Challenge 4-S2, 3 Turns - Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

Challenge 4-S2 completed in 3 turns. This is an improvement from the previous record, which cleared the level in 4 turns. The total number of turns for the main game challenge levels is now 98.

About 30 minutes of time was spent thinking of a way to reliably clear the final four zones on turn 3, which was cut from this upload to improve the viewing experience. You can find the uncut version of this run here:    • Challenge 4-S2, 3 Turns - Mario + Rabbids ...  

I revisited the level after finding an old reddit post detailing a guide with very interesting strategies for lowering RNG: https://www.reddit.com/r/mariorabbids...

Although the only thing I kept from the guide is the use of Yoshi's Ink Rocket at the beginning, it inspired me to look for more ways bring a 3 turn closer to reality. One big change was switching Rabbid Peach for Rabbid Luigi for more consistent setups and cover destruction. It became clear after many attempts that it's more important to set up optimal zones for the endgame rather than just getting as many as you can on turn 1. The most interesting aspect of this strategy is the Burn RNG, which is unavoidable to the point where there is no set strategy after turn 1. There are many different routes I could have taken based on the RNG as well.


Characters:

Mario
Rabbid Luigi - Weaken and Super Barrier protect himself and other heroes from fainting or getting crippled by enemy attacks. His Rocket inflicts Push on the final turn and destroys a lot of cover.
Yoshi - His Ground Pound helped destroy cover blocks, which were crucial for manipulating enemy movement and improving the chances of good Burn RNG. Super Chance also helped guarantee a critical hit on Rabbid Luigi's Push Rocket on the final turn. Lastly, his Ink Rocket prevents the enemies besides Bowser Jr. from attacking on turn 1.

Notes:

-This level has some of the most inconsistent RNG in the entire lowest turns challenge. Chapter 4-6 Battle 2 and Donkey Kong Adventure 4-Boss still have it worse in my opinion, but I think it still beats most other levels in that regard.

-It is important to destroy the cover blocks with the Rockets and Ground Pound on turn 1 so Bowser Jr. can move to the center of the map. Burn RNG inflicted by Bowser Jr. seems more likely to land heroes in zones, which is also made more likely by the destruction of cover blocks.

-Rabbid Luigi's Super Barrier protects against many annoying Super Effects on turn 2, including Bwario's Freeze, Bwaluigi's Honey after Magnet Dance, and a Pyroclast.

-Weaken is used primarily to lower Bowser Jr.'s damage. Without Weaken, he can KO heroes with combined attacks from the enemy rabbids and other sources of damage. This can happen even if the heroes have a lot of HP. I generally avoid letting Bowser Jr. attack multiple times during turn 2 for this reason.

-It is possible to reach 5 zones during turn 1 by placing Mario in the zone directly behind Rabbid Luigi and letting Bowser Jr. knock Mario into another zone. However, I chose to move Mario to the furthest right zone because our heroes generally gravitate towards the left in later turns, which makes it difficult to return to that zone later. Burn RNG typically never moves a hero there either. The zone we miss by doing this strategy is one of the easier zones to reach anyway.

-Egg Beater is used on turn 1 to lure Bowser Jr. towards Yoshi and Strike Bounce Rabbid Luigi to the 4th zone. Rabbid Luigi will still be knocked in the right direction without Egg Beater, but Bowser Jr. will chase Mario and occupy the spot Rabbid Luigi is supposed to land on.

-One benefit of having our heroes start by taking out zones on the right side is that the Lava Queen can use Scaredy Hero to move them, which I've had take out up to two zones by itself.

-If Mario starts turn 2 next to a cover block, a strategically typically employed is to have Yoshi's Ground Pound destroy to hopefully make Mario run into a zone. (Usually after Rabbid Luigi triggers Bwario's Villain Sight first.)

-An important detail to remember about this level is that the walls that surround it will ricochet a hero or enemy back if they are Pushed into it. This is one of the ways I try to get middle-left zones at the same on turn 3.

-Rabbid Luigi does not have enough skill orbs to get all the upgrades he wants, so I had to sacrifice the final range upgrade on Weaken. If you want this upgrade anyway, the infinite skill tree upgrade glitch can be used.

-Mario and Yoshi want to maximize their HP in the skill tree, which they can do since they don't need some of the damage upgrades. They actually want less damage so they don't defeat a hero or enemy that can be used later in the run.

-Rabbid Luigi and Yoshi have lower damage primary weapons in case they need to lure Bowser Jr. or Bwaluigi without defeating them. Mario keeps his strongest primary in case he can defeat Bwario.