King Calamari Sunken Ship Boss Guide

Struggling with the Sunken Ship boss? This guide breaks down King Calamari's attacks and weaknesses in Super Mario RPG (2023), plus strategies to beat him and his tentacles.

Alright, so you've made it to the Sunken Ship and it's time to face King Calamari! Don't worry, it's a two-part fight, but we'll get through it together. First, you'll have to deal with his tentacles before the main event.

Stats / Weaknesses:

• Tentacle (Left): HP 200, Weak to Fire, Fear, Poison. Resists Mute, Sleep.
• Tentacle (Right): HP 260, Weak to Fire, Fear, Poison. Resists Mute, Sleep.
• King Calamari: HP 800, Weak to Fire. Resists Fear, Mute, Poison, Sleep.

Phases:

1. Phase 1: The Tentacles

   You'll start by fighting two groups of three tentacles. They don't hit too hard and are mainly there to annoy you and inflict Fear with their Tentacle Throw. You can use fire attacks if you want, but honestly, they're not worth the FP expenditure. Just hack away at them until they're gone.

2. Phase 2: King Calamari & Tentacles

   Once the initial tentacles are cleared, King Calamari himself will join the fray, usually with two more tentacles. This is where the real fight begins. King Calamari has a few nasty tricks up his sleeve:

   • Tentacle Slam: His go-to physical attack, dealing moderate damage to one party member.
   • Sandstorm: Hits everyone for light damage and can debuff your party.
   • Painspout: Deals moderate damage to all party members with a watery blast.
   • Ink Blast: This magic attack can hit pretty hard, especially against characters with lower M. Defense like Geno or Bowser.
   • Venom Drool: Inflicts the Poison status, which can chip away at your HP over time.

   The accompanying tentacles can still use Tentacle Throw to inflict Fear, so it's a good idea to take them out first to reduce the number of debuffs you have to deal with.

Strategy:

• Prioritize Tentacles: Always focus on defeating the two accompanying tentacles first. This limits the Fear debuffs and makes the fight much more manageable.
• Mario's Super Fireball: This is your bread and butter for this fight. King Calamari is weak to fire, and a well-timed Super Fireball can deal over 200 damage, taking a huge chunk out of his 800 HP. If Mario gets debuffed, especially with Fear, your damage output will drop significantly, so try to keep him in good shape.
• HP Management: Aim to keep all your party members above 50 HP. If you're not using Geno or Bowser, you might be able to be a bit more aggressive, but it's always better to play it safe. Keep an eye on that Poison debuff from Venom Drool and use items or abilities to cure it if necessary.
• Exploit Weaknesses: While the tentacles are weak to fire, it's generally not worth using FP on them. King Calamari, however, is definitely worth burning FP on with Mario's Super Fireball.

After you finally defeat King Calamari, you'll earn 100 Exp (split between your party) and 100 Coins. You'll also finally be able to progress through the rest of the Sunken Ship!