Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesGrounded does not prescribe one boss order. The sequence below is a practical route that follows story progression first, then handles the optional encounters as your gear, access, and goals allow. It is a community-style recommendation, not an official ranking from Obsidian Entertainment.
Suggested fight order
Work through the bosses in this sequence if you want the smoothest progression and want to keep the endgame clean:
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- Assistant Manager: an early story-path fight.
- Mant: the other early story-path fight, which you can take on before the optional bosses open up.
- Hedge Broodmother: an optional encounter that supplies Broodmother Chunks, which you need before you can summon Orchid Mantis.
- Wasp Queen: an optional encounter inside the Wasp Nest in the Brawny Boy Bin.
- Orchid Mantis: an optional fight you can summon once you have the Broodmother Chunks.
- Director Schmector: placed after your late story area so it sits before endgame cleanup. Attach it to the good ending if that is your goal.
- Infected Broodmother: the hardest encounter in the roster, saved for last.
Treat the middle of the list as flexible. Hedge Broodmother has to come before Orchid Mantis, but Wasp Queen can move earlier or later if you are chasing a specific piece of gear or a particular area.
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Story path, optional fights, and New Game+
Grounded’s creature roster lists seven bosses: Assistant Manager, Hedge Broodmother, Mant, Orchid Mantis, Director Schmector, Wasp Queen, and Infected Broodmother. The sources do not establish a single mandatory order for all seven, so it helps to sort them into three groups:
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- Story progression: Assistant Manager and Mant are the early fights to take in roughly the order above.
- Optional encounters: Hedge Broodmother, Wasp Queen, Orchid Mantis, and Infected Broodmother can be skipped without blocking the main story, though some of them unlock material or content you may want.
- New Game+ checklist: Obsidian Entertainment’s Fully Yoked 1.4 update notes state: “Accessing New Game+ requires defeating the Broodmother, Mantis, Wasp Queen, and completing the Javamatic fight.” That is a set of prerequisites, not a required fight order.
Boss reference
| Boss | Story or optional | Known prerequisite or location | Reader note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assistant Manager | Story path | Not stated | Early fight in the suggested route |
| Mant | Story path | Not stated | Early fight; Mantis Scream change noted in the April 2025 patch below |
| Hedge Broodmother | Optional | Supplies Broodmother Chunks | Prerequisite for the Orchid Mantis summon |
| Wasp Queen | Optional | Wasp Nest in the Brawny Boy Bin | Counted in the New Game+ checklist |
| Orchid Mantis | Optional | Summoned with a kebab that requires Broodmother Chunks | Counted in the New Game+ checklist |
| Director Schmector | Optional | Associated with the good ending; reach the late story area first | Include before endgame cleanup if you want that ending |
| Infected Broodmother | Optional | Not stated | Described by the community Grounded Wiki as the hardest encounter |
What decides your order
- Story versus optional content: Follow the story path first if you want a clean progression. Optional fights can wait until you have the gear you need.
- Crafting and unlock prerequisites: Hedge Broodmother must come before Orchid Mantis because of the Broodmother Chunks requirement.
- Ending goals: If you are pursuing the good ending, Director Schmector belongs after you reach the late story area.
- Preparation and difficulty: Infected Broodmother is the most demanding fight the wiki describes, so arrive with your strongest loadout rather than fighting it early.
Version and source limits
The most recent dated patch information comes from Obsidian Entertainment’s Grounded 1.4.7 patch notes, dated April 17, 2025. They state: “Mantis Boss: The Scream attack can now be Perfect Blocked.” Because those notes are from April 2025, they do not confirm the boss behavior in the current live build, which should be checked against the in-game version and the official patch notes on your platform.
The boss roster, Broodmother Chunks requirement, Wasp Queen location, and difficulty descriptions come from search summaries of the community Grounded Wiki, not from the wiki pages themselves, so treat those details as medium-confidence. Numerical boss stats such as health and damage are not covered here because no verified, current source for them was available.
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Since there is no official boss sequence, the route above is a recommendation based on the progression and prerequisites described in those sources.
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