Bethany Plays: PM Chapter 8 Part 2: Return of the Squad

What can we find as we proceed forward?

Well, Bony Beetles somewhere Goombario can see them.

And Bony Beetles getting hit by Magikoopa effects. Love to see that.

Watt is very angry at you.

...Really wish I had a plan that ended with me not bothering with Star Beam. A multi-targeting attack that does 2 damage (with a partner) or 3 (with Mario) would do it.

...At least they won't buff each other?

This is Bow's fight. She can two-shot Magikoopas (assuming they don't heal). Watt is short.

Fortunately, they can miss. That'll keep us in a good position.

Oh, this room. This is a fun pair of rooms.

We have nothing to do in this room ecept marvel at how funny this door looks.

We can jump up here, onto this... Sushie dock?

...

Bowser has a water puzzle? I'm impressed. He does have a few water rooms in the odd airship in the platformers, so it's not unheard of, but yeah, this is mainly so Sushie has a showcase room.

This is what that giant door was for.

Our goal is to get to that dock up in the top left.

And this will be how we do so.

Annoyingly, a bomb wall to force us to switch out of Sushie.

Tornado Jump a switch, and a passage appears in the wall.

Maple Syrup in a Hidden Block here. If... if you need it.

That gets the water up to level 2.

And that's our key!

...You need to flush both chains again to get the water back down to ground level. This is a long puzzle.

Ow.

This is a Bombshell Bill. Bombshell Bills have such beautiful gold casings! Of course, if you sit and admire 'em, you'll get hit. Max HP: 3, Attack Power: 6, Defense Power: 0. They're more powerful than Bullet Bills are, so watch your HP. Let's take 'em out before they get near us!

Bombshell Bills (Lv. 24) are more powerful Bullet Bills, original to Paper Mario and doing nothing special other than hitting harder. In fact, 3 HP means most of your attacks oneshot, where Bullet Bills required an Action Command to secure the kill. The same tricks that worked on Bullets work here.

The American version of the Tattle implies that Bombshell Bills do more damage if they're partially damaged. This is a mistranslation- a Bombshell Bill will always hit you for 6 damage. Europe fixed that up.

Of course, that means some Dizzy Attack.

This is a B. Bill Blaster. B. Bill Blasters shoot a constant stream of Bombshell Bills. Max HP: 10, Defense Power: 4. They won't attack you directly. They're pretty resilient. You have to keep attacking 'em, though, otherwise the air will be filled with Bombshell Bills. And nobody wants that.

Bombshell Bill Blaster (Lv. 27), not that anyone calls them that, is a Bill Blaster but even moreso. 4 Defence, that is a pain for anything that doesn't pierce Defence. Our really powerful Jump only does four damage- Hammer does six, assuming you have all four Atk ups. And never use any partner other than Watt.

I only had three, but that's just fine.

Shooting Star and Star Storm are your friends.

More FP, because the cause is still coming up.

At least that's a little more original. There's like five or six of these to crawl through.

...Rude.

Anyway, glad that's over. What's next?

This is a Dry Bones. Dry Bones are skeletal remains from Koopa Troopas. Max HP: 8, Attack Power: 4, Defense Power: 2. Just when you think they're beat, these guys rise back up and attack again! You're going to have to beat them all at once. Or you could use fire attacks. If they become ashes, there's no way they'll recover.

Dry Bones (Lv. 30) is probably the weakest enemy we'll find lying around here, but he has the cruelest trick of the bunch: If you knock him down, you haven't killed him. He'll shake, and then eventually rebuild himself at full health, just like in the platformers. If you want to kill them for good, you've got to use... fire? They were immune to that in the platformers, but hey, if it works, it works. It's +10 damage, so it's an instant kill.

Dry Bones first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3, and maintains an excellent record following- although surprisingly, this is the only game on the Nintendo 64 to use them. Mostly in the main 2D Mario games and the RPGs, though, it's an easy one to throw aside for things like Super Mario 64 and Yoshi's Island. Usually, they have the face structure of a Koopa Troopa. I think this is based on the sprites found in Mario World and SMRPG.

Here we can see them disintegrated. I'm really not sure how Star Points work for them if you win the battle with everything at 0 HP- but I usually act as if you are robbed of it. I think TTYD is more generous.

