Splatoon 4 Best Builds: Weapon Classes & Gear Ability Combinations That Actually Work

I've spent way too much time staring at the gear ability screen in Splatoon 3 trying to figure out if three subs of Swim Speed Up actually make a difference. They do. But barely. And that's what I want to talk about, not theoretical DPS spreadsheets, but what actually feels good to play and why.

The weapon class you pick determines basically everything about how you play. Let me go through the eleven classes as they existed in Splatoon 3, because all signs point to them returning in Splatoon 4.

Shooters are the baseline. Splattershot, N-ZAP, Splash-o-matic, fully automatic or burst fire, mid-range, no gimmicks. What makes a Shooter good isn't the main weapon, it's the sub and special it comes with. The vanilla Splattershot with Suction Bomb and Trizooka in Splatoon 3 was a menace in Tower Control because Suction Bombs stick to the tower and the Trizooka clears the entire area. For Shooters, I build Ink Saver (Main) as a main ability on shoes, and then stack Swim Speed Up subs across the rest of the gear. You spend so much time repositioning that movement speed translates directly into kills.

Chargers are the sniper class. Splat Charger, E-Liter, Squiffer. If you can aim, you can carry. If you can't aim, you're dead weight. I tried being a Charger main once. Lasted about three matches. The thing about Charger builds is that you don't actually need much ink efficiency, you fire slowly enough that ink refills naturally. What you need is Ink Resistance Up so you don't get stuck in enemy ink while scoped, and Swim Speed Up so you can reposition after every shot. Good Chargers never stay in the same spot twice.

Rollers are where things get interesting. The Splat Roller is the classic, roll for coverage, flick for kills. The Carbon Roller is faster but shorter range. The Dynamo Roller is a slow death machine that kills people from angles they don't expect. Rollers benefit enormously from Ninja Squid on clothing, it slows you down but hides your ripples when swimming, which means you can flank without the enemy seeing you coming. Combine with Swim Speed Up subs to offset Ninja Squid's speed penalty and you become genuinely terrifying in close quarters.

Dualies are the dodge-roll weapons. Dark Tetra Dualies, Splat Dualies, Dapple Dualies. They're all about the dodge, after each roll your crosshair tightens and both reticles converge for a split second of perfect accuracy. The skill ceiling on Dualies is higher than people think. A good Dualies player is almost impossible to hit. For builds, I swear by Comeback as a main ability on headgear, after respawning you get a temporary boost to Ink Saver (Main), Ink Saver (Sub), Ink Recovery Up, Swim Speed Up, Special Charge Up, and Run Speed Up for 20 seconds. In Splatoon, 20 seconds is most of a Turf War engagement.

Brellas deserve more love. The Splat Brella launches a deployable shield that drifts forward while you shoot from behind it. The Undercover Brella fires with the shield open. The Tenta Brella creates a massive shield wall. Brella players need Ink Saver (Main) stacked high because you're basically firing constantly behind your shield, and Quick Super Jump because nothing feels worse than having your shield break and being stranded. I genuinely think Brellas are underrated in Turf War, the shield lets you hold space in a way no other weapon can.

Splatlings are the heavy weapons. Hydra Splatling, Heavy Splatling, Ballpoint Splatling. They all need to charge before firing, which makes positioning the single most important skill. Bad Splatling players charge in the open and die. Good Splatling players hold high ground, pre-charge around corners, and suppress entire lanes. Run Speed Up is mandatory on Splatling builds because you strafe while firing. Ink Resistance Up helps when you inevitably need to reposition through contested ink.

Stringers are the bow weapons introduced in Splatoon 3. Tri-Stringer fires three arrows horizontally or vertically depending on if you're jumping. REEF-LUX charges fast and fires a spread. They're zoning weapons, you control space by threatening to hit people from angles they didn't expect. I haven't played enough Stringer to give strong build advice tbh, but Thermal Ink seems useful since the arrows arc over cover and you can track people you've tagged.

Splatanas, the ink swords, were also new in Splatoon 3. The Splatana Wiper is fast, the Splatana Stamper is heavy with a powerful charged slash. These weapons reward aggression and mechanical execution. Ninja Squid plus a Splatana Wiper was my favorite build for a solid month, the charged dash-slash out of hidden swimming position catches people completely off guard.

For Sloshers and Blasters, Ink Saver (Main) and Ink Recovery Up are the core. Both weapon types chew through ink fast and you don't want to be caught empty after one exchange. Sloshers can hit people behind cover with the arc, which is why they're so annoying to deal with on maps like Mincemeat Metalworks with its raised platforms everywhere.

Now for the gear ability system itself. Each piece of gear has one main slot and up to three sub slots. Main abilities are worth 10 ability points, subs are worth 3 each. The total on a full outfit is 57 points if you count the main slots. Ability Chunks let you customize subs, which is where the real build optimization happens but also where the grind lives. You get chunks by scrubbing gear at Murch or Spyke (costs cash or Super Sea Snails during Splatfest season) or from Salmon Run rewards.

I'll be honest, the difference between a perfectly optimized build and a decent build is maybe 10 percent in effectiveness. Gear abilities matter more at high ranks where everyone has good aim and the margins are tight. For most players, wearing gear with abilities that vaguely match your weapon class is good enough. Don't let the chunk grind stop you from actually playing the game.

One last thing about Salmon Run builds, or rather, why Salmon Run doesn't have builds. You get assigned random weapons each wave in freelance, so you can't build around a single playstyle. The best you can do is wear generalist gear with Swim Speed Up and Ink Resistance Up. Nothing else is reliable when you don't know if you're getting a Charger or a Roller next wave.