In this Pikmin 3 Deluxe Boss Battles Guide, we will guide you on how you can defeat all of the bosses in the Nintendo Switch port of Pikmin 3. Pikmin 3 was one of the best titles on Wii U however Nintendo has now ported the title on Nintendo Switch as Pikmin 3 Deluxe and it brings some new content and features along with it as well. If you’ve played the original game, you will remember that the bosses of the game are pretty tough to beat hence we have curated this guide with some tips and tricks that will help you easily defeat all of the bosses in the game.
Boss Battles Guide – Pikmin 3 Deluxe
Our Pikmin 3 Deluxe Boss Battles Guide details everything that you need to know about bosses in Pikmin 3 Deluxe and how you can easily defeat them.
Boss #1 – Armored Mawdad
Armored Mawdad is the very first boss battle in the game and despite it being the first boss of the game, it does not go easy on you. You will encounter it inside the Hollow Treetrunk while playing the Garden of Hope. Armored Mawdad looks like a giant centipede and it comes with a tough shell around its body that prevents any direct damage to the boss until it is first broken off. Right from the start of the boss battle, you should stick with using the Rock Pikmin because it is most effective against breaking the tough shell.
Like traditional bosses, Armored Mawdad’s head is its weak point, and hitting the head deals maximum damage to the boss. Once the initial shell is off, start throwing the read Pikmin at its head for maximum damage. Deal enough damage to the boss and eventually, it will add a charge attack to its list of attacks. When it starts to charge, make sure that Alph and the Pikmin are out of harm’s way. You must be on the move always and try not to come in its path.
If some of the Pikmin are caught by Armored Mawdad, make sure that you quickly start hitting the boss on its head because you might be able to save them by this way. If you manage to free them up, quickly use your whistle and call them back to yourself and you should be able to save a lot of your Pikmin this way. Keep damaging the boss and when its health is really low, it will start climbing tree trunks as well. Make sure that you do not stay on the same spot for long when it starts to happen. Keep avoiding the attacks and keep damaging the boss and it will eventually go down.
Boss #2 – Vehemoth Phosbat
Continuing the story will let you come across Vehemoth Phosbat as your second main boss in the game. You will encounter the Vehemoth Phosbat in the caves of Distant Tundra. Before starting the boss fight, you should know that this boss battle takes two days to complete unless you are exceptionally good at the game and you will need a lot of yellow Pikmin since they are the most effective Pikmin for this boss battle. Before starting the boss fight, ensure that your army has mostly yellow Pikmin in it and only then start the boss battle.
One of the things that you can take advantage of in this boss fight is the fact that Vehemoth Phosbat is afraid of light and brightening the cave will stun the boss. Start hitting the boss and keep at it until the boss starts flying again. When it happens, make sure that you are dodging all of its attacks. While dodging, look around the cave for climbing sticks and use your Pikmin to rebuild and make a bridge. Complete the bridge and then look for the red bioluminescent mushroom. Once you find it, start throwing your yellow Pikmin on the ledge along with a captain. Use them to complete the connection and this will stun the boss once more giving you a good window to deal some more damage to the boss.
Once enough damage has been dealt to the boss, it will scream and spawn smaller versions of itself around the cave. You will need to destroy the smaller enemies and the pods quickly or they will make the boss fight a real challenge. Once they are down, focus on the next broken wire to stun the boss once again and deal some more damage to it. After this phase, the boss will once again rise into the air. At this point, make your way to the crystal blocking your path and use the Rock Pikmin to destroy it.
Once the path is clear, get the building material and complete the process once again which will result in you stunning the boss yet again however this time around, the boss and the whole cave will be illuminated. Use the yellow Pikmin to bring it back to the ground and then start jabbing at its health. The boss battle is pretty tedious and if you are out of time, you can return the next day to resume the boss battle and finish what you started.
Boss #3 – Sandbelching Meerslug
The third boss in Pikmin 3 Deluxe that you will encounter is called the Sandbelching Meerslug and it is found in the Tropical Wilds. For this boss battle, you will need a good amount of Red Pikmin so make sure that you gather a decent amount of Red Pikmin before starting the battle. For this boss fight, the boss will remain under the sand for most of the time and will attack from under the sand. It will target your Pikmin constantly so make sure that you always keep a finger on your whistle so that you can move your Pikmin around quickly.
