Chef Saltbaker

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> No matter, it's too late to stop me now. The Wondertart will be my finest work yet!
>
> Chef Saltbaker

**Chef Saltbaker** is the hidden main antagonist and final boss of *Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course*. He is also the founder and owner of his bakery, claiming to have a recipe for the proper ingredients to bring a soul back to life. Cuphead and his gang have to fight him in the laboratory that Chef Saltbaker had set up below his bakery in the stage A Dish To Die For. Saltbaker cannot be fought in Simple Mode like King Dice & The Devil.

## Description

### Appearance

Chef Saltbaker is an anthropomorphic salt shaker who has a pointy nose and wears a chef's uniform, including a traditional white jacket with red-trimmed sleeves, and a red ascot around his neck. In addition, his metal cap (which has holes to pour salt from on it) resembles a toque blanche. During both the cutscene where he reveals his true motives and his boss fight, he's shown to have sinister yellow eyes with dark circles around them.

During his boss battle, after the heroes damage his outer body enough, Saltbaker degenerates into a sapient salt mass that can form into a humanoid shape. His heart has a similar face to his, including the pointed nose and a salt cap on one lobe. It is typically pink, but becomes cyan for a few seconds when parried.

### Personality

At the beginning, Chef Saltbaker is a seemingly jolly fellow with a kind attitude. He appears more than happy to help bring Ms. Chalice to life, and even gives the brothers a special cookie that can temporarily allow Chalice to live on the mortal plane. However, after the requested ingredients are gathered, Chef Saltbaker reveals himself to be a cunning and cut-throat individual, willing to sacrifice a soul to create the Wondertart in his quest to take over and rule the astral plane. This degree of cruelty is further shown in his boss battle, where Saltbaker abuses and/or kills the living ingredients in order to battle their gatherers.

While his reputation is genuine, it is unknown whether Chef Saltbaker was always this wicked or his desire to create the Wondertart drove him to become villainous. However, by the end of the DLC, Saltbaker has shown to be humbled by his defeat, and after doing community service for the other five bosses, he's shown to be much more kind and generous.

## Story

Chef Saltbaker is first seen in-game in his bakery after Ms. Chalice introduces Cuphead and Mugman to him. Saltbaker then reveals plans to make the Wondertart, where one bite of the tart allows Ms. Chalice to become alive without the use of switching bodies with someone else. Chef Saltbaker then allows the three to fight bosses to collect the ingredients needed for the Wondertart and mentions the most important ingredient is heart and soul. Just like King Dice, after defeating a boss in Simple Mode, Chef Saltbaker notifies the player that defeating them in that difficulty will not get the ingredients needed.

However, after the players has beaten all the bosses, the chef isn't seen in his usual spot and it is revealed that there is a basement under the bakery where Chef Saltbaker has a secret laboratory. This is where he was found working on the Wondertart, where it is revealed that a literal soul must be added as the secret ingredient, the crazed chef having captured one of the three heroes as the ideal soul while the other two were out on their journey. Saltbaker then swipes the other gathered ingredients from the remaining characters to use against them in an epic battle to rule over the astral plane. However, he is eventually defeated, and his bakery is destroyed because of the commotion they have caused.

After the events of the battle, Chef Saltbaker is arrested for his actions, and was sentenced to community service, where he was forced to work for the previous bosses that were fought and the Boatman. He is eventually reformed and rebuilds his bakery, making pastries for all the residents on Inkwell Isle 4, which also restores his friendship with the heroes.

## Battle

### Intro

Chef Saltbaker exercises his hands by pulling his ascot and pushes away a pre-ready ingredient, which can be some Icy Sugar Cubes or sliced Desert Limes. A flame also appears at the top of the screen.

Like the Devil, Cuphead and his gang are shown reacting in fear and shock rather than performing their standard intros.

### Phase 1

> Marinate in your defeat while I complete this astral treat!
>
> Chef Saltbaker, Phase 1 Death Screen

 File:Death card mugshot saltbaker ph1.png
Chef Saltbaker has four different attacks based on the ingredients collected throughout the game:

* Chef Saltbaker pulls out a gigantic version of the Icy Sugar Cubes with a sailor hat with the word "SUGAR" on it, pushes the hat away and hits it with a hammer and a stake to break it into smaller pieces, levitates some with his magic and blows them away. Five pieces travel from the side where the sugar cubes were pushed off-screen to the other in a wave pattern. Some sugar cubes can be parried. In Expert Mode, there are eight sugar cubes and they appear more rapidly.
* Chef Saltbaker brings up and slices up a group of Desert Limes, then pushes the slices away. Four slices appear on the side where they were pushed off-screen to the other end, then boomerang back. If they are higher when they appear, they boomerang lower and vice-versa. In Expert Mode, there are five lime slices.
* Chef Saltbaker conjures a roller and flattens the Distillery Dough that comes in. He uses some cookie cutters to cut out some animal-shaped cookies and uses his magic to bring them to life. Six cookies bounce from the side to the where they are levitated off-screen to the other side. They can be defeated. In Expert Mode, there are eight cookies and they appear more rapidly.
* A basket of Gnome Berries runs across the background. Chef Saltbaker squishes it with all his might and causes all the berries inside it to fly off-screen, with the basket running away crying. 12 berries rain down to the left. In Expert Mode, there are 16 berries raining down at a quicker rate.

