Chapter 4. Quite possibly the game's most memorable chapter, for all the right and the wrong reasons at the same time. I have been looking forward to this one.
We get a very miserable and depressed theme, although whether that is the suffering the locals are placed under or just their natural state of being is another question. For what it's worth, it never gets a new song.
Koops: Isn't it a bit early for twilight? Hey, wait a minute! Think this is Twilight Town?
Flurrie: This place has a mysterious air to it... Might it be... Is this Twilight Town?
Dr. Agon: Ugh, this place gives me the creeps. Is this Twilight Town?
Interesting perspectives. Dr. Agon hates the place on sight, while Koops double-checks his watch to make sure it's not supposed to be twilight.
Despite the lax security, the unusual position of the pipe and a general lack of interest has kept the village pretty isolated.
And the village has need of fresh blood.
So, back up and tell us about that "bad time".
This fellow is spared the difficulty of explaining his plight by a practical demonstration.
The chiming of the steeple bell foretells ominous portents to the people of this town.
This time, it is this guy who will be suffering.
Oink oink.
Koops: Whoawhoawhoawhoawhoa!! What just happened?
Flurrie: Goodness, gracious me! What might THAT mean?
Dr. Agon: Whoa! That was the craziest thing I've ever seen! What's going on in this weirdo town?
I think it's pretty clear.
Someone else comes along to finish Freddy's story. That patch of grey on the top of his head makes him look like a zombie, and I'm not 100% certain what it's actually supposed to represent.
I don't think that was supposed to be your name.
Dour invites us to his house for the end of the story.
And the area's title card shows up as we are automatically dragged into it.
...The place probably sucks on a good day, but it's not going to get better unless you actually let nice things happen.
So am I.
Oh hey, an old church building of some description.
This seems like an overly complicated means of inflicting pain and torment.
But it is a really effective psychological nightmare for these people, and I suspect that's as much the point as anything. Sounds like something the monster of the Steeple would do.
And after that, you'd be lucky if you stayed pigs.
The plot alludes to the possibility that Mario and co can get pigged, but there's no evidence for it and I suspect they can't. It's not really the bell that's causing it, the bell is just heralding it.
Unfortunately, we really must press on and find this treasure.
Sounds like a perfect excuse for more heroics!
Dour does not approve of the idea of us going to the Steeple.
And despite not having a plan to deal with the problem other than sending us, he isn't going to do anything to assist us.
That's the Twilight Town mayor. He doesn't seem too reliable, though. I guess he's been through a lot, though, so maybe I oughta cut him some slack.
"Some" slack is OK. It is fine he doesn't have his own plan. But he does not need to get in the way of my own.
And yep, this village is filled with people looking at their curly-tailed fate with some impressive horror.
That's another Twilighter. I hope we can save him from that piggie fate. Hopefully he won't have a nervous breakdown about becoming a pig in the interim.
Goombella here to lighten the mood.
Time to look for Star Pieces!
The pigs can chat too, with some cute variety in squeals.
That's Freddy the pig... I mean... Freddy, the guy who got turned into a pig. When I think of him having to live like this, I get oinked up... I mean, choked up...
Perhaps more depressing are the people here that would rather roll around in the mud. I mean, it's better than the grind of work life.
The ravens in the trees have speech bubbles, but all you get are craws.
Star Piece in this bush.
...OK, they got the Travelling Sisters 3. We are in danger.
My guess is wait until the grocery store owner is pigged. I'd say it's the same person who runs the item shop we buy from, but that place is currently out of operation due to piggification anyway.
That's Eve. It must be hard work raising all these kids, so I totally respect her. My mom always said that only hard work brings happiness... You think that's true?
It may not bring happiness for her, but leaving them to starve is hardly more attractive. Besides, it's not hard work that brings happiness, but security- and this lady has none of that.
The kids actually pitch in to complain.
Let's see, what do I have...
I had a spare Shroom Fry. Forgot to have something prepared, but Shroom Fry might not be the most helpful, the scale I'm worried about...
Can't exactly eat that, now, can we?
Eve goes to continue the conversation-
Only for the bells to chime once more.
I KNOW she didn't turn into a pig to feed her hungry children... That would be TOO gnarly! But that is some spooky timing, I swear...
Well, that's jut dark.
The youngest over here not helping.
At least the other two have a little more restraint.
...
Although unless we beat the curse soon, they may just find themselves feasting on some ham. Maybe. Thank goodness kids can't kill pigs that easily.
The moon is not a Star Spirit. Although hey, where are the Star Spirts right now, anyway? Apparently this place isn't their domain.
That's a local Twilighter. He's pretty into how important the moon is here. I gotta admit, it sure is prominent in this dusk... but he still may be a werewolf.
...Do werewolves obey normal rules, or does the perpetual full moon mean werewolves are always in wolf form? Remind me that Mario doesn't have werewolves and let's move on hoping for the best.
...OK, there's optimism, there's pessimism, and then there's this terrifying mixture of the two.
That's a local Twilighter. Are all these people wearing major eyeliner or what? Oh! Maybe it's like, a local fashion thing! Didn't they get the memo that goth is out?
I must've missed that memo, too. I don't know when that happened, and somehow I doubt that was an accurate snapshot of the time period.