Do a Power Bomb and any Dry Bones on the screen are cleared for 6 FP.

Level 30 means they're really valuable for Star Points, though. They are the only normal enemy who has a higher level than Mario's cap, which means you can never instant-kill them with the First/Spin/Bump Attack Badges. On the other hand, that means it's much easier to reach that level cap other than grinding Amazy Dayzees.

And, of course, they can spawn in groups with things that aren't oneshot by Power Bomb.

Maple in an invisible block here.

And a secret passage here. This is the only block you can push, fortunately, so you just have to try pushing blocks, not pushing all of them to find the right one.

...It'd be nice if the Bony Beetles obeyed the same rules as Bones.

Instead we get this.

Right, time to find a key in the back.

Heart and Save Block. There must be a boss coming up soon.

Not in here, though. Anyway, there's one thing I've been doing that could do with some improvement.

Fire Shell does less damage, but it's also 5 FP and not 6. We have to use an expensive attack each time we see one, we could use every extra point.

...It had to happen eventually.

And of course that's your response.

Need to clear that...

...Nothing. This room's just a dead end. How worthless. Let's go back to the room where the pedestals are and check 'em out!

Well, now what?

This block, which started pushed aside, is actually hiding the real door. Not even framed.

Thank you!

Right. Now it seems like it's time to use these.

Badge setup. Dizzy Stomp sits as the centrepiece.

The second Guard Door waits for us here.

This guy has another trick to pass the time.

"Just joking, I don't have any heart at all!" I would love if there was just a Koopatrol behind the door reciting all the lines.

This guy is hosting a quiz, and a rather annoying one at that.

To be clear, there is only one question per group.

Seven questions total. 5 to win, 3 to lose.

They'll come out of those doors, dance around for around the length of a single loop of the battle theme (and that's the song that plays as they do so), and then... these questions are consistent, I believe.

I'm just bad at counting.

This guy's having fun.

...Looks like the blue ones, I only count two reds.

Gah, missed the one that was in a turn frame.

Rolls eyes.

...Now how the hell am I supposed to answer that one? Even if I wasn't doing a skit, that's a real curveball.

Anyway, let's not beat around the bush any further, I'm intentionally losing this quiz. If you win, of course, you're allowed right on by. If you're curious, the questions and answers are:

How many Koopas were there!? 3
Which were there three of!? Red Shy Guys
Who came out of the middle entrance!? Red Shy Guys
How many Goombas were there!? 2
How many arms did you see just now!? 4
Which were there three of!? Bob-ombs
You just saw some Koopas. I ask you this: What color were their shells? Purple

Three and five are nasty, but I think you can get out of losing with the other five pretty reasonably. That's a lot of information to remember and hope you've got your mind on the right detail, though.

For losing, we are "rewarded" with a mini boss battle.

Did I say miniboss? I meant superboss.

This is an Anti Guy. His attacks are so intense that he's also called Deadly Guy. Max HP: 50, Attack Power: 10, Defense Power: 0. His attack power is 12 when he does an acrobatic attack, so dodge it! This guy is for real, so we'd better take him seriously.

Anti Guy (Lv. 42) is almost exactly as you remembered him from Chapter 4. Well, almost exactly... his vulnerability to Shock has been changed from 60% to 50%, and this is just enough to make the game consider them a different enemy and thus doesn't save the Tattle we did with Goombario. Rude.

As is, though, Anti Guy Squad is probably the hardest boss battle in the game, taking what the Master had and making it twice as bad. Without Zap Tap on, the Master could hit you for up to 18 damage in a single turn. These guys can do 36, regardless of Zap Tap. Unless you have the maximum HP you can possibly have (65, from 50 HP and 3 HP Pluses), you cannot survive two turns of these guys doing acrobatic attacks. And even then, you have to be really good at blocking, and you can only do it once before remembering Ultra Shrooms only get you 50 HP back. The only way to win is to stop them from dealing damage.

Despite the loss of Shock resistance, it is still the friendliest status ailment, and Watt brings out Mega Shock.

Two out of three. That's good. That drops my expected damage input from 27-39 to 9-13. (Remember, I'm on -1 Def.)

Dizzy Stomp is your friend. 50% chance of stunning one of them, and while it's at -1 turn, that's still a stun. Time Out gets you three turns at 50%- yeah, they have -2 turn timers, but Time Out runs for so long it makes up for it.