The flame that appears at the top occasionally jumps down and aims at the player(s). In Expert Mode, there will be two flames alternating between each jump and the flames jump at a faster rate.

Upon losing enough health, Saltbaker will slam the table in frustration and put a mushroom inside of his head. This causes him to grow as the crazed chef scoops up the player with his hands, commencing the next phase of the battle. Hitpoints = 600/680

### Phase 2

> My power grows with much aplomb! Your end is here, upon my palm!
>
> Chef Saltbaker, Phase 2 Death Screen

 File:Death card mugshot saltbaker ph2.png
After the crazed chef grows and captures the two cups in the palm of his hand, Chef Saltbaker's body is already slightly cracked and he laughs wickedly.

In this phase, Chef Saltbaker summons four Pepper Shakers on the corners of the screen by snapping his fingers. The Pepper Shakers sneeze peppercorn out of their caps, some of which can be parried. They can be defeated to launch them at the giant chef and damage him, dealing exactly 47 hitpoints of damage in Regular Mode.

Chef Saltbaker will pull out some Pineapple Mint leaves with his free hand, throw them up and sprinkle them on the player(s). There are three or four leaves falling from the ceiling swing from side to side. In Expert Mode, three to five leaves fall from the ceiling.

A flame jumps up toward the player(s), like in Phase 1. However it stays on the palm of Chef Saltbaker and can be a constant hazard to the player(s). In Expert Mode, there are still two flames.

After enough damage is done to Saltbaker, his glass body breaks as he shrieks in agony, his eyes roll into his body, and he releases a massive amount of salt in a white flash, commencing the third phase of his fight.

Hitpoints = 540/629

### Phase 3

> Your futile efforts were in vain, this world will be my salt domain.
>
> Chef Saltbaker, Phase 3 Death Screen

 File:Death card mugshot saltbaker ph3.png
During this phase, Chef Saltbaker has been reduced to the salt mass in his old body which sits motionless in the background. The chef claps his hands together to create two dancing salt clones who bounce along the screen while a saw blade slides along the floor to accompany them. If you let them bounce for 24 times, the clone will disappear like they are defeated. Chef Saltbaker will clap his hands and produce two salt clones again, still sharing the remaining hitpoints. In Expert Mode, there will be two sawblades and their gravity is increased to make them bounce more rapidly. Hitpoints = 135/136

### Phase 4

> The mark of my salinity shall scar thy fired glaze!
>
> Chef Saltbaker, Phase 4 Death Screen

 File:Death card mugshot saltbaker ph4.png
After Saltbaker rises back up from the pile of salt in the background, his old body splits in half to reveal his salty mass. After laughing maniacally, he turns into a pair of salt tornadoes with multiple faces that slowly close in, and glass platforms fall from the top to the bottom. His heart then appears and bounces throughout the area in between the pillars. The player(s) must shoot his heart to damage him. The heart also can be parried when it turns pink. In Expert Mode, his heart moves faster, becoming harder to hit.

After he is defeated, the salt tornadoes start to break apart and yell in pain as his heart stretches about. Hitpoints = 225/255

## Gallery

Screenshot 20190702-185139 YouTube Blue.jpgSaltbaker cooking some soupScreen Shot 2018-06-11 at 12.35.13 pm.pngSaltbaker in the announcement trailerFX12LO2UcAAOpfY.jpgChef Saltbaker's response to defeating a boss on the Simple difficulty.Tooltip saltbaker b-sharedassets3.assets-40.pngChef Saltbaker's iconSaltbakerPhase1.pngSaltbaker idle spriteSaltbaker phase 2.pngGiant SaltbakerSaltbakerPhase3.pngSalt clones bouncingSb ph3 4 saltman 0048.pngTransforming into the pillarsSaltbakerPillar.pngSalt pillar during fourth phaseSaltbakerPhase4.pngSaltbaker's heartSaltbakeroverworld.pngOverworld IconChefsaltbakersevilplanhaddiscovered.gifChef Saltbaker's evil plan had been discovered animationDLCPlatinum.pngSaltbaker in a drawing celebrating the one million Cuphead DLC copies sold.Chef-saltbaker-cuphead.gifSaltbaker's reaction to the destruction of his bakery, and then wallows in defeat.Cupheadcomic1.pngSaltbaker is arrested and sent to courtCupheadcomic2.pngSaltbaker is revealed to do community service and released from the caseGnomeberryfarm.pngSaltbaker working in Glumstone's gnome berry farmBakingmob.pngSaltbaker lifting the Moonshine Mob's cargoWinterwhaledentist.pngSaltbaker brushing Mortimer's winter whale's teethBoatmanslide.pngSaltbaker painting the Boatman's boatServing-saloon.jpgSaltbaker mourning over the ruins of his bakery (left strip) and then serving as a waiter at Esther's saloon (right strip)Fixing-dogs-planes.jpgSaltbaker repairing the Bulldog's airplaneTKL-checkers.pngSaltbaker playing checkers with the King and Queen (left strip) and is seen rebuilding his bakery overnight (right strip)Cupheadcomic5.pngSaltbaker seen rebuilding his bakeryDLCgroupphoto.jpgSaltbaker makes pastries for all the characters

