Waterwraith

Waterwraith
Appears in	Pikmin 2, Pikmin 4
Scientific name	Amphibio sapiens
Family	Unknown
Areas	None
Caves	Submerged Castle, Engulfed Castle, Cavern for a King
Challenge Mode stages	Bully Den
Dandori Challenge stages	None
Dandori Battle stages	None
2-Player Battle stages	None
Attacks	Crushes Pikmin

The Waterwraith (アメボウズ^?, lit.: "Candy Bouzu") is a boss from Pikmin 2 and Pikmin 4, found in all sublevels of the Submerged Castle and all sublevels of the Engulfed Castle, respectively.

It can only be damaged by Purple Pikmin's space-warping stomps; however, the entrances to both the Submerged Castle and the Engulfed Castle are flooded, making them impossible to bring along. Since Purple Pikmin are only obtainable in both cave's final floors, the Waterwraith is completely invincible and immune to attacks in the first four sublevels.

The Waterwraith is one of the few bosses in Pikmin 2 which has its own background music, along with the Titan Dweevil and the Giant Breadbug. In the Submerged Castle, when it appears, its own theme plays. When it is fought in the last sublevel, the normal boss music plays, and when it has no rollers, a special, crazy, funky lighthearted version of the boss music plays.

Stats

Game	Weight	Max. carriers	Seeds	Value	Health	Regen.
	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	1800	No
	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	1800	No

Behavior

The Waterwraith is one of the most dangerous enemies, as it can instantly kill Pikmin by just rolling over them, and cannot be deterred or defeated without Purple Pikmin.

Appearance

Its appearance is generally humanoid in shape, with the suggestion of a head, body, arms, and legs, but without distinct characteristics, and with a watery, transparent body. As a matter of fact, its scientific name is Amphibio sapiens, which is similar to the human's scientific name: Homo sapiens.

The Hocotate ship notes that although it can be seen, its sensors somehow detect nothing, leading to the conclusion that the Waterwraith's physical form is anchored in another dimension. This is implied further in Pikmin 4, where both Olimar and Dalmo describe the creature's watery form as "nonexistent".

Locations

As stated before, the Waterwraith appears in all 5 sublevels of the Submerged Castle in Pikmin 2 and the Engulfed Castle in Pikmin 4. In the first 4 sublevels, it will drop from the ceiling after a five minute period. In the 5th and final sublevel, it will only fall when in range of its spawning point, similar to other bosses.

Once defeated in the Engulfed Castle, it will not respawn in any sublevel, replaced in the final encounter with a swarm of mitites.

The Waterwraith only appears a few time outside of its caves. In Pikmin 2's Challenge Mode, two Waterwraiths will spawn in the Bully Den when the seconds counter falls to 270, leaving only 30 seconds for preparation. In Pikmin 4, one can be found in the final story of the Trial of the Sage Leaf, The Purple Key. And, much like Bully Den, two will spawn immediately in Sublevel 16 of Cavern for a King. These are, however, intended to be fought with Purple Pikmin.

Strategy

The following article or section contains guides. The strategies shown are just suggestions.

The Waterwraith in the Piklopedia.

While wandering

The Waterwraith will come on any sublevel of the Submerged Castle or Engulfed Castle, after 5 minutes. When encountered, the beast falls from the sky. This will give two falling noises followed by two heavy thuds and then a noise like a scream underwater. It lifts up its front roller, and smashes it on the ground, crushing any Pikmin underneath. It then commences moving around on its stone rollers. However, before sublevel 5, there is no way at all to harm it; not even bomb rocks or attacking with Pikmin after using an ultra-bitter spray will have any effect. With that in mind, there are a few things to remember:

• The Waterwraith can kill other enemies and disable traps. This can be used to your advantage.
• It follows the active leader. This can be used to your advantage, similar to the fight with the Ranging Bloyster.
• The Waterwraith does not go into small corners, crevices, dead-ends, and areas with Candypop Buds (even if it has been used) making these places safe to hide in. In Pikmin 4, there are specially marked crevices with grass and metal archways that the Wraith will be unable to access.
• In Pikmin 2, if you're having a difficult time avoiding the Waterwraith, you can always reset in an attempt to get an easier or more exploitable floor layout. Similarly, in Pikmin 4, the Rewind mechanic can be essential to making more efficient movements around the sublevels or making up for heavy losses.
• A cloud of dust is visible behind the Waterwraith, allowing you to keep better track of it.

