Editing Combat

{{game icons|p=y|p2=y|p3=y|p4=y|hp=y|pa=y}}

[[File:Yellow Wollywog attacked P1 art.png|thumb|200px|Artwork of various Pikmin fighting a [[Yellow Wollyhop]].]]

In the {{ps}}, [[Pikmin family|Pikmin]] and [[leader]]s need to engage in '''combat''' against the many different [[enemies]] they encounter. Combat is a core mechanic of the series, as it is frequently required to open up paths or retrieve [[:Category:Collectibles|collectibles]]. The general goal of combat is to reduce an enemy's [[health]] to 0, but there are several ways of damaging enemies and many technicalities of the combat system.

 

Note that most of this article discusses the main series of games. Spin-off games are described in their own sections.

The main way Pikmin damage enemies is by slapping the enemies with their stems. The main way to get a Pikmin to attack an enemy is to [[throw]] it directly at the enemy; if it lands on an attackable location, it will start slapping the enemy. If a Pikmin is standing near an enemy, it will begin trying to attack the enemy, periodically jumping at it to slap it with the stem. There is also the possibility of the Pikmin eventually latching on and dealing damage at a normal rate. Some enemies, like [[Female Sheargrub]]s, are too small to be latched onto but have a small enough amount of health that they die quickly. Other enemies, like the [[Anode Beetle]], are larger but still cannot be latched onto. Idle Pikmin will automatically begin hitting enemies, [[obstacle]]s, and [[egg]]s if they are near enough. In {{p1}} and {{p2}}, [[swarm]]ing an enemy will cause most of the involved Pikmin to latch onto it, if possible, and begin attacking. In {{p3}}, Pikmin that are [[charge]]d into an enemy will always immediately latch onto it if they make contact with it and if the enemy is possible to be latched onto.

In competitive modes like [[2-Player Battle]] in ''Pikmin 2'' and [[Bingo Battle]] in ''Pikmin 3'', Pikmin can be commanded to harm other [[leader]]s or their Pikmin. This can be accomplished by throwing, swarming, or charging Pikmin into another player's leader or forces, although in 2-Player Battle, Pikmin merely need to be standing by the opposing leader or their Pikmin to initiate combat. In {{p1}}, [[Mushroom Pikmin]] can also attack [[Captain Olimar]] and his Pikmin in a similar fashion.

! colspan="4" | Damage

! ''Pikmin'' !! ''Pikmin 2'' !! ''Pikmin 3'' !! ''Pikmin 4''

| [[Red Pikmin]] || 15 || 15 || 15 || 15

| [[Yellow Pikmin]] || 10 || 10 || 10 || 10

| [[Blue Pikmin]] || 10 || 10 || 10 || 10

| [[Purple Pikmin]] || N/A || 20 || 15 || 15

| [[White Pikmin]] || N/A || 10 || 5 || 5

| [[Bulbmin]] || N/A || 10 || N/A || N/A

| [[Rock Pikmin]] || N/A || N/A || 20 || 40

| [[Winged Pikmin]] || N/A || N/A || 5 || 5

| [[Ice Pikmin]] || N/A || N/A || N/A || 5

Notes:

* [[Maturity]] does not have an effect on how much damage a Pikmin does.

* When any type of Pikmin is under the effect of an [[ultra-spicy spray]], they will deal 10 damage per attack but attack at 2 times the speed.

* In {{p2}}{{'s}} [[2-Player Battle]] mode, Blue Pikmin deal 15 damage per hit so that both teams are even.

* [[Ultra-bitter spray|Petrified]] enemies may suffer more or less damage than normal; see [[Ultra-bitter spray#Petrification|here]] for more details.

===Purple Pikmin slam===

{{see more|Purple Pikmin#Pikmin 2 slam and stun}}

In {{p2}}, soon after a Purple Pikmin is [[throw]]n, it will halt its momentum mid-air and plummet to the ground very quickly. If there are any enemies nearby, it will attempt to move towards the nearest enemy's center whilst it is descending. When a Purple Pikmin latches onto an enemy this way, the force of a Purple Pikmin slamming into an enemy hurts it and very briefly causes the it to freeze in place. For most enemies, a Purple Pikmin's slam deals 50 damage, but for the [[Segmented Crawbster]], [[Waterwraith]], and [[Emperor Bulblax]] it is 10 damage.