## Trivia

File:SaltNotSoul.png
* Chef Saltbaker derives his name from a portmanteau of "saltshaker" and "baker" (the latter word referencing the chef's uniform he wears).
* The only ingredient that Chef Saltbaker doesn't use to try and attack you with in Phase 1 is the Pineapple Mint. He only uses it in the second phase.
* Similar to Beppi The Clown and multitude of bosses, Chef Saltbaker could get stuck at Phase 1 and could not transition. When he starts to attack and being damage to the threshold to transition to Phase 2, he will move to the other side but not attack anymore, staying in place with the only hazard left is the jumping flame. However, this doesn't make his battle unwinnable: after enough damage the transition from Phase 2 to 3 will play and causes Chef Saltbaker to change into a different animation but his hitbox will continue to be active until he is defeated. This is fixed in Patch 1.3.3.
* In *Cuphead: Cartoon Chronicles & Calamities*, he states that the secret ingredient to make his goods taste good is salt.
* In the sense that Chef Saltbaker is using it in the death card for his second phase, the term “Aplomb” refers to self-confidence or assurance, especially when in a demanding situation. In this case, it refers to Chef Saltbaker’s determination and obsession with consuming the Wondertart to rule over the astral plane.
* In his third phase, the sawblades travelling through the ground may be inspired by the unused Bothersome Blueberry from Goopy Le Grande, with the salt clones bouncing around mimicking Goopy.
* During the epilogue, Chef Saltbaker was sentenced to do the following jobs:
	+ Working in Glumstone the Giant's farm along with the gnomes.
	+ Lifting the Moonshine Mob's cargo.
	+ Cleaning Mortimer Freeze's ice whale's teeth.
	+ Painting the Boatman's boat.
	+ Working as a waiter in Esther Winchester's saloon.
	+ Repairing the Howling Aces' planes.
* Quite rarely, the second phase’s music will still play during the third and fourth phase, instead of it being replaced with the third phase’s music.
* He’s the first boss of the Cuphead series to have a background who change because of the player’s choice, that choice being if the Astral Cookie is used or not. If it’s used, Saltbaker will kidnap the user. However, if nobody uses it, he’ll capture Ms. Chalice instead.
* When he transforms into his second phase, the mushroom that he uses to grow into a giant is a reference to that in Super mario, a growing mushroom that if Mario eats the mushroom, he will turn into a giant as well.

 File:Picsart 22-09-28 22-05-41-363.mp4
### Inspirations and similarities

 File:TheyllNeverComeBackAsCups.jpg
This is the pillar of faces from the film, "something", that inspired the salt pillars
* Saltbaker's face when he reveals his true colors is likely a reference to the infamous shot of the Coachman's malicious grin from the 1940 Disney film *Pinocchio*.
* When transitioning into the second phase, Chef Saltbaker uses a glowing pink and white-spotted mushroom to grow in size. This is likely a reference to the Super Mushroom from the *Super Mario* franchise, which enlarges and strengthens characters that touch it.
* Saltbaker's Pineapple Mint attack in phase 2 may have been based on Wood Man's leaf-dropping attack in *Mega Man 2*.
* His Death Quote in Phase 4 ("The mark of my salinity shall scar thy fired glaze!") is a reference to *Street Fighter III*, in which main villain Gill says "The mark of my divinity shall scar thy DNA".
* The salt clones that Chef Saltbaker summons in his third phase bear resemblance to the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from *Ghostbusters*.
* The platforming challenge in phase 4 resembles *Icy Tower*, an indie game made in 2001 by Free Lunch Design.
* The flame that appears in the first two phases of the fight is a direct reference to a sentient flame that appears in the 1931 Fleischer Studios cartoon *Bimbo's Initiation*.
* The aurora sky animation that appears during the 3rd phase resembles the heatwave seen in Ted Eshbaugh’s 1933 short *The Snowman*.
* The salt pillars in phase 4 bear a resemblance to "Something", an animation from Cyriak Harris.

## External links

* Chef Saltbaker - Villains Wiki
* Chef Saltbaker - Antagonists Wiki

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