Another Star Piece behind the fence behind this tree.
...Not "all" pop-up books? So you're still counting some in that number?
(Also, as someone who does writing, reading several books a day may be a clue you're not actually doing all that much writing. It's good for getting a feeling for what you're doing wrong/right, but you've still gotta try.
He says, as if he may not be pigging out.
That guy's a frustrated novelist. He's got great ideas, but he ruins them on paper. I think he just psyches himself out. I mean, he's got the talent and all...
Sounds like a reasonable read.
Nobody in this house, huh?
That's the wife of the Twilight Shop manager. They run this place together. She seems like she really loves her husband, y'know? That is SO sweet! She seems kinda indecisive sometimes, though...
As mentioned, the item shop is currently out of operation.
It is necessary to check on her to progress the plot, as I recall. There'll be some sobbing noises coming from her door, to clue you in.
There are practical reasons for this, too.
I wonder if there's anyone in the village keeping track of which bell chimes made which pigs. It's kinda morbid, but it's better than the alternative.
Was this before or after the pig pandemic set in? Because I feel like that would've been an easy backfire afterwards.
But he has a sweet side, too, like cooking my favorite food on my birthday, y'know? And when shoppers get rude, my husband escorts them out in such a manly way, y'know? He's just got so many wonderful things going for him, y'know? I wish he wouldn't dip into the till for cola money, but boys will be boys, y'know? And I could really do without him drying his underwear on the radiator, y'know? And no matter how often I tell him, he drinks milk from the carton, y'know? I don't think it'd be tough for him to change his socks once in a while, y'know? But I have my faults too, y'know? Like, maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on him all the time, y'know? I should've told him how I felt about him when I could, y'know? Oh, how could he leave me and turn into a pig like this, y'know?
She proceeds to go on a ramble about her husband. Once again, Mario gets bored and falls asleep. He really is unashamedly rude in this game, y'know?
Mario gets away with nodding yes he was.
You and nobody else in this damn village.
Oh hey, Chapter 4 64 reference: Stealing from the storeroom!
It's even locked first.
That seems a little bit of poor planning, but it certainly compromised Harry's shop in 64, it'd compromise her, too. Although if she didn't notice...
That's the shop manager... who's now a pig. Yuck. What a totally awful fate...
Goombella Tattling the pig in the shop.
That's the gatekeeper of Twilight Town. There's a guy like this in every town, huh? If there weren't, you'd go wherever you want and beat the game so fast... Hee hee! Never mind. Let's never speak of it again... ♥
Goombella casually acknowledging the fact that mechanically, the only reason this guy is here is to pad the game out. And also paint the Twilighters as being way too complicit in their own destruction.
Koops: Right, right, the old nasty monster beyond the gate. That sounds familiar. Well, you know what we have to do, Mario. Let's go ask Mayor Dour for permission.
Flurrie: Mmmm, yes, a nasty monster beyond the town's borders. That does NOT surprise me. Well, I suppose we must go ask this mayor for permission.
Dr. Agon: Oh, man, the old monster beyond the town gate thing? Isn't that kinda cliched? You gotta be kidding me. Fine, let's go ask.
We have no way of showing him our hammer, so we'll have to play by his rules.
As you walk back to check on the mayor, the bell chimes again.
Koops: The bell, Mario... The bell! That must mean someone's going to... Phew... I hate to say it, but I'm glad it wasn't me...
Flurrie: Oh, that cursed bell rang! Someone's going to... My... I must say, I'm relieved the curse didn't strike me...
Dr. Agon: Whoa! The bell rang, Mario! Doesn't that mean someone's gonna... Boy... I'm psyched it wasn't my turn to get pigged.
Of course Koops and Flurrie are the most empathetic ones. Although even they're feeling happy it's not them. That can't be healthy in large doses. So who did it piggify?
(Shoutouts to that Twilighter's blink frame. And its appearance while mid-blink in general.)
...Oh. That's us up the creek without a paddle. Not that he'd have given us permission anyway.
Even the mayor got turned into a pig! At this rate, they'll all be pigs soon. And then... maybe even us... NO WAY!
As you ride back to the gatekeeper, the bell will chime without taking you out of the gameplay.
Piggifying the gatekeeper.
What? The mayor's a pig?!? Oh no! What'll we do? Govern ourselves? Well, there's just no way I can let you through now! It's marshal-law time! Just forget about it!
I figured, but that explains the plot sequence here. The bellchime that pigs the gatekeeper won't sound until you've talked to the item shop lady- this is what will happen if he's still a Twilighter when we get back. Someone tell that guy we're here to help the dude.
Goombella: Huh? The gatekeeper's gone... No, not gone! He turned into a pig! Well, not to be insensitive, but that works out for us. We can just cruise through!
Koops: Ummm... Where do you think the gatekeeper went? ...Oh! He turned into a pig! I feel bad for saying this, but that's good for us, Mario. We can just walk through!
Flurrie: Oh, my! The gatekeeper's gone missing... Or rather, his body has! He seems to have taken a turn for the swine! Well, not to be callous, but this helps our cause, dear. We can just saunter through!
Screw him! Maniacal laughter.
That's the gatekeeper, who's been... piggified. I feel bad, but I guess we can pass freely...
