Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat - Enemy Guide
Author: Alice Grunstra
E-mail:
[email protected]
System: PlayStation 2
Version: 1.2
Last Updated: 7:52 PM, June 12, 2003
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-=TABLE OF CONTENTS=-
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Section 1: Copyright Information
Section 2: Version History
Section 3: Introduction
Section 4: Enemies
4.1 - Pirates
4.2 - Crabs
4.3 - Apes
4.4 - Turrets
4.5 - Skeletons
4.6 - Skulls
4.7 - Sirens
4.8 - Bombardiers
4.9 - Gunners
4.10 - Flying Spiders
4.11 - Natives
4.12 - Cursed Idols
4.13 - Guardian Idols
4.14 - Will-o'-the-Wisps
4.15 - Yetis
4.16 - Winter Wolves
4.17 - Firebats
4.18 - Fire Toads
4.19 - Magma Worms
Section 5: Bosses
5.1 - Blackbeard
5.2 - Skeleton Warrior
5.3 - Giant Crab
5.4 - Voodoo Master
5.5 - Ice Demon
5.6 - Valkyrie
5.7 - Flame Demon
5.8 - Captain Hawke
Section 6: Acknowledgements
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1) -=COPYRIGHT INFORMATION=-
This guide is copyright 2003 by me, Alice Grunstra, AKA Syndarr. It is not
meant for commercial use. You may print and reproduce it, but you may not alter
it in any way, and you may not use it to gain any direct or indirect profit. If
you are inspired by this guide and want to use it as a basis for your own
writing, please give credit where credit is due.
Submitted tips are credited to those who sent them in, and fall under the same
restrictions as the rest of this guide. Please note that if you do submit any
information, I reserve the right to edit it for content and for errors in
spelling and grammar.
"Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat" is copyright Westwood Studios. No attempt is
made in writing this guide to infringe on any of these rights.
All other trademarks and copyrights contained in this document and not
explicitly mentioned herein are owned by their respective holders.
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2) -=VERSION HISTORY=-
1.0 - 3/18/03 - First incarnation of this guide, with everything you see here.
:)
1.1 - 4/25/03 - Added to the Magma Worm strategy. Thanks to Karl Woods for the
tip.
1.2 - 6/12/03 - Changed my e-mail address, since the sluggy.net one has become
a sinkhole of spam. Tweaked a few of the strategies a bit. Also got two more
contributions to the Magma Worm strategy, and added those. Thanks to Chris
Howard and MidnightJester for the tips.
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3) -=INTRODUCTION=-
Aharr, matey! 'Tis a grand day ta be piratin'! But avast, thar be scads o'
scurvy scoundrels waitin' ta slit yer gizzard! So this here guide be yer
treasure map ta victory, me hearties!
Ahem. To translate: Our lovely and talented heroine, Katarina de Leon, will
undoubtedly face untold dangers in her travels throughout the Five Seas. This
is a guide detailing the strategies I've found to work best against the various
enemies that you'll face in your role as the Black Kat. I have also included
information as to where the specific enemies can be found, and there is a guide
to the bosses at the end as well.
Note that I am only covering the enemies and bosses that you will face on land,
since there are distinct strategies that should be used for each one. In the
future, I may expand the guide to include sea battles as well, if I get the
demand for it. Also note that I am using my own terminology for the enemies; I
don't know their official names. I have included descriptions of the general
behavior of the enemies, though, so you should be able to figure out what I'm
talking about that way.
And now, without further ado, on to the guide!
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4) -=ENEMIES=-
4.1) -Pirates-
These guys can be found on just about every island. They come in many varieties
and difficulties. They won't really give you too much trouble unless there are
a lot of them. Just remember to block, and don't be afraid to be aggressive.
They're only human, just like you. But unlike you, they don't have nifty
magical swords. ;) Watch for their varying modes of attack--some like to stab,
while others prefer a series of two or three slashes--and anticipate them.
Modify your strategy based on their distribution; you may want to take out the
less dangerous ones before going after the toughies (like the guys with hats
and peg-legs). Treat the ghost and zombie pirates the same as you would any
normal ones, and ditto for the Vikings--there's really not much difference.
