Mario RPG variants

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Super Mario RPG No Magic World 5:  Grate Guy Gambling Grinding


The Work Pants were obsolete for Mario and Geno, who needed the Sailor Shirt (+20 Def, +15 MDef) and Sailor Cape (+18 Def, +9 MDef).  But the programmers hated Bowser and refused to give him anything better than the Work Pants.  Anyway, the liberated Seaside Town residents sold the +35 Attack Double Punch for Geno. 


Mario's new Troopa Shell was theoretically equal to the Masher, if looking only at the attack stat.  But every Super Mario RPG weapon has a P value that determines how random the damage output is.  The Masher comes with a 30 P value, meaning its minimum and maximum damage outputs are more extreme than the Troopa Shell's 5 P Value.  So I was right in thinking the Masher worked like some FF5 weapons.  Other weapons for high rollers include the Lazy Shell with 40 P and the Frying Pan with 20.


Even with his new armor, Mario still took over 40 damage from Willy Wisps from random Land's End enemies.  Geckits were always confused and attacked other enemies.  Shogun ants weren't as fearsome as in previous variants, since they barely did any damage this time, and their only Carni-Kiss missed.  Does their script for buffing themselves depend on casting a spell?  


Land's End had a high experience point yield, especially noticeable since the Shogun battles were mandatory to fall through the quicksand.  Everyone took Attack and Defense for level 12, and the combination of 2 invincibility blocks in the cave raised all to 13 and an HP block.  


Belome Temple's first random "fortune" said I would have many "friends", or random encounters in practice.  They were easy to defeat and handed out more experience.  Belome's rematch was different from the Kero Sewers battle because he could now make clones out of player characters.  Bowser Clone shot spikes and gashed the party for a surprising 40-50 damage.  Belome himself wasn't as tough.  Double Punches struck for 76-118 and finished the boss, Hurly Gloves tossed for 79-112, and Troopa Shell kicks bounced off for around 60-96.  1 Elixir and 1 Mid Mushroom were needed to survive.  After Belome retreated, the Mario Clone and then the Bowser Clone succumbed to regular attacks.


Monstro Town sold Bowser's next weapon, the +30 Attack Spiked Link.  This would be his last weapon until the Drill Claw in his castle.  A Thwomp pounded the ground often enough for me to grab the Temple Key to access Belome's treasure room.  To get rid of some extra items, the party challenged Jagger and then Jinx twice.


Jagger had a competent trainer since he was kicked out of Bowser's Castle, and could inflict up to 80 damage with a Terrapunch.  Even blocked, it could hit for 40.  It was the only trick this optional boss had, and 2 Mid Mushrooms combined with an Elixir defeated the apprentice.


Before Jinx 1, Bowser equipped the Ghost Medal found by acquiring the 3 flags in Yo'ster Isle, Mario's Pad, and Rose Town after the ghosts from the inn placed them there.  The Ghost Medal didn't boost stats directly, but offered the same buff a Bracer would provide at the beginning of every fight.  Jinx 1 only needed a Muku Cookie, but his Triple Kick and Jinxed could sometimes land for 45-64.  (Blocking mitigated these a lot).  Most attacks before Jinx's Valor Up buff had a damage range in the 50s-60s, although a Spiked Link sometimes pierced for over 100.


Jinx 2 was far more difficult because he wasn't holding back.  A Quicksilver opening knocked Geno out at the start with its high HP damage, and a Silver Bullet instantly felled Bowser later in the battle.  You can probably guess why it took 4 Pick Me Ups and 4 Muku Cookies to cheat in a martial arts contest.  Our heroes could only inflict damage in the 60s at most, and sometimes Troopa Shells rebounded for only single digits after an enemy Valor Up.  The team was obviously not ready to fight for the Jinx Belt title after a Spiked Link won Round 2.


Belome Temple's treasure room had a Max Mushroom, a Fire Bomb, and a worthless FP restoring Royal Syrup.  But the best prize was 8 Frog Coins, which I could spend on Crystallines if needed.  The 4 FP capacity boosting flowers were left to wilt.


Before Bean Valley, Mario backtracked to Booster Tower and played the reformed Knife Guy's juggling minigame.  Guessing which hand the yellow ball was in won a Bright Card after enough consecutive wins.  Somehow I doubt many players did this on the original Super Nintendo without save states.  The Bright Card unfortunately took up space in the consumable item inventory, though it did allow entry to Grate Guy's Casino.


