Character Guide - 80s Action Hero!

Greetings,

This guide series intend to cover all the characters in the game. In this guide, I will cover the 80s Action Hero. I will add some more information to this guide soon, along with the others.

For plenty of this guide, this following link was used for some of the information, the rest of the information is my own, you could refer to this link if you would like to know more about 80s Action Hero, refer here: https://plantsvszombies.fandom.com/wiki/80s_Action_Hero.

Overview of the Character

80s Action Hero is an Attack character on the Zombies faction that attacks with explosions and projectiles, and has 150 health by default. It has a primary weapon that can be charged up for more damage and that can tag their enemies for additional effects.

Primary Weapon

Primary Weapon: Bow Blaster. It is a charge up weapon that deals more damage the longer the weapon is charged. Landing a hit on an enemy with the Bow Blaster gives a tag to an enemy, which boosts your Can't-Miss-ile ability, by shooting more missiles at those tagged enemies and increasing homing against those enemies. The more it is charged, the less projectiles that would br released, however the more precise the weapon will be and the more damage that it will do. If the weapon is fully charged, it deals 65 damage for regular hits, or 75 damage for critical hits. It has infinite ammo and never overheats.

Abilities

Dynamite Dodge: This ability launches you in any direction and leaves a dynamite where you were originally standing, which explodes shortly after you have moved. This resolves almost immediately after you have moved and when the dynamite explodes, it can deal up to 70 damage to any enemy caught in the explosion. This ability can be great for general mobility, retreating in a bad situation or changing position. The dynamite is generally not that powerful and does not have a particularly large explosion range, however this could be used into a group to potentially deal lots of damage to enemies. You could even use this dynamite to finish enemies that are low health, or to reduce the health of your enemies, and finish them with your Bow Blaster or other ability. It does have its uses, so it is ideal if you can make good use of this ability. You can also use this ability during your Rocket Ride to cancel it.

Dynamite Dodge Character Upgrades:

• Leg Day (2 upgrade points): You get a speed and jump boost when you activate your Dynamite Dodge, which is useful for increased mobility, jump power and can help you escape with the further distance. This could help you move position more efficiently so your enemies are less likely to notice you if you are being stealthy and will allow you to set up an attack. You could use this upgrade to make further jumps more easily as well, as both the additional movement and jump boosts will help you to clear the gap. Keep in mind as this will not improve the power of your dynamite, so this is not more effective against dealing damage to your enemies.
• Track Star (3 upgrade points): Dealing damage to enemies with your Dynamite Dodge gives those enemies 3 tags, which is the maximum amount of tags that you can have on an enemy at a time. It tags nearby enemies for you as well when activated, which is an extra benefit. You can use your Dynamite Dodge when in a group of enemies, deal damage with the ability, and afterwards, you can activate your Can't-Miss-ile on those enemies for maximum homing potential. If you manage to deal damage to a group of enemies, you could potentially net a lot of quick follow-up vanquishes this way by using your Can't-Miss-ile. 

Rocket Ride: This ability allows you to fly in the air for about 4 seconds and shoot a barrage of rockets at your enemies below. Your movement speed is greatly reduced when you use this ability, and you are unable to target enemies directly under you, so make sure you are distanced from enemies a bit when you activate this ability, and keep moving to slightly reduce your chances of being hit as well. You can use your Dynamite Dodge to cancel this ability if things go south, so try to have that saved for if you need it during Rocket Ride. Using this ability against groups of enemies is really useful as you deal direct and splash damage with your rockets, but the rockets have spread so using it against your enemies at longer ranges will be much more ineffective compared to at closer ranges.

Rocket Ride Character Upgrades:

• Free Ride (3 upgrade points): Your Rocket Ride ability is extended for 3 seconds for every vanquish that you get on an enemy with it, which could allow you to continuously use this ability for a really long time if you can continue getting vanquishes on enemies. It almost refreshes your ability entirely, or it does if you only recently activated the ability or reset it with a previous vanquish. Focusing on enemy groups or enemies that have low health is quite important as this will be the most effective way to get vanquishes. Keep moving during this ability if possible as you will be vulnerable for longer, and try to have Dynamite Dodge ready if you need to cancel it, to avoid getting vanquished.
• Remarkable Rockets (3 upgrade points): Any enemy that you hit with your rockets during your Rocket Ride, either direct or splash damage, places 2 tags on that enemy, allowing you to quickly tag enemies, especially groups of enemies, and after you can exit or cancel Rocket Ride and use your Can't-Miss-ile to potentially get some quick vanquishes. You could use your Rocket Ride on enemies that already have a single tag or if they have 2, and use this ability to place maximum tags on those enemies quickly, and make your Can't-Miss-ile more effective. The more enemies you can tag with a use of this ability, the more useful this upgrade will become.

Can't-Miss-ile: This ability allows to target and home in on your enemies with some damaging shots. This ability is fueled by your primary weapon, as landing a hit with your Bow Blaster places a tag on an enemy, charged or uncharged, up to a maximum of 3 tags on a single enemy at a time. The more tags an enemy has, the more effective your Can't-Miss-ile becomes, as you will automatically shoot out more missiles against that enemy and the homing of the missiles will be improved, providing for more damage and less chance of your ability missing. It is very important that you try and tag enemies first, as otherwise this ability will be ineffective and will almost always never deal damage to anything, even at point blank range. You can tag many enemies at once and use the Can't-Miss-ile to home in on several enemies at once for potentially massive damage. Whenever you use this ability, you cannot move at all, be so be careful when and where you activate this.

