Zero Annihilates Fefnir's Army Using Only the Triple Rod
33This is a 100-point S-Rank run of Duel in the Desert, Fefnir’s stage in Mega Man Zero. In this mission, Zero takes on Fefnir’s advancing army to protect the Resistance Base, with the twist being that this time, Zero will be armed only with his trusty spear, the Triple Rod.
Duel in the Desert is one of the more unique stages in MMZ, with the whole theme of “Resistance under siege” actually having ramifications in gameplay. The two main gimmicks are that Pantheon Hunters constantly spawn in from the left side of the screen and that you can’t move backward once you’ve scrolled the screen forward, à la OG Mario, forcing you to face the impending troops head-on. This constant flow of enemies provides what is effectively an everlasting supply of trampolines to use with the Triple Rod’s pogo, which in turn makes this stage a showpiece for stylish stage traversal with the Triple Rod.
Rounding out the enemy roster are the fire-breathing Cameloids, Shell Crawlers, Sand Jaws, Floppers, and Spikings, who are sometimes accompanied by Carryarms. These enemies are placed at predetermined locations. By combining knowledge of their placement with manipulation of the Pantheon spawn points, you can craft remarkably intricate sections of movement throughout the stage. Of course, that’s easier said than done. Knowing where and when to move for optimal Pantheon placement takes an almost excessive amount of research. The route I developed underwent numerous changes. It began life as a basic, speed-oriented path that, over time, morphed into the style-first, circuitous pogo extravaganza seen here.
While the pogo sees profuse application, regular directional attacking and reversals are still strong options. The dreaded Carryarm and Spiking combo acts as perfect fodder to illustrate just how powerful reversals with the Triple Rod are. The range of its aerial attacks is conducive to smiting those nuisances; it’s considerably safer than doing the same with the Saber. Diagonal stabs are effective for picking off a few otherwise tricky-to-reach enemies along the way, and it’s doubly useful for safe enemy farming toward the end.
Despite the short runtime, the number of specific actions that need to be memorized for this run to flow smoothly is quite high. Right off the bat, the first two enemies demand a tailored approach. You have to jump off the apex of the first dune while briefly halting your forward progress in order to consistently land a reversal. Incorrect positioning or timing results in either contact damage or missing the Carryarm entirely. There are a few methods of dealing with the remaining enemies before the defunct quicksand pits. At first, I’d planned to pogo over and ignore the Cameloids, but in addition to reducing the amount of farming later, I found that spending the time to defeat them resulted in favorable Pantheon spawns.
The second sand pit is a complete carnival. The approach I take is unreasonably particular about the spacing demands for both the Pantheon manipulation and the pogos needed to clear the smorgasbord of enemies. The whole thing is reliant upon exactly when you start the pogo off the Shellcrawler before the second Cameloid. Go too early, and Zero will plant face-first into the Cameloid; too late, and a Pantheon past the Cameloid will block the way forward, preventing the pogo I need to perform off the first Flopper. The rest of the sequence speaks for itself. It’s a tough maneuver that produces splendid results.
Making slight adjustments to deal with contingencies related to Pantheon spawns is essential. One example here is the lone wolf standing before the crumbling ruins. It can either be on top of or below the ledge, so adjust your attack timing accordingly. Pogoing off the Spiking shortly after is purely for style points, as is the pogo chain on the two Shellcrawlers before the downed chopper.
Unfortunately, a whole minute of farming awaits due to a major misstep by Inti’s mission designers. This stage could’ve been a classic; the amount of creativity players can express here is immense thanks to the layout and gimmick, but it’s tragically marred by mandating an enemy score of 91. I need to ice 37 poor Pantheons here before proceeding. Thankfully, the Carrybee is fairly eventful. A yet unmentioned enemy, Kerberos, makes an appearance here; several, in fact. With diminutive hitboxes and enough durability to endure one hit, clearing the way forward is an unsettling experience. Ideally, you clean house quickly with forward and angled stabs, but if things go south, you always have pogos to fall back on, which happens here.
The close call with the Carrybee and Kerberos had me pretty frazzled going into the battle with Fefnir. I’ve detailed how you can carefully observe his animations to know which attack he’ll use, but I forsook any stylish attacking, prioritizing survival. No EX Skill usage saved a bit of time, which is nice.
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