How to solve the mushroom puzzle in Crow Country

Can you outlive your last meal?

Mush Room head door open with Mara standing in the doorway
Screenshot by Dot Esports

Dining by yourself can sure be lonely, especially when the Mushroom King has deadly plans for his Crow Country guests. While you know which guests are attending, it isn’t clear what mushrooms are safe to eat to pass the Mushroom King’s test.

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The first area in Crow Country is the Fairytale Town. You probably noticed the giant mushroom head-shaped door in the center of this area, without any handle to open it. Upon reaching the second area, solving the piano puzzle inside the Haunted Manor, and unlocking the Theatre, Mara gains access to the previously locked Mush Room. Two scrolls inside reveal the good and bad mushrooms, but how will you know what order to eat them in? Here is our guide on how to solve the mushroom puzzle in Crow Country.

Crow Country mushroom puzzle solution

The Mushroom King in Crow Country
Interact with him every time you eat a mushroom to learn the order. Screenshot by Dot Esports

First impressions offer little insight into what order you need to eat the mushrooms and how many to consume. You note the good and bad mushrooms listed on either side of the Mushroom King, but upon talking to the King (pushing the button on the top of his head), you quickly learn this puzzle has a specific order for you to eat the mushrooms in. The sequence is randomized, with the mushrooms switched out if you accidentally die from mushroom overconsumption. Unfortunately, I learned this the hard way while attempting S Rank and heading into the Mush Room with no idea how to pass the test.

The Mush Room shows a dining table with six guests invited to the Mushroom King’s feast. While we cannot tell you the exact mushroom each guest is given (as it’s randomized), we can confirm three mushrooms are deadly and three are safe to eat. Luckily, the bad mushrooms are always tied to three specific guests. These are:

  • Lepiota Brubbeoincarnata
  • Amanita Bisporigera
  • Amanita Phalkoides
Reminder

A third Amanita (Rubescens) always has a safe mushroom as their meal. Double-check the name before you consume the mushroom.

How to survive the mushroom puzzle in Crow Country

Mara picking up an Antidote out of a broken wooden crate
Check bins, lockers, and vending machines before using bullets on crates and glass jars. Screenshot by Dot Esports

Mara tells you that she cannot consume more than three mushrooms, stating she “feels ill.” Ignore this, much like how you ignore the notice that tells you not to consume any mushrooms inside this room. Instead, prepare for your possible last meal with a Large Medkit, two standard Medkits, and two Antidotes to be safe. You can pick these up as random floor loot. Check lockers, vending machines, large wooden crates, glass jars, and bins for healing items. Items aren’t always guaranteed, especially if you reload your save.

The mushroom puzzle took multiple tries on my end due to missing the Mushroom King’s dialogue and consuming multiple bad mushrooms in a row. To avoid this, follow what the King says and heal every time you consume a bad mushroom. Each bad mushroom makes Mara sick or poisons her and deals critical damage. Ensure your health is full and reads “OK” on her status menu.

Check her status every time you consume a bad mushroom. Use an Antidote when you’re poisoned, followed by a Large Medkit for critically low health (red heartbeat). Finally, a standard Medkit should be enough to heal any injuries from the mushroom (so long as you’re not low on health). If you aren’t on okay health, one of the bad mushrooms will always kill you.

Crow Country mushroom puzzle reward

Upgrading the power of Mara's Handgun in Crow Country
A necessary upgrade for larger enemies. Screenshot by Dot Esports

The mushroom puzzle isn’t compulsory. But once you get the order right and survive the encounter, you will receive a handgun upgrade for higher power. You can evade many monsters, including the larger, more deadly creatures. It’s best to save your bullets for moments where you have no choice but to fight.

The weapon upgrade is the only reward from the mushroom puzzle, and it’s best to accept the small mushroom’s wish because you cannot get anything else from solving this puzzle. The mushroom puzzle is just one of Crow Country‘s 15 secrets. Finding and solving these contribute to the highest grade you can achieve—the S Rank.

Author
Image of Hadley Vincent
Hadley Vincent
Writer for Dot since Oct. 2023. Just a Psychology graduate trying to find the meaning of life through gaming. An enthusiast of indie horror and anime, where you'll often find them obsessing over a great narrative and even better twists that'd make M. Night jealous. Their shocking twist? They think The Last of Us II is a masterpiece.