ARMS (equipment)

''This article is about the glove-like weapons. For other uses, see ARMS (disambiguation).''

ARMS are weapons worn on a fighter's extendable limbs (also known as ARMS), in the same way a boxer wears gloves. There are many different ARMS available to fighters; a fighter may have two different ARMS equipped at once and may switch ARMS between their chosen three at the start of each round. Each fighter has three ARMS available from the start. All ARMS can be used on any fighter by unlocking them through the ARM Getter. Fighters can charge their ARMS by holding jump, dash, or block. Charging ARMS will, for a short period of time, both increase their attack power, and activate any attributes they may have. Spring Man, Min Min, Max Brass, and Springtron all have abilities which, while active, allow their ARMS to stay permanently charged.

ARMS belong to one of at least nine different types, possess one of eight different attributes, and have three different weight classes, coming down to an astounding 324 different combinations.

Types
(Note: these names may not be official.)
 * Curve ARMS fly in a wide arc from their starting position before returning. Their trajectory can be modified significantly by curving them.
 * Glove ARMS function like basic boxing gloves. By default, they travel in a straight linear path but can be curved. How steep the curve can be depends on the glove.
 * Hammer ARMS are similar to Heavy ARMS, but slam downwards at the end of its flight rather than continue flying forward.
 * Heavy ARMS work similarly to Glove type ARMS; however, they are bigger, heavier, slower, and do more damage. They can also be used to block enemy attacks.
 * Multi-Shot ARMS fire many small projectiles at once, and are therefore harder to evade than other types, but are generally light and can be knocked down by most other ARMS.
 * Whip ARMS that can be sent in many different angles to hit your opponent. They have a slight delay before hitting so they are best used for predicting where your opponent is going.
 * Missile ARMS that have a homing property. Cannot be controlled while flying.
 * Beam ARMS fire a beam that can sweep left or right when curved.
 * Shield ARMS move slowly and can block multiple hits before retracting.
 * Nunchuck ARMS the have two methods of attacking depending on if the attack is used in the air or on the ground. They also have above average homing.
 * Umbrella ARMS have their speed change depending on proximity to the opponent. They also have considerable homing ability and large hitboxes.
 * Unique ARMS have their own abilities that are not shared with any other ARMS.

Attributes
There are eight attributes in ARMS. The attribute of an ARM will kick in after it is charged. When a fighter is hit by an ARM with an attribute, they will undergo a specific status effect, and in all cases except Blind, they will be surrounded by an effect of a color corresponding to that attribute. Poison was added in Version 4.0.0.

List of ARMS
Beam, Hammer, Missile, Nunchuck, Umbrella, and Unique are not official type names for ARMS.

Max Brass's default ARMS--the Nade, Roaster, and Kablammer--were released as part of Version 2.0.0. Lola Pop's default ARMS--the Biffler, Funchuk, and Clapback--were released as part of Version 3.0.0. Misango's default ARMS--the Scorpio, Glusher, and Skully--were released as part of Version 4.0.0. Dr. Coyle's default ARMS-- the Lokjaw, Parabola and Brrchuk-- were released as part of Version 5.0.0.

Acquiring ARMS
Main article: ARM Getter ARM Getter is a single-player training stage that allows the player to acquire new ARMS. Players earn ARMS by hitting a number of reward boxes within a certain time limit. Players may pay 30 for a short timer, 100 for a medium timer, or 200 for a long timer.

Plus ARMS
When acquiring ARMS from the ARMS Getter Service, fighters can not only earn new ARMS, but also earn a one time upgrade for an existing ARM. Just like how obtaining a new ARM is chosen at random, "Plus ARMS" are also earned at random (although there is a given rule of thumb that if a fighter earns a new ARM in a current play session of the ARMS Getter, they can not immediately upgrade that newly obtained ARM in the same session). Once an ARM gets the Plus Bonus on that character's Set ARMS menu, that ARM can no longer receive any further upgrades. Plus ARMS once earned can be used in every single mode of the game including online, once and ARM receives the bonus there is no way to turn it off or remove the bonus.

When an ARM receives the Plus Bonus, its base damage and charged damage increases by 10 points. For example, a regular Buff ARM does 90 damage uncharged and 100 damage charged, while a Buff Plus ARM does 100 damage uncharged and 110 damage charged. There is also a secondary attribute specifically for "generally" heavy type ARMS, where, if equipped, the fighter does their base grab damage plus 5 additional points. This effect stacks if the fighter uses two Plus heavy ARMS, meaning if Spring Man (whose base grab damage is 150) was to equip two Megaton Plus ARMS his new grab damage would be 160. The ARMS that receive this grab damage bonus are as follows: Megaton, Megawatt, Whammer, Guardian, Kablammer, Clapback, and Lokjaw. All other ARMS in the game just receive a damage increase. There's also another effect where the overall performance of an ARM is enchanced; for example, the time it takes an ARM to retract back to the fighter may be decreased.

Trivia

 * Interestingly, in the metadata for the official ARMS site, the Electric, Ice, Explosion, Stun, Blind, and Poison attributes are referred to as "lightning," "cold," "explosive," "energy," "psychic," and "skull," respectively.
 * On the Japanese ARMS official website, there is a symbol for ARMS that have no attribute. It represented by a white 無(mu)kanji, that means null or nothing.