Chapter 2 - Combat Tips

This section offers combat tips to implement above and below ground using pikmin as well as your two pilots, Olimar and Louie. You’ll find specific tips on battling specific types of creatures.

• Small bulborbs, shearwigs, and sheargrubs: Use your pikmin in a swarm attack. Utilize your "C-stick" to guide your pikmin toward and around the enemy creature. To minimize your pikmin losses, attempt to battle small bulborbs and sheargrubs in small numbers. A group of pikmin can eliminate one small bulborb very quickly but if you attempt to fight three at once, you risk losing pikmin to the small, hungry creature.
• Fiery and watery blowhogs: Combat these with the corresponding pikmin for an easy fight. Otherwise you’ll have to rescue pikmin from fire and water damage. Also, it’s also possible to combat both with your captains. Retreat when the blowhog "bucks" to avoid taking some damage. While the blowhog sprays, punch wildly to inflict damage.
• Puffy and withering blowhog: Toss yellow pikmin (which fly higher) against these aerial units. Once the yellow pikmin knock the creature to the ground, swarm with all other pikmin to eliminate the blowhog as fast as possible. Note that the vicious wind from these aerial blowhogs can blow flowers right off of your mature pikmin.
• Cannon larvae: These bugs launch rocks from their wide mouth. These rocks inflict heavy damage to pikmin and even your captains. But the rocks also inflict damage against other enemies! You can use a captain as a decoy and have cannon larvae inadvertently launch rocks at other enemies and even other cannon larvae. When you do attack one, use pikmin only from the side to avoid getting rolled over. You can also use your captains. Punch while the cannon fires and retreat during its "buck" maneuver.
• Snitchbugs and dirigibugs: Both of these are aerial units. The snitchbug steals pikmin (which it throws into the ground) or captains (which it throws to the ground inflicting damage). The dirigibug is lifted by balloons and drops bombs. Use yellow pikmin to reach these aerial enemies. When they fall to the ground, swarm with other pikmin. Against the captain-stealing snitchbug, you can use a captain as a decoy and lure it to your other pikmin. When it swoops by, whistle to your other pikmin and start tossing at the snitchbug to knock it down.
• Large bulborbs: Fortunately most are sleeping. To attack them, use your purple pikmin and sneak up behind the sleeping bulborb. Toss your purple pikmin quickly onto the large bulborb’s back. Avoid standing in front as the creature can eat several pikmin at once.
• Dweevils: The spider-like dweevils come in four types: fiery (colored red), anode (colored yellow), caustic (colored blue), and munge (colored white). Use red pikmin against fiery; yellow pikmin against anode; blue pikmin against caustic; and white pikmin against munge. You can also use your captains if you have obtained the various resistances.
• Crawmads: These crawfish-like creatures hide in the holes and wait for you to get close with a captain or pikmin. The crawmad is invulnerable while in its hole. Lure it out by moving a captain close (but don’t get hit). When the crawmad attempts to return to its hole, swarm it with your pikmin.
• Wollywog: These hopping frog-like beasts can smash your pikmin underneath its slimy body. When attacking the wollywog, whistle your pikmin back quickly before they fall underneath. The best method is to use purple pikmin and toss them on the wollywog’s back before it leaps. Purple pikmin can eliminate the wollywog quickly; just be careful because the purple pikmin are incredibly valuable.
• Gatling groink: The gatling groink resembles a tank. It’s huge and fires a projectile from its "front-mounted" cannon. Attack the groink from behind or the side. Toss purple pikmin onto its back.
• Creeping chrysanthemum: This living plant can gobble up pikmin quickly. Toss pikmin onto its head; attempting to surround the chrysanthemum causes the plant to bump the surrounding pikmin to the ground.
• Beetles: Use yellow pikmin against the anode beetles (they shoot electricity). Toss yellow pikmin on the anode beetles back to flip it over. Now it’s vulnerable: swarm it with yellow pikmin! Other beetles can also be flipped over and offer nectar or even treasure.
• General Combat Tips: Note that your captains are pretty good fighters and many times you might want to keep your pikmin back and only place your captains’ in harms way. In tough underground sublevels, it’s wiser to save your pikmin for future battles then lose them in a reckless battle. Hit and run is usually the best tactic with captains. Get some punches in then retreat as many creatures have some sort of retaliatory movement that can injure your captains.