Achievement Breakdown: (21)
Adventure Mode: (6)
Mini-Games & Survival: (7)
Collectibles: (4)
Slay: (5)
Miscellaneous: (2)

Plants vs Zombies is a fairly straightforward 100%. The majority of our Achievements will be tied to Adventure Mode, Mini-Games, & Survival Mode. We will need to complete Adventure Mode at least 1.5 times to encounter the Yeti Zombie; though it is likely you will at least complete it 2-3 times for farming Coins.

The rest of the Achievements will be linked to purchasing Plants or Fertilizer for the Tree of Wisdom. This requires quite a lot of Coins to grind for, but we will worry about that at the end of the game.

For those interested, here is an organized list of all the Achievements/Secret Achievements. This is how I derive my Achievement Breakdowns & the first reference I create before I begin my 100% journeys.
https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2618972628

*Guide contains minor spoilers.

1. Adventure Mode Playthrough #1
2. Plants: 25/49
3. Achievements: 5/21
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Plant #1 – Peashooter: We will unlock the Peashooter at the very beginning of Adventure Mode on Level 1-1.

Plant #2 – Sunflower: We will unlock the Sunflower after completing Level 1-1.

Plant #3 – Cherry Bomb: We will unlock the Cherry Bomb after competing Level 1-2.

We need the Cherry Bomb for the Explodonator Achievement; we need a lot of Zombies for this however & will be unlocking it later on…

Plant #4 – Wall Nut: We will unlock the Wall Nut after completing Level 1-3.


Achievement #1 – Ask Me About Mustache Mode: Enable Mustache Mode.
This can be unlocked immediately when we start the game. All you have to do is type “moustache” & the Achievement will unlock instantly. There is no “typing console” you have to activate, just type the word during any point of a Level.

Plant #5 – Potato Mine: We will unlock the Potato Mine after completing Level 1-5.


Achievement #2 – SPUDOW!: Blow up a Zombie using a Potato Mine.
This Achievement can be unlocked as soon as we receive the Potato Mine. Simply place a Potato down at the very end of one of your Rows when a Zombie appears & wait for it to walk onto it. The Potato Mine takes 15 seconds to pop out of the ground to activate so keep that in mind.

Plant #6 – Snow Pea: We will unlock the Snow Pea after completing Level 1-6.

Plant #7 – Chomper: We will unlock the Chomper after completing Level 1-7.

Plant #8 – Repeater: We will unlock the Repeater after completing Level 1-8.


Achievement #3 – Explodonator: Blow up 10 Zombies with a single Cherry Bomb.
This Achievement can be a little tricky to unlock. A good place for it is at the final Wave of Level 1-10. Save up a Cherry Bomb & wait for the final Wave to arrive. After most of the Zombies walk onto the map, place your Cherry Bomb down to take out 10 of them. You only have one shot.

Fortunately this Achievement can be unlocked at anytime, even during Survival Mode where Zombies will endlessly appear for us.

Plant #9 – Puff-Shroom: We will unlock the Puff-Shroom at the end of Level 1-10.


Plant #10 – Sun-Shroom: We will unlock the Sun-Shroom after completing Level 2-1.

Plant #11 – Fume-Shroom: We will unlock the Fume-Shroom after completing Level 2-2.

Plant #12 – Grave Buster: We will unlock the Grave Buster after completing Level 2-3.

Plant #13 – Hypno-Shroom: We will unlock the Hypno-Shroom after completing Level 2-5.

Plant #14 – Scaredy-Shroom: We will unlock the Scaredy-Shroom after completing Level 2-6.

Plant #15 – Ice-Shroom: We will unlock the Ice-Shroom after completing Level 2-7.


Achievement #4 – Disco Is Undead: Hypnotize the lead Dancer Zombie.
We will first encounter the Dancing Zombie on Level 2-8. Two will appear on the Level; one in the middle of the Level & one during the final Wave. Try having 75 Sun saved up near these points. As soon as the Zombie struts onto your Row, lay the Hypno-Shroom in front of him. Be careful not to put it in front of his Backup Dancer!

We can also unlock this Achievement on Level 2-9 as well (or any Levels that have Dancing Zombies…).

Plant #16 – Doom-Shroom: We will unlock the Doom-Shroom after completing Level 2-8.

Plant #17 – Lily Pad: We will unlock the Lily Pad after completing Level 2-10.


Achievement #5 – Penny Pincher: Pick up 30 Coins in a row on a single Level without letting any disappear.

This Achievement will most likely come naturally as you play through the game. Level 2-10 is a good Level to attempt this Achievement; as between the amount of Graves there are as well as the number of Zombies approaching, we will be making a lot of money.


