Paper Mario: Chapter 8 -- A Star-Powered Showdown! -- Part 3

It's time to finally deal with Bowser! Go upstairs in Peach's Castle and Peach will call for help. Bowser is in his Clown Copter. He's glad to see Mario because he's been a distraction for far too long. He wants to squash him again. The battle starts. Bowser has 50 HP and 1 defense power. His attacks vary in their attack power. His fire breath has an attack power of 8 and his jump and smack attacks have 6. He'll use the Star Rod to increase his defense. Use the Star Beam each time he does to negate it. He can also use the Star Rod for a shockwave attack that can hit your party member or heal 20 HP. Hit him with your best attacks, like Power Bounce and Electro Dash and you'll win. You'll get 38 SP.

Bowser says Mario's battling wasn't bad and wonders how he got so strong. Mario's still just an annoyance to him and that was just a warm-up battle. He takes Peach and flies out the broken window. Follow him to the roof and go through the west door. There's a Save Block here, the last point before dealing with Bowser again. At this point, I am level 24, with 45 HP, 40 FP, and 30 BP> The badges I have equipped are Power Bounce, Dodge Master, 2 Power Plus badges, Defend Plus, 2 Damage Dodge badges, Last Stand, and Close Call. This limits the number of attacks I can do, but I like the ability to hit multiple times with Power Bounce. Choose whatever badge combination suits you. Go up the stairs and outside. Cross the bridge and Bowser hits a switch that makes the bridge fall away. Peach says to be careful. Kammy Koopa says Mario fell into their trap. They weren't foolish enough to just sit back and watch Mario save the Star Spirits. They built a device into this arena that increases Bowser's power to a point where the Star Spirits' power can't compare. He's truly invincible thanks to her efforts. The machine powers up and the eyes on the arena light up. The spikes start spinning and energy spirals to the center of the floor and makes Bowser larger. It's time to battle again.

This time, Bowser has 99 HP, 2 defense power, and the power of each attack has increased by 2. He'll use the Star Rod, but when Mario uses Star Beam, it doesn't work. Outside the battle, Peach wants to help Mario, as he'll be defeated if things continue the way they are. She asks someone to help Mario. Kammy Koopa tells her to keep quiet. Twink flies in and knocks her off her broom, then unties Peach. Kammy Koopa battles Twink, who's not afraid. Twink's sole attack is Dash. When you first use it, it does nothing. Peach helps out by using Focus. Kammy Koopa summons a large block to hit Twink. The next time Twink uses Dash, it has 1 attack power and when Kammy Koopa attacks again, his defense increases. Eventually, Twink gets stronger to the point that he has 4 attack power and Kammy Koopa's attack is useless. She remembers that  Stars get their powers from the wishes of people. Twink defeats her. She says she failed Bowser. Twink and Peach still need to save Mario. Twink tells her to make a wish to give more power to the Star Spirits, while thinking of the Mushroom Kingdom, Star Haven, and Mario. Twink will help Mario while Peach makes her wish. Twink hits Bowser. Eldstar appears, saying that power is flooding in. Twink will help the Star Spirits as the wishes of Peach and the Mushroom Kingdom will give the Star Spirits enough power to match Bowser's strength. The Star Beam powers up to Peach Beam, and now includes Twink.

The battle starts up again and Mario's fully healed. I used Watt as a party member throughout the fight, using Electro Dash to bypass Bowser's defense and Turbo Charge to power up the Power Bounce attack. Bowser's slap attack can poison Mario and if his Star Rod attack connects, it can hit party members and power Mario down, making Turbo Charge run out. He can strike Mario with lightning that has 9 attack power. He can also heal 30 HP. Keep attacking with your most powerful attacks and stay healed and you'll eventually defeat him.

Mario gets the Star Rod back and Bowser shrinks down to his normal size. The arena and Bowser's Castle explodes and Bowser and Kammy Koopa are blown away. The Star Spirits protect Peach and Mario and take them to her castle. Mario hands over the Star Rod to Eldstar, who thanks Mario. The Star Spirits will use the Star Rod to bring peace and grant wishes. The stars praise him for his courage. Perhaps Bwoser will behave himself, but the chances of that are slim. They praise Twink for rising to the occasion and is now a grown-up star. They will return to Star Haven and this is good-bye for now. Twink thanks Mario and was honored to help. He hopes to see Mario and Peach again and grow into a respectable star. Peach thanks him for his help and calls him a stellar friend. The Star Spirits and Twink fly off as Peach's Castle lowers back into place.

Back at Mario's house, Luigi marvels at the story of how Mario took back the Star Rod. Peach's Castle is back in place and everyone is safe. Mario came through like always. He's been back for a few days, but it still feels like he's on an adventure. He wonders about his party members. Goombario and Goombaria are playing in Goomba Village when Parakarry delivers a letter for Goombario. It's an invitation from Peach to a party at the castle. Bombette's in Koopa Village, Bow is in her mansion, Watt's in Shy Guy's Toy Box, Sushie's in the jungle of Lavalava Island. Lakilester and Lakilulu are in Flower Fields, and Kooper and Kolorado are in Shiver City, about to explore the Crystal Palace. Parakarry delivers invitations to all of them. Kooper hesistates, but Kolorado tells him to go. Parakarry also has a message from Kolorado's wife, telling him not to come home. She's furious that he left on an adventure without telling her. He leaves for home immediately, leaving his assistants confused. Mario and Luigi also get an invitation. Luigi runs on ahead to deal with something top secret.

