Let me tell you something straight up – the Cactus quest in Megabonk is one of the most frustrating things I’ve ever encountered in this game. When I first saw “Kill 100 cactus enemies with Thorns damage,” I thought, “How hard could it be?” Oh, how naive I was. After hours of failed attempts and countless rage quits, I finally cracked the code. Today, I’m sharing everything I learned so you don’t have to suffer like I did.
What Makes the Cactus Quest So Annoying?
Before we dive into the builds, let me explain why this quest drives players crazy. The Cactus quest requires you to kill 100 cactus enemies specifically with Thorns damage. Sounds simple, right? Wrong. Here’s why it’s such a pain:
- Cactus spawns are completely random – You can go entire runs without seeing a single cactus
- Your regular weapons can’t kill them – If your weapons kill the cacti, it doesn’t count toward the quest
- Thorns damage requires specific setup – You need the right build to even deal Thorns damage effectively
- It’s incredibly time-consuming – Most players spend 2-3 hours grinding this quest
When I first attempted this quest, I must have reset 20+ times before I even saw my first cactus. The frustration was real, but trust me, it’s doable with the right approach.
The Requirements: What You Need Before Starting?
Before you even think about attempting this quest, you need to have a few things unlocked. Don’t waste your time like I did trying to make it work without these essentials:
Must-Have Requirements:
- Desert map on any tier – Cacti only spawn in the Desert biome
- Either the Thorns Tome OR Athena character – You need some way to deal Thorns damage
Highly Recommended:
- Athena character – She makes this quest 10x easier (more on why later)
- Some experience with Megabonk mechanics – This isn’t a beginner-friendly quest
When I finally unlocked Athena, my completion time for this quest dropped from hours to about 45 minutes. She’s that much of a game-changer.
The Best Thorns Build for Cactus Quest (Main Strategy)
After testing dozens of different combinations, I’ve found what works best for the vast majority of players. This is the build I used to finally complete the quest after struggling for days.
Character Selection: Athena is Your Best Friend
| Character | Viability | Why They Work |
|---|---|---|
| Athena | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Gains 2 Thorns per level with Lock In skill |
| Sir Oofie | ⭐⭐⭐ | Good armor and durability |
| Calcium | ⭐⭐ | Alternative strategy (more on this later) |
Athena is absolutely the best character for this quest. Her Lock In skill gives her 2 Thorns per level automatically, which means you can start dealing Thorns damage even before you find the Thorns Tome. This is huge because it means you don’t have to rely on RNG to get the Thorns Tome to drop.
When I switched to Athena, I noticed my Thorns damage was consistently higher from the start of each run, which made killing cacti much faster and more reliable.
Weapon Loadout: Less is More
This is where most players mess up. You want as few weapons as possible, and you definitely don’t want anything that can kill cacti accidentally.
| Weapon Slot | Recommendation | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | Aegis | Blocks attacks and creates shockwaves |
| Secondary | None | Leave empty to avoid accidental kills |
| Tertiary | None | Leave empty to avoid accidental kills |
The Aegis is perfect because it’s Athena’s starting weapon and it doesn’t directly kill enemies – it blocks attacks and retaliates with shockwaves. This means you can still clear regular enemies without risking accidentally killing cacti with your weapons.
I made the mistake early on of running multiple weapons, and I can’t tell you how many times I lost progress because my shotgun or sniper would one-shot a cactus before my Thorns could trigger. Learn from my pain – stick with just Aegis.
Tome Selection: The Core of Your Build
Your tomes are what make or break this build. After extensive testing, here’s the optimal setup:
| Tome Priority | Recommendation | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Thorns Tome | Essential for dealing Thorns damage |
| 2nd | Armor Tome | Reduces damage taken, keeps you alive longer |
| 3rd | Regen Tome | Healing is crucial for Thorns builds |
| 4th | Shield Tome | Extra health buffer for survival |
Why this combination works: The Thorns Tome is obvious – it’s what lets you deal Thorns damage. But the Armor Tome is just as important because it reduces the damage you take, which means you can survive more hits and deal more Thorns damage over time.
The Regen Tome saved me countless times. Since Lifesteal doesn’t work with Thorns damage (more on this later), you need a reliable healing source, and Regen Tome provides exactly that.
Items That Make the Difference
Now for the fun part – the items that really make this build shine. After testing dozens of combinations, these are the ones that consistently gave me the best results:
| Item Type | Best Options | Good Alternatives |
|---|---|---|
| Healing | Borgar, Oats, Medkit | Campfire |
| Thorns Synergy | Spiky Shield, Quin’s Mask | Demon Blood |
| Utility | Campfire | Beacon, Za Warudo |
The Spiky Shield is an absolute game-changer. It increases your Thorns damage based on your Armor stat, which means it scales perfectly with the Armor Tome. When I finally got a Spiky Shield drop, my Thorns damage nearly doubled, and cacti started melting much faster.