The following tips can also be used for story mode:

• You should collect treasures as quickly as possible and avoid collecting corpses. If you're fast enough, you can avoid facing the Waterwraith entirely. Remember that you can return to the cave and collect anything you missed the first time around.
• It is advised to at least have the Rush Boots power up, which can allow leaders to quickly escape the Waterwraith. The Stellar Orb also helps to illuminate the area, giving you a good view of where the beast is.
• In Pikmin 4, The Water Wraith presents very little issue to Oatchi due to his compactness and precise handling, making him ideal for Pikmin transportation instead of letting the Pikmin squad roam free.

Battle

A stunned Waterwraith, vulnerable to attacks.

Since it can only be damaged by Purple Pikmin, the only way to combat it in the Submerged Castle and Engulfed Castle is to survive until the final sublevel, where you can get Purple Pikmin via Violet Candypop Buds. When a Purple Pikmin lands on or near the Waterwraith in a fashion that would stun any other beast, it turns a deep shade of purple not dissimilar to that of the Pikmin that cause this state to come about. In this state, it is vulnerable to all Pikmin attacks. When the Wraith's health has been fully depleted, the rollers crumble and the Waterwraith will run aimlessly around the cave, no longer a threat to your Pikmin. Attack with more Purple Pikmin and then you can easily attack it with other Pikmin. When defeated, it will vanish into nothing, and you will be troubled no more. It drops the Professional Noisemaker, a useful addition to the Exploration Kit, the first time you beat it in the Submerged Castle.

The Waterwraith can be petrified, which is useful to stop it if it is coming towards you, but while in this state, it cannot be damaged with normal attacks – Pikmin that attack will just cause an effect similar to attacking a reinforced wall in other games. Purple Pikmin that land with a thud on the petrified creature have a different behavior, however. When the boss has its rollers, a thud can cause the health wheel to appear, if it hasn't already. In the state without rollers, these thuds will actually cause a small amount of damage, and make it possible to kill the creature when petrified.

Notes

Ship's dialogs

“What is this?!? I can see it with my optical receptors, but my sensors cannot detect it!

Could its physical form be anchored in another dimension? ...Attacking it is futile!

If only we could force it to take on physical form... But in its current state... Krzzzt-zrrrk!

Danger! Danger! Danger!”

Olimar's notes

“All that is known about this creature stems from a few sightings deep underground. All reported sightings feature the same core set of details: a giant, viscous form with a clear, hazy sheen not unlike hard candy. One theory holds that it may be the ectoplasmic incarnation of a kind of psychic phenomenon, but as is usually the case with such theories, it is very difficult to prove. All witnesses report being suddenly overcome with fear upon sighting the creature, approaching a state of panic and near insanity. In fact, every report contains an inordinate amount of extremely vague details, which has led to suspicions that exhaustion and fear have caused some simple natural phenomenon to be viewed as a living creature.”

Louie's notes

“Inedible. Known to cause mass hysteria, followed by leg spasms and internal thunderings.”

Pikmin 2 Nintendo Player's Guide

“The anxious Waterwraith appears before the final floor of the Submerged Castle, but you won't be able to defeat it until you use Violet Candypop Buds to create purple Pikmin on the cave's lowest level. One touch from a purple will make the beast temporalily vulnerable.”

Glitches

The Waterwraith while sitting on petrified rollers.

The following article or section is in need of assistance from someone who plays Pikmin 2. Particularly: Confirm these and add them to the glitches page.

The Waterwraith is the cause of a few glitches in Pikmin 2.

• Struggling Waterwraith: by petrifying the creature on the Piklopedia just as its archive is opened, and then petrifying it again just as the rollers break free will result in only the rollers getting petrified, but not the boss.
• Sliding Waterwraith: By switching between a leader close to a vulnerable Waterwraith and to a leader far away from it, the creature will be seen stuck in the same pose, but moving around like normal.
• It is likely that if the Waterwraith's head comes into contact with the Research Pod after having lost its rollers, another glitch will occur. The outcome is a change in the way it moves: instead of walking, the creature glides along; and any Pikmin that touch it are thrown out-of-the-way, though unharmed. The amount of health it had previous to the glitch occurring determines whether or not it can be damaged in this state.
• Another glitch may occur when the Waterwraith attempts to turn around sharp corners. Instead of successfully completing a 360 degrees turn, it may get wedged in the middle of a tight space. This could either be helpful, allowing the player to avoid the Waterwraith, but this glitch could also block crucial pathways, such as a pathway to the next floor. Unfortunately, the only solution for this is to reset.
• Yet another glitch happens when the Waterwraith is hit with a Purple Pikmin while running. The Waterwraith may turn clear while in the crouching position, instead of it having a purple hue.
• In Bully Den, the Waterwraiths will never pay attention to Louie, when playing in 2-player mode. This can result in a rollerless Waterwraith to casually walk or even stand still near Louie, instead of panicking. It can still be attacked by Louie, though.