I'm amazed you let him get away with trying to keep us in. Yes, he is probably at least somewhat insane, but...
Let's just move on before he changes his mind.
This is Twilight Town. The people here are just as shadowy as the sky... I wonder if I'd get that way if I lived here long enough? ...Gross. Still, I guess being all gothed-out is better than being a pig...
Goombella's field Tattle for the east room of Twilight Town. Once again, she expresses a massive distaste for goth culture compared to a reasonable disinterest. The "...gross" is in small text in its own textbox.
This is Twilight Trail. Kind of a depressing little road, don'tcha think? I feel like something bad's GOTTA be at the end of it. ...Maybe I'm just superstitious.
Everything will be just fine, Goombella.
...Are we immune to curses if we have these ones? It's been a while since we bumped into a Black Chest Demon, I have to admit.
Lots of empty Brick Blocks here, too.
That's a Hyper Goomba. Which means… Umm… It's a hyperactive Goomba. Duh! Max HP is 8, Attack is 2, and Defense is 0. But if this nut goes BIZZ-ZOW and charges up, his Attack power will be 8 next turn! So you'd better wipe it out between the time it charges up and the time it attacks! And if you can't beat him, then run away, OK?
Ahaha... Hyper Goombas. Formations of packs of three, inconsistent charging, and HP so high the only way to take them down in one action is +2 Atk on Mario or Goombella? Can you see why I've been so nervous about playing the chapter?
I think I might've screamed if that was a Bingo!.
I am so happy Mario can oneshot them with Power Plus and Jumpman.
That's a Hyper Paragoomba. It's basically just a Hyper Goomba with wings. Max HP is 8, Attack is 2, and Defense is 0. After charging up, you'll be dealing with moves that have an Attack power of 8. Once you damage it, it'll lose its wings and turn into a regular Hyper Goomba. Not that THAT'S all that cool. Even normal Hyper Goombas are dangerous.
We also have Hyper Paragoombas, same as 64. Not that much different, especially since our best strats continue to be jumping.
Some single Coins in blocks, too.
There's an item in that Hidden Block, though.
That's a Hyper Spiky Goomba. It's a Hyper Goomba with a spike on its head. Max HP is 8, Attack is 3, and Defense is 0. After charging up, its Attack power rises to an incredible level of 9! That's SCARY… Beat it before it attacks, or you'll be in peril before you know it, seriously. If only this book listed a way to dodge that attack…
Ahaha... ha...
Hyper Spiky Goombas. New to TTYD, and only +1 Atk compared to the Goombas makes it not that impressive in comparison, because of the scaling. But oh boy, we don't have Spike Shield yet. It is far, far harder to muster up enough Atk to oneshot a Hyper Goomba, and the only ways to attack one other than the front one is Hammer Throw (which we get later on in the chapter) and Lip Lock.
We can do mass damage with Power Shell, Earth Tremor, and technically Gulp, although this won't wipe out the field.
You kinda have to go all in to wipe them out to the last man.
This one's a Coin Block!
This pig is a Twilighter. The shock of being cursed made him lose his way, I bet.
...So was this guy off looking for the item shop guy? It's so hard to tell.
This is Twilight Trail. Looks like some seriously spooky woods over there. I hear some of the villagers go there to collect herbs. That's totally insane... I'd NEVER go someplace like that on my own, not for a million coins!
Over there, we can see a key.
The one use of Koops in the Chapter I mentioned earlier. There's a second puzzle that kinda feels like it's supposed to be a Koops puzzle, but Dr. Agon can solve it.
Speaking of, Dr. Agon is here to help with backtracking back to Twilight Town.
This is more of Twilight Trail. A lot of enemies around here, seems like. Hey, by the way, Mario... Is it me, or has the moon been getting bigger? Not... Not that I'm scared or anything! Re... Really!
Guys, I think Goombella might be a werewolf.
Anyway, in we go!
Now that's an upgrade compared to what was in Harry's backroom. A Life Shroom, a Boo's Sheet, and a Jammin' Jelly- outside the Jammin', that's two essential items for Mario's safety coming up, and the Jammin' can always be used in an emergency. I'd rather keep it for cooking, though.
The treasure chest contains a Defend Plus (5 BP) for Mario. In exchange for that buff to its BP cost, Defend Plus is helpless against so many more attacks that it's hard to recommend going for it as a defensive build. Probably because the devs knew that stacking this thing by picking up dozens of copies would make the game too easy. You want a high-Def build, you're going to have to be more creative.
The Black Chest Demon seems unaware she's in the back of a shop. Wonder where she got put in the box.
And yes, the comedy routine is essential.
If you know this one is female, her approach to trying to get you to help is so much funnier. She's probably pulling puppy-dog eyes and failing completely because we can't see her face.
Well...
...I guess it's not really a curse...
How bad could it be?
Hopefully you found it in that shed, by the way!
"I'm a poor defenceless girl all locked up in an evil black chest!"
Anyway, time to unlock her and-
As mentioned, we do know the Black Chest Demon's genders. The weird thing about this one using her feminine charms on us is the fact they never acknowledge the one that cursed us with Plane is also a woman. Maybe that was a localisation addition, maybe the writers forgot they had two girls in the bunch. It's not that the Plane Demon would have tried feminine tricks (especially since she was the only one with the element of surprise), but this does kinda sound like this one thinks she's the only girl of the bunch.
