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Items [4] Character Statistics [5] Bits of Advice [6] Walkthrough [6.1] Playtime is Over..................................(Peach's Castle, Past) [6.2] Back to the Future.............................(Peach's Castle, Present) [6.3] The Hunt Begins!..............................(Near Holli Jolli Village) [6.4] Survivors..............................................(Bowser's Castle) [7] The Vim Factory Siege!...........................(Peach's Castle, Present) [7.1] Freaky Foliage.........................................(Toadwood Forest) [7.2] Who Drank All the Vim?!....................................(Vim Factory) [8] Dino Wrangling............................................(Yoshi's Island) [8.1] Blazing Saddles!.................................(Yoshi's Island Cliffs) [8.2] Intestinal Distress................................(Inside Yoob's Belly) [9] Too Much SAND..............................................(Gritzy Desert) [9.1] And Our Special Guest is.....................................(Koopaseum) [9.2] Little Cave of Horrors....................................(Gritzy Caves) [10] Just like Old Times.............................(Peach's Castle, Present) [10.1] R0x0rz Your B0x0rz.....................................(Thwomp Volcano) [10.2] Battle of the Ages!....................................(Thwomp Caverns) [10.3] The Key to Failure..................................(Shroob Mothership) [10.4] Bad Day to Be a Toad........................................(Toad Town) [11] The Road to Stardom...........................................(Star Hill) [11.1] Dirty Secrets..............................(Star Shrine, Luigi's Trial) [11.2] Connect the Dots......................(Star Shrine, Outside the Palace) [11.3] A Plot Twist?..........................(Star Shrine, Inside the Palace) [12] Endgame....................................................(Preparations) [12.1] Assault on Shroob Castle!...............................(Shroob Castle) [12.2] Femme Fatale...............................................(Final Boss) [12.3] Back for More................................................(Surprise) [13] Frequently Asked Questions [14] Enemy Guide [15] Boss Guide [16] Credits and Special Thanks [17] Contact Info & Legal Stuff OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[1] Version History OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Ver. 1.0: Walkthrough for entire story completed. Guide covers from beginning to end; searching for exact HP values and completing Item Drops. Now come the many inevitable grammatical edits or other tiny corrections... Ver. 1.5: HUGE update. Grammatical errors fixed, several enemy HP values rounded out (though still not positive of the exact in most cases), updated several enemy attack info, and got almost every enemy's item and rare item drops taken down. Some are still being really stingy no matter how many times I kill them with the B.Item/Treasure Badge combo; I'm starting to think that some really do have only one item. Ver. 1.6: Fixed error in table of contents. Added info to first and third segments of final boss. Ver. 1.7: Changed Contact Info & Legal Stuff around a bit. Ver. 2.0: New section, Credits & Special Thanks, for I have now included information that wasn't obtained myself. Also reworked the enemies and their own section to include weaknesses and resistances. New attack for final boss added. Final boss section edited a little bit. Ver. 2.1: Fixed a very ugly error I found in the Bros. Items. Ver. 2.2: Added a new site to the authorized list, and updated the Green Shell and Shroid enemy with some new info, thanks to a couple emails. Ver. 2.3: A bunch more little edits here and there thanks to some helpful readers. Thusly, a slew of names were added to Credits & Special Thanks. OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[2] Introduction OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, an RPG for the GBA reeking heavily of badassness, has finally been given a sequel. AlphaDream has served up Partners in Time for the DS, and while the gameplay and innovation stays true to its Advance counterpart, the two games are still vastly different. For one, you now control four characters instead of just two, and Bros. Attacks as well as a BP meter have been eliminated entirely. There also is no overworld, instead linking all areas together by one central port, by which I mean Princess Peach's Castle. One does not travel from one region to another; rather, you must warp. These are the biggest differences between the two, aside from the obvious storyline and character additions. It's too difficult to say which game is truly better; both are excellent. PiT has some(admittedly huge) flaws compared to SSS, but there are plenty of kickass things that SSS lacked, and enough to keep it interesting and enjoyable throughout the entire game. The game is deemed quite short by many if not most that play it, but what do you expect from a handheld, especially when people play the hell out of it? It bears mentioning that SSS was also significantly shorter. Anyways, it's up to you to decide which is the better game, but I can assure you it's definitely worth a play through. Keep in mind the level of sanity apparent in this game, and you won't be bothered by the fact that there are more plotholes and paradoxes than different strands of semen rampant in Paris Hilton's body. This guide will cover the entire story from beginning to end, providing a walkthrough for every puzzle, as well as a list of the items strewn throughout the area. And most importantly, all of the enemies, listed as you'll face them; I'll go over all of their attacks and the best way to avoid or counter them. I don't know of all the different items the creatures drop, nor do I know the max HP for each of them, but I'll be certain to list the ones I'm sure of. Their experience and coins, though, are a given. I have never used any EXP or coin-increasing methods or badges while obtaining the values of those stats, so I can assure you that they are exact. The only thing I won't be covering is a list of all armor and badges; I find it unnecessary for a guide focused towards the game itself. Any item I recommend finding, earning, or buying will be indicated as we go along, so having the most useful equipment at the time won't be an issue. Lastly, if any of you happen to read something I've explained or covered, and think along the lines of, "No ****, that couldn't have been more obvious... why is he bothering to explain that?.." Well, I've seen a great, great number of questions from people that are either unobservant, or basically have no ability to figure things out for themselves, or maybe even thought they tried something and didn't, so I wanted this guide to cater to everyone; I think anyone can beat the game or at least advance past what was troubling them after reading through it. Some things need to be spelled out for people, I guess. No offense to anyone, now. ;) Now, let's get this guide rolling! Starting with a few basics... OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[3] Proper Timing and Other Crap OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Just like Superstar Saga, everything that goes on in battle depends on accurate timing; the proper execution of attacks as well as your survival are left up to how quickly you can press the appropriate button at the right time. While the timing for your standard attacks is rather easily mastered, and many enemy attacks can be avoided by putting good old common sense to use, as you progress through the game you'll find your reflexes tested much more harshly. Some attacks will leave you very little time to react; the attack itself will come a split second after the enemy indicates which member they're targeting, or which move they'll use. A few painful lessons are inevitable. Seeing as counters and evasion differ depending on what you're up against, that section is much better covered as we go along with the actual walkthrough, and see the enemies and their attacks themselves. [3.1] Attacks JUMPING: The most standard of all moves in any Mario game. In this case, you achieve the most damage, or rather, any hope of inflicting significant damage by pressing the particular character's button right as they're about to land on the enemy. Take care when stomping on enemies of varying heights; the taller baddies will generally have a much smaller window for pressing the button, since you'll be coming down on their heads right after reaching the zenith of your jump. Jumping on an enemy is an excellent way to begin a battle, as you'll get in a nice preemptive strike on every enemy present, even if their head is topped with spikes or engulfed in flames. Also, unlike the Paper Mario generation of RPGs, jumping on a Bob-omb's lit fuse will not give you damage. PIGGYBACK JUMPING: When Mario and Luigi are carrying the babies into battle, you can inflict much more damage, but the move is executed a bit differently. When in control of Mario and Baby Mario, as you come down on the enemy, you want to press the X button for BM (Woooo.. bowel movements! Ahem) when you would normally be pressing Mario's. If done correctly, the enemy will take damage and BM will land back where he was positioned, and Mario will launch into the air. As Mario comes back down, press his own, the A button, at the usual time and he'll get a jump in as well. The same goes for Luigi and BL and their respective buttons. Two things to note: while the combined damage is greater than any brother's single jump, the damage each bro deals is a little less than what they'd deal on their own. However, two attacks in one means you have the opportunity to land two Lucky hits. Also, if you jump while holding onto one of the babies and only press the button corresponding to the elder, you'll deal heavier damage than the elder would deal on his own. This is handy for mopping up enemies that can be defeated in a single, solid blow, rather than wasting your time pressing different buttons and waiting for the right moment. HAMMERS: Baby Mario and Baby Luigi acquire their own hammers shortly into the adventure, and you'll need them for dealing damage to enemies that are either on fire, or protected by spikes. Some enemies come in segments rather than an entire piece, enabling you to whack away sections of their body (usually vital, as it'll enable the babies to reach a point in which they can actually damage the foe). What's important to note is that adult Mario and Luigi will never have their own hammers, making those attacks out of the question when you've split up from the babies. Also, even with the dual-bro hammer attack, it's impossible to hit any airborne foe. They'll simply dart backwards. As a baby, when you approach the enemy and stop in front of it, you'll lift the hammer over your head. It'll begin to wobble a moment later; this is the time to press their respective button to whack 'em. If you take too long, the hammer head will fall off and you'll deliver a weak blow with the handle itself. Easy stuff, really. The hammer will always be a better alternative to the babies' standard jump. When the babies are alone, you can try to begin a battle by hitting it with your hammer; the hammer can inflict dizziness both as a preemptive strike and during battle. PIGGYBACK HAMMERS: This time, you'll have to press the older brother's button first, and then the command for the baby's attack. Once again, you'll approach the enemy and stop. The baby will be holding the hammer up and it'll wobble; press Mario or Luigi's button to rise to their feet, holding the baby much higher. A second later, the hammer head will wobble again; now is the time to have the baby swing. Enemies that normally required being knocked down to the babies' level can be damaged directly with this method. [3.2] Bros. Items Here is where your reflexes will really be tested. Bros. Items are easily the most powerful offense you've got, and you have quite a few in your arsenal. If you want to lay waste to your enemies in a single turn, or score huge damage against a boss, these are the way to go. The timing generally differs for each one, but a few focus on button mashing more than anything else. The timing is, for the most part, learned after only a couple uses, but those with slow fingers or slow reaction times are going to have a lot of trouble; things speed up pretty quickly. Note that damage inflicted with each item is affected largely by the attacking brother's power stat. Items that involve all four brothers jumping onto an enemy will show you some pretty diverse numbers. Another important note is that Bros. Items cannot be used if either side in your party is knocked down, dizzy, or burned. Also, certain items require all four brothers present to even be used. It's a given that all items save for the Fire/Ice Flower are significantly stronger if used when all four are present. Lastly, while you can buy all of these at shops throughout the game, there are more than enough inside treasure blocks to last you throughout, unless you feel the need to use them every turn of every battle.. which is pretty stupid. GREEN SHELLS Enemies: One Bonus: None Two: After either bro kicks the shell, it'll hit the enemy and bounce off, now ricocheting towards the other brother. You want to hit that character's respective button as the shell comes in front of them, to send it back at the enemy. Green Shells alternate back and forth between brothers, getting much faster after a few kicks, and leave the screen either once the target has been destroyed, or the shell has bounced around long enough; once the shell has struck the target 25 times, the attack is finished. Also, the shell can be used to knock away segments of enemies made up of multiple pieces. Mario and Luigi need this one to damage spiked enemies if they're apart from the babies. Four: Now, the adult will kick the shell, with the baby that they were carrying riding on top of it. You have an extra command to enter here- this time, as the shell is about to connect, you want to press the baby's button, too. They'll whack the enemy, and it'll be sent towards the opposite brother as usual. It's much stronger, but you'll have to be very quick with the pattern to keep the thing going. For some reason, my fingers had an easier time keeping up when Luigi initiated the attack, with BL riding as opposed to BM. Note that neither Green nor Red shells can target flying enemies. RED SHELLS Enemies: Successive Bonus: None What successive means is that you'll target only one enemy, but after you've destroyed it, the shell will be sent back to you, and it'll target another foe. Red Shells move a bit faster than the greenies, and have no set allotment of hits; it'll stay on the battlefield until you miss a command or kill all ground-based enemies. Otherwise, there's nothing else that separates them from