Unlocking Grate Guy's Casino required an obscure method of finding the right pipe in Bean Valley, defeating Chomp Chomps in an encounter and using the last Muku Cookie in the process, and then jumping in the same spot multiple times to reveal a platform leading to a new branch on the world map.  Although there were blackjack and slot machine games, the prize I wanted was only available through the free "look the other way" game hosted by Grate Guy.  Winning 100 times took a while, and I wouldn't normally recommend doing this.  Maybe in a bloated PSX RPG it wouldn't seem so slow.


But persevering got me several Kerokero Colas, a Red Essence that could grant invincibility for 3 turns to 1 character, and the Star Egg.  The Star Egg may have looked like a joke when 3 dancing starfish appeared, but this conked every enemy for 100 unblockable damage and could be used infinitely.


My new fixed damage attack was immediately used against Megasmilax and its Smilax minions in Bean Valley.  2 starfish summons could take out everything but the boss itself.  Bowser made sure to wear a Trueform Pin, for Megasmilax could cast Petal Blast and turn everyone into a shroom if they didn't have ailment protection.  Even without the status condition, everyone was still allergic to Petal Blast and took 58-59 damage.  1 Megalixir and 3 Elixirs helped the party whack the weed.  Double Punches and Spiked Links dealt consistently over 100 damage so there was no point in Geno or Bowser to continue using the Star Egg once the boss was alone.  Mario's Troopa Shell, however, sometimes fell short at 75 or so.



Stats and Equipment
 

Mario level 14

HP:  133
Speed:  20 (25)
Attack:  80 (130)
Defense:  45 (80)
Mg. Attack:  48
Mg. Defense:  32 (52)
 
Weapon:  Troopa Shell
Armor:  Sailor Shirt
Accessory:  Safety Ring
 

Bowser level 14

HP:  134
Speed:  15 (20)
Attack:  113 (153)
Defense:  74 (93)
Mg. Attack:  44 (54)
Mg. Defense:  42 (51)
 
Weapon:  Spiked Link
Armor:  Work Pants
Accessory:  Trueform Pin
 

Geno level 14

HP:  142
Speed:  30
Attack:  106 (141)
Defense:  53 (76)
Mg. Attack:  57
Mg. Defense:  37 (51)
 
Weapon:  Double Punch
Armor:  Sailor Cape
Accessory:  Safety Badge

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Super Mario RPG No Magic World 6:  Preparing Pure Waters


Nimbus Land had some new equipment for sale for everyone except Bowser.  The shopkeepers didn't want to sell the armor to Bowser that would make let him conquer the Mushroom Kingdom as soon as Smithy was defeated  (Except the moles of Moleville didn't consider that Work Pants came in a Koopa King size. . .)


The Mega Glove gave +60 Attack to Mario, and the Hand Cannon provided +45 for Geno.  Some coins were wasted on Mallow's +60 Attack Sticky Glove and the +36 Defense and +18 Magic Defense Fuzzy Pants.  Mostly because of the mistaken assumption that Mallow would be needed again.  Mario's Fuzzy Shirt had the same stats as the Fuzzy Pants, and the Fuzzy Cape gave a lesser +24 Defense and +12 Magic Defense


Completing the "statue disguise" minigame made Dodo drop a Feather in the Save Point room in Nimbus Castle.  This increased defenses by +5 and more importantly allowed Bowser to act before enemies at the beginning of combat with +20 Speed.


A random battle with 2 Birdies and a Heavy Troopa dropped a Crystalline, whose defensive buff would be useful later.  Perhaps the programmers gave the Nimbus Castle monsters such good random item prizes because they would disappear after Mallow saved his parents.  2 or 3 uses of the Star Egg could murder most of Valentina and Dodo's minions.  The party leveled to 15 and took Attack and Defense.


Ordinarily, players are supposed to Defend to block Birdo's eggs, then attack them and make them explode to bypass her high Defense.  But the Star Egg's fixed 100 damage dancing starfish made such tactics irrelevant.  Birdo's egg blasts were still a threat that could deal 69 damage with the "machine gun" or 93-109 with the "grenade launcher".  1 Megalixir was required to survive the barrage.


