Welcome to the next portion of the derby post series “Mind Over Ability.” Today I’ll be highlighting the cheer removing talents.
The cheer removal derby abilities consist of the following:
- Mute
- Pipe-Down!
- Shh!
- Shush!
- Silence
- Ultra-Mute
Why might these abilities be useful? Cheer removal abilities are some of the deadliest out there. Cheering (using morale) is what boosts a pet in a derby race. Take your opponent’s ability to do that away, and you’ve created a huge handicap for them. In fact, if timed correctly, one mute can potentially put you ahead of the pack and leave your opponent(s) unable to regain the lost ground.
Cheer Removal tips:
- Generally, it’s good to use cheer removal abilities at the beginning of the race. Doing this will give you a big advantage right out of the gate and may leave your opponent unable to catch up. However, keep in mind that mutes only work from either ahead or behind. If you have a cheer removal talent that only works when behind, you may need to hit the down arrow a few times to get behind your opponent(s) and trigger your ability. I know slowing down seems bad, but trust me, it’s usually worth it in this scenario! A couple of up arrows will negate the slow downs, but your opponent on the other hand … will be in quite the pickle!
- Be careful of stars. Stars will grant pets complete immunity from slow downs and mutes. If a mute is already triggered on a pet and that pet runs into a star, the mute will cease to exist. Because of this, be sure to trigger your cheer removal ability when there are no stars around.
- Watch the bottom of the screen for Immunity. The talents “Immunity” and “Unbreakable” work a little differently than the stars on the track do. These abilities grant complete immunity from slow downs and mutes, but they don’t get rid of a pet’s mute if one is already triggered. If you see that your opponent has triggered “Immunity” or “Unbreakable” at the bottom of the screen, count the ability duration in your head and use your mute once you’re sure their immunity has expired.
- Being behind isn’t ALWAYS bad. If your opponent has many hurries or a mute just like you, you could be in for a close race. If your particular mute only works when behind, it may not be a bad idea to tag behind your opponent for majority of the race, use your ability, and then try to sprint past them at the very end.
Using these 4 guidelines, any racer can use cheer removal abilities to their advantage. Stay tuned for future tips on different types of racing abilities!