Plant #18 – Squash: We will unlock the Squash after completing Level 3-1.

Plant #19 – Threepeater: We will unlock the Threepeater after completing Level 3-2.
We will also unlock access to the first three Levels in Mini-Games.

Plant #20 – Tangle Kelp: We will unlock the Tangle Kelp after completing Level 3-3.

Crazy Dave’s Car Key: We will collect Dave’s Car Key after completing Level 3-4. This will unlock Crazy Dave’s Twiddydinkies Shop for us to begin purchasing Plants & Items.

Plant #21 – Jalapeño: We will unlock the Jalapeño after completing Level 3-5.
This is also a great Level to try for the Explodonator Achievement.

Plant #22 – Spikeweed: We will unlock the Spikeweed after completing Level 3-6.

Plant #23 – Torchwood: We will unlock the Torchwood after completing Level 3-7.

Plant #24 – Tall-Nut: We will unlock the Tall-Nut after completing Level 3-8.

Plant #25 – Sea-Shroom: We will unlock the Sea-Shroom after completing Level 3-10.

1. Adventure Mode Playthrough #1
2. Plants: 40/49
3. Achievements: 6/21
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Plant #26 – Plantern: We will unlock the Plantern after completing Level 4-1.

Plant #27 – Cactus: We will unlock the Cactus after completing Level 4-2.

Plant #28 – Blover: We will unlock the Blover after completing Level 4-3.

Plant #29 – Split Pea: We will unlock the Split Pea after completing Level 4-5.

Plant #30 – Starfruit: We will unlock the Starfruit after completing Level 4-6. Puzzle Mode will also be unlocked a short ways into this Level as well.

Plant #31 – Pumpkin: We will unlock the Pumpkin after completing Level 4-7.

Plant #32 – Magnet-Shroom: We will unlock the Magnet-Shroom after completing Level 4-8.

Plant #33 – Cabbage-Pult: We will unlock the Cabbage-Pult after completing Level 4-10.


Plant #34 – Flower Pot: We will unlock the Flower Pot after completing Level 5-1.

Plant #35 – Kernel-Pult: We will unlock the Kernel-Pult after completing Level 5-2.

Plant #36 – Coffee Bean: We will unlock Coffee Bean after completing Level 5-3.
Watering Can: We will be able to collect the Watering Can after completing Level 5-4. This unlocks the Zen Garden up for us.

While it is quite the money sink, the Zen Garden can become a decent money farm if you are to invest the time & coins into it. If you want to speed through this 100%, I’d put the bare minimum into the Zen Garden & sell your Plants after you cannot ascend them anymore. I’ll admit though, growing your cute little garden up can be pretty fulfilling…

For the amount of money you do spend per Plant, they do end up paying for themselves & more after they are sold when fully ascended. It is mostly just all the gear plus other gardens that will run you $80,000+.

Plant #37 – Garlic: We will unlock the Garlic after completing Level 5-5.

Plant #38 – Umbrella Leaf: We will unlock the Umbrella Leaf after completing Level 5-6.

Plant #39 – Marigold: We will unlock the Marigold after completing Level 5-7.

Plant #40 – Melon-Pult: We will unlock the Melon-Pult after completing Level 5-8.


Achievement #6 – Home Lawn Security: Complete Adventure Mode.
Story Related. Beat Level 5-10 & the final boss.

With that, we have completed our first round of Adventure Mode. For farming money or Plants for our Zen Gardens, you may end up completing another tour or two of Adventure Mode.

28% Complete

1. Puzzle Mode: Vasebreaker, I Zombie
2. Mini Games: 20/20
3. Plants: 49/49
4. Achievements: 12/21
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To begin, clear Vasebreaker all the way to Ace of Vase so we unlock Vasebreaker Endless.


Achievement #7 – China Shop: Get to a streak of 15 in Vasebreaker Endless.
This Achievement can be surprisingly difficult. Your first priority should be to locate the Gargantuar Zombie & be sure to have 2 Squashes saved up to kill it. Work from the back of the Rows to the front.

After Streak 10, 2 Gargantuars will appear in the Vases. Play extra cautiously as now you will need 4 Squashes at the ready. Planterns are extremely useful for figuring out what is inside the Vases before you smash them.

This took me around 12 tries to complete, 2 of those tries even making it to Streak 14! This is very luck based on what spawns where.

Now complete I, Zombie to All Your Brainz R Belong to Us so we unlock I, Zombie Endless.