Technical information

Creature

Pikmin 2 technical information (?)
Internal name			blackman
Global properties (List)
ID	Japanese comment	Property	Value
s000	friction(not used)	Friction	0.5
s001	wallReflection	Unknown (wall bounce speed multiplier?)	0.5
s002	faceDirAdjust	Unknown	0.25
s003	accel	Acceleration	0.1
s004	bounceFactor	Unknown (bounce when it hits the ground?)	0.3
fp00	ライフ	HP	1500
fp01	マップとの当り	Unknown (related to slopes)	50
fp02	ダメージスケールXZ	Horizontal damage scale	0.2
fp03	ダメージスケールY	Vertical damage scale	0.25
fp04	ダメージフレーム	Damage scale duration	0.35
fp05	質量	Unknown (weight?)	0.01
fp06	速度	Move speed	80
fp08	回転速度率	Rotation acceleration	0.04
fp09	テリトリー	Territory radius	300
fp10	ホーム範囲	"Home" radius	10
fp11	プライベート距離	"Private" radius	50
fp12	視界距離	Sight radius	700
fp13	視界角度	FOV	180
fp14	探索距離	Unknown (exploration radius?)	250
fp15	探索角度	Unknown (exploration angle?)	0
fp16	振り払い率	Successful shake rate	1
fp17	振り払い力	Shake knockback	250
fp18	振り払いダメージ	Shake damage	0
fp19	振り払い範囲	Shake range	50
fp20	攻撃可能範囲	Unknown (shock attack max range?)	30
fp21	攻撃可能角度	Unknown (shock attack max angle?)	15
fp22	攻撃ヒット範囲	Unknown (attack hit range?)	30
fp23	攻撃ヒット角度	Unknown (attack hit angle?)	15
fp24	攻撃力	Attack damage	10
fp25	視界高	Unknown (height visibility?)	50
fp26	探索高	Unknown (exploration height?)	0
fp27	ライフの高さ	HP wheel height	100
fp28	回転最大速度	Rotation speed	3
fp29	警戒時間	Unknown (warning time?)	0
fp30	警戒ライフ	Unknown	0
fp31	ライフ回復率	Regeneration rate	0
fp32	LOD半径	Off-camera radius	70
fp33	マップとのあたりポリゴンの選定	Collision processing radius	50
fp34	ピクミンとのあたり	Pikmin damage radius	30
fp35	石化時間	Petrification duration	1
fp36	ヒップドロップダメージ	Purple Pikmin drop damage	10
fp37	地震気絶確立	Purple Pikmin stun chance	0 (0%)
fp38	地震気絶時間	Purple Pikmin stun time	60
ip01	振り払い打撃Ａ	Shake mode 1 – hit count	10
ip02	振り払い張付１	Shake mode 1 – Pikmin requirement	5
ip03	振り払い打撃Ｂ	Shake mode 2 – hit count	13
ip04	振り払い張付２	Shake mode 2 – Pikmin requirement	6
ip05	振り払い打撃Ｃ	Shake mode 3 – hit count	16
ip06	振り払い張付３	Shake mode 3 – Pikmin requirement	9
ip07	振り払い打撃Ｄ	Shake mode 4 – hit count	20
Specific properties
ID	Japanese comment	Property	Value
fp01	ポッド移動速度	Unknown (roller speed?)	20
fp02	逃げ速度	Unknown (running speed?)	250
fp03	逃げ回転速度率	Unknown (rotation speed rate while walking?)	0.2
fp04	逃げ回転最大速度	Unknown (max rotation speed while walking?)	30
fp05	2段階速度	Unknown (second stage speed?)	120
fp06	2段階回転速度率	Unknown (second stage rotation speed?)	0.04
fp07	2段階回転最大速度	Unknown (second stage max rotation speed?)	3
fp11	歩き速度	Unknown (walking speed?)	50
ip01	2段階へのタイマー	Unknown (time until second stage?)	0
ip03	ドシン停止タイマー	Unknown	200
ip04	逃げ停止タイマー	Unknown (walk time?)	200
ip05	連続逃げタイマー	Unknown (running time?)	200
ip06	つかれ停止タイマー	Unknown (rest time?)	200

