Aside from the ones that have been said like quick change and power plus quake hammer is one of my favorite attack badges. It just has so many uses and the fact that it can hit targets on the ceiling is such a cool detail that helps in a pinch.
Great minds think alike. Many underestimate the power of widespread chip damage. But this is chip damage that pierces defense on all ground and ceiling enemies, alongside flipping anything that can be flipped. Most of what can be flipped will be left defenseless for a couple turns, allowing more setup or crystal star powers. And if they get back up? They wasted a turn doing that, so flip them again!
Best badge ever.
Quick Change and Spike Shield are the 2 I must have on regardless of context
I also always keep the "can't be ambushed" one on since it only costs 1 BP
Fire Drive is my favorite! I love burning everything, it deals good group damage, and if you pair it with some Attack Ups or a few rounds of Charge you can deal a ton of damage.
Remember that you have partners, Koops, Yoshi and Ms. Mouz have moves that pierce defense.
Now if you fight a flying monster with high defense, that's a Parabuzzy, just jump on it.
If you get 3 Power Plus, Jumpman, All Or Nothing, and P-Up D-Down, a single ultra boots jump deals 9 damage. Add Ice Power and each jump deals 10 to embers, lava bubbles and phantom embers. A Spin Jump on an Amazy Dayzee will kill it right away.
I was gonna comment quick change, too lol.
Some other must-haves for me are Close Call and Last Stand. For 1BP each, they make a really good safety net.
Quick change. I use it so consistently that I always forget it isn't a default option whenever I start a new game. *Invaluable* for easy tattles and stealing.
Other than the obvious of quick change, power plus, spike shield, etc., I’ve never unequipped multibounce, except for boss fights where I really need 1 extra BP for some reason. Such a good badge when combined with a jumpman build.
First strike badge. I love it for when you need to backtrack to the early game and you can use it to end a fight before it begins. Far easier than trying to dodge the enemy
Making it 0 BP in the remake made it much more appealing to me. Not that 1 BP is a lot but I can use it on other stuff and I can live with fighting weak enemies.
I think for me it’s damage dodge too. But only cause I’m terrible at super guarding. It’s like a whole extra defence but I only have to land the regular guard
I'm the weirdo that uses Heart Finder, Flower Finder, and Item Finder in the Pit of 100 Trials. It is usually faster compared to relying on the regen badges. Time is a factor since the Pit is a marathon to reach the bottom. You don't need to equip all of them simultaneously if you are short on BP. You can swap them out based on your current needs for that floor.
Each heart that drops after a battle heals both Mario and the current partner for one HP. When multiple hearts drop, you can swap between partners to target whichever partner needs healing.
The Item Finder badge is quite useful for conserving your better items. You will be collecting excess items that would be too weak for the boss, but useful for making various battles easier/faster.
You can call me a scrub for it but I am not gonna ever do a run without getting peekaboo as fast as I possibly can and never taking it off.
It's the only badge afaik that you can outmode with a Google search but having to memorize every enemy's health sucks. Or look it up every time. Or tattle. Or go into the blind. None of those are better options imo than just putting the badge on
Quick Change. Literally save a turn while having every partner move available on demand for any situation.
It is my immediate top priority with star pieces.
Hammerman, fire drive, and hammer throw. Some power pluses and power smash easily doing +10 damage. Throw in a +4 ATK from power lift and you’re playing on easy mode
Yeah, it's Quick Change. I'm not really the type to go all in on massive strategies, so I've just got Quick Change and 4 Power Plus (2 for me, 2 for partner)...
Quick change has some pretty insane cheese strats like letting your partners power boosts last infinitely by switching them out with Mario after they attack and swapping back in on the partners next turn. Not as strong as danger Mario strats but a fun alternative
Other than some of the big ones that have been mentioned, I would have to say Chill Out. It's easy to get, cheap BP, and gets rid of the minor hassle of an enemy getting the first strike.
I wish the game was harder cuz theres almost no reason to experiment with some niche badges.
You can go the danger/peril route or you can just equip badges like Ice Power, Spike Shield, Jumpman, & Multibounce, and this makes your jump very strong and your hammer unnecessary. Then just pile the remaining BP into P up D down, All or Nothing, Power Pluses, etc to stack damage.