Right before the Dodo and Valentina fight, Bowser swapped out the Feather for the Ghost Medal defensive buff.  Dodo flapped his wings and carried him off to fight one-on-one.  Bowser cheated by eating a Max Mushroom, since healing items probably weren't included in the Code Duello.  Dodo's Multistrike and regular pecks could inflict 18-23 damage, and the ungainly bird was fast enough to attack twice.  Flutter Hush's silence was worthless regarding this variant, and worthless against Bowser because his Magic Attack stat and spell selection was abysmal anyway.  Spiked Links clipped Dodo's wings for 90s-124 damage.


Mario and Geno were left to face Valentina while Bowser was chasing after the defeated Dodo.  Her slaps could inflict 29-33 damage and were difficult to block.  Mario's Mega Glove clobbered Valentina for 91-128, and Geno's Hand Cannon pelted her for 111-160.  A silenced Bowser returned to the battle with Dodo some turns afterwards, though all attacks were concentrated on Valentina because defeating her was the victory condition.


Valentina started casting Petal Blast, which dealt damage in the 60s to everyone and turned Bowser into a sessile shroom for the rest of the fight.  Mario remained warm when the Safety Ring blocked a Solidify, but it still froze the others for 39-70 damage.  2 Megalixirs ensured the party's survival, and one final Mega Glove uppercut sent Valentina and Dodo off to Booster Tower.


Once Nimbus Land's rightful monarchs were restored, Mario gave the Seed and Fertilizer from Bean Valley and an invisible path in Nimbus Land to the Rose Town gardener.  (How do the residents of Nimbus Land mistake a giant black bird for their prince when the king looks just like the rest of their species?  Then again, the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom is a human, so. . .)


The Lazy Shell armor should be forbidden for all variants because its +127 boost to defenses combined with elemental and some status immunities make a character effectively immortal so long as they wear an instant death prevention accessory like the Safety Ring.  It does have a tradeoff of decreasing offenses and Speed -50, but fixed damage attacks like the Star Egg or Rock Candy can get around that.  The Lazy Shell armor in this run was sold for 111 coins, even though the group already had 999.


Mario's best weapon for this playthrough, however, was the Lazy Shell weapon.  Its damage output was even more random than the Masher with a 40 P, but since it gave +90 Attack, the results were always at least as good as Bowser and Geno's weapons.  In Seaside Town, the Exp. Booster was bought for 22 Frog Coins in case it was needed for the endgame.  So far it has never been used.


The 6th star landed in Barrel Volcano, so that was the next stop after Nimbus Land.  Everyone leveled to 16 and selected HP due to an invincibility block and easy random encounters.  The Star Egg was the way to go for Geno and Bowser, particularly against the Stumpet tree enemy that was fearsome in previous variants.  


Hinopio the Toad lived in a makeshift shop and inn in Barrel Volcano and sold the Fire Shirt and Fire Cape armor.  Mario gained +42 Defense and +21 Magic Defense total, and Geno acquired +30 Defense and +15 Magic Defense.


Beating both the Czar Dragon and Zombone required 4 Megalixirs and a Max Mushroom, mostly during the 2nd phase.  The first phase's Flame Wall charred Bowser and Geno for 65-72 damage, while Mario felt only a warm breeze.  Mario was still threatened by the Czar Dragon's 59 damage bite, and the 4 bombs that it summoned that could explode against random targets for 39.  Only 3 of them blew up before one party member could act, and the Star Egg could prevent the last one from acting.  Spiked Links tore open the dragon's hide for 120, the Hand Cannon's shots ranged from 90-105, and a lucky Lazy Shell roll could strike for 210.


Mario's Safety Ring immunities had no effect against Zombone's Boulders, which crushed the party for 80s-90s per cast.  Scream put Bowser into Fear status, and even the Star Egg from him only dealt 50 damage thanks to the Attack debuff.  Bowser was forced to cower in Defend mode to live.  Zombone had less Defense than the live Czar Dragon, so Hand Cannons could break its bones for 154-165, and a high roll Lazy Shell could hit for as much as 234.



The Crystalline from Nimbus Castle may have saved the party in the Axem Rangers fight.  Winning at level 16 without Geno Boost buffs or Peach healing was unlikely.  With increased defenses, the most threatening attack from the Axem Rangers was Green's Solidify, which dealt 40 damage to those without the Safety Ring.  It was fun to repeatedly use the Star Egg to kill off multiple Axem Rangers at once.  Pink and Green went down at the same time, even though Pink Recovered once after the first Star Egg.  The next round of attacks finished off Black and Yellow, leaving only Red.  Red powered up his Attack with Vigor Up after a 93 damage Hand Cannon, only to be conked on the head by a 234 Lazy Shell.


