The Corpse Flower in Plants vs. Zombies: A Deep Dive
The Corpse Flower in Plants vs. Zombies: The Wacky House is a unique and powerful plant with a distinct gameplay mechanic. Unlike many other plants that provide direct, immediate offense, the Corpse Flower acts as a strategic damage dealer. It’s the third plant you can unlock in The Deep Sea world, becoming available after successfully completing The Deep Sea-5: Save Our Seeds level. Its primary ability revolves around a missile system that charges up each time a zombie in its lane is defeated. This makes it a reactive plant, growing stronger as the zombie horde advances and providing increasing offensive capability throughout each level.
Understanding the Corpse Flower’s Mechanics
The key to maximizing the Corpse Flower’s potential lies in understanding how its missile system works. Each time a zombie is defeated in the same lane as the Corpse Flower, it gains a charge. Once enough charges have been accumulated, the Corpse Flower will launch a powerful missile towards the right of the screen, inflicting significant damage to any zombies it hits. This makes it especially effective against groups of weaker zombies and can even take down tougher zombies with multiple well-placed strikes.
The Corpse Flower’s effectiveness increases as the player places it in lanes with high zombie traffic. By carefully positioning this plant in the appropriate lanes, players can capitalize on the incoming zombie waves and generate substantial missile attacks. The plant’s design encourages players to play strategically. It’s not just about planting and forgetting; rather, it demands an understanding of lane flow and zombie types for maximum damage potential.
Comparing the Corpse Flower to its Real-World Counterpart
The Corpse Flower in Plants vs. Zombies draws inspiration from the real-life Amorphophallus titanum, often called the “corpse flower” due to its notorious stench of rotting meat. Unlike its game counterpart, the real corpse flower does not fire missiles. Instead, its foul smell attracts carrion beetles and flesh flies, its pollinators. The flower, in real life, can reach towering sizes, with flowers that bloom infrequently, sometimes only once every several years or even decades. In contrast, the game’s Corpse Flower blooms consistently in the game.
While there’s a notable difference in functionality, the name and concept tie directly to the plant’s real-world namesake. The real Corpse Flower’s decaying odor is a chemical mix of dimethyl trisulfide, isovaleric acid, dimethyl disulfide, benzyl alcohol, indole, and trimethylamine. This chemical concoction is designed to mimic decomposition, which makes it uniquely suited to attract its preferred pollinators. This same idea of being attractive by being gross is translated into the Corpse Flower’s in-game mechanic that is triggered by zombie destruction.
Strategic Uses of the Corpse Flower
The Corpse Flower is a mid-to-late game plant, that is not as effective in early stages when there are fewer zombies. The player needs to allow time for the Corpse Flower to charge up and become effective. Here are a few strategic ways to make the Corpse Flower effective:
- High-Traffic Lanes: Place the Corpse Flower in lanes where you anticipate the most zombie activity. This will allow it to charge up quickly and unleash its missiles more often.
- Pair with Weaker Plants: Position the Corpse Flower in lanes where it can be supported by plants like peashooters, sunflowers, or Wall-nuts. The weaker plants can clear out small waves of zombies, allowing the corpse flower to charge and fire.
- Against Large Groups: The missile is best used against groups of weaker zombies that will trigger more missile charges.
- Anticipate Zombie Patterns: Knowing the zombie attack patterns allows the player to position the Corpse Flower in lanes that will maximize the number of times it gets triggered.
- Don’t Neglect Early Defense: Don’t rely solely on the Corpse Flower; focus on early defense by using cheaper plants before deploying the Corpse Flower.
- Use the Corpse Flower in Combination: Use the Corpse Flower in combination with other plants that have different effects to maximize defense and offense.
The Corpse Flower is a valuable addition to any player’s strategy, but it requires careful planning and an understanding of its capabilities. It’s not simply a fire-and-forget plant; it’s a powerful tool when used strategically.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Is the Corpse Flower a Premium Plant in Plants vs. Zombies?
No, the Corpse Flower is not a premium plant. It is unlocked by progressing through the The Deep Sea world, specifically after completing The Deep Sea-5: Save Our Seeds level.
2. Does the Corpse Flower attack directly?
No, the Corpse Flower does not directly attack zombies. Its primary attack is through missiles that are launched after it has charged through zombie defeats.
3. How many charges does the Corpse Flower need to fire a missile?
The game does not specify the exact number of charges required for the Corpse Flower to launch a missile, but it accumulates over several zombie defeats.
4. Can the Corpse Flower be used in all game modes?
Yes, once unlocked, the Corpse Flower can be used in most game modes where plants can be selected.
5. What is the real-world inspiration for the Corpse Flower?
The Corpse Flower in Plants vs. Zombies is inspired by the Amorphophallus titanum, a real plant known for its massive size and powerful odor that smells like rotting flesh.
6. Does the real Corpse Flower fire missiles?
No, the real-life Corpse Flower does not fire missiles. Its odor attracts pollinators, unlike the in-game version that uses defeated zombies to power missile attacks.
7. Is the real Corpse Flower a parasite?
No, the Amorphophallus titanum is not a parasite, unlike the Rafflesia arnoldii, another plant known as the corpse flower, which is parasitic.
8. How often does the real corpse flower bloom?
The real Amorphophallus titanum blooms infrequently, generally every 5 to 10 years in cultivation, though it can take much longer. Some have even reported waiting up to 40 years.
9. What does the real corpse flower smell like?
The real Corpse Flower smells like decaying meat or rotting flesh. This pungent odor is designed to attract pollinators.
10. What is the purpose of the real Corpse Flower’s smell?
The putrid smell of the real Corpse Flower attracts carrion beetles and flesh flies, its pollinators.
11. Is the real corpse flower endangered?
Yes, the corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) is listed as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with fewer than 1,000 individuals remaining in the wild.
12. What eats the fruit of the real corpse flower?
In nature, the fruit of the real corpse flower is typically eaten and dispersed by Rhinoceros Hornbills.
13. What is the smelliest flower in the world?
While the Amorphophallus titanum is commonly associated with a strong odor, the Rafflesia is sometimes considered the smelliest due to its powerful stench of putrefying flesh.
14. What other plants bloom infrequently?
Several plants bloom infrequently, including the Agave americana, known as the century plant which blooms typically every 30 years, the Giant Himalayan Lily blooms once every seven years, and some species of bamboo.
15. Does the Corpse Flower have any weaknesses in the game?
The Corpse Flower is most effective against groups of zombies and may be vulnerable against fast-moving zombies, heavy zombies or when there are few enemies on the lane for a long duration since it needs time to charge.