greens. Use 'em the same exact way. BRO FLOWERS Enemies: All Bonus: Burn Two: Simply mash the button corresponding to either bro while they're holding the large fireball. The two will toss it back and forth, faster and faster, indicating whom is supposed to be mashing at the time by displaying their button. You have no control over which enemies you hit more than others; the volley of fireballs will target randomly, so some enemies are likely to take a lot more abuse than others. This one is capable of inflicting burns, not only damaging your enemies but making them lose their turn. Note that a lot of enemies have resistance to fire; if so, they'll only take 1 point of damage. On the other hand, some have a weakness to it, and will take obscene amounts of damage. You'll know you've nailed someone's weakness if the "Critical!" message appears along with their damage. Four: The only difference with this is that now you can launch fireballs at airborne foes. If you're trying to hit enemies in the air, press the babies' buttons instead, and they'll throw them much higher. That's all there is to it. ICE FLOWERS Enemies: All Bonus: Random Down Used exactly the same way as the Bro Flower in either situation. The only difference here besides the obvious ice element is that these babies can lower the attack, defense, or speed of the targets they hit. An even bigger plus is that bosses are just as vulnerable to this cut as much as the regular enemies. This makes a great opener to any boss battle, and serves to make your jump-based Bros. Items quite devastating. SMASH EGGS Enemies: All Bonus: Dizzy Two: You guys will be on opposite ends of the battlefield for this one. Someone will kick it at the enemy, and as it hits them, it'll ricochet off of their ugly face and into the air, arcing downwards towards the other bro. While this is going on, you want to be holding down the button of whomever the egg is coming towards, and as it gets overhead, release it to send the egg back into the enemy's skull, hopefully fracturing it. The idea is to go back and forth with the charged kicks until the enemy dies, at which point the egg can be kicked towards someone else. These things can also cause dizziness at random. Frankly, the timing for this is a little more difficult than it's worth, and it's not like the shells, where the damage racks up very quickly. I say don't bother with this one. Four: The difference here is that when the egg is coming down towards the bro that's supposed to kick it, pressing the button for the baby they're holding at the right time will make them smack it up into the air, so that when it comes down again, you can hold the charging button longer and kick it with more power. Meh. If you're able to keep a Smash Egg going long enough, it'll break and give you free items; these are usually pretty good, among them Mix Flowers, 1-Up Supers, and more. POCKET CHOMPS Enemies: All Bonus: None Two: This one is simple to use with only two brothers, but you won't see a lot of damage caused this way. Why? It's so damn simple, it only requires commands from the one character at a time. Simply press their jump button as they're about to land on the foe. Easy. The enemies targeted by this will be chosen at random, and as you go on, the Chomp will chase you much faster. Four: Here is where you can rack up some heavy damage, but the timing is much more difficult. Well, not so much difficult, but it takes the slightest error to really slim down your chances of shaving off a few hundred HP. Once again, press the button of the older bro as they're landing on the foe, but now there's a twist in that one baby will be riding atop the Chomp itself, and the other will be dragged along by the chain behind it. As the baby being dragged by passes the foe you're attacking, press their button to whack them with your hammer. Be careful! Pressing the other baby's button by accident will cause that baby to swing their own hammer, wailing the Chomp on its head and making it enraged. Doing this will cause the Chomp to increase its speed, thus bringing it closer to the elder it's pursuing, making an end to the attack that much more imminent. Basically, fudging a jump or hitting the Chomp puts less distance between the two of you, and you want as much as possible to keep your damage chain going. One nip in the butt, and you're done. Once in a while, you'll be chased by a female Chain Chomp; it wears a pink bow on its head, and barks differently. Heh. **The next few items can only be used when all four are present.** CANNONBALLERS Enemies: One Bonus: None The first Bros. Item you'll get that requires all four to participate. All four Bros. will hop into the cannon and be launched off of both screens, to come back down in a random order on the target you've chosen. Watch them as they fall back down through the top screen and press their button right as they're about to land on the enemy. That's all their is to it. Messing up a command won't ruin the rest of the attack, but you won't deal much, either. Pretty easy to get the hang of. You'll find that this is the first item you come across that'll let you inflict some really heavy damage. This one will see you through to the end of the game, too; as your Stache points increase, these things will become pretty damn cheap. What kind of a game has you shooting babies out of cannons? TRAMPOLINES Enemies: All Bonus: Dizzy Here to make the Cannonballer obsolete is the almighty Trampoline! With this baby, the attack will go on as long as there are still living enemies, but once you miss a single attack command, it will end once the other three Bros. land on the foe. Basically, the Bros. will fall at random from the top screen, and provided you entered the right command at the right time, they'll land on it and bounce off, back onto the trampoline, and back into the air. There's no pattern to follow here, and quite amusingly, it's possible that one of them will get an attack in three times before one of the others has gotten a single one in, usually one of the babies. They must take longer to fall than their future fatass selves. Anyways, just take care when the enemies are all different heights, so you won't screw up your timing. COPY FLOWERS Enemies: Successive Bonus: None I LOVE this one. It gets frantic very quickly, and you'll need to be extremely fast with it, but the damage potential is just insane. Basically, you and a horde of clones of your party stampede offscreen, then march in a completely random order onto the battlefield and jump at your enemy. Simply press the corresponding button of whomever is going to land on the foe next, but be quick about it. Things will speed up after a dozen or so hits and rise steadily from there; I've found it's best to not look at the enemy itself, as you'll get a feel for the right moment to land on them anyway, and just watch the oncoming stream so you know the right sequence of presses ahead of time. Soon you'll find pulling off 700-900 per flower a breeze. Save these for the bosses. MIX FLOWERS Enemies: All Bonus: Burn Like you'll ever get to witness a burn form in the first place. This is the meanest mother of them all when it comes to Bros. Items, due to the fact that it nukes everything in sight. Any time you're up against a group of three or more powerful enemies, unleash this baby and laugh as they all die instantly to the tune of 999 damage. How's this one work, you ask? It's like the Bro Flower, only kicked up a few notches. This time, you and the babies will be on opposite sides, much like the Smash Eggs. Begin by furiously mashing the button of whomever initiated the attack; Mario or Luigi. Now, after a good second or two, the fireball will be passed to one of the other three; begin mashing the hell out of THEIR button now. If you were paying attention to the top screen, which you really shouldn't be, you'd notice that you're feeding the fireball up there more and more ammo, making it increase its size. As it gets larger, it'll be attempting to drop onto the enemies below; but if you constantly, QUICKLY pump more and more fireballs into it, it'll rise back up again. Finally, usually when your fingers can't take any more of that, the fireball will plummet onto the bottom screen, and as the brothers dive out of the way, your unfortunate enemies will be incinerated in a nice li'l explosion. An added beauty is that there's still the possibility of landing a Lucky! hit on one or more enemies. These are your best friends late in the game and during the final boss; you'll see why. Otherwise, don't waste these guys on only one or two enemies, or even a boss. Copy Flowers are better for the single, meaty creatures. OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[4] Character Statistics OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO As with any RPG, your characters all have a variety of stats that affect how well they perform in battle, or even certain things outside as well. In this game, which is pretty mellow as far as RPGs go, there is no wisdom, no will, intelligence, accuracy, anything like that. It's all pretty much self explanatory, but there is one stat that is pretty obscure, yet very important. HP: How much damage you can take before fainting. The Luigis generally have more health than their Mario counterpart. Power: Your strength. The higher, the more damage you can inflict. Marios are generally stronger. Defense: Along with your HP, good defense is necessary to withstand lots of abuse. Though that's if you suck at timing your dodges. Why am I explaining this? ...The Luigis also have better defense, too. Speed: Decides when your turn to attack will come in battle. If you are knocked down at the start of battle and there are enemies faster than you, then they'll take their turns while you're still immobilized, and chances are you'll take some damage. If you're faster, though, you'll rise to your feet and take your turn as if nothing had happened. On the whole, Mario is faster, and if his speed outruns an enemy's, but there are enemies that are faster than Luigi, Mario will take his turn, followed by the enemy. Once the man in green has had his turn, it will go right back to Mario. Note that there are some enemies that run circles around you in the speed department and will all go before either of you, even if you landed a preemptive strike. Stache: Here's the odd one. It has no visible effect on the actual strength of your attacks or your endurance, but the higher this number, the more likely you are to score a Lucky! on one of your attacks and double the damage. Also, higher stache increases the likelihood of getting item drops after battle. Outside of battle, the higher your stache points as a whole, the better the deals are inside shops. As you progress through the game you'll notice bigger and bigger discounts. This won't be too important in that regard, though, because clothing and badges are expensive enough as they are, and money will never be an issue provided you take the time to kill every enemy you come across and hit every treasure block you find. Many of them are really generous when it comes to payout. Every time one of your characters levels up, they will get a small increase in some if not all of their stats. In addition, Lakitu will swoop down and allow you to choose which of your stats you would like an additional boost given to; once selected, a slot wheel will spin quickly with a few numbers on it; whatever it lands on is what you get. Your increase can be anywhere from a lowly, boring 1 to a whopping, sexy 6. Choosing the same stat each time only ensures that you'll be given very crappy numbers to scroll through, so keep it varied, and don't neglect your Stache! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[5] Bits of Advice OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Some general tips that are really just common sense, but which some people will only follow if they actually read it someplace. -As you play, you'll notice Xs marked on the ground and various other areas, and you'll soon learn the technique needed to unearth them. Take the brief moment to dig these up, as you'll need them as currency for the very best, if not cheapest equipment in the game. There are two very expensive items I'll recommend you buy that can only be purchased with these, and there are instances in which if you pass up the opportunity to nab them, you won't have the chance again. -By the same token, take the time to explore every tree stump or cavity, and climb every slope or block to get the various treasure blocks scattered about. They'll give you all of the money, attack items and health replenishing shrooms you need, keeping you from having to backtrack to stock up. There are also powerful pieces of armor, or clothing I should say, which you won't find in stores. -If you're going to splurge your money on Bros. Items because you prefer them to your standard moves, stock up on Green Shells, Ice Flowers and Cannonballers. As they come available, buy Red Shells, Copy Flowers and Mix Flowers. You don't really need anything else, but by the same token most enemies don't even require the items to be laid waste to. Unless you're trying to do as little battling as possible. -Kill every enemy you come across. It's unnecessary to backtrack to earlier areas or leave and return to respawn the monsters there; merely battling every monster once will ensure that your stats increase on a steady basis, and you'll be able to survive any attack. Boss battles won't take forever, either. -Save every time you come across a save point. I'm not suggesting this because you never know when you'll meet your end, but there seems to be a widely found error in the game that will cause your game to just spontaneously freeze up and ignore all of your button commands and the control pad. The music will continue and characters will move in their battle stance, but nothing will register. A lot more people have gone through this than there should be, and it has happened to me, so I lost a good half-hour of progress. You've been warned. -Lastly, instead of taking the time to study every little detail about an enemy's behavior and movements to determine which brother they'll attack, jump with both at the same time and swing both of their hammers simultaneously. It's a really easy habit to get into, and it will save you a lot of confusion or frustration. If there are attacks in which jumping with both is likely to get one of them hurt, I'll point that out. It's quite rare. I think that covers all the basic junk you need to know, but will pick up just by playing the game and got thrown into the guide because it'll just look that much better. On with the walkthrough! