Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope character guide: Mario
Posted on October 24, 2022 by Dawn in Guides, Switch
Nintendo Everything has created a series of character guides for Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope, looking at the best skills to acquire, party members to use with them, and Sparks to give them to maximize their potential. This is a guide for Mario.
The star of the game, Mario, is of course available from the beginning, and as you would expect, is a solid pick for a character in any party, with the ability to target two enemies – which you can select, making him unique amongst characters who can target multiple enemy units – and the Technique Hero Sight, which allows Mario to attack moving targets that enter his field of vision. This includes targets that you have moved, for example by dashing into them, meaning you can activate Hero Sight as Mario and then dash into an enemy to trigger its effect, which can make for some interesting combo possibilities in the early game especially.
What skills are best for Mario?
Your priority when building Mario for combat should be in the Technique branch of his Skill Tree. Focus on upgrading Hero Sight Cooldown first, as it will allow you to use it every turn once maxed out, before unlocking an additional Hero Sight Charge next. As soon as you are a high enough level to unlock Sight Again do so, as it can result in Mario taking down several enemies during the enemy turn before they can attack as they move into position.
After this, focus on increasing Hero Sight Damage. Your next priority after this should be Weapon Range in the Weapon branch of his Skill Tree, which will allow you to hit more opponents from a distance with Hero Sight. In later stages of the game, with the right Spark setup, Second Helping can be extremely potent and a good option to consider.
Who are the best party members to use with Mario?
Mario mixes well with most party compositions as a secondary damage dealer: generally it would be a good idea to have another character capable of inflicting more damage, such as Luigi or Rabbid Mario, in your party, and to use Mario as additional support. A party of Mario and Luigi can take out many enemies before they can even reach your characters, as if the enemy keeps moving after being hit by Second Sight or Steely Stare, the one that didn’t activate the first time will activate afterwards, and if Mario finishes an enemy off with Hero Sight and you have Sight Again unlocked, he will get to use it again. Using Rabbid Peach or Peach as the third character to provide healing or Team Barrier support would be a good choice in this instance.
Which Sparks are best for Mario?
As Mario can target two separate enemies with his attacks, you may want to consider equipping him with Sparks that will allow him to exploit enemy weaknesses, such as Pyrostar or Electroid. When combined with Second Helping this can help him to take out enemies much faster. Depending on how close to enemies he is, Mario can also benefit from Sparks that inflict area of effect damage, and this can also provide him with two immunities if you equip him with a different Spark to the one that will apply a Super Effect to his weapon. Reflector is also a good option to consider if you do not already have it equipped to a short-range character in your party, to increase his attack damage and inflict some damage if he gets caught in the line of fire.