Eventually, the boss will emerge from the sand and lop around the surface for some time. When it happens, make sure that you instantly send in your Red Pikmin to start dealing damage to the boss. Just make sure that you move around the Pikmin while doing so to ensure that you do not lose Pikmin to the falling dirt balls. These dirt balls do not kill your Pikmin, but it traps them making it easier for the boss to land the final blow and kill them. Make sure that you deal enough damage to the boss and it will become stunned and lie down on the sand. Do not miss this damage-dealing opportunity.
Once you’ve trickled the boss’s health down to half, the boss will form a large circle inside the sand. Get out of it and call your Pikmin out as well because a huge pit will open at this point and it will devour everything inside this circle. Keep your whistle handy whenever it happens. As the battle progresses, the boss will often stand tall in the pit as well which makes hitting him much harder. During this phase, you can use some Spicy Essence to counter his move and increase the speed of your Pikmin. Keep at it and the boss will go down eventually.
Boss #4 – Scornet Maestro
You will encounter Scornet Maestro while exploring the Twilight River however you will notice that the boss is protected by a swarm of smaller Scornets which makes tackling the boss a little challenging right from the start. For making the boss fight a little easy, do not attack the boss when the Scornets are near the boss. Look for an open window and then start the boss fight. Scornet Maestro has a brutal drill attack that can easily kill your Pikmin so make sure that your whistle is at the ready to move them out of the way.
During the open windows, use some Spicy Essence and then throw some Yellow and Flying Pikmin at the boss to start nabbing at this health. This will cause the boss to fall down to the ground giving you an opportunity to throw in the rest of your Pikmin army. Using Rock Pikmin are especially useful during this phase of the battle so make sure that you use them. In addition, make sure that you do not let any Pikmin stray too far because they will be picked up by the swarm of Scornets. If they do pick some, use Yellow or Rock Pikmin to free them.
Probably the most devastating attack during this boss fight is about to land when you see the Scornets form rankings in front of the boss. When this happens, quickly move to the edge of the formation otherwise you will lose most of your Pikmin in a single attack and even get yourself killed. Use the free sides and then attack the main boss for maximum damage during this phase. Keep dishing out flanking attacks and use Yellow and Rock Pikmin as much as you can and the boss will go down eventually.
Boss #5 – Quaggled Mireclops
Quaggled Mireclops is located in the Garden of Hope however this boss fight can only be played at a later stage of the game. You will need a healthy amount of Blue Pikmin for this boss battle. Along with the Blue Pikmin, make sure that you have plenty of Red and Rock Pikmin with you as well. The boss is pretty well-hidden and to actually trigger the fight, you first have to destroy the crystal in the middle of the area which will cause the small island to sprout legs and start moving around. This is the boss that you have to defeat.
To defeat the boss, you can start from one of the boss’s feet. You will need to use the Blue Pikmin for this phase of the battle. Just make sure that you call them back and resend them again when the boss shakes them off. Eventually, the boss will fall down and give you a chance to break the crystal in the middle of the island with the Rock Pikmin. Spicy Essence can come in handy here to speed things up. While you are moving around with the boss, make sure that you avoid the sticky tongue of the boss moving around.
Running clockwise and throwing the Pikmin at the crystal is the best strategy for this phase. Eventually, the crystal will break and expose the orange stem of the boss. Attack it with your Red Pikmin. If the boss manages to throw you off, focus again on the feet of the boss to bring it down and then get back up to continue the assault. In addition, do not allow your Pikmin to go directly under the boss as they will be killed. Keep at it and the boss will eventually go down.
Boss #6 – Plasm Wraith (Final Boss)
Plasm Wraith is the final boss of the game and you will encounter the boss during the level the Formidable Oak. This boss has two different phases and it will really test your Pikmin management skills During the first phase of the battle, the Plasm Wraith will be in the form of an Amoeba. It is also invulnerable during this phase making the fight even tougher to manage. If the boss absorbs any Pikmin, you can free them by whistling to them however if the boss manages to absorb Olimar, the boss turns gold, and all Pikmin inside the boss will be killed instantly so make sure that it does not come to this. If the boss does absorb Olimar, you must keep attacking the boss until it pops and Olimar is freed.