Breaker Beam was the real danger in the Axem Rangers battle because it seared the team immediately for 68-72 damage.  Imagine having to live through that without Crystalline.  2 Megalixirs allowed Mario and friends to beat up the Axem Rangers' cannon without having to Defend against Breaker Beam, and a final Spiked Link shot down the Smithy Gang aircraft.


One last preparation was needed before entering the Doors of Doom in Bowser's castle:  Pure Water.  The Star Egg did nothing against the Vomers  (Dry Bones type) in Barrel Volcano, so only Pure Waters could kill them without breaking the variant rules.  So it was off to Kero Sewers to get some from random drops, which were generous enough to give the party 4 or 5 quickly.  A fight with 4 Vomers will be mandatory opponent behind the door needed to get to Bowser's final weapon, the Drill Claw.  Geno's last weapon, the Star Gun, is also behind a battle gauntlet door, but no Dry Bones style enemies exist there according to GameFAQs.


(Don't know if the secret instant kill item Lamb's Lure or its final form Sheep Attack works on Vomers. . .)


Mario level 16

HP:  155
Speed:  20 (25)
Attack:  93 (183)
Defense:  54 (101)
Mg. Attack:  56
Mg. Defense:  38 (64)
 
Weapon:  Lazy Shell
Armor:  Fire Shirt
Accessory:  Safety Ring
 
 
Bowser level 16

HP:  153
Speed:  15 (40)
Attack:  124 (164)
Defense:  82 (102)
Mg. Attack:  52 (62)
Mg. Defense:  46 (56)
 
Weapon:  Spiked Link
Armor:  Work Pants
Accessory:  Feather
 


Geno level 16

HP:  164
Speed:  30
Attack:  119 (164)
Defense:  62 (97)
Mg. Attack:  66
Mg. Defense:  43 (63)
 
Weapon:  Hand Cannon
Armor:  Fire Cape
Accessory:  Safety Badge

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Super Mario RPG No Magic Endgame Part 1:  Final Fantasy 4 Cameo


Bowser's Keep leveled everyone to 17 via Bowser's brainwashed minions.  Everyone but Bowser took HP, and Bowser was forced to pick Attack and Defense because his level up bonuses were sometimes weaker than the others.  (More evidence of anti-Bowser developer bias. . .)


Star Egg summons destroyed most of the 2 gauntlets behind the 6 Doors of Doom, with the exception of Pure Water for the otherwise-invincible Vomers.  (Invincible for this magically-deprived variant, anyway).  However, there was a sort of miniboss fight with Chester the mimic and its Bahamutt companion.  Chester could inflict Fear with a 70s damage range Sandstorm, or sear the party for 62-105 with Flame Wall.  A couple of Megalixirs were needed to get through.  The Star Egg's fixed damage was also viable for the Chester battle because its Defense was high enough to reduce Geno and Bowser's melee to double digits.


Besides rising to level 18 and picking Attack and Defense, Geno and Bowser acquired the +57 Attack Star Gun and the +40 Attack Drill Claw.  Unintentional consequences of picking other Doors of Doom I had forgotten about included the Sonic Cymbal and the Super Slap for the party members sitting on the bench.


Magikoopa was similar to Chester due to summoning a Bahamutt occasionally as a guard.  However, the former Kamek was as physically wimpy as typical RPG wizards, taking up to 276 from Lazy Shell rebounds, 258 from Star Gun blasts, and in the 200s range after Drill Claw gashes.  Bowser died once after a 149 Blast spell and had to be revived with a Pick Me Up, and a Megalixir and Max Mushroom were essential too.  Magikoopa may not have been defensively sturdy, but Water Blasts could still soak for 80s-90s, and Flame Wall could singe for up to 68.  A Jinx Clone wasn't nearly as threatening as the real Jinx, and could only use a 34 damage Jinxed.



After the battle, Magikoopa turned blue and threw off Smithy's mind control.  Magikoopa then offered an infinite coin chest and a free inn-type healing.  A reformed Croco sold the best armor for everyone, including a reason for Bowser to change out of his unwashed Work Pants.  The Heal Shell increased Defense and Magic Defense by +24 and +12 respectively, the same as Peach's starting Polka Dress.  Mario's new Hero Shirt had +48 Defense and +24 Magic Defense values.  Geno's Star Cape fell in the middle with +36 Defense and +18 Magic Defense.