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[6] Walkthrough OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Really, really long ago... way far out in space... in a dark, dark place shunned by starlight... there was this creepy planet floating alone... The beings of this world were... creepy. They spent their time staring creepily into space. Just creepy daydreamers, right? Wrong. They were searching. Searching for a new home. At last, they fixed their creepy gazes on a distant world, a land of beauty and peace... [6.1] Playtime is Over OOOOO Princess Peach's Castle OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: None OOO Coins: None OOO Enemies: Baby Bowser OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO We begin the game in the Mushroom Kingdom, in the past. Baby Mario and Baby Luigi have arrived at Princess Peach's Castle, where they're greeted by Toadsworth. He'll tell you to hurry in to see her, as she's impatient. Walk on up through the corridors and into the room, and... you'll find a bunch of Toad peons, collapsed on the floor, poor slaves that met their end after years of toil and abuse forced upon them by their human captor, the adorable tyke, Baby Peach... Ah, no. Turns out it was Baby Bowser, a little snot-nose even in his youth, already trying to kidnap Peach. He tries to tell you off, until Toadsworth interferes and gets his face burned off (I wish.). Now it's our turn to deal with the brat, so into battle we go. Toadsworth will try to educate you in the ways of timed attacks. Go ahead and listen if you're really that hopeless, but if you played SSS then things are exactly the same. Just take care to notice when BB is going to puke up a little fireball at ya. Finish this up. "Oh, NO!!" =P Baby Bowser collapses, and the brothers rejoice, but their laughter is cut short by a sudden explosion. Seconds later, rubble begins to rain down from the ceiling, and we look outside to see flying saucers firing shots onto the castle itself. They fly off with another group of UFOs, and then the clouds part to reveal an entire swarm of them... [6.2] Back to the Future OOOOO Princess Peach's Castle OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (4) OOO Coins: 3 OOO Enemies: Junior Shrooboid (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO We immediately learn of E. Gadd's time machine, fueled by the mysterious and powerful Cobalt Star. People from all over are interested in the machine, particularly Peach, who promptly sets off on a voyage to the past, bringing a couple of Toads with her. With the news how over, we cut back to the present Toadsworth, who has gotten his panties in a bundle over the apparently un-guaranteed safety of the Princess. He faints himself at the thought of her tiny chance at being harmed, and now it's up to you to grab a Refreshroom from his quarters to bring him back to his feet again. Lakitu now unveils the handy top screen, which for the most part will be your map from now on. The shroom icon on the map indicates where you want to head; this would be a good time to explore the castle and become situated with the rooms. You'll find a few ? blocks in the corridors and two by the big staircases, all containing Mushrooms or a single coin. If you notice any X pock marks in the ground, they contain beans, which you can unearth later. If you find any large blue platforms, they can't be pressed down until you put the weight of four people on them. Once you've gotten the Refreshroom, head back to the room where you began and it'll take its effect on Toadsworth; but there's no time for anyone to react, for a second later there's a loud rumbling. A flash and a few stars, and the time machine comes crashing down into the castle, looking badly beaten up. Upon further inspection, the doors slide open, and we're met with the lovely stare of... ...an alien. A nice, chubby one at that. It proceeds to lunge out and scare the hell out of everyone, but Mario, being the manly man he is, jumps in to deal with it. BOSS: JUNIOR SHROOBOID HP: 13 EXP: 6 Coins: 0 While this is only a warm-up, if anything, we still have the standard boss theme, so I'm classing it as one. As if you've forgotten your timed attacks since you were a baby, Toadsworth will try to teach you how to fight. Again. Just jump on this guy; his only attack is spinning in a cyclone and making a pass at you. It moves pretty slow, so jumping over it and landing on him for counterattack damage is simple. Finishing this battle will automatically get you a level-up. After the battle, we find that Peach is nowhere to be found, but not to worry; she wasn't eaten or anything. E. Gadd whips out a little device and claims that she was merely sent back several years. But how does that explain the alien? E. Gadd summons everyone to the garden, and that means the two of you will go down there as well, lest you want to stay in there with the beast. Upon meeting him there, you see that he's staring into a crater in the ground, a crater in which there is a swirling void, which he claims to be a time hole. A doorway to the past, of sorts. The time machine ripped a bunch of holes in the space-time continuum, forming these things. Mario volunteers to use the time holes to travel back to the Mushroom Kingdom's past to try and rescue Peach, but before they can hammer out any concrete plan, Toadsworth comes rolling in on his stretcher and crashes into the side of the crater, knocking Luigi into the hole. We see everyone's shocked expressions as he swirls around and disappears into the past... Toadsworth asks a bunch of questions, but before another word is said, Mario dives in after him. [6.3] The Hunt Begins! OOOOO Near Holli Jolli Village OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (8) OOO 1-Up Mushroom (2) OOO Mushroom Drop OOO Coins: 53 OOO Enemies: Shrooblet OOO Shroobs (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Shrooblet- HP: 7 EXP: 2 Coins: 2 Drop: Mushroom Weak: None Resist: None All it does is stop between Mario and Luigi, and then raise one of its feet, indicating which Bro it'll attack. It then makes a spin towards them. Easy to dodge; jumping on it as it does this will deal damage. It is here that we meet Stuffwell, your newfound companion- an annoying talking suitcase that states the obvious and will interrupt you many times throughout your adventure to make astute observations and the like. He will be of use, however, seeing as he has a seemingly unlimited amount of space to house all of the crap you find and want to keep. Sit through his little explanation of how he works. BACK TO ADVENTURE! ...well, no. If you proceed into the next area, Stuffwell will pop out again, and remind you how to jump with two people. Humor him, and then he'll tell you how to jump across a string of ledges simultaneously. At the very least, you can pick up some coins and recovery items for your trouble. Once you've nabbed all of the coins from the L and M blocks, a stairway into the next area will open up. As you proceed, you'll only be able to go so far before a mushroomed individual lands on your head. A swarm of UFOs fly by, and proceed to blast the hell out of the wintry village we see on our map. Dark, purple mushrooms are behind this? Huh? Might as well get on over there. Cross the wooden ramps and navigate the little set-up of mushroom heads, taking out any Shrooblets in your way. Stuffwell interrupts you twice more during this trek, first to tell you about preemptive strikes and Luigi's own attacks (this is his first battle after all) and again to tell you about healing. Go AWAY already! The Bros. will reach level 3 once you've made it to the top. Head into Holli Jolli Village to witness an invasion taking place; craters fill the area as their shots blow everything apart. The residents themselves are stunned, then abducted. At the risk of anal probe, Mario and Luigi head in to investigate. The houses, from what you can see, are all empty, either abandoned or their residents taken hostage. A couple have blocks with coins or Mushrooms in them, as well as one or two outside. If you head inside the house in the upper-right corner, you'll hear a muffled voice. Walk towards the chimney, and he'll address you. Turns out he's the mayor of this town, and scrambled up the chimney once the Shroobs came and trashed the place. Jump underneath him to send him flying out of the chimney and onto the pavement outside. A fat little dude with a white beard and moustache, dressed in red, stuck in a chimney... now where have I seen that? Anyways. Before he can head back inside, the Shroobs return with a couple of UFOs, and a few of the little cretins surround our Santa-lookalike. He screams for help, so get out there and see what's up. No sooner than you step outside, he's being beamed up into one of the saucers! The Shroobs on the ground notice you, and after a little conversation you have no hopes of understanding ("What about these guys...?" "KILL THEM!" "KILL THEM!" "KILL THEM!") they attack you. GRRAAAAAH! BOSS: SHROOBS HP: 15 (each) EXP: 0 Coins: 0 This isn't a true boss of sorts, but once again we have our good 'ol boss theme, so I'll treat it as one. As soon as the battle starts, one of the aliens pulls out a little transmitter, and soon a UFO flies in with a timer attached to it. As soon as it reaches 0, you'll be blown apart, so just entertain these guys until then. You only have enough time to kill one of the three before the countdown reaches 0, so this battle will be a lost cause no matter what; just stomp one of them and dodge their laser shots. To do this, just wait until they spin or put a gleam in their eye, indicating who they'll shoot at- spin for Luigi, gleam for Mario. Then they whip out the gun and shoot; the shots don't move quickly and are easily jumped over. The timer reaches 0, and a huge shot from the UFO above takes you out. Cue the funny little laugh from our antagonists.. We now cut to the skies, where Baby Bowser's Koopa Cruiser is being chased and shot at by the UFOs. You now hear the most annoying sound in the game, which is Baby Peach's crying. Toadsworth comes in to calm her down, and BB orders all of his minions to get to the control deck. You're not one of his toadies, but you have control of the babies now, so why not? Yet again, we are taught how to jump. Collect the coins and mushrooms around the crates, even netting yourself a Drop, which heals all characters opposed to one, and another 1-Up. Save if you wish, then enter the control room. BB's ship will take out the UFOs hassling it, and they'll pass over our presently fallen heroes, the adults. Peach won't shut up until BB does something about it, so again the cannon is fired, this time at the aliens standing over the Bros. The ship will land, and Baby Mario and Luigi are dispatched to go pick them up. Head over to where they lay, and you'll be approached by the remaining Shroobs you fought earlier. Back into the boss battle! BOSS: SHROOBS HP: 15 (each) EXP: 21 Coins: 0 They're fought exactly the same way as before. Only now, you'll be given Bros. Items from Toadsworth to help you rack up some damage. That item is the Green Shell, which I have already explained how to use; Toadsworth will keep you supplied with them throughout the battle, so don't worry about wasting them. After they've been destroyed, Toadsworth will have you bring the adults onto Baby Bowser's ship. In this next scene, we see Toadsworth alone, telling of the mass destruction the Shroobs have brought to the Mushroom Kingdom. We re-witness the attack on the castle, and find that they were rescued by Kamek on the Cruiser by BB's orders; that's how they came to be on his ship. We cut back to the present moment, where Toadsworth is explaining all of this to our now revived Mario and Luigi. We fly over Princess Peach's castle, to see it already covered in fungus, having been infested by the aliens. Their new stronghold, it seems... Mario tells them that Peach is being held captive there, but Toadsworth finds the idea, especially Mario and Luigi being the babies' older selves, absurd. The Koopa Cruiser's alarm sounds again, bringing a transmission straight from Shroob Castle. Flick on the monitor, and... we receive a kind string of crazy gibberish from an alien in a pink gown, deemed to be Princess Shroob. She must be the one that orchestrated all of this! After a taunt of sorts, the alarm sounds again, this time alerting the BB to a missile fired at them from the castle. Cue the crash 'n burn. [6.4] Survivors OOOOO Bowser's Castle OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (2) OOO Green Shell (16) OOO 1-Up Mushroom (4) OOO Mushroom Drop OOO Coins: 196 OOO Enemies: Goomba OOO Boo OOO Boom Guy OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Goomba- HP: 10 EXP: 3 Coins: 3 Drop: Mushroom, Super Mushroom Weak: None Resist: None As you would expect from such a simple enemy, these guys don't have anything crafty up their sleeve. They'll charge in front of one of you, stop for a second, then try to hit you; a jump after this little second wait is all it takes to dodge and counterattack them. Boo- HP: 15 Exp: 5 Coins: 4 Drop: Mushroom Weak: None Resist: None These guys are quick. Right before they disappear, they'll uncover an eye, indicating which bro they plan to attack, and then reappear behind them. Jump immediately and they'll pass underneath you. Nothing too crazy; they're pretty easy to hit while doing this, too. Boom Guy- HP: 18 Exp: 8 Coins: 5 Drop: Green Shell Weak: None Resist: None ShyGuys with Bullet Bill cannons on their heads. These guys will approach and stop in front of either brother, and either fire a BB without interruption, or misfire, emitting a puff of smoke... ...followed by a Bullet Bill. Sometimes your jumps will knock the cannon off; in which case, when the ShyGuy begins its turn, it will send out a call to its allies; a prompt delivery of a new cannon will be followed by its attack as normal; a "..." means it spends its turn doing nothing. How to predict a misfire? When it stops in front of you, if it points towards you, don't jump; wait for the smoke. When it holds onto the cannon with both hands, jump immediately. The Cruiser landed conveniently right inside Baby Bowser's castle, and it seems everyone else was thrown clear of the wreckage, leaving Mario and Luigi by themselves. Another astute observation from Stuffwell. Well, now we want to reunite with them, so time for some dungeon trekking with our Bros. Now we'll get to do some actual play instead of controlling someone for 5 minutes, then having to watch people talk. Head to the right from our save point, and we meet our first enemy with a completely scriptless battle- the Goomba. You'll get a ton of Green Shells from the block right at the entrance, but don't waste them on these guys. A total of 12, Jesus, 12 shells are in this first area alone, as well as two Mushrooms and even a 1-Up. The next area shows you a long, zigzagging catwalk spanning the length of the room. Kill the Goombas and their Boo cohorts if you wish, grab the Mushrooms and blue coin (each is worth 20) and head up to the catwalk. It's pretty straightforward, and if you're used to the