Part 22: Update Twenty Two: Meeting Johnny Jones
Last time on Super Mario RPG, we explored a bit more of a sunken ship, and found a very nice accessory. This time, we're going to finish off this ship, and collect our fifth Star Piece. So, let's get this show on the road.
So, the Hidon chest is empty now, and there's no reason not to move on.
The next room is dominated by this large pool of water. There's four Frog Coins on the bottom, along with delicious experience.
There's not a whole lot we can do in the water, so we have to go through this door.
There's a whirlpool in this room, and approximately jack and shit else.
That door leads to the next area, but there's treasure to be snagged. I like how the logs from before pointed out that the treasure was lost, and then there is some actually worthwhile goodies to be had when you get past King Calimari. It's a nice touch.
Crusty's are the one new enemy we'll be meeting today. They only have 80 HP, but their Defense is montrous; Mario and Bowser were having trouble getting into the triple digits on them. They hit fairly hard, too, but that seems to be all that's in their bag of tricks. They're also weak to Fire and Thunder, and have a pretty good chance of dropping Attack Up Flowers.
Back in this room, I collect my four Frog Coins, bringing my total up to 38. I'm coming ever closer to obtaining a Scrooge Ring. Or an Experience Booster. Maybe I'll let you guys decide.
Anywho, after collecting the last Frog Coin, hop out of the pool and head to the next room.
Hit the whirlpool and move on to the next room.
I rather like this next room. It's just a staircase, filled to the brim with enemies.
There's five or six battles to run through in this room, which translates to plenty of delicious experience points.
In the next room, there's a Bloober and behind those barrels, you can kind of see the green glass of the window in the door.
Scoot around the left side, toward the door. It's not a very well hidden secret, but damn, it is nice.
The Safety Ring; anyone can equip it and it protects from all status effects. Sounds like the Safety Badge we picked up last update, right? Well, compared to this, the Safety Badge can go eat a dick; the Safety Ring, in addition to status defense, also NULLIFIES ALL ELEMENTS. Roll that one around in your brain for a minute. I'll give you time.
Anywho, Bloobers can drop Lucky Flowers. I like Bloobers, because even Toadstool can one shot them.
Geno joins the level 19 crew, after the first fight. He's all done learning skills and his bonus this time is +6 to HP.
After defeating the big Bloober, you can fight the little ones that were following it. They're not special or anything; they are regular Bloobers in battle.
After killing an entire family, we move on up.
But first, over in the corner of this room, there's another Frog Coin. I have 39 of 'em now.
Oh, Lord, pirates! Sharks! SHARK PIRATES!
I do believe that was a threat.
Oh, so in a little while, he's just going to own tons of toxic sludge and oil. I hope he's going to take pride in his collection.
Yarr, I get it, ye sea dog!
We'll see about that, Bandana Red. He's only got 120 HP, with a weakness to Fire and Thunder. The rest of his stats are fairly meh, and if one is left all alone, they'll simply run away.
I don't let them flee. These guys are more of a mini-boss, I think, since their rewards are fairly good.
Mario hits level 20 after that fight. He nets himself an additional +3 to Magic Attack, and I start to pity any enemy in my way.
If you must know, I'm at final-boss levels, sir.
Is it really a good warning if you're just telling them they're all about to be horribly slaughtered?
I snag this full-heal Mushroom and get ready to face off against Johnny.
Considering how often Mario seems to get knocked on his ass, maybe I'm not as strong as I think I am.
Check the bottom of your feet. A bit of him might be there.
He's right, guys. We're sons of bitches.
I was already about half-way up those stairs, man.
Ah, the rare Southern Shark Pirate. Don't see their kind 'round here much anymore.
I was going to end this battle with an Ultra Flame, but Red Bandanas have a chance to drop Once Again! Flowers. Bowser and Mario managed to take out two apiece, and
This is why I think they're supposed to be more of a mini-boss group. That much experience just seems like too much, without a Lucky Flower involved. Or a much tougher fight.
Mallow hit level 20 after that fight, too. He gained an extra +2 to Magic Attack, as well.
Finally! Someone who respects our immense strength!
And it's all gone. I know how Rodney Dangerfield feels now.
It's never as easy as getting that fourth Star Piece.
Bandana Blues are just stronger Bandana Reds; they have thirty more HP, and some of their stats are higher. Their Speed, noticeably, is 30, which means all four of them attack before my guys do. They all tried to murder Toadstool, but failed miserably.
They're still fairly one-shottable, except Toadstool can't quite do it anymore. They also drop Lucky Flowers, which can make the end of this fight very sexy.
And here we have Johnny. He's got 820 HP at max, but his stats are lower than King Calamari's. That'll make sense in a minute, but for now, Johnny is a cinch. He has access to Diamond Saw and Mega Drain, but he never used them this fight. He just stuck to his physicals; I even wasted a few turns defending, wanting to see them.
The strategy I employ here, much like my strategy for every fight in this game, is to fucking wail on Johnny.
Said wailing commences...
Said wailing ends when Johnny uses this skill. It is essentially a combination of Vigor Up and Valor Up, in one convenient package.
Johnny also turns a most menacing shade of crimson.
Thank you. Though, by doing this, Johnny, it'll just take twice as long for me to kill you.
A duel, eh? Interesting. I'm game. Mario?
Mario's in, too. Bowser, Toadstool, step back. It's time to make a fool out of this sea dog.
I have no idea what the hell this line is supposed to mean.
Are you sure you understand how a duel, works, Johnny? There's no backup. Not unless you meant your second...
Oh, he meant cheerleaders. For the rest of this fight, Mario is going it solo. Letting Mario go down means a game over, but that shouldn't happen. Even though Johnny's doubled up on his stats, he still only has about 400 HP to burn through.
That doesn't seem like a lot, but that's still about 1/6th of his HP.
Were this a battle of attrition, I could just outlast Johnny. If you were regularly leveled, it may very well become one of those fights, and if it does, you can still outlast him, as long as you keep your HP high.
I decide to see if this is more efficient for damage. Plus, I'm not worried about losing, so I can afford to dick around like this.
Yick. 14 FP for 30 more damage isn't worth it, in my book. I'll just stick to whacking his legs with my hammer.
An entire 1 damage from Johnny again. Like I said, being normal leveled, this fight has a lot of potential for difficulty. Like this, though, it's just sad.
And that's the end of the fight there. All in all, it's a pretty good battle if you're doing this regularly. For someone like me, there's probably only one fight left that will give me a challenge.
Oh, and that Lucky Flower I got? Went to double my Coins.
But, it was still enough to get Toadstool to level 17. She also gets +3 to her Magic Attack.
There it is, our fifth Star Piece. Only took a bit more effort than the fourth, but Johnny is much more likable, I think. And the Sunken Ship is a pretty cool level.
Johnny goes to stare out the window, but he's not moping.
before I change my mind!
This door leads to the exit, and we're done here. Let's mosey, folks.
Mosey on back to the surface.
And we'll stop here for the day. But, hey, we got a new Star Piece!
Next time, we'll face another boss and move onto another interesting locale. Stay tuned!
Bonus Content
Johnny Boss Fight