On second thought, maybe she's the one not thinking of the Plane Demon as a girl.
When you put it like that, this one might actually be a curse.
Anyway, let's get our seizures done.
She's really kicking us while we're down.
In addition to being the most cursiest of curses, this is also the most fun the Black Chest Demon has mocking us for our suffering. I think she might be my favourite of the Demons.
Anyway, time to bring up how this is going to suck for us: Another ability that requires us to spin the control stick to trigger. In addition to the reasons I hate this one, this is also the only one that doesn't lock you in place while spinning, so it can be awkward to line Tube Mode up with the passages we are expected to slip through.
To be fair, it is really comical. For everyone else.
Hopefully I'm not putting Mario through horrible pain. He doesn't take any mechanical damage, I'm just fine.
Thanks for leaving that in there!
So long, you lovely lady.
She won't have it set back up until... actually, I'm not sure. Maybe you just need to reload the map, maybe you need to restore her husband first. I usually don't buy from it before the latter, so I haven't tried too hard to get her to open sooner.
Off I go to stash the Jammin' Jelly in a different shop, I think.
And an email on the way back, from
_________________
RDM Issue 3
_________________
ROGUEPORT TODAY
Noon, Today
The Excess Express ran late for the first time in ten years today as a suspicious incident activated station security measures. Area youth and huge train enthusiast Laki (age 18) was found taking pictures in an employee-only area near the Express and was gang-tackled by local samaritans. "I understand how much people are into trains, but we've got safety and security measures to uphold!" blustered the train engineer. The youth was released with just a warning... this time.
SHOP REPORTER GO!
This week we highlight Glitzville Sales Stall!
Though they've never attracted as many customers as the nearby Hot Dog Stand, the proprietor is certain that any day now, people will in fact notice that his shop exists! Early on in our interview, the owner of the nearby Hot Dog Stand cornered our reporter and had this to say: "Who needs Sales Stall! My Hot Dog gives you all you want! Only 10 coins, now!" A minor scuffle broke out shortly thereafter, but we're happy to report that no one was seriously injured. Apparently everyone in Glitzville knows how to roll with a punch...
COOKING FOR ROOKIES
Hey there, rookies! Flex your bendy straws, because today's recipe is for Fresh Juice! Just blend Honey Syrup until you reach a nice, frothy texture and enjoy! Try one in the morning to start your day off right!
EDITOR'S NOTE
We're just getting started, people! Wait until you see the glorious next issue!
****************************
Published by Rogueport
Restoration Committee
****************************
Oh yeah, them. Lost a lot of sympathy for Hoggle on that one. And Cooking for Rookies really wishes it was allowed to share some two-item recipes about now. We've gotten the three recipes anyone doing experimenting would've found on their own.
In double-checking the description, I was surprised to learn "samaritans" describes a real life religious group and isn't just a term meaning "well-meaning civilians doing a spur-of-the-moment good deed to assist law enforcement". I'm sure this might come as a surprise to the people who chose to use that word in the email, too. I'm mostly amazed Rogueport has people who'd bother to stop Laki from mild trespassing.
Anyway, back to where we found the Storeroom Key. This feels like foreshadowing. Also, the Hyper Goombas have come back, of course they have.
Tube Mode under the fallen log.
Pick up a Star Piece behind it.
And blow away this haystack.
...So how do we guess that one? I guess it's an idea for what to do to a pile of hay...
Another Star Piece behind this pipe.
And into the woods we go. Will we come back out? Hopefully!
That's a Crazee Dayzee. It may look totally cute, but it's a serious foe. Max HP is 7, Attack is 2, and Defense is 0. What you gotta worry about is its lullaby. That tune will totally zonk you out. If you manage to guard well, though, you might not pass out. Try to learn the timing. Oh, and when its HP runs low, it runs away, so try to KO it in one fell swoop.
What jumps out of the woods to meet us other than Crazee Dayzee? Because an enemy whose attack can put both Mario and his Partner to asleep sits well next to an enemy that can charge up a powerful attack and launch it on the next turn? Especially when we do not and cannot have Feeling Fine!
Anyway, here's the forest. We can slip through the trees here with Paper Mode.
Earth Quake in here. For what it's worth.
You weren't expecting formations with both Dayzees and Hypers? This may be the most terrifying formation I have ever faced, and thank the goddess I took out one of the Dayzees first. Thunder Bolt Dayzee, Ruin Powder Paragoomba, Power Punch Spiky Goomba, what is this? This is why you keep an eye on what RNG you let into fights.
...Well, at least a 3 wave hit them.
I didn't even knock out the Dayzee with a Headbonk. The failing the commands is on me, but...
Well, thank goodness the Dayzee bolted.
Ruin Powder. While Confused, the afflicted character has a 50% chance to do an action other than the one ordered, chosen from: Attacking the other character with a basic, no-Action-Command attack (you can't block it), the use of a random Strategy (Defend, Appeal, Run), or switching out partners.
