You're probably here because you just saw that giant, floating, skeletal face and thought, "How on earth do I kill that thing?" Look, Parade of the Dead in Battle Cats is a rite of passage. It’s the first time the game really stops being about just spamming your strongest units and starts being a brutal math problem. Honestly, if you haven’t felt the soul-crushing despair of seeing Daboo of the Dead slowly drift toward your base while your units do absolutely nothing, are you even playing Battle Cats?
This stage is the first appearance of the Merciless Advent Advent stages. It features Daboo of the Dead, a Zombie boss with a massive health pool and a multi-hit attack that can wipe out entire stacks of cats in a single swing. It's frustrating. It's long. It requires patience that most mobile games don't usually ask for. But it's doable.
What's Actually Happening in Parade of the Dead?
Basically, the stage is a test of your ability to handle "Z-kill" mechanics and area-of-effect (AoE) pressure. Daboo of the Dead has 3,000,000 HP. That’s a lot. To make matters worse, he has a 100% chance to revive with 100% health if he isn't finished off by a unit with the Zombie Killer ability. You can spend twenty minutes chipping away at him only to have him pop right back up if you mess up the final blow.
The support cast isn't any easier. You've got Zory, the zombie gorilla who pushes your front line like a freight train, and Snache/Those Guys variants that clog up your target priority. If your cats are busy hitting a tiny snake, they aren't hitting the giant floating corpse that's about to end your run.
Daboo himself has a range of 800 but his actual hit area is a bit weird. He has "Omnistrike," meaning he can hit units slightly behind him or well in front of him. His attack is a three-hit combo. The first two hits do moderate damage, but that third hit? That's the one that sends your Ganesha or your Paris Cat to the grave.
The Problem With Typical Strategies
Most people try to bring their biggest, baddest Uber Rare units. They think, "I'll just overpower it." That is usually a mistake. Because Daboo has such high health and constant knockback resistance, he just acts as a wall. While your expensive Ubers are cooling down after getting killed, the Zories and Zigges will burrow right past your frontline and eat your base.
You need a "slow and steady" approach. You’re not trying to win in two minutes. You’re trying to survive for ten.
Why Melee Units Usually Fail
If you bring units like Crazed Whale or most standard tanks, they get vaporized. Daboo’s multi-hit attack is designed to chew through layers of defense. You need units that can either survive a massive hit (thanks to "Survive a lethal strike" abilities) or units that are so cheap you don't mind them dying constantly.
Essential Units for the Parade of the Dead Battle Cats Stage
If you don't have Shigong Cat, go get him. Seriously. Evolutions of the Gardener Cat are arguably the most important non-Uber units for any Zombie stage, and for Parade of the Dead, Shigong is the MVP. He takes massive reduced damage from Zombies and has the Zombie Killer ability. He stays on the field long enough to actually provide a buffer.
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Then there is Cat-man-do or Polevaulter Cat. Since Daboo is a "floating" style boss in terms of visuals but a Zombie in mechanics, you need that long-range "Long Distance" (LD) poke. Polevaulter can sit safely outside of Daboo's primary strike zone and chip away at him while also dealing with the pesky Z-backliners.
- Boulder Cat: If you’ve progressed far enough to have him, use him. He’s a one-hit wonder that can stall Daboo for a crucial few seconds.
- Housewife Cat: Specifically with the Savage Blow talent. She can clear out the small fries (the "peons") so your main attackers focus on the boss.
- Ethearal Urila: If you're an end-game player revisiting this or doing 3-star difficulty, Urila’s surge can help, though most people tackling this for the first time won't have him.
The Strategy Nobody Tells You: The "No-Uber" Method
Believe it or not, sometimes Ubers make this harder by draining your cash. When a Zory burrows, your base is vulnerable. If you spent 5,000 cents on a Megaphrodite and she gets sniped by a burrowing Zombie, you’re broke and defenseless.
The secret is a steady stream of Crazed Wall/Manic Eraser and Shigong. You want to create a conveyor belt of cats. You should also consider using Cadets or any unit with a "Slow" proc against Zombies. Keeping Daboo stationary is half the battle. If he moves even a few inches, he's closer to your base, and in this stage, ground is the most valuable resource you have.
Dealing with the Burrows
This is where people lose. A Zigge (the zombie sheep) burrows. It pops up behind your attackers and starts chewing on your base. You need a "base defender." Keep a cheap, fast-attacking unit like Awakened Bahamut or Bullet Train Cat in reserve. Don't just fire them off at Daboo. Wait until a Zombie burrows near your base, then drop the hammer.
The Timing of the Holy Blast
The Cannon choice matters. Don't use the standard Cat Cannon. It does nothing here. You need the Holy Blast.
Holy Blast does three things:
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- It deals percentage-based damage to Zombies.
- It forces burrowed Zombies to surface.
- It resets the "revival" timer of downed Zombies.
If you see a group of Zories burrowing, wait a heartbeat, then fire the Holy Blast. It brings them up right in front of your defenders where they can be killed properly. If you time it when Daboo is at low health, you might even get the finishing blow with the cannon’s Z-kill property, though that's rare and hard to pull off.
Common Mistakes That Ruin Your Run
Stop using units with "Knockback" against Zombies unless you have a very specific plan. Knocking back a Zombie often triggers their burrow early. You want them to stay above ground where you can kill them. If you knock Daboo back, you might actually push him out of your attackers' range while he's still mid-animation, causing your cats to walk forward into his death zone.
Also, watch your cat limit. In a long fight like Parade of the Dead, it’s easy to hit the maximum number of units on screen by spamming weak meatshields. If you hit the limit, you can't spawn your attackers when you actually need them. Quality over quantity is key for the meatshielding here. Two Shigongs are better than ten regular Cat-Sits.
Is the Reward Worth It?
When you finally beat the stage, you get Cheerleader Cat.
Is she good? She's niche. She has a 100% Critical Hit chance, but her attack speed is slow and her health is low. She’s great for certain Metal stages where you need a guaranteed crit to kill a high-HP Metal enemy like Sir Metal Seal. But honestly, the real reward is just knowing you never have to see Daboo’s creepy smiling face in that specific stage ever again. At least until the Revenge stages show up.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Attempt
To actually clear this, stop trying to rush.
First, level your Shigong Cat to at least level 30, preferably 40. Without a strong Zombie tank, the frontline will collapse every single time Daboo swings. Second, equip the Holy Blast cannon and don't fire it just because it's charged; save it specifically for when Z-enemies burrow past your main stack. Finally, bring a dedicated long-range attacker like Cyberpunk Cat. While Cyberpunk won't deal the killing blow, his "Slow" ability works on all traits (if you have the talent) or just provides enough crowd control to keep the peons from overwhelming you.
Check your treasures too. If you haven't maxed out the Zombie-related treasures from the Into the Future or Cats of the Cosmos chapters, you're fighting an uphill battle with a toothpick. Go back and grind those out first. The damage buffs and resistance buffs from treasures are the silent factors that turn a "close loss" into a "comfortable win."
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Start the stage by letting the first few enemies come close to your base to build up cash. Don't spawn your big units until you've maxed your wallet. Once the boss spawns, keep the steady flow of meatshields going and only deploy your heavy hitters when the path is clear of small enemies.