Spike Shield, Quick Change and Quake Hammer are the only 3 I keep equipped no matter where I am or what I'm doing. Tbh, one of the things that has suprised me the most about the game on this play through is that I am spending far less time changing the badges I have equipped. As a child I thought this game would be impossible without badges, but as an adult and with 20 years gaming experience later I am breezing through all of the combat. That's not intended as a criticism, it's still my favourite Mario game of all time and in my top 3 games ever.
Quick Change, power smash and piercing smash. I know piercing smash isn’t the best but it’s there to deal with anything above a +2 defense that I need to kill this turn.
Quake Hammer is practically a must-have in TTYD. There are so many enemies that have a ton of defense or hang on the ceiling, and Quake Hammer just by-passes it.
You can increase that attack with Power Plus, which just makes it all the more better.
Quick change for sure. Although, I just recently discovered the usefulness of FP/HP Drain on my last playthrough of the TTYD64. That mod is so much fun. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't already!
Flower Saver. Makes alot of my abilities cost only 1 or 2 FP. And i try to prioritize my FP when leveling up. And then i have happy flower which helps me regain more fp. Lets just say I never worry or run out of FP. Power Smash and power plus in the same setup and im pretty much destroying anything. It makes the game too easy lol.
Aside from the obvious ones already listed (Quick Change, Power Plus etc.), I'll give a shout out to Flower Saver. Having two of them makes battles a non issue as you rarely have to worry about FP
Quick change, i hate playing the original paper mario and having to wait until chapter 4 to get it, in ttyd its not as big a deal because as soon as you get 7 star pieces ur good.
I'm gonna be the odd man out and say "Unsimplifier". I played the original with it for years, and never realized I had been using it until I opened the remake and was guarding late.
Multijump, with a few power increases from some other badge or effect you’re a god, enemy defense will soon become meaningless if you deal 16 damage per hit.
Normally I would answer multijump, spike sheild, or quick change. But being that these are already covered, I'm just going to convey the absolute unmitigated bliss it is to confuse an enemy with my hammer and then ignore him for a while just to see what he will do
Peekaboo, jumpman, Quick change, Mega Rush P, and two flower savers/flower saver p's. Peril Koops becomes a ground nuke, Peril Goombella becomes the goddess of single target, and Peril vivian becomes the best character for enemy battles
Quick change has always been a must for me, even before I learned that you can buff stall with it which is mega busted.
Power Plus is just great and once I slot one I never remove it again.
But my favorite will always be Lucky Start (which is named Electrician in german for some reason). I know it's not very good per se but I find it super nice to have in any playthrough. Having an advantagous start in every battle is pretty nice since you have to worry less about HP and FP since even a battle you run from will heal you a bit. And since battles are typically not much longer than 2 turns anyways (bosses aside) I gets maximum value right away. The cost of 4 BP is also middle of the road, not cheap but not expensive.
Besides Quick Change, I use enough FP moves that I always equip two of each for Flower Saver, Flower Saver P, and Happy Flower, plus one Flower Finder while I'm at it.
First answer isn't really ONE, but the quake trio of badges in 64.
Other answer would have to be speedy spin in second place. Makes travel so much better once acquired.
Refund seems to be pretty low on most people’s tier lists - nobody else in this thread has even mentioned it - but it’s always been my most favorite badge ever since PM64. I love seeing all the coins fly out when I use an expensive item!
Quake Hammer my beloved
Aside from the ones that have been said like quick change and power plus quake hammer is one of my favorite attack badges. It just has so many uses and the fact that it can hit targets on the ceiling is such a cool detail that helps in a pinch.
It makes 64 Ch 2 so easy!
Power Shell+Quake Hammer all the way baby!
The damage was nerfed hard in ttyd though :(
Wasn't there like 3 quake hammers Quake hammers super quake and Mega Quake?
Equipping multiple quake hammers would have the same effect i believe
Yes. In 64, they had separate badges for different power levels. In TTYD, they made it so the basic badges stacked for a similar BP, FP and Power
Yea in PM64.