controls or have played SSS, navigating this thing without falling is simple. Just stop to change your directions to avoid botching a turn and falling. You can't go far into the next room before the duo stops.. and Luigi is conked on the head by a spiked ball. We look up and find.. "BABIES!!!" Heheheh, I love it whenever Mario says that. Anyway, once you help the babies jump down, try to walk off and Stuffwell will tell you how to alternate between controlling the babies and adults, and then tell you how to carry them piggyback-style. With your new partners in tow, jump on the fat blue square further ahead. The combined weight of the four of you will push it down and open the doors; this is the only way to activate these when you come across them. In the next room, you'll find a ledge impossible for you to jump to, and no feasible way to climb up... that's where the babies come in. Pressing X or Y while in a piggyback will throw both babies overhead. This will let them explore a high area while the adults wait for them to find a switch to let them up, or... ...a block much like the one you see as soon as the babies are thrown onto the ledge. Anytime you're separated from the babies or vice versa, hitting the pipe-block will bring the other two right next to you. Do that here and compress the switch to continue onwards. More items in this next room. To get at the blocks behind the spikes, the babies will have to go solo. Nothing much to say for the items here; you've already seen them. You do get a nice stack of coins, though. The next room has you throwing babies up ledges again, and introduces you to a new block; the Purple Switch block. Hitting these ! blocks will cause some sort of change in the environment to take place, whether it be a bridge forming, or platform dropping to a height within reach. They're pretty much always necessary to hit to continue, and this is no exception. Once you enter the next area, you'll find Kamek searching for Baby Bowser. He'll notice you, and assuming you're up to no good, summon a Goomba and Boo to fight you. In this battle, you'll receive your first actual useful lesson; attacking while teamed up with a baby. Now your attacks can have a lot more force to them. Destroy the two of them, and Kamek summons another Goomba; now Stuffwell will tell you how to use your Green Shell with the babies. Good stuff. Killing the second Goomba brings on one more; now Stuffwell wants Luigi to use a Green Shell. Humor him, and then Kamek summons one final Boo. Stuffwell leaves at last, and we can now end this. Continuing on through the room, you'll find a lone Green Shell, as well as a Boo, bringing with it a new bastard; Boom Guys. After dealing with the other enemies here, you'll come across a large blue pipe; deal with it the same way you would the blue squares. Only four people can activate it. Two more Green Shells in the next room; to proceed here, throw the babies onto the ledge and head through the small opening to reach a hidden room; hit the ! block to create a bridge for you to cross. Same objective in the next room, though now there's more to it. After spawning the bridge and crossing it, you'll find a new switch block- a multicolored one that comes in pairs, requiring two people to activate it. Of course, Stuffwell is going to explain this, but you can tell him to F off, three times in fact, and he'll leave without giving a tutorial. Have Mario hit the block, and immediately have Luigi hit the second block afterwards, as it lights up. This will spawn a block that the babies can use to climb up to another set of ! blocks. The Goombas in this hidden room can be slain if you like, but they'll take a lot more jumps to defeat. Another 1-Up and 20 coins in here for ya. Hitting the switch blocks will lower a platform down on the adult's side. Reunite with them and make your way up the platforms. A Boom Guy will be firing at you from up there; being hit by one of the Bullet Bills will force you into battle, but won't give it a preemptive strike or knock you over or anything. At the end of the passage is a ledge you can throw the babies up to, in order to activate a third set of ! blocks, forming the last bridge you need to get out of there. You're almost done. In this next room, grab the coins, then head over to the left side of the room, where you'll find a fat red block and a ledge with an opening nearby. The sign basically says that hitting that block with the appropriate adult will spawn a block inside the hidden room behind it, which the babies can hit, filling the room with light for a period of time. When you actually send the babies in there, you'll see some pink platforms, and the rest shrouded in pitch darkness. So, hit the block as Mario, and hustle along the passage, stopping once it gets too dark. Whack the large block again with the brother corresponding to the color, and you can fill the room with light again. There are no branching pathways or treasures in here; just make it out on the other side. Hitting the treasure chest over the pedestal you come to get you not coins nor items, but.. a shiny fragment! This is a piece of the Cobalt Star that E. Gadd used to power his time machine. You definitely want to hold onto this. Not like you have a bloody choice. Saddle up with your older selves again and head into the next room. Take the pipe into the next room, save if you wish, and continue on until you reach the final door, which leads not to a boss, but another time hole. A little bit of squabbling with Toadsworth, and the three of you jump in. OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[7] The Vim Factory Siege! OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO You're back in present-day Peach's castle, and right by the hole you hop out of are two last chests. Nab yourself another 1-Up and a whopping 10 coins. Head back to where E. Gadd is standing, and you'll explain the situation to him. You'll also find that the alien, being held in some sort of stasis chamber, reacts quite violently when you pull out the Cobalt Star shard and it gets near him. Mental wizard that he is, E. Gadd deduces that there's some sort of link between the Shroobs and the Cobalt Star. An even brighter Toad suggests that you can find a way to destroy the aliens if you collect more of them. The shard then abruptly flies off, and glancing up at the map, you notice it uncover yet another time hole. Before you leave to check it out, though, E. Gadd gives you a Salvage badge, which slightly increases the odds of collecting an item dropped after battle. Of course, this means yet another educational intervention from Stuffwell. Get it over with, then head to the Shop icon on your map. Now would be a good time to use all those coins you found to buy two pairs of Patched Slacks for the adults and two pairs of Starchy Jeans for the little ones. There aren't any badges for sale that will really make a difference right now, nor can you afford to buy multiples of them for your party. Ignore them and head over to the time hole when you're ready. As you jump in, you'll witness a struggle between Toadsworths... [7.1] Freaky Foliage OOOOO Toadwood Forest OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (2) OOO Bro Flower (15) OOO Green Shell (7) OOO Mushroom Drop OOO Super Mushroom OOO 1-Up Mushroom (2) OOO 1-Up Super OOO Unarmed Jeans OOO Wild Trousers OOO Wallet Badge OOO Coins: 729 OOO Enemies: Koopeleon OOO Boo Guy OOO Elasto-Piranha OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Koopeleon- HP: 18 EXP: 6 Coins: 4 Drop: Green Shell Weak: None Resist: None These little guys will approach you, stop, and then make themselves invisible. This will take a second or two, and once they finish, they'll move in and try to bite you. Pretty slow-moving enemies, so they won't give you a lot of problems. Hitting one while it's invisible will bring its color back; otherwise it'll stay blended in. Boo Guy- HP: 17 EXP: 8 Coins: 5 Drop: Mushroom, Super Mushroom Weak: Fire Resist: None Little ShyGuy ghosts. They'll hover over and stop between the two of you and point with either hand, indicating who they're going to attack. Once they do that, they'll split into two, and charge forward. The bro being targeted should jump once the Boo Guy is in front of him, and he can be damaged; the fake Guy will simply vanish. Elasto-Piranha- HP: 27 EXP: 16 Coins: 6 Drop: Bro Flower, 1-Up Mushroom Weak: Ice Resist: Fire These pipe-dwelling plants rest at the bottom of tree trunks, an unpleasant surprise if you were hoping to find coins. These guys ARE unpleasant, too, because if you screw up an evasive jump, the babies will be nearly killed by just one of its fireballs. Take care when it stretches up and off the screen- the fireball will take longer to come down, so don't jump right away! Otherwise, jump once you see the fireball and you should be fine. If it emerges from the pipe with its head pointed straight up, the fireball will be spit onto Mario. Nice EXP for defeating these guys. Head to the right from the time hole, and right away you'll notice a few tree stumps- these are the first of many obstacles you'll come across as you play. They aren't obstructing you in any way, but they always house treasure blocks with coins (giant, 100-coin coins, at that), items, a switch you must press.. or enemies. Throw the babies into any holes you come across. In this case, they lead to a Mushroom Drop, 201 in coins, and a battle with some Koopeleons. Once you're finished here, head up and into the next area, and a very faint voice will speak to you. Get closer, and you'll find that it's a Toad named Toadiko, seemingly engulfed by the vines around a tree. It turns out that Toadiko was on the time machine with Peach; when he was abducted, the Shroobs brought him along with other captives to the forest, where they became ensnared by the plant life. The trees suck away their mushroom power, their life force; otherwise known as their "vim." The trees send the vim down through a network of roots into their factory, where it is mixed with chemicals and turned into fuel for their flying saucers. Toadiko is certain that Peach and a Cobalt Star shard can be found there... The conversation is ended abruptly as UFOs looming overhead spot the gang and fire upon them. The Bros. flee, but Toadiko is turned into a simple mushroom. The Bros. must now press onwards! The only other thing in this area is a stump with a Super Mushroom and a nice 100-coiner. Move on. Nab some Bro Flowers amidst a few enemies, then pillage the stumps for a few more Green Shells and a 100-coiner. The left stump has an enemy inside it, the Elasto-Piranha; while its attacks aren't difficult to dodge, they're way too strong for the babies at their current level and HP, so be especially careful. One hit will bring them down to critical status, if not kill them outright. Don't try out your new Bro Flowers on them, either; they'll do squat. Anyways, the pathway to the next area is on the right. Here you'll find your path leading to the factory obstructed by trees, but those will be dealt with very soon. Nab the 1-Up and exit via the lower-left, where several long tree trunks are arranged in a circle along with some mysterious clear, empty blocks. There's no way you can toss the babies into these, so head to the only trunk you CAN toss them into, in the lower-left corner. The adults can grab the coins on the right while the babies navigate the underground maze, making sure to hit every block with flame inside it. There are six total; there are also a few Elasto-Piranhas down here, so exterminate them if you'd like a boatload of EXP for the babies. Once done, you can hop back out and have the adults hit the blocks that now encase the flames, sending them into the large block in the center. Get all six, then hit the large block to send the fireball flying into the previous area, where it'll land on the trees and burn them to ashes, creating an opening for you to pass through. Once you've gone down through the pipe and emerged in the new area, save and head upwards. Notice the map up above is filled with spikes.. the left is entirely inaccessible at the moment, so don't even bother checking it out. Instead, scour the tree trunks for 100 coins and a pair of Unarmed Jeans. I wouldn't recommend equipping these, for the babies are going to be in a boss battle on their own very soon, and any hits they take will be fatal while wearing those. If you're confident in your dodging, though, then go ahead. I've found the enemies at this point and onwards start appearing in greater numbers, so you'll be getting a lot more EXP from here on. Anyways, to the north is the factory entrance, which is surrounded by a moat that we can't cross just yet. Upon further inspection, you'll find that the bridge to the entrance is submerged under water. Those shroob-like claws on either side look like they have something to do with it, don't they? You want to activate them, so leave to your right. Here we have a platform perched over the bed of spikes, but it won't move for you unless someone is controlling it, and that someone is either baby. Toss them into the tree trunk and you'll find a block with an arrow on it, changing directions every second or so. Have Mario and Luigi stand on the platform over the spikes, and get it moving by hitting the block once the arrow points to the right. The platform will move nonstop in the direction that was punched into the block until the baby hits it again, stopping it abruptly. Now, you can wait for the arrow to point to a new direction and hit it again. The idea is to bring the platform across the spikes and to the second pathway you come across, then stop it. The first path leads to an exit out of there and a Wallet Badge, which allows you to flee battle at less of a coin expense. You don't need it. Anyways, once in the next area, bring the babies over to your location and jump underneath the ! block while holding one of the babies. At the peak of your jump, press the baby's jump button and they'll be able to reach the block. This causes four blocks to spread out over the brothers, starting with Baby Luigi. The idea is to hit the first with BL, then quickly press the button for the next in line as his block lights up. You only have a second before you lose it and it reverts back to transparency. Hit all four, and the Shroob mechanism will power up and get some current flowing to the claw by the entrance. Now we have one more to go. Get the Green Shells, Bro Flowers and 100-coiner here, and you can be on your way. As you enter through the north, right away you'll notice a ! block over some spikes. This'll be your next objective. Clear away the enemies on the way to the tree trunk, then throw the tykes in and get the adults onto the platform. This time there'll be a yellow ramp along the way, which the platform can pass under, but the Bros. cannot; simply jumping onto it and hopping back onto the platform