And, of course, Lucky Day can zero out the occasional hit.

I could really use the extra firepower out of Watt.

12 damage even blocked. P-Up D-Down may be a drop in the bucket, but that drop makes a splash.

I decided I'd get the Tattle this turn anyway. Not because of completionism, but because I genuinely want that information: How much damage do I need to deal to the sir in the back?

4. Excellent.

And this is what you want to save Repel Gels for. This is two turns of not caring how many Anti Guys are not statused.

And don't forget they don't actually have Defence, so now is a good time to be Lady Bow's biggest fan.

Got one!

Knock him down further, he is the injured one.

16 HP... A little unfortunate, but I can work with this.

This is the time to use Shooting Stars. This is a good time to break out Double or Triple Dip, use a Repel Gel, and let the Shooting Stars rain.

With Shooting Star + Fan Smack, we can reduce this formation to one Anti Guy.

And not the best one of the trio.

OK, the HP isn't worth that much, I needed the FP more. But that's still an extra hit.

And while Lady Bow's Fan Smack does tear him to shreds, I'll need to take some.

...Some.

Thank you for the Star Points.

And the satisfaction of victor- 99 Star Points, of course I do.

That was a heck of a lot more satisfying than solving a counting quiz.

Next time bring four.

Your boss has been defeated by Mario a thousand times and he doesn't complain... quite so dramatical... never mind, you're just like your boss.

Unfortunately, I think I'll need this. At least it's free. Also, it's a good time to walk back to the shop- it's not that far back, and Anti Guy has used up a lot of items. This will be the last real chance to set up an inventory, though. Make it count.

And of course the first thing we see is more items.

Not good ones, but items.

Good thing I healed.

There were also Dry Bones in there.

That will be the last HP level up. And also possibly the last level up period. The level cap happens when we get to 50 FP, too, although there aren't that many more enemies to chew on. Especially since, the closer we get, the sooner some of these enemies start dropping nothing.

...Another one?

Also a Jammin' Jelly on this ledge. You just drop down from above for it.

I, uh... should've checked this room for valuables.

Dry Bones are already down to three Star Points a head. At least we've got some bosses.

The Magikoopas on broomsticks are the hardest enemies to get into an advantageous battle with.

Another hub room. No shop attached to this one, though.

Another prison, though.

Don't worry, there were more back downstairs.

If and perhaps. I wish I had something better to say than that.

At least I can say Shiver City wasn't entirely peaceful while you were gone. Probably not reassuring enough.

The Toads always know how to treat this with more seriousness than anyone else, including the woman whose safety they are concerned about.

Another Toad House in here.

Instead of a shop, we have a short puzzle and some guards in the top-left. I believe this is the optional path, anyway.

Every time.

Pushing this button lifts the two blue blocks up level with the others.

You have to set Bombette down, and let her walk up to the switch.

These are always the coolest puzzles.

...Yep. Super optional.

This is where we're needed.

My horrible, horrible choices. Magikoopa.

And leave it to the Hammer Bros. flailing throws to help that choice.

Locked door here. Top side is where we need to head.

Thanks for the First Strike making this clean.

Also, while we're using Kooper, this puzzle is the same as the Bombette one in the Ultra Shroom room.

But with Shell Toss instead.

This is the one we needed.

This is setup for a puzzle I am really not fond of.

After seeing those torches, you get six identical rooms that look like this. To progress, you need to go through the doors in the order the torches say- top, bottom, bottom, top, bottom, top.

It just takes too long for one puzzle.

Back to combat!

Still better than the puzzles.

...This again, though...

Might as well.

This might actually be even worse.

I had hopes. And also a lot more HP.

There we go, not dealing with that.

And thank goodness for the restore.

...Huh. Apparently she figured something out. You'd think getting tied up, put in Bowser's direct care and deprived of Twink would limit her options.

Surely you could craft a more plausible lie.

It looks like Princess Peach, but something just doesn't seem right... I mean, I've never met the Princess, but I thought she was more... sweet. Hey Mario, is she really Princess Peach?

...Forgotten the prisoners already, have we?

...I'm not even Spin Dashing, Peach, you were faster than that.

The surprising part is that they brought Duplighosts back.

I think you do need to see this Peach is a Duplighost before you're allowed to hit her with a Hammer.