Great minds think alike. Many underestimate the power of widespread chip damage. But this is chip damage that pierces defense on all ground and ceiling enemies, alongside flipping anything that can be flipped. Most of what can be flipped will be left defenseless for a couple turns, allowing more setup or crystal star powers. And if they get back up? They wasted a turn doing that, so flip them again! Best badge ever.
Quick Change and Spike Shield are the 2 I must have on regardless of context I also always keep the "can't be ambushed" one on since it only costs 1 BP
Chill out is nice. I like it too
I remember being devastated as a kid playing TTYD and finding out that you can't get spike shield until after you're completely done with CH 4!
I mean it's an OP badge
Fire Drive is my favorite! I love burning everything, it deals good group damage, and if you pair it with some Attack Ups or a few rounds of Charge you can deal a ton of damage.
Ol reliable Love getting it right after hooktail, massive powerspike
Definitely Fire Drive is a must have! I can't not use it now. It's just so good.
Life without quick change is not worth living
Spike Shield easily. Pair that with Jumpman with some attack boosting badges and you’re playing the game on easy mode.
Is there a defense piercing option for Jumps??
Soft Stomp & Power Jump get close, especially if your attack is boosted somehow
Remember that you have partners, Koops, Yoshi and Ms. Mouz have moves that pierce defense. Now if you fight a flying monster with high defense, that's a Parabuzzy, just jump on it.
Noted!
You don't need defense piercing if you're doing 36 attack per jump. Danger Mario go brrrr
Yeah, but unlike a lot of people, I’m not a plebe intending to fully trivialize the game. Lol.
If you get 3 Power Plus, Jumpman, All Or Nothing, and P-Up D-Down, a single ultra boots jump deals 9 damage. Add Ice Power and each jump deals 10 to embers, lava bubbles and phantom embers. A Spin Jump on an Amazy Dayzee will kill it right away.
Right,as far as rpgs go, the game is already easy. I'd rather just enjoy playing the game than worry about min maxing mario out.
There’s D-Down Jump in Paper Mario 64
With Spike Shield, Danger Mario with Multibounce + Power Bounce trivializes the game
I was gonna comment quick change, too lol. Some other must-haves for me are Close Call and Last Stand. For 1BP each, they make a really good safety net.
Gotta love Last Stand. I'm not doing Danger Mario, and Last Stand saved my ass a few times in the Pit.
Other then quick change and power plus, I would say probably piercing blow. It's just a handy thing to have
Ya, this recent play through I discovered the king of piercing blow, and started to learn what other moves ignore defence
Learned about koops’ last ability piercing defense. It was king during my pit runs
I just commented the exact same three badges in the same order 😂 I feel you!
Tangent: Hammer Throw now pierces defense in the Switch remake of TTYD, but it only does 2 damage per Hammer Throw badge.
Speedy spin ofc
By far the best 2 BP you can ever spend. It is a CRIME that this badge never made it into the second game
Quick change. I use it so consistently that I always forget it isn't a default option whenever I start a new game. *Invaluable* for easy tattles and stealing.
When I was a kid Zap Tap and Peekaboo. As an adult, it's def speedy spin in PM64 and All or Nothing in TTYD.
"badges you can't live without" Um yeah that one you get in chapter 8 that you get to use for like 4 major battles
Really sucks that it appears as late as it does in the game, would’ve been nice to have say around Chapter 4/5.
feels like a badge charlieton should sell
Other than the obvious of quick change, power plus, spike shield, etc., I’ve never unequipped multibounce, except for boss fights where I really need 1 extra BP for some reason. Such a good badge when combined with a jumpman build.
Multibounce and power bounce are staples for sure!
don’t get those staples stuck in the paper
Zap Tap to make Fuzzies powerless and Bandits less dangerous. Especially Badge Bandits.
First strike badge. I love it for when you need to backtrack to the early game and you can use it to end a fight before it begins. Far easier than trying to dodge the enemy
Making it 0 BP in the remake made it much more appealing to me. Not that 1 BP is a lot but I can use it on other stuff and I can live with fighting weak enemies.
I never hundred percented the game till now and I’m obsessed with the post game grind with bump attack instead of first attack
Quick change and damage dodge
I tried to take off quick change once to get back the 7 BP. I turned it back on within 4 fights…
Literal game changer, it almost feels wrong to play the game again in 64/TTYD without it.
