- “Go Fish!”
- —Rip Tide's official catchphrase
Rip Tide is an Aqua Fighter who is one of the Core Water Skylanders in Skylanders: Swap Force.
Character Development
Rip Tide was the very first SWAP Force character created, but underwent numerous design changes during the development of Skylanders: Swap Force. His first incarnation was a fish-like creature named Krayken that possessed electrical abilities and had a sentient fish head as his left arm to trap enemies with bubbles, but kid testing revealed that the character looked unfitting for the franchise, and his bubble mechanic was too confusing as a non-damaging move.
The design was later scrapped and a frog-like warrior named Bubble Trouble was brought in. However, the new changes to make him more battle-ready and clear made him more confusing instead, with too many contrasting areas and an unclear mechanic. As Wash Buckler and Freeze Blade had been approved at this point, Vicarious Visions decided instead to make him a Core Skylander, and pass on his abilities to other characters while making his fish hand a weapon on its own. The design and name evolved into Rip Tide, resulting with the traits from Bubble Trouble being passed down to Punk Shock and Wash Buckler.[3][4]
From his final design to release, some features on him were also slightly changed, like having smaller eye sockets and a prominent chin. Alternate concepts modeled his head off a seahorse, a squid, or a frog. During his time as Bubble Trouble, he wore a bubble helmet, had an electric eel tail, and wielded a pufferfish arm.[5]
According to developer Dan Wallace, "Rip Tide took triple the time (and pain) to develop, but he sparked ideas for three of our coolest characters." [6]
Background
Personality
Highly adaptable, Rip Tide can master any fighting style in minutes.[1] In Skylanders: Battlecast, he has gallant and proud mannerisms.
Biography
Rip Tide was known far and wide as one of the best Aqua-Fighters in Skylands. He mastered a multitude of water techniques and astonished tournament spectators with his ability to adapt his fighting style to any opponent. Amongst his repertoire were Swordfish Fencing, Hammerhead Heaving, and even the rare Blubber Whale Wallop -- which he had used on numerous occasions in the legendary Rumble in the Reef. His unrivaled skill as a swordsman soon drew the attention of Master Eon. But when Kaos learned of this, he sent forth a legion of Squidface Brutes to stop Rip Tide before he could join the Skylanders... and everyone knows how that turned out, except for the Squidface Brutes, who after being knocked senseless can't remember a thing.
Gameplay
Being a skilled Aqua-Fighter, Rip Tide can swipe and slash his enemies with his Swordfish and Sharkfish like swords. He can also summon a large whale from his sleeve and slam it down on his enemies.
In Skylanders: Battlecast, he can use fish for a variety of effects, from food for his allies, to draining health with jellyfish, electrifying his swordfish for a debuff, and even summoning sharks and piranhas to add to his team's own damage. His Special Ability is Fish Feast, healing his allies, and his signature Gear is an Electric Eel, which mutes enemies who have Gear themselves. His scrapped card is Feeding Frenzy, which summons piranhas to attack and immobilize damaged enemies.
Stats
These are the starting and maximum Statistics for this Skylander in the Skylanders games.
- Health: ???
- Speed: ??
- Armor: ??
- Critical Hit: ??
- Elemental Power: ??
Warning: These stats are not used in any of the Skylander games. They are only listed for completeness reasons.
- Strength: 120
- Defense: 70
- Agility: 75
- Luck: 55
Abilities
Basic Abilities These abilities are available from the start of the game. |
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Horn Tetra Attack | Fish Toss |
Reinventing the Whale
| ||||
Primary Ability Press Attack 1 to swing the currently held fish at enemies. Swordfish attacks are quick and Shark attacks are slow, but more powerful. |
Secondary Ability Press Attack 2 to toss the currently held fish at enemies. Fish Toss will also change between Swordfish and Shark fish. |
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Basic Upgrades Skylanders can buy new abilities from Persephone/Power Pods. | ||||||
Whale On 'Em | Bigger Fish to Fly | Fresh Fish | Blistering Blubber | |||
Price: 500 Press Attack 3 to drop a large whale and smack down a large number of enemies. |
Price: 700 Press Attack 2 to throw the held fish, doing increased damage to enemies. |
Price: 900 Press Attack 2 to throw the currently held fish. Press Attack 1 to attack and critically hit with the new fish. |
Price: 1200 Whale attacks do increased damage. Pocket whales are known for their helpful nature. |
Fishy Fencer |
|
Nipping Needle Nose | Practiced Parry | Straight As An Angler | ||
Price: 1700 Press Attack 2 to throw the Swordfish which does damage over time to enemies that it hits. |
Price: 2200 Swordfish attacks do increased damage. A sword for a nose! Convenient! |
Price: 3000 Hold Attack 1 to charge a swordfish attack, release to dash through enemies causing them to take damage and be knocked back. |
Flounder Pounder |
|
Shark Surprise | Time to Hammer | Shark Bite Bait | ||
Price: 1700 Press Attack 2 to throw the shark which bounces off of enemies heads before landing. |
Price: 2200 Hammerhead shark attacks do increased damage. There is more than one reason why they are called hammerheads. |
Price: 3000 Hold Attack 1 Hold (Square) to charge a shark attack, release to dash forward biting any enemies in the way. |
Jellyfish Squall | Go Fish | Eletric Eel - Gear | ||
Common |
Rare |
Rare |
Shark Attack | Whale Whomp | Fish Feast - Special Ability | ||
Common |
Epic |
Rare |
Feeding Frenzy |
Rare(Unobtainable) |
Skylanders can use abilities depending on their level.
Starting Powers
- Sword and Hammer (Primary Attack): Press (Y) to perform a melee combo attack with the currently equipped weapon. The swordfish will attack faster while the hammerhead shark will hit a larger area.
