Mercenary Defense is a minigame in Crystal Story II. It is connected to Icy Pass to the north, Great Plains to the south, Lake to the east, and in the Steam Version, Rift to the West.
Area[]
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Gameplay[]
There are 7 types of Mercenary units you can use. They are: Miner, Ice Mage, Guard, Fire Mage, Healer, Warrior, and Lightning Mage.
Some units need to be unlocked:
- Healer Coupon is required for level 5 and further; it is obtained by defeating Samurai King for the Lost Robot Quest.
- Lightning Coupon is required for level 6 and further; it is obtained by defeating the King Slime for the Double Crosser X Quest, which opens up after beating the Dargon King.
| Unit | Cost | Upgrade Cost | HP | Upgraded HP | HP with Coupon Bonus | Upgraded HP with Coupon Bonus | Damage | Upgraded Damage | Damage with Coupon Bonus | Upgraded Damage with Coupon Bonus | Bonus from |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miner | 75g | No upgrade | 20 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Merc Pick |
| Warrior | 50g | 50g | 75 | ~180 | - | - | 20 | 50 | 25 | 62 | Merc Axe |
| Guard | 75g | 75g | 200 | ~600 | ~360 | 900 | 30 | 70 | - | - | Merc Shield |
| Fire Mage | 50g | 50g | 20 | ~50 | - | - | 15 | 35 | 19 | 46 | Merc Wand |
| Ice Mage | 75g | 75g | 20 | ~80 | - | - | 10 | 25 | - | - | Merc Sweater |
| Lightning Mage | 150g | 100g | 20 | ~50 | - | - | 35 | 60 | - | - | Merc Rod |
| Healer | 50g | 50g | 50 | ~50 | - | - | 2 | 5 | 4 | 10 | Merc Meds |
Enemies[]
| Enemy | Damage per Attack | HP | Attribute(s) | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earth Slime | 2 | 75 | Usually the first enemy of every level | 3g (all levels except bonus level)
0g (bonus level) |
| Zombie | 4 | 150 | Fast movement | 4g |
| Brownie | 0 | 50 | Weakest enemy (health and damage); may stop moving; may not follow patterns of switching lanes | 25g |
| Bat | 8 | 100 | Fast movement; can fly over pits | 5g |
| Skeleton Armor | 8 | 400 | Rapid attacks | 6g |
| Skeleton Archer | 5 | 150 | Shoots fire (with the same properties as a Fire Mage) | 5g |
| Imp | 6 | 300 | Travel in groups; fast movement | 4g |
| Minotaur | 15 | 450 | 10g | |
| Gargantuan | 5 | 1000 | Level 1 Boss | 0g |
| Werewolf | 10 | Very High | Level 2 Boss | |
| Fire Spirit | 15 | Level 3 Boss | ||
| Orc | 5 | Level 4 Boss
Shoots fire (with the same properties as a Fire Mage) in its lane & its two adjacent lanes | ||
| SASQUASH | 20 | Level 5 Boss | ||
| Sphynx | 10 | Level 6 Boss | ||
| BAO | 25 | Level 7 Boss |
Bosses appear once per level, as the last enemy, and in the center lane. They carry 0g, and each of them have very high HP.
(The Sphynx is an exception, as 3 of them spawn and will quickly group together onto the same square.)
Items[]
These can be bought in the Shops of Crystalia and Warm Yeti (same price):
| Item | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Merc Pick | Increase the maximum amount of mercenary Miners to 5. | 7000 G |
| Merc Axe | Increase the attack damage of all mercenary Warriors. | 5000 G |
| Merc Wand | Increase the attack of all mercenary Fire Mages. | 4000 G |
| Merc Sweater | Increase the attack speed of all mercenary Ice Mages. | 5000 G |
| Merc Shield | Increase the HP of all mercenary Guard. | 6000 G |
| Merc Meds | Increase the healing of all mercenary Healers. | 5000 G |
| Merc Rod | Increase the range of all mercenary Lightning Mages. | 7000 G |
Note that it is possible to buy more than one of the same item, but doing so will have the same effect as buying only one item. In the player's inventory, they are sorted within "Miscellaneous", so none of the items can be sold.
Rewards[]
| Level | Rewards (Flash) | Rewards (Deluxe Version) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miner Coupon | Miner Coupon, Scrap Metal x20 |
| 2 | Ice Coupon | Ice Coupon, Scrap Metal x20, Topaz |
| 3 | Start SPD | Start SPD, Scrap Metal x20, Amethyst |
| 4 | Booster | Booster, Scrap Metal x50 |
| 5 | Last Regen | Last Regen, Stat ALL |
| Bonus Level | None | |
| 6 | SP Ring | SP Ring, Stat ALL |
| 7 | Ruby | |
Level 7 can be repeated multiple times for random rewards:
| Item |
|---|
| Ruby / Sapphire |
| Elemental Charms |
| Elemental Gems |
| Start Items |
| Last Items |
| Plate I / Trinket I |
| Circlet I / Amulet I / Gauntlets I / Boots I |
| Full Armor I / Helm I / Shield I |
| Talisman I / Status Rings |
| SP Ring, Booster, Dice, Mirror, Monocle |
Of the 6 gems in the game, only Ruby or Sapphire will be awarded from this minigame. Exactly one of these possible 51 types of accessory slot equipment and these two gems will be rewarded, so the odds of getting one specific item appears to be 1 out of 53, being a probability of <1.9%.
Cut-scenes[]
Notes/Trivia[]
- Ironically, Imps take damage from fire mages.
- The <Castle> music plays in the background, even while the game is paused or won.
- A glitch allows two units to occupy the same space, when a unit is moved to a square in the back four rows where another unit can be built on that square before the other unit arrives.
- When you win, fire from Fire Mages will hover but the flames will still flicker.
- When upgraded, all units will move faster and have their health regenerated to full upgrade value.
- Ice Mages and Fire Mages can only shoot again once the current projectile hits an enemy, hits a tree, or goes out of the screen.
- Healers have a lightning animation when they heal a soldier, which happens to be the same animation as a Lightning Mage hitting an enemy.
- The Bonus level has several differences from all other levels:
- Only Warriors can be built.
- Units cannot be upgraded.
- Only Earth Slimes spawn, and can spawn on any square (including one with a warrior)
- Earth Slimes have less health than normal. (from 41 to 60 HP)
- They do not give gold when killed.
- A ruby is guaranteed to be rewarded the first time Level 7 is won.