At the very least, Power Punch was on the guy in the back. I can now kill the Huge enemy and-
MARIO YOU COWARDLY LITTLE-
(It is surprisingly difficult to cancel an escape command- you mash A to increase the chances of escape, but you can't decrease the chances and it is, indeed, random chance.)
...And the enemies are still holding their items when I get back into the battle.
Learning from the first time, kill him first.
So long. I'll miss your Star Points.
I think I prefer that to it singing.
That is a little harder to deal with.
Thankfully, it Charged on its next action.
Thanks for the help, Koops.
That's a Hyper Cleft. It's basically a Cleft that uses charged-up moves. Max HP is 4, Attack is 3, and Defense is 3. When it charges up, its Attack power rises to 9. Couple its rock-hardness with its ability to charge up… and things get scary. If you're confident, you may wanna try doing Superguards to send its attacks back… If you can't, you'd better use some items, or you'd better hightail it out of here.
Hyper Cleft is also here, only found in the forest, but no less dangerous for it. Earth Quake won't flip it, but if you have something that can, that's a huge help.
This thing has a tough hide, Gulp and Earth Tremor are your main ways past it.
I had a level up charged, so Gulp it was.
Yep, Hammer Throw is out here. It's been buffed to 1 BP, but even if it was one of the early Badges like in 64, it probably wouldn't have been enough to save it. At least the later appearance of Spike Shield gives it a hand it desperately needed.
At the end of this path is a tree, and the solution is to blow it out of the way again. There's even less clue other than the stump in the background and the fact it's what we did last time.
And in this room, things are even weirder. Fortunately, Goombella's Tattle is actually kinda useful this time.
Yup, still in the woods... It's getting awfully dark around here... If there were like, a big hole in the ground, you'd probably fall in without seeing it. Flurrie would float right over it, so I'm sure SHE'S not worried...
Kinda.
The solution, once again, is Flurrie, but all they tell you to do is watch out for holes in the ground. You have to figure out you need to find one here yourself. At least it's clear there will be some kind of hole here.
And even then, the fact pushing this rock moves aside the bigger one in the foreground is just Mario whimsy in a plot that hasn't been leaning on that since Chapter 6 in 64.
...Hoo boy.
Quake Hammer it is.
Flurrie can finish the fight, less effort than switching her out.
One fortunate thing about TTYD Dayzees, in comparison to 64's, is that their song takes about 1/3 of the time to sing. Also, the block timing feels easier, too- it's still esoteric, but if you think of it as "the end of the song", you'll get decent luck hitting the timing. 64's song was over for like three seconds before the attack lands.
Well, I got what I paid for.
This guy probably regrets not running away.
...Did Flurrie miss a Body Slam? This is the long and short of why you're not seeing me use her in battle beyond her design, by the way.
...If you look very closely, in the middle-right of this picture, you might be able to spot something...
It's a hidden Shine Sprite!
Anyway, on to the Creepy Steeple.
...Was not expecting a partner scene, so why not, Flurrie can get it. She deserves it for being the solution to basically all the puzzles on Twilight Trail.
This is Creepy Steeple. Seeing it in the moonlight gives me the willies... It looks like a ghost could pop out at any minute. No way I'm going in there. Uh... Although, I guess since YOU'RE with me, Mario, I'll give it my best...
In all seriousness, does it feel like Goombella is trying to invoke haunted-house-girlfriend on Mario to anyone else? We're on a mission, Goombella, and what makes you think Mario is thinking anything other than "find Peach"?
The gate is locked by a rather flimsy chain. As if the gate itself wasn't far flimsier. I feel like we could open the gate if we tried attacking the hinges.
There's a well down here in the corner you can fall down.
There's a Shine Sprite.
That's a Buzzy Beetle. Awww… It's kinda cute! Max HP is 5, Attack is 3, and Defense is 4. It's got pretty good Defense… and fire and explosions don't hurt it whatsoever. But, if you jump on it, you can flip it over and drop its Defense down to 0. Then it's at our mercy! Ha! Don't hesitate! Jump! Jump! Jump jump jump!
Goombella having several mood swings over the course of a single Tattle. Buzzy Beetles live down here in great numbers, and despite all their buffs from 64 numerically (Buzzies were 3/2/2 owing to being Chapter 2 enemies), they're no more threatening here. Maybe that's Quake Hammer talking.
This room is probably my favourite room in the game, purely because this screenshot is absolutely amazing. The outcome, less so.
You can get a First Strike, but I wouldn't recommend it. Hammer is only doing as much as your Atk buffs and Jump will get you poked by the Spike Tops.
That's a Spike Top. It's a Buzzy Beetle with a spike on its back. Max HP is 5, Attack is 3, and Defense is 4. Like other Buzzies, fire and explosions have absolutely no effect on it. But, you can flip it over to drop its Defense to 0! I'm sure you know this already, but try not to jump on it. That spike hurts.
As far as I can tell, these guys are completely identical to the red variety seen with Spiky Joe in the Glitz Pit- same stats, same status resistances, same level (slightly higher coin payout, though), and the only listed thing I can see is... Spiky Joe can't flip back up after being knocked over? If you say so...
