Snowstorm Grotto

Cold and Hostile
So, you found Black Pikmin in the Black Flower Garden in the Desert Oasis and have no idea what to do next? Well, you can't progress any further in that area without Blue Pikmin, which you spotted long ago in a cutscene when you visited the Mountain Springs. Using your Black Pikmin's sticky antics you'll be able to make your way around a steep cliff face near the lake and gain entrance to the faraway reservoir where they live. After you find them, you'll be able to navigate the waterways of this area and discover the sunken Snowstorm Grotto, which you'll make accessible to all Pikmin types. It's got tough foes and some new puzzles, but if you could handle the Black Flower Garden, you'll be able to get through this dungeon all the same.

Floor 1

 * Ivory Candypop Bud x 1
 * Snow Bulborb x 10
 * Watery Blowhog x 5
 * Gas Pipe x 3
 * Treasure x 2

The water that you drained into this cavern has filled up a good portion of the floor, making terrain dangerous for your non-blues. However, there are ice sheets that you can use to pass over these areas. But be careful- if you throw your Purple Pikmin carelessly you could crack the thin ice and send your whole group into the cold water! Leave your Pikmin by the Research Pod and punch out the small bulborbs. Then lead a sleek squad of Blue Pikmin to eliminate the Watery Blowhogs. If you tread carefully, then you can get your White Pikmin across a narrow and icy path over the water that leads to a treasure protected by gas pipes. Shut them down and carry it back. There's also another treasure here, but it's hidden underwater. Take your Blue Pikmin into the water and carry it out. To go further into the dungeon you'll have to break an underwater seal, draining the floor and making this sublevel much less dangerous. If you'd like, you can make the drain your first priority here so that it becomes safer. Before moving on, change some Red Pikmin or Yellow Pikmin into more whites by using the Ivory Candypop Bud here.

Floor 2
The water you drained out from above has flooded a few select spots on the map, it seems. Although there are no enemies here, the hallway ahead seems to be impassable. Although the way to the next floor is easy to reach, getting the treasure will be a challenge. The hallway is filled with water, and this narrow passage is filled with gas pipes. There's no way you could get Blue Pikmin through there... but don't forget about the Black Pikmin's awesome power! You can throw them onto the sides of the wall and they'll stick. Also, the corridor is so tight that if you whistle them, they'll bounce from one wall to the other while following you. In this way, you can easily lead a troop of them through the tight passage of death to the other side where there's a treasure. Have them pick it up and carry it around the bend. They'll fall from a little alcove in the starting room that you probably didn't notice before. Moving right along...
 * Gas Pipe x 20
 * Treasure x 1

Floor 3

 * Fiery Blowhog x 5
 * Hairy Bulborb x 3
 * Snow Bulborb x 10
 * Conduit x 4
 * Treasure x 2

This is an icy labyrinth blockaded at several spots by inconvenient sheets of ice. The water may be gone, but you'll have to find a way of getting past those walls. Oddly enough, your enemies will be your best friends. The fiery attacks of the blowhogs here will melt those ice sheets, allowing you to get through! Luring them to the spot can be the hard part, but usually there will be one right next to the ice sheet. One treasure here is buried, so use White Pikmin to dig it up. Make sure to disable the conduits to make it safe for them to carry. One of the large bulborbs here holds the other treasure. The way to the next floor is always blocked by an ice sheet that needs to be melted off with the enemy's fire.

Floor 4

 * Shady Candypop Bud x 2
 * Key x 1
 * Web x 1

A rest floor? Really? Well, this dungeon isn't much of a challenge. Or perhaps this floor is one last shot at mercy before the trials ahead? Don't get cozy here, because the next couple of floors are going to get really cold, really quickly. Just get rid of the web and take the key to open the way forwards.

