Stage 27 of Shadow Cosmopolis is a nightmare. Honestly, if you’ve been playing The Battle Cats for a while, you probably remember the first time you hit Two Great Shadows. It’s one of those specific difficulty spikes in Stories of Legend that makes you want to chuck your phone across the room. You’re cruising through Subchapter 19, feeling like a god because you finally evolved your Crazed Whale, and then this stage happens. It’s a wall. A literal, shadowy, black-and-red wall that punishes poor timing and lack of crowd control.
Most players walk in thinking it’s a standard "protect the base" mission. It isn't.
What’s Actually Happening in Two Great Shadows?
Let’s look at the lineup. You aren't just fighting regular peons. This stage revolves around two massive threats: Shadow Boxer K and Dark Otter. This isn't just about raw power; it’s about the attack frequency. Shadow Boxer K, that aggressive black kangaroo, has a ridiculously fast attack animation. He doesn't just hit; he shreds. If your meatshields aren't timed perfectly, he will punch a hole straight through your frontline in about three seconds.
Then there’s the Dark Otter. While Shadow Boxer K is the "poker," the Dark Otter is the "grinder." He has a decent amount of health and high DPS. When you combine these two, you get a pushing force that very few mid-game lineups can handle without specific anti-black units.
The stage starts deceptively quiet. You get some Doges and Snaches. Use this. If you rush the base immediately, you are going to get swamped by the boss wave before you have enough cash to spawn your heavy hitters. The smart move? Stall. Let the weak enemies come to you. Build your wallet to MAX. If you don't have $10,000+ ready when you hit that base, you’re basically asking for a "Defeat" screen.
The Strategy Behind Beating Two Great Shadows Battle Cats
The core of this fight is Meatshielding.
I see people bringing one or two shields and wondering why they lose. You need at least three. Four is better. We’re talking Mohawk Cat, Eraser Cat, and their Crazed versions if you have them. Because Shadow Boxer K attacks so fast, your shields need to be a constant stream. A single gap in the line means your attackers—the ones you spent 4,000+ cents on—are dead.
Essential Units You Probably Need
- Bomber Cat (The Game Changer): If you have cleared Into the Future Chapter 3 and snagged Flower Cat’s true form, this stage becomes a joke. Bomber Cat freezes Black enemies. It’s a 100% chance. Without Bomber, you’re fighting for your life. With Bomber, you’re just watching a kangaroo stand still while you beat it up.
- Weightlifter Cat / Ring Girl Cat: This is your primary damage dealer. Her massive damage against Black enemies is non-negotiable for a fast clear. She outranges the Shadow Boxers, which is key.
- Crazed Whale / Island Cat: These guys are tanky. Sometimes you need a unit that can take a punch and keep biting.
- Bahamut Cat: Still the king of mid-game splash damage. You need him to timing-hit the stack of Otters and Kangaroos to thin the herd.
Timing matters. If you drop Bahamut too early, he misses. If you drop him too late, the Shadow Boxers have already pushed into your backline. You want to spawn him just as the black enemies clump together near your frontline.
Why Everyone Fails the First Time
Usually, it’s the "Boss Shockwave." When you hit the enemy base, the bosses spawn, and a shockwave pushes your cats back. This creates a gap. In that half-second gap, Shadow Boxer K moves forward. If you aren't spamming your meatshields before the shockwave hits, the kangaroo will be on top of your long-range attackers before your shields can walk back into position.
It’s brutal. It’s fast. It’s Two Great Shadows.
The "Two" in the name is kinda a lie, by the way. It’s not just two enemies; it’s waves of them. You’ll deal with multiple Shadow Boxer Ks and a small army of Dark Otters. The difficulty comes from the stacking. If you don't kill the first Shadow Boxer fast enough, a second one joins him. Now you have double the DPS hitting your shields. Eventually, your wallet runs dry because you're spending everything on shields, and the enemies just keep coming.
Nuances of the Black Enemy Trait
Black enemies in Battle Cats have a specific quirk: they have a lot of "knockbacks." On paper, this sounds good. You hit them, they fly back. But in Two Great Shadows, this is a trap. When Shadow Boxer K gets knocked back, he resets his attack animation. He can actually "re-enter" the fight and hit your cats faster than if he had just stood there. Plus, if he’s knocked back, your cats walk forward to chase him, often walking straight into the reach of a Dark Otter.
You need "Procc" units. Units that Slow, Freeze, or Weaken.
- Tin Cat (True Form: Robocat) is decent if you’re desperate, but his range is stubby.
- Kasa Jizo (if you’re lucky enough to have this Uber) makes this stage trivial. But most of us aren't that lucky when we first hit Shadow Cosmopolis.
Handling the Dark Otters
While everyone worries about the kangaroos, the Dark Otters are the real meat of the stage. They have high area-of-effect (AoE) damage. If your meatshields are too close together, the Otter hits all of them at once. This is why "distance" is a hidden stat in this game. You want units like Paris Cat (Cyborg Cat) or Dragon Cat to stay far back and chip away at the Otters' health.
If you find yourself getting pushed back to your own base, don't panic. Sometimes fighting closer to your base is better because the travel time for your spawned units is shorter. It creates a tighter, more resilient defensive line. Just don't let the Shadow Boxers touch the base, or it's game over in two hits.
Step-by-Step Action Plan for Victory
Stop trying to "power" through this stage with random Ubers. It won't work unless they are specifically anti-black or have massive range. Instead, follow this specific rhythm to beat Two Great Shadows Battle Cats consistently:
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- The Stall Phase: Spawn one or two Wall Cats at the start. Let the Doges hit them. Don't kill them too fast. Use this time to max out your Worker Cat level. This is the single most important step. If you start the boss fight with a Level 3 wallet, you will lose.
- The Setup: Once your wallet is maxed and you have $15,000, start spawning your slow-moving attackers like Bahamut or any heavy Ubers. You want them to be near the middle of the map when the boss wave triggers.
- The Shield Wall: The moment your units are halfway to the enemy base, start "4-finger tapping." Cycle through all four of your meatshields constantly. No breaks.
- The Boss Trigger: When the shockwave happens, stay calm. Keep the meatshield stream going. If you have Bomber Cat, wait until the Black enemies are close to your frontline before spawning him so he doesn't get sniped early.
- The Clean Up: Once the first three Shadow Boxer Ks are dead, the pressure drops significantly. The Dark Otters are slow. Focus on maintaining your Cyborg Cat or Ring Girl Cat stack to finish them off.
If you're still struggling, check your treasures. If you haven't maxed out the "Black" energy treasures from the Into the Future chapters, you’re basically fighting with one hand tied behind your back. Go back and get those Gold Treasures. They reduce the health and damage of themed enemies by a massive percentage. It's not "cheating," it's how the game is balanced.
Ultimately, Two Great Shadows is a skill check. It asks: "Do you know how to meatshield?" and "Do you have a plan for high-speed pushers?" Once you answer those, the stage becomes a blueprint for how you'll handle even harder Black-heavy stages later in Uncanny Legends.