Each slam also has a chance of stunning an enemy. For most enemies, this chance is 30%, but some enemies have higher or lower chances. When an enemy is stunned, it is frozen and does not move, usually for 5 seconds, though a few enemies have longer stun times.

 

In {{p3}}, while the slam does exist, it does not damage enemies. Throwing a Purple Pikmin onto an enemy will result in the Pikmin going idle on top of it, before slipping off its body; only when the Purple Pikmin touches the ground can it attack.

 

In {{p4}}, the slam is set to do proportional damage to the enemy, similarly to how Rock Pikmin are handled in ''Pikmin 3''; meaning that the amount of damage done varies from enemy to enemy.

{{see more|White Pikmin}}

When a White Pikmin is digested by an enemy, the enemy will instantly take damage from the White Pikmin's internal poison. Each White Pikmin ingestion causes individual damage, even if multiple are eaten at once. Every enemy takes a different amount of damage from an ingestion, and this varies by creature and by game.

{{see more|Rock Pikmin}}

When Rock Pikmin are [[throw]]n directly at an enemy, instead of latching on and hitting it, they will bounce off it like a rock, dealing a high amount of damage. This damage varies by enemy, as every enemy has an internal value for the number of direct Rock Pikmin impacts it takes to defeat it. For example, a [[Bulborb]] normally has 1000 [[HP]] and is specified to take 25 Rock Pikmin hits to kill, so each hit does 40 damage, whereas a [[Medusal Slurker]] normally has 750 HP and is specified to take 10 Rock Pikmin hits to kill, so each hit does 75.

 

 

When attacking enemies, they will progressively freeze them, as represented by a ring-shaped gauge around the enemy's [[health wheel]]. The gauge increases every time an Ice Pikmin hits the enemy or is directly eaten by them. While attacks from an Ice Pikmin only increment this gauge slightly, when one is eaten the gauge increases substantially – around 40% when fighting a [[Red Bulborb]]. Once the gauge is full, the enemy freezes entirely, and can no longer act. Defeating a frozen enemy will make it shatter into chunks of ice without leaving a corpse, instead producing a drop of [[nectar]], similar to enemies killed while petrified by [[ultra-bitter spray]]. After a few seconds, the enemy will begin shaking and eventually break out of the ice, knocking any attached Pikmin to the ground.

When a [[leader]] doesn't have any Pikmin in their squad, they can perform a punch, or in the case of ''Pikmin 2'' with the [[Rocket Fist]], a series of punches. The exact damage depends on the game and the type of punch. In {{p1}}, a punch deals 10 damage. In {{p2}}, regular punches deal 7.5 damage, but after the Rocket Fist is obtained, the third punch in a series deals 18.75 points of damage. In {{p3}}, a punch deals 3 damage.

Bomb rocks can be used in combat. Their explosions deal a variable amount of damage to objects in range, though they usually cause much more damage to an enemy that ingests it directly. Additionally, some enemies such as [[Spotty Bulbear|Bulbears]] will foolishly eat them, defeating themselves in the process.

==Taking damage==

[[File:P2 Combat High Scores Artwork.png|thumb|The drawing used to represent combat in the [[high scores menu]] of ''Pikmin 2''.]]

Leaders and Pikmin, too, can be damaged during combat. As with Pikmin, leaders can be bitten, knocked back, crushed, and suffer negative consequences for touching a harmful [[hazard]]. Leaders can collect [[upgrade]]s, which can help protect them from damage. On top of losing health, leaders can also suffer other consequences from attacks, as elaborated [[Health#Leaders|here]].

Pikmin do not seem to have health that can be depleted, although this is hard to confirm, as explained [[Health#Pikmin|here]]. During combat they can still be harmed. In ''Pikmin'', ''Pikmin 2'' and ''Pikmin 4'', Pikmin that are knocked down by an enemy have a chance of their maturities being reduced as explained [[Maturity#Decreasing|here]]. In ''Pikmin 3'', Pikmin that are shaken off of an enemy or fall off of one will retain their maturities. In any ''Pikmin'' game, Pikmin that are shaken off of an enemy will briefly lie on the ground before getting up, but this is not always the case. Pikmin battling a [[Shaggy Long Legs]] that fall off one of its legs after picking the hairs off one of its joints will get up on their own, but Pikmin the creature shakes off normally will remain on the ground indefinitely until they are [[whistle]]d, as bumping into them does nothing.

