| “ | The ultimate explorer's tool - this self-recharging grappling hook will get you out of any sticky situation, and onto any distant ledge. Handle with care - ending up dangling from the ceiling and then dropping 60 feet onto the floor is not covered by the employee insurance. |
| — Item Description |
About
The Grappling Hook is a Utility Tool for the Scout. It is a hand-held grappling gun which feeds its winch via a coil found on the bottom. The winch can be seen hanging from the coil and feeding back up into the hook's barrel.
The Grappling Hook is used by the Scout to get to locations normally inaccessible to other dwarves. When the hook is fired, there is a brief delay before the Scout is abruptly pulled to the targeted location. One can continue holding the trigger to keep the Scout suspended in place. When the trigger is released, the Scout will fall to the ground and the gun's cooldown will begin, taking four seconds (by default) to recharge before it can be fired again. A gauge on the weapon indicates the recharge time, and a clicking noise can be heard when it is fully charged.
The Grappling Hook is by far the most powerful mobility tool in the game, and is crucial to the Scout's role. It provides him with unparalleled flexibility, letting him get to whichever location he pleases, so long as it is within range. It pairs really well with the Engineer's Platform Gun, taking advantage of the platform projectiles to stand on cave walls and extract resources that are normally out of reach. The Hook is also a useful combat utility; it allows the Scout to zip in and out of tight situations. Considering his poor crowd control, it is helpful for him to have a quick and easy escape. One can also grapple to a downed teammate to quickly revive them.
The Grappling Hook can be used to safely dive down to lower levels. When the Grappling Hook is fired at the ground, the Scout will be pulled to the ground without taking fall damage. Likewise, since the Grappling Hook can be fired in midair, Scouts with good reflexes can use it to avoid fall damage after slipping off of a cliff or being knocked into the air by an enemy.
However, the Hook is not perfect. As reflected in its statistics it is very easy for one to get carried away with the hook and use it to fly around the entire map; this can lead to taking a lot of fall damage if extra care is not taken while using the device. The Hook's recharge time means that there will be moments where the Scout is vulnerable while in combat without his quick escape plan. Finally, the wind up time while waiting for the hook to fire can sometimes be detrimental if the user is already in flight.
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Strategy
- Momentum is preserved when releasing the Grappling Hook while mid flight. One can exploit this by releasing the hook at the apex of their height, though flying this way can be extremely dangerous if one does not have a dedicated landing spot.
- In missions with the "Low Gravity" mutator, this can cause the scout to fly considerable distances and with much less threat from fall damage.
- This momentum can be detrimental when playing on laggy servers, as releasing the hook too early can cause the Scout to slip off ledges and platforms before the server can catch up. To prevent this from happening, hold the trigger for a second longer than you need when grappling to a spot to ensure you will stop safely.
- Try not to go too far with the Hook. It may be fun, but getting too far ahead of your teammates may result in you ending up in a troublesome situation and not having allied help to bail you out. Cave Leeches are especially good at stopping grapple-happy Scouts in their tracks.
Modifications
There's four tiers and each tier has up to three upgrades, only one upgrade can be equipped per tier.
| Scout Upgrades | ||||||||||
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| Mod | Effect | Description | Price | |||||||
| Tier 1 |  Improved Recharger |
-0.5s Cooldown | Spend less time waiting and more time swinging |
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 Longer Cable |
+5m Max Range | Increased range |
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Tier 2 5
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Greater Cable Stretch |
+5m Max Range | Increased range |
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| Tier 3 10
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 High Velocity Ejection System |
-0.2s Wind up time | Hook shoots out at a higher speed |
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 Overcharged Winch |
+750 Max Speed | Faster hook retraction means a faster dwarf. Survival not guaranteed. |
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| Tier 4 15
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 Safety First |
+33% fall damage reduction for 3 seconds | Temporary fall damage reduction bonus after releasing the Grappling Gun |
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Momentum |
+50% movement speed for 3 seconds | Burst of Speed! Using the Grappling Gun gives you a Temporary Movement Speed Bonus when you land. |
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Bypassed Integrity Check |
-1s Cooldown | Faster cooldown and a voided warranty |
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Unique Modifications
Momentum
Momentum gives the scout a 50% movement speed increase for three seconds after the Grappling Hook fire button is released. The Grappling Hook does not need to connect with a surface or move the scout to activate this bonus, but it does have to be aimed at a surface in range in order to be fired. The Scout does not have to have the tool out to keep the speed bonus in effect. The speed bonus will stack with all other speed bonuses, except itself, and Deepcore GK2's Battle Frenzy upgrade. Using either of these two will simply reset the timer.
Trivia
- In real life, a grappling gun such as this one would be extremely dangerous to use. The sudden jolt of kinetic energy from being stationary to moving would likely rip the user's arm off.
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