Aspearagus (PvZ:RiT)


 * For the version in Plants vs. Zombies Adventures, see Aspearagus (PvZA).

Aspearagus is a primary attacking plant seen in Plants vs. Zombies: Rips in Time. He fires asparagus stalks that deal 40 damage per shot every three seconds, approximately the same damage dealt by Cabbage-pult, but has the advantage of being able to hit zombies in adjacent lanes like Lightning Reed. He is the tenth plant unlocked in Modern Day.

Origins
This plant is based on the Asparagus officinalis, the common vegetable asparagus. His name is a portmanteau of "asparagus," the real-life plant he is based on and "spear," referring to the weapon that he launches.

Suburban Almanac entry
Aspearagus

Aspearagus fires stalks that can hit zombies in adjacent lanes.

Damage: normal

Special: can hit zombies above or below

Plant Food: fires a barrage of asparagus stalks in three lanes

Aspearagus had a witty, clever idea for this almanac entry, yet we couldn't understand him due to the asparagus stalk in his mouth. We think it involved something with a gopher, though.

Cost: 125

Recharge: 7 seconds

Plant Food upgrade
When fed Plant Food, Aspearagus will fire forty asparagus stalks down its own lane and adjacent lanes. Each stalk deals 40 damage per shot, totaling to 800 damage per shot in all three lanes.

Strategies
Aspearagus is best thought of as a variation of the Peashooter with the ability to fire in multiple lanes. His two additional lanes can be helpful early on in particular, as only two Aspearagus are needed to deal with zombies in all five lanes, as contrasted to five Peashooters. In addition, in Modern Day's pool levels, Aspearagus can be utilized to deal with Ducky Tube Zombies that spawn in the pool early on, allowing you to reserve the lanes for Sunflowers, or ultimately forego the usage of plants like Lily Pad. This is also helpful for saving space in Ninja Nights, providing extra reinforcements to lanes without bridges, though, this can be negated with Tree Fort.

Aspearagus cost 25 more sun than Peashooter, which is not a nominal difference, and can make him a more useful plant in many, but not all instances. Keep in mind that Aspearagus will always target the closest zombie, meaning that he'll deal with a closer zombie in a different lane before dealing with a more powerful zombie in his own. In addition, he has a slower firing rate, making him less effective against Zombie Weasels, even if it is made up for with doubled damage. Aspearagus can not be boosted by Torchwood, and can not be used to buff Podfather. However, he is an Appease-mint family plant, so Appease-mint can be used to buff him.

Keep in mind other multi-lane attacking options when using Aspearagus. Lightning Reed deals less damage than Aspearagus, but has a faster firing rate and can hit several zombies at a time, making him more useful against Zombie Weasels and Plague Rats, as well as being more useful later on when zombies spawn in larger groups. Acespearagus can fire in any lane, regardless of placement on the lawn, but costs twice as much to make up for it, and otherwise has the same stats. Threepeater and Apple Mortar can both target all three lanes simultaneously, but cost well over twice what Aspearagus does, whereas Dusk Lobber requires the use of other Dusk Lobbers to fire in other lanes. Sniper Rifflesia also can fire in any lane, and the lane can be adjusted by the player, but similarly comes with a higher cost. As with most plants, the best multi-lane attacker is usually dependent on the situation.

Trivia

 * Aspearagus is the first plant from Plants vs. Zombies Adventures to return in a main-series Plants vs. Zombies game.
 * His ability is similar to that of Aspiragus from the Chinese version of Plants vs. Zombies 2. However, Aspearagus can not hover over gaps, deals less damage, but never has a cooldown.