Boomer the shogun's gimmick was to switch between the red defensive stance and the blue offensive stance.  But even his red buff couldn't save him from the Star Egg's constant 100 damage.  His blue form could take up to 272 damage from Mario's Lazy Shell kicks, though he was much more dangerous and instantly killed Bowser with Shaker.  A Storm spell from this color zapped Mario for 135.  By the end of the fight, Boomer was in the red form and 2 Max Mushrooms and 1 Pick Me Ups were consumed.


A strange cutscene followed when Boomer cut the Chandeli-ho ropes and seemingly killed himself after a fall, though it was implied that he survived in Ted Woolsey's English script.  The party danced on the other chandelier to the tune of the Midas River minigame song and entered the Exor fight.


If memories of the old Player's Guide are correct, it was recommended to use a Crystalline here.  But the only healing item required in this variant seemed to be a Pick Me Up for Geno after a Dark Star casting killed him.  Poor Bowser had to lie on the stone roof for the rest of the match due to not having any more revival items.  Bowser's Keep provided some Fire and Ice Bombs, so the party threw them at Exor's eyes and Neosquid mouth for around 140 damage.  The Star Egg was used for the rest of the match, but it could not bypass the shield guarding the top victory condition part until some of the others were knocked out temporarily.  Physical attacks sometimes dealt more damage, but the Star Egg lowered the risk of Coronas and Aurora Beams.


A Mode 7 cutscene dropped the cast into Smithy's factory, but there was an optional boss to fight!  Mario bought 3 Crystallines from the Frog Coin shop in Tadpole Pond and traded the 500 coin Fireworks for the Shiny Stone needed to unlock a room in Monstro Town.


Culex awaited behind the door and said he was a Dark Knight of Vanda fighting on behalf of the Dark Mage, but Mario's world was incompatible to his species.  Then the Final Fantasy 4 boss music played, and despite the team's efforts, this happened:


Death Count:  2


To have a chance at level 18, the team sold the Bright Card to a Toad in Marrymore's hotel for 10 Frog Coins and bought more Crystallines.  The Goodie Bag had to go too because it was worth 555 coins and took up valuable inventory space.  Geno swapped out the Feather for the Trueform Pin for reasons that will become clear.    


Culex had 4096 HP and was guarded by 4 elemental crystals.  Wind was the weakest with 800 HP, and Earth was far sturdier with 3200 HP.  Wind was a threat mainly because of its Petal Blast that turned Geno into a mushroom during the failed attempts.  Earth had the expected Sand Storm and Boulder, but was also given Water Blast instead of the Water Crystal for reasons known only to 1990s Square employees.  Water and Fire weren't quite as dangerous because their spells like Flame Wall and Solidify failed to stop Mario's Safety Ring.  Culex himself could strike with melee or cast Dark Star, likely fatal to anyone without a defense buff.


Only Culex needed to be defeated to activate the Final Fantasy victory jingle, but for safety reasons it was best to use the Star Egg to wipe out every crystal except for Earth.  As the Fire Crystal had 2500 HP, this took a while.  To give you an idea of how difficult Culex is for No Magic, the party chugged 11 Megalixirs, 3 Pick Me Ups, 1 Red Essence, 7 Crystallines (1 freebie), and 4 Kerokero Colas.  Mario and his chums needed so many Crystallines because Culex would often cast Shredder and dispel them. 


Once the Fire Crystal was shattered, it was best to whale on Culex with melee because his Defense was low enough to make that viable.  One final Drill Claw sent Culex back to Final Fantasy 4 and won Bowser the Quartz Charm.  This was an accessory that was like a free timed Geno Boost at the beginning of every battle combined with instant death immunity.


Everyone also leveled to 19 from Culex's surprising experience yield, maybe because this was before the "ultimate optional bosses give useless rewards" cliche appeared in later Japanese RPGs.  All characters selected HP.