Go into Toad Town and you'll see many people here. Go to the castle and you'll find guests from the ill-fated party here. Talk to one of the Bumpties and he'll says that Herringway's working on a new novel based on Mario's adventures. He's going to call it "Paper Mario". Go into the castle and Peach says she's happy everyone's here. The Star Rod is in its rightful place and there is peace once again. She thanks Mario and his party, as well as everyone who helped out. She appreciates their help. Peace in the Mushroom Kingdom is her heartfelt wish. It's now time to celebrate. Luigi reveals his top-secret assignment: to lead the celebration parade. Roll credits!

I had a fun time playing Paper Mario. It was a fun game and I look forward to playing its sequels. I hope you enjoyed reading about it and I hope you enjoy reading about Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, which is next.

Paper Mario: Chapter 8 -- A Star-Powered Showdown! -- Part 2

After unlocking the door in the room with the Save Block, go east and you'll find another guard door. It won't let Mario pass, unless he can pass its quiz, giving him only one chance. Its minions will appear from three doors on the back wall, run around briefly, then go back through the doors. Mario must answer 5 of the guard doors questions correctly, and he can only miss two. Miss more and there will be dire consequences.
1. How many Koopas were there? 3
2. What color of Shy Guy were there three of? Red
3. Who came out of the middle entrance? Red Shy Guys
4. How many Goombas were there? 2
5. How many arms did you see? 4
If you get three incorrect, it'll have you battle 3 Anti Guys at once. Either way, the guard door will let you through. It feels the shame of being defeated by Mario. Go east.

You'll end up outside. It's a little foggy here, but that doesn't affect anything. There's a Super Shroom in an item block and a Maple Syrup in another. There are enemies here. Go up the stairs on the right and drop down for a Jammin' Jelly. There are more Magikoopa up here, so be careful. Go west.

The door takes you back inside, into a room with some stairs. Go west on the current level to reach another prison cell. Battle the Koopatrol for the Prison Key so you can open the cell. You can fully heal here. The room up the stairs and to the west leads to a small puzzle room. Drop onto the lower platform from the stairs and have Bombette hit the switch. This will raise a couple of platforms so you can jump across. Go west to get an Ultra Shroom. The room to the east at the top of the stairs has a locked door. Go up the stairs in this room and go east. There's another switch here to make part of the floor rise. Stand on the part of the floor with gray tiles that's next to the stairs, then have Bombette hit the switch. The part of the floor you're standing on will rise up and you'll be able to cross. Go east for a Castle Key to unlock the door to the west.

The door leads to a room with some sconces on the back wall. Some are higher than the others. Take note of the pattern and go east. In the next few rooms, there will be four doors. Go east through the door that matches the pattern. What you need to do is go east using the following doors in order: upper, lower, lower, upper, lower, upper. You'll reach an area with more enemies. Go east and you'll see Peach at the door. She saw a chance to run and took it. She says there's no need to fight Bowser and will follow you. She's a bit slower than Mario, so at some point, she'll end up off screen. Look back to check on her and you'll see a Duplighost. It runs back to the door, where you'll find Peach. Hit Peach a few times to reveal her to be a Duplighost in disguise and battle it.

Go east and you'll reach yet another guard door. It wonders how Mario go there. After congratulations, it says it has better defenses than the other guard doors. The Koopa Bros. appear and ask if Mario remembers them. The guard door will let Mario through if he can beat them. The Koopa Bros. say they have more power and are now calling themselves the Super Ultra Mighty Koopa Bros. the Great. Jr. Troopa rushes in and knocks them away. He says it was a pain finding Mario in here. He wants to setting the score with one final battle. He has 60 HP, 8 attack power, 2 defense power and can change his form. First, he'll have a spike and wings. After a few attacks, he'll start using magic. His lightning attack has 9 attack power. He can also heal 10 HP. He'll give 25 SP on defeat. Jr. Troopa says he'll beat Mario next time and runs off. The guard door is confused because the Mario defeated the guy who defeated the Koopa Bros., but it's not sure if that means Mario beat the Koopa Bros. It decides there's no big difference between the Koopa Bros. and Jr. Troopa and lets Mario through the door. It's fine with it because it doesn't think Mario can defeat Bowser. Go east and you'll find yourself outside Peach's Castle.

Go inside the castle. It's quiet. Too quiet. The entire first floor of the castle is empty. Go through the door on the left that's up a short flight of stairs. Save the Toad in the wardrobe and he'll open up a makeshift Toad House in that room. At least it has a real bed. Go through the top stairs to the second floor. Go into the library, which is also empty. Climb up the piles of books to the second level to reach a Life Shroom. Go upstairs when you're ready.