4.2) -Crabs-
Found on pretty much any island with a beach. They like to swarm you, but
they're nothing to be too afraid of. A good strategy is to start swinging when
you're not quite within range; your next slash will hit them, and then you can
just keep hitting until they flip over. Of course, once you get a more powerful
sword, you won't even need to do that; your first hit will be enough. ;) Watch
out for them hidden in clumps of grass; they're sneaky little buggers.
4.3) -Apes-
First encountered on Ape Island (naturally), and on two or three other
temperate islands. They have two attacks--a backhand slap, and an overhead
smash with both fists. Watch out for the latter, as it will stun you. Block
this, then go in for the kill. Be careful if they surround you, as they will do
sometimes; just keep blocking until you see an opening, and go for it.
4.4) -Turrets-
Not so much an enemy as a hazard, these things are first encountered on Ape
Island, and show up later scattered all over the islands. They also tend to
appear when there are other foes around, which makes them that much more
dangerous. You can't block their shots, but if you keep moving, they'll miss
more often than not. You can also employ other enemies as a shield, if you can
manage to get them between you and the turret. A lot of turrets only have a
certain arc within which they'll fire; if you can find a place to stand outside
this arc, so much the better. The only way to destroy a turret is with kegs.
This is a good opportunity to figure out what Katarina's range with the things
is. You don't have to score a direct hit, just try to get the keg to land close
by. You'll know you've got it in the right place when the turret is engulfed in
flames when the keg explodes. The earlier turrets only take three minikegs to
destroy and reveal treasure chests when they explode; later on, they can take
up to six and don't give you any compensation for your trouble. What a ripoff!
4.5) -Skeletons-
First encountered in the Lonely Tombs, and subsequently swarming all over the
Haunted Isles. Bet ya didn't expect that, did you? ;) The only really dangerous
thing about these guys is that they tend to dig up from the ground when you're
not looking and sneak up on you, and they almost always attack in groups. Treat
them the same as you would the pirates--just block and attack. Watch out if
they're accompanied by Skulls, though.
4.6) -Skulls-
These little buggers are annoying as all hell. They only appear in the
Haunted Isles, and they can only take a few hits, but there seem to be no end
of them; the minute you kill one, another one shows up. They like to attack
with two quick bites, so block those, and then take the opportunity when they
pause to smack them a good one. It's not advisable to waste too much time on
these guys, since they don't really stop attacking. Just kill enough to give
you some breathing space, then run past them. If you feel like risking it, they
often drop red hearts to make up for their severe annoyance factor. It's
usually worth it, since they don't hurt you all that badly when they hit you.
Just make sure not to get hit too much.
4.7) -Sirens-
These only inhabit the Haunted Isles. Be careful when they are around; you may
not even see them come up on you, and you can't block their attack, which stuns
you--this is a bad thing when there are other enemies around, which happens
quite often. When you hear a Siren "winding up", get out of her range, then
run back and hit her until she dies (again), and do it quickly. Keep in mind
that you can't hit a Siren when she's moving, so you may have to wait for her
to scream before you attack. The good thing about them is that that's their
only attack, and they can't take much punishment. If you don't feel like
getting your eardrums busted by attacking them close-up, you can toss knives at
them from a distance. Skeletons tend to drop knives, so you don't really have
to worry too much about running out.
4.8) -Bombardiers-
These pirates can be recognized from afar by their red hair, bare chests, and
green pants. Like all pirates, they show up anywhere. It's a good idea to watch
out for these guys, because once they start hucking their kegs at you, it's
hard to get away. Keep your distance; if you get caught in their explosion,
jump to escape, or else by the time you've gotten back up, they'll have thrown
another one at you. Take them out with throwing knives at a distance. Ideally,
you should wait for one to ready a keg; then hit him with a knife or a keg of
your own, and he'll drop it, blowing himself up instead of you. If you can get
them to blow each other up, that's even better.
4.9) -Gunners-
Female pirates that also show up just about anywhere. Quite simply, they're a
joke. If you're not expecting them, they can do some respectable damage, but in
their purple clothing, they're easy to spot from far off. The best thing to do
with these ladies is to let them do your job for you. They often attack at long
range while their buddies with swords get in close, so just stand there
blocking the swordsmen, let them surround you, and wait for the gunner's
bullets to take care of them. Then, once they're all taken out, run up close to
the gunner and block. Stay far enough away that she still attacks you by
shooting instead of swinging her gun at you. Don't worry about getting it
perfect the first time, since she'll usually back off a few steps so that she
can shoot at you. If you can get the right distance and angle, her bullet will
bounce off your sword and hit her instead. Fun! Of course, if you don't want to
bother waiting, just go ahead and hit her. She'll go down very easily once you
get in close.