Rollers

Pikmin 2 technical information (?)
Internal name			tyre
Global properties (List)
ID	Japanese comment	Property	Value
s000	friction(not used)	Friction	0.5
s001	wallReflection	Unknown (wall bounce speed multiplier?)	0.5
s002	faceDirAdjust	Unknown	0.25
s003	accel	Acceleration	0.1
s004	bounceFactor	Unknown (bounce when it hits the ground?)	0.3
fp00	ライフ	HP	1800
fp01	マップとの当り	Unknown (related to slopes)	50
fp02	ダメージスケールXZ	Horizontal damage scale	0.2
fp03	ダメージスケールY	Vertical damage scale	0.25
fp04	ダメージフレーム	Damage scale duration	0.35
fp05	質量	Unknown (weight?)	0.01
fp06	速度	Move speed	30
fp08	回転速度率	Rotation acceleration	0.1
fp09	テリトリー	Territory radius	300
fp10	ホーム範囲	"Home" radius	30
fp11	プライベート距離	"Private" radius	50
fp12	視界距離	Sight radius	700
fp13	視界角度	FOV	180
fp14	探索距離	Unknown (exploration radius?)	0
fp15	探索角度	Unknown (exploration angle?)	0
fp16	振り払い率	Successful shake rate	1
fp17	振り払い力	Shake knockback	150
fp18	振り払いダメージ	Shake damage	0
fp19	振り払い範囲	Shake range	50
fp20	攻撃可能範囲	Unknown (shock attack max range?)	30
fp21	攻撃可能角度	Unknown (shock attack max angle?)	15
fp22	攻撃ヒット範囲	Unknown (attack hit range?)	30
fp23	攻撃ヒット角度	Unknown (attack hit angle?)	15
fp24	攻撃力	Attack damage	10
fp25	視界高	Unknown (height visibility?)	50
fp26	探索高	Unknown (exploration height?)	0
fp27	ライフの高さ	HP wheel height	100
fp28	回転最大速度	Rotation speed	10
fp29	警戒時間	Unknown (warning time?)	0
fp30	警戒ライフ	Unknown	0
fp31	ライフ回復率	Regeneration rate	0
fp32	LOD半径	Off-camera radius	120
fp33	マップとのあたりポリゴンの選定	Collision processing radius	50
fp34	ピクミンとのあたり	Pikmin damage radius	10
fp35	石化時間	Petrification duration	1
fp36	ヒップドロップダメージ	Purple Pikmin drop damage	10
fp37	地震気絶確立	Purple Pikmin stun chance	0.05 (5%)
fp38	地震気絶時間	Purple Pikmin stun time	60
ip01	振り払い打撃Ａ	Shake mode 1 – hit count	1
ip02	振り払い張付１	Shake mode 1 – Pikmin requirement	1
ip03	振り払い打撃Ｂ	Shake mode 2 – hit count	2
ip04	振り払い張付２	Shake mode 2 – Pikmin requirement	2
ip05	振り払い打撃Ｃ	Shake mode 3 – hit count	5
ip06	振り払い張付３	Shake mode 3 – Pikmin requirement	3
ip07	振り払い打撃Ｄ	Shake mode 4 – hit count	10
Specific properties
ID	Japanese comment	Property	Value
fp01	回転スピード	Rotation speed	25

Other information

• Size: Roller width: 112mm, as per the e-card
• Pikmin 2 Piklopedia number: #78
• Musical theme: Waterwraith appears, Waterwraith attacks