as it comes out from the other side is all you need to do. Hitting the ! block spurts up a block that'll grant you access to the next area. Ride the platform back over, grab the kids, and leave. The next Shroob mechanism is here, and is activated the same way- piggyback jump, then a quick sequence of jumps. With electricity flowing from the second claw, the bridge is set into place, allowing you to enter the factory! Grab the coins, Mushroom and 1-Up here, then exit via the south. More fun with platforms! Into the trunk the babies are thrown. There are Green Shells, Bro Flowers and coins inside treasure blocks over the spikes, among other things, including a 1-Up Super, an item that revives the fallen one with full HP. There's also a pair of Wild Trousers for the adults, which are basically the same as Unarmed Jeans, only with an even bigger cut in defense. Meh. Once you've gotten everything, have the babies pilot the platform down to the lower-right corner. You're now back where your started; a pipe block to summon the babies is near the bridge to the factory. Head across the bridge, and the doors will slide open for you... what dangers await our heroes inside this freaky place? [7.2] Who Drank all the Vim?! OOOOO Vim Factory OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (7) OOO Green Shell (6) OOO Bro Flower (3) OOO Cannonballer (8) OOO Mushroom Drop (2) OOO Refreshing Herb (6) OOO 1-Up Mushroom OOO Unarmed Jeans OOO Coins: 17 OOO Enemies: Spiny Shroopa OOO Dr. Shroob OOO Lakitufo OOO Hammer Bros. (Boss) OOO Swiggler (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Spiny Shroopa- HP: 18 EXP: 2 Coins: 2 Drop: Green Shell Weak: None Resist: None These guys will take a few whacks with the hammer once you face them for the first time, but they're not too gifted offensively. They'll hop in front of either brother, and sit still for a good two seconds, and then lunge. You should have your hammer ready as they're waiting to pounce, then release as soon as they do. You'll get a feel for the timing very quickly. Be warned that they sometimes will pause right after being counterattacked, and make a second lunge; have your hammer ready again in case they do. These guys also have the ability to poison you. Why such crappy EXP and coins? You'll soon meet an enemy that'll spawn these things over and over again. Can't give you TOO much per battle, can they? Dr. Shroob- HP: 29 EXP: 18 Coins: 10 Drop: Bro Flower, Mushroom Drop Weak: Ice Resist: None These doctors will attack you at first just like the Shroobs you faced earlier, but once they've taken their shot, they'll pull out one of two mushrooms and hold onto it; attacking them once they've done this will cause them to drop it. If a Dr. is holding a red mushroom, you definitely want him to lose it, or else he'll eat it come his turn and charge at you. Shroobs holding a poisoned shroom are much less of a threat, as they'll shrink and waddle towards you, making themselves easy pickings for your hammer. Their shots are very slow and easy to jump; their charging attacks are stopped with the hammer. Lakitufo- HP: 26 EXP: 16 Coins: 7 Drop: Cannonballer Weak: None Resist: None These guys can be annoying if not dealt with. They always come with Spiny Shroopas as cohorts, and if you kill one, there's a good chance it'll merely beam a fresh one down from its saucer. Otherwise, it attacks by beaming down a spiny egg, which will bounce at you; be ready to swing your hammer as soon as it materializes, since it will come at you very quickly. These guys also twirl around back and forth between Mario and Luigi, then swirl in front of either for a moment and hurl themselves off of their saucer and at your position. Give them a moment after they move in front of you, then jump. Lastly, the easiest attack to counter: Lakitu will hover over you and try to beam you up into his saucer. Have your hammer charging, and wail him once you get close to the top. These guys are total bastards; by all means get rid of them first. "AREA RESTRICTED. ALL NOOB INTRUDERS 2 B HAX0RED BY US L33T HAMMER BROZ.!" "WE R TEH SHROOB ALLIES. WE R0X0R U AND THEN ROFL. THEN U AM CRY." "WE RECEIVE ORDERS THRU ANTENNAS ON THESE L33T HELMETS. THEY R HOTNESS." "WE MUST OBEY ALL ORDERS. WE LIKE 2 PWN N00BS 4 TEH MASTER SHROOBZORS." "U = N00BS. BROZ. = L33T. PREPARE 4 TOTAL PWNAGE. W00T! W00T! W00T! W00T!" Heeeeeeeee... good 'ol netspeak. Enter the pipe and save, and as soon as you enter the next room, you'll be accosted by two Hammer Bros. that have apparently been brainwashed by the Shroobs into doing their bidding. After their taunts, a giant pair of nostrils will come down from the ceiling and suck the adults into each one. WTF? You'll see what that nose is a part of soon enough, but first you have to deal with our mindless turtle friends. "N00BZ STILL R NOT PWNED. CONTINUE PWNERSHIP UNTIL ALL N00BZ R PWNED." "TEH ESCAPE IS IMPOSSIBLE. WE R 2 L33T. WE OWNZ J00. "U WILL GET FLATZORED BY R L33T HAMMERS." BOSS: HAMMER BROS. HP: 100 (each) EXP: 80 Coins: 70 Win: Mushroom Drop These guys may have a huge amount of HP compared to the babies, but you'll be dealing counterattack damage to both of them every turn in addition to your standard attacks, so this battle won't take very long. You can't survive repeated hits from these guys, but the attacks are easy to avoid; as long as both of them are alive, they'll hit the other brother with their hammer to turn them into a ball of sorts, and then strike it again to send it flying towards you. Jump right after they hit it, and you should land on the HB just after it strikes where you would have been. Now, if the head of their hammer flies off before they hit their HB at you, do nothing, and it'll just fly overhead. You should have a plethora of Green Shells now, so how about using some? You can get some nice double-digit damage on these guys, as opposed to your pitifully weak jumps. Single one of the Hammer Bros. out until it's been defeated, and then get ready for a new attack- the hammers themselves. The remaining HB will jump when it's going to throw a hammer at BM, and the bulb on its helmet will glow when BL is the target. You don't have to study him for this, really- just jump when the hammer is about to make contact with the floor in front of you, and the attack will miss. He'll throw anywhere from two to five hammers at the babies in one turn. Since he'll already have taken a fair amount of damage every time you countered his duo attack, just use jumps to finish him off in a few turns. After the battle, the babies will have shattered the helmets, freeing them from their mental imprisonment. As gratitude, they'll give the babies their hammers. Nice. First, of course, they'll give you a tutorial on how to use them. At least they're actually teaching us something, unlike Stuffwell. Go through their little obstacle course until they're satisfied and let you on your way; they will show up again, however, once you get into a battle, to tell you how to use them against your enemies. You'll notice your HP was fully replenished after the fight; this little benefit not always found in RPGs will occur every time you defeat one. Go and save, and then you'll be ready to start searching for our unfortunate elders. The left room is inaccessible at the moment, as is the upper right, so do the only thing you can and press the yellow switch. A little obstacle course awaits you, much like what the Hammer Bros. put you through. Elementary crap here. The next room, however, has a nice little puzzle for you. You must tunnel under the gate in the upper-right and climb onto the wall arranged with machinery, then carefully walk down so you can drop into the room and hit the red switch there with your hammer. A coin and some Green Shells are here for you as well. Activating the switch will make a red block protrude from the wall; now you'll want to bring the blue one out as well. Hop back up onto the wall of machines and turn to the left as soon as you reach the top. Make the jump to the other side without falling, and you can activate that switch as well. Tunnel your way out of there and hop up your new staircase. Now you'll be in some sort of air duct. Some ailment-recovery Refreshing Herbs are in the treasure block nearby; also here is an unavoidable battle with some spike-topped creatures, called Spiny Shroopas. The Hammer Bros. will intervene here, and tell the babies about attacking and counterattacking with the hammer. Use this newfound knowledge to kill off all the remaining Shroopas in the duct and grab the other items you find. Once out of the duct, drop down and tunnel through the passage on the left. In the next room, amidst some Shroopas are some coins, herbs and another pair of Unarmed Jeans for the babies. Back out of there once you're finished and take the path to the right, and you'll find... Mario and Luigi! Seems those nostrils belonged to that hideous looking tree. They have no Vim to be sucked out, so what exactly is it sucking? ..I've already stopped caring. To bust the Bros. out, shatter the bulbs connected to the tree with your hammer, and you'll be reunited for the umpteenth time. "BABIES!" The mechanical nostrils will return to the room, however, this time popping out a couple of Shroopas for you to dispatch. And this scripted battle comes with... another Hammer Bros. tutorial. Now you'll learn how to use hammers while battling in piggyback, and the HBs will be out of your hair from this point on. Yay. Your hammers will also perform much better, now that you have the adults assisting them. After the battle, toss the babies up onto the ledge in the upper-right and pound the switch. Leave; now you can compress the blue switch in the main room and continue onwards. We meet a new enemy in this room, called Dr. Shroob. Their fighting style is the same as other Shroobs we fought- gleam in the eye or spin, then a laser shot. But afterwards, these guys will pull out either a mushroom or poison shroom, and hold onto it; hitting them will make them drop the shroom, but if they begin their next turn with it in their possession, they'll eat it and either grow or shrink in size, then charge. Obviously, allowing them to become huge is a no-no. The way you deal with these guys will play a large part in a battle soon to come, with a twist. You'll also meet the Lakitufo, an adorable and extremely annoying enemy with a wide variety of attacks. Kill these guys first, if you find yourself in a battle with one. Anyways, this room is devoid of puzzles- just some enemies for you to face, and a new Bros. Item- the Cannonballers. These things kick major ass for this early point in the game; don't waste 'em on measly enemies. Eliminate the hostile forces here, and proceed. A pipe will take you down to the next level, leading to a large room with a huge glass structure filled with green fluid. The junk swimming around in there resembles mushrooms... This must be where the Vim is processed and mixed with chemicals. All there is to do is to tunnel the babies under the gate and whack the switch, opening the doors to the right; a third Lakitufo resides in here to give you more problems. Make it SUFFER! >=( In the next room, we have two sealed doors, yet another Lakitufo, and a large laser barrier of some sort preventing us from crossing to the other side. Once you've gotten the enemies out of the way, throw the babies up to the ledge over the doors and enter the hidden room there. Pound the red switch, and the laser barrier will shut off. Now the adults can proceed to a set of ! blocks and hit them, creating a bridge in the hidden room for the babies to cross over the electric floor. Now, as the babies, tunnel under the gate you come across and hit the switch, removing the second barrier for the adults. Tunnel back out and move both groups to the right, where you'll find the two sets of ! blocks. You know how this goes. The babies must initiate it. Doing so will push up a block so the babies can climb onto the ledge surrounding the hidden room; walk over to the right and head downwards, out through an opening. Now they're on the other side of the room, up on the overhang; make your way across, smashing the crates, finally coming to the red switches that must be whacked. Both rooms are accessible now. Both of them lead to passages loaded with enemies; start on the left, as you'll be backtracking out of there anyway. The room this corridor connects to has a unique kind of coin block- hitting it will disband the four Bros. and spread them out into a square, placing a block with their designated button on it over their head. One of the blocks will light up; hit it for a single coin. The idea is to get many as you can, hitting the correct block as the time comes, keeping up with the speed until you take too long or make a couple errors. Taking the corridor on the right nets you four more Cannonballers, three Bro Flowers, and the first bean for the babies to tunnel down and retrieve. In the next room, throw the babies up into another hidden room and put the adults on the platform. This thing again. Stop it midway so the adults can hit a ! block to form a bridge for the babies to cross, then continue to the end. Along the way are blocks with a 1-Up, two Mushrooms, a measly three coins, and three Green Shells. Upon reaching the end, you'll see another set of ! blocks, which when activated will form another bridge for the babies. Now they can join up with you on the other side. Onwards! I definitely recommend you save here, because when you step on the switch and go through the door, you'll witness a little scene in which a creature drinks some of the green fluid we saw coursing through the factory tubes, then produces some energy, which it uses to power up a pair of flying saucers. Mario and Luigi make an exclamation, then turn to see... the babies knock over the creature's glass of fluid. Of course, it's now pissed. Ready to face its wrath? BOSS: SWIGGLER HP: 250 EXP: 196 Coins: 140 First things first, if you ever attack Swiggler while he's in his red and angry state, he'll counter with an earthquake that'll send two or more shockwaves across the ground at both of you; jump quickly in succession to avoid them all. Also, he takes very little damage, even from Cannonballers, in this state. Swiggler begins the battle with two Dr. Shroobs, which will remain with him permanently, and more will join the battle as the existing ones are destroyed. You'll notice Swiggler's drink; every time he drinks from it, he'll power up two UFOs, which will then fire their cannons at your party. When the Dr. Shroobs pull out their shrooms, any attack that hits them will cause them to drop it, and it'll bounce into Swiggler's glass and change the fluid. If a red mushroom is dropped into it, the fluid will become red, and his next drink will heal him for a substantial amount of HP. If a poison shroom is dropped in, he'll drink the gray fluid and be poisoned, thus