Splatoon Raiders Guide: Mastering Speed, Power, and Tactical Tanks
Find your perfect playstyle, unlock devastating gadgets, and learn how to upgrade your arsenal in our complete tank class breakdown.
Quick Answer: Your choice of ink tank in Splatoon Raiders dictates your entire combat strategy. Pick Tactical for automated turret support, Power for aggressive crowd control, or Speed for pure mobility. You can swap tanks freely at your base, and grinding enough Power Eggs eventually lets you mix and match abilities from different classes.
The Real Purpose of Tank Types
When you first dive into Splatoon Raiders, your default ink tank is basically just a gas can. It holds your ammo and refills when you dive into the ink. Once you unlock the actual Tank Types, the entire game opens up.
Your choice between Speed, Power, and Tactical doesn’t alter your ink capacity or how fast you recharge. Instead, it completely dictates your access to Gadgets and Relic powers. It is entirely about finding the playstyle that clicks for you.
Starter Gadgets Explained
Right out of the gate, each tank hands you a unique tool to deal with the Salmonid swarms.
| Tank Type | Starter Gadget | How It Works | Best Used For |
| Speed | Blast Boot | Triggers a quick jump that creates a small explosion upon landing. | Repositioning in tight boss fights or escaping dangerous swarms. |
| Power | Splatchet | A forward-lunging melee strike that unleashes a wide, devastating slash. | Cleaving through massive groups of small enemies instantly. |
| Tactical | Shot Pot | Deploys an automated turret that independently shoots at enemies and breakable crates. | Controlling space and buying yourself breathing room. |
Making the Right First Pick
There is absolutely no wrong choice here. If you want a stress-free start, go with the Tactical Tank. The Shot Pot turret acts like a reliable co-op partner, letting you hang back and observe enemy attack patterns without getting overwhelmed.
Craving raw damage? The Power Tank is your best friend. The Splatchet easily obliterates crowds, though you need to be careful not to dash blindly into a trap.
The Speed Tank caters to a highly specific run-and-gun mindset. It lacks heavy firepower but excels in time-sensitive dungeon runs where dodging a fight is smarter than starting one.
Upgrading and Crafting Your Arsenal
You aren’t stuck with the base version of these gadgets forever. Spending time with a specific tank unlocks game-changing modifications.
You can tweak the Splatchet to perform a vertical strike instead of a wide sweep, turning it into a specialized boss-killing tool. Alternatively, you can add an area-of-effect blast to the Shot Pot to transform it from a single-target turret into a crowd-control nightmare. You will also unlock the ability to craft entirely new gadgets from scratch. The resource costs are steep early on, so spend your materials wisely.
The Endgame: Super Tanks and Ultra Tanks
If you stick with a single tank type and farm 50,000 Power Eggs, you will trigger an evolution. Your gear will upgrade into a Super Tank, granting a massive passive ability that activates whenever you emerge from swimming in ink.
- Speed Tank (Tank Torrent): Massively increases your run and swim speed while blasting away nearby Salmonids and instantly inking the floor around you.
- Power Tank (Tank Surge): Grants a flat 20 percent damage buff to everything you do while the effect lasts.
- Tactical Tank (Tank Vortex): Creates a damaging aura around your character that has a high chance to Ferment any enemy caught inside.
Want to break the rules entirely? Keep grinding. Unlocking Ultra Tanks requires farming Power Eggs across two different tank classes. Once unlocked, you can equip three gadgets simultaneously, plus you get to borrow one gadget and a Relic from a completely different tank type.
Managing Your Loadout
Swapping your tank is incredibly simple, but the game restricts when you can do it. Just hit the Plus button to open your gear menu and tab over to Tanks.
You must do this at the ship base. Once a raid begins, your loadout is completely locked in.
Keep your progression in mind when swapping. Any core upgrades you buy with skill points apply globally to all your tanks. However, individual tank experience does not carry over. If you decide to switch from a maxed-out Power Tank to a brand-new Speed Tank, you are starting from scratch with that specific gear piece. Make sure you are prepared for the power drop before jumping into a chaotic multiplayer lobby.
