Super Mario RPG: How To Defeat Jonathan Jones

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

Jonathan Jones is the leader of the pirates and the person (shark) you've been after since leaving Seaside Town in Super Mario RPG. Hiding at the bottom of the Sunken Ship, Johnny has that fifth Star Piece you're after, so you'll need to beat him to get it.

Here's how to defeat Johnny in Super Mario RPG.

How to beat Jonathan Jones / Johnny

Recommended party: Mario, Geno, Bowser or Peach

To start with, attack the minions using Bowser’s Terrorize to deal as much damage as possible. That said, you’ll want to leave just one minion alive no matter what.

Next, focus on Jonathan Jones himself. When Johnny has taken enough damage, he’ll use a spell that drastically increases his defense and turns him red. At this point, if all of the minions are gone, he will forcibly challenge Mario to a one-on-one battle. That makes it very difficult to heal up, which is why we’re leaving one minion alive.

With higher defense, special attacks and physical attacks do roughly the same amount of damage to Johnny – that is not much at all. Either attack him with physical attacks or go for well-timed Super Jumps if you’re confident in your bouncing skills.

This takes a while, but just focus everything you have on him, and when he goes down, all of his minions will disappear as well.

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