Quin’s Mask is another incredible item for this build. It gives your Thorns damage a 50% chance to explode, dealing AoE damage. This is huge because cacti often spawn in groups, and the explosions can hit multiple cacti at once.
For healing, Borgar and Oats are your best friends. They increase your max HP, which gives you more buffer to survive cactus attacks while your Thorns do their work. The Medkit provides reliable healing when you get low.
How to Actually Execute the Build?
Having the right gear is only half the battle. You need to know how to actually play the build effectively. Here’s my step-by-step process that finally got me the completion:
Step 1: The Early Game (First 2 Minutes)
When you start a Desert run, your first priority is survival and getting your core items:
- Kill everything you see – You need XP to level up and increase your Thorns
- Prioritize Thorns Tome if you see it – Even with Athena, this boosts your damage significantly
- Look for vendors and chests – You need to find your key items quickly
- DO NOT pick up extra weapons – I can’t stress this enough
Pro tip: If you don’t see any cacti spawn within the first 2 minutes, reset the run immediately. Cacti spawn on a timer, and if they haven’t appeared by the 2-minute mark, they won’t spawn at all in that run. I wasted so many runs early on by not knowing this.
Step 2: The Mid Game (2-5 Minutes)
This is where you start building your core setup:
- Get your Thorns Tome to level 3-4 – You don’t need max level, just enough to kill cacti efficiently
- Pick up Armor and Regen Tomes – These are your survival tools
- Look for Spiky Shield or Quin’s Mask – These massively boost your Thorns damage
- Start positioning yourself near cactus spawn areas
Cactus spawn pattern: In my experience, cacti most commonly spawn after the third enemy type appears, usually around the 4-minute mark. They tend to spawn in the corners of the map, so patrol those areas.
Step 3: The Late Game (5+ Minutes)
This is where you actually farm the cacti:
- Stand still near cactus groups – This encourages them to attack you
- Let your Thorns do the work – Don’t attack with Aegis unless you need to clear other enemies
- Use healing items strategically – Pop Medkit or Borgar when you get low
- Reset if health gets too low – It’s better to start fresh than die and lose progress
Important: When cacti are attacking you, stop moving. Standing still makes you an easier target, which means more hits and more Thorns damage. I found that I could kill cacti 2-3 times faster when I stood still versus when I was running around.
Alternative Strategy: The Calcium Method
While Athena is the best character for this quest, I know some players might not have her unlocked yet. Don’t worry – I found an alternative method that works surprisingly well using Calcium.
Why Calcium Works?
Calcium has movement speed and scaling damage, but most importantly, his starting weapon isn’t so powerful that it instantly kills cacti. This gives you room to work with.
The Calcium Loadout
| Category | Recommendation | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Character | Calcium | Balanced stats and good movement speed |
| Weapons | Sniper, Shotgun | Manually aimable weapons |
| Tomes | Thorns, Shield, Armor | Same core as Athena build |
| Items | Campfire, Beacon | Healing and positioning |
How to Play the Calcium Strategy?
This is completely different from the Athena method:
- Use manually aimable weapons (Sniper and Shotgun) so you can aim away from cacti
- Kill other enemies normally to level up and get items
- When cacti spawn, aim your weapons away from them and run into them
- Let Thorns damage kill the cacti while you handle other enemies
The beauty of this method is that you can still clear the map effectively while ensuring that cacti die only to Thorns damage. I found this method took longer than the Athena approach, but it’s much more reliable if you don’t have Athena unlocked.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
I made pretty much every mistake possible when attempting this quest. Learn from my failures:
❌ Using Too Many Weapons
This is the #1 mistake I see players make. Every extra weapon is another chance to accidentally kill a cactus and lose progress. Stick with one weapon maximum, and make it something that won’t one-shot cacti.
❌ Not Resetting Early Enough
I can’t tell you how many runs I wasted sticking around for 10+ minutes hoping cacti would spawn. If you don’t see any within 2 minutes, reset immediately. Your time is better spent starting fresh.
❌ Forgetting About Healing
Thorns builds take a lot of damage, and since Lifesteal doesn’t work with Thorns damage, you need dedicated healing sources. I died so many times because I forgot to pick up healing items.
❌ Over-Leveling Thorns
You don’t need max level Thorns to kill cacti efficiently. I found that level 3-4 is plenty. Focus more on survival stats like Armor and HP.
❌ Moving Too Much
When you’re actively farming cacti, stand still! Moving around makes it harder for cacti to hit you, which means less Thorns damage. I killed cacti much faster once I learned to stay put.
