The Marino fight-thread

Fred

Developer
Staff member
So, with the new Frontline patch up and running the Marino encounter is now ready for testing. We really need some help from you guys with this since the inhouse testing has left is with more questions than answers.

Since a lot of you guys probably have really high leveled characters the testing might get a bit skewed. The approximate level the average player will have during the fight is around 10-11. If you're not in the mood to create an entirely new character you can always adjust your gear to be on the more low tier side to match the encounter.

I've set up a simple form you guys can answer and you are more then welcome to expand beyond that with suggestions and feedback!

1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?

2. How many attempts did it take you before you defeated him?

3. What level and gear did your character have during the fight?

4. What skills did you use to beat him?

5. Anything goes!

Thanks for the help guys, appreciate it a ton!
 

MrChocodemon

Handsome Moderator
First i played 2 Characters and both on both difficulties
1) Lv 17 DMG 213 / ATSP 113% / Crit 26% / RabbyPet with 30%+ on DMG
2) Lv 11 DMG 115 / ATSP 100% / Crit 6% / no pet
1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?
On Hard with the LV11 was a little Problem, but that is understandable.
I think the fight is just right and i was a little stunned when i first got caught in his little combo.

2. How many attempts did it take you before you defeated him?
Normal: LV17 --> 1 Hard: --> 1
LV11 --> 1 Hard: --> 2 because of a bug

3. What level and gear did your character have during the fight?
LV 17 , LaserSword, BarrelShield, Phaseman Face and Boots, Slime Amour, Voodoo Doll, Rabbit's Foot
LV 11 , CarrotSword, WoodenShield, ChainMail, RedHairBow, Blindfold, MountainBoots, RedRing, RedScarf

4. What skills did you use to beat him?
LV 17 SpiritSlash
LV 11 SpiritSlash

5. Anything goes!
I love this fight! His fast and elegant fighting style suits him well and i didn't expect the fight to be so "hard". I expected more of a BlackFerrets fight and was really happy about how it is now. Dynamic and formidable.

I encountered a bug where the game crashed the exact moment Marino died. I used SpiritSlash on him as a finla Blow and it seems that he had Problems playing the cutscene. What weird is, is that there was no "The Game Deaded" window which is normally displayed on a crash.

[...]
1) Does he have his own block? If not definitely add one to him, it would make the fight more interesting and difficult.
2)Also add more defense/health to him,[...]

1) Please don't give him a Block. It wouldn't fit the Rapier. If he would get some defensive move i'd recommend an evasive step with a conter or a move where he can disarm the player.
2) Yes. Although this is not meant as a big battle of epic measure it still could be a little tougher.
 
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GarlicJelly

Friendly Moderator (Formerly known as GoodStuff)
My first attempt was on my lvl 51 so that I could scout the attacks before getting in to the fight with a lower level character. Maybe not the most ortodox thing to do but.. I found that the 4 slash attack was impossible to perfect block as he wouldn't stop attacking after you perfectly blocked the first attack. I thought that was strange since you stop every single enemy's attack if you perfect block them but he just kept swinging and all I could do was keep blocking and losing shield HP. I was also caught off guard with his charging attack but after seeing it once I knew what I had to do to evade it.

Edit: I was playing on hard.

Conclusion after first exposure: A hit and run tactic seems the most appropriate for this fight as blocking comes with a very high risk of him bursting through your low HP shield and leaving you open to attacks. I think any skills could be used on this boss but I'll do some more testing. As for level and gear I don't have much to say as of right now.

Update:
My second try with a level 14 character using only the iron sword, the wooden shield, the adventurer shirt, two attack rings, the phaseman boots and helmet with no skills at all (or arrows) was successfull on the 6:th try as I found that if you have him face left or right you can actually stand a bit above him so that he attacks even if he can't hit you. I will post a screenshot soon in the bug section for you to have a look at. (After taking a screenshot I relized that I was actually standing pretty far away from him.) Pretty easy fight once you know the patterns and understand that your shield is useless. XD This run was on hard as well.
 
