As the warrior half of Earth’s god-protector Kami, Piccolo is one of Earth’s defenders in Dragon Ball Z, which we explore during the branching paths of Dragon Ball Sparking Zero. Originally a rival, this Namekian warrior soon vowed to teach Goku’s son everything he knew about fighting and discipline.
Piccolo may only have a one-side story in Dragon Ball Sparking Zero, yet it has a rather convoluted unlocking method. It’s similar to how one of Vegeta’s branching paths requires a precise set of missions to complete in a row before you can unlock it, only this time it requires you to defeat a very strong opponent. Here are all the branching paths during Piccolo’s Dragon Ball Sparking Zero Episode Battle campaign.
Dragon Ball Sparking Zero Piccolo side paths
Like his protege Gohan’s branching paths, Piccolo only has one major side path that results in a larger deviation from the original plot. However, it requires you to have a nearly perfect fight against a foe that would otherwise outclass Piccolo. This is:
If you’re struggling to get the first stage of this side path started, we highly recommend you check out our list of Dragon Ball Sparking Zero tips and tricks to help you grasp the basics of fighting these tough opponents.
A Mentor’s Guidance
To start this side path, you need to progress through the campaign until you reach “Piccolo Returns to His Birthplace.” Here, you’ll fight against Frieza’s second form to start before he transforms into his Xenomorph-inspired third form. This battle is stacked heavily against you, as Frieza’s third form will not flinch against regular attacks and is brilliant at counter-attacking.
Frustratingly, there’s also a long duration between losing the fight against Frieza and being able to retry it if you allow the game to run its course. This is because Piccolo’s next mission is several screens away in the Android/Cell arc, so you need to exit to the map screen and then reselect the Frieza level to try again. To help mitigate this, if your health is below three full bars or you’ve just been hit by third-form Frieza’s melee special, pause the game and select the retry option to have another go.
Once you progress through the first part of the side story, the next mission has Piccolo going up against Frieza’s final form. This one, thankfully, doesn’t have any special conditions. Continue with the campaign until you reach the mission “Faint Unease” during the Android/Cell Arc. As Goku fights against Android 19, he notices that the Saiyan’s technique looks sloppy. You should now get the option to intervene. Doing so puts you squarely on the side story path, in which you get 100,000 Zeni and the “Piccolo’s Saga: A Mentor’s Guidance” photo collection.
Dragon Ball Sparking Zero Piccolo branching paths
Piccolo also has some optional objectives, which just like Goku’s branching paths give you ways to get more abrupt conclusions to each Saga. There are only two in Piccolo’s campaign, but they’re incredibly hard to execute if you’re not prepared. Here are his branching paths in the Dragon Ball Sparking Zero campaign:
| Campaign level name | Saga | Deviation conditions |
| The Saiyans Attack | Saiyan Arc | Defeat within a given time (this is a relatively tight timeframe with no indication of failure, so do it as fast as possible) |
| Android 17 | Android/Cell Arc | Defeat all enemies (beat Android 17 until Cell’s first form arrives. Beat him as quickly as possible, then defeat Android 17. This is a timed battle, so even if you beat Cell, if Piccolo warns 17 to “get away from him,” you’ll need to restart this mission.) |