I think for me it’s damage dodge too. But only cause I’m terrible at super guarding. It’s like a whole extra defence but I only have to land the regular guard
Fire Drive is the best way to go, especially if you can get it as early in the game’s story as possible!
Loooove this badge!
It’s basically Vivian’s Fiery Jink before you unlock Vivian.
Peekaboo. Sacrifices the Tattle Log, but, I don't need to bring out Goombella all the time.
I’m the same exact way. Yeah it’s nice to see her commentary on the enemies, but I just prefer to see their HP right when the battle starts.
W Emblem.
Simplifier for some reason cuz now power bouncing is the most easiest thing ever
Peekaboo
The Happy Heart and Flower badges. Regen just feels good, even if it's not helpful.
This was my way down the pit of 100 trials. And sometimes I would just get down to one baddie and defend a bunch and let myself gain
I'm the weirdo that uses Heart Finder, Flower Finder, and Item Finder in the Pit of 100 Trials. It is usually faster compared to relying on the regen badges. Time is a factor since the Pit is a marathon to reach the bottom. You don't need to equip all of them simultaneously if you are short on BP. You can swap them out based on your current needs for that floor. Each heart that drops after a battle heals both Mario and the current partner for one HP. When multiple hearts drop, you can swap between partners to target whichever partner needs healing. The Item Finder badge is quite useful for conserving your better items. You will be collecting excess items that would be too weak for the boss, but useful for making various battles easier/faster.
I'm partial to Hammer Throw, not sure why.
Cool animation and lets you hit air enemies w/o spike sheild. Pair it with hammerman and you’re coasting
I'm doing a full HammerMan run. I somehow managed to farm 4 Ice Smashes xD for the low low price of 12 FP you too can freeze enemies for 5 turns.
worth
I tried Hammerman but I just wasn't dealing as much damage as my Jumpman build.
You can call me a scrub for it but I am not gonna ever do a run without getting peekaboo as fast as I possibly can and never taking it off. It's the only badge afaik that you can outmode with a Google search but having to memorize every enemy's health sucks. Or look it up every time. Or tattle. Or go into the blind. None of those are better options imo than just putting the badge on
I’m using Sleepy Stomp this go round, and it makes lots of bosses super easy. I don’t think Grubba got even one hit in.
Quick Change. Literally save a turn while having every partner move available on demand for any situation. It is my immediate top priority with star pieces.
Hammerman, fire drive, and hammer throw. Some power pluses and power smash easily doing +10 damage. Throw in a +4 ATK from power lift and you’re playing on easy mode
Yeah, it's Quick Change. I'm not really the type to go all in on massive strategies, so I've just got Quick Change and 4 Power Plus (2 for me, 2 for partner)...
Multibounce and Spike Shield my beloveds
First strike or whatever it’s called. I hate engaging in a battle stance with every fucking goomba I encounter.
Peekaboo, so I can see how much health is left on the enemy and strategically plan my next move.
For me probably zap tap
Pretty lucky. I need that lucky sound effect
Power bounce is always a good option if you have damage increases
Quick change, HP/FP badge, and lucky start.
Unless I'm doing a 100% run, you can rip Peekaboo from my cold dead hands.
Peekaboo.
Quick change has some pretty insane cheese strats like letting your partners power boosts last infinitely by switching them out with Mario after they attack and swapping back in on the partners next turn. Not as strong as danger Mario strats but a fun alternative
Spike shield, quick swap, ice power, are the best badges in the gamei can't live without them all
I love pretty lucky! I swear it always saves me
I swear I hate this badge until I stack 2 of them together on top of a lucky day and then I adore it cuz enemies miss like 70% of the time.
Peekaboo 😅 I don't want to keep up with the health myself
Zap tap
Spike Shield T\_T its pure torture going 4 chapters without it.
Other than some of the big ones that have been mentioned, I would have to say Chill Out. It's easy to get, cheap BP, and gets rid of the minor hassle of an enemy getting the first strike.
I'm shocked this isn't higher. I must be bad at this game or something because no one else seems to need it lol
I'd go crazy without the peekaboo badge
Can't believe no one's mentioned Feeling Fine or Ice Power yet
I love Lucky Start
Power Rush P made most of the game a joke
Quake Hammer. I like the move.