Stats and Equipment
 

Mario level 19

HP:  191
Speed:  20 (25)
Attack:  113 (203)
Defense:  67 (120)
Mg. Attack:  69
Mg. Defense:  47 (76)
 
Weapon:  Lazy Shell
Armor:  Hero Shirt
Accessory:  Safety Ring
 

Bowser level 19

HP:  182
Speed:  15
Attack:  143 (183)
Defense:  96 (120)
Mg. Attack:  64
Mg. Defense:  52 (64)
 
Weapon:  Drill Claw
Armor:  Heal Shell
Accessory:  Quartz Charm
 
 

Geno level 19

HP:  199
Speed:  30
Attack:  139 (196)
Defense:  75 (116)
Mg. Attack:  81
Mg. Defense:  52 (75)
 
Weapon:  Star Gun
Armor:  Star Cape
Accessory:  Safety Badge

[Cheater Hater]

It's so strange that the only enemies that can use Shredder are Culex and Smithy. I guess the stat-boosting items are meant to be limited (since they're only available via Frog Coins, which while technically unlimited are hard to get in numbers), but then Geno Boost blows that line of thinking all up (in a non-variant run of course). Maybe if Geno Boost was weaker it would make more sense (either half the effect of the items, or splitting it into two spells for offensive/defensive boosts).

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

It's so strange that the only enemies that can use Shredder are Culex and Smithy.  I guess the stat-boosting items are meant to be limited (since they're only available via Frog Coins, which while technically unlimited are hard to get in numbers), but then Geno Boost blows that line of thinking all up (in a non-variant run of course).  Maybe if Geno Boost was weaker it would make more sense (either half the effect of the items, or splitting it into two spells for offensive/defensive boosts).

Another alternative would be to make the buffs expire after a certain amount of turns, so Shredder wouldn't be needed.


But Super Mario RPG was probably meant to be a beginner RPG given how friendly most mechanics are to players, like frequent HP restoration, keeping experience points after a Game Over, etc.  At least it was the first RPG I played, anyway!  One consequence of getting a Super Nintendo so late in the console's lifespan was to play games like Super Mario RPG, Kirby Super Star, Donkey Kong Country 3, etc. without overlooking them like many people did then.


A scan of the official Player's Guide confirms memories of the writers underestimating Geno.  Here's what it has to say about building a party for Smithy's factory:


"Some players like to equip the Princess or Bowser with the Experience Ring and send Geno or Mallow into battle, especially against the lightweight enemies early in this stage".


Nothing about the Geno Boost buffs which made the No Equipment variant possible.


They prefer this loadout:


Mario

Weapon:  Lazy Shell
Armor:  Hero Shirt
Accessory:  Safety Badge  (not the far superior Safety Ring)


Peach

Weapon:  Frying Pan
Armor:  Lazy Shell (cheating, but good advice for optimization!)
Accessory:  Rare Scarf (not something that prevents instant death. . .)


Bowser

Weapon:  Drill Claw
Armor:  Heal Shell
Accessory:  Jinx Belt

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Super Mario RPG No Magic Endgame Part 2:  The Dojo of Three Ironies


The last post for tonight will be a brief summary of the final Jinx battle.  He staked his dojo on this fight, so he opened by butchering Mario with a 240 damage Bombs Away.  Melee attacks were clearly not the way to go here, because Jinx's Defense was so high even the Lazy Shell could deal only 96 at best.  And that was before he cast Valor Up to buff his defenses. 


The Star Egg demonstrated its quirks in this round.  With Valor Up activated, Mario and Geno's Star Egg only scraped Jinx for 50.  Bowser's version hit for 150 in the first phase thanks to the Quartz Charm offense bonus, and was reduced to 75 post-Valor Up.  


Jinx only used Bombs Away once, and his failed instant kill attempts with Silver Bullet gave the party enough time to attack.  Quicksilver was the true danger as it could bludgeon Mario for 120 unblocked and 64 to Geno blocked.  Bowser's Quartz Charm rendered Quicksilver's damage a mediocre 30.


Late in the final optional boss battle, Jinx cast Vigor Up to boost his Attack.  But that couldn't prevent Mario from dethroning him with a Star Egg summon after the party used 1 Pick Me Up and 2 Megalixirs.


Jinx and his dojo presented some comedy for these variants.  Jinx ignored Mallow's solo victory and gave the credit to dead Mario.  The No Equipment party cast aside the Jinx Belt prize as worthless and told the martial artists that true power lay within.  And now Jinx attempted to train with Mario's "jump style" after his defeat, in spite of  Jump moves being forbidden!


Geno put on the Jinx Belt, gaining Attack and Defense +27, +12 Speed, and instant kill immunity.

