Ink Vac
The Ink Vac is a special weapon in Splatoon 3. It is a vacuum that sucks up enemy ink attacks and then fires out an exploding projectile, with the size of the explosion depending on the amount of ink sucked in.
Appearance
The Ink Vac is based on a diesel-powered backpack vacuum cleaner or leaf blower. The backpack consists of a white ink canister and a cyan vacuum engine below it. As the Ink Vac absorbs more enemy ink, the canister gets filled by glowing ink of the Ink Vac user's color and seems to shake more intensely. The engine has some control panels and a hose connecting it to a massive nozzle. The nozzle is cyan-and-black with two handles. The "Dolphin" weapon brand logo can be seen on the canister and the nozzle.
Splatoon 3
| Category | Special |
| Base damage | 220 (Explosion) 220 (Projectile) |
| Base duration | Vacuum: 6 sec Charge hold: 2.5 sec |
When deployed, the player can hold down to create a vortex that sucks up enemy ink projectiles (including ink droplets), bombs, and even some special weapons, though it cannot suck up enemy ink that has touched the ground. This vortex also protects the user and their teammates from taking damage from explosions, even though it does not entirely destroy them (the user can also still take damage from explosions from behind). Sucking in opponents' ink fills up the Ink Vac, and slows down the user's movement speed. A maximum of 800 damage can be absorbed before the Ink Vac fills up fully. Opponents caught within the Ink Vac's vortex will lose ink and be slowed down, similar to Toxic Mist, and also fill the Ink Vac up at a rate of 1.5 damage per frame (90 damage per second), although they do not actually take damage. However, the vortex does damage most objects, such as Sprinklers, Wave Breakers, and brella shields, at a rate of 2 damage per frame (120 damage per second). Although the vortex is stopped by solid walls, it can pass through barriers such as Splash Walls and the Rainmaker shield.
6 seconds after activation, or when the tank is filled, the Ink Vac readies a projectile of ink that can be aimed, launching manually upon releasing or automatically after approximately 2.5 seconds. This projectile damages anything it comes into contact with, and once it lands, a damage radius is displayed before exploding shortly afterwards, dealing damage to any opponents within radius and line of sight of the blast. The size of the explosion depends on how full the Ink Vac's tank was upon firing.[1][2]
It appears in two Return of the Mammalians missions:
Special Power Up
- Main article: Special Power Up
Equipping Special Power Up with Ink Vac increases the radius of its vortex. The size of the larger portion of the vortex gets increased by up to about 30%, while the size of the smaller portion gets increased by up to about 75%.
Version history
| Version | Adjustments |
|---|---|
| 2.0.0 |
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| 3.1.0 |
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| 4.1.0 |
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| 8.0.0 |
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| 8.1.0 |
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Quotes
| “ | Make your ink shots more powerful by sucking up enemy attacks! Hold to generate a vortex that sucks up enemy ink attacks. Once the tank is full, or after the timer runs out, let go of , and you'll launch a souped-up super ink shot! | ” | — In-game description
| ||
| “ | Squid Research Lab here with breaking news! We've identified another new weapon - the formidable Ink Vac! This special device is equipped with a massive nozzle capable of inhaling the ink from an enemy's attack and sending it back via a powerful counterattack.
The more attacks it inhales, the more powerful the Ink Vac becomes. This is the sort of weapon that could provide security for an entire squad! Rest assured that our excitement is tempered by academic rigor. |
” | |||
| “ | The Ink Vac is equipped with a massive nozzle capable of inhaling the ink from an enemy's attack and sending it back via a powerful counterattack. The more attacks it inhales, the more powerful the Ink Vac becomes! | ” | — @NintendoEurope on Twitter[5]
| ||
Sets
Badges
- Main article: Badge#Special weapon wins
Winning a certain number of battles with the Ink Vac will reward the player with special badges that they can use on their Splashtag.
| Ink Vac badges | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
30 wins with Ink Vac | |
 |
180 wins with Ink Vac | |
 |
1,200 wins with Ink Vac | |
Gallery
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Using the Ink Vac.
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Shooting the projectile at the end of the special.
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An Inkling using the Ink Vac
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Icon in the special gauge (Splat Charger or Splatterscope).
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An earlier version of the Ink Vac icon.
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2D icon
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The Tableturf Battle card icon of the Ink Vac.
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Ink Vac model rotating (link to file)
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Using the Ink Vac (link to file)
Strategy
For competitive tips about the Ink Vac
|
View the strategy page. |
Trivia
- When an Ink Vac's projectile explodes, it creates a mass of liquid spikes reminiscent of how ferrofluid acts in the presence of a magnet.
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
 Japanese |
キューインキ Kyū inki |
Possibly from 吸引 kyūin ("absorbtion") and 機 ki ("machine"), with a pun on the word "ink" |
 Dutch |
Inktdief | Ink thief; from kruimeldief ("minivac", literally "crumb thief"). |
 French |
Aspirencre | From aspirer ("inhale" or "suck") or aspirateur ("vacuum cleaner") + encre ("ink"). |
 German |
Tintegrator | From Tinte ("Ink") and Integrator |
 Italian |
Vampinchiostro | From vampiro ("vampire"), in reference to its ability to drain, and inchiostro ("ink") |
 Russian |
Краскосос Kraskosos |
From краска kraska (paint) and пылесос pylesos (vacuum cleaner). Paintsucker |
 Spanish (NOE) |
Aspiratinta | From "aspiradora" (vacuum cleaner) and "tinta" (ink) |
 Chinese (Simplified) |
吸墨机 Xīmòjī (Mandarin) |
Ink Sucking Machine |
 Chinese (Traditional) |
吸墨機 Xīmòjī (Mandarin) |
Ink Sucking Machine |
 Korean |
흡입기 Heubipgi |
Sucking Machine |
 Internal |
SpBlower[6] | Sp for special weapon. Blower is in reference to the Ink Vac being a blower vacuum. |