Floor 5

 * Volatile Dweevil x 14
 * Solid Liquid x 1
 * Bomb-Rock x 26
 * Treasure x 2

This is one huge floor! The paths go in many directions, but most of it is on very thin ice. You also probably noticed that there is a bottomless abyss below you, so don't make any screw-ups with Purple Pikmin, it'll make the pathways more troublesome to cross, plus you could fall to your doom and lose all of your Pikmin and treasures you found here. Lead a small group of White Pikmin out across the ice, and be careful not to set off any Bomb-Rocks that could potentially destroy the floor beneath you. However, there are Volatile Dweevils in plain sight sometimes. Steer clear of any pathways inhabited by them, it's a wide complex and there are other ways to get where you want to go. You'll find one treasure on a high ledge. Return there with Yellow Pikmin to pull it down for the taking. The other treasure is a real chore to get- it's in a faraway glob of Solid Liquid, and you can only defeat it with Purple Pikmin. In other words, you can't miss it when you throw or else the floor will break. After you defeat it you can take the treasure. Search for the way down to solid ground, and jump in.

Floor 6

 * Breadbug x 2
 * Dwarf Bulbear x 13
 * Fiery Blowhog x 4
 * Spotty Bulbear x 1
 * Watery Blowhog x 1
 * Conduit x 6
 * Treasure x 3

This is a sort of "redux" of the third floor, because it's another labyrinth with ice blockades. However, there are a couple of twists; familiar scavengers and a fearsome new predator roam this floor. If you can defeat the Spotty Bulbear it'll drop one of the treasures you're looking for. But don't wait around too long, or the beast will recover its energy and start tracking you down again. Another treasure starts off away from your Research Pod, so one of the Breadbugs will probably claim it before you can. The only blowhog that can't melt the barriers holds the last treasure here, and it should be a piece of cake to claim. The main problem here will be that wandering bulbear, and the fact that its underlings follow it around. Be careful of those inconspicuous conduits, they could lead to a lot of trouble.

Floor 7

 * Hairy Bulborb x 3 (fall)
 * Jumbo Whiskerpillar x 3 (fall)
 * Snow Bulborb x 21 (fall)
 * Key x 1
 * Treasure x 1

After all those twisting passages, you've arrived in a huge, open and snowy chamber. There's only one enemy at first, a snow variation of the Jumbo Whiskerpillar. After defeating it, it will drop a treasure. Take the treasure for yourself, but then prepare for a REAL battle. Seven Snow Bulborbs will drop in at first. They're easily dealt with, but right after you beat the last one, seven more will drop in along with one mad Hairy Bulborb. No more holding back on Purple Pikmin; pummel everything in sight. After they are defeated, seven more Snow Bulborbs fall along with a pair of Hairy Bulborbs, so don't let them gang up on you. Once you have defeated them, you'll hear a massive rumbling. A pair of Jumbo Whiskerpillars fall from above to do battle! They are very slow, so even with two of them you shouldn't have a tough time. The key to the next floor is your hard-earned reward.

Floor 8 (Final Floor)

 * Raging Long Legs BOSS
 * Treasure x 1

Another large arena, but this time you fight the big boss of the cave- Raging Long Legs. With such a huge body, it's as slow as those whiskerpillars you defeated on the previous floor. It is also extremely easy to hit with attacks. But it has a lot of health, and if your Pikmin get stepped on you'll suffer massive casualties, so tread lightly around this big foe. It's pretty stupid and doesn't actively battle you. However, after sustaining enough damage it will start paying attention to you. Now it will try to shake off your Pikmin and throw a short stomping tantrum soon after. Right before it shakes, call them back and they won't get hit. After it has lost half of its health, it will use a new stomping attack in place that causes icicles to barrage you from the ceiling. Avoid the shadows and nobody will get hurt. To make this work to your advantage, hide underneath its body when it uses the icicle attack to damage it more quickly. Between it's last 10-5 percent of health remaining, it will really get mad and start stomping around constantly without slowing down, causing icicles to fall occasionally. Stay on your feet and deftly dish out the last bit of damage. It will split in half, dumping out a huge pile of snow with a treasure inside! That's the last one, you've finished the Snowstorm Grotto!

Wildlife

 * Breadbug
 * Dwarf Bulbear
 * Fiery Blowhog
 * Hairy Bulborb
 * Ivory Candypop Bud
 * Jumbo Whiskerpillar
 * Shady Candypop Bud
 * Snow Bulborb
 * Spotty Bulbear
 * Volatile Dweevil
 * Watery Blowhog
 * FINAL FLOOR BOSS: Raging Long Legs