Quake hammer is my baby. Once I get that badge it is never unequipped. It's just too good and versatile.
Super jump charge Mega rush And quick change
Last Stand honestly. Makes danger strats so much comfier
Ahem. Quick switch, multibounce, piercing blow, Star piece finder… thing, speedy spin (I miss you), power plus.
Close Call saved me from so many Game Overs. Love it for that.
I forgot the name but the one that replenishes FP
Happy Flower!
Yeah quick change for sure. I actually never knew it was a thing until the remake. Totally changes the game and opens up so many options.
Zaptap, quick change, and deep focus. Quick change admittedly feels like borderline cheating though ngl
The standard Power Smash and Power Bounce.
Quick change is straight up my crack
I wish the game was harder cuz theres almost no reason to experiment with some niche badges. You can go the danger/peril route or you can just equip badges like Ice Power, Spike Shield, Jumpman, & Multibounce, and this makes your jump very strong and your hammer unnecessary. Then just pile the remaining BP into P up D down, All or Nothing, Power Pluses, etc to stack damage.
Get fire drive right after chapter 1 and it’s amazing
Power plus and charge
Peekaboo, so I can see how much health is left on the enemy and strategically plan my next move.
Quake Hammer, Quick-Change, and Spike Shield are *always* mandatory on my playthroughs, anything else is flexible 😉
all or nothing and unsimplifier 🫡
Quick change and peek a boo for hp. Everything else is just a bonus
i can't live without that badges that turn mario into wario or waluigi lol
Spike Shield, Quick Change and Quake Hammer are the only 3 I keep equipped no matter where I am or what I'm doing. Tbh, one of the things that has suprised me the most about the game on this play through is that I am spending far less time changing the badges I have equipped. As a child I thought this game would be impossible without badges, but as an adult and with 20 years gaming experience later I am breezing through all of the combat. That's not intended as a criticism, it's still my favourite Mario game of all time and in my top 3 games ever.
Quick change
Definitely quick change, attack plus p, and piercing hammer. The Piercing Hammer has gotten me through every boss battle lmaoo
Agree quick change is easily the best badge
Peekaboo. Such a quality of life improving badge if you don’t like wasting turns in tattles.
Fire Drive. Use Power Lift and have Vivian using Fiery Jinx and you just burn everything turn one.
Quick Change, power smash and piercing smash. I know piercing smash isn’t the best but it’s there to deal with anything above a +2 defense that I need to kill this turn.
Zap Tap, Unsimplifier and Defend Plus. Just try and hit me, losers. I'll perfect guard you every time.
Quick change.
I actually like the visible HP one. I like knowing what I'm dealing with without asking goombella lol
Quick Change
Power Plus obviously.
Quake Hammer is practically a must-have in TTYD. There are so many enemies that have a ton of defense or hang on the ceiling, and Quake Hammer just by-passes it. You can increase that attack with Power Plus, which just makes it all the more better.
Quick Change for sure. I equip it as soon as I get it and can afford it.
Peekaboo
double dip, i just love spamming zess dynamite
Power Plus, all or nothing. Too good to pass up.
Spike shield and ice power. I just want to jump on things and not worry about if it will hurt me.
Flower saver and flower drain, yeah sure I lose 1 attack but if I can do power jump every turn for no cost at all it doesnt really matter
Flower Saver is a game changer imo
Speedy spin. Interestingly, Quick change I think isn't as important in 64, as it is in TTYD. It's like partners in 64 have more attack coverage.
Lucky Start! I like the random element it adds to battles and all it’s bonuses are really helpful!
Nostalgia badge in Glitzville
Quake hammes and flower finder
Quick change for sure. Although, I just recently discovered the usefulness of FP/HP Drain on my last playthrough of the TTYD64. That mod is so much fun. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't already!
Peekaboo. Multibounce. Piercing Blow. Spike Shield.
Flower Saver. Makes alot of my abilities cost only 1 or 2 FP. And i try to prioritize my FP when leveling up. And then i have happy flower which helps me regain more fp. Lets just say I never worry or run out of FP. Power Smash and power plus in the same setup and im pretty much destroying anything. It makes the game too easy lol.
