Red Bush

Red Bush
Group	Bushes
Roles	Foe, Summon
Appearances	Epic Battle Fantasy 3 Epic Battle Fantasy 4 Epic Battle Fantasy 5

The Red Bush is a recurring foe in the Epic Battle Fantasy series; it is also a summon in Epic Battle Fantasy 5. It made its debut in Epic Battle Fantasy 3 as a member of the Bushes, making subsequent appearances in the next two games. It is mostly found in nature-themed areas, such as Vegetable Forest (EBF3), Ashwood Forest and Lankyroot Jungle (in EBF4): however, Epic Battle Fantasy 5 makes it a common sight in Redpine Town.

Appearance

The Red Bush is a small creature resembling a red-orange bush with two proportionately long arms, beady brown eyes, and a short brown stem on the top of its head, often with a leaf or two. It appears very similar to the Green Bush, but their implied relationship varies between games; Epic Battle Fantasy 3 implies it's a rare subspecies of Bush, Epic Battle Fantasy 5 claims that it's an older and more aggressive stage of the Green Bush, and Epic Battle Fantasy 4 has no hints to its relationship with other Bushes besides their similar appearance and behavior.

As with most recurring Bushes, the Red Bush's appearance was only slightly updated from EBF3 to EBF4, giving its body a less detailed appearance to appear as if its leaves are much smaller and more numerous. In EBF5, its body is a lighter shade of orange and a few brown twigs are visible at the end of each arm (evoking fingers or claws). It also has three visual variants in the latter game, although the differences are limited to what else is growing out of their heads aside from the usual stem.

1. A single reddish beech leaf and a secondary stem (almost obscured by the Bush's head).
2. Two reddish beech leaves, one nearly obscuring its stem and the other growing further down its back.
3. A thin brown vine/branch with three tan thorns, resembling a tiny Gash Root.

Overview

The Red Bush is a stronger version of the Green Bush, but not by much. It mainly poses a threat by screaming at players to lower their Defence, which can be somewhat problematic if more powerful physically-inclined foes are in the wave; beyond that, it generally lacks any special traits and is a minor threat. As with many Bushes, its biggest weakness is Fire, with Earth and Wind being common secondary weaknesses.

Epic Battle Fantasy 3

The Red Bush's Bestiary description tells you most of what you need to know about it; it's less common than the Green Bush, and it's a little bit harder to kill. It has about 20% more HP and a defensive version of the Deep Tone Scream that raises its Evade instead of its Attack; if it uses this move repeatedly, it can become surprisingly hard to hit for a while. Offensively, it has similar abilities as the Green Bush; it can poke a player with its leaves, take a bite out of them for slightly more damage and a higher critical chance (but slightly less Accuracy), or scream at them to lower their Defence. It's actually slightly less dangerous than the Green Bush, since its Leaf Stab can't inflict Poison; on the other hand, being non-elemental prevents the party from reducing its damage with the proper resistance.

Overall, the Red Bush can be treated like its greener counterpart; safely ignored unless you want to remove the risk of it debuffing the party's Defence. Its slightly higher HP is negligible, but its self-buff can become annoying if it's allowed to stack; in this case, it should be killed quickly before it has a chance to raise its Evade. If it does get some buffs in, Lance is a good choice for picking it off; his Super Snipe gun hits one of the Bush's weaknesses while having high Accuracy and a boosted Snipe to mitigate its dodging capabilities.

The Red Bush is very vulnerable to Fire, with lesser weaknesses to Earth and Wind; it absorbs Water, but this is easily avoided. It also has an extreme vulnerability to Berserk, but this actually helps it; its pattern doesn't change, and its damage output will increase.

Epic Battle Fantasy 4

In contrast to its EBF3 counterpart, the Red Bush is actually weaker than the Green Bush; it has slightly less HP and its attacks have a bit less Base Power. However, it compensates for this with its Scream ability, which has a good chance of reducing the Defence of all three active players at once. While not particularly effective on its own, the debuff can become very problematic if the Red Bush is accompanied by powerful physical attackers; it also becomes a little stronger on higher difficulty levels.

What little threat the Red Bush poses to the party can be nullified with Syphon or Berserk, either of which stops it from using Scream - Syphon is preferable for leaving it with a weaker attack, but it's weak enough that even a Berserk-boosted Bite shouldn't be too noteworthy. Of course, it's also very easily killed outright, even at the beginning of the game; Anna can use Log to hit its Earth weakness and Stagger it for a follow-up attack from another party member (all of whom have skills to exploit the Red Bush's most serious elemental weakness). In general, however, the Red Bush can be easily eliminated by anything that it doesn't absorb.

The Red Bush's worst weakness is Fire, which deals double damage to it; it's also very weak to Bio, Wind, and (to a lesser extent) Earth. Its only resistance is a Water absorption, so the party has a wide range of options against it; it's also incredibly susceptible to Stagger and Burn. If "More Foe Resistance" is enabled, its Bio and Earth weaknesses become absorptions instead; however, this only makes it slightly less vulnerable overall.