4.10) -Flying Spiders-
These nasty little things are native to the Voodoo Isles, and they're the first
enemy you meet that will poison you. They're surprisingly tough, and pretty
fast to boot. Watch out when they start hovering in the air; get away from them
if you can and wait for them to land, then attack relentlessly. If you get
caught in their cloud of poison gas, just go all-out and attack with wild
abandon. Often, it's better to just avoid them; they're usually not worth the
trouble.
4.11) -Natives-
For some reason, these locals of the Voodoo Isles can teleport. Watch for them
to start spinning their spears; that's when they're about to do it, and they
always show up right behind you. Don't worry too much, and don't bother turning
to face them. When you block their spear-thrusts, you'll automatically turn
around. Use this moment to go in for the kill. If they teleport again, just
repeat the process. Try to take out one at a time; they often line up behind
you instead of surrounding you, which makes your job a little easier. You know
they're dead when they stagger back and vanish in a puff of smoke instead of a
burst of light.
4.12) -Cursed Idols-
These things are NASTY. They're fast, vicious, and most of your long-range
weapons just bounce right off of their spiky wooden bodies. They can be found
all over the Voodoo Isles, and it's impossible to tell them from a normal
wooden idol until they start moving. The good part is that they really can't
take much punishment at all. If you have the opportunity, back off until they
stop reacting to you, then toss a keg at them. Otherwise, the best thing to do
is block the initial attack, then try to get right up in their ugly faces and
swing. Keep your finger on the block button at all times; they're pretty
unpredictable, and they can wear you down quickly, especially if there are more
than one of them.
4.13) -Guardian Idols-
As if the spiked ones weren't bad enough, their taller, skinnier cousins spit
poison at you, and they don't make noise, so there's no warning unless you
actually see one turn in your direction. Kegs are a good way to go here as
well, although if you can get close enough to one, they go down after just a
few swings. Nothing like a forest full of these things to make you paranoid.
At least these idols don't move!
4.14) -Will-o'-the-Wisps-
These are floating blue balls of light that inhabit the Frozen Isles. You can't
fight them, and if you touch them, they freeze you solid. They don't hurt you,
though, so you don't have to worry too much about them unless there are some
floating around other enemies. Just be careful to stay away from them if you
don't want to risk a pounding.
4.15) -Yetis-
Huge, furry, loud, ugly, and just downright unpleasant. The worst thing about
these denizens of the Frozen Isles is that they don't react to your sword
blows. Sure, they get hurt, but they don't stumble back or stop attacking.
They're not too bright, though, and they're fairlly predictable. Like the apes
to which they are no doubt related, they have two attacks--a sideways swipe
with their clubs, and an overhead smash that stuns you if it hits. Some of them
also throw rocks (snowballs?) from a distance. They tend to attack first with a
lot of swipes, then a smash. Block the swipes, then when they raise their clubs
overhead, step around to the side and start hitting. Also watch for them to
pause and growl at you; this is another good opportunity to attack, but be
careful, because they usually start their pattern over again after they do
this. If you're really feeling outmatched, just haul out with a Fire Tiki. They
don't like that at all.
4.16) -Winter Wolves-
The hardest thing about these cute little snow puppies is just hitting them.
They're really fast. They attack either by standing still and breathing their
icy-cold breath at you, or by charging in and taking bites out of your
delicious body; the rest of the time they spend running laps around you, often
disappearing from your vision completely to come back at you from a totally
different direction. Chase them down and cut them down to size, and run around
like a madwoman to avoid their freezing breath, which you can't block.
4.17) -Firebats-
Once you get into the Volcanic Isles, you're going to want to do a lot of
running, because most of the beasts there just aren't worth fighting. As long
as you don't get too close to these little flying menaces, they usually won't
notice you. If you feel like some target practice, go ahead and toss knives at
them; they attack too quickly to really bother with close-in fighting. While
you can block their bursts of flame, it's hard to get in a hit between them.
