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Tips and Tricks for Earthbound Battles

Hello gamers! If you play Earthbound, you know how annoying it is to fight a battle every five seconds. Whether you suck at fighting or you can fight well, here's some advice for you. 

Fight as often as you can: 

    This game is all about leveling up and gaining XP, so running from fights will NOT help you. Most of you probably know this and might read this thinking, "DUH". But I did NOT understand this on my first playthrough. So maybe it's just me, but if there's anyone out there who's losing to bosses WAY too much, it's probably because you haven't leveled up enough.

    

Leveling up:

    I would recommend grinding through battles if your levels are too low. One of the best places to do this is the factory behind Grapefruit Falls by Saturn Valley. Fighting the little pink guys (Floppies) is EXTREMELY easy, and they give you a TON of XP. I did this, and trust, it works really well. (Using Paula's PSI Fire/Freeze power kills these guys the best).

    Also, make sure you have the best weapon available to you. Each new location should have somewhere to buy the next level of weapons and gear. So make sure you buy them. And remember to grab money from the ATM; you'll have a TON of money in there from your progress.

The Magic Butterflies:

    If you see one of these Magic Butterflies fluttering around, run into it. These things restore a decent chunk of PP. And this doesn't help you level up, but during long levels where you're constantly fighting, they do help to keep you going. I always reload the area where the butterfly is by leaving and coming back so it will respawn, and I do so until my PP is fully replenished.

Know your player's strengths:

    Each of your players has different strengths, so giving them the wrong equipment can set you back and stop you from reaching their full capability. 

    Ness is the best for bashing, as well as using some pretty powerful PSI, but I mostly use his PSI for healing the rest of the players since they usually have less health. He uses the bat, so make sure to always buy the bat for him.

    Paula is best for her PSI. You should never have to bash with her. Her PSI (and sometimes her prayers) are good enough for her, so make sure she's loaded with PP. Her weapon is the pan, so when equipping her, make sure you get the pan.

    Jeff is best with rockets and guns. He never gets any PP, so just focus on giving him the best weapon you can and any bombs you find.

    Poo is also big on his PSI. I don't remember giving him many weapons cause he's pretty powerful already, and his moves are different than the rest. His other power is being able to (sometimes) turn into the enemy you're fighting and upping the battlefield. So, like Paula, make sure his PP is loaded.

Sneak attacks:

    If you didn't know, approaching enemies from behind will display a green screen, and it allows you a first sneak attack hit, and then lets you play again. Definitely helpful to try defeating an enemy before they can hurt you, but it's not always easy to do.

Well, there ya go! Hopefully this has helped you, and if there are any questions, feel free to comment below! Or correct me if I was wrong anywhere. There doesn't seem to be many earthbound players anymore, so if you're one of those few, you're amazing, and I wish you the best as you make your way to defeating Giygas.

"Say Fuzzy Pickles!"

    

Tally ho! 

-Jaybirdstweets