Flower-stage Pikmin that die in ''Pikmin'' have a chance of leaving behind a seed that becomes a [[sprout]] the following day and can be plucked. Hazards like [[fire]], [[water]], and [[poison]] will respectively cause all but [[Red Pikmin]], [[Blue Pikmin]], and [[White Pikmin]] to begin scrambling wildly with that corresponding hazard on the end of their stem. Enemies in ''Pikmin 2'' that use [[electricity]] are arguably the deadliest, as electricity in that game can instantly kill Pikmin. Electricity in ''Pikmin 3'', however, is harmless, only causing non-[[Yellow Pikmin]] that come in contact with it to be thrown back, onto the ground, paralyzed, until they are [[whistle]]d. Electricity in Pikmin 4 will kill Non-[[Yellow Pikmin]] after 6 seconds, just like normal hazards.  

 

=== Likeliness to die ===

In {{p1}} and {{p2}}, some Pikmin are more likely to die than others, due to engine limitations. It boils down to how the games check which Pikmin should die for any given attack.{{cite youtube|-t_3nXsIhrA|explaining what Pikmin are more likely to die in ''Pikmin''}}{{cite youtube|e8Jw5UoeO4g|explaining what Pikmin are more likely to die in ''Pikmin 2''}} In ''Pikmin 3'' and ''Hey! Pikmin'', although it isn't clear, it seems that the Pikmin closest to the center of the attack are the ones that get hit by it.

 

The general idea is that each game keeps a list of loaded Pikmin in memory. This list can fit 100 entries, and normally, it starts off empty. When a Pikmin is loaded into memory, it fills in the next vacant slot. In the case of an empty list, this is slot 0. The second Pikmin to be called out fills slot 1, and so on. When an enemy attacks to eat, the game checks every loaded Pikmin to see if it is colliding with the mouth's hitbox, and starts checking slot 0, then slot 1, and so on.

 

This behavior is also used for other enemy-related actions, like a [[Fiery Blowhog]] deciding whether to change targets or to keep the current one, in ''Pikmin''.

 

 

Above is what happens in the most plain cases, but there are times when the player enters an [[area]] or [[cave]] with a lot of Pikmin, and the player doesn't control the order in which Pikmin load.

 

In ''Pikmin'', if the player lands on an area with buried Pikmin, those Pikmin are actually not a part of the list of Pikmin, but rather, a list of seeds. A Pikmin is only created and added to the list when it is [[pluck]]ed.

 

In the case of ''Pikmin 2'', this scenario happens when a cave sublevel is entered, when the player exits a cave and lands on an overworld area along with the Pikmin that escaped, or when the player enters an area that already has buried Pikmin. The Pikmin here are all truly loaded outside of the player's control. The game does however follow an algorithm to decide how to place Pikmin in the area and to fill in the Pikmin list slots:

 

 

 

 

 

Every enemy has its own speed, timing, aggressiveness, and overall behavior, though some common patterns can be spotted. Recognizing, dealing with, and exploiting an enemy's habits is important for advanced combat [[#tactics|tactics]].

 

An enemy that has not noticed Pikmin or leaders will usually idle around. This involves walking aimlessly, looking around, performing some animation such as stretching, among other things. In addition, some enemies are too preoccupied with something, like sleeping, to properly pay attention.

 

As a general rule, an aggressive enemy will only engage in combat if it spots a Pikmin or leader, and this usually comes in the form of seeing them or having one touch them, though some enemies can take notice of Pikmin and leaders even if they aren't looking at them, like [[Orange Bulborb]]s. This means that the player is safe until this happens, and can even choose the best moment to attack based on what the enemy is doing, where they are facing, etc.

 

Once an enemy spots a target, it will approach them, and make an attempt to always face them. As the target moves around, so to does the creature in order to catch up. When it decides it is in the right range and angle, it will usually go for an [[#Attacking|attack]]. Some enemies like to be up-close, but others will want to stay back, so they can attack from afar while keeping themselves out of danger, such as the [[Puffy Blowhog]]. In general, an enemy will only focus on one Pikmin or leader at a time. Enemies will also try to stay within their territory: if they are lured too far, they will turn around and go back to their starting spot, and for a few seconds, be unable to focus on anything else.