Epic Battle Fantasy 5

Unlike its previous appearances, the Red Bush's stats are identical to that of a Green Bush; the difference now lies solely in their moves. In addition to the basic Hit attack used by most Bushes (which deals very slightly Bio-based physical damage), it has a slightly stronger non-elemental biting move and the ability to cast Mushroom for half-Bio damage and a small chance of Stun. It can also scream at the active players, which has a high chance to slightly reduce their Defence; this makes the Red Bush only marginally stronger, but more dangerous physical foes can exploit the debuff much more effectively.

Although the Red Bush can certainly be an annoyance to players - especially on Hard or Epic difficulty. where its status effects become more powerful - it's very easy to kill before it can cause much trouble. If that's not an option, Syphon or Berserk will prevent it from using Mushroom and Scream, limiting it to its ineffectual damaging moves. Fire-focused parties are especially efficient at killing it, since its susceptibility to Dry, Stagger, and Burn nicely complement its worst elemental weakness. If the player is feeling especially lazy, Tree-scaring equipment such as the Oak Staff or The Chopper will send it fleeing immediately.

The Red Bush absorbs Water, but has no other resistances; on the other hand, it's weak to Earth and Wind while being even more vulnerable to Fire and Bio. It's also very easy to afflict with Wet, Dry, Stagger, Scorch, and Burn. Activating "More Foe Resistance" makes it neutral to Earth and Wind while turning its Fire weakness into a strong absorption.

Statistics

Epic Battle Fantasy 3

	Red Bush	Small Shrub	EBF3
	A rare variety of Bush, with better defensive skills.

Statistics
Base Statistics								Exp	AP	Gold
	75	4	4	4	4	4	4	8	1	4
Elemental Resistance
	-70%	-	-	200%	-40%	-50%	-	-	-	-
Status Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-100%	-	-
Debuff Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-	-

Item Drop Rate
Icon			-	-	-	-	-
Name	Ragged Cloth	Mushroom	-	-	-	-	-
Chance	20%	5%	-	-	-	-	-

Epic Battle Fantasy 4

	Red Bush	EBF4
	A timid creature which uses non-elemental attacks and can lower the party's defence.

Statistics
Base Statistics								Exp	AP	SP	Gold	Hit2HP
	60	4	4	4	4	4	4	6	1	1	4	50
Elemental Resistance
	-100%	-	-	-60%	-80%	-	-80%	150%	-	-
Status Resistance
	-200%	-	-	-	-	-	-100%	-	-	-	-	-
Debuff Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-	-

Item Drop Rate
Icon				-	-	-	-
Name	Lanky Root	Kiwi	Ogle Berries	-	-	-	-
Chance	10%	15%	25%	-	-	-	-

Status Damage
Damage taken from status effects, in % of maximum health (per turn), including elemental resistances:
Burn	Poison	Doom (if Death fails)	Regen
14%	5.4% per stack, up to 48.6%	25%	-33.(3)%
Final damage is randomized by ±5% (except for Doom) and rounded down.

Statistics with More Foe Resistance enabled.

	Red Bush	EBF4
	A timid creature which uses non-elemental attacks and can lower the party's defence.

Statistics
Base Statistics								Exp	AP	SP	Gold	Hit2HP
	60	4	4	4	4	4	4	6	1	1	4	50
Elemental Resistance
	-100%	-	-	150%	150%	-	-80%	150%	-	-
Status Resistance
	-200%	-	-	-	-	-	-100%	-	-	-	-	-
Debuff Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-	-

Item Drop Rate
Icon				-	-	-	-
Name	Lanky Root	Kiwi	Ogle Berries	-	-	-	-
Chance	10%	15%	25%	-	-	-	-

Status Damage
Damage taken from status effects, in % of maximum health (per turn), including elemental resistances:
Burn	Poison	Doom (if Death fails)	Regen
14%	-1.5% per stack, up to -13.5%	25%	-33.(3)%
Final damage is randomized by ±5% (except for Doom) and rounded down.

Epic Battle Fantasy 5

	Red Bush	EBF5
	A bush that's angry about growing older. It's slightly more aggressive than the green variety.

Statistics
Base Statistics								Exp	AP	SP	Gold	Hit2HP	Catch
	65	4	4	4	4	4	4	6.5	1	1	4.5	50	80
Elemental Resistance
	-80%	-	-	-50%	-80%	-	150%	-50%	-	-
Status Resistance
	-100%	-	-	-	-	-	-100%	-100%	-	-	-	-
Debuff Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Item Drop Rate
Icon				-	-
Name	Gash Root	Soft Wood	An Herb	-	-
Chance	20%	10%	10%	-	-

Status Damage
Damage taken from status effects, in % of maximum health (per turn), including elemental resistances:
Burn	Scorch	Poison	Virus	Doom (if Death fails)	Regen
6.3% per stack, up to 56.7%	12.6% per stack, up to 113.4%	5.4% per stack, up to 48.6%	10.8% per stack, up to 97.2%	25%	-33.(3)%
Damage taken from first four is decreased by 30% on Easy and 65% on Zero difficulties. Final damage is randomized by ±5% (except for Doom) and rounded down.

