Flow Like the Stream (Merciless) is an Advent Stage appearing on the 13th, 14th, 27th, and 28th of every month. When clearing this stage, there is a chance to unlock Teacher BearCat. Unlike most Advent Stages, it is unlocked after clearing Chapter 2 of Into the Future. This is a No Continues stage.
Battleground
- 2 Those Guys spawn after 6.67 seconds200f, delay 3.33~5.33 seconds100f~160f.
- 1 Scissoroo spawns after 10 seconds300f.
- Infinite Thrillerz spawn after 33.33 seconds1,000f, delay 26.67~33.33 seconds800f~1,000f.
- 3 Thrillerz spawn after 93.33 seconds2,800f, delay 13.33~16 seconds400f~480f.
- 3 Thrillerz spawn after 120 seconds3,600f, delay 16~20 seconds480f~600f.
- 3 Thrillerz spawn after 173.33 seconds5,200f, delay 10~16.67 seconds300f~500f.
- 3 Thrillerz spawn after 233.33 seconds7,000f, delay 8~14.67 seconds240f~440f.
- When the base reaches 99% HP:
- 1 Kappy Jr. spawns as the boss after 20 seconds600f.
- Infinite Those Guys spawn, delay 12~14 seconds360f~420f.
- 1 Scissoroo spawns after 10 seconds300f.
- Infinite Scissoroos spawn, delay 48~52 seconds1,440f~1,560f.
- 2 The Thrillerz spawn, delay 2~4 seconds60f~120f.
- When the base reaches 75% HP:
- 2 Scissoroos spawn, delay 28~30.67 seconds840f~920f.
Strategy
It is expected that you have all of the Anti-unstarred Alien Treasures from Into the Future, as otherwise, the Scissoroos become too much to handle.
Recommended Units
The following units are either required to beat this stage, or are massively helpful for subduing Kappy Jr.
- Cameraman Cat: Requires high level and Survive Talents, minimum level 40. Cameraman is your main ranged meatshield against Kappy Jr. The Survive Talent guarantees that she will endure an attack from Kappy Jr. or a Scissoroo. Without these high levels and Talents on Cameraman, don't even try this stage.
- Pizza Cat: Your secondary attack force right along side Cameraman. His unnaturally high health lets him survive attacks from Kappy Jr. Upgrading him to level 40 or more is highly recommended. Talents such as Attack Buff and Wave are useful, but not required.
- Macho Crystal Cat: If you don't have his True Form, don't use him. Without the knockback effect, Kappy Jr. will still get an attack off and cripple your Cameraman stack. Use Macho Crystal Cat sparingly with careful timing, as if he misses, then you are most likely screwed.
- Stone/Boulder Cat: Because Stone despawns moments after it attacks, it can easily cause Kappy Jr. to miss his attack and prevent his surge from even appearing. For it to work, though, you need some research combos, and ensure your top priority is to have it deployed as soon as it becomes avaliable so it can consistently stall Kappy Jr.
- Tourist Cat: True Form not required, but highly recommended, as the extra freeze duration is useful for chain-knockbacking Kappy Jr. Use him like a secondary or backup Macho Crystal Cat.
- Cyberpunk Cat: Not a must-pick like the previous Cats, but can be useful. Max Slow Talent is required for him to make an impact and be worth the money, and Survive Talent is great since Kappy Jr. pushes hard. Use him if you have an extra slot and you don't have any decent Ubers.
- Sniper the Recruit: This can be a helpful crowd controlling unit to push Kappy Jr. back, as well as slow him in his true form.
- Most Cats with Surge Immunity: Despite your best efforts, Kappy Jr. is still likely to get a Surge off every now and again. These units help to minimize the resulting catastrophic consequences.
Recommended Ubers
Not many Ubers work at all in this stage simply due to Kappy's Surges, but there are few that can be of great assistance.
- Lasvoss: His True Form has Evade Surge, allowing him to exploit his very high damage at mid-range.
- Almighty Anubis: Only good if you have his Evade Surge talent, but this stage starves you of cash, so unless you have no other options, don't waste your NP.
- Cats in the Cradle: Though not immune to Surges, their mighty Waves can cripple the Scissoroos and deal considerable damage to Kappy Jr, even if they only get in one attack. Upgrading them to level 40 is highly recommended as the unit is highly valuable even outside of this stage.
- Any EPICFEST exclusive will do well. Most are anti-Traitless specialists that are too good to ignore despite lack of Surge immunities. Kasli the Bane in particular can also take out Kappy Jr.'s support and provide constant damage. Pairing her something like Gato Amigo with his Immune to Surges Talent would make the level a free win.
Strategy 1
Lineup: Bony Bone + Biohazard, Sportswoman, Catellite 50+15, Cameraman Cat 50+9, Macho Crystal Cat, Tourist Cat 45, Awakened Bahamut Cat 40.
- Defense Combos can be replaced with long-ranged units like Cyberpunk Cat, while Bahamut can be replaced by another rusher unit.
