Flare Gun

Does it earn a slot? Yes — it's two of the game's best effects in one pistol. The flare gun is the best blinder (pistol-like handling, heavy damage, a long blind) and the police system's cheat code: a shot fired into the sky fills a police badge, skipping the entire phone-call dance. It's also an unlockable starting item — a badge in your pocket from spawn.

The two shots that matter

1. 01

   The sky shot. One badge on the police meter, instantly, from anywhere, mid-chaos. Faster than any call, immune to cut phone lines, no Personality check.

2. 02

   The face shot. Heavy damage plus the longest blind available — chase-breaker, fight-opener, and the premier arrest enabler during the down window.

Managing the shells

Every shell is a decision between summoning help and stopping him now. The discipline: sky-shot early (badges compound — patrols, the wagon, arrest hands), and keep one shell banked once an arrest looks live. A flare gun with zero shells saved for the down window was a phone, not a weapon.

Getting one

Loot luck — or the loadout screen: it's among the unlockable starting items (R at character select; see the loadout guide), which is the reliable way to build a strategy around it.