Brawl Stars: A Competitive Guide to Every Brawler in Solo Showdown

Mythic: Max (8/10)

Edited 21/5/2023 because dark passage is out.
User-friendly: 8/10
Damage: 8/10
Survivability: 9/10
Solo Showdown: 9/10 great pick

The big thing about her is other Maxes, which I'll explain later. Max meta.

Best build:
Gadget: Phrase Shifter
Dash forward while gaining short immunity.
Clear winner. Very good gadget especially in solos, versatile, can be used in lots of situations. Use it to dodge attacks/ get out of dangerous areas quickly/ break a pinch/ live one second longer in the storm. Sneaky Sneakers is too gimmicky to be good.

Star power: Super Charged/ Run n' gun
Charge your super while moving (68 secs and affected by speed boosts)/ reload faster while moving.
I don't have a specific suggestion since both are good, but honestly I'd go with Run n' gun. Super charged is good (you get a free super) but you can also charge it off other teamers, so I feel like Run n' gun is better. You're pretty much always moving, so permanent big reload buff is just very good and helps her win even more 1v1s.

Gears: damage and shield.
Definitely damage, she already hits harder than melees. Shield for extra health, which is always good.

Max is just that good. She has four ammo which each deal a LOT of damage. 4 projectiles and each 510 at max (without powercubes). Granted you're not gonna hit all of them but I usually can hit 2 or 3 against moving targets.
Assassins can't do anything against her (her entire kit is assassin-proof) and she's ridiculously hard to hit if she supers. She has decent health, is already very fast without boost, and has a lot of range. The only thing you need worry about is other Maxes, honestly.

Super: 4 second speed boost (4 seconds of wasting opponent ammo)
Use it to either chase down fleeing brawlers on low health, running away or dodging when you're getting attacked by multiple brawlers. Especially effective in all-out endgames where you can dash away from conflict.

Counters and how to not die
Crow could be a problem cause you get countered by slow, but it got nerfed and people are using shield anyway so oh well. He's still annoying though, cuz you can't heal for a long time and you might get backstabbed.
Otis since he's a big problem to pretty much everything and is the bane of showdown teamers' existence.
In situations like these, the biggest threat to Max is other Maxes. If you're charging supers off each other, don't get hit more than once or you'll get backstabbed.
Bea is also a problem due to high dps, high usage on Max domination maps and her slow. Try to dodge her supercharged shot with your gadget.

Rn only double trouble is viable (but she's still ok on other maps) but losing dark passage is a massive nerf to her showdown viability.

How to team:
Max and only Max. Several Maxes will be enough to kill everything else.
If it's only you (which is a big surprise) just team normally.

Dark Passage or Double Trouble.

Dark Passage:
This map was known for Max meta a few months ago. There are a lot of powercube spawns and you'll likely be able to get at least three at the start if you manage to kill whoever spawned next to you. Dark Passage's mid is also extremely dangerous. Max currently has the number one usage rate on this map.

Double Trouble:
Open map. Maps like these generally have a more diverse amount of brawlers but Max is still a common pick. Max is the number two usage rate, behind Mortis (I have no idea why). Buzz is number three though, so you might need to watch out for him and his super (which you can dodge with gadget).

How to counter:
There is no way to kill Max meta on your own unless you group with other brawlers. She's also very hard to hit, so the best way is applying status effects. Bea is very good at this combined with her high dps.

Dominating/ leading brawler:
Don't be too hostile if you are. Just don't get targeted by the Maxes (cause you are a big threat) and play nice.
If not, don't do anything about it until endgame, in which you can drive other Maxes to target the leading brawler together.

Metas
Max meta on double trouble and dark passage.
Team with probably other Maxes (if there's at least three, just team and kill everything else). Act very friendly at the start. If something that isn't Max and you can 4 ammo kill spawns next to you, act friendly, charge your super, and backstab them the instant you get your super. Everyone will be busy getting powerups and teaming so there's nothing to worry about (unless there are three people, in which you must stay passive).
Rush mid next and team with Maxes. Be sure to get some, but not all and preferably leave some for the other Maxes. Don't immerse yourself, don't go for risks, don't take another Max's cubes, always leave an escape route and don't stay in middle. Get one or two if you can and then spin and act friendly. If there are several Maxes, team and proceed to kill everyone else in the lobby.
The thing about Max meta is that it's random. If you get on low health, other Maxes will likely backstab you without hesitation, but be sure to contribute to mass genocide of everyone that isn't Max. Don't have a large cube difference from the other Maxes as this will cause you to get targeted when there are only Maxes left and don't be too weak either. Middle of the pack is best.
Max meta is and always has been a teaming menace. Most commonly happens on Dark Passage or Double Trouble. If several Maxes are wreaking havoc and you're not a Max, either team with the other non-Maxes ( if it isn't too late already) or just lay low, avoid attention and don't interfere with the Max unless you wanna get targeted and die quickly. If you're lucky they might end up killing each other if they think they've killed everyone. From what I've seen, they will immediately start backstabbing once it's only Maxes left, and commonly they will target the one with the most cubes. Again, contribute as a Max (since you will always want someone to die in order to place higher) but don't catch attention or you'll get attacked. Repeat until it's 1v1. If there is only one opposing Max left, naturally attempt to kill them for first place. You're free to grab any cubes then.

Wow. This is the first chapter with more than 1000 words. :D Gray next I think.