You're standing in the Great Hall of Hollow Bastion, staring at a giant, glowing treasure chest that won't open. It's frustrating. You've beaten the game, maybe even took down Sephiroth, but that gold crown icon stays out of reach. That’s because of the Kingdom Hearts 2 Mushroom 13 challenge. It isn't just one boss. It’s a gauntlet of thirteen bizarre, black-coated Heartless that test every single mechanic in the game, from your reaction speed to how well you can abuse specific magic frames.
Honestly, some of these are fun. Others? They feel like a personal attack from Tetsuya Nomura himself.
If you’re playing the Final Mix version—which, let’s be real, is the only version people care about now—you know the deal. You find a mushroom, you "Examine" it, and suddenly you’re playing a minigame that feels nothing like the rest of the combat. You aren't just trying to kill them. You're trying to satisfy their specific, neurotic desires for juggling, hovering, or being hit with lightning exactly 85 times.
Tracking Down the Kingdom Hearts 2 Mushroom 13 Members
The first hurdle is actually finding the things. They don't just hang out in a neat row. No, they’re scattered across the worlds like annoying, fungal tourists. You’ll find Number 1 right outside Memory’s Skyscraper in The World That Never Was. He’s the gatekeeper. To beat him, you basically need to be a master of the Reversal reaction command. It’s all about timing. If you mess up the rhythm once, the timer hits zero, and you're back to square one.
Then you’ve got Number 2 in Halloween Town. This guy shoots lasers. A lot of them. You have to reflect or dodge them while staying alive, which sounds simple until you realize the sheer volume of projectiles coming at you. Most players end up using Reflega spam, but even then, your MP management has to be spot on.
The Ones That Make You Want to Throw Your Controller
Number 8 in Twilight Town is the undisputed king of rage. Located outside the Old Mansion, this mushroom requires you to keep it in the air for 85 hits. It sounds doable. It isn't. The mushroom flies away from you with every hit, often launching itself out of bounds or behind a wall where you can't reach it. Most pros suggest using Master Form or Berserk Charge. You deplete your MP, start a combo, and pray the physics engine plays nice for thirty seconds. It rarely does.
Then there’s Number 9 in Radiant Garden. You have to keep him spinning. If he stops spinning, you lose. It’s a test of horizontal movement and keeping a constant rhythm of hits without knocking him too far away. You'll probably find yourself switching to Fatal Crest just to keep the combo going without a finisher. Finisher moves are usually the enemy here because they create too much knockback.
Why the Requirements Feel So Precise
The Mushroom XIII (as they’re officially known) weren't in the original PS2 release. They were added to the Final Mix to give players something to do besides the Data Organization XIII fights. Because of that, the developers tuned them for high-level play. You basically need to have your Drive Forms leveled to the max. If your High Jump or Aerial Dodge isn't at level 3, don't even bother with the ones in Land of Dragons or Port Royal.
For Number 4 in the Land of Dragons, it's a game of "don't get touched." You’re in a narrow courtyard with a bunch of clones. If one bumps into you, it's over. Wisdom Form is usually the go-to here because of the ranged magic and the quick dash. It feels more like a bullet-hell shooter than a KH game.
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Number 5 in Agrabah is a DPS check. Pure and simple. You have to burn through his HP before he regenerates. If you aren't using your strongest equipment—think Decisive Pumpkin or Ultima Weapon—you're going to fall short by a sliver of health every single time. It's a gear check disguised as a fight.
The Weird Mechanics of Mushroom 11 and 12
Number 11 in Timeless River is bizarre. You have to reduce a hit counter to zero within a time limit, but the mushroom is constantly jumping around. It’s one of the few times where the "hit" doesn't matter as much as the frequency. Most people find success using Wisdom Form and just peppering it with shots while sliding around the dock.
Number 12 in Twilight Town is a mob fight. You're in the back alley, and you have to kill a certain number of them within the limit. This is where your AOE (Area of Effect) spells shine. Magnega is your best friend. Pull them in, blast them, move to the next group. If you try to manually target each one with a keyblade swing, you’re going to fail. Period.
