After getting transported into the mysterious realm of Weapon World in Super Mario RPG, you’ll soon encounter another boss, Count Down. This boss is a large clock, yes…a clock. Also, it has two bells on top of it called “Ring-a-Ding ‘’ which have their own set of attacks. This is one of the few bosses in the game that can cause you problems if you don’t come prepared, so read on to find out what party you should bring, what equipment you should equip, and what attacks you need to watch out for.

Where to Find Count Down¶

When you reach Weapon World, head northeast into the next room. In this room, you’ll need to make it across to the opposite platform by standing on the nut. Keep jumping on it to move it forward to reach the platform with the save point. Save your game, and head into the following room. Do the same again in the next area while avoiding/defeating the enemies until you reach the platform in the southeast. Both of the bridges lead to the same place, so it doesn’t matter which one you take. The following room will have a green switch, and when you approach it, you’ll be ambushed by numerous Ameboids. Either rush the green switch, and head across the new path, or defeat the enemies, and then hit the switch. Either way, head into the next room, where you’ll find another save point.

Weapon World Hidden Treasure¶

Save your game, but before going into the next room, stand in the northwest corner of the platform, and jump in the air to find a hidden treasure which contains a Recovery Mushroom. This will most likely be the last treasure you need. Once you have the treasure, proceed into the next room where you’ll find another chest that contains the Ultra Hammer for Mario. Jump on the nearby spring to reach the bolt bridges, and make your way across them to the upper platform. Jump on the spring to the next room where you’ll find Count Down.

Best Party for Count Down¶

Both Count Down and the Ring-a-Dings can deal major damage to your party at any time as well as inflict various status effects including a mortal blow. For this reason, Peach will be a mainstay, as she’ll need to heal the party frequently and remove status effects. The other party member you want to bring is Mallow. Both the enemies are weak to lightning, and Mallow just happens to have a spell called “Shocker” which is exactly that. For their equipment, make sure Peach has the Safety Ring equipped to prevent all status effects, including mortal blow. Mario should equip the Lazy Shell (Armor) for similar reasons (won’t prevent mortal blow), and finally, Mallow should equip the Jinx Belt which can also prevent mortal blow as well as give him nice stat increases.

How to Defeat Count Down in Weapon World¶

Count Down Weakness¶

Ring-a-ding Weakness¶

As stated above, this is more of a challenge than other bosses, but you should be okay provided you have followed the recommendations above. Count Down will use a different attack depending on what time it has on its clock face. For example, if the clock face is showing 1:00, it will use an ice-based spell such as Crystal, or Ice Rock. However, Ring-a-Ding will cast its spells randomly. The biggest threat from Count Down is when the clock face shows 12:00 as it’ll use its Flare attack which hits the entire party for significant damage, while Ring-a-Ding’s most potent attack is Fear Roulette due to it causing a mortal blow.

It should go without saying, but Ring-a-Ding should be your priority, and you should focus on one bell at a time. However, if Peach has any downtime, you should use Psych Bomb to hit all enemies while Mallow should cast either Shocker on one bell, or Snowy to hit all the enemies at once, but at a cost of less damage. With Mario, focus on using Ultra Jump, or regular timed attacks, and focus on the same bell as the other two members. When you defeat both the bells, turn your attention to Count Down. Keep using the same strategy above with Mario using Super Jump, Mallow using Shocker, and Peach using Psych Bomb when she’s not healing. Before long, you’ll defeat Count Down and Ring-a-Ding, and then you can continue traversing Weapon World.

Count Down Attacks¶

Count Down attacks are based on what its clock face shows, here is what you can expect depending on the time depicted on the clock.

Crystal¶

A single-target ice-based attack. Count Down will drop three rocks of ice on a party member’s head for moderate damage. The action prompt will appear after the second rock of ice lands on your head, just before the third makes its way down.

Ice Rock¶

A single-target ice-based attack. Unlike Crystal, this is just one large rock. However, this attack deals significant damage if not blocked. The action prompt will appear

Recover¶

Count Down will heal itself for a moderate amount of health.

Aurora Flash¶

An area-of-effect attack that deals significant damage to the party while also inflicting the sleep status. Beams of aurora light will rain down from the sky, hitting all party members. This attack cannot be blocked.

Mega Recover¶

Count Down will heal itself for a substantial amount of health.

Water Blast¶

An area-of-effect water-based attack that deals moderated damage to the party. This attack cannot be blocked.

Petal Blast¶

An area-of-effect attack that deals moderated damage to the party as well as inflicting mushroom. This attack cannot be blocked.

Flare¶

An area-of-effect fire-based attack that deals significant damage to the party.

Ring-a-Ding Attacks¶

Dark Star¶

A single target attack where a large dark star will bounce three times before dealing moderate damage. The action prompt appears after the third bounce, just as it’s about to land.

Doom Reverb¶

A large bell will appear above a random party member before inflicting the mute status. This attack cannot be blocked.

Fear Roulette¶

Arguably the worst attack the whole boss has to offer, especially if it does it twice in a row. Ring-a-Ding will select a party member at random before inflicting a mortal bow (instant death). I hope you are equipped with one of the recommended accessories!

Scarecrow Bell¶

A large bell will appear above a random party member before inflicting the scarecrow status. This attack cannot be blocked.

Spore Chimes¶

Similar to Scarecrow Bell, another bell will appear above your head, albeit a different one which will inflict the mushroom status. This attack cannot be blocked.

Final Tips¶

Count Down has a plethora of attacks it can use, with a lot of them affecting the whole party. Peach can nullify this with Group Hug, so she should be a mainstay in the group. If you have syrups to spare, you can cast area-of-effect attacks yourself which will bring the boss down a lot quicker. Using Mario’s Ultra Jump, Peach’s Psych Bomb, and Mallow’s Thunderbolt, Bowser’s Mechakoopa Stomp, and Geno’s, Geno Flash will make short work of the boss. Keep the party healed, and if you have to focus on a single enemy first, take out the Ring-a-Dings as their status-inflicting attacks can cause you a lot of problems.

More Mario Guides¶

If you’re looking for more guides relating to the final stages of the game, check out the links below.

• All Post Game Bosses Guide
• Culex (Secret Boss) Boss Guide
• Clerk Manager and Director Boss Guide
• Gunyolk and Factory Chief Boss Guide
• Smithy Boss Guide