While making your way through Spencer Mansion and the surrounding areas in Resident Evil, you’ll want all the help you can get. The final boss of the Residence section can be skipped entirely, but you’ll need to conduct some nifty chemistry to pull it off.
Put your goggles on, because we’re gonna teach you how to make the V-JOLT Solution in Resident Evil (2002).
How to Skip the Plant 42 Boss in Resident Evil Remake With V-JOLT Solution
Jill’s Campaign
The most straightforward path toward concocting V-JOLT is in Jill’s campaign. Considering her level head and bomb disposal abilities, she’s confident enough to get her hands dirty by mixing up the formula herself.
Beforehand, you’ll need to have access to the Gallery, requiring you to drain the Aqua Ring where Neptune and her shark minions dwell. Once this has been accomplished, return to the save room nearest to the Residence entrance and grab the Lighter. Make sure to also clear four inventory spaces by stashing whatever else you don’t need in the Item Box.
Make your way down to the Recreation Room at the end of the hall (the place where you first encountered the enormous spiders). Strewn about the room are three oil lamps, which each have a unique eye symbol that will be made visible once they are illuminated using the Lighter.
The coloration of these lamps corresponds with the billiard balls located upstairs — red represents the number 3, orange represents 5, and green represents 6. Take note of what eye symbol each colored lamp displays, whether it has two eyelashes at the top, three eyelashes at the top and one below, or no eyelashes at all.
Next, travel to the other side of the Residence and enter the Gallery. If you haven’t yet disposed of the wasps using the Insecticide Spray, action this now to avoid getting stung as you navigate around the room. You will notice a sealed door that has a combination lock on the side.
Once you access the panel, you will see the eye symbols from earlier and a keypad beneath them. The order of these eye symbols is random on each playthrough, so refer to which colored lamp had which symbol when you checked previously. For example, in the image above, the red lamp has three eyelashes on the top and one beneath, so the number for that particular part of the code will be 3.
Technically speaking, you can skip the lamps entirely and futz your way through the code by entering 3, 5, and 6 in random orders until you land on the correct combination, though this is obviously not the most efficient method. You’re a member of S.T.A.R.S., better act like one!
With the door unlocked, you can now access the Chemistry room. Here, you will find differently colored substances, and four empty bottles to pour them into. If you’re feeling game, you can use the writing on the wall to decode the puzzle yourself, but the shorthand version is as follows:
- Fill the first bottle with water (which represents 1), then a second bottle with UMB No. 3 (red).
- Combine the water with UMB No. 3 to give you NP-004 (purple).
- Add Yellow-6 (yellow, obviously) to a bottle and combine with the NP-004 to make UMB No. 10 (orange).
- Add Yellow-6 to another bottle, and combine it with a water bottle to make UMB No. 7 (green).
- Combine the UMB No. 10 and UMB No. 7 to make VP-017 (blue).
- Finally, fill another bottle with UMB No. 3 and combine it with VP-017 to make V-JOLT (brown).
Should you botch the formula at any point, the chemicals will disappear and the bottle will be empty again, so you can start over without consequence for the most part. The exception is the volatile NP-004, which will spew out toxic fumes if mixed with UMB No. 10 or VP-017.
With your V-JOLT in-hand, return to the Aqua Ring where you previously fended off the sharks, making your way up to the catwalk where they originally spawned. Remember that because the water was drained, you’ll have to take the long way through the Control Room to reach this height.
On the western wall of the Aqua Ring is a room you may not have noticed before, what with the sharks nipping at your heels and all. This is the Guard Room, and its major attraction is the green, tentacle-like vines whipping all about. Upon using the V-JOLT near it, the vines will wither away. This will also prevent the vine from lashing out of the hole in the Residence hallway.
Finally, with the Red/Unprinted Book in-hand, proceed through to Room 003 via the Gallery, solve the book puzzle, and open the room where Plant 42 is awaiting you. While this would normally begin a boss encounter, you will instead be treated to a cutscene where Jill is captured in the plant’s vines. Barry will burst onto the scene with a flamethrower at the ready, roasting the plant and bypassing the boss fight entirely.
Chris’ Campaign
Unfortunately for the meathead Chris Redfield, messing around with chemicals is beyond his comprehension, so he cannot create V-JOLT on his own. Maybe if he could punch it into existence he’d be fine, but alas, he’ll have to rely on Rebecca Chambers instead.
It is important to note that you can only make V-JOLT in Chris’ campaign if you let Richard die back in the Mansion. If he was rescued long enough to sacrifice himself to Neptune in the Aqua Ring, then the necessary cutscene will not trigger, and you’ll have to deal with Plant 42 the old-fashioned way.
Proceed through to the Plant 42 boss room as if you were intending to battle it. If the conditions were met as above, a special cutscene will trigger, with Chris being overwhelmed by the many vines. Now, you’ll take the reins of Rebecca, tasked with mixing up the solution.
She’ll come equipped with a fully loaded Handgun and a First Aid Spray, should you encounter any trouble along the way. Despite the Lighter being Chris’ personal item, you can still use it as Rebecca in case you didn’t already check the oil lamps previously.
Complete the V-JOLT concoction as described above in Jill’s campaign, and then travel to the plant’s roots in the Guard Room, via the Aqua Ring. Once Rebecca has completed this mission, the scene will switch back to Chris, who is able to free himself from the weakened monster. You will still have to fight Plant 42, but the fight will be much easier than usual.
Is it Worth Using V-JOLT? Should You Fight Plant 42 Instead?
The alternative to defeating Plant 42 as above, is by taking it on in a conventional boss battle. It’s not too difficult, though its combination of acid and vine attacks can become rather tiresome in a war of attrition.
In Jill’s campaign, you can save your time, ammo, and healing items by foregoing the boss battle, but in Chris’ campaign, failing to rescue Richard in the Mansion means that you will lose access to his Assault Shotgun.
Allowing Rebecca to save Chris with V-JOLT will trigger the “Bravo, Rebecca” achievement, however this is also available earlier in the game by letting Yawn poison you in the Attic. By most accounts, Richard’s weapon is the superior reward over weakening Plant 42, so it’s up to you whether or not it’s worth the loss.
Well done, budding botanist! You’ve learnt how to make the V-JOLT solution in Resident Evil, and you’re ready for our advanced RE classes below. I hope it all goes as plant!