Statistics with More Foe Resistance enabled.

	Red Bush	EBF5
	A bush that's angry about growing older. It's slightly more aggressive than the green variety.

Statistics
Base Statistics								Exp	AP	SP	Gold	Hit2HP	Catch
	65	4	4	4	4	4	4	6.5	1	1	4.5	50	80
Elemental Resistance
	200%	-	-	-	-80%	-	150%	-	-	-
Status Resistance
	-100%	-	-	-	-	-	-100%	-100%	-	-	-	-
Debuff Resistance
	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Item Drop Rate
Icon				-	-
Name	Gash Root	Soft Wood	An Herb	-	-
Chance	20%	10%	10%	-	-

Status Damage
Damage taken from status effects, in % of maximum health (per turn), including elemental resistances:
Burn	Scorch	Poison	Virus	Doom (if Death fails)	Regen
-3.5% per stack, up to -31.5%	-7% per stack, up to -63%	5.4% per stack, up to 48.6%	10.8% per stack, up to 97.2%	25%	-33.(3)%
Damage taken from first four is decreased by 30% on Easy and 65% on Zero difficulties. Final damage is randomized by ±5% (except for Doom) and rounded down.

Attacks and Abilities

Epic Battle Fantasy 3

Attack List
Attack	Target	Power	Type	Element	Status Effect			Acc	Crit	RdF
Leaf Stab	Single	14		----	--	--	--	100%	10%	10%
Bite	Single	22		----	--	--	--	90%	30%	10%
Thin Tone Scream	Single	10		100%	100%	20%		100%	0%	10%
Deep Tone Scream	Self	--	--	----	--	30%		--	--	--

Epic Battle Fantasy 4

Attack List
Attack	Target	Power	Type	Element	Status Effect			Acc	Crit	RdF
Leaf Stab	Single	12		----	--	--	--	100%	10%	10%
Bite	Single	18		----	--	--	--	100%	10%	10%
Scream	All	--	--	----	70%	20%		100%	--	--
Notes: On Hard and Epic difficulties, debuff strength is increased to 30%.

Epic Battle Fantasy 5

Attack List
Attack	Target	Power	Type	Element	Status Effect			Acc	Crit	RdF
Hit	Single	13		20%	--	--	--	100%	10%	10%
Bite	Single	18		----	--	--	--	100%	10%	10%
Mushroom	Single	25		50%	20%	1x		100%	10%	10%
Notes: Status strength increased to 2x on Hard or Epic difficulties.
Scream	All	--	--	----	75%	15%		100%	--	--
Notes: Debuff strength increased to 25% on Hard or Epic difficulties.

Battle Logic

The following describes general logic of the enemy and attack patterns, with chances of each attack to be used. Conditions are listed from highest to lowest priority unless specified otherwise.

Epic Battle Fantasy 3

• Anything → Leaf Stab (2/6), Bite (2/6), Thin Tone Scream (1/6), Deep Tone Scream (1/6).

Epic Battle Fantasy 4

• Berserked → Bite;
• Syphoned → Leaf Stab;
• Otherwise → Leaf Stab (1/3), Bite (1/3), Scream (1/3).

Epic Battle Fantasy 5

Action

• If catch score >55 and all players are Lovable → Surrender;
• If Syphoned or Berserked → Hit (1/2), Bite (1/2);
• Otherwise → Hit (1/5), Bite (1/5), Mushroom (2/5), Scream (1/5).

Counter (only if Counter-Attacking Foes is enabled)

• 25% and not Syphoned → Mushroom.

Additionally, if any front line player has equipment that scares Trees, the Red Bush will immediately Surrender and Flee on their turn.

Summon

In EBF5, the Red Bush can be captured and used as a summon; it uses its Scream to inflict a modest Defence debuff on all enemies. While the infliction chance and debuff strength are stronger than the foe's version and the SP cost is quite low, it remains wholly outclassed by Debilitate and other means of lowering enemy Defence.

	Red Bush							SP
	Screams at the enemies, debuffing their defence slightly.							15	Kept
Target	Power	Type	Element	Status Effect			Acc	Crit	RdF
All	--	--	----	100%	25%		100%	--	--

Trivia

• EBF3's Bestiary displays the Red Bush as being resistant to Blind, despite the status effect not appearing in that game.
• In EBF5, the Red Bush summon is the only summon to cost 15 SP.