One of the most enjoyable aspects of Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist is delving into its vast world, although you’ll encounter barriers that block access to certain areas at the start. These barriers, referred to as Growths, serve to guide players through the game. They ensure you first explore designated regions where you can acquire new abilities necessary for overcoming these obstacles.
Acquiring these abilities is crucial for further exploration, typically unlocking them after you defeat significant story bosses or progress to new zones. These upgrades are for your Homunculi and will enable you to dismantle the Growths, offering additional utilities as well.
Understanding Growths in Ender Magnolia
Growths are specific types of barriers scattered throughout the game, first appearing in initial zones to block your path to various areas and treasures. They direct you toward the next storyline step and sometimes safeguard powerful Relics or upgrade materials meant to be accessed later. This design encourages backtracking after you’ve acquired the required upgrades.
There are three distinct types of Growths, each requiring unique abilities to break. These abilities are unlocked by defeating key bosses in the game, ensuring you encounter them as part of your progression. You can see the locations of Growths on the map; hovering over them reveals the specific ability needed to break them if you have already unlocked it. If you haven’t, it will simply appear as “?????”.
How to Break Each Type of Growth
Each of the three Growth types necessitates a different ability, which you can unlock in a specific sequence as you progress through the game.
Horizontal Growth
Horizontal Growths are barriers found on the ground that can only be shattered using Garm’s Iron Stake. This ability is unlocked after defeating Garm in the Magicite Mines, one of the earlier challenging bosses in the game. This ability can also be used to harm enemies.
To break a Horizontal Growth, you must perform the action from the air, specifically by jumping from a sufficient height and hitting the center of the Growth. Regular jumps may not provide the necessary height.
Whenever you spot Horizontal Growths, try to find a nearby platform to jump from. If there are none in sight, you may need to explore further to unlock the area.
Vertical Growth
Vertical Growths can only be shattered with Hati’s Charge, an ability you gain after defeating Veol, the boss in the Crimson Forest. The journey to Veol can be lengthy, as the Crimson Forest is a complex maze filled with various teleportation points and paths. After solving its puzzles and defeating this boss, you’ll earn an upgrade for Hati.
Once you’ve learned Hati’s Charge, press and hold the Dash button while moving in the desired direction for a few seconds. This ability also inflicts damage on enemies while breaking Growths. Remember that changing directions will cancel the charge.
Underwater Growth
You will encounter some Growths while swimming, which can be broken after completing the Declan’s Estate area. Once you defeat the sorcerer in an underwater battle, you’ll acquire a device that upgrades Motley with Motley’s Torment. This ability functions similarly to Hati’s Charge but is tailored for underwater use.
Motley’s Torment is used in the same manner as Hati’s Charge, allowing you to dash and hold the button while moving in the same direction. The underwater environment offers more manoeuvrability, making it easier to execute.
This upgrade becomes available later in the game once you’ve reached Central City. However, many Underwater Growths can be found in the Lower Stratum, so you may need to backtrack for them. These additional explorations are worthwhile, as they allow access to numerous upgrades and Relics previously out of reach.
All abilities that shatter Growths can also inflict damage on Mutants, causing them to drop Scrap. This material is valuable for enhancing your Relics and is the most reliable way to gather this currency.