Part 11: Update Eleven: Pipe Vaults and Goomba Thumpin'

Last time on Super Mario RPG, we picked up one of the most badass party members, kicked the shit out of an ugly, sentient bow, and found our second Star Piece. Let's get this show on the road, shall we?



We stopped to save and rest at the Rose Town Inn, to where Gaz didn't acknowledge our presence.



Turns out that our party members literally disappear into Mario. I guess that explains why Gaz didn't notice Geno's return.






I hope she means hot as in heat. Though, I'm sure someone out there took it the other way and fan-art from the depths of hell was drawn.





Maybe when we repair the Star Road, Geno's wish will come true.







Mario, what other abilities have you been hiding? You can hover, shoot stars from your first and transform into other beings. What's next, super-weaving?



: Do you get it?



Goddammit, Gaz.



Once again, these guys express it better than I can.



Why didn't you just tell him that to begin with?



Hell, I could think of worse goals.



: Which is why I have chosen these two in order to find the missing Star Pieces.



Gaz is a little shithead.



Mallow! Just let Mario smack the taste out of this kid's mouth!





Oh, go to hell, Gaz.





Gaz gives us a Finger Shot, which is a weapon for Geno that increases his Attack by +12. I guess he ain't so bad.



Being a good sport, Geno? He just gave you the power to shoot bullets from your fingertips. I think that's a bit more than being a "good sport".



After that little diversion, let's get into the meat of this update; the Pipe Vault.



It's just a side-dungeon and completely optional. These cute l'il guys are Sparkies.



Part of that is Geno's sexy strength, and the other part is these guy's terrible Defense. They have 120 HP, which seems like a lot, but their Defense is literally 1. They're also weak to Ice, but since a loud cough would destroy these guys (and I don't have Ice yet), I'm not going to waste the FP on 'em. They also drop Defense Up flowers.



That's a regular-ass Goomba, yes. They haven't been beefed up or anything. I don't know why they're here.



Trying to climb this staircase when the Thwomp comes down will send you back to the bottom. It's easy to get past him. Also, get caught under him, he'll faceplant Mario, and he'll slide all the way back down.



There's no Hidden Chest up here, unfortunately. Though, I do think it's neat that you can actually jump on top of them.



That first pipe holds a Piranha Plant, but I couldn't get him to come back up. So, let's move on to the next room.



Before I go fight that Piranha Plant, the room beyond this pipe holds some goodies.



How in the hell do I reach that Frog Coin? There's no hidden passages around here to get me there...



(Yeah, I had to go back and record this. Shut up.)



There's two Hidden Chests on this path, too, holding Frog Coins.



This chest is in plain sight, and I'll never turn down a Flower.



One of the Hidden Chests. I may have accidentally discovered the other one when I was doing some off-camera grinding.



Piranha Plants, surprisingly, are kind of assholes.



You wouldn't expect a plant to be hardy and tough, would you?



I'm sure I'm not doing that right, but Jesus. These guys has 168 HP, with good defenses, and an immunity to the Jump element. They're not weak to anything, including Fire, surprisingly.



The rewards for defeating them aren't exactly spectacular, but better than a sharp stick in the eye.



They can also turn characters into Scarecrows, which I don't understand a damn bit. When a character is Scarecrow'd, remember, they can only use their specials.







Yeah, their kind of sons of bitches. Their Magic Defense ain't nothin' to scoff at, and taking down your only physical attacker can really drag these fights out.



That sleep-bubble will never fail to amuse me. Another Geno Kamehameha finishes this fight.



Those little white flowers are jerks. You can't fight them, but if you land on them, they knock out some of your Coins. It's easy to recoup losses, sure, but it's annoying.



Another Flower in here. This side dungeon is just full of goodies.



That chest held twenty Coins. I lost four trying to get all twenty because of those white flowers.



This is the exit. But where does it take us?



An island full of Yoshis. I'll be going over it in detail later. I just wanted the path open for when I do return.

Also, I did some off-camera grinding while I was here. I brought Geno up to level 9, and Mario and Mallow to level 11. Essentially, I am now strong enough, I think I could skip random encounters for the next two dungeons, and I'd be fine in that third dungeon I went to. I have some issues when it comes to grinding.



The video there is the Goomba Thumpin' mini-game in the Pipe Vault. You may notice that I hit 20 and stopped going for Goombas after that; see, whenever you set a high score, the mole asks you to get 2 more points to get another prize. So, going above and beyond can really screw you over out of some of the better prizes. A Flower Jar is the next reward, and Frog Coins follow that. It's a good place to farm Frog Coins, if you're good at this sort of thing.