I wonder if they're blue to make this room that much more exciting. All the mixed Buzzies and Spike Tops looks far weirder if the Buzzies are blue and the Spike Tops are red, despite basically being the same enemy. 64 got away with it because the Buzzies were in Chapter 2 and the Spike Tops Chapter 5.
Oh, don't you start! Also, wow, I can't even see the fog, you Shy Guys down in front.
Superguard it is.
Tornado Jump (2 BP) will deal a single bounce's worth of damage to any enemy on the field and, if you complete a relatively complex Action Command (push three random buttons), Mario unleashes a tornado that damages all flying/ceiling enemies for piercing damage. If you attacked a flying enemy, though, that guy will escape the Tornado. It costs 3 FP and I wouldn't even use it if it were 1.
I gotta say, I'm outta ideas. I mean, you can't pull it out, push it away, hammer it... What should we do, Mario? Hmm... I got nothing. I'm thinking we probably oughta just leave it for now.
There is a wall to our right that we cannot get through, no matter what technique we use. I'm thinking this well business is a dead end, although there's clearly something back there.
Under the fence it is.
There is a Hidden Block on the staircase, containing a single coin. I think Wonky tells you it's there and you're supposed to feel ripped off.
Star Piece down here, for something worth finding.
Now then... the Steeple.
We're inside Creepy Steeple. At least the moon provides a LITTLE light, y'know? This place seems super-old, huh? I'd like to research it... as soon as it's not haunted.
Oh great, ghosts. Any chance we can tell them we're friends of Lady Bow?
Nope.
...Ah, this statue. This statue first appeared in the courtyard of Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64, where it had a blurry plaque added on as a joke:
The plaque was not intended to be readable by Mario (the statue stood in the centre of a water feature), nor was it intended to be deciphered by the player (on the televisions of the time, I wonder how legible it would even be). The texture would even be recycled for Ocarina of Time. And yet, the audience of gamers who went looking for secrets in the smallest of environmental details insisted the plaque read "L is real 2401"- which was "intended to be a hint for the appearance of Luigi", who was otherwise absent from the game.
By sheer coincidence, 24 years and 1 month following the release of Super Mario 64, a leak of Nintendo's old files included the assets for Luigi as he would have appeared in a planned multiplayer mode, validating decades of fan theories about a blurry texture. And yet when modern games do it, it's wrong.
In all subsequent appearances, it's just an easter egg. Sometimes, it's the solution to a puzzle. I assume the plaque is as unintelligible as it was on the N64.
Who knew we could get down here from up there? Wow! This room's well hidden! Talk about minimal decor: one jump pad and one door. Think there's anything else?
It's rather subtle, you probably wouldn't catch it unless you're looking for it.
This is obviously a secret panel, because the colours are slightly dark and a slight tab in the top-right. Once you see it, you can't unsee it, but you're not supposed to spend that much time in this corner anyway.
You don't need this Flower Saver, there's a free one with Dazzle. Unless you'd like Mario to have a 1 FP Quake Hammer, this is mostly here to be here.
The thing to find down here is this box.
Found all the ghosts! Luigi has a bit where he accidentally opens a container for the Boos in Luigi's Mansion, now it's Mario's turn. This time, the Boos are... more friendly.
The last one shows up at the end, but rather than tripping, he has a little skit at the end.
He asks how many Boos were in that cloud. You were not expected to count, just take a guess at how many Boos you'd expect to see if it took that long.
The correct answer is 200. There were 50 in Luigi's Mansion, and I suspect 100 is an answer intended to make guessing correctly harder.
If you guess right, you get an Ultra Shroom. I'm not sure what you get if you guess wrong- probably a Mushroom, or maybe a Super Shroom if you're lucky.
I believe, if you say you are, you get kicked out of the place. I don't think you have to talk to the Boo at all to progress further into the Steeple, though.
Say we won't, and the Boos feel comfortable gathering in numbers.
At which point they start circling Mario excitedly. If too many grab hold, Mario will also be thrown out of the Steeple.
At this point, the only choice you have is either to be mean to them by using the Super Hammer on them three times, or just not spend long enough in this room to be caught.
And yes, this means somehow performing three Super Hammer inputs on a time crunch with keyboard inputs. I'm told this corner of the room is the best place to do this, but am not told why that is.
I admit, I probably should've extracted a matching promise from you guys.
The Boos gather, and turn into a Boolossal Boo.
That's an Atomic Boo. It's a giant Boo made up of a ton of smaller Boos. Max HP is 40, Attack is 4, and Defense is 0. This thing will try to smoosh us. It can also split up and send hundreds of Boos at us. And, when we attack, we might get so scared that we get confused or can't move. I sure wouldn't want to see this thing standing behind me in the middle of the night… Creeeeeepy…
Excuse me, Atomic Boo. Modern Mario games prefer the name "Big Boo", although this was the name given to it in its first appearance in Super Mario World. This is not on the localiser's head this time: Although the localisers have messed up a few translations involving big Boos (most significantly missing the fact "Jumbo Teresa" is Boolossus in Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon), the Atomic Boo/Big Boo confusion is present in the Japanese versions, too.
Atomic Boo's attacks include the ability to drop on our heads, summoning some Boos to try and inflict Stop, and Spook us to try and inflict Confuse. All three attacks do 4 damage, with the Spook also dealing 3 to the guy in back. There's also a Boo swarming move that deals 6 damage in three hits, and he can waste his turn "hiding". Fortunately, he can't turn invisible under his own power.