Every time you see a cube, get ready for one of four different attacks. If it begins to rise and form a spike, it will release an electric field. Counter it with the Yellow Pikmin. If you see it turn red and catch fire, use the Red Pikmin to attack it. If it engulfs itself in flame, use Blue Pikmin and if it forms another larger cube around itself, attack it with the Rock Pikmin. Just make sure that you do not wait too long for the attacks to launch as all four of these are pretty powerful attacks. Keep attacking the boss, solving puzzles with your Pikmin and you will soon reach the end of the cave.
After you reached the cave’s end, go out and this will trigger the second phase of the battle where the boss will permanently swallow Olimar and you must defeat the boss to free him. During the second phase, the boss targets everyone pretty much equally along with your Pikmin. Look for fallen globs of the boss on the ground and attack them to deal damage to the boss. If the boss reabsorbs these globs, it will regain its health back so you need to make sure that you deny the boss these globs. Use Rock Pikmin against the boss’s stabbing attack as they are not affected by this attack.
The boss will eventually go back to the cube attacks of the first phase when its health is pretty down. The strategy will remain the same here as well however with the added globs on the ground, after stopping the cube attacks with the right Pikmin, you must attack the globs as well in order to prevent the boss to regain its health back to full. When it begins to fly around in the arena, use your flying Pikmin to deal damage to the boss and bring it back to the ground. Avoid its spike attack while the boss is in the air at all costs. The boss goes into defense mode when it is really close to dying so make sure to use flying Pikmin to kill it off quickly when it happens.
Optional Bosses
Apart from the main bosses in Pikmin 3 Deluxe, you also have three optional bosses in the game that appear multiple times in the game and are much easier to beat than the normal bosses in the game.
Optional Boss # 1 – Shaggy Long Legs
Shaggy Long Legs is a boss that looks like a hairy-spider and appears two times in the game. You will fight Shaggy Long Legs in Tropical Winds and the Distant Tundra. To find the boss in Tropical Wilds, you can make your way pas the reinforced wall near the switch on the beach. You will need Rock Bombs to tear down the wall. For the second boss, you must find the giant lemon located close to the bamboo gate. You will need a Winged Pikmin to open up this gate. Go behind this door and you will find the boss.
For the boss fight, you will first need to remove all hair from the body of the boss before you can deal damage to the actual body of the boss. To do so, you either use Yellow Pikmin, Winged Pikmin, or Rock Pikmin. Yellow Pikmin will allow others to reach the boss’s throat, Winged Pikmin can fly and pull out the hair while the Rock Pikmin can attack the feet of the boss to allow others to climb aboard them and pull out the hair Once the hair is gone, your remaining army can attack the boss and bring it down quickly.
Optional Boss # 2 – Borrowing Snagret
This optional boss is found in the Twilight River. To start the boss fight, you can ride the Lilypad down the river to reach the tree trunk and then break the electric fence ahead to reach the boss. This boss fight is pretty generic however the boss can use its beak to peck out your Pikmin one after the other which makes it deadly if you are not quickly enough. Attack the boss’s head for maximum damage and watch out for its peck attack and you should be good to take it down fairly easily.
Optional Boss # 3 – Bug-Eyed Crawmad
This particular boss also appears twice in the game. However, both encounters are in the Garden of Hope. The first one is near the sewer gate entrance while the second one is beyond the dirt wall in the water. Its weak point is its big eyes so right from the start of the battle, your focus should be to attack its eyes. This will cause the boss to flip on its back giving you access to its stomach which is yet another weak point. The boss can land a powerful pincer attack which will grab and kill your Pikmin so keep attacking its eyes to prevent it from killing your Pikmin.
This concludes our Pikmin 3 Deluxe Boss Battles Guide. If you want to add anything to this guide, feel free to use the comments section below.