4.18) -Fire Toads-
I HATE these things. Hate them, hate them, hate them. They're sort of a worse
version of the Winter Wolves. They attack by either breathing a gout of fire,
or spitting fireballs, neither of which are blockable. If you run up close to
them (try doing it from the side, so you don't get blasted by their fire
breath), they'll tend to hop around aimlessly rather than attacking. This, of
course, is when you slice them to pieces. Be careful! When you succeed in
killing one, it will start smoking and running around wildly, often in pursuit
of you, and then explode. Do your best not to get caught in the blast.
4.19) -Magma Worms-
Just plain awful. These ungodly things tunnel around beneath the rock of the
Volcanic Isles; you can tell when one's in the area by puffs of dirt rising
from the ground. When you see that, RUN. You can't block their attacks, and
it's very difficult to fight them effectively; most of the time, you can't even
dodge them, because you can't see where they're coming from. Pay attention to
the vibration of the controller. When it gets very rapid, jump; the worm will
miss you if you time it right. Don't stick around; just get out of there as
quickly as possible.
**UPDATE: Karl Woods has this to say about the Magma Worms:
"I discovered that if you move the controller knob only enough so that Kat
walks instead of runs, the worms will not attack. They seem to only be
interested in quick steps. You can even walk right over the little dust clouds
they make, although the controller will still vibrate ominously. I did manage
to slash one before it had a chance to pull back into the ground, but
determined the best strategy was just to avoid them altogether by walking."
Cool. :) I haven't tried this myself, since the game was a rental when I played
it, but I'd say this strategy is definitely worth an attempt. Anything to avoid
getting chewed on by these horrors.
**UPDATE #2: I have received two more submissions from other oh-so-helpful
Worm-slayers. Chris Howard confirms that the walking strategy "works like a
charm", and adds:
"A couple of things that might also buy you a little bit of time (and on a
very rare occasion actually kills one of these nasty buggers) is to drop an Ice
Tiki on them. It will, at the minimum, freeze them long enough for you to get
away."
And once again the Ice Tikis are shown to be your bestest friend. ;) In
addition, MidnightJester recommends kegs as the best weapon to use against
these monstrosities. He says, "It takes good aim but it's usually worth
it...they like to drop rubies (approx 1000-3500 doubloons worth)". Certainly
motive enough for any true treasure-huntin' pirate. ;)
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5) -=BOSSES=-
5.1) -Blackbeard-
As the first boss you face, he's not all that bad. Just watch out when his
sword starts glowing; stay away from him rather than trying to block, because
you can't. Block his normal attacks, and just hammer away at him with your
sword. He's a pretty smart fighter (that is, he's good at blocking), but he
can't stand up to you for long.
5.2) -Skeleton Warrior-
I used an Ice Tiki on this undead menace. It's not strictly necessary, but it's
a good way to get in some serious damage on him before he can hurt you very
much. Like Blackbeard, just keep whacking away at him and watch out for his
attacks; he's somewhat faster and stronger than Blackbeard was. The operative
word being "was". Heh heh heh.
5.3) -Giant Crab-
This is the first boss that actually requires some strategy. You'll quickly
discover that you can't hurt it by attacking its hard shell with your sword.
Beware when it holds its claws in front of its face and charges at you. I don't
know if there's any way to stop it from doing this besides getting hit; you
can't block it, and jumping doesn't seem to help very much. As to the strategy,
you'll want to get right up in front of it when it's not charging and hack away
at its face. Use your special moves if you've got them. After a bit of this,
the crab will be stunned. Back off and chuck a keg at it. It will flip over
onto its back, exposing its vulnerable belly. Run back and slash away for all
you're worth. Eventually, after you do about two skulls' worth of damage, it
will right itself and come after you again; just repeat the process until the
thing gives up the ghost.