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Mushmon

Green Slime
Here's some feedback on the fight with Marino. I enjoyed his moves, they were really unique, but limited. I feel like it was too easy of a fight for a boss fight. Does he have his own block? If not definitely add one to him, it would make the fight more interesting and difficult. also add more defense/health to him, I fought him with the wooden sword and shield at level 14 with no armor or accessories and only used the shadow skill on silver rank, even then it felt too easy, as I beat him without going below half health. His dash was easily dodge-able, and made the fight less fun since the only move that ever hit me was a flurry of jabs cheaply thrown at me in the beginning. I have not done the wooden weapons only fight on hard yet, but I did do the fight with my normal equipment and the shadow skill on silver on both difficulties. (^.^')> That might have been a little all over the place, I just wrote it as it came to mind. I'll post more as I try new things. EDIT: So I tried to fight him naked again with only the wood sword and shield, but this time on hard. Took me about 4 tries to beat him that way.
 

Own

Moderator
It was a fairly easy battle for me, but... I've beaten Arcade Mode a few times, so even on a low level character it would be easy-peasy. My friend with a regular build and level and no special items needed 3-4 tries to kill him, before I reccomended they get a pair of magic rings instead of the gloves they were using. After that they just ran around like mad and let their lightning cloud strike him down.

I really do wish that he had some sword of block or disable, though. Like, if you take a swing at his rapier while the very tip of the rapier is shining, you get stunned or weapon-broken briefly, like a shield break. Maybe for Marino 2.0?

I'd also like there to be a way to re-trigger the fight. It's hard to get an analysis of it when you can only do it once per character. Add him to the Pumpkin Woods in Arcade? Every other area has 3 boss battles.
 

GarlicJelly

Friendly Moderator (Formerly known as GoodStuff)
It was a fairly easy battle for me, but... I've beaten Arcade Mode a few times, so even on a low level character it would be easy-peasy. My friend with a regular build and level and no special items needed 3-4 tries to kill him, before I reccomended they get a pair of magic rings instead of the gloves they were using. After that they just ran around like mad and let their lightning cloud strike him down.

I really do wish that he had some sword of block or disable, though. Like, if you take a swing at his rapier while the very tip of the rapier is shining, you get stunned or weapon-broken briefly, like a shield break. Maybe for Marino 2.0?

I'd also like there to be a way to re-trigger the fight. It's hard to get an analysis of it when you can only do it once per character. Add him to the Pumpkin Woods in Arcade? Every other area has 3 boss battles.
You can actually copy the save file from the folder and save a copy of the world right before you fight him. Then all you have to do is replace your save file with the old copy to play him again with the same character. ;)
 

Khalismur

Green Slime
1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?
It could be a bit harder. His basic combo hurts but the charge attack is too easily dodged. It could be faster.

2. How many attempts did it take you before you defeated him?

Two.
3. What level and gear did your character have during the fight?
Lvl 13. Carrot Sword, Barrel Shield, Chain Mail, Pumpkin Mask, Health Amulet, Slimy Ring and Bird Feet.

4. What skills did you use to beat him?

Blade Flurry lvl 8. This skill is very strong against him, as one can stand in front of him, deliver the skill and walk away before he catches you with his small (deadly) combo...

5. Anything goes!

Make him faster!
 

Mushmon

Green Slime
1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?
It could be a bit harder. His basic combo hurts but the charge attack is too easily dodged. It could be faster.
I agree with this, i think he needs a whole other attack in the mix completely, like a block or dodge. He is much too easy to hit and dodge.


On another note, I feel like he should be a staged boss, but to do that he needs to be more hardy. Though I feel a staged fight with him would be better suited for a bit later in the game.
 
1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?
Too easy, but that must be because I was level 15 on normal mode.
2. How many attempts did it take you before you defeated him?
One.
3. What level and gear did your character have during the fight?
Lazer Sword, Barrel Shield (which I didn't use) Green slime armour, Phaseman Face, Phaseman Boots, Slimy ring and Red scarf
4. What skills did you use to beat him?
Shadow clone and spirit slash
5. Anything goes!
I loved the idea around it!
 

Azura

Green Slime
1. Did you experience the fight as too hard/too easy/just about right? Which attacks, if any, posed a problem for you?
A: Easy. But, surely, there's room for improvement. My suggestion is to make the battle longer, he has low HP and Defense and high Attack which can be easily countered by evading his attacks and striking hard when the opportunity presents itself.

2. How many attempts did it take you before you defeated him?
A: Normal Mode: 1 | Hard Mode: Not played yet | Multiplayer: Not played yet.