Naming

• Common name: Waterwraith. The name is a portmanteau of "water" and "wraith", where a "wraith" is a spirit, or a ghost.
• Japanese nickname: アメボウズ^?. ボウズ^? translates to "Buddhist Monk", however this may in fact be referencing a type of yokai known as Bouzu or Oobouzu, Japanese monsters with a shaved head reminescent of monks, alluding to their phantasmagorical existence. アメ^? translates to "candy", referring to the creature's hard candy appearance, per Olimar's notes, and also the fact that the majority of the treasures in the cave are candies. To note is that 雨^? means "rain", though it is not used to describe a texture in the same way "candy" is being used. In addition, the name could be a portmanteau of "amoeba" (written in katakana like "ameba") and "Bouzu".
• Japanese name: ヤマトアメビト^?, lit.: "Yamato Candy Man".
• Scientific name: Its scientific name, Amphibio sapiens, uses the word amphibio, similar to the English word "amphibious", and sapiens, meaning "discerning" or "wise", and which is also part of the species name for the real world human, Homo sapiens. This can be construed as both a reference to its humanoid shape, as well as it being essentially "living water".
• Internal names: Its internal name is blackman. The "man" part is naturally because of its human-like frame, and "black" is presumably due to the fact that it can turn purple when attacked by Purple Pikmin – during development, Purple Pikmin were given the name "black". Interestingly, the names of the creature's animations inside the game's files refer to it as "Kagebōzu" (かげボウズ^?), which means "Shadow Bouzu". This indicates that, during development, the Waterwraith's Japanese name was meant to be different. Interestingly, there exists another type of yokai known as Oonyuudou, described as an unclear shadow or a giant rather than a monk, if it was originally called shadow, it may be in reference to this other yokai. Pikmin 3's Plasm Wraith is named after this other yokai in the Japanese version, アメニュウドウ^?, lit.: "Candy Nyuudou".
• Prerelease: None.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	アメボウズ? Ame Bouzu	Candy Bouzu
French (NoE)	Spectreau	Portmanteau of "spectre" (specter) and "eau" (water).
German	Wassergespenst	Waterwraith
Italian	Spettro d'Acqua	Water Specter
Spanish	Espectro acuático	Aquatic specter

Gallery

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• 

  Artwork of the Waterwraith from Pikmin 2.

• 

  The Waterwraith appears.

• 

  The Waterwraith as seen from behind.

• 

  The Waterwraith's physical form in Pikmin 2.

• 

  The Waterwraith tired out with no rollers.

• 

  The Waterwraith taking on its physical form in the 4^th sublevel via hacking Purple Pikmin into the level.

• 

  Two Waterwraiths hitting each other in Pikmin 4.

• 

  A player being chased down by two Waterwraiths.

• 

  The creature's e-card, #63 (16^th red card).

Trivia

Animation of the Waterwraith standing still.

• In Pikmin 2's Piklopedia, it is possible that the Waterwraith will roll out-of-bounds.
• The Waterwraith is one of three enemies to not appear in the Wistful Wild or any of its caves, the others being the Giant Breadbug and the Toady Bloyster. All three can be found in the Perplexing Pool.
• The Waterwraith seems to be related to the Plasm Wraith, in both appearance and name. In addition, a possible translation for the Japanese common name of both is "Candy Priest".
  • The Waterwraith is mentioned in Olimar's Piklopedia entry for the Plasm Wraith in Pikmin 3 Deluxe, though it just highlights how they are different.
• In the game's files, the Waterwraith's model contains a dummy texture that reads "fb dum". This is a dummy texture applied to the model before the framebuffer is used to texture it:
• Since the Waterwraith disappears after defeat it is unknown how Louie collected and experimented for food purposes.
• If Purple Pikmin are forced to appear in the cave earlier than sublevel 5 and the monster is defeated then, it will still drop the treasure. Speaking of which, the monster's treasure will not be detected by radar until the showdown with the beast in the final floor; if all treasures in an earlier sublevel are collected, the radar will deactivate and remain that way, even if the Waterwraith had shown up.
• After taking out the Waterwraith's rollers and entering the second stage of the fight, if the player is sufficiently far away from the boss, it will stop walking randomly and will instead stand in place. In this animation, it also occasionally turns around back and forth. This elusive animation can only be seen by being far enough away, by using the zoomed-out or ground-level camera settings, and by being on sublevel 5 of the Submerged Castle, since it is too dark to see that far away on the Bully Den.
  • This animation can be better seen in the Piklopedia in Pikmin 4, where the rollers can actually be destroyed.
• The helpless phase of the Waterwraith, along with the Giant Breadbug and the Titan Dweevil, are the only bosses in Pikmin 2 that have their own boss theme.
• If the player reaches the final floor before the Waterwraith makes its first appearance, the boss battle with play out as usual, but the ship will not trigger the cutscene to declare it a danger.
  • This same fact is not true in the Engulfed Castle.
• The Waterwraith is one of the two enemies in the Pikmin series to have a sequential health meter, the other being the Ancient Sirehound.
• Interestingly, while the Waterwraith is still unaffected by bomb rocks in Pikmin 4, it can still be frozen by Ice Blasts, their icy equivalent. However it breaks free very quickly and can't be damaged by non Purple Pikmin in this state.
  • Similarly, Lighting strikes will stun him very briefly, but not nearly as long as other enemies.

See also

• Plasm Wraith

References

This article was a featured article from March 24th to September 23rd, 2010.