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This expansion also brought with it a handful of new charms, weapons, levels, and boss fights that both new and returning players could dive into. People had been eagerly awaiting the release of this additional content for years, and it doesn’t seem to have disappointed in the slightest.
9 The Relics
Players who purchase the Broken Relic Charm for one coin from Porkrind’s Emporium may at first be confused to find that it provides no noticeable benefit. The reality is that it must be equipped for those looking to take on the Angel and Demon boss fight in the Graveyard area of the expansion. Once the boss is defeated the Broken Relic will morph into the Cursed Relic.
This second version of the relic reduces the player’s health and randomizes their weapons. By defeating enough enemies with it equipped, however, players will be rewarded with the relic’s final form: the Divine Relic. The final version of the relic is substantial in what it provides the player, but it’s a lot of investment on the front end that also requires a hefty amount of skill and ability to level up.
8 Heart Ring
The Heart Ring is a fascinating idea for a Charm in Cuphead, but, in practice, it isn’t quite as good as it’s cracked up to be. One could argue that the fact that the Heart Ring doesn’t decrease the player’s attack power makes it a win/win situation, but relying on health regeneration from solely parry attacks only benefits the most skilled of players.
In some ways, it could be argued that this forces players to engage in parrying and can drastically improve their skills with the mechanic over time. Those looking to give it a chance will simply need to head over to Porkrind’s Emporium with three coins in hand.
7 Astral Cookie
The Astral Cookie Charm is essentially the in-game lore item that lets players use Ms. Chalice in the 2022 expansion, The Delicious Last Course. Specifically, it grants an additional health point and adds moves known as the dodge roll, parry dash, and double-jump.
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Chef Saltbaker gives the Astral Cookie to the player at the very beginning of the expansion. Because it’s the only way to play as Ms. Chalice, it doesn’t feel like it adds benefits to the player, but rather provides a completely different gameplay experience altogether.
6 Whetstone
The Whetstone Charm is an example of an item that is useful in specific scenarios, but its lack of versatility limits its overall value to the entire player base of Cuphead. When equipped players can damage enemies with their first landed parry, but then must land in order to reset the counter so they may use it again.
If these parry attacks could be chained together then it would likely rank a lot higher when it comes to the best charms in Cuphead. Of course, if that were the case, Porkrind’s Emporium would likely charge a lot more than the three coins it currently costs to acquire.
5 Heart
When players first get their hands on the Heart Charm, the potential of having one more health point feels like a momentous upgrade. For just three coins at Porkrind’s Emporium, the Heart Charm can be acquired.
It does have a downside, though, as the charm provides health at the cost of offensive firepower. The attack power of the player is reduced by five percent when the Heart Charm is equipped. It’s up to each person to decide if the trade-off is ultimately worth it.
4 P. Sugar
Parrying is a big part of the Cuphead experience, and getting the hang of the timing and placement is a learning curve that can make or break the amount of success someone will see in the game. For those who are struggling, the P. Sugar Charm might be the best thing available in Porkrind’s Emporium.
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It cost three coins and whenever the player jumps for the first time they’ll automatically parry an object. It makes it so players can focus on avoiding other projectiles and attacks, while still being able to fill up their special meter and get the satisfying audio and visual feedback from properly parrying something.
3 Twin Heart
The Twin Heart Charm, as its name would suggest, is essentially a way to double-down on the Heart Charm discussed earlier. For the cost of 10% of the player’s total attack power, they get two additional health points, substantially raising their survivability rate.
Players will need five coins in order to leave Porkrind’s Emporium with it. The most common strategy is to equip it when facing off against King Dice towards the end of the game, as players who navigate the level correctly can end with a staggering eight points of health.
2 Coffee
Shooting off super attacks in Cuphead can be highly addictive as the damage amount and flourish of the animation is quite a sight to behold. Most people rely on coffee to get them through the day, and the Coffee Charm in Cuphead offers the same type of kickstart.
When equipped, players will start with a full Super Meter. Better still, once emptied, the meter will automatically fill over time, in addition to what the player naturally earns during gameplay. An investment of three coins at Porkrind’s Emporium is very little considering the massive advantage the Coffee Charm provides.
1 Smoke Bomb
For being a Charm that can be obtained really early in Cuphead, the Smoke Bomb provides plenty of value for the small investment of three coins at Porkrind’s Emporium. While attached to the player the Smoke Bomb makes dashing low risk as it prevents damage.
The invulnerability frames provided by the charm make it so the player can be more versatile in their approach to various enemies or boss phases. It also applies to side-scrolling plane levels and activates whenever the player shrinks the size of the plane or returns to normal size after avoiding things.
Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course is available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
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