 

 

During combat, an enemy may stop, wind up its body, and then violently shake or buck. Doing this knocks off most latched Pikmin, making them fall to the ground and stay knocked down for a few seconds. [[Leader]]s within range of the shaking will also similarly get knocked back, as well as any nearby Pikmin that are not latched on. Shaking moves cause a minor amount of [[health|damage]] to leaders, but are non-lethal in general, provided the knocked Pikmin or leaders don't fall into a [[hazard]] or the [[pit]]. Regardless, shaking Pikmin off will naturally lower the amount of Pikmin causing damage if not dealt with carefully, and any Pikmin or leaders on the floor are vulnerable to being attacked. Different creatures have different tolerances, wind up times, launch knockback strengths, launch damages, and launch angles.

 

An enemy usually shakes if it has many latched Pikmin onto it, but it can also do it just from receiving sufficient damage, even from [[punch]]es. While enemies usually interrupt their pursuits and position adjustments if they feel the need to shake, they will not interrupt their main attacks, like biting, and some will not interrupt their long idling animations, like the [[Bearded Amprat]] stretching. If they reach the threshold where they want to shake in the middle of a state where they can't shake, they will simply do it directly after that state is over. A few creatures have multiple ways of shaking, like how the [[Armored Cannon Larva]] can buck Pikmin forward or bury into the ground. Some enemies may perform a special kind of shake as a reaction to a certain action, like [[Bulborb]]s in ''Pikmin 3'' which, after reeling in pain, violently buck their body forward in response to having a Pikmin thrown in their eye.

 

While shaking is cumbersome for the player, it has some silver linings. The time a creature spends shaking Pikmin off is time it is not spending killing them, and after shaking the Pikmin off, the creature is left vulnerable for a few seconds as it attempts to regain its composure and continue combat. So players can make use of the shaking period and the aftermath to safely pile some damage onto the beast without fear of losing Pikmin. Shaking is especially ineffective against [[Rock Pikmin]], which don't normally latch on, and bounce off far enough away to not be affected by any shaking move. In addition, shaking is usually not foolproof, as some Pikmin may remain latched on regardless.

 

 

While combat can be as simple as [[throw]]ing or [[charging]] Pikmin at the beast until it dies, there are a few tactics that players can make use of to minimize casualties and get the task done faster. Naturally, basic tactics include not submitting Pikmin to [[hazard]]s they are vulnerable to, and not going all-out when the enemy is doing something dangerous.

 

As described [[#Enemy patterns|above]], most enemies tend to perform specific things at specific times. A player that is savvy of these actions is better prepared to deal with them, and is at a lower risk of losing Pikmin or leaders. On top of that, expert players can predict and even bait the enemy into performing specific actions so they can optimally punish them.

 

* Forcing enemies into states where they can't attack, like how Bulborbs in ''Pikmin 3'' can have Pikmin thrown at their eyes, which causes them to flinch and reel in pain.

 

Since enemies won't attack until they notice the Pikmin or leaders, players can have the upper hand if they make the most out of an enemy's lack of awareness. Some tactics include:

 

 

 

Because enemies can usually only focus on one Pikmin at a time, it is possible to leave a decoy Pikmin to distract a beast while the player attacks from another angle. This is especially effective if the decoy Pikmin is on the other side of a wall, since the enemy will spend its attention walking against the wall trying to reach it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In {{hp}}, some parts of combat work differently from the main series of games. As a 2D side-scrolling game on the [[Nintendo 3DS]], combat is less focused on maneuvering around enemies and strategizing to defeat them, and is more about quick reactions and accurate aiming. Enemies rarely require complex strategies to defeat, with the exception of [[boss]]es. Some enemies cannot be defeated at all.

 

 

 

Most enemies can attack Pikmin. If a Pikmin comes into contact with a dangerous part of an enemy, such as a [[Crumbug]]'s mouth or the spore of a [[Spornet]], it will die immediately, making it very easy to lose some Pikmin to a combat encounter. Combat in ''Hey! Pikmin'' is very fast-paced for this reason, with the goal almost always being to defeat an enemy as quickly as possible by accurately throwing large numbers of Pikmin at it. Olimar can also lose health to enemy attacks, but can regenerate health with the use of [[heart]]s scattered around areas.

 

[[Boss]]es in this game are by far the most complex enemies, and are fought in special areas. Each boss has various attack phases, during most of which it is invulnerable. By exploiting a weakness in a specific phase, the player can make the boss vulnerable. In these vulnerable phases, the player has a short period of time to deal as much damage as possible.