ending his turn and making him susceptible to heavy damage without countering hits with a shockwave. As far as his attacks go, aside from making earthquakes and healing himself, he'll take a deep breath and spew a poison cloud at you; hit it with the hammer, then be ready to hit it again when it dissipates into a smaller cloud, or you'll be damaged and possibly poisoned. The Dr. Shroobs have no other attacks to add to the fray besides their existing moves, but never, ever hit one while it's holding a red mushroom. Once it's been poisoned, when its turn comes around it'll become pissed again and take another drink; you want to keep a constant supply of bad fluid coming, so it'll not only never heal itself, but also never attack or counter. You can't always guarantee a poison shroom coming up, though, so be prepared to deal with the UFO's cannon shots. Jump as soon as the shots are fired, and you should avoid them. As Swiggler's HP drops further downwards, he'll use his poison cloud attack 4-5 times in a row, so be ready for it. Now is an excellent time to use your Cannonballers; they'll shave off a large chunk of HP per turn, provided you never miss an action command. Three of them while he's in his green and weak state should do it. With Swiggler's destruction comes our next Cobalt Star shard! Kickass. ...Well, kickass until Baby Bowser jumps in and starts spinning around the party in circles, which for reasons I cannot comprehend for the life of me, makes both shards fly out from our possession and into BB's. Um, okay. Either way, he now has our fragments, and now we've got to chase the little bugger and get them back from him. You'll automatically be taken back to the present Peach's Castle. OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[8] Dino Wrangling OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Head over to E. Gadd and explain your predicament. He'll tell you that time holes have been sprouting up all over the place recently, and point you towards one of them, saying it's been giving off strong Cobalt Star readings. Obviously that's where you're headed next, but first he wants you to check out the commotion in the castle garden. When you arrive, you'll find Baby Peach in her carriage, bawling her eyes out. The younger Toadsworth is standing atop the elder's head, and together they execute a spinning move they call the Toadsworth Twist. Look familiar? Yep. Mario and Luigi pester them, and so now you're going to be taught to do the move yourself. Much like the Hammer Bros. tutorial, complete their obstacle course as they instruct you to do so, and you can be on your way. Before you head to the time hole, though, go to the shop and buy two pairs of Branded Slacks and Preferred Pants. Now that your equipment is up to date, you can trudge to the second floor and into the library. Once inside, use the only platform you can reach to climb up onto the bookcases, and use your newly acquired spin to make it across to the treasure blocks above each case. The Training Badge is quite useless, but the rightmost block contains a Super Mushroom. When you're ready to warp, spin to the top of the screen from the bookcase conveniently marked with an arrow. Nab the 1-Up Super up there, then grab the babies and into the time hole! OOOOO Yoshi's Island OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Shroom Badge OOO Smash Egg (4) OOO Coins: 120 OOO Enemies: None OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Catchy tune, eh? No? Well screw you, I like the nostalgic stuff. This place seems largely deserted as we first enter, and the area is littered with huge footprints. The first "house" you see contains a Shroom Badge and a save point; enter the next house you come across, and you'll meet a new face; Kylie Koopa, ace reporter or some crap. She came to the island after hearing about a massive egg being found there, and has suspicions that it's linked to the Shroobs in some way. She'll ask that the babies hop onto the spring inside the hut, and in humoring her you'll find... Yoshis! They're all huddled over, shaking with fear. At the sound of the babies, one of them begs them not to say anything. Who are these guys hiding from..? Of course, that will be answered momentarily. Cue the lumbering footsteps. The brothers come outside to the sound of a roar in Shroob-Gibberish, and watch as a huge creature resembling an enormous Yoshi, with red eyes and Shroob-like claws, rampages throughout the area and gulps down a bunch of Yoshis, and Kylie the ignoramus, to boot. Aw, raspberries! Say hello to Yoob, everybody! Well, Kylie gets herself spit up. A few more Yoshis are eaten, though, and Yoob even zings his tongue inside the hut the Bros. are hiding in, but comes out empty. The sound of his giant steps fade into the distance; he's had his fill and left. Once you leave the hut, you'll see Kylie, and she mentions something about an evil-looking Magikoopa looking around the place next door. Head inside, and you'll find Kamek mumbling to himself about his desperate need to find snacks, and pillaging a Yoshi Cookie. The Bros. march in to confront him about the stolen shards, and Kamek tells you off. Baby Bowser is on the cliff top, waiting for Kamek to return with some grub. Hopping on the spring will net you some Smash Eggs, my least favorite Bros. Item, and 20 coins. Back outside, we'll briefly see an encounter between Kamek and Yoob. Nothing important or very funny. He removes a door with his magic, though, making a path for us to continue. More Smash Eggs and a save point inside. The spring in the next area we come to leads to a cloud with a block suspended in the air, with a button atop it. Once Baby Mario hits it with his hammer, it'll drop to a level the adults can reach. It contains a nice 100-coiner. Not too shabby! When you finally come to a pipe, nab the two beans nearby and head down. Finally, we'll be doing some exploring instead of constantly walking into another conversation. [8.1] Blazing Saddles! OOOOO Yoshi's Island (Cliffs) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Mushroom (2) OOO Super Mushroom (2) OOO Green Shell (5) OOO Smash Egg (21) OOO Cannonballer (3) OOO 1-Up Mushroom OOO 1-Up Super OOO Heart Pants OOO Coins: 128 OOO Enemies: Pidgit OOO Gnarantula OOO Coconutter OOO Kamek (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Pidgit- HP: 24 EXP: 18 Coins: 6 Drop: Smash Egg, Mushroom Drop Weak: None Resist: None Remember them? They'll fly into the top screen, then quickly swoop down and make a pass at one of the Bros. If they hop before swooping, they'll stop in mid-air and make some psychotic sort of laugh before going through with the attack. Who will be attacked? If they pause while in front of the group, they'll swoop at Luigi. If they pause behind you, then they'll pass at Mario. They don't swoop towards you at blinding speed or anything, so jumping and countering the move is pretty easy. These guys sometimes carry a sack, and defeating them before they flee will net you 18 extra coins. Gnarantula- HP: 30 EXP: 15 Coins: 5 Drop: Smash Egg, 1-Up Mushroom Weak: Fire (green), Ice (red) Resist: None Don't jump on these guys! You never know if they have spikes under those puffs. Some of them do, some don't. The best way to face them is just by using your hammer. For attacks, they'll flutter towards you, and on the second flutter, simply come down on top of you. Be ready with your hammer to wail them as they come overhead; you'll get a feel for the timing. Once you expose their spikes or lack thereof, their jumps will be a little quicker. Coconutter- HP: 43 EXP: 20 Coins: 6 Drop: Green Shell, Ultra Mushroom Weak: None Resist: None These nuisances have the ability to summon rainstorms, which will heal 30 HP of damage to ALL enemies present. An upcoming storm is indicated by the use of their previous turn to merely raise their spear into the air, forcing you to resort to your hammer rather than jumps. Their actual attacks come from behind; they'll throw a spear into the air, out of their side of the screen, and it'll impale one of the Bros. unless you jump as soon as it's out of sight. They'll also appear from behind you and blow a dart into your backside; jump when you see the tube move closer to you after it initially shows up, and the dart should miss. Oh, and the eye that gleams tells you which brother is being targeted for the spear toss. We'll encounter Kamek one more time, and after a little standoff, he flies up to the top screen and uses his magic to start a bunch of fires throughout the place. He leaves you to deal with the flames, which we will get started with once Stuffwell tells us about shooting water. Toss the babies, and have BM stand in front of the fountain. As long as he's there, the water will cumulate inside him until he's got nine shots worth. BL can hit him with his hammer to make him spit the water forward; this is what we'll be using to put out those fires. Start with the flame directly across the bridge, then proceed. You'll be greeted by a possibly familiar face in the next area; Pidgit! Some of these guys carry a sack into battle, and if you can defeat them before they flee, you'll get some coins. The nearby blocks contain a coin and 8 Smash Eggs. Up in the clouds, you'll find some beans, coins, more crummy Smash Eggs, and a 1-Up Super. In the next area, you'll find that you can't reach any of the ledges by jumping or throwing babies, because they're just way too high. Transparent blocks sit by each one, offering a way up if one can make them solid. So, go to the right and toss the babies onto the spring you come across, sending them into the clouds. Things of interest here besides the fountain are the Heart Pants in the upper left; the babies can equip them and get a boost in both their HP and defense. Now, gulp down some water and align yourself with the pipe the arrow is pointing at. Spitting into it will shoot the water downwards and onto the flame below, extinguishing it, giving you access to a red ! block. Hitting this will solidify one of the blocks to the left, allowing you to climb onto one of the ledges. Mosey on over there. The block merely gives way to a bridge into the next area, where you now have two fires to put out. Grab the coins and mushrooms, then tunnel the babies under the gate by the holes in the wall. Take two gulps of water from the fountain, and shoot them into both hollowed-out trees. With the fires put out, Mario and Luigi can use their spin to travel, starting at the bridge, across the platforms and hit the green ! block. Another one solidified. Time to mosey again. Hopping up the green block will present two paths; one of which cannot be taken until you hit the third and final blue ! switch. So it's off to the right, where you'll eventually come to a room with four different pipes suspended in the air, three of which have an arrow, indicating that we can reposition it. Hit the blocks repeatedly until they're positioned in such a way that the water can flow down from above, into the blue pipe, then travel through the three yellow pipes and onto the flame, dousing it. Once again the babies must take to the clouds, but for once there are no beans or Gnarantulas up here; just a fountain. Fulfill your fireman duties and hit the block; now you can further ascend the cliffs. On your way into the next area, you can nab some Green Shells, and encounter a new, rather stupid looking, enemy. What happened to the Spear Guys?? I want my goddamn Spear Guys back! Not these.. these FREAKS! Taking the pipe down will bring up a new map that doesn't appear to be very intricate in design; however, there's another fire that must be dealt with. The next area has a few ledges with very large gaps in between them, making them impossible to jump across. But notice the whirlwind up there? Those privy to SSS will remember that these gaps are crossed by spinning as the adults into the whirlwind, which will build up your speed and greatly increase your flight distance. Leave the babies behind for now and spin across to the other side, catching a quick glimpse of Kamek as you do so. If you fall in this next area, you'll have to go all the way back and use the whirlwind again; you might as well jump down anyway, to get the Green Shells from the chest and to take out the enemies. Bring the babies over there and hop on the spring, taking you to a cloud for an alternate route for them. Have them wait on the cliff over there while the Bros. spin their way to them. Head up, then use the spin to gross the large gap and hit the purple ! block to move the ledge on the right down some, unveiling a gate to be tunneled under. Inside is a passage leading to a spring, taking you back to the surface, where a fountain awaits. Have a drink, then drop back down and position yourself on the narrow walkway so that BL can get a whack in, and put the flames out. Kill the birdies on their carpets for the EXP, nab the 1-Up, and press onwards. You're almost done... In the following area, you'll want to send the babies up into the clouds and through to the other side, as they can't do anything about the gap. The adult Bros. must time a spin so that they make it to the whirlwind as it comes near, and can then make the entire distance with the extra air time. Along the way, the babies can pick up some Super Mushrooms, more Smash Eggs, and three Cannonballers. Have you been digging up all of the beans up to this point? I've got 16 of them thus far, and soon you'll be happening upon a plethora of them. Make a habit of it... Once you cross the gap, step on the switch to open the doors, and before you take a step any farther, SAVE. Much to our disappointment, Baby Bowser narrowly avoids choking to death, and we get on Kamek's nerves for the last time. The babies scarf down a mountain of Yoshi Cookies in mere seconds; little fat plumbers already in the making. Now we've incurred Kamek's wrath, so he sics that Evil Cow of his on us. STINKY BABIES! BOSS: KAMEK HP: 450 EXP: 130 Coins: 50 Kamek's primary means of attack will be producing spiked balls with his wand and then raining them down on your party. As soon as his turn begins, he'll hop onto his broom, then start firing bursts of the transform-o magic his generation of baddies are known for. He'll fly directly in front of the Bros. he plans to hit, so there'll be no confusion as to where the balls will land once they come from the top screen. Hit them away with your hammer before they connect, and they'll sail into Kamek for some damage. He'll also produce mushrooms with his wand, too; if you spot one of these, don't swing your hammer at it; otherwise it'll heal him. Let them fall onto you and they'll replenish your own health! Following every one of his attacks, if he hasn't any in his possession already, he'll create four clones of himself; now, you can try and jump on two of them and see if they're the real deal; the fakes will simply vanish, but you can also use an