Lock and load, because in today’s spotlight we’re running and gunning with the Shotgun!

Welcome to another Spider Tanks Showcase! In today’s edition, we’re looking at a time-honored killing machine that tears through enemies up close. This antique design has been perfected for the modern arena and has achieved all new levels of deadliness.

Today is all about Shotgun. This Weapon may not have the range of other shooters, but it makes up for that by firing a spray in a wide arc. Peppering enemies with shells, this firing pattern is specifically beneficial when you’re up in another Tank’s face so that multiple projectiles find home on their chassis.

The cone of fire from a Shotgun will only hit people up close with every bullet, but that doesn’t mean any that don’t land won’t keep going. You can use it to hit multiple people and control chokepoints and bottlenecks. As your fire spreads out once released from your barrel, opponents at mid distance from you may not get hit by everything, but they’ll definitely have trouble escaping at least some damage.

Riding Shotgun

To create a build with Shotgun, the first thing you need to know is what you’re trying to achieve. If you’re looking for maximum damage overall, a small Body like Flea or Scout will let you bolt across the battlefield and unleash hell on unprepared opponents.

If you’re looking for extreme zone control, a Body like Titan with a Shotgun can plant themselves firmly and control traffic. While they may not maneuver as well to do the damage of the little guys, they’ll ultimately cause more problems for the opposing team even if they get overwhelmed and destroyed eventually.

Most Pilots will probably prefer something more in the middle. The medium range of Bodies like Junker and Hurricane can give you a lot of flexibility in how you play. Extreme strengths leave you with extreme weaknesses, so often balance is best.

Looking Down the Barrel

When you come up against Shotguns in the arena, they should be approached differently than most other Weapons. Unlike longer range linear Weapons such as Cannon or Twin Guns, Shotgun can’t hurt you while you approach. It will, however, start dealing damage very quickly as soon as you break into its range. A good Shotgun player will know the exact moment this happens, and you may not have time to think twice.

Try to make sure that they are chasing you instead of you chasing them whenever possible. Since their blast pattern spreads out as it gets further away, if you’re chasing a Shotgun you are essentially running straight into the funnel of doom coming from the barrel. Conversely, if they are chasing you and firing, their shots are getting less concentrated as you continually move away from them.

Putting a Shotgun in a position where they have to chase you is the best way to bring them down. If, however, you do end up in close quarters combat with a Shotgun, try to control the pace of the melee dance if you can.

A good shotgun player will try to cross through you in the direction they want so they’re ready to blast you with everything they’ve got. If you are the one dictating what direction your paths meet with sudden movements and pump fakes, they may shoot in the entirely wrong direction. Their blast may be deadly up close, but the margin of error is non-existent at that range.

Protip: A non-omnidirectional Tank like Nomad can actually synergize quite well with Shotgun. Due to the looping motions often needed to maintain constant motion, these Tanks can offer greater control over enemies crossing the range threshold or which part of the cone makes contact.

Shotgun in the Heat of Battle

Being severely limited in range can be a major liability in battle. Depending on the teams you face, much of any given fight may be mostly about posturing and positioning rather than actual Tank on Tank violence from your perspective. That doesn’t mean you aren’t part of the team… more that your very presence acts as a deterrent.

Most good Pilots will know better than to just roll up on a Shotgun. You holding down a chokepoint necessarily means that less traffic will approach it, and when they do, they’ll come in hot. This forces them to match you 2v1 or 3v1 often. You may lose, but what is the rest of your team doing while they concentrate on a single bunkered in Shotgun?

This ability to dominate opponents’ sense of urgency is the biggest bonus of Shotgun. Take the example of a Chicken Chaser match. If you are able to pin down two enemies in their backfield, that means that the race for chickens just became 2v1 in your team’s favor.

Likewise in a game mode like King of the Hill, you can instantly make your opponents sound the alarm and abandon their plans when you threaten the Control Point. This makes Shotgun the perfect option for kamikaze attacks and particularly destructive decoys.

Two Cheers for Shotgun

Shotgun overall can leave you with some very serious weaknesses. Its fire rate isn’t very good, its range is severely limited, and at extreme close range it gets less accurate even as its damage rises. Still, its strengths and unique playstyle make it worth all of its failings.

Shotguns were discontinued at the end of Generation 1, but you can still find Shotguns from other Pilots on the official Spider Tanks OpenSea collection.

That’s all from us today, but we’ll be scuttling back this way in a few weeks to discuss the Crab Body for the next Spider Tanks Showcase!

Are you a CrabMaster!? Tweet at us @SpiderTanks with a clip of your insane crustacean skills to be featured in the next edition!