| Armored Mawdad | |
|---|---|
| File:Armored mawdad.png | |
| Appears in | Pikmin 3 |
| Scientific name | Unknown |
| Family | Unknown |
| Areas | Pikmin 3 Garden of Hope |
| Mission Mode Collect Treasure! stages | None |
| Mission Mode Battle Enemies! stages | None |
| Side Story days | None |
| Bingo Battle stages | None |
| Attacks | Eats Pikmin |
The Armored Mawdad (ヨロヒイモムカデ) is a boss enemy from Pikmin 3, and is the first major boss encountered in story mode, found in the Garden of Hope. It is a massive, centipede-like beast with a multitude of small gecko-like legs, a large head, yellow eyes, a bluish-green underbelly, a gaping mouth, and large curved mandibles. Most of its body is covered in segments of crystalline carapace that must be broken by Rock Pikmin.
Notes
Pikmin 3 Website
"This extra-large creature can be found in hollowed-out trees. Its exoskeleton is made of crystal."
Strategy
Basic Strategy
The Armored Mawdad is almost constantly in motion, crawling around the stage in erratic patterns. When it gets a clear view of a group of Pikmin or the current leader, it will charge and scoop up the Pikmin with its massive mandibles. During this time, it will commence eating Pikmin (5 at a time) with its wide tongue, during which it will stop moving, allowing players an oppritunity to throw Rock Pikmin at its crystalline armor to break it away. This will aggrivate the boss and save the trapped Pikmin. The now-exposed flesh can be freely attacked with any other available Pikmin types.
Once a quarter it has started to lose armor, it will crawl faster and begin to evade the Pikmin by crawling up the walls of the arena. It will then crawl around off-screen for a moment before coming back down to charge at the Pikmin once again. When it is out of veiw, the player can still be made wary of its location by either looking at the gamepad's map, or by paying attention to where small chips of wood are falling from the ceiling.
If the player can land a successful hit on its mandibles, they will break, rendering it harder for the Mawdad to capture and eat Pikmin.[1] If a Pikmin latches onto one of its eyes, the Mawdad will become extremely agitated and aimlessly careen through the arena until the Pikmin is thrown off, and even ramming its head into walls in an attempt to shake the Pikmin off.
Expert Strategy
Warning: it is advised that this strategy is only attempted by experienced players.
A much simpler way to defeat the Mawdad quicker and with little touch is to immediately run to the side as soon as the battle begins. The boss will charge foward only to catch nothing, and will then stop for a few seconds before crawling around. During this time, quickly throw as many Rock Pikmin as you can at the tip of its tail, and it sould easily break off. This will aggrivate the Mawdad and make it climb up the wall. When it comes back down to charge, move out of the way and quickly run behind it. Before it starts moving again, swarm all of your Red Pikmin on its tail. If you have enough, the boss' health will rapidly drain and it will die with one hit from a Rock Pikmin.
This strategy is mot usefull during speedruns, as it can be used to defeat the boss in under half a minute.
Gallery
- Mawdad With Armour Destroyed .png
A frontal view of the beta Mawdad with its facial armor broken off.
An Armored Mawdad coming down to attack Alph, Brittany, and their Pikmin.
Once the mandibles have been broken, it will be easier for Pikmin to escape from the Mawdad's gaping mouth.
- Jpweb2.png
The Mawdad in a photo frame from the Japanese site.
- Pikmin3 MawdadPhoneandDragonFruint.png
After defeat, the Mawdad coughs up the Firebreathing Feast and a Cellphone, which unlocks the next area where Charlie is held.
The Armored Mawdad's corpse being dragged by Pikmin.
Trivia
- The Armored Mawdad was the first creature in Pikmin 3 to have its name revealed, about a year and 2 months before the game's release.
- The Armored Mawdad bears a resemblance to the Emperor/Monochromatic Pinchipedes from Pikmin Adventure.
- Due to its size, the Armored Mawdad's body is dragged to the Onion, rather than carried, and when it arrives, it phases through due to its massive size. This is true for all bosses, with the exeption of the Scornet Maestro and Quaggled Mireclops. When the Armored Mawdad is being absorbed by the Onion, the game seems to slow down. The same can be said for the Sandbelching Meerslug.
- The Armored Mawdad is one of two bosses that actually require Rock Pikmin. The other is the Quaggled Mireclops.
- The Armoured Mawdad has a total of 28 legs. It has 6 on each segment and 14 on each side.
References