Can't-Miss-ile Character Upgrades:

• Improved Tracking (3 upgrade points): Dealing damage to enemies with Can't-Miss-ile places 3 tags on that enemy, which is the maximum amount of tags you can have on an enemy at once, and it reduces the cooldown time of this ability as well, allowing you to deal damage to your enemies that have tags much more efficently and frequently. Tags normally disappear from an enemy once you have hit them with a Can't-Miss-ile, however you will completely reset the tags if you hit them with this ability, and the faster cooldown means you can deal damage to your enemies more frequently. This upgrade is even more effective if you can affect multiple enemies with a use of this ability.
• Super Payload (4 upgrade points): For each enemy that you target with Can't-Miss-ile, 4 extra missiles are launched against each enemy. This means you have the potential to do more damage to each affected enemy and that you are more likely to deal damage to them in the first place as well. If you can do this against enemies that have maximum tags, you have the potential of inflicting massive damage to your enemies. The extra missiles may even hit other enemies that you have not already tagged if your enemies are clustering. Tagging your enemies has never been quite this effective, until now.

Exclusive Character Upgrades

80s Action Hero's exclusive character upgrades are as follows:

Targeting Arrows (1 upgrade point): Tags that you have placed on an enemy remain even if you get vanquished, which means you do not have to damage the enemy with your Bow Blaster every time you respawn to tag them. You normally lose tags that you have placed on enemies when you are vanquished, but with this upgrade this is no longer the case, however the tags will still be removed from the enemies if they are vanquished by any means. This is great for getting back into a battle and being able to identify where your enemies are, but you can also use your Can't-Miss-ile and vanquish some previously tagged enemies quickly.

Critical Tag (3 upgrade points): Landing a critical hit on an enemy gives you 3 tags on that enemy, instead of 1, which is the maximum amount of tags you can have on an enemy at once. You do not have to hit an enemy with a fully charged shot to trigger this effect, you can actually hit them with an uncharged shot and you will still land all of the tags. You can simply hit an enemy with a critical hit or you could hit multiple enemies with quick critical hits, and then use your Can't-Miss-ile to get some quick vanquishes or lots of damage, as well as giving the missiles greater homing capabilities. This overall makes it easier and more efficient to land tags on your enemies, just make sure to aim for critical hits where possible, and it may be better not to charge up to do this more quickly.

The Huntsman (4 upgrade points): Landing a fully charged hit on an enemy gives you 3 tags on that enemy, instead of 1, which is the maximum amount of tags that can be on an enemy at once. You do not have to deal direct damage to the enemy either, if you deal splash damage through a fully charged shot, that enemy will still be maximum tagged. You just need to hit the enemy with any fully charged shot or attack multiple enemies at least once each with a fully charged shot, and then after use your Can't-Miss-ile to get some fast vanquishes or significant damage, as well as improving the homing capabilities of the missiles. This can make it easier to land tags on your enemies more efficiently, you could even try to splash multiple enemies with a fully charged hit for greater tag potential.

Bow Master (4 upgrade points): Vanquishing an enemy successfully allows you to charge up your Bow Blaster in about 25% of the normal time, or in other words, in a quarter of the time or 4 times faster, and this effect lasts about 3 seconds. You are able to charge up your Bow Blaster nearly instantly in this way and deal lots more potential damage as well. This upgrade can be great as you could vanquish a different enemy with your Bow Blaster and do lots of damage or get more vanquishes with this effect, or you can use an ability to get a vanquish and trigger this effect. Landing tags on your enemies will be easier to achieve with this as well, but as this effect does not last long, you should be quick.

Usefulness in Situations

General

Effective at range and against grouped enemies, as your Bow Blaster can be charged up to be more accurate at longer ranges and your abilities are useful against groups of enemies. 

Reviving Allies

• You can still shoot and charge up your Bow Blaster while reviving, so you can use this on enemies you can see.
• You can activate your Can't-Miss-ile before reviving to deal some extra damage or vanquish some enemies near you.

Contesting the Objective

• Keep shooting your Bow Blaster constantly to get tags on enemies quickly, or charge up for bigger attacks if that will work out better.
• Use your Dynamite Dodge to dodge attacks and potentially deal damage to some enemies.
• Use Rocket Ride to try and damage groups of enemies from above.
• Your Can't-Miss-ile can be used to try and vanquish some enemies quickly, especially if you have first tagged them. 

When Abilities are Negated

• You can still shoot normally with the Bow Blaster at your enemies, but if you charge it up, you will move slower so be mindful of that.
• Use your Dynamite Dodge to get to the item and damage any enemy too close to you.

Tips

• Use your Bow Blaster in rapid succession if you want to place tags on enemies quickly or at close quarters, or charge it up for some stronger damage to your enemies.
• Aim at your enemies with your Bow Blaster if you want more precision, and try to deal critical hits for additional damage where possible.
• Use your Dynamite Dodge when surrounded by enemies, as you can escape and potentially deal lots of damage as well. Alternatively, use it to escape situations, get around, or to deal extra damage to enemies at close range.
• Use your Rocket Ride to attack enemy groups, and try and move around while using it to avoid some enemy attacks as you move much more slowly, but cancel the ability with Dynamite Dodge if you need to end it prematurely.
• Use your Can't-Miss-ile against multiple enemies if you possibly can. Use your Bow Blaster to damage enemies, perhaps with quick and uncharged shots, and try to spread the tags to many enemies, then launch your Can't-Miss-ile and you will be firing missiles all around. 

These are my 80s Action Hero tips. Thanks for reading!

@TheSprinter85