I’ve resigned myself to the fact that, no matter how hard I try, I’ll keep posting very long segments. I’m reminded of that old computer saying, “Efficient, Accessible, Cheap…pick any two.” When it comes to this Let’s Play, the options become “Details, Opinions, Length.” Anyways, enough with this; let’s get this party started!
When I last updated, we had just won a bunch of coins from Baroque, and we had been taught how to use the Vacuum Block. After buying the costly Leisure Wear for Luigi (and giving Mario his old Picnic Wear), I decide to seek out another Toothy and practice my suction techniques. The next battle I get into has not only a Toothy, but one of those lollipop-toting giant Goombas as well. I guess I’m going to find out if I can suck him up, too!
Well, it turns out that vacuuming does a little more than just lets Mario & Luigi fight Bowser’s battles for him. By inhaling the Toothy’s body segments, I got a Def. Boost! And by inhaling the Chuboomba-whatever’s lollipop, not only did I recover 20 HP, but the dude ran away from battle, crying like a baby! Oh, and I found out what those little things that a Toothy head spits are: they’re Blue Viruses from Dr. Mario! And they pack a surprising amount of strength, as shown if you let one hit you!
Skipping ahead a bit, I come across another save point. On my way there, Bowser levelled up twice; since he’s just one guy, I guess he gets more XP than the Bros. do. The first roulette bonus was +3 Pow, the second +3 Def. By the way, it might interest you to know that I’ve only used a single item so far: a Syrup, on Mario, during the fight with Baroque. Will I need to use another item soon? Let’s find out!
In the section north of the save point, we find something Chippy knows a little bit about: the Sea Pipe Statue, built to commemorate some heroic Blooper. Bowser’s miffed that it’s not dedicated to him, even though the words ‘Bowser’, ‘hero’, and ‘sea’ fit together like the words ‘Fawful’, ‘sane’, and ‘technophobe’. And speaking of Fawful, look who causes the statue to come to life! …Okay, it’s a tiny UFO with a speaker system in it, but it’s close enough to the real deal. Boss fight!
This boss’ initial attack is something I can only counter 1/3 of the time. The blooper on the statue’s top jumps into the pipe mounted on the left-hand side of the statue. If the right-hand pipe is pointed straight at Bowser, the Blooper will be shot like a cannon. If it’s angled upwards, the Blooper will soar above Bowser’s head, go around the world, come back on the enemy’s side, and dive into Bowser. I get better results if it’s an angled shot. I figure that trying to punch it normally would be a waste of a move, so instead I order Bowser to inhale the Blooper.
The first turn that the Blooper gets once inhaled is usually a [DATA EXPUNGED] move: it drills into the ‘ground’, which is to say Bowser’s intestines, causing an unblockable 10-ish damage. The next is a stomping attack focused on the Mario Bros., which can be seen coming for a mile away, and can be blocked with a well-timed hammer. Mario still has 7 SP from the Baroque fight, so I use a perfect Green Shell on the stone blooper. After enough hits, it turns red, and suddenly thinks it’s a guided missile zeroed-in on plumber blood. A solid whack from the bro it’s aimed at sends the bugger right out of Bowser’s stomach, and right into the rest of the machine. Bowser’s able to get in a couple of free hits, and then the Blooper’s able to do its starting move again.
It’s an easy-to-remember system. Bowser inhales, Bros. do Green Shell, Blooper gets angry, Bros. counter it out of stomach, Bowser gets some good hits in, Blooper recovers, Bowser inhales, Bros. use their hammers because they ran out of SP points, Blooper dies before it goes ballistic on us again. And while Bowser’s at half-health and the Bros. can’t perform a Bros. move if their lives depended on it, I can honestly say that I have yet to use more than a single item on this playthrough so far! Also, the thing dropped a 1-Up Deluxe, and not only did Bowser level up, he got a +5 Health Bonus!
After a tough battle like that (which I had to do twice, because I forgot to charge my DS batteries), I really want to go back and save. But, what’s this? Insta-trees block the path! This game is starting to tick me off. Anyways, the returned-to-as-normal-as-it-can-get-in-the-Mushroom-Kingdom Sea Pipe Statue thinks it’s a fountain, and starts gushing water from its pipe-arms. Bowser’s thirsty after that hard battle, and decides to take a drink, which allows Mario & Luigi to access the ‘Pipe Works’ section of his body. This area is filled with water, and to swim, all you have to do is keep pressing the A & B buttons.
So, we almost leave the first screen of this area, when the water drains and the path behind us closes. Apparently, Bowser’s not thirsty anymore, and the paths in this section only stay open if Bowser’s drinking water. Chippy persuades Bowser to keep the paths open by promising to clean his insides, return his fire breath, and make him even more awesome than Mario! …More or less. With that taken care of, we can now…what’s that, Mario? Timmy’s stuck in the well again? …Nope; he thinks Peach is trapped in the Pipe Works. How the heck did you figure THAT one out, Italian boy?
Anyways, there’s a Save Point at the beginning of the next screen. This game isn’t ticking me off as much as it was earlier. Next time, on M&L: B.I.S., we solve one of the following mysteries. Which one? I’ve got no freakin’ clue.
- How do we cure the Blorbs?
- How can the residents of the Mushroom Kingdom escape from Bowser’s insides?
- What happened to Bowser’s fire breath?
- What happened to Dr. Toadley’s assistant after she left Peach’s castle? And what about Toadbert’s expedition, by boogity?
- Who taught Bowser how to use the Chakroad?
- Is Fawful just being a jerk, or is there a reason he’s taken over Bowser’s castle in addition to the castle of his hated enemies, Red and Green Finkrat?
- Bowser has SP, but no special moves. How long until he gets one?
- I know badges are in the game, but when can I get my hands on one?
- What is the purpose of the beans we’re bound to find under all those X’s?
- What kind of zany trouble has Peach gotten herself in this time?
...Oh, yeah. Here’s our status, including current HP and SP values in addition to total.
Mario: Lv. 3, 27/30 HP, 1/13 SP, 24 Pow, 34 Def (Picnic Wear), 20 Spd, 25 Stache
Luigi: Lv. 3, 26/38 HP, 1/11 SP, 20 Pow, 46 Def (Leisure Wear), 17 Spd, 38 Stache
Bowser: Lv. 5, 35/100 HP, 18/21 SP, 72 Pow, 59 Def, 16 Spd, 33 Horn