Achievement #8 – Better Off Dead: Get to a streak of 10 in I, Zombie Endless.
This is can also be a very difficult Achievement. Don’t underestimate the Ladder Zombies like I did. They function the same as Screen Door Zombies & can block all incoming Peashooter or “straight shot” projectiles making them very useful. As well, don’t be afraid to keep resetting the Level at Streak 1 until you get a loadout that looks ideal. We can’t do it for all Levels, but we might as well give ourselves as much of an edge as possible.

I found this much more difficult than Vasebreaker taking me well over 20 attempts to get it right.

For more tips & tricks for I, Zombie in general, check out the Plants vs. Zombies Wiki page. It breaks down some strategies as well as some (almost to technical) details on optimizing the Zombies you place when.

https://plantsvszombies.fandom.com/wiki/I,_Zombie_Endless/Strategies

With all the money we earned from Puzzle Mode, we should be able to purchase the majority of the Plants for sale from Crazy Dave.

Plant #41 – Gold Magnet: We can purchase this Plant for $3000.

Plant #42 – Gatling Peas: We can purchase this Plant for $5000.

Plant #43 – Twin Sunflowers: We can purchase this Plant for $5000.

Plant #44 – Gloom-Shroom: We can purchase this Plant for $7500.

Plant #45 – Spikerocks: We can purchase this Plant for $7500.

Plant #46 – Cattails: We can purchase this Plant for $10,000.

Plant #47 – Winter Melons: We can purchase this Plant for $10,000.

Plant #48 – Cob Cannons: We can purchase this Plant for $20,000.

Plant #49 – Imitator: We can purchase this Plant for $30,000.


Achievement #9 – Morticulturalist: Collect all 49 Plants.
Fully completing Adventure Mode will net you 40/49 Plants. The remaining 9 Plants are bought from Crazy Dave’s Shop for a whopping $98,000.

If you still need money to purchase the remaining Plants, complete playthrough two of Adventure Mode or begin Mini Game Mode. Near the end of the guide, I will outline the best strategy for farming money as we are going to need almost three times this amount to grow the Tree of Wisdom to 100ft for the Towering Wisdom Achievement.


For the most part, the majority of the Levels in Mini Game Mode are straightforward, if not incredibly easy. There are however some that are extremely challenging. Since I am speed running this 100%, I am hoarding as much money as I can for the Tree of Wisdom & have spent nothing on my Zen Garden or Plant Slots remaining at the standard 8 Slots. This makes this much harder though they are all possible to complete without 10 Slots.


Achievement #10 – Roll Some Heads: Bowl over 5 Zombies with a single Wall-Nut.
We can unlock this Achievement on Mini Game #2 – Wall-Nut Bowling or Mini Game #18 – Wall-Nut Bowling 2 (or any Adventure Mode Level that has Wall-Nut Bowling).

This may take a few tries to get right. The more times you beat Wall-Nut Bowling 1, the harder it will get meaning there will be more Zombies approaching which makes the Achievement easier. Though it is a much more difficult Level with more armored Zombies, Wall-Nut Bowling 2 may give you an easier time due to the Dancing Zombies.

Explode-o-Nuts & Giant Wall-Nuts do not count towards the Achievement.


Achievement #11 – Sunny Days: Get 8000 Sun during a single Level.
This Achievement is easily unlocked on Mini Game #8 – Zombiquarium. Purchase around 15-20 Snorkel Zombies & maintain them with Brains. The goal of this Mini Game is to purchase the Trophy for 1000 Sun, but we can stay in the Level as long as we want if we do not buy it right away. Simply farm the 8000 Sun from your Snorkel Zombies to unlock the Achievement. This takes around 8-12 minutes to complete, though of course the more Snorkel Zombies you have the faster it will take.

Bobsled Bonanza – Strategy: This is probably the hardest out of the Mini Games by far. The best strategy to use is the Cattail Strategy; MitraTeam Gaming has an excellent video guide showcasing this.
https://youtu.be/yI-SOBd5ZKc
I basically only used Sunflowers, Lily Pads, Cattails, & Potato Mines using the Imitator to double up on Potato Mines. Work towards getting at least 6 Cattails in the water, dropping Mines in front of any Zombonis. A Bobsled or two might get past your defences & take one of your Lawn Mowers early on, but don’t worry unless of course there is no Lawn Mower present in that Row. 4-5 Cattails can actually take out a Zombonis which makes them pretty effective on this Level.

Last Stand – Strategy: This can be another challenging Mini Game, especially if you do not have 10 Plant Slots. For my setup I used Lily Pads, Repeaters, Gatling Peas, Torchwood, Tall-Nuts & Wall-Nuts. After each Flag we will earn 250 Sun; spend it on Wall-Nut or Tall-Nut defences & let your flaming Gatling Peas do all the work.