Mega Rush P. Combine it with Quick Change and you have the strat i have affectionately nicknamed the pocket nuke.
The L Emblem
Spike shield
For me I used piercing blow all the way through
Aside from the obvious ones already listed (Quick Change, Power Plus etc.), I'll give a shout out to Flower Saver. Having two of them makes battles a non issue as you rarely have to worry about FP
Quick change, i hate playing the original paper mario and having to wait until chapter 4 to get it, in ttyd its not as big a deal because as soon as you get 7 star pieces ur good.
Quick Change is an absolute must for me
FP Saver P I always like having two equipped.
Quick Charge
The one that lets you swap your partner and still use them
Peekaboo
The Fx Badges. I just HAVE to equip them
SPEEDY. SPIN.
I'm gonna be the odd man out and say "Unsimplifier". I played the original with it for years, and never realized I had been using it until I opened the remake and was guarding late.
Multijump, with a few power increases from some other badge or effect you’re a god, enemy defense will soon become meaningless if you deal 16 damage per hit.
Normally I would answer multijump, spike sheild, or quick change. But being that these are already covered, I'm just going to convey the absolute unmitigated bliss it is to confuse an enemy with my hammer and then ignore him for a while just to see what he will do
Power smash and quick change stay ON🗣
Quick change and spiky shield
Quick Change and Zap Tap forever and always.
Peekaboo, jumpman, Quick change, Mega Rush P, and two flower savers/flower saver p's. Peril Koops becomes a ground nuke, Peril Goombella becomes the goddess of single target, and Peril vivian becomes the best character for enemy battles
Peekaboo
Quick change has always been a must for me, even before I learned that you can buff stall with it which is mega busted. Power Plus is just great and once I slot one I never remove it again. But my favorite will always be Lucky Start (which is named Electrician in german for some reason). I know it's not very good per se but I find it super nice to have in any playthrough. Having an advantagous start in every battle is pretty nice since you have to worry less about HP and FP since even a battle you run from will heal you a bit. And since battles are typically not much longer than 2 turns anyways (bosses aside) I gets maximum value right away. The cost of 4 BP is also middle of the road, not cheap but not expensive.
Piercing Blow. Absolutely a must for me
Besides Quick Change, I use enough FP moves that I always equip two of each for Flower Saver, Flower Saver P, and Happy Flower, plus one Flower Finder while I'm at it.
Spike shield
where does one acquire quick change!
Quick Change and Deep Focus/Super Appeal.
First answer isn't really ONE, but the quake trio of badges in 64. Other answer would have to be speedy spin in second place. Makes travel so much better once acquired.
The badges that make the game easier Like the one where you heal passivly
Zap Tap, Karma against physical fighters and trusty shield against electric enemies
I spy
Peekaboo. I hate having to constantly Tattle. Also Quick Change. It's a must have in my opinion.
Jumpman + spike jump
Refund seems to be pretty low on most people’s tier lists - nobody else in this thread has even mentioned it - but it’s always been my most favorite badge ever since PM64. I love seeing all the coins fly out when I use an expensive item!
Piercing Hammer. Ignoring defense like that is a godsend
Power Smash. Is strong.
Power plus in ttyd.
You’ll have to pry my Peekaboo from my cold, dead hands~
Piercing Blow, it trivializes so many of the game's most annoying enemies
Lucky Start or Zap Tap!
Quick change pretty much its far too realiable
The ever-so-beautiful Piercing Blow.
Zap Tap. Stops multi-hit attacks in the first hit and, for what it is worth, completely disables Fuzzies. The chip damage is nice, too.
Quick change by far!
Partner swap
W and L Emblems In this house, it’s ALWAYS Waluigi time
Hammer Throw in the remake. Beating bosses with it looks so cool
Gold badge Because I wouldn’t feel complete if I didn’t 100% one of my favorite childhood games
Peekaboo
Spike guard
There are a lot of them, but yeah, Quick Change is probably the hardest to give up.
Quick change all the way
Quick change
Lucky Start & Lucky Day are the goats, especially Lucky Start when I was in the Pit as the chance for extra FP was really useful for me