5.4) -Voodoo Master-
You can't defeat this guy the first time you meet him; he'll put a curse on you
that will reverse your controls. Turn your controller upside down and book it
out of there. After you've completed the quest for the Witch Doctor, go back to
the Voodoo Master, voodoo doll in hand, and get ready for a hairy fight. The
Voodoo Master has an impressive array of spells at his disposal. He'll start
out by raising an army of skeletons around you and zooming away while you're
distracted. He can suck the life out of you and add it to his own, much like
the effect of a Vampire Skull. He can also call down a rain of spears which
will strike the ground in a straight line in one direction. Finally, he has a
minor version of his original curse, which will just reverse your directional
controller for a short time. Avoid the spears by getting out of their way, and
if he gets you with one of his blasts of green confusing magic, just run around
randomly, trying not to get hit, until it wears off. Despite all his posturing,
the Voodoo Master is vulnerable to just about everything. Use Tikis, slash him
with your sword, throw things at him--whatever you've got, use it. The biggest
problem is getting him to hold still for more than two seconds. This is where
an Ice Tiki might come in handy. A Lightning Tiki is good for getting those
skeletons off your back. Poison darts are nice; they'll drain about as much
life out of him as he gets from sucking it out of you. When I fought him, it
was a poisoned dart that finished him off. How dramatic. Not to mention
cathartic. ;)
5.5) -Ice Demon-
Naturally, Ice Tikis will be totally useless in this fight. However, the Ice
Demon isn't as nasty as he looks. All you have to do is avoid his frost breath,
which is just like that of the Winter Wolves. Get in close and chop at his legs
while he's hovering in the air, which he does a lot. I don't know if he has any
other attacks besides the frost breath, because I didn't give him any time to
use them. Keep that sword swinging relentlessly, and maybe throw in a Fire Tiki
every now and then, and he'll go down in no time.
5.6) -Valkyrie-
Once again, the Ice Tiki is your best friend. The Valkyrie will summon Winter
Wolves to nip at your heels while you're trying to take her down. This is not
fun if you end up getting frozen by their breath. The best way to go about this
is to just freeze the Valkyrie solid as quickly as possible, then carve her up
real good while she's helpless. You can take care of the Winter Wolves at your
leisure after she's been defeated, unless they're really giving you trouble; in
that case, feel free to hunt them down when you have a spare moment.
5.7) -Flame Demon-
Put simply, this guy SUCKS. You can't hurt him with your sword, you can't block
his attacks, your Tikis have no effect, and if that weren't bad enough, he
generates Fire Toads to get in your way and roast you. The trick to beating him
is to stock up on hammers and kegs (both mini and mega) before going up against
him. Fling these at him with wild abandon until he falls off the ledge he's on.
Hopefully, by this time, you've figured out Katarina's range with the kegs and
can place them close enough to knock him back. Then follow him down to the next
ledge and do the same thing until he lands in the big pool of lava, and you've
won. The nice thing about this fight is that you have an unlimited supply of
hammers and mini-kegs, if you're willing to be patient and do a lot of running
back and forth (and when it comes down to it, I'd rather run back and forth a
lot than get burned to a crisp). There's a square of tile-like rocks on the
second and third ledges that generate five hammers and a flagon of Grog,
respectively, so as long as you keep an eye on your life, you'll be all right.
There are also a few mini-kegs near the edge of the third platform. Just keep
teleporting back up and grabbing more hammers, then hopping down and throwing
them at him. The most frustrating parts of this will be a) getting him to face
the right way, since he always moves backwards with regards to the way he's
facing, even if you throw a hammer or a keg at him from a different direction;
and b) the fact that he tends to wander back away from the edge of the
platforms when you teleport up to get more hammers, thus undoing a bunch of
progress. Just keep it up, swig down Grog whenever you start to get weak, dodge
his blasts of fire like crazy, and take a swipe at his little pets whenever you
get a chance. You'll finish him eventually. You might want to toss a few
Vampire Skulls around to soften up the little buggers if you can't get to the
Grog right away.
5.8) -Captain Hawke-
After that Flame Demon, this guy is a pushover. He's got some pretty funky
attacks, and unlike the normal pirates, he DOES have a nifty magical sword. But
he's flesh and bone just like you, and he's vulnerable to whatever you have on
hand. Just toss everything you've got at him (Lightning Tikis are nice), and
break in your new sword by running him through with it. Don't hold back; this
is the last boss on land, so you can pretty much do what you like with him.
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6) -=ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS=-
I'd like to thank GameFAQs for hosting this, and Westwood Studios for making
this nifty nifty game. I stayed up until 8 in the morning playing it.
I'd also like to thank Edward, AKA Coeloptera, for helping me figure out some
of these strategies.
And I'd like to thank Karl Woods, Chris Howard, and MidnightJester for
submitting cool tips for dealing with the Magma Worms. You guys rock. :)
If you'd like to contribute to this guide, go ahead and e-mail me at
[email protected]. I will give you full credit in further versions of this
guide, if there are any.
