Gros Michel (French for "big Mike"; pronounced in American English as grows mee-shel, and in British English as grow mih-chel) is a Common Additive Mult Joker, which provides an unconditional +15 Mult to all hands played. For its average buying price and overall lack of investment, it is marvellously powerful in the first few Antes. However, all good things must come to an end, and it might so happen that when the run needs him most, he'll vanish.
Why, might you ask? Well, unfortunately, in spite of his strong spirit, he's immunocompromised; at the end of each round while held, there is a 1 in 6 chance that Gros Michel will destroy itself (denoted by the word "Extinct!" popping up as it disappears). Once this happens, this Joker will not reappear for the rest of the current run, and its more resilient descendant, 
Cavendish, itself a strong and unconditional Multiplicative Mult Joker, can be found in the run instead. Note that, if this Joker is sold, or destroyed by another means, such as by the Ankh or Hex Spectral Cards, or by the effects of 
Ceremonial Dagger or 
Madness, it will continue to appear in the run until it is destroyed by its own effect.
This Joker cannot receive the Eternal sticker.
Synergies[]
Gros Michel is essentially a must take in the early Antes; with it, most Two Pairs (16 combined rank or higher), any Three of a Kind, or any higher ranked hand is guaranteed to clear each Blind of Ante 1, and any of the common 5-card hands (Straight, Flush, and Full House) can clear up to the Big Blind of Ante 2 on any difficulty without help, provided the chip value is at least 79. Seeing it early also increases the odds of destroying it early, and gaining quick access to Cavendish, a cheap and guaranteed source of Multiplicative Mult, which is essentially mandatory to clear the later Antes on any difficulty past Red Stake.
Decks[]
This Joker requires no real accommodation to be effective, and synergizes equally well with all starting decks.
Poker Hands[]
This Joker unconditionally adds Mult, and can be effective with any hand as a result.
Jokers[]
Building around this wonder fruit in the long term is a fool's errand, since it is bound to disappear sooner or later. However, any build, regardless of synergy, will be happy to pick it up; not only does it provide a powerful bonus before expiry, but exhausting it unlocks the even more powerful Cavendish. Thus, it can supplement any build. However, if it remains for a few too many rounds, it may be necessary to ditch its secret potential in order to pick up a Joker that is more immediately helpful.
Avoid adding any editions to it if possible, as they will be lost when it goes extinct; if you obtain The Wheel of Fortune Tarot Card, or the Ectoplasm Spectral Card, hold onto them until this Joker destroys itself, in order to maximize their value, or consider selling them to improve your run immediately.
Oops! All 6s: Obtaining these two Jokers simultaneously can either be an immense boon, or a huge risk, depending on the state of the run. Boosting the self-destruction odds to a 1 in 3 chance means gaining access to Cavendish remarkably faster, but also losing out on a potentially run-saving Additive Mult bonus. Consider all your options before choosing it.
Trivia[]
- Gros Michel's stats were modified heavily prior to its release: During the first demo, it provided +10 Mult with a 1 in 10 chance to destroy itself. This then changed to +15 Mult with a 1 in 8 chance to destroy itself, and finally, its stats on release were +15 Mult with a 1 in 4 chance to destroy itself. It was yet again changed to a 1 in 6 chance to destroy itself following Patch 1.0.1f.
- The Gros Michel is a banana cultivar that once made up the vast majority of bananas consumed around the world. It was sweet, grew densely, and was resistant to bruising in transit. However, it was grown in a massive monoculture and was very susceptible to disease. After it was devastated by a fungal pandemic in the 1960s, it was phased out in favor of the more disease-resistant Cavendish cultivar. This is represented in the "Extinct!" pop-up once destroyed and replacement in favor of the Cavendish.
Update History[]
- Effect
- 1 in 4 chance to go extinct -> 1 in 6 chance to go extinct
Undocumented
- Effect
- 1 in 8 chance to go extinct -> 1 in 4 chance to go extinct
Presumed 0.9.2m-DEMO (undocumented)
In other languages[]
| Language | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chinese (Simplified) | 大麦克香蕉 | |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 大麥克香蕉 | |
| Dutch | Gros Michel | |
| French | Gros Michel | |
| German | Gros Michel | |
| Indonesian | Gros Michel | |
| Italian | Gros Michel | |
| Japanese | グロスミッチェル | |
| Korean | 그로 미셸 | |
| Polish | Gros Michel | |
| Portuguese (Brazilian) | Banana-prata | |
| Russian | Гро Мишель | |
| Spanish (Spain) | Banano | |
| Spanish (Latin America) | Gros Michel |