- E-fish-iency (Secondary Attack): Press (X) to throw the currently equipped weapon. This will change which weapon Rip Tide is using.
Upgrades
- Wrath of the Whale (requires level: 3): Hold (Y) and release to summon a massive whale that slams down on everything in front of Rip Tide. The whale will launch a few goldfish that will seek out and hit nearby enemies.
- Weapons School (requires level: 6): Throwing a weapon (X) will now cause extra effects. Enemies hit by the swordfish will take extra damage over a period of time. The hammerhead will bounce on the ground, allowing it to hit more enemies.
- Slice Chop (requires level: 9): Sprinting (A) will now cause Rip Tide to attack with whichever weapon is equipped. The swordfish will cause a spiraling attack while the hammerhead will chomp on enemies.
Quests
Basic Quests
- Bad Guy Basher: Defeat 1000 enemies.
- Fruit Frontiersman: Eat 15 fruit.
- Flawless Challenger: Complete a non-Story Mode level at full health.
- True Gladiator: Win 10 PVP matches.
- Totally Maxed Out: Reach level 20 and purchase all Upgrades for this Skylander.
Elemental Quests
- Elementalist: Deal 7500 elemental bonus damage.
- Extinguisher: Defeat 25 Fire Geargolems.
- A-Fish-Ionado: Catch 25 fish with the fishing rod.
Unique Quest
- Whale of a Time: Damage 8 enemies at once with your Whale On 'Em ability.
Quotes
Battle Cries
- "Go Fish!"
- "Yeah, fin for the win!"
- "Makin' waves!"
- "Turning the tide!"
- "No catching release here!"
- "Hooked it!"
- "Yeah!"
- "Woohoo!"
- "Go!"
- "Flying fish!"
- "Up high!"
- "Going up!"
- "Whopper of a haul!" - when opening a treasure chest
- "Power wave!" - when levelling up
- "More power!" - when levelling up
- "Strap to the gills!" - when checking stats
- "I'm tipping the scales!" - when checking stats
- "That's a whale of a hat!" - when given a hat
- "I look like a real catch!" - when given a hat
- "Something fishy about this name!" - when given a nickname
- "Bait and switch!" - when given a nickname
Battlecast Quotes
- "Fintastic!" - scanned in
- "Let's make some waves!"
- "Casting out!" - when selected
- "Surf's up!"
- "Reeled in!" - swapping in
- "Ready for battle!"
- "Off the hook!" - swapping out
- "Time for a rest!"
- "A powerful swell!" - rank up
- "Looking ship-shape!"
- "I'll take it!" - Summoning a Gear
- "A real catch!"
- "Making a splash!" - Summoning a Relic
- "Turning the tide!"
- "Making waves!" - randomly when casting spells
- "Soak it up!"
- "Make it rain!" - Jellyfish Squall
- "Jelly time!"
- "The shock of your life!" - Electric Eel
- "High voltage!"
- "A whale of a time!" - Whale Whomp
- "There's a whale on you!"
- "Now that's a big one!" - Go Fish
- "The catch of the day!"
- "Time for a bite!" - Shark Attack
- "Snack attack!"
- "Splashed down!" - KOed an enemy
- "Tipping the scales!"
- "Fish overboard!" - when defeated
- "Going down!"
- "Another time!" - defeat at the end of battle
- "I let that one get away...!"
- "Fin for the win!" - Victory
- "A swell victory!"
- "Ahoy!" - when poked
- "Easy, now!"
- "Aye aye!"
- "Steady on!"
- "Better watch yourself!"
- "Having fun?"
- "A wave of energy!" - Card Level Up
- "Power surge!"
Media Quotes
- "Looks like I caught myself a whopper! You guys are going down!" - The Card Game Short Cut
- "Alright! Time to fish or cut bait!"
Character Trailers
Gallery
Trivia
- Rip Tide is voiced by Patrick Seitz, who also voiced Hot Head in Giants. He also voiced Scorpion from Mortal Kombat (2011) and Injustice: Gods Among Us.
- He resembles the Lord of the Atlantis from Monster Legends.
- Some of his battle quotes are shared with Gill Grunt.
- Rip Tide, Chill and Tidepool have the ability to summon cetacean allies.
- Developer Arzu Fallahi comments, "Every time I use the giant whale to attack, my inner child takes over and I get really excited." [7]
- When he uses his primary attack with the hammerhead shark three times, Rip Tide performs a move similar to Ratchet's Multi-strike move from Ratchet & Clank.
- When Rip Tide grind rails, he uses the hammerhead shark as a board and holds his swordfish no matter which fish he has active.
- He has the shortest catchphrase out of every Skylander.
- His catchphrase is also the name of a popular card game.
- In the Skylanders: Swap Force: Master Eon's Official Guide handbook, it incorrectly states that his Soul Gem is found in the Rampant Ruins.
- An Awakened form version of Rip Tide was leaked in Skylanders: Ring of Heroes, but he never appeared in the final game.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Skylanders Universe: The Complete Collection, page 197
- ↑ Here's my newest #Skylanders hero, Rip Tide--he'll tip the scales in your favor! :p. (Date Posted - Nov 10, 2013). Twitter.
- ↑ Live Demonstration of Character and Toy Design for 'Skylanders'. (Date Posted - 2016). GDC Vault
- ↑ Live Demonstration of Character and Toy Design for Skylanders (video version). (Date Posted - 2016). GDC Vault
- ↑ Strata: The Art of Skylanders Swap Force. (Date Posted: Feb. 19, 2024).
- ↑ Strata: The Art of Skylanders Swap Force. (Date Posted: Feb. 19, 2024).
- ↑ Strata: The Art of Skylanders Swap Force. (Date Posted: Feb. 19, 2024).