Pogo Party – Strategy: This is the final challenging Mini Game out of the 20. The original video I used for the guide was apparently removed from YouTube, so I found a new one of the same strategy by jasonc0065. The video is a bit stuttery, so apologies for that.
https://youtu.be/7kCNDhVP7Zs


Achievement #12 – Beyond the Grave: Beat all 20 Mini Games.
The Mini Games can be done in any order so long as you unlock them. If need be, save the harder ones until the end so you can focus on them or have more time to purchase the necessary Plants if you still need them. The Achievement will unlock as soon as you complete the final Mini Game.

57% Complete

1. Adventure Mode Playthrough #2
2. Achievements: 17/21
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While we are going through our second playthrough, make a point of planting as many Marigolds as you can get away with. If done right, we can net an extra $1500 on average per Level. Every bit adds up, & we need a total of $237,500 to grow the Tree of Wisdom to 100ft. This doesn’t include the $10,000 needed to buy the tree in the first place, only for the 94 bags of Tree Food we need.



Note that on the second playthrough onwards, Crazy Dave will randomly select three Plants for us to use. This will limit our choices on what we can use for the upcoming Achievements so keep that in mind. If you are not buying Seed Slots, these Achievements can be a bit challenging. Purchasing Rakes from Crazy Dave’s Shop for $300 can give you a slight edge that can definitely help.



Achievement #13 – Good Morning: Complete a Daytime Level by planting only Mushrooms & Coffee Beans.
This is easiest unlocked on Level 1-1. Since we get Sun passively this is not too difficult. I completed Level 1-1 using exclusively Fume-Shrooms & Coffee Beans; using Puff-Shrooms as tiny shields to slow Zombies down until I could get a Fume-Shroom ready. Sun-Shrooms might give you an extra edge as well if you can quickly sneak them in there, but they are not completely necessary.

If you decide to do this on Pool – Daytime you are allowed to use Lily Pads, but if it is Rooftop – Daytime we cannot use Flower Pots. Don’t ask me why one counts but the other does not…



Achievement #14 – No Fungus Among Us: Complete a Nighttime Level without planting any Mushrooms.
This is best unlocked on Level 2-1. Sunflowers, Peashooters, Wall-Nuts, & especially Potato Mines will be our friends for this Achievement. Plant as many Sunflowers as you can & slowly build up your Peashooter defences. Early game is definitely the hardest part; use Potato Mines to defend unguarded Rows until you can get a Peashooter there. Pay attention which Rows have Graves in them as well for when the Final Wave arrives…



Achievement #15 – Don't Pea In the Pool: Complete a Daytime Pool Level without using Pea Shooters of any kind.
Self explanatory, use Cabbage-Pults & Kernel-Pults on Level 3-1 in place of Pea Shooters & you should have no issues at all. Just don’t use Pea Shooter type Plants.



Achievement #16 – Cryptozombologist: Discover the Top Secret Zombie.
This can only be unlocked on Level 4-10 on our second playthrough of Adventure Mode (or on Survival Endless). The top secret Zombie is the Yeti Zombie; for me he appeared just before the second Wave of the Level. As soon as he appears in a Row the Achievement will unlock; you do not even have to kill him. He is guaranteed to appear… but if for some reason he does not at the end of the Level, do not pick up the bag of coins! Instead just pause the game & click Restart Level to try again This should not happen to you though… I thought I would just mention the work around just in case.



Achievement #17 – Grounded: Defeat a Normal Roof Level without using any Catapult Plant.
This is easiest unlocked on Level 5-1. There are many different strategies to use, but what I found worked best was simply using Sunflowers, Squash, & just Chompers. That was it; it ended up being pretty effective.

After we unlock this Achievement that is basically all we need from Adventure Mode. You can continue & complete the second playthrough or stop & carry on into Survival Mode where we will spend the rest of our time for 100%.

80% Complete

1. Grow the Tree of Wisdom to 100ft
2. Survive 20 Flags of Endless Survival
3. Achievements: 21/21
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Achievement #18 – Popcorn Party: Defeat 2 Gargantuars with Corn Cob missiles in a single Level.
This Achievement has some pretty specific requirements, but it is easier than you think. The best Levels to unlock this Achievement are any Daytime Survival (Hard) Levels or Survival Endless. I found Survival Daytime (Hard) the best Level.

To build a Corn Cob, you need to have two Kernal-Pults in the same Row; one in front of the other. Then once you have 500 Sun, you can mod them into a Corn Cob. It takes roughly 10 seconds after a Corn Cob is built for them to load their missile!