all-hitting attack like the Bro Flower and rid of all of them at once. I prefer to keep them around, for all five Kameks will attack, meaning the real Magikoopa will suffer a lot of damage from repeated counterattacks, or you'll receive a lot of health recovery. Obviously, the counterattacks will give away the real Kamek, so wail away on him afterwards. If you knock him from his broom, he'll summon up a fireball to travel along the ground at you, starting up by Mario. Jump it with both brothers, then be prepared to swing your hammer- sometimes, the fireball will strike Kamek and set him on fire, rather than simply go offscreen. If this happens, Kamek will charge at you very quickly. You have no time to raise the hammer once he starts running, so be prepared the moment the fireball connects. He has no other attacks in his arsenal, and will climb back onto his broom once he's conjured up the fireball. Use your trusty Cannonballers once again when you're sure you're hitting the real Kamek; four of them, in addition to all the counterattack damage, should be enough to finish him off. Continue right past Kamek's fallen body, and soon you'll encounter BB again, having gotten himself into a dead end. He'll eat your Cobalt Star shards to spite you, but before you can force him to spit them back up, your best pal Yoob will show up again, trying to climb up the side of the cliffs to get at you. UFOs fly by and notice you, then give Yoob a hand by firing a growth ray at him and greatly increase his size. It's only a matter of time before he snatches you with that tongue of his, and since BB and your precious shards have now been swallowed, you don't have much of a choice. Once you land from your esophagus free-fall, Luigi will silence the babies with his last remaining Yoshi Cookies while Mario sleeps off his unconsciousness. He finally wakes up, and Stuffwell pops out to say something I've already forgotten as I was typing the previous sentences, so it won't be included here. Woo! Send the babies up the spring, and you'll be set to explore pink, squishy interior of our Yoshi devourer. [8.2] Intestinal Distress OOOOO Inside Yoob's Belly OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Super Mushroom (3) OOO Mushroom Drop OOO Super Drop (2) OOO Green Shell (4) OOO Ice Flower (9) OOO Smash Egg (3) OOO Cannonballer (10) OOO 1-Up Super OOO Puffy Trousers OOO Coins: 234 OOO Enemies: Bully OOO Dry Bones OOO RC Shroober OOO Sunnycide (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Bully- HP: 46 EXP: 17 Coins: 6 Drop: Ice Flower, Green Pepper Weak: Ice Resist: None These will be fought mainly while the babies are exploring on their own. Their attack is a simple charge towards the babies, continuing off of the screen, and then charging again them from behind, back to their original position. The thing is, though, attacking them fills them with rage and boosts both their speed and attack. Attack them twice, and they'll be furious, hitting with great force and moving extremely fast. The best way to handle them is focusing on one and getting rid of it before it has a chance to move. If they do get into their pissed-off state, though, be ready to jump over them, and immediately jump again after you land, to avoid the second pass. Otherwise, wait a good second or so before jumping again, since they move rather slowly. Dry Bones- HP: 53 EXP: 32 Coins: 7 Drop: Super Mushroom, 1-Up Mushroom Weak: None Resist: None Their attacks work just like the hammers thrown by the Hammer Bros. you fought earlier- jump as the bones are hitting the ground in front of you, and they should simply bounce underneath you. If it makes a hop before throwing the bone, stand still, and the bone should sail over your head. They'll throw anywhere from 2-3 bones; spinning their head around before attacking means they'll go after Luigi. Chomping their jaws means they'll go after Mario. They won't throw at the same person twice in a row. RC Shroober- HP: 58 EXP: 26 Coins: 8 Drop: Cannonballer, Ultra Mushroom Weak: Ice Resist: None Shroobs that attack you not with lasers, but with remote-controlled toys of sorts. Their attack depends on the number of antennae that sprout from its head; two, and it'll send a UFO over your head, trying to beam you up into it. Charge up the hammer and whack it as you get close. Their second attack, indicated by a single antenna, is a bit trickier; a small robot will appear and rove quickly in circles around the Bros., making anywhere from 1-3 passes. When it begins to glow, it'll explode once it's finished making its pass. If the Shroober hops before summoning the robot, though, the bot will pause in place before zipping at you, so don't jump right away. If they face the screen upon sprouting their antennae, the attack will go for Mario, or Mario first in the case of the robot. First, take the time to tunnel and dig up the beans in this large room- there's an absolute plethora of them. Fifteen, to be exact. Right as you emerge from the hole, you'll find a Yoshi, trying to push a huge Chomp Rock, all by itself. Apparently, pushing a rock down into the hole will clear a way through Yoob's stomach, currently blocked. You won't be helping him, though- instead, you're going to get a bunch of Yoshis to provide some assistance. That means rescuing the lot of them from various plights inside this place. Bring the adults up with the nearby pipe, then go to the various arteries and toss the babies into them. Inside them are 100-coiners, a 1-Up Super, a meaty little psycho named Bully, and most importantly, a piece of fruit. The fruit is not for you to eat, but to give to the yellow Yoshi sprawled out at the top of the room. Feed it to him, and he'll join the other Yoshi behind the rock, providing a little more muscle. If you're injured in any battles here, there's an HP-replenishing block conveniently in this room. Save your Mushrooms. You'll notice there are five rooms branching off of this one; start with the one on the left, past the save point. Inside is a red Yoshi, cowering in fear while a Shroob torments it with a little robot. Have Mario jump on it, and the Shroob will attack you; defeat it, and the Yoshi can join the others in pushing the Chomp Rock. We'll hit these rooms clockwise, so next up is a room containing a blue Yoshi trapped in an enclosure, with something resembling a strand of DNA above it. To the right is a block with two Super Mushrooms and a pair of switches, which will activate once the babies match the colors of the two pegs nearby- blue, then yellow. Doing so opens up a hidden room for the babies to tunnel into, with two levels lined with switches. Positioning the adults in front of the chain of pegs so you can see, hammer the switches until every color is exactly as it appears on the strand. For those extremely stupid people, the two levels should look like this: Top: Blue, blue, yellow, yellow, red, blue, red, yellow. Bottom: Yellow, red, blue, red, yellow, yellow, blue, blue. Once you've completed the puzzle, head inside and talk to the Yoshi, and it'll join the others. Next room to the right- this one has no Yoshis, but a bunch of cows to be slain, and several treasure blocks to open. Of interest here are some new Ice Flowers, and a pair of Puffy Trousers for the adults, offering both an HP and attack increase. The next room on the right contains a large bed of spikes, with a lone pink Yoshi trapped on a block of tissue in the center of it. Tossing the babies onto the nearby springs will send you to a room filled with holes dropping down into the spiked area. Grab some more Ice Flowers up here, then drop down the third hole from the left. Hit the switch with your hammer, and a bridge of tissue will form; the Yoshi will leave automatically. If you want a bean, drop down the last hole on the right, but the adults will have to summon you back with the pipe. Once you're finished in there, you can enter the last room, on the far right, containing another RC Shroober terrorizing a light blue Yoshi, this time with a flying saucer. Tunnel the babies through into the hidden room, and have BM take a few gulps of water. The idea here is to fire droplets of water into the bottom screen through the opening in the tissue, timing them so that they hit the UFO buzzing about. Each shot amusingly startles the Shroob, and it'll take two hits to bring the saucer down. It'll crash into the wall, blowing open an entrance for you to get at both the Yoshi and the Shroob itself. Be sure to bring the babies back out before you head in there, as taking one step inside will alert the Shroober, and it'll attack you. Defeating it will calm the Yoshi down, and it'll provide the muscle needed to finally push the Chomp Rock down the hole, where the intestines or whichever region this is gets painfully stretched open. See Yoob's reaction? Heheheh. The new passage contains some Cannonballers, a 1-Up and some Smash Eggs, as well as some Dry Bones and RC Shroobers. At the end is a pipe, leading into the next area. In this large room, you'll witness a Yoshi being pulled into some sort of machine full of suds, then churned out onto a conveyor belt into an egg. Apparently this is a factory for turning Yoshis into eggs, but for what? To eventually hatch into Yoobs? For some other creature's nourishment? Either way, there are a lot of RC Shroobers here to be destroyed, as well as some more Bros. Items and a Mushroom Drop. Unlike the stomach, these rooms don't branch out all over the place; the exit is in the lower left, bringing you to a room full of shattered eggshells, and four Yoshis already working on another Chomp Rock. Send the babies onto the spring, then take a few gulps of water from the fountain. Now, using the adults, smack the eggs inside the blocks from underneath to send them up to the babies, and be ready to blast them with water so that they break open on the gray dangly-thing. Position the babies up against the wall to have the best shot at them. I've found that waiting until the eggs are about to drop back down the best time to fire. Cracking both release two Yoshis, and they'll both immediately run over to help push the egg away from the opening. The blocks to the right contain 50 coins and some more Super Mushrooms. The next room has no puzzles; only enemies and treasures, the only new one being two Super Drops, down in an artery. Can't complain with the Bros. Items, though. The downward path leads only to a safe haven for the Yoshis, two beans, and another 4-Bros. coin block, like the one in Vim Factory. Stand on the blue switch to access the next room, where we find Toadbert, one of the Toads that was with Princess Peach the elder, and was attacked by the Shroobs when the time machine had landed. Toadbert seems to have suffered a bad case of memory loss due to the attack, as he doesn't know his name, and has no recollection of the events that took place. He does, however, have a very faint recollection of something, which he drew a picture of. The drawing itself is horrible, resembling Peach holding a star above her head, and an ugly villainous type in a single piece of clothing and what looks like a cross between a crown and a hat. It's also badly smudged in dirt, or.. something. All Toadbert knows is that he woke up on Yoshi's Island, and was soon eaten by Yoob. He's now trying to rescue the Yoshis trapped inside the eggs, thinking they'll be reborn as monsters if something isn't done quickly enough. Problem is, there's a monster in the back, guarding the exit. Exit he says.. great. So, now Mario boldly volunteers to take this thing out, so the gang and the Yoshis can squeeze out the poopchute. Show your moves off to Toadbert, and be on your way. Take the opportunity to save, then enter the next room, where you'll confront an egg-like creature speaking in Shroob. Luigi's attempts to take the pussy way out fail, twice, thanks to an egg- beaning. And whaddya know... the egg contains none other than BB, demanding your help. If you don't, there won't be any adult Bowser to harass you in the future- oh, wait. This game is one huge time-paradox in itself. So, who cares about him? Either way, this guy will attack you regardless, so prepare to deliver a beating.. or should I say scrambling? =P BOSS: SUNNYCIDE HP: 500 Weak: Fire EXP: 260 Coins: 150 Win: Super Drop Your first goal is to break open a total of five eggs, which will each release Yoshis, who will climb up to the top screen and try to push a Chomp Rock onto Sunnycide. You can't do anything to him now, so just concentrate on attacking the eggs. While you're doing this, Sunnycide will either grab eggs and lob them at either brother, which can be avoided by jumping as soon as his tentacle lashes at one, or by inhaling one of the Bros. into his mouth. Have your hammer ready, and release when you're close, but not close enough to strike his bandaged uvula (or whatever the hell that thing is). Why? The pull of his inhalation will make up the distance needed to be within striking range; get too close, and you'll be sucked in and lose some HP in order to replenish his. Don't worry if he uses up all his eggs; he'll constantly refresh his supply as they run out. Once the Yoshis nail him with the rock, he'll be knocked onto his side and susceptible to big damage. Here's where you need to be careful, though- a chain will drop down to him, and as soon as he yanks it, a hole will open up and that bro will fall down it. This causes dizziness, so avoid it by jumping as soon as he pulls on the chain; you have about a split second to react after he does so. The area around the targeted bro will throb before opening up; you can tell who will be swallowed up by the tentacle he uses to pull the chain. Otherwise, he'll attack by turning the room dark and sending Boos after you; have your hammer ready and wail them once they're in front of you. Sunnycide has a weakness to fire, but you'll still obtain bigger damage by wailing on him with your Cannonballers. After two turns of wailing on him, he'll jump back to his feet and you'll have to repeat the egg-cracking process. I took him out in 5 Cannonballers and one Fire Flower, though the last CB might've overdone it. After the battle, a bunch of eggs and Baby Bowser will drop through the colon, and a horde of Yoshis will jog in and do the same. There's nothing left for you to do, so out his anus you go, too. They even show the great escape on the top screen, in case you weren't aware of your choice of exit, too. Nice of them, wasn't it? Stuffwell appears, and we look up to see Yoob doze off, still clinging to the side of the cliffs. Awwwwwwww. Back in the village, we find Baby Bowser spreading a false rumor, in which HE saved all of the Yoshis. They begin to hail him, as he scarfs down a mountain of Yoshi Cookies.. and then our heroes show up, and BB quickly gobbles down the remaining cookies before spitting up the Cobalt Shards.. and being punted into the stratosphere by them. Gotta love