3. What level and gear did your character have during the fight?
A: Lv 13 | The Stinger, Iron Shield, Chain Mail, Red Hair Bow, Slimy Ring, Red Scarf, Mountain Boots, Blindfold.

4. What skills did you use to beat him?
A: Piercing Dash Lv 1, Blade Flurry Lv 9, Shadow Clone Lv 1, Dodging Strike Lv 1, Frosty Friend Lv 5.

5. Anything goes!
A: Well, i fought him with a character i created just for fun and it's by far my worst one and i must say that i really enjoyed the battle. But i noticed one thing: the battle didn't last long. If you guys are looking for a longer battle i strongly suggest to give him more HP and Defense and lower his Attack. His combo is nice, surprised me actually and caught me off guard. I'll play with my brother later to see how it goes on multiplayer.

Conclusion

Good battle but can be better if it lasts longer.
 
1. It was fairly easy, but it was definitely fun. None of the attacks were particularly difficult to avoid, but he did whack me with his dash a few times due to carelessness brought on by overconfidence/savoring the sound of my sword bouncing off of his head.

2. It technically took me 2 attempts, but I actually let him win the first time so I could hit him some more (I wasn't quite satisfied yet).

3. I believe I was level 16, and used the stinger sword. I don't recall my exact gear, but I know I used the blindfold+crown (arena reward). Possibly a pair of red rings (the attack boosters)?

4. I ran circles around him, pausing between his attacks to unload a quick Blade Flurry. That was literally the only skill I used.

5. OMG way cool music (I also dug the pre battle "vs" art!) - I think the fight could last longer, and a parry/dodge move might be a nice touch (maybe a little jump-back move similar to the little robot ball things in the Flying Fortress), but I have no idea how tough that might make it for casual players. My feelings are that death doesn't have much of a penalty for that fight, so if it takes them a few (or more) attempts, that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. But then again, I chose the path of the coward and selected "normal" difficulty with this character, so I should probably shut up about challenge.
 

Honorable_D

Green Slime
Lets all bear in mind that the players reporting their findings are likely veterans who've played the game for many hours.
 

Mushmon

Green Slime
I have no idea what you are talking about....I only have 100 hours of bug testing in this game. the other 8 are casual play XD
 

GarlicJelly

Friendly Moderator (Formerly known as GoodStuff)
Lets all bear in mind that the players reporting their findings are likely veterans who've played the game for many hours.
Did you get out anything else from it? Because I can't help that I've spent over 180 hours playing the story up until this recent update. xD If you (and maybe your friends) could bring a some new players experience to this thread that would be awesome! I will have my brothers try out the new boss fight (one of them hasn't played the game at all yet!) so that I can compare their experience to mine to see what was difficult. I think that to them the combat system will be the hardest part to get their heads around because if you haven't been farming you might have only player the game for 3-4 hours before you reach this boss and that sure might be a really hard challange. :p
 
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sYko

Green Slime
Tried it with two chars. One magic with the flies skill and one two handed with Whirlslash

1.
With magic char it was pretty easy. Because flies are pretty good against single target enemies. I had more problems with my melee char. Whirlslash is maybe not the best skill against him. Short Range+how long the animation takes for two spins makes it easy for him to hit me with his multi hit attack. edit: it was on Hard mode for both.

2.
Magic: 1 attempt. Melee: 4 attempts

3.
Magic: lvl 13, magic stuff gear. Melee: lvl 13, Smashlight weapon

4.
Magic: Summone flies skill only. Melee: Whirlslash, frost nova and the cloud minion.

5.
Like some people said, fight was a little short. Maybe there could be second phase. Haha or he throws it into the lake next to his house and it creates a mutant boss fish, because he ate the Amulett, you then fight together with Marino against the fish and get the amulett back after the fight.

edit: because this is my first post on this forum i have to say this game is really amazing. If the rest of the content has the same quality and you balance the skills more it could be one of the best 2D old school snes like rpgs ever :)
 
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t4e.axel

Green Slime
1. Easy
2. One
3. Lv.15, Best Gear, Also Fought him with wooden gear, bad armor. Same result.
4. None...it was a while since I last played and I kinda forgot to use them, Blade Flurry Lv 10 with wooden gear XD
5. I think Marino should use the power of the artifact to boost himself or make an hell-bullet attack like GunD4m or some other nice attack to make him more challenging. Also: I want the fairy as a permanent pet. I want to fight the Grand Master. I want to fight the bag :D
 
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