Mega Man Zero 3 - Frontline Ice Base [Pacifist Run]

The Frontline Ice Base, home of Blizzack Staggroff R, is quite the interesting candidate for a pacifist run. On the surface, its lack of a miniboss makes it ideal, with the only combat required being against Staggroff himself, but the enemy selection and placement calls for smart maneuvering and exact manipulation of enemy behavior. Additionally, depending on the exact ruleset that one chooses to adhere to, there’s an interesting conundrum presented within the indoor section. Here are the details.

Of the two routes at the start, the submerged cavern is the only one accessible to Zero when using his natural movement. It’s the more interesting of the two regardless; the combination of Pantheon Aqua acting as stout walls while the jittery schools of fish try to converge upon Zero provides far more entertainment than the comparatively barren upper path can muster. There are a few ways to circumvent the fish, but for my money, jumping between them like some sort of underwater slalom is the most fun while still maintaining speed.

The stalagmite tunnel is especially dangerous. Without the ability to tear through Copy X’s scuba squad, your only option is to time some very precise jumps around their contact hitboxes and spears. Keeping pace here is a real pain, as the difficulty of the movement is imbalanced relative to the time savings that can be had. Still, the section looks quite smooth when done correctly, so I couldn’t forgo the jumps required.

The first major example of enemy manipulation concerns the three Pantheon Hunters waiting outside of the little reservoir before the proper indoor section. You need to climb out of the water in a very specific way; otherwise, you’ll be met with several bullets to the face. Naturally, I choose the risky but rewarding strategy of quickly dash jumping off the corner of the ledge and landing as close to the first Pantheon as possible. This lures both it and the one behind it into firing simultaneously. Dashing backward and jumping over their fire buys time for the third Pantheon to walk forward, clearing up some space behind it for Zero to land. There’s a slower, more reliable method that involves baiting the first and second Pantheons into firing at different times, but I binned that once I realized the faster strategy you see here.

The indoor section is incredibly narrow at key points, severely limiting your already small pool of options. Things as simple as the icicle hazards are troublesome when weapon use is disallowed, especially when combined with wandering Pantheons and Heavy Cannons. Careful research of enemy movement patterns is a requirement here, and even once you’ve drafted your approach, some tough decisions need to be made in order to proceed.

Things start off with a simple jump over a Heavy Cannon, but don’t be thankful; that’s the only freebie you get with the stalwart turrets. There’s a second one guarding the long hall of spike pits and icicles. It’s blatantly impossible to move past it using normal means, so I’m left with one unfortunate option: I deliberately let Zero take damage to reflect the ball back at the Cannon.

Wait, hold on a second; put the tomatoes down and let me explain my reasoning.

The ideal pacifist run is one where the stage can be completed using pure movement and nothing else. Panter’s stage in Z2 is the quintessential example of this. Barring that, some concessions need to be made. The following is my personal assessment of what I view as most to least acceptable when pursing a pacifist run of a stage.

-Finishing the level using only Zero’s basic jumps.
-Using Chips such as Shadow Dash or Double Jump to bypass otherwise impassible enemies or obstacles.
-Using weapons in a non-combat manner, such as pogoing off the ground with the Recoil Rod or swinging with the Chain Rod.
-Taking damage intentionally for the sake of progression.
-Using weapons or Cyber-Elves to directly affect enemies without outright destroying them, such as using the sparks from Saber Smash.

Only the last two options can be used against the second and third Heavy Cannons in this section. You can either let Zero get hit or reflect the ball back with a charged Recoil Rod, so I pick what I believe to be by far the lesser of two evils. Thankfully, the fourth Cannon’s stem can be cut down by guiding a projectile from the third across the floor.

That aside, the short descent past the spike pits is undoubtedly the trickiest part. Zero has to play a bit of peekaboo with the two Pantheon Guardians loitering in the hall with two icicles. Grabbing the ladder after falling goads the first Pantheon into attacking while the second walks away; this sets their movement pattern to your advantage. The hall below is even more cramped; it’s just barely possible to have Zero snake past the two guards.

I feel like I’m forgetting something...

Oh yeah, Staggroff. Fun with Soul Launcher. The End.

Thanks for watching!