Even Peach doesn't call him a King. Despite that being his legitimate title.

Technically correct. The worst kind of correct.

...Excuse me?

How dare you!

...Do I want to know if Duplighosts have ever done this for Bowser? It's probably the closest he'll ever get to this.

I'll give you one thing, it was better than many of the disguises in Crystal Palace. The first one of Koops was the best of the bunch, though.

Level 23. I think they don't actually give EXP anymore.

...Of course they did.

Oh well, one means that Mario can finish it with a Jump.

Yep, no Star Points.

Well, that was a diversion.

Time for the third and final Guard Door.

Like the second, there's a boss fight here, but unlike the second, it's not optional.

Well, that was a surprise! But a welcome one. Don't worry, we are not Mega Manning and refighting all the bosses.

...Huey, Dewey, Louie and Clyde, right?

I love not recognising egotists.

Yeah, that's right! We were too cool to forget! A lasting impression, yeah!

Although this is plenty accurate.

...No offense, but four damage isn't scary now. I think normal enemies are doing that now.

All your friends made the same promise. And all of them had to cave and pony up.

I'm excited to see this, but my expectations are low.

You also could've just learned to throw hammers. Although I wouldn't be surprised if you did.

Foxtrot.

...That's not the Koopa Bros. gloating...

You again!?

He has wings, remember. And this time he remembered to use them!

The Koopa Bros. have been shunted aside, our battle is with good ol' Junior.

It's Jr. Troopa again! My man! The little guy still has some egg shell left on his body! Aww! Max HP: 60, Attack Power: 8, Defense Power: 2. Whoa! He's been working out! He looks as though he may be able to change his shape, too. You've got to love this guy's effort, Mario. To follow us all the way here? What dedication! Come to think of it, how do you think he got here, anyway?

With his wings, man, pay attention. Jr. Troopa (Lv. 74) can switch, at will, between his winged spike top form and his magician form, throwing out powerful attacks no matter which takes his fancy. While in this starting eggshell form, his only attack does 8 damage, but both of his other forms have an alternate attack that does 9 damage- make sure you account for that margin of error. He can also heal himself for 10 HP sometimes, probably only once.

His forms do have changes to resistances- his Flying form has a massive weakness to Dizzy (although it still has a -1 timer), while his magic form is less resistant to Shrink and Stop than his other two. Still a lot of penalties all around- don't bother with Sleep and Shock unless you really don't have anything better.

Lost that turn to missing All or Nothing, of all things.

He'll be holding that one over our head for a while.

...I don't exactly have a ton of Atk, do I? This fight could get interesting.

After two turns, Jr. will make his first switch. I believe it is RNG which form he chooses, so always assume you're going to see this guy and have a plan for it.

Egg Bomb! Works better with him, somehow.

Fortunately, I have Spike Shield at the ready.

I'll admit, I'm slightly amazed he's lasting long enough to do both switches. Then again, I'm not doing obscene damage, just big damage.

Thank you very much.

At least Mario can immediately undo it.

Huh. Almost done.

...Wait, never mind, I lost Turbo Charge at the worst time. Looks like we're getting another turn.

How bad could it be?

...

On watching this animation, it took me quite some time for me to realise that this wasn't a new attack I'd never seen before- this is just his animation for missing. Jr. Troopa's Miss animations are always a treat- if he Misses in eggshell form, he trips halfway to you and just decides not to finish his attack. "Backfire magic cast" is a close second.

Well, I guess I lost my first turn, he paid it back.

Actually, I think I am getting one more level. Maybe.

What happened to "only one of us is walking away from this battle", tyke?

The loud exclamation of "Gosh!!" gets me. Not even capital letters.

While we did fight a boss for the Guard Door, we did not fight the assigned boss, and thus technically speaking, we do not have the right to pass by his word.

Although he is incredibly confused about whether or not he should be counting it. Especially since the Koopa Bros. seem to be unable to supply the fight they promised. The fact the Koopa Bros. miss out on a rematch is rather upsetting- I'm not too bothered, but I do agree I am very curious what they would've done to adjust the Koopa Bros. to lategame levels.

The Guard Door decides that, you know what, close enough.

Sure, he was tasked with keeping Mario out, but Bowser seemed so confident he had a wincon just in case, it's not like whether or not Mario gets past is of any consequence!