 

{{pb}} does not have a true combat system as there are no [[Enemy|enemies]] in the game. However, Pikmin can attack mushrooms on [[mushroom battle]]s. While combat looks similar to how it does in the main series, its mechanics are very different. A Pikmin's attack power is determined by its [[Pikmin family#Types|type]], its [[maturity]], its [[friendship]], whether it is a [[Decor Pikmin]], and the mushroom's color. This attack power is not used for individual Pikmin attacks, but rather to calculate the overall strength of the group, and once the challenge begins, each Pikmin hit does as much damage as it needs to to make the health of the mushroom decrease at a rate proportional to the strength of the group. For more information on how damage works, see the '''[[Mushroom battle]]''' article.

 

 

Enemies have weak points often identified by purple orbs, that are usually the only place where they can be attacked. Pikmin (both Mii and robotic) can latch on to these points to deal quick and steady damage. Besides enemies, Blocks, Question Blocks, and other players that have been rendered unable to attack by an enemy can all be attacked.

;Combat as Olimar

Olimar commands a [[squad]] of small Pikmin that each deal a small amount of damage, just like the main series. Tapping with {{button|wiiu|stylus}} will throw one of these Pikmin to the location tapped. They will attack automatically if they latch on to a weak point, but will attempt to return to Olimar if they miss. They can be regathered by using {{button|wiiu|zr|wiiu|zl}}. When calling Pikmin, the Mii Pikmin will also fly to Olimar and stack atop his head, where he can then throw them like the Pikmin. Powerups change how Olimar and his Pikmin attack, but the core concepts remain.

 

The other players control [[Mii]]s in Pikmin costumes. They can attack with {{button|wii|1}}, which will do a simple smack with whatever is on the end of their stem. This, in combination with {{button|wii|2}} to jump, makes the players able to utilize several attacks. When using powerups, some of these attacks behave differently.

 

| {{button|wii|1}} twice while level 5 or higher.

| A smack from left to right, having more range and dealing more damage.

| A small spin into a jump, hitting from behind and dealing a lot of damage.

| Hold {{button|wii|1}}, then release.

| Flips in the air, attacking in a loop.

| Similar to the standard attack, but it will always hit, is quicker and it deals less damage.

| Similar to normal attack, but slower, more Hammer Seed damage and a chance to stun enemies.

| {{button|wii|1}} twice while having a Hammer Seed and are level 5 or higher.

| Like the hammer attack, but slightly in the air and more damage.

| {{button|wii|1}} thrice while having a Hammer Seed and are level 10 or higher.

| Like the double hammer attack, but the hammer grows larger, deals more damage and you're slightly more in the air. But watch out, because it can flatten teammates, making them unable to move for a short while.

| Makes the Pikmin go forwards and flip 7 times. With each flip, the Pikmin will slam their hammer into the ground, dealing damage, stunning enemies and flatten teammates (see above).

| {{button|wii|1}} while in the air and having a Hammer Seed.

| Does a flip, then goes straight down, dealing damage. When landing, jumps to a safe spot. Can make flatten teammates (see above) and stun enemies. Note that what the game considers a safe spot might not actually be a safe spot, so be careful.

| Same as a normal latched attack, but slower and has a chance to stun.

| {{button|wii|1}} twice while having a Whip Seed and are level 5 or higher.

| Makes the Pikmin player use the whip in a large area around them twice, pushing back both enemies and other players.

| {{button|wii|1}} while in the air and having a Whip Seed.

| Does a whip very similar to Whip attack, but in the air.

| Similar to the normal latched attack, but the attack causes two hits right after the other, dealing double the damage than normal.

|{{button|wii|1}} while having a Knuckle Seed.

| Unlike the other attacks, Knuckle attack uses the player's fists to punch enemies twice before a small kick that deals extra damage around them.

| {{button|wii|1}} twice while having a Knuckle Seed and are level 5 or higher.

| Unlike even the Knuckle attack, the Pikmin player will instead charge a ball of damage with their hands that causes damage close to them.

| Makes the Pikmin player charge up a ball of damage before sending it in a straight line for a short time, dealing constant damage during it.

| Similar to the normal latched attack, but the attacks come in very quickly, dealing a lot of damage very quickly.