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Designed to hack and slice through solid rock, the RC-DS Remote Control Disc Ripper is an extremely dangerous tool. In less skilled hands, it's an accident waiting to happen, ejecting incredibly sharp diamond-coated tungsten blades at up to 17,000 RPM to cut through anything in front of it.

Description

The Ripper is a handheld cutting tool that launches a circular sawblade, which is attached to a miniature gravity tether. The Ripper's primary function launches a sawblade that hovers in front of the tool for a default 7 seconds prior to upgrades, while the secondary function ejects an un-tethered saw disc at high speed.

The Ripper, even when unupgraded, is tremendously powerful, as it deals constant damage to whatever the blade connects with.

Operation

The Ripper is an industrial saw that can shred through just about anything. Its rounds are actually small radial blades that shoot out and then spin at a distance. After firing off a round, the blade will spin at a distance connected by a miniature gravity tether allowing the player to choose the blade's path. Not only does the Ripper act as a shredder, but it can also act as a buffer between the player and approaching Necromorphs while in close quarters.

The secondary function fires a single blade as a projectile that can slice through multiple enemies. Both the primary and secondary functions of the Ripper only use one blade.

Variants

  • Forged Ripper (DS2, primary fire lasts one second longer, alt-fire damage 10%)
  • Shockpoint Ripper (DS2, primary fire lasts one second longer, reload speed 5%)
  • Heavy Damage Ripper (DS, Increased damage)
  • Astronaut Ripper (DS)
  • Military Ripper (DS)
  • Pedestrian Ripper (DS)

Combat Tips

  • In Dead Space, the Ripper is one of the most ammo efficient weapons in the game, because you are able to kill a Slasher with just 1 or 2 blades. Additionally, most of the killed Necromorphs drop 4 Ripper Blades even on the difficulty "Impossible".
  • The Ripper can be difficult for newer players to handle. One must prevent the saw from passing an enemy, by constantly keeping the reticle on target. If one misses the target, simply aim down to retract the blade and re-aim at an enemy. The tether will retract back towards Isaac.
  • The low starting damage of the Ripper can also be an obstacle for some players, as it can be difficult to keep enemies at bay while firing the Ripper. However, if one upgrades the Ripper, it can become a valuable asset, mainly because of its low demand of ammunition.
  • The distance between the tethered blade and the Ripper can be adjusted by toggling Kinesis on and off, otherwise hitting close-up enemies involves directing the blade towards the floor and generally towards the Necromorph's feet.
  • Mastering the primary fire of the Ripper involves memorizing the distance the tethered blade floats in front of the Ripper so you can launch it as soon as a Necromorph steps within range of that distance.
  • Releasing primary fire after the disc is airborne will deactivate and ultimately waste the disc; however, this is handy if you need to switch to another weapon, if your target has moved away, or if you need to escape.
  • The secondary fire does more damage upon striking and can slice through multiple Necromorph limbs.
  • It is recommended as a supporting weapon when playing on the Impossible difficulty setting because of its ability to keep lots of ammunition that can be used effectively and discreetly as a back-up when out of primary ammo.
  • A single saw can cut the foot off of a Brute, if the player stays on target. A Ripper can also be handy against Dividers, Lurkers, Leapers and Guardians.
  • Twitchers are more than capable of sidestepping a tethered blade that has been hanging in front of them for a while - although this advantage disappears if you Stasis them first.
  • Exploders should not be taken on with the primary fire of the Ripper (unless you have very good blade control) since the close range puts Isaac at risk of taking damage from an exploding pustule.
  • It is virtually useless against The Leviathan, as the primary fire is too short to sever the tentacles, and the secondary fire takes too long to hit the target areas (allowing the tentacle to move out of the way, or the mouth to close). Consider using a different weapon for that particular fight.
  • It is also a poor choice against Drag Tentacles, since its primary fire lacks the reach required to hit the "target" region, and its secondary fire doesn't put out enough damage to sever the tentacle on higher difficulties. Consider switching to a different weapon if you are seized by a tentacle.
  • The Ripper is one of the best limb slicers in the game. Use Stasis with the Ripper to slice apart enemies in a single blade with the primary fire. Unfortunately it is very hard to target arms with primary fire, and they are better taken on with slicer fire.
  • Although the Ripper secondary fire is stronger than the primary fire, firing it without planning and thought will cause you to run out of ammo very quickly.
  • With Kinesis, you can grab the used saw from secondary fire and redirect the blade, though you need to be quick, accurate, and have fully upgraded the Kinesis module for it to be effective.
  • An effective combination is to stasis an enemy and then to use the Ripper on it, allowing you to inflict maximum damage with a single blade and, with practice, sever multiple limbs. The strategy is particularly effective against Twitchers. However, don't let other enemies sneak up on you while you are in the process of attacking your target.
  • In close quarters, you can aim downwards and use primary fire to rip off the Necromorphs legs, which should slow them down considerably.
  • The Ripper's best uses are in small corridors where the player doesn't have to move the reticle as much, as it can stun Necromorphs on contact allowing a second or two to take out their legs.
  • In Dead Space 2, the Ripper's Primary fire can shred Necromorphs after they die, dropping their items without having to leave aim mode to stomp them. This is especially effective against The Pack, as it can retrieve the items from their bodies before they disappear.
  • During the "School Fight" in Dead Space 2, a useful tactic is to trigger the fight by stepping onstage, then moving to the small passage backstage, where the Pack will rush in. Given the small hallway and the one hit required to take down a Pack, it makes earning the achievements/trophy "Lawnmower Man" and "The Graduate" simple.
  • Using a Ripper against an Exploder is NOT advisable even with the use of Stasis, especially when its arm is raised, as the saw disc can cut into the explosive pustule by mistake. Back away when Stasis is ill-timed during an Exploder encounter.
  • In Dead Space 2, if the Ripper receives all damage upgrades to 16 Pts, it will slice off the limbs of even Enhanced Necromorphs on Zealot difficulty instantly, in addition to stunning and pushing them backwards. With good blade control, this can make mincemeat of even large groups of Necromorphs with extremely little ammo usage, making it extremely powerful on higher difficult settings where ammo is scarce.
  • The Ripper in Dead Space 2 has VERY short range in comparison to the Ripper in Dead Space. Take this into account when using it against enemies like the Slasher & Puker.
  • It should be noted that the tethered blade is lost if you take damage. Do not use the Ripper if there are Swarmers on you for this reason, as the blade will be launched and then instantly lost.
  • In Dead Space 2, the secondary fire flies much faster than in Dead Space, making long range combat with the Ripper a bit easier.
  • With stronger enemies, you can use the Ripper as a buffer to hold them at bay in emergencies. Needless to say, this works best in in places you can funnel enemies.
  • In Dead Space 2, the Ripper should not be used in the final boss since it can shift locations from anywhere to behind you very close. should you use it, it won't deal very high amounts of damage, and it will grab you even while it is in use. Consider switching to another weapon when in situations like this.
  • In Dead Space: Extraction, it is important to remember the distance you have your remote out. When you launch a blade, no matter how far your arm is extended, it will be at short to medium distance, meaning if you have your arm at full extension when you fire, you will have to move forward to move the blade forward. Try to bring the remote closer to you before you fire, this will allow you to move the blade freely without any struggle.
  • Another tactic for the Ripper is to count its duration in your mind. When the time is nearly up that the blade is being wielded by Kinesis, you can shoot the blade to another enemy. Using this tactic can conserve your ammo.
  • Due to a programming bug in the original Dead Space, "random" ammo drops have a tendency to gravitate towards this weapon disproportionately. For example, if you are carrying a Contact Beam and an un-upgraded Ripper, you will find your inventory will generally fill up with too much Ripper ammo - leaving you without ammunition for the Contact Beam. Unless you plan on using the Ripper as your primary weapon, leave it in the safe.
  • It should be noted that, while the Ripper in Dead Space had the highest drop rate for ammunition, the same cannot be said for Dead Space 2, where the ammo drops are very scarce and you will find yourself having to buy blades from the store, Ripper Blades being the third most expensive in the game.
  • Using a Rip Core (DS3 Ripper) is much simpler compared to the previous versions. One merely had to launch a blade to start the tool, the trigger can be released and it would still continue to deal damage until it expires. This makes Rip Cores a good choice when one wants to use a close-range weapon such as a shotgun, but doesn't want to get hit by nearby Necromorphs.

