Super Mario RPG Restricted Weapons/No Deaths Run - Croco (Bandit's Way)

Channel:

Master Knight DH

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1,950

Published on November 10, 2023 2:00:10 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQts6LSUCPc

Game:

Super Mario RPG (1996)

Duration: 12:57

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General rules on playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLO2o0_k4kOryI-6ur48Q1fjPRv3waRk57

Current relevant rules:
-No deaths (goes without saying)
-Always choose Magic on Level Ups (avoids physical combat capability inflation)
-Jump Special is banned (Jump can be grinded, and I want to avoid milking that)
-In-battle item usage tracked (will be brought up when a fight actually forces item usage; if item usage can be avoided with the other rules in general, they will be banned)
-Healing Timing Dependence Patch active (makes healing spells more involved)

Before I start, I should note that I am using the input display feature of an emulator. I am doing this to punctuate how things go in the original in case the remaster changes up key aspects since I know it's already making a later attack blockable where it wasn't in the original, and other changes may do relevant things, which means I'm more concerned with proving what is going on in case people think I'm not trying to do something that simply can't happen in the original. I know it's possible to have input display with a Switch game (I have seen this for Super Bash Sisters Ultimate), but that notion may need system modification, so I advise clear caution in considering the idea for the remaster to avoid issues with Nintendo potentially getting on your case with that.

Croco is the first real fight other than the Hammer Bros (who let's be real, has been shown to be done at Level 1 repeatedly without any real issue), and already you can tell that this is not a low level run, although will all the restrictions, I'll be seeing what I can do anyway. Still, neither character at their initial level can survive one of his bombs without Defending, and even if either character could, HP Rain, which requires Mallow to get a Level 3, is STILL a big change by providing an alternative to items. This is basically as good as we are going to get without using items, due to the bomb being flatly unblockable here, making it one of the most obnoxious attacks in the game. It's by sheer luck that Mario can even survive the bomb attack at Level 2.

But don't get complacent. ANYTHING that even scratches Mario is going to open him up to the bomb KOing him. Mallow has significantly more survivability, but you can still find yourself in a bad situation if you're not watchful of your healing management, which at this point in the game is going to make FP management a more active consideration, meaning you can find yourself either frequently expending 2 FP healing off incredibly minor damage, or potentially becoming subject to an RNG spike. There's a reason why Croco lunging at Mario at all is scary. You better perfect block that consistently or you're bound to have problems develop fast. Croco's own durability is nothing to sneeze at either, and without Fire Orb, which Mario would learn at Level 3 to burn through Croco's durability as well as make him waste a turn, we don't have many options. By the way, Fire Orb with Mario's current Magic ATK, including the Jump Shoes' 5 point bonus that I can't make use of here, would actually deal 44 damage, including weakness modifier, to Croco before timing bonuses that actually have good scaling. That would be serviceable in scorching Croco alive even without the Spell Timing Bonuses Patch's scaling improvement, though it wouldn't feel like it would quite justify the 5 FP cost, let alone when it's already hitting Croco's Fire weakness.

This fight with L2 Mario/L3 Mallow is involving attack-heal-attack-heal as a result of Fire Orb being unavailable, even if Mallow is at least Defending when he's not healing because Thunderbolt is doing nothing to help, and it helps that Mallow has surprisingly more durability than Mario, at least right now. Suffice to say that I'm preferring Croco to attack Mallow and waste attacks that way.

The lunge has obtuse perfect timing. I remember it being right AFTER Croco has hit the character in the animation, which is incredibly silly. If it gets changed to something more intuitive in the remaster, I would not be surprised. This is one more reason why I am using input display to show how things went in the original, just in case timing detection and whatnot gets patched up. You can see my timing more clearly by slowing down the video.

Oh, and by the way, if the Coin totals seem off to anybody doing any active calculations, let's just say that I take issue with Pick Me Ups costing only 5 Coins apiece despite being a revival item. Since I am basically banning Kerokero Colas from in-battle use anyway, this isn't going to be a deal breaker.

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