Super Mario RPG: How To Defeat Knife Guy & Grate Guy

Welcome to our boss guides for Super Mario RPG on Nintendo Switch and SNES.

One of the first truly difficult bosses in Super Mario RPG, Knife Guy and Grate Guy are working for Booster, who has kidnapped Princess Peach. You'll encounter this duo at the end of Booster Tower.

In this guide, we've got the best strategy for beating Knife Guy & Grate Guy.

How to beat Knife Guy & Grate Guy

Recommended party: Mario, Geno, Bowser

As a reminder, if you outsmarted Booster at Booster Tower, then equip the Booster's Charm on Mario to half all elemental damage. Also, make sure Bowser is equipped with the Chomp. Bowser is invaluable as he has access to Terrorize, a skill that deals damage and inflicts Fear on the targets. Fear helps out a lot here because it takes the bosses’ damage output down a peg.

The two will eventually team up for attacks, so focus your attacks on Knife Guy. Mario’s Fire Orb, Bowser’s Terrorize, and even Geno’s physical attacks are highly effective here.

When Knife Guy goes down, you can start focusing your attacks on Grate Guy. He’ll sometimes use Echofinder, a spell that inflicts Mute on a party member, rendering them unable to use their special attacks. If you’re confident in your skills, Mario’s Super Jump works well here.

It might take a while, but you'll eventually get both Guys down, and you'll be thrown into a minigame at Booster Hill.

For more help on getting through Super Mario RPG, check out our full Super Mario RPG guide for everything you need.