Trivia

  • Curiously, when the Ripper is out of ammo, the player can clearly see that the Ripper holds another blade. This is likely an oversight by the developers.
  • Aside from the standard 211-V Plasma Cutter, the Ripper is the only Dead Space 2 weapon to not have a unique damage boost confered by any suit, barring the Elite Advanced Suit which provides a 10% DMG bonus to ALL weapons. So far, like the Plasma Cutter, there has been no suit which offers damage bonus to the Ripper alone.
  • The Ripper, like the Force Gun and Seeker Rifle, has a rather strange "reloading" animation. Isaac bumps the lower blade holster once (Dead Space), pries open the blade holster and snaps it back shut (Dead Space 2) or simply pulling the rip-cord (Dead Space 3) during the weapon's "reloading" animation.
  • Like most of the other weapons in Dead Space 2, it has its own achievement/trophy called "Lawnmower Man" this is earned when the player kills four enemies with the same blade.
  • In Dead Space, killing 30 enemies with the Ripper earns the "A Cut Above" Achievement/Trophy.
  • In Dead Space 2, Ripper blades can actually be seen with teeth on them. They also seem to spin a bit slower than in Dead Space, although it doesn't affect the damage stats.
  • In Dead Space: Extraction, you can manipulate the Ripper blade in any way. You can twist the remote horizontally and vertically and the blade will respond as such.
  • The Ripper seems to shrink with every subsequent game appearance. The Ripper in Dead Space 2, while maintaining its shape, appears noticeably smaller than the Dead Space version. The Dead Space 3 Ripper, due to its complete redesign, resembles a fan-shaped handgun more than the previous models, and is considerably smaller than the previous models.
  • There is an odd glitch in Dead Space 2: Severed where using the secondary fire causes Gabe to start flailing with his arms during each shot. The primary fire is unaffected.
  • Strangely, in Dead Space 2 when you pick up the schematic for Ripper Blades it appears in your inventory as "Ripper Energy Schematic", despite the fact that it appears in the store and on the actual schematic as "Ripper Blades Schematic".
  • Ripper blades are much larger than whats seen in the tool.
  • In Dead Space (mobile), reloading the Ripper oddly involves replacing the existing holstered Ripper blade with another one.
  • The Ripper's achievement/trophy in Dead Space 2 "Lawnmower Man" is likely a reference to the movie of the same name The Lawnmower Man.
  • In Dead Space 3, recreating the original Ripper requires equipping a compact frame with two Rip Cores, mounting a Default Tip on the Upper Tool and a Compacted Direction Ejection Field on the Lower Tool. Doing so creates an awkwardly-shaped Ripper with two blade holsters, though it remains functional. A Heavy frame can also be used to create a more robust, rip-cord charged version of the Ripper.
  • Curiously, the Ripper has no standard blueprint in Dead Space 3, outside of Classic mode.
  • Ripper is one of the few tools that can be combined with a Rotator Cufflink. 

Appearances

Gallery

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