Bashmaster

Bashmaster, also referred to as Bashmaster, the Unbreakable, is the fifth and penultimate boss in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze and its Nintendo Switch port of the same name. He is the boss of Juicy Jungle, and is fought in Punch Bowl. He is first seen relaxing on a large ice floe, enjoying an ice pop. When the Kongs crash onto the floe, the ice pop is accidentally knocked into the water and is eaten by a hoard of Punch Piranhas. Furious, Bashmaster commences battle with the Kongs.

Physical description
Bashmaster is a large polar bear. He wears a belt displaying the Snowmads insignia in the middle. He has two wristbands on each arm, around each of his biceps and wrists. Unlike actual polar bears, he is bipedal, using his two hind legs to walk rather than all four. His head is small in proportion to the rest of his body, and the lower part of his torso is larger than the upper half.

Bashmaster uses a large, wooden mallet as his weapon of choice. The handle of the mallet is long and thin, and the head has both a flat end and a more rounded one. The round end is spiked and the flat end is metallic.

Attacks
Bashmaster attacks mainly with his hammer. His most basic attack is a powerful hammer swing when the Kongs draw near. The force of the blow leaves the hammer stuck in the ice, giving the Kongs a chance to use it as a platform from which to jump onto Bashmaster's head. He may also leap to drop on the Kongs. The Kongs can be sent sliding into the juice pool around the arena if they are on the ground, and will then by damaged by the Punch Piranhas infesting the pool. A different attack summons ice blocks Bashmaster pushes toward the Kongs. The blocks can be shattered with Ground Pounds or Hand Slaps, and some of them contain items such as Bananas, Banana Coins, Watermelon Fuse Bombs, and Hearts. Throwing a Watermelon Fuse Bomb at Bashmaster damages him.

After taking three hits, Bashmaster's fur color changes into a light purple (due to being drenched from falling into the juice), beginning the second phase of the fight. During the second phase, Bashmaster implements a new attack involving dropping a certain number of ice blocks to form several pillars on the ice floe. Bashmaster subsequently charges toward the Kongs, breaking through the ice blocks. The Kongs must jump atop a pillar to avoid the charge. During his charge, Bashmaster may sit down and spin, which makes him dizzy and vulnerable to a stomp on the head. Notably, the jump attacks that Bashmaster performs in the first phase now create icy shock waves, which can damage the Kongs if not jumped over.

After taking three more hits, Bashmaster's fur becomes an even darker purple, and the fight transitions to its third and final phase. Bashmaster reverts to the attacks he uses in the first phase, but the ice blocks he pushes now appear in larger stacks, often forcing the Kongs to have to use the smaller stacks to jump over the larger ones, such as the last stack, which is always a four-block pillar. Additionally, the larger ice stacks make it more difficult for the Kongs to throw a Watermelon Fuse Bomb at Bashmaster. Bashmaster also utilizes a brand new attack for the third phase, where he summons a single ice block, and hits it with his mallet, creating a spiky projectile that must be jumped over. Bashmaster may perform this attack up to five times in a row, but for at least one of the ice blocks, Bashmaster will fake a powerful swing, then strike the ice block with less force to create a slow-moving projectile, usually to be followed by a faster one. Finally, Bashmaster's hammer attacks now creates a lone shock wave, similar to the ones in the second phase. Once Bashmaster is damaged three more times, he is defeated.

Trivia

 * Bashmaster has some similarities with Kudgel from Donkey Kong Country 2. Both wield some form of weapon, have a pattern that shakes the ground, and take damage by explosives.

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