Advanced Tips and Tricks
Once you’ve mastered the basics, here are some advanced techniques that helped me optimize my cactus farming:
Positioning is Everything
Cacti tend to spawn in specific patterns. After dozens of runs, I noticed they most often appear:
- In the corners of the Desert map
- Near rock formations
- After the third enemy type spawns
Learn these patterns and position yourself accordingly. I cut my completion time in half once I learned where to wait for cacti.
The Hyper Mode Strategy
If you’re feeling confident, try running Desert Stage 1 on Hyper mode. The increased XP and enemy scaling means you level up faster, and when cacti do spawn, there are usually more of them. This is higher risk but much higher reward.
Item Prioritization
Not all items are created equal for this build. Here’s my priority list:
- Spiky Shield (massive Thorns boost)
- Quin’s Mask (explosions hit multiple cacti)
- Borgar/Oats (HP increase)
- Medkit (reliable healing)
- Campfire (passive healing while standing still)
The Shield Powerup Bug
Important: As of version 1.0.19, there’s a bug where Thorns damage doesn’t work while you have a Shield Powerup active. If you pick up a shield powerup, either wait for it to expire or avoid cacti until it does. I lost count of how many times I wondered why my Thorns weren’t working before I discovered this bug.
My Personal Journey with This Quest
Let me share a bit about my personal experience with this quest, because I think it might help you feel better about your own struggles.
When I first attempted this quest, I was using Sir Oofie with a full weapon loadout. I must have done 15 runs without seeing a single cactus. When I finally did see one, my weapons instantly killed it, and I got no credit. I was so frustrated I almost gave up.
Then I discovered the Athena build, and things started looking up. My first run with Athena, I saw three cacti but accidentally killed them with my Aegis. Progress, but still frustrating.
It wasn’t until my fifth Athena run that everything clicked. I had the Spiky Shield, Quin’s Mask, and was standing still in a corner when three cacti spawned. I watched as my Thorns damage tore through them, and I finally got my first kills toward the quest.
From there, it was just a matter of refining the strategy. I learned the spawn patterns, mastered the positioning, and eventually completed the quest in about 45 minutes of focused grinding.
The feeling when I finally got that 100th kill was incredible. All that frustration and effort paid off, and I hope this guide helps you achieve that same feeling without all the pain I went through.
FAQ: Everything You Need to Know
How long does this quest typically take?
From my experience, plan for 1-2 hours of focused grinding. With the Athena build and optimal strategy, you can do it in about 45 minutes. Without Athena, it might take 2-3 hours.
What’s the best stage to run?
Desert Stage 1 is your best bet. If you’re confident, try it on Hyper mode for faster leveling and more cactus spawns.
Do I need to have Athena unlocked?
No, but it makes the quest significantly easier. If you don’t have Athena, use the Calcium method I outlined above.
Why aren’t my Thorns working?
Check if you have a Shield Powerup active – there’s a bug in version 1.0.19 where Thorns don’t work with Shield Powerups. Also, make sure you actually have a source of Thorns damage (either Thorns Tome or Athena’s passive).
Can I use other characters besides Athena and Calcium?
Technically yes, but they’re much less effective. Characters with high armor or defensive abilities can work, but Athena and Calcium are by far the best options.
What’s the minimum Thorns level needed?
I found that level 3-4 in the Thorns Tome is plenty to kill cacti efficiently. Don’t waste upgrades going beyond that until you have your other essential tomes.
Why do my weapons keep killing the cacti?
You’re either using too many weapons or they’re too powerful. Stick with just Aegis if using Athena, or manually aimable weapons if using Calcium.
How do I know if cacti will spawn in a run?
If you don’t see any cacti within the first 2 minutes, they won’t spawn in that run. Reset immediately to save time.
What’s the best way to heal in a Thorns build?
Since Lifesteal doesn’t work with Thorns damage, rely on Regen Tome, Medkit, Borgar, Oats, Campfire, and Beacon for healing.
Can I do this quest co-op?
Yes, but it’s actually harder because you have to coordinate with your partner to ensure they don’t accidentally kill the cacti. I recommend doing it solo.
Final Thoughts and Encouragement
Look, I’m not going to lie – this quest is a pain. It’s frustrating, time-consuming, and sometimes feels completely unfair. But I promise you, it’s doable. I went from ready to quit the game entirely to finally completing it, and you can too.
The key is patience and the right strategy. Don’t get discouraged if you have to reset multiple times. That’s normal. Focus on getting the right build, learn the spawn patterns, and stay patient.
When you finally get that 100th kill, all the frustration will be worth it. You’ll have completed one of Megabonk’s most challenging quests, and you’ll have a build that can handle just about anything the game throws at you.
Good luck out there, and happy cactus hunting! Remember, if I can do it, you definitely can.
Want more Megabonk guides and tips? Check out our other articles for character builds, weapon tier lists, and strategies to dominate every quest the game throws at you!