Overview
Crater Maker is a major boss in The Crater region (accessible via The Desert path) with 280 HP, 9 STR, 2 SPD, and 5 LCK. She occupies a 3x3 area on the grid, making spacing tight from the start. Her entire fight revolves around a fixed attack rotation cycle that advances each time you deal direct damage to her.
Key Mechanics
Primed Attack Rotation
Crater Maker has four primed attacks that always rotate in a fixed order. Each time you deal direct damage to her, she advances to the next attack in the sequence. This means the number of times you hit her per turn directly determines which attack she uses. Damage-over-time effects (Bleed, Poison, Burn) do not advance the rotation, making DoT an excellent way to deal free damage without triggering dangerous attacks.
Crater Howl
One of her four primed attacks, Crater Howl hits every other unit on the board and inflicts either Stun or Immobile. This can completely stall your setup if you are not prepared. Knowing where Crater Howl falls in the rotation lets you plan around it or skip past it by carefully controlling your hit count.
Consume and Side Shots
Consume targets one tile directly in front of her mouth. She also shoots from her sides when damaged, so attacking from the wrong angle can trigger extra punishment. Have your melee attackers approach from behind to rotate her attacks safely, potentially forcing her to use Consume on empty tiles.
Stun Reset
If Crater Maker gets stunned on her second turn, she skips the primed attack and the cycle resets. This can buy significant breathing room and is worth setting up if you have reliable stun abilities.
Strategy
1. Track the attack rotation carefully. Be aware of how many times you hit Crater Maker each turn, as this determines which primed attack she will use next.
2. Use damage-over-time effects heavily. Bleed, Poison, and Burn deal damage without advancing the rotation, giving you free HP reduction.
3. Position melee attackers behind Crater Maker to avoid Consume and side-shot retaliation. Rotate her attacks by controlling your damage instances from safe angles.
4. If you have stun abilities, time them for her second turn to skip the primed attack and reset the cycle.
5. Her 3x3 body makes spacing tight. Keep your cats spread across multiple sides of the arena rather than clustering in one area where a single Crater Howl could stun your entire team.