When you see Gargantuars in the Zombie loadout for the round, begin layering your Rows with Kernal-Pults like this as you do not know which Row the Gargantuars will spawn in.



Then once two Gargantuars appear in the same Row or adjacent to one another in a different Row, quickly purchase the Corn Cob so that it has enough time to reload. Once it has, click on it & fire the missile between the two Gargantuars to instantly kill them.



The hardest part is making sure you gave yourself enough time to reload the Corn Cob. Twice I rushed it too quickly & the Gargantuar walked up & crushed my Corn Cob before I could fire it.


Achievement #19 – Nobel Peas Prize: Get the Golden Sunflower Trophy.
Story Related. To unlock the Golden Sunflower Trophy we have to: Complete Adventure Mode once, beat all 20 Mini-Game Levels, all 9 Vasebreaker Levels (excluding Vasebreaker Endless), all 9 I, Zombie Levels (excluding I, Zombie Endless), & all 10 Survival Levels (excluding Survival Endless).

After completing all of these Levels at least once, we will unlock the Golden Sunflower Trophy & this Achievement.


Achievement #20 – Immortal: Get to 20 Flags in Survival Endless.
This is fairly self explanatory though can actually be trickier than you anticipate. After completing all 10 Survival Levels, you will have figured out what strategies work best & what do not. My favorite loadout for a Row, back to front, is: Twin-Sunflowers, Gatling Peas, Winter Melons, Magnet-Shrooms, & Tall-Nuts. At the far end of my Rows I either layer them with Garlics or Spikeweeds. Spikeweeds are best because they can be converted into Spikerocks which can withstand a lot of punishment; even several strikes from a Gargantuar.

Once your Rows have all been established it is just maintenances & survival; the later Waves can get really chaotic & there is even a lot of luck involved. I had multiple instances where my Magnet-Shrooms were all tied up & Digger Zombies over ran me, screwing me over.


Achievement #21 – Towering Wisdom: Grow the Tree of Wisdom to 100ft.
Aside from Survival Endless, this will most likely be the last Achievement you will need to unlock in the game. It will cost a total of $247,500 to get the Tree of Wisdom to 100ft ($10,000 is purchasing the Tree in the first place). Crazy Dave will give us 5 free Tree Food; we will need to purchase the other 95 bags ourselves which will cost us $237,500. You can only buy 10 bags of Tree Food at a time.

If you need help farming money quickly, this was the strategy I ended up using at the very end after completing all the Levels in the game. The video is by Localhost, the video quality is not the greatest, but it is very effective at farming money.
https://youtu.be/04wnN7pfUo8
This is a still image from my own screenshots of what we need to achieve. Simply play Last Stand over & over again until you either win or get over run. We are not necessarily here to win, just make as much bank as possible.



As an alternate strategy, you can also sell all the plants from your Zen Garden for a large lump sum of money. Be careful doing this, as once they are gone... they are gone. But if this becomes your last Achievement, then there isn't really much to lose.

1. Survival Night (Hard)
2. Survival Fog (Hard)
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For those having difficulties with this Survival Level, here is the set up I used & worked towards every Round. Note that I am fairly certain that certain Zombies are randomized between Waves so my set up may not work perfectly depending on what spawns for you when. By the final two Waves however, everything should be in play.

Flags #1-2:


Flags #3-4:


Flags #5-6:


Flags #7-8:


Flags #9-10:


Survival Fog (Hard) is a bit more challenging than the previous Night Level, but a lot of our same strategies apply. The only difference is now we have water & Balloon Zombies to worry about. Be sure to play with sound on as well; it is important to know when we hear a Bucket Zombie as we will not be able to see them.

I had to take my Screenshots after I had completed each Wave so the Fog disappeared & you can see all of the Rows. Unfortunately that meant that the Plant Loadout I used during that Wave was deleted & is not visible, apart from Flags #9-10. In Flags #9-10 I had so much extra Sun that I was messing around with Gloom-Shrooms in the water; this was totally overkill & not necessary to beat the Level.

Flags #1-2:


Flags #3-4:


Flags #5-6:


Flags #7-8:


Flags #9-10:

This is a pretty simple, if not a little tedious, 100%. This took me around 30 hours to complete. I found the hardest part about this 100% was actually I, Zombie Endless. I had quite a lot of issues lasting long enough to Streak 10. If you decide to spend money on Zen Garden upgrades & other non-Achievement related Items, it will drastically increase the amount of time you will spend farming for money.

If this guide helped you achieve 100%, rate the guide or let me know in the comments. Helps me know if I am doing things right!



100% Complete
Thank you for choosing Cynical Guides, & I will see you in the next one!

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