Despite this Yoshi's Island design of the Boos being far less adorable than the main canon design, their "getting hit" animation somehow manages to still be cute. I love how Mario manages to sand the edges off its horror levels by making Boos not just aesthetically pleasing, but legitimately adorable. I guess whichever designer based it off his wife didn't want to make them ugly, too.
Hey, down in front! Wait, that's a new audience member! Boos can throw Repel's Cape, Boo's Sheet and Spite Pouch, in addition to rocks and cans, and sometimes, they will leap out of the audience and turn one random character on the stage invisible for one turn. Because, you know, the stage doing that on its own wasn't enough.
Ah, that would be the Stop attack. It also hits the partner in back.
Big Boos being the formation of many little Boos feels more common than it is- I thought it showed up outside Luigi's Mansion and Dark Moon's Boolossus, but I can't spot which game that would be.
...Huh.
We're Stopped.
Fortunately, all he did with that one free turn he bought himself was "hide".
Back to the bonking.
That'll be the Boo Swarm, 3-2-1 damage.
Maybe we should consider getting a vacuum cleaner and sucking up those boos before they rejoin the Big Boo?
Well, that was fortuitous timing. It does also show that a Boo that does this will leave the Audience.
Excuse me, what the hell?
I mean, I guess Mario's turn of invisibility was wasted, but still. None of you thought to give the buff to the Big Boo?
(I've never actually seen the Invisibility go off on a boss, and I suspect it can't- I've seen a Boo try it, but that was also the final boss.)
There goes the Big Boo.
Defeating this optional boss rewards you with the Lucky Start (4 BP) Badge. At the start of every battle, the game will randomly select one of four buffs (2 HP recovery, 2FP recovery, Electrified or Dodgy) and apply it to Mario for 2 turns for free. This is less effective than it sounds, although it can come in handy in overworld encounters, especially if you get lucky with HP recovery.
If you fight Atomic Boo in the middle of the room, near the star statue, it is possible for it to drop Lucky Start into the hole you fall down. If it does this, you can't pick it up, but it's not lost forever (despite defeating Atomic Boo being the only way to acquire a copy)- the game will recognise something is up if this Badge is missing without being in your inventory, and will spawn a copy in the Lovely Howz of Badges. The resources I've been using to tell me this say "it costs 70 coins", but judging by the usual values of Badges in the Lovely Howz and the selling price of Lucky Start, I think it actually costs 100 coins and 70 is just the Special Deal price.
I'd rather not use healing items, but I'm slightly worried right now.
Fortunately, Zap Tap will be good enough for Mario for the near future.
Anyway, how many of you spotted this earlier?
This appears to be the Creepy Steeple storeroom. Sheesh, have a few cobwebs! I'm not so good with ghosts OR spiders, to be honest... And ghost spiders... horrible.
Secret room filled with treasure! This is a really important room to visit, make sure you do so.
This is the point where I immediately regret buying the Lovely Howz's copy. In my defence, this Badge is so terrible at its job I am justified in not remembering it's here.
This is a Trouble item the game lets you pick up before starting the Trouble. I imagine one doesn't need to think too hard about what it's for, but unfortunately, I don't think we can turn it in until after the Chapter.
Shine Sprite and a Star Piece, too. Don't forget to pick up the Star Piece.
Anyway, now that we have reloaded the room, this room is now full of Boos as regular encounters.
That's a Boo. It's everyone's favorite ghost. …Well, most everyone… Max HP is 7, Attack is 3, and Defense is 0. It's nothing to write home about on the Attack side, but it can turn invisible. If it turns invisible, we won't be able to hit it, so beat it while you can see it. Boos are kinda cute, but I sure wouldn't want to meet one in a dark alley. If I ran into one in the bathroom in the middle of the night, I'd… Well, never you mind what I'd do.
We've already seen what Boo can do in the Pit of 100 Trials, but of course they're running around here. You'll only find them in this room if you fought Atomic Boo, though.
I don't think I could've gone without that.
...Although I'm less sure what my plan is from here.
I think that was the best I could do.
Here we can see the "Boo rises, makes all Boos rise".
And here we can see "screw you, you can't attack us!"
At least they hit Goombella, too.
That's a Swooper. I bet they call it that 'cause of the way it swoops around. Wow! That's some AWESOME naming work. Seriously! It's pure naming genius!!! So, anyway… Max HP is 6, Attack is 3, and Defense is 0. Says here it hangs from the ceiling. If you can just damage it, it oughta drop off the ceiling. And then you can whack it!
This is the first appearance of Swooper, if you didn't go and fight Sir Swoop in the Glitz Pit. They're probably the easiest enemies to fight in the whole chapter, so long as you actually have something ready to knock them off the ceiling, although they're not quite trivialised by Zap Tap anymore.
Despite hovering above the fog, they can still dodge you.
Thankfully this one didn't.
Why did I even buy that?
They will bounce off Mario with Zap Tap on, same as in 64.
Oh hey, free Boo's Sheet!
Going around the top here, you can see a break in the fence.
