Part 3: Kero Sewers and Midas River Course

Main Walkthrough

Tadpole Pond

After braving the Kero Sewers and the Midas River Course you'll wind up at Tadpole Pond, home of Mallow's froggy family. Step onto the stone northeast of the entrance to receive an introduction to Frogfucious, Mallow's grandfather, then follow him to his island and speak to him again for some extended dialogue. Looks like Mallow's sticking around.

You're now done with Tadpole Pond. That said, you should have a quick look around before proceeding to Rose Way, your next destination. There are several items to collect.

Froggie Stick

Speak to Frogfucious again as he's moping. If you collected the Cricket Pie from the Item Shop owner in the Mushroom Kingdom Frogfucious will swap you a Froggie Stick for the pie. This is Mallow's first weapon. You'll need to speak to Frogfucious about something later, and he can't be in a funk, so head back to Mushroom Kingdom and grab the pie now if you missed it earlier.

Melody Bay

On the east side of Tadpole Pond is Melody Bay, a stretch of water with tadpoles that act as music notes. If you step on the stone on the southwest end of the pond you can hop onto the tadpoles as they move up and down the pond, and depending on where you stop the tadpole you'll trigger a different musical note. Once you've set up eight tadpoles you'll play a quick melody.

The note each tadpole plays varies based on their position in the pond. The notes are as follows, from top (left) to bottom (right):

  1. Mi
  2. Re
  3. Do
  4. Ti
  5. La
  6. So
  7. Fa
Standing at the north end of the pond is Toadofsky, a famous composer. If you play particular tunes for Toadofsky he'll give you an item. There are three items in all, though two of the song / item combos can only be unlocked by progressing further into the game. The songs you can play are listed below.


Frogfucious' Suite No 18 

Unlocked: Meet Frogfucious
Pattern: So (6), La (5), Mi (1), Re (2), Do (3), Re (2), Do (3), Re (2)
Reward: Alto Card

Mole Mountain Blues

Unlocked: Rescue Dyna and Mite from the Coal Mines
Pattern: Mi (1), Do (3), So (6), Do (3), Re (2), La (5), Ti (4), Do (3)
Reward: Tenor Card

Monstro Town Melody

Unlocked: Listen to the star play a song in Monstro Town
Pattern: La (5), Ti (4), Do (3), Re (2), So (6), Do (3), Re (2), Mi (1)
Reward: Soprano Card

Vendors

On the west side of Tadpole Pond are two tadpoles that act as vendors. Each one has a collection of unique items on sale.

  • The tadpole on the right runs a Juice Bar. Normally it only sells FroggieDrinks - which are pretty good early in the game - though if you collect membership cards by helping Toadofsky at Melody Bay you'll unlock additional drinks:
    • Alto Card: Elixir
    • Tenor Card: Megaelixir
    • Soprano Card: Kerokero Cola
  • The tadpole on the left runs a Frog Coin Emporium, and sells items you can't purchase anywhere else. You should nevertheless save your Frog Coins, as there's a vendor with substantially better items on sale later in the game.
And that's everything there is to see in Tadpole Pond. Leave the area and you'll be on the way to the next area, Rose Way.


Rose Way

Enemies
  • Arachne - 82 HP - Weak to Ice
  • Crook - 38 HP
  • Shy Guy - 78 HP
  • Snapdragon - 90 HP - Weak to Fire
  • Starsnap - 62 HP - Weak to Fire, Lightning
Right by the entrance to Rose Way you'll find a floating platform and a letter, explaining the platforms in the area. When you hop onto a platform it will turn blue, start moving, lock you in place until the platform stops. The platforms will them move in a pre-determined path through the area. Staying on the platforms and watching where they wind up rather than getting off at each first stop will typically bring you to useful items.

Hop onto the first platform and ride it until it brings you to a second platform. The second platform will escort you to a mushroom to restore your health, then to a third platform. Hop onto the third platform and it will zip you over to a fourth platform, and if you keep riding the third platform it will bring you to a Flower. 


Ride the fourth platform once and it will bring you to an exit in the northwest. The exit leads to a small area with two Shy Guys on swinging platforms. Jump up and defeat the Shy Guys, then hop onto the lower platform as it swings past and use it to jump onto the upper platform. The timing is a bit tricky, so aim carefully and watch for Mario's shadow on the platform when you jump. You can use the upper platform to reach a chest floating in the north, which contains a Frog Coin.

Return to the main area and hop onto the platform again. Stay on it until it drops you near an exit in the northeast. The next area is a curved path with a few Crooks and a Lakitu carrying around Shy Guys, but it's otherwise not a big deal. Run through to the next exit, which brings you back to the main area with the platforms.

Hop onto the nearest platform. The first stop will take you to a platform leading to the exit, while the second stop will lead you along several platforms back to the entrance. Head to the exit via the first stop. You'll wind up in an area with a number of floating chests, each topped by a Shy Guy that will fall down when the chest is opened. All of the chests - aside from the top-most one, which restores your health - contain Coins. There are also a few Crooks lurking about, so watch your step.


To the southeast you'll discover a bundle of familiar faces. Yep, they're all still kickin'. Once the troupe leaves, head north through the final area to leave Rose Way. Next stop: Rose Town.

Part 5: Rose Town and Forest Maze

Main Walkthrough