Sink me! – When the Pimpernel hits a surface or hitbox a second pellet moves vertical in a straight line and then splits into 5 separate pellets all with original card stats. These 5 pellets move out in an star pattern, hitting once at full damage and can then hit a second time at 50% damage. The distance from the first impact to the second impact depends on the velocity of the projectile.
Usage & Description
The Pimpernel sports 50% splash damage that gets Reaper buffs, but no grenade buffs, and 100% critical hit buff. Unlike other sniper rifles, it is actually beneficial to aim slightly below critical weak spots of a target, allowing the additional pellets to hit and score critical hits by themselves, possibly boosting the damage done up to 27 times the card number.
Notes
Scarlett's logo
The full title of the weapon is "Captain Scarlett's Pimpernel", but the prefix will be overwritten if the weapon spawns with any accessory.
If spawned with the "Gentleman's" prefix and with Slag element, the weapon will not list the additional 120% Critical Hit damage granted by the prefix, though it will still be applied.
As they are not listed on the item card, each additional projectile (bomblet) will receive full amp damage from amplification shields.
If the bullet ricochets to an enemy due to Gaige's Close Enough skill, the extra pellets will spawn from striking the enemy, not the original contact point.
If used by a Gunzerker as the off-hand gun while Gunzerking, the extra pellets take the damage and elemental type of the main-hand gun. Additionally, if the main-hand gun has no bullets left in the magazine, the pellets will receive the damage scaling due to Money Shot. This damage scaling works even if the main-hand weapon is a rocket launcher or a splatgun despite those weapons being unable to trigger Money Shot by themselves.
The bomblets are affected by both Zer0's Vel0city and Maya's Accelerate, which will alter their deployment. In particular, this can make it more difficult to score multiple critical hits.
A Pimpernel shot can proc B0re, allowing for even greater damage output with even a single hitbox present on a single enemy.
B0re, Chain Reaction, and Nth degree skills will proc a new bullet and therefore the second impact will apply again for each time these skills proc.
A slag Pimpernel with a matching Maliwan grip has a slag chance of 64.8% and since each pellet has splash the gun has 12 chances all at 64.8%. This is an over 99.9996% chance of applying Slag from a single shot. Additionally, since the pellets arc outwards and can hit a second time they can slag other enemies near the first one and each of those hit will have 2 chances at 64.8% chance to be slagged. With Flicker the slag chance can be over 100%.
Trivia
In addition to the name referencing Captain Scarlett, the Pimpernel's barrel also bears her logo. There is no indication given as to why C3n50r807 possesses the Pimpernel.
The name and flavor text of the gun is a reference to the fictional character The Scarlet Pimpernel, an English nobleman who saved French royalty from the Guillotine during the French Revolution, who occasionally exclaims "Sink me!".
The energy ball distribution is in the pattern of an opening Anagallis arvensis (Scarlet pimpernel) flower, which only opens when the sun shines.