[Cheater Hater]

Yeah, that's the nice thing about SMRPG: the floor is very low but the ceiling is high (mostly thanks to perfect guards). That's part of why the Randomizer is so interesting.

I mean, OP main character, Warrior, White Mage is generally a good lineup if you're only going to choose 3, but normally the Black Mage doesn't get defense boosts in addition to offensive boosts. (also, if you're going to include the Lazy Shell in your "optimal lineup", why not include the Super Suit or any of the other OP items?)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Yeah, that's the nice thing about SMRPG: the floor is very low but the ceiling is high (mostly thanks to perfect guards).  That's part of why the Randomizer is so interesting.

I mean, OP main character, Warrior, White Mage is generally a good lineup if you're only going to choose 3, but normally the Black Mage doesn't get defense boosts in addition to offensive boosts.  (also, if you're going to include the Lazy Shell in your "optimal lineup", why not include the Super Suit or any of the other OP items?)

Did the Super Mario RPG developers make a reference to the FF1 Black Mage's Haste when creating Geno's spell list?  Remember that the default non-timed Geno Boost only affects offensive stats, and it seems possible.


As for the lack of the Super Suit in the recommendations, it's probably because it's so difficult to obtain that the guide writers didn't expect most players to make 100 Super Jumps.  The name of the Super Jump items may have been changed late in the translation process, since they're called the "Jump Scarf" and "Super Jumper" in the guide's Monstro Town section.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Super Mario RPG No Magic Finale:  Diabolical Santa Claus


Count Down the sapient clock was the first boss of Smithy's factory, and appropriately had an "hour" gimmick based on the number of turns passed.  Mario and friends bashed the 2 Ding-A-Ling bells for about 156-208 to prevent them from casting Dark Star and ailments like Scarecrow and Mushroom.  Despite being optional boss prizes, the Jinx Belt and Quartz Charm failed to protect Geno and Bowser from these ailments.


Throughout the battle, Count Down was cycling through the following moves:


1:00 Crystal
3:00 Recover (useless)
5:00 Aurora Flash, 94 damage to Mario
6:00 Mega Recover (useless)
7:00 Water Blast
9:00 Nothing
10:00 Petal Blast
12:00 Corona
1:00 Ice Rock, 90 damage to Geno
3:00 Recover, 170 HP restored


Count Down itself was weak to physical moves, and took up to 314 damage in melee.  1 Pick Me Up for Geno and 5 Megalixirs allowed the party to endure.  After that fight, Mario and friends picked up the Ultra Hammer and backtracked to Tadpole Pond to buy more Megalixirs.  This weapon only sold for 57 coins for some reason.    


Next in the boss gauntlet was Domino and Cloaker.  Cloaker the fighter went down first because Domino the wizard would be weaker to melee in the 2nd phase.  Domino began by making Geno shudder with Endobubble, while Cloaker liked to throw rocks for 44 damage.  Offensive spells included Flame Stone, Lightning Orb, and Blizzard from 39-72 damage.  Sometimes they would bounce off Mario's elemental immunities.  Only 1 Megalixir was needed to proceed to Round 2.


Mad Adder made a far better companion for Domino than Cloaker.  Light Beam and Sandstorm made Geno and Bowser snooze or cower in Fear often for up to 84 damage.  Boulder and Storm were formidable too, but it was a Blizzard that froze Bowser to death.  Mario and company's melee ranged from 145-340s against Domino and later Mad Adder, and 1 Pick Me Up and 6 Megalixirs defeated the snake team.


The Ghost Medal sold for 800 coins, funding Megalixirs and Max Mushrooms for the rest of the game.  The "executives" on the factory floor weren't worth mentioning, except for the Director who had Poundette minions that could inflict Fear on Geno and Bowser.  When all of them were defeated, everyone rose to 20, the last significant level before diminishing returns set in.  Everyone but Bowser took HP, and Bowser was forced to pick POW.


Factory Chief and Gunyolk would be T-Hawk's avatar for Super Mario RPG, as they were the penultimate boss fight.  4 Megalixirs were required to survive the Ninja palette swap's Funguspike for up to 152 (!) and Gunyolk's Breaker Beams.  Gunyolk's Defense was so high it was best to summon the Star Egg repeatedly.  Geno dealt the final blow after returning to his non-shroomed self.