Note: If you decide to use Ubers, don't just spam them. Most of your money should be for spamming Cameramen. Having Cameraman and Catellite as strong as possible is preferred.
Items: Rich Cat, Sniper the Cat
Battle: When the battle starts, wait for the first Scissoroo to get close to your base. Turn off Sniper the Cat and send one Catellite and spam Cameramen. Catellite should die in three hits, so time your next Catellite carefully. When Scissoroo takes two knockbacks, stop sending Catellites and spam Cameramen. Timing here is very important, for if Catellite is alive when Scissoroo dies, the base will be hit too early. There should only be Cameramen on the field only at this point. This is very important as to not hit the base early and have as many Cameramen as possible. Having more Cameramen is preferred to keep Kappy Jr. from pushing too hard. As your Cats move closer to the enemy base, turn on Sniper and send in a few Catellites and Tourist Cat.
Once Kappy Jr. spawns, you just need to hope that luck is on your side. All that's left to do is spam Cameramen and send in Tourist Cats and Macho Crystal Cats. Be sure to time Macho Crystal Cat so he doesn't hit The Thrillerz. Don't let the Scissoroos stack as they will melt through everything. If you're in a pickle, use Bahamut or your rush unit + Catellite to stall and deal damage to Kappy Jr. (although it's better to use it for the Scissoroos if they stack). If your luck is not good, then adding Uber Rares will help out a bit.
Strategy 2 (cheese ft. Healer)
Lineup: Macho Leg Cat 30+, Manic Macho Legs 40, Creepmallow, an additional "Freeze" Effect UP Combo, Manic Mohawk Cat 20+, Manic Eraser Cat 20+, Healer Cat CC, Zamboney Cat 30, Awakened Bahamut Cat 30~40.
Items: Rich Cat (recommended)
Battle: Wait for the Scissoroo to come close to your base, then stall with meatshields until Those Guys arrive. Then, spawn Manic Macho Legs to kill Those Guys to gain enough money to spawn Bahamut. Bahamut should knock Scissoroo back once and after that, let Manic Mohawk die. Spawn a meatshield to let Bahamut attack twice more, then finish with a Zamboney Cat. Then, stack 12 Thrillerz by freezing them by Healer Cats and release the second Bahamut while spawning another Healer Cat to freeze Thrillerz again. Voila!
Strategy 3 (ft. Talented Gato Amigo and Beefcake)
Lineup: Gato Amigo (Evade Surge), Catellite 35+, Metal Macho 20, Beefcake Cat 40 (Evade Surge), Seafarer Cat 41+. For the remaining slots, any "Research" Effect UP (Sm will work, M is ideal) and Defense UP Combos can work. Examples are Biohazard and Moby Dick.
Recommended Items: Rich Cat, Sniper the Cat
Battle: Start the battle by saving up money, while using Metal Machos to stall the Scissoroo. Once you see the first Thrillerz, start spamming Gato Amigos, Catellites and Beefcakes, and spawn one Seafarer. Once the base is hit, keep spamming Gato Amigos and Beefcakes, with Catellite as long as you can afford it. Seafarer should get in a few freezes and allow you to beat the pair of Scissoroos. Once those two are dead, it's smooth sailing from then on. As long as your Beefcake is strong enough, spamming him and Gato Amigo by themselves should be enough to eventually overwhelm Kappy Jr. and beat the level.
While Catellite and Seafarer make this strategy a lot easier, it should be possible without them, or with them at a lower level. The recommended levels for them are just enough to survive a few hits before dying. Metal Cat is extremely useful during the beginning of the stage for stalling, but not entirely required for this strategy to work. Again, Gato Amigo and Beefcake with Talents are the only units you really need.
Walkthrough
| Video | Player | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 The Battle Cats - Kappy Jr. Healer Cheese.... WITHOUT Healer. (Bottom of the Swamp) |
Lucas IV | Cheese w/o Healer |
 -The Battle Cats- Flow like the stream Healer cheese |
DosMLK | Healer Cat CC |
 -CHEESE-BOSS SKIP- Bottom of the Swamp - Flow like the Stream (Merciless) - The Battle Cats |
Sơn Nguyễn Trường | Bunny & Canard, Warlock and Pierre |
 Flows Like the Stream (Merciless) - Bottom of the Swamp, NO UBERS (Battle Cats) |
Chuck | No Ubers |
Gallery
Trivia
- Bottom of the Swamp's Japanese name, Honogurai Numa no Soko Kara ("From the Bottom of the Dark Swamp"), is a reference to Honogurai Mizu no Soko Kara ("From the Bottom of the Dark Waters"), the Japanese name of the horror movie Dark Water.
- Flow Like the Stream's Japanese name, Kawa no Nagare no Yō ni ("Like the Flow of the River"), is also the name of a song by Hibari Misora, except the stage name spells kawa (river) with the kanji 河 instead of 川.
