Explode-o-Mato

Explode-o-Mato is a manual-use seedium plant in . He was first introduced on the 11.7.1 update, where he could be bought in the shop or unlocked by getting 200 seed packets.
When tapped on, a series of circles indicating where it can land will appear, and after aiming by clicking on one of these circles, he will launch himself there, causing an explosion which will damage nearby zombies. Afterwards, it will leave a tile of scalding tomato juice where it initially landed that slows and damage zombies.
If not sent, the Explode-o-Mato will remain there, detonating only after being eaten by zombies with the same effects.
==Overview==
The player must tap on Explode-o-Mato to use it, which will cause a series of red crosshairs to appear in its lane, serving as an aim guide. Then, the player can tap any of these tiles to fire, causing Explode-o-mato to launch himself to that tile exploding in a 3x3 area and dealing 1400 damage to all zombies within the explosion's range. On top of that, the tile selected by the player (at the center of the 3x3 explosion) will be covered in a puddle of tomato, which will not only slow down zombies but also deal 20 damage per second to them. Said puddle will however only last for 15 seconds.
If the player decides to not use him, he will remain there until eaten, which causes it to detonate and leave a tomato puddle on the tile it once occupied, both the explosion and the puddle sharing the same characteristics as standard explosions by launched Explode-o-Mato.
The tile of tomato it leaves behind cannot be planted on, unless the plant is of the Pepper-Mint family or a flying plant. Said tomato juice will also not appear if the plant is thrown at certain tiles like Slider Tiles or the water in Big Wave Beach, and will thaw frozen or chilled zombies upon dealing damage.
In Frostbite Caves, it is important to note that the puddles will instantly freeze after the explosion, causing them to be destroyed without dealing any damage.
== Origins ==
 Explode-o-Mato is based off a tomato, the fruit of the plant known as Solanum Persicum.
Explode-o-mato is based on and named after . His name is a portmanteau of the words "Explode" and "Tomato", referencing his ability to explode.
== Almanac Entry ==
== Upgrades ==
=== Effect===
When fed with Explode-o-Mato will launch himself creating a big explosion which affects all the zombies on lawn leaving fire in the tile he was planted on.
===Level Upgrades===
Level	Seed
Packets	Coins 	Upgrades	Upgrades 	Upgrades 	Upgrades 	Upgrades
Level	Seed
Packets	Coins 	Sun Cost	Recharge
(Sluggish)	Toughness
(Typical)	Damage
(Normal)*	Damage
(Normal)*
Level	Seed
Packets	Coins 	Sun Cost	Recharge
(Sluggish)	Toughness
(Typical)	Puddle burn	Explotion
1 	0 	0 	150 	15 seconds	300 damage	20 damage 	1400 damage
2 	10 	1,000 	150 	15 seconds	325 damage	30 damage 	1400 damage
3 	25 	2,500 	150 	15 seconds	350 damage	30 damage 	1500 damage
4 	50 	5,000 	150 	13 seconds	374 damage	30 damage 	1500 damage
5 	100 	10,000 	125 	13 seconds	400 damage	40 damage 	1600 damage
6 	200 	20,000 	125 	13 seconds	425 damage	40 damage 	1600 damage
7 	400 	30,000 	125 	12 seconds	425 damage	40 damage 	1700 damage
8 	800 	50,000 	125 	12 seconds	450 damage	50 damage 	1700 damage
9 	1,200	75,000 	125 	10 seconds	475 damage	60 damage 	1700 damage
10 	1,600	100,000	100 	10 seconds	500 damage	80 damage 	1800 damage
===Level upgrade===
==Strategies ==
Even if it may seem at first like a simple Cherry Bomb, due to its similar explosion range and cost, trading some damage for a faster recharge rate, the Explode-O-Mato is actually much more interesting thanks to its second ability. Since when planted, the player does not haven to launch the plant immediately, it allows one to essentially "store" what is almost an instant-kill worth of damage for later, which can prove to be expensive in terms of Suns but very useful in a pinch. One can easily use that by for example planting an entire line of Explode-o-Mato for later, launch them at a target and still retain a seedpack ready to finish off a target or replace the thrown plant.
On top of that, the Explode-o-Mato can also be used as an improvised mine by simply placing it down and letting zombies eat it, causing the same kind of explosion as usual. This disposability makes it a good second layer of protection for something like a line of Wallnuts, which themselves grant the normally marginally useful Tomato Puddles an opportunity to deal more damage. Planting the tomatos at the back of the lawn may seem like a better plan, but this will usually take room for nothing and only make the non-disposable plants more vulnerable to zombie attacks.
While generally a better plan, placing the Explode-o-Matos at the middle of the lawn in first line can be problematic against certain zombies, most notably those that fire projectiles like the Zcorpion, which will waste your explosion on the thrown object by destroying the plant from afar, leaving at best only a few seconds of Tomato Puddle to deal damage, those that may appear during ambushes, like Swashbuckler or Relic Hunter Zombies, which will cause the explosion to only deal damage to them and leave the horde behind unscathed, or even just lone fast zombies like an Imp or a Zombie Chicken. To avoid that, always take into account the kind of special zombies that will spawn during the levels and plan accordingly. Always keep an eye on your Explode-o-Mato, and if you see one of these zombies, try to either launch preemptively or see if letting it blast would really be an issue.
 
The Tomato Puddles seem like an important gimmick but are really much more secondary, only being useful in some marginal cases as a way to deal extra damage after the explosion if it isn't enough or to lower the health of zombies behind that had escape the initial blast, just shy of killing a Basic Zombie. No matter how you put it, there isn't many cases where it could truly become useful. More important, even with the damage of the puddle, an Explode-o-Mato will NEVER DEAL THE SAME AMOUNT OF DAMAGE AS AN INSTANT KILL.
It will kill Buckethead Zombies but even 2 explosions on top of the puddle's damage or an explosion + a conventional instant-kill will not deal enough damage to wipe out a Gargantuar, making them much more of a threat than if you were using Cherry bomb. Always make sure to bring extra firepower to ensure that the job is done and remember that it will also give it enough time to throw an Imp.
Due to the massive use of flying zombies that will avoid the puddle and the constant stream of Relic Hunter Zombies, Lost City is absolutely a bane for this plant, and it should not be used here. It also is a somewhat of a no-no in Frostbite Caves, Big Wave Beach or Pirate Seas, where its puddle is meaningless and the lack of room on the formers gimps its launching ability, restricting it mostly to a simple mine. If you do plan to use it for your defenses, make sure to bring enough sun to fully make use of its faster recharge and give it some room to be placed.
==Gallery==
File:Explode-o-mato HD.png|HD Explode-o-Mato
== Trivia== 
*If the player tries to plant Explode-o-Mato on a a message will appear saying "Explode-o-Mato wouldn’t like to burn one of his friends"
**This also happens if the player attempts to plant it on a , Axolotus or any type of vine
*He cannot be planted on minecarts, due to issues associated with a tap either moving the mine cart, or activating the target of Explode-o-Mato. If the player tries to plant him on a minecart, the game will say "We don’t want the minecarts to burn right?".
*Most Strategies were made by Cryptic
**Cryptic also detailed Overview section and improved the info box.
Category:Explosive plants
Category:Uncleared page