Yoshis, but they're.. idiots. Toadbert sets them straight for you. "Yay!" Without much of a choice or even a goodbye, you're hurtled back through time and into the castle. Have a quick chat with E. Gadd and explain things to him, and you'll learn of a new time hole, one which leads to the Shroob Castle, which we can't enter due to the place being heavily guarded. Now why did they waste our time to bring it up, then? Eh, whatever. You'll notice the Toadsworth icons on the map, meaning we have a new skill to learn, but first head to the shop, as it's closer. Buy two pairs of Shell Slacks and Egg Pants, and you're good to go. You should have a lot of excess crap in your inventory, now, so it'd be a good time to sell it. Particularly all those pairs of pants, and the Smash Eggs. Also, I'd recommend buying two Big-POW badges and equipping them on the adults. Until the shop stocks something better, you can receive a very nice attack boost lasting several turns just by scoring an easy "Great!" during any use of a Bros. Item. They'll help you make even shorter work of the bosses, so go ahead. Once you're finished your transactions, head to the gardens and learn to do the Bros. Ball. Not only will this allow you to reach the next time hole, but you can now spin the cog indicated by the ? on the left of the map. Doing so will lead to the sewers underground, housing a large number of 100-coiners (gotten via tunneling of course) and Goombas, as well as some pretty powerful healing items you won't have a need for just yet. You'll also find a mysterious figure down here for the first time, and those of you that know who he is will want to track him down... You won't NEED to pay a visit to this guy until much later in the game, though. Head to the sewers if you want to get this out of the way first. To proceed with the story, now, take the staircase on the left side of the map, up into the second floor. See that big, cris-crossing staircase in the middle? Head there. Ditch the babies, then hit the purple ! block, and be ready to curl into a ball and roll up the stairs. You have more than enough time to make this trip; it isn't the slightest bit difficult. Hitting the block at the end will drop the gate, making way to the next time hole. Hop in, and it looks like our next target is.. ..Gritzy Desert. OOOOOOOOOOOOOO[9] Too Much SAND OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOO Gritzy Desert OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Super Mushroom (4) OOO Ultra Mushroom (2) OOO Max Mushroom (2) OOO Super Drop (4) OOO Ultra Drop (3) OOO Refreshing Herb OOO 1-Up Mushroom (2) OOO 1-Up Super (2) OOO Red Peppers (2) OOO Green Shell (6) OOO Ice Flower (15) OOO Pocket Chomp (17) OOO Secret Jeans OOO Big-POW Badge OOO Cash-Back Badge OOO Risk Badge OOO Coins: 527 OOO Enemies: Shrooba Diver OOO Pokey OOO Bob-omb OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ENEMY ATTACKS & STATS: Shrooba Diver- HP: 70 EXP: 32 Coins: 8 Drop: Super Mushroom, Blue Pepper Weak: Ice Resist: None These guys have a bunch of different attacks, all of which are easy to avoid, once you recognize them and get a feel for the timing. First are its attacks which you can actually counter- swimming towards the brothers quickly, looping around so that it makes a pass under each one; simply jump once it gets close. The other is diving out of the sand and into the air, coming back down on either bro; have your hammer charged and ready as it's shooting up, then swing as it comes down. The other two involve pulling objects out of the sand and throwing them at you quickly. If it brings up a spiked ball, leap when it throws it, and it'll bounce underneath you. If it pulls out a Cheep-Cheep, stand still, as it always bounces overhead. With its swimming attacks, they're always preceded by diving under and are executed quickly; look at what the intended means of dodging are (either the jump or hammer command) to figure out what's coming. Pokey- HP: 55 EXP: 36 Coins: 10 Drop: Green Shell, 1-Up Super Weak: None Resist: None Unlike other Pokeys, these can be leapt onto and damaged. Their attacks are pretty annoying at first, at least when you haven't learned the timing or what they're capable of. If Pokey spins its lower segments around, you'll be targeted with a rapid-fire needle attack for however many parts that remain; three needles per segment. They're fired in quick succession, and avoided by jumping as soon as the first needle is fired, then again as soon as you land until all shots have missed. An easier attack to deal with is when it bounces all of its parts towards you; they're fired one at a time and overhead, for you to whack away with your hammer. Provided you don't fudge the hammer timing, these are easy to deal with. Their last attack is impossible to avoid if their bodies are complete- a simple charging towards you. You can knock parts of their body away with the Green Shell, or the babies' hammers when they're alone. Bob-omb- HP: 35 EXP: 30 Coins: 5 Drop: Pocket Chomp Weak: None Resist: Fire, Ice, Mix These little guys have only two attacks: tackling and exploding. When they run towards you, take a tiny hop, stop, then run again; jump a second after they hop, and they'll run underneath you and be stomped on. If they turn their bodies a little after stopping, though, they'll run towards the other character; I rarely see this, but be ready for it. Now, if they light their fuse before charging, they'll move more quickly and simply explode when they get underneath you. This time, though, you want to jump as they're moving into you, because unless you're at the peak of your jump when they detonate, you'll be hurt. They have another method of exploding on you- moving up and down in front of the Bros., then running in and blowing up. You counter this by having your hammers ready, and whacking it once it's passing in front of you. Don't hesitate, because it won't move that way for long. As you first enter the desert, you'll find a stone pillar with an Ultra Shroom, accessible via baby toss, and a blue switch in front of some sort of stadium.. a koopa complex of sorts, judging by the headmount and the shell-pillars. Anyways, standing on the switch will swing the doors open, and alert a swarm of Shroobs, who will come stampeding out in legions after you. Our heroes run and hide, losing them for a second, but the babies dumbly leave the hiding place, and as Luigi goes out to grab them, they're spotted by a lone Shroob and he gives chase. Kylie pops out from a pillar of sand and has a chat with Mario; apparently the Shroobs are having a gathering in that stadium we opened, a celebration of the overtaking of the Mushroom Kingdom. Not only that, but Princess Shroob is supposed to be at the head of this celebration, as well as an appearance from another princess. One believed to be of royalty.. and wears pink. Now who could that be? Mario explains the bit about Peach's abduction, and Kylie thinks his story doesn't hold water, but whatever. She'll leave us, mentioning something about the crystal shell in the area we began, saying the four turtle heads are linked to it somehow. Now, before you go wandering around looking to solve puzzles, let me mention that they'll requiring not only splitting from the babies, but wandering far from them as well. On that note, I like exploring the areas first, to clear out all the enemies and grab whatever items and beans I can. This is so the party stays relatively close together in experience, and the babies won't get into any battles in which they're biting off more than they can chew. Not that the enemies here pose a particularly serious threat, but anyways. Your immediate location, where you spoke with Kylie, contains a few treasure blocks with Herbs, 1-Ups, and 50 coins, gotten via the adults' spin. The next has a large number of enemies, most of them Pokey, and also a plethora of items, primarily Drops and Bros. Items. You'll find some of the blocks are positioned above pillars you have no way of reaching; these can be nabbed later in the game, if you return with a certain Bros. skill. The script itself won't call for you to return here, so it's up to you to remember. Anyways, the next room downwards has a contraption for you to familiarize yourself with- the cannon. Mario and Luigi must roll themselves into a ball, and then roll into the yellow cannon on the side. The cannon is fired by hitting a switch with the hammer; but where is that switch? You'll find it by throwing the babies into the nearby pipe beforehand. That switch will light up only once the adults are inside the cannon. Don't fire them to the other side just yet, though. Head back the way you came, then up into the next area, the upper-left corner. More goodies that must be spun to, and an ever-increasing number of divers and Pokeys that we must tear apart. In the pipe is a pair of Secret Jeans, equippable by the babies; it lowers defense in exchange for more speed and stache. Equip them if you don't mind the little cut. The next area on the right has another Bros. Ball challenge; the adults must roll along through the walls of cactus and make it to the purple ! block in time. Not a difficult feat at all, and you'll pass by some bean spots for the babies to dig up, so have them walk the distance to the adults once you've finished and pick them up. The next area has a lot of Bob-ombs, hyperactive little things that will appear in groups of four, or three with another Shrooba Diver. There's a Big- POW Badge in the pipe in the lower left, as well as our first batch of Pocket Chomps, in one of the treasure blocks scattered about. Eradicated everything here? Good; just one more area to go. Head down and deal with the Bob-ombs, grab the items you wish, and now you're ready to take out that crystal by the entrance to the stadium! Abandon the babies in the lower- right area of the desert, by the Dry Bones statue. With the adults, make the long yet necessary trek back to the upper-left, where there's a Dry Bones directly across from it. Use the Bros. Ball; it makes the trip much faster. Once there, initiate the ! block sequence with Mario, and once Luigi hits his block, the other block, all the way on the other side, will light up; you have a generous 9 seconds to bring the babies up on your screen and hit the blocks they're standing underneath. Once you've done this, the two Dry Bones will concentrate a beam onto the crystal. With those out of the way, you have one more to take care of, so head down with the adults and up with the babies into their respective areas and do the same thing with the other two Dry Bones statues. Now you've shattered the crystal, exposing a purple ! block! With the adults, head back to the area with the stadium and use the pipe there to summon the babies, and throw them up onto the pillar. Once they hit the block, a corner of the stadium will drop down, which you can use to climb up onto the roof. A few items worth nabbing here.. once you're ready, climb to the top and enter the opening. Take the pipe down to a save point and a switch; compressing the switch lets you into what appears to be a spectator's floor, with windows arrayed here and there. Kylie seems to have found her way in as well, and informs us that Pricess Shroob will be arriving any minute. She suggests you all take a peek through one of the windows... [9.1] And our Special Guest is... OOOOO Koopaseum OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Items: Ultra Mushroom OOO Refreshing Herb (2) OOO Cannonballer (3) OOO Adult Trousers OOO Pep Badge OOO Coins: 70 OOO Enemies: Shrooboid Brat (Boss) OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Before you is a crowd of hundreds, THOUSANDS of Shroobs, all of them abuzz, anxiously awaiting the arrival of their leader, Princess Shroob. One of the four Shroobs onstage steps forward and addresses the crowd; a cheer breaks out amongst them. Then, as the lights dim and the stagelights turn on, the Shroob's Mothership slowly descends over the stadium, and in a beam of light, Princess Shroob is lowered to the stage amidst thunderous applause and cheers. The lights turn back on, and Princess Shroob begins to speak; each sentence is followed by a roar from the crowd. She screams and raises her arms, getting a rise out of them; moments later, a lone voice screams out over the audience.. ..in English. A lone UFO flies high above the crowd, carrying Princess Peach underneath it! It hovers over a pipe before the audience, and as the audience chants, a familiar beast emerges from the pipe, hungrily snapping its jaws. One final chant, and the UFO releases Peach, her body falling only a foot before being eaten alive by.. Petey Piranha. The crowd is in an uproar, and Princess Shroob cackles evilly with them... Mario and Luigi are shocked by what they just witnessed, and turn to see Kylie to the left of them, bound up by Shroobs! Woo, she won't be getting in our way for a while! Our heroes are now left alone to explore. To the far right is a room with a 4-man coin block; to the left is a room with a purple ! block, which when activated drops the ledges down to a height we can reach. While the opening is small, it's not meant for the babies- roll the adults into a ball and go underneath, then stop as soon as you've cleared the opening. Now, spin across the spikes and roll all the way down through the obstacle course (it doesn't matter if you fall between the pegs, though you really have to be doing something wrong in order to), and hit the pipe in the next room to bring the babies down with you. There's 50 coins in that block if you want 'em, and some Cannonballers and Refreshing Herbs in the next room, as is our next puzzle- another maze in pitch darkness, aided by the huge shine block. The pathways get really, really narrow here, so walk carefully. Keep in mind there are two different locations where you must jump across the spikes, from one path to the next. Also in this room are 20 coins, an Ultra Shroom, a Pep Badge, and a pair of Adult Trousers. The Pep Badge is definitely worth getting, making the wearer immune to status ailments, and the trousers are the adult version of the Secret Jeans you got earlier. Anyways, once on the other side, pound the switch with the hammer, and you'll open the door into the next room. Head up and save, then step onto the platform and you'll be taken up... ...up onto the stage, surrounded by thousands of Shroobs, not to mention the Princess herself. The Shroobs onstage open fire, but the Bros. are quick to act; Mario and BM take out the first pair, while Luigi and BL.. well, Luigi is of course thrown about, as the developers seem to enjoy harming him physically whenever the opportunity arises. Suddenly, one large freak of a Shroob swings over the crowd on a rope. The audience of Shroobs go crazy, and Princess Shroob barks something in her adorable gibberish at the freak. The little ones have since dragged the man in green back