One memorable line from the Player's Guide calls Smithy a "diabolical Santa Claus", an apt description.  Instead of giving the party toys, he offered them 120s damage Meteor Swarms, Sledges up to 70s, and melee pounds.  And about 3 Shyper minions that cast Star Rain in the 40s-70s range.  One Star Rain followed by a Meteor Swarm brought the team to double, or even single digit HP in Geno's case.  That justified the Kerokero Cola along with 4 Megalixirs. 


Toad's Rock Candy gift was used near the beginning of the fight to deal 300 damage with Bowser's Quartz Charm buff to kill the first Shyper.  Star Egg summons helped deal with the 2nd Shyper.  Once one Shyper was forged immediately after another was killed, Geno sprayed Smithy with the Star Gun and forced the 2nd phase to begin.  The party's regular attacks ranged from 96-180.



Bowser's Quartz Charm buffs carried over to the final Smithy form, at least until he cast Shredder in the middle of the brawl.  Smithy's new gimmick was to rotate through different heads in this order:


Tank, Wizard, Wizard, Box, Chest, Tank, Chest, Wizard, Tank


Tank attacks were strong physical shots that dealt at least 56 damage.  Lazy Shells, Star Guns, and Drill Claws broke its armor for a range in the 70s to 210s.  


Wizard spells like Sword Rain, Arrow Rain, Spear Rain, and Boulder would wound the party for up to 130 damage.  But like classical RPG mages, the Wizard head had low Defense and could take over 400 damage from the Drill Claw.


Box cast Shredder, but mostly sat there for a while with ineffective melee.  Star Egg worked around its high Defense.


Chest spread random status ailments, but fortunately these were only Super Mario RPG's weak Poison, and the variant-imposed Silence on Geno.  Melee attacks were viable against it and dealt up to 230 damage.


After 2 Max Mushrooms and 9 Megalixirs, Geno proved to be the true hero and put down Smithy's Tank head with a final Star Gun.  He abandoned the doll body to fly back to the Star Road, and all was well in the Mushroom Kingdom.  Mario was even rewarded with a parade!



Final Stats and Equipment

 
Mario level 20


HP:  204
Speed:  20 (25)
Attack:  119 (209)
Defense:  71 (124)
Mg. Attack:  74
Mg. Defense:  50 (79)
 
Weapon:  Lazy Shell
Armor:  Hero Shirt
Accessory:  Safety Ring
 

Bowser level 20

HP:  191
Speed:  15
Attack:  150 (190)
Defense:  101 (125)
Mg. Attack:  68
Mg. Defense:  54 (66)
 
Weapon:  Drill Claw
Armor:  Heal Shell
Accessory:  Quartz Charm
 

Geno level 20

HP:  212
Speed:  30 (42)
Attack:  145 (229)
Defense:  79 (142)
Mg. Attack:  86
Mg. Defense:  55 (73)
 
Weapon:  Star Gun
Armor:  Star Cape
Accessory:  Jinx Belt



This may not be the most interesting variant to read because of the limited tactics used in the playthrough.  Most situations were resolved with healing items, regular attacks, and fixed damage Star Egg summons.  Fire and Ice Bombs were too expensive to be economical and only had a limited availability in the midgame. 


But playing Super Mario RPG without cheap Group Hug healing or Geno Boost buffs made the boss fights tense occasionally.  You'll certainly appreciate Peach and Geno much more if you try this!  Still, the only Game Overs were against the optional boss Culex, making No Magic much easier than a solo or No Equipment challenge.  Despite the limited inventory, battles didn't drag out long enough to run out of consumable healing.


The Jinx Belt and Quartz Charm turned out to be underwhelming in this playthrough, unfortunately.  No Magic characters should probably wear the Safety Badge or even a Trueform Pin or Fearless Pin instead against the later bosses.


Other 16 bit RPG candidates for No Magic challenges seem to be Earthbound and Phantasy Star 4.  Earthbound has Jeff specifically built for this concept, and gives him many items to play with.  Earthbound's infamous individual inventory system limits healing too.  Phantasy Star 4 is different in that some non-magical Skills are tied to a weapon, so characters aren't reduced to mindlessly bashing the "Fight" option.  This would be the opposite of the "no equipped weapon" challenge in the Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection thread.


A Secret of Mana version would be "no ATTACK magic", as that game has unblockable attacks and a harsh inventory limit.


If you want to see any of these, post it in the comments.