OmniWrench

The OmniWrench is a recurring tool and weapon featured in every entry in the Ratchet & Clank series, that comes in different forms from different manufacturers. It is the signature weapon of the lombax race and Ratchet's weapon of choice. It serves as both a tool for turning bolt cranks and picking up objects, as well as being a melee weapon both thrown and swung against enemies.

OmniWrenches have been primarily used both by lombaxes (Ratchet, Kaden and Alister Azimuth) and their allies (such as the combat bots, Merc and Green), and have been manufactured by lombaxes themselves, Gadgetron, Vox Industries and others. They have had many iterations and modifications made, changing or improving their functionality.

Uses
OmniWrenches are capable of performing a variety of tasks as both a tool and a weapon. As a tool, OmniWrenches can be used to tighten bolt cranks and help repair vehicles. With a box breaker modification, slamming down the wrench (a hyper-strike) could break nearby breakable objects. They can be used to travel down zip lines. OmniWrenches are also magnetized, allowing them to collect bolts from afar.

As a weapon, OmiWrenches are used to strike enemies with in close combat. They can also be thrown at enemies and would return to the users' hand in a boomerang fashion (a comet-strike). Different iterations of the OmniWrench dealt different degrees of damage to enemies, though some OmniWrenches' strength with improve as Ratchet upgraded his nanotech by defeating enemies.

Some OmniWrenches have granted additional abilities. The OmniWrench Millennium 12 allows the user to pick up items such as lava rocks and throw them to destroy objects, or to pick up glowing helio-grub aliens to light the way forward. It also features the kinetic tether which allows it to pull and manipulate objects from a distance. Additionally, the OmniWrench 10K has been able to equip a variety of modifications from equipped armor to grant the OmniWrench abilities, including releasing acidic sludge and freezing enemies.

Ratchet & Clank
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench 8000, manufactured by Gadgetron. The OmniWrench can be used to turn bolt cranks and swung to attack enemies. It can also be thrown in the air to attack enemies and return to Ratchet afterwards, though Ratchet is vulnerable to attack after it is thrown as he must stay in position while it is mid-air. The OmniWrench does not upgrade at any point.

Going Commando
Ratchet again uses the OmniWrench, though he is now able to move freely after throwing it. Ratchet also finds other wrenches while in the Bogon Galaxy: on planet Tabora under the caves, Ratchet finds the stronger OmniWrench 10000 in a glass container, a blue colored wrench with orange highlights. Later, in the Flying Lab on planet Aranos, Ratchet finds the even stronger OmniWrench 12000, an orange wrench. From this point onwards, most of Ratchet's wrenches take this appearance.

Up Your Arsenal
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench 12000 when returning to the Solana Galaxy. While he does not acquire new wrenches, its power increases as Ratchet's maximum nanotech level increases, with special effects. 20 health will create an opaque silver effect, 40 health will create an opaque red-orange effect, 80 health will create a lightning effect, and a flaming effect will require you purchasing the Infernox Armor. Additionally, breaking Inferno crates causes Ratchet to wield two flaming OmniWrenches, which defeat enemies in one hit and set fire to them.

Through an unlockable in-game cheat, Ratchet's wrench can instead take the appearance of a "laser sword". It can be activated by pressing, , , , , , , , which is revealed by completing the demo for Sly 2: Band of Thieves in the original release of Up Your Arsenal. A bug allows the laser sword's hyper-strike to deal double damage when slammed down on large enemies such as Scorpio.

Deadlocked
Ratchet begins using the Versa-Wrench Lite when first entering the DreadZone tournament in the Shadow Sector, which is identical in appearance to the OmniWrench 12000. Ratchet is later able to purchase more powerful OmniWrenches manufactured by Vox Industries. Each wrench is mostly identical in appearance.

The Versa-Wrench Striker is said to be the preferred melee weapon of Captain Starshield. The Fission Lance, which is encased in a highly radioactive Raritanium isotope to give it a burning effect. The Obsidian Blade meanwhile uses a core is comprised of "vorpal matter" taken from the center of an H class black hole. The Obsidian Blade V2, V3, and X, available in challenge mode, are illegal upgrades.

Combat bots can make use of their own combat bot wrench, which is used solely for turning bolt cranks and not for combat purposes.

Through in-game unlockable cheat, "Super Morphing Freeze Wrench", the wrench could Freeze enemies and Morph them into farm animals when defeated. Cheats also allow a ninja sword to be used when the Ninja Ratchet cheat is in use.

Size Matters
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench 10K, which is identical in appearance to the OmniWrench 8000. This can be upgraded with OmniWrench 10K Mods by equipping a full set of armor (for instance, when the Wildfire Armor was obtained the wrench would set on fire).

Secret Agent Clank
Ratchet is once again equipped with the OmniWrench 10K in prison, with no mods available.

Tools of Destruction
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench 3000, which is identical in appearance and functionality to the OmniWrench 8000.

A cutlass and axe can be used to replace the OmniWrench when the player obtains 500 skill points.

Quest for Booty
Ratchet makes use of the OmniWrench Millennium 12, an upgrade to the OmniWrench 8000 which has more functionality than previous wrenches and differs slightly in appearance, and is made of ultra-light teratannium and fitted with a hyper grip handle. It is also outfitted with an illegal kinetic tether, which allows the head of the wrench to attach onto an object for Ratchet to then remotely manipulate and pull. The OmniWrench Millennium 12 is put to use primarily throwing lava rocks and undead skulls, holding helio-grubs to light paths, and manipulating objects with the kinetic tether.

A Crack in Time
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench Millennium 12 again, which features the same functionality as introduced in Quest for Booty. This time, Ratchet often uses the OmniWrench to grab and throw battery bots to power items, or grab and throw seeds to plant plants to be grown later. The kinetic tether can also be used offensively to pull out VersaGears on robots such as the hydra tanks and leave them vulnerable.

Meanwhile, Alister Azimuth uses his own Praetorian OmniWrench, a double-bladed orange OmniWrench that can be extended in length. It is powered by negatively-charged energy, which it can release in the form of projectiles, beams or shockwaves, allowing it to double as a ranged weapon.

Through cheats, the player can use other replacements when unlocked with skill points: the Praetorian OmniWrench, the Chronoscepter, a rubber chicken or a plunger.

Comic series
Ratchet initially uses the OmniWrench Millennium 12, though he later makes use of Azimuth's Praetorian OmniWrench after escaping Artemis Zogg's ship, particularly taking advantage of its negative energy blast.

All 4 One to Into the Nexus
Ratchet uses the OmniWrench Millennium 12 again, though he no longer makes use of the kinetic tether at any point.

Behind the scenes
The OmniWrench was doubled in size during development of Ratchet & Clank when the developers found that the hyper-strike lacked impact. The Wrench's ability to magnetically pick up bolts was also added later when developers found that manually picking up bolts was not fun.

In early versions of Deadlocked, the Obsidian Blade X, along with other Obsidian Blade models, were going to use a different model instead of the one identical to the Versa-Wrench.

As Ratchet has appeared in games outside the series, the OmniWrench often also accompanies these appearances. In PlayStation Move Heroes, Ratchet uses the OmniWrench 3000. In PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, Ratchet uses the OmniWrench Millennium 12. In Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, the OmniWrench Millennium 12 appears as an unlockable that can be used by Sly Cooper as a replacement for his cane, turning coins collected into bolts.

The OmniWrench 8000 in the 2016 reboot game uses the appearance of the OmniWrench Millennium 12. During a cutscene, Ratchet picks up a helio-grub, though this cannot be done in gameplay.