor is to splat the opponent with the N-ZAP '85 (or any other Ink Armor-equipped weapon). A charger user can prioritize said opponent when sniping, or a slayer can attempt to pick off an unwary N-ZAP '85.
 * Focus fire on armored opponents for longer than usual - preferably with everyone ganging up on one opponent at a time - to compensate for their armor.
 * Object Shredder allows a player to inflict three times damage onto armored opponents, as long as the armor is active. Combining this with Ink Storm can nearly neutralize armored pushes by the opponent.

Gear abilities
Gear abilities provide different effects in battle that benefit the player with their equipped weapon. This is a guide to gear abilities in relation to the weapon. Strategy, synergy, viability, and purpose may be written here.

Ink Saver (Sub) allows more frequent use of Suction Bombs and saves ink for the main weapon after each Suction Bomb used. Having the ability to use Suction Bombs more often allows an N-ZAP '85 user to more reliably slow the opponents' push. For example, constantly tossing Suction Bombs onto the Tower can force opponents off of it, delaying their Tower push.
 * 13 ability points – one main and one sub – reduces the ink requirement per Suction Bomb to just above 60.6% for an N-ZAP '85 user.

Last-Ditch Effort is a Headgear-exclusive ability that, under specific conditions, grants its user 1 to 24 ability points each of the following abilities: These abilities only begin to take effect under either of the following conditions: Like other support weapons whose builds include bombs, the N-ZAP '85 can greatly benefit from the reduced ink consumption per Suction Bomb used, allowing its user to spam Suction Bombs during either a crucial defensive stand or a late attempt to reclaim the lead.
 * There are at most 30 seconds remaining on the game clock, or Overtime has begun in a Ranked Battle, at which the maximum 24 ability points will be granted for each of the above abilities.
 * In a Ranked Battle, the opposing team's countdown has at most 50 points remaining. The effects of Last-Ditch Effort increase as the opposing team's countdown decreases from 50 to 30 points remaining, starting with 1 ability point for each ability and maxing out to 24 ability points.

The N-ZAP '85, an already mobile weapon in humanoid form, can still benefit greatly from Run Speed Up, particularly while firing.
 * 13 ability points – one main and one sub – increases the N-ZAP '85's running speed while firing to 0.92 units per frame.

Special Charge Up accelerates building up the special gauge for Ink Armor. Since farming Ink Armor is one of a few roles of the N-ZAP '85, constantly having Ink Armor available for teammates ensures more successful pushes and counter-pushes.
 * 13 ability points – one main and one sub – are enough to reduce the special gauge requirement to below 180p.

When splatted, half of the special gauge progress is lost. For example, a player with 150p of special gauge out of 200p upon getting splatted will lose 75p of the special gauge. Special Saver allows its user to keep more of their special gauge progress whenever they are splatted. This allows an N-ZAP '85 user to more quickly build up Ink Armor after respawning.
 * 6 ability points – two subs – are enough to increase the amount of special gauge progress saved from 50% to 64.6%.