You can Paper Mode to go around and behind the Creepy Steeple through there.
This is the only place to acquire Golden Leaves in the game. This is an essential ingredient for two recipes and useful for crafting a third, powerful utility recipe, but we can get that one in other ways.
...I have too much stuff. This is going to be awkward.
There goes the other Shroom Fry.
Right then, let's his the mystery button!
...It did something.
Wow, interesting staircase... Hmmm... Just one staircase, but three doors... What's the story with THAT, you think? Lazy architects?
Good question.
Star Panel down here.
The south side of the Steeple is identical, but without the path to the Golden Leaf tree.
What happens if I push this switch?
The staircase moves! Never open the middle door, that dumps you out into the middle of the room.
Annoyingly, there are Boos on these rafters now, too, and they're hard to dodge.
Shenanigans!
Imagine using Mini-Egg to finish them off before they go invisible again.
Make sure you take the bottom staircase first. You can see the key and the lock from the ground floor, but odds are you're not noticing.
Went with the Koops solution this time. You can use Dr. Agon, but I wind up falling a lot.
Picking up the second one.
...That's kinda cute, the two Fire Flowers.
The winding stair leads up to the belfry. Talk about a doozy of a climb! I mean, it's almost like the staircase is saying... "Go away. I totally hate you."
Yep. That's a staircase to climb.
I know when I'm being told to heal up.
Very heavily into my damage build this time. Super Appeal seems like a bit of a weird pick, though.
This is a long staircase.
Jump up the spring, and we will find our man.
...He is... definitely a Duplighost...
He's not winning any awards for the most visually intimidating Chapter Boss around.
And he's certainly in no hurry to play the role of one.
He feels like he's justified in being the sort of fellow he is. He is alone in that assumption.
Yeah, the Twilighters may be a bunch of pricks, but we did promise to return them to normal, and we have to prove we're the better man.
...Also you're holding onto something we need to stop people from taking over the world.
In standing up, he reveals himself to be a Duplighost. This is the only one in TTYD.
He really doesn't care about what a bad deed he did.
Koops: That's not nice!
Flurrie: You foul boor!
Dr. Agon: You stink, Mister!
Shoutouts to the gamut of indignant responses the partners can fire back.
There's a beat frame here. It's amazing. This guy really is kinda pathetic.
Translation: He felt like it.
This is the motivation that makes me expect he'll turn the Twilighters from pigs to something else when he's done.
He just needs to think of something funnier than pigs.
...I wonder if this is a Japanese pun, it's not really as funny in English. The link from "gothic depression" -> "pigs" feels pretty forced.
Boss fight time! He uses this theme, and aside from the bell chiming, I have no further comment. It's a perfectly cromulent theme.
...??? Wow, how totally bizarre… This thing isn't listed in here. There's a monster in here that looks like this thing… But it doesn't list a name. Max HP is 40, Attack is 4, and Defense is 0. It's apparently really good at transforming itself and other things. Maybe it used that power to turn the villagers into pigs! This thing is a real jerk!
The boss doesn't even have a name in-universe? Strange... Anyway, ??? only has one attack- the Duplighost's headbonk. This guy is really not a particularly interesting fight, although he does have one thing to pull out at the end.
Audience watch: Crazee Dayzees don't throw anything, but occasionally, they will sing and send the entire audience to sleep, preventing them from providing Star Power. How rude.
Time for Power Lift.
You play a shooting game, where you move the cursor around this grid to hit the arrows with A. It's not a tilting game (hence how I'm able to hit the corners easily), nor do you have to avoid holding the cursor over Poison Shrooms. Hitting a Poison Shroom will slow the cursor's movement for a brief time, while hitting an arrow will increase the corresponding stat by about the amount shown in the gauges presently.
Well, so much for ??? dealing any damage.
Appropriate response.
If only he actually lived up to it.
19 damage a turn.
Excuse me, 20.
Was that your idea of a Chapter boss?
In all seriousness, ??? will perform his secret spice on the first turn he notices he's under 10 HP. I... may have overkilled him.
Well, are you going to talk about it or are you going to do it?
Let's see what you had kept in your back pocket for so long.
...At last, he showed off that he is, in fact, a Duplighost.
Well, I suppose that would be terrifying, owing to the-
Never mind. While transformed into Shadow Mario, he can either Jump for 2x2 damage or Hammer for 4. He does not take your Badge setup into account.
On one hand, that's Power Lift used up.
On the other hand, that 10 HP he refilled is no match for our base damage output.
??? gets extremely confused, and starts asking questions about how this happened.
It's called insane buffing abilities.
Shadow Mario does Mario's death throws.
And we get ourselves some Star Points.
Huh, Mario's really gotten exhausted after that fight.
Eh, it'll be fine. We have the Ruby Star now!
Mario defeated the scourge of Creepy Steeple and found the fourth Crystal Star. The people of Twilight Town have surely recovered from their awful curse by now. At this rate, Mario's quest to collect all seven Crystal Stars will be done in no time! With his back to Creepy Steeple, Mario sets out toward his bright future...
Is it just me, or did we get the Crystal Star faster than usual?
...I guess not. Power Lift is one hell of an ability, who let us have that?
Next time: Finally, things start going somewhere in the enemy ranks.
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