The Final Reward: Mushroom 13
Once you've satisfied the first twelve, the final Kingdom Hearts 2 Mushroom 13 member appears back at Radiant Garden, in the Great Hollow. Number 13 doesn't actually make you play a game. He just sits there. He’s the "leader," and he’s there to judge your performance.
If you’ve completed all the previous challenges with a high enough score (obtaining the "Satisfied" rank for all 12), he rewards you with the Winner's Proof Keyblade and the Proof of Peace. The Proof of Peace is one of the three items required to unlock the secret ending "Birth by Sleep" on lower difficulties.
The Winner's Proof itself is a bit of a mixed bag. It has high stats, sure, but its ability is "No Experience." It’s literally a trophy for people who have already done everything. It’s the game’s way of saying, "Congrats, you’re done, now stop playing."
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Strategic Preparation for the Gauntlet
You can't just wing this. To actually clear the Kingdom Hearts 2 Mushroom 13 list, you need a specific inventory setup.
- Load up on Ethers: Several mushrooms require constant magic use. If you run out of MP and hit that pink "recharge" bar, you've lost the challenge.
- Check your Abilities: For tasks like Number 8, you must unequip any abilities that add finishers. You want a never-ending loop of weak hits.
- Keyblade Swapping: Don't stick to Ultima Weapon. The Decisive Pumpkin deals more damage on ground combos because of Combo Boost. Use Rumbling Rose for extra finishers when needed.
- Drive Forms: Ensure you have enough Drive Gauges. You'll be switching into Final Form and Wisdom Form constantly.
A lot of players overlook the importance of the Stitch summon. For some challenges, Stitch is actually better than any Drive Form because he restores your MP and helps juggle enemies with his ukulele. It sounds silly, but Stitch is the secret MVP of high-level Kingdom Hearts 2 play.
Breaking Down the "Satisfied" Requirements
Just "beating" a mushroom isn't enough. You need the rank that makes them burst into fireworks and drop a specific item. If they just fade away, you didn't hit the score threshold.
Take Number 7 in Twilight Town. He’s in the tunnel. You have to kill him incredibly fast. If you take more than a few seconds, you get the "low" reward. To get the "Satisfied" rank, you basically have to use Reflega to parry his initial charge and then follow up with a high-damage combo immediately. There’s no room for error.
Number 6 in Olympus Coliseum is another one that trips people up. It's a group of mushrooms that form shapes. You have to clear them out using AOE attacks. Thundaga is the play here. If you have the Photon Legacy keyblade or anything that boosts lightning damage, use it.
Actionable Steps for Your Completionist Run
If you're staring at a save file and deciding to finally tackle these, don't just go in order. Start with the easy ones to build your confidence and maybe get some of the unique armor drops they provide.
- Level to 99 first. While it’s possible at lower levels, the extra strength and magic stats make the DPS-heavy mushrooms (like Number 5 and 10) significantly less stressful.
- Max out your Drive Forms. You absolutely need the growth abilities (Quick Run, Aerial Dodge, Glide) at level 3 to navigate the arenas and keep up with the mushrooms' movement patterns.
- Synthesize the Full Bloom+ accessory. This item speeds up your MP recovery. Having three or four of these equipped makes the magic-based challenges (like Number 12) much more forgiving.
- Watch a "No Damage" run. Even if you aren't going for a perfect run, watching the movement patterns of expert players on YouTube will show you exactly where to stand. Position is 90% of the battle for Number 8.
- Go to the Great Hollow last. Don't forget that Mushroom 13 only gives you the prize once the others are documented in your journal with the correct rank. Check your Jiminy Cricket journal frequently to ensure you didn't miss a "Satisfied" rank on a previous one.
The Kingdom Hearts 2 Mushroom 13 challenge is a grind, but it's the definitive proof of mastery over the game's systems. It forces you to use spells and summons you might have ignored during the main story. Once you see that gold crown on Sora's head, you'll know it was worth the headache.