Completed Castaway 2 twice, and started Castaway 1 yesterday. Quite interesting to see the older version of the game I like; indeed, it's kind of raw and rudimentary, and it is clear from the forums and the in game experience that much feedback has been taken into consideration in the design of the 2nd version. One thing they share in common would be their awesome pets!
Before considering the top contenders, it is necessary to 1st understand the exact roles the pets are carrying. In Castaway 1, this is pretty straightforward- the pets simply dish out melee damage to monsters while assisting you in fights, whereas in Castaway 2 they have evolved their capabilities, becoming capable of rendering tactical/strategic assistance with varied attack styles to match their players' warrior/mage pathways and preferences. Also, note that boss fights form a major part of Castaway 2’s storyline, something completely absent in Castaway 1, and this calls for a different kind of attribute in the pets required. The last, and arguably most decisive factor influencing the players' choice would be the fact that there is no auto game save in Castaway 1. Nor is there a way to revive your pet in game if it perishes. Pretty devastating for all pets with low HP and Defense, period.
Castaway 1 has a small map resembling a hand, with a single rest stop at the center where players return to tend to matters after venturing to reclaim the generators located at the metaphorical fingertips. This, coupled with the fact that the monsters are wayyy harder to beat than those of the equivalent level from Castaway 2 makes it doubly hard for both players and pets to stay alive; players are required to retrace their steps (which is awfully slow) back past all the monsters they had faced to return to town, unless they have stocked up on Castaway feathers (which are pretty costly and do not appear as drops) from the money-minded townsfolk. With these circumstances at hand, and as someone who likes to explore various options (multiple pets in this case), I found it far easier without a pet to worry about, especially in the latter maps filled with tough monsters. It’s much easier for weak pets in Castaway 2, partially due to the change which made monsters ignore passive, defenseless pets and go for the player most of the time, and also owing to the fact that the monsters hatch out at higher starting levels. Hence, in Castaway 1 it is crucial to specialize in as few pets as possible, if you dislike grinding and would like your pet to be a dependable ally instead of deadweight. That said, the meagre 3 holding slots for battle ready pets would naturally enforce this, so it’s not much of a concern XD What’s important is to know the pets’ capabilities, so…
Now, we’ll move on to the pets themselves!
As mentioned, the pets in Castaway 1 are pretty much straightforward compared to their progeny in Castaway 2. However, there is 1 major handicap, apart from the insanely long incubation period before the eggs hatch (which can be worked around) and low hatching levels: only the HP stat is revealed to the player, along with Level and Exp. As such, the only way to make sense of it is to observe its effects in actual combat under controlled conditions- which calls for data collection
Firstly, the starter Baby Eye Guy is laughably weak. I totally wasn’t expecting it, since in Castaway 2 the starter Pink Loomi is one of the best pets in the game! This little runt’s HP will be the same as your characters’ at a similar level; for instance, when I stopped training my B.E.G. it was Lv24 with 740HP (note that unlike in Castaway 2, characters’ base stats are predetermined by level only and cannot be altered with ability points). In comparison, my Frost Scorpion at Lv21 has 1175HP Not only that, B.E.G.’s attack and defense seemed mediocre at best- I found it constantly being overwhelmed even by other lower-level mid-tier monsters. You’d probably only want to keep it for its exclusivity and questionable cuteness or to be accountable to your conscience for the loyalty/obsession it showed towards you early in the game. Pity, maybe, or a fear that it wouldn’t be able to survive out there on its own even without you going after its head XD At any rate, it is by no means battle worthy, unless you’re the type who likes everything to be an uphill challenge
~ Castaway 1 Pets Comparison ~
Lv11 Black Beetle:
HP= 460
Special Effect= None
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 51-59
Damage Received= 22-26
Lv11 Viper:
HP= 515
Special Effect= Poisoning
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 45-51
Damage Received= 18-21
Lv11 Frost Scorpion:
HP= 625
Special Effect= K.O. Freezing
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 45-51
Damage Received= 22-26
Lv11 Ice Elemental:
HP= 515
Special Effect= K.O. Freezing
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 45-51
Damage Received= 18-21
Lv11/12 Lava Elemental:
HP= 460/500
Special Effect= K.O. Burning
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 51-59/58-67
Damage Received= 14-16/8-10
Lv11 Ogre:
HP= 570
Special Effect= Stunning
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 45-51
Damage Received= 14-16
Lv11/12 Skeleton Warrior:
HP= 790/860
Special Effect= None
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 34-40/41-47
Damage Received= 10-12/4-5
Lv12 Ogre Lord:
HP= 1100
Special Effect= Stunning (plus seems to have high evade)
Vs Lv9 Wild Scorpions:
Damage Dealt= 51-59
Damage Received= 4-5
HP:
Ogre Lord>Skeleton Warrior>Frost Scorpion>Ogre>Viper=Ice Elemental>Black Beetle=Lava Elemental
Special Effect:
Frost Scorpion=Ice Elemental=Lava Elemental>Ogre Lord>Ogre>Viper>Black Beetle=Skeleton Warrior
Attack Power:
Black Beetle=Lava Elemental>Viper=Frost Scorpion=Ice Elemental=Ogre=Ogre Lord>Skeleton Warrior
Defense Strength:
Skeleton Warrior=Ogre Lord>Lava Elemental=Ogre>Viper=Ice Elemental>Black Beetle=Frost Scorpion
Overall:
Ogre Lord>>Skeleton Warrior>Lava Elemental=Ogre>Ice Elemental=/>Frost Scorpion>Viper>Black Beetle
So here’s the summary of the select pets I chose to train and observe. I chose to set Lv11 as the benchmark for nigh all-encompassing inclusivity (with the exception of the haughty Ogre Lord) and efficiency (shaves both training/leveling time and traveling time to contact the Lv9 Wild Scorpions). Why Lv9 Wild Scorpions in particular you may ask? In short, it’s for efficiency and realistic simulation. They can easily be found and contacted in the first map of the Wild Marsh zone, have decent HP to last in a fight while not overdoing the damage done (helps loads in gathering a larger data pool for reliability) and have a nice level realistically proportionate to our Lv11 subjects. Next, as some would have noted, I’ve omitted the Pink Mutant and the Skeleton in my pet pool. I did not include them because they seemed weaker in comparison to the above candidates, particularly with regards to the Skeleton when its stronger relative, the Skeleton Warrior, is in the list. For the same reason I nearly left the Ogre out as well, but curiosity got the better of me- I too wanted to see for myself how much stronger the Ogre Lord would be and how the regular Ogre would fare against the competition. Overall it seems pretty straightforward (strength is based on how late they appear in the game), with a sole monster at the pinnacle (Ogre Lord). It has overwhelming HP and Defense coupled with average attack and an agreeable effect. Differs slightly from Castaway 2 in this regard, where a few elite monsters obtained from different areas balance out the power amongst themselves.
Last note: To protect low-level pets, utilize loot drops to form barriers or plug up spawning spots.
