Mamuta

The Mamuta ( , Japanese: ) is an enemy found in, , and. It is fairly large, seemingly rocky and has two small eyes with indents around each one. Its body is notably asymmetrical with large, muscular arms that have strange markings around the wrists, and it is covered in tiny white and gray hairs. The hairs are more visible in Pikmin 4, and upon closer inspection in this game, the markings are actually wristbands, which also have thicker lines in this installment. The single Mamuta in the first game is neutral, and just stands and watches when Pikmin walk by; if any harm comes to it, however, it becomes enraged and attacks. In Pikmin 2, despite being initially so gentle that Unmarked Spectralids can land on them, Mamutas become aggressive when approached. In Pikmin 4, they return to their behavior from Pikmin. They are found relaxing and sometimes even purring, with White and Yellow Spectralids fluttering about and resting on the Mamuta.

These creatures attack by pounding Pikmin into the ground. This doesn't kill them, but replants them and turns them into flowered Pikmin by some unknown process. This can be used to one's advantage, though it can get very annoying when it comes to plucking the Pikmin if one is in a hurry. With the Pluckaphone, however, a Mamuta can do more good than bad, as the planted Pikmin can simply be called out of the ground. Leaders, as opposed to Pikmin, do take damage from Mamuta attacks.

In Pikmin, the Mamuta is found at The Impact Site on even-numbered days, starting on day 8 (on odd-numbered days, the Goolix is encountered instead), but in Pikmin 2, Mamutas are only found underground, and their health and weight is less than in Pikmin. A Mamuta inside the Frontier Cavern holds the Brute Knuckles, making it the only non-boss enemy which carries a piece of the Explorer's Friend Series, which constitutes the Exploration Kit.

Behavior
In the first Pikmin game, the creature starts off just wandering around the area randomly. If attacked, it will start raging and will attack back, smacking both Olimar and Pikmin. It can slap directly in front of itself, to the side with one hand, or slightly to the side with both. Hitting Olimar will cause the creature to stop attacking and appear to relax, after emitting some odd donkey-like noises. It will only attack again if Pikmin are plucked or if it is attacked. It will eventually get up and start walking around again. If Olimar leaves the Mamuta's range, it will swing its arms around and smash the ground to vent its anger, leading it to become neutral again.

In Pikmin 2, they are motionless – they are so still that Unmarked Spectralids will land on them, if there are any nearby. Once a leader or Pikmin approaches however, it will enter an aggressive state, and any Unmarked Spectralids on it will fly off. Unlike in Pikmin, a Mamuta in this game will not rest after attacking. If nothing is in its range after it has been alerted, it will tend to wander for awhile before becoming motionless again.

Their behavior in Pikmin 4 is closer to how it was in the first game. They will start off relaxing, even purring, surrounded by gentle Spectralids. When enraged they will bounce up and down before pounding the player, Oatchi, and Pikmin, using both its front pound, and side pounds from Pikmin. After calming down, it will lumber around aimlessly. If it plants any Pikmin, it will return to sitting, getting enraged if the sprouts are plucked.

Pikmin
There is no threat to your Pikmin, only the problem of having to pluck planted Pikmin, which can take a while without the Pluckaphone (Pikmin 2 only), although it can be troublesome if the Mamuta hits the leaders, incapacitating him for a second or more. Throwing Pikmin onto it from a distance is often more effective to avoid this than swarming, unless Olimar is accompanied by a large group of Pikmin. Attacking from behind is also advantageous. Purple Pikmin allow for an especially easy defeat. One must try to be careful; some Pikmin being planted is inevitable, but if all (not possible in Pikmin 2) of your army is planted, then it is likely that you will have to either resort to throwing and calling back two or three salvaged Pikmin, as the Mamuta will attempt to attack you if you pluck any more than that; or, you could be forced to use the below strategy, which is marginally simpler and much harder.

Leaders
Although very difficult, Olimar can defeat the Mamuta by attacking it from behind. However, it is recommended that Olimar uses Pikmin, as attacking the Mamuta by himself is time-consuming. In Pikmin 2, this is less of a problem due to Mamutas only appearing in caves with no time limit. Also, the Mamutas in both games cause major damage to Olimar and, at least in the first game, can land multiple hits on him while he is incapacitated. This can damage him even to the point of death. Inexperienced players, beware.

Trivia

 * Interestingly, the patterns on the Mamuta's wrists are the same as the patterns on the Onions.
 * In Pikmin, the Mamuta appears to be resistant to bomb rocks, taking minuscule damage when struck.
 * The Mamuta's recipe is very different in the Japanese Version, instead saying to be quick about boiling it as it spoils quickly, but to be kept for 2-3 days when boiling. Coincidentally, the early recipe for the Mamuta is exactly the same as the Japanese version.
 * In Pikmin 2, if there are 99 Pikmin buried in the same area or sublevel, then it will be impossible for a Mamuta to bury the 100th Pikmin. That Pikmin will simply get knocked back.