Paper Mario: Chapter 8 -- A Star-Powered Showdown! -- Part 1

The Star Ship has landed on Bowser's Castle and docks near some Clown Copters. There's a Save Block nearby. Leave the area and you'll find yourself outside the castle. The front door is locked. Cross the bridge over the lava river and go east through the door. There's a Koopatrol here. They're the highest ranked guards of Bower's army. They have 8 HP, 4 attack power, and 3 defense power. They have spiked helmets and charge up their attacks sometimes. The charged up attack has 10 attack power. They call also call in reinforcements. They give 3 SP. Defeat this one for the Castle Key. You can see Toads imprisoned on the other side of the wall, but you can't do anything now. Go to the front door and open it.

Inside, you'll find more Koopatrols. Go east and you'll encounter Hammer Bros. They have 12 HP, 5 attack power, and 1 defense power. If their hammer hits you and you don't guard, you'll shrink, halving your attack power. When they're low on HP, they'll hurl several hammers in quick succession, so guard repeatedly. They give 3 SP. Go east. In this room is a door with a talking Bowser head. It's a guard door to keep suspicious types from entering. Tell it you want to go through and stand in front of it. It will open a trap door that drops you into an impenetrable prison with some Toads. There's no escape, but the guard door says it will let Mario through if he can escape and return. The Toads in the room tell Mario to save Peach. Use the Heal Block and have Bombette blow up the east wall. She says the material here is weak and easier to blow up than the Koopa Bros. Fortress. Go east, save, and go east again.

There are platforms in the lava here. Cross the lava and go east. On one platform will be a small set of stairs. Stand on the bottom step and have Kooper hit the switch. This makes a platform move through the lava. Up ahead is another switch, but Kooper can't reach it. Use Lakilester to cross the lava and hit it. Jump and cross the lava with Parakarry to reach the east doorway. In this room, there are items on the platforms, but you can't reach them. Use Lakilester to cross the lava to the next platform you can reach. Up ahead, is a moving platform. Lava will flow onto it, so have Bow make you transparent. Have Lakilester take you over the lava and through the back door. The lava is flowing from here. Go up the stairs and you'll see some Koopatrols and a Magikoopa near a switch. They must not let Mario hit the switch. Battle them all at once. The Magikoopa has 11 HP, 6 attack power, and knows the spells of all other Magikoopas. They give 3 SP. Once you defeat them, hit the switch and the lava stops flowing. It hardens and cools, so you can walk on it. You can now reach the items in the area. Go all the way to the west to go outside the castle. There's an item block on the way with a Life Shroom. Outside the castle are some rocks with an item block that contains the Deep Focus badge. Go back inside and through the back door in the area west of the locked door. There's a chest here with a Castle Key. Go back east to unlock the door on the east wall.

The door leads to a dark part of the castle, where is seems to be crumbling. You'll need Watt to see and battle. There are Bony Beetles here. Goombario can't use Tattle in the dark, but they have 8 HP, 3 attack power, and 4 defense power. Their attack power increases to 5 when they have their spikes out. Attack them to make the spikes retract. They give 2 SP. The path splits ahead. For the first part, cross using the top path. For the second part, the back path has an invisible block with a POW Block, but you want to cross using the middle path. Go west. The first path split here is like the one before: there's an invisible block with a Shooting Star on the back path and you'll cross using the middle path. On the next split, take the back path and drop down, then go west.

This will take you into a room with a stone block with Bowser's face on it. Push it to a reveal a door on the front wall. This will take you back to the guard door. It's amazed Mario returned and thinks it's a dirty trick. It lets him through. The guard door leads to a room with stairs. Go through the east door on the first floor. There's a Koopatrol guarding a prison cell with more Toads. Battle it for the Prison Key to unlock the prison. There's a couple slabs of rock hanging from chains in the room. They serve as beds, so you can take a nap here in this makeshift Toad House. Return to the room with the stairs, go up the stairs, then go west. There's a shop here.  At the top of the stairs to the east are more enemies, and the path forward.

Go east from here and you'll reach a couple of tall rooms. One of them has a locked door. Spring up to the next level. Pull the chain to partially fill the rooms with water. Swim west with Sushie and hit the switch. Spring up and blow up the east wall with Bombette. Go east and Tornado Jump on the switch to reveal a couple of alcoves in the back wall. Walk in the alcoves to the right and pull the chain. This will fill the rooms with even more water. Return west and swim to the left for the Castle Key. Pull both chains again to drain the water so you can unlock the door.

The door leads to an area filled with gold Bullet Bills, called Bombshell Bills. They have 3 HP and 6 attack power. As their HP drops, their explosions get bigger. They give 1 SP. Take them out quickly and try to avoid more battles. At the end are a couple of Bomshell Bill Blasters. They have 10 HP and 4 defense power. They do not attack directly, but fill the area with Bombshell Bills. They give 2 SP. Watt is a good choice here. Unfortunately, there are more Blasters and more Bombshell Bills as you climb the stairs in the area, so be careful. At the top of the stairs, go east.

You'll find Dry Bones here. They have 8 HP, 4 attack power, and 2 defense power. They throw bones and can rise back up after being defeated. You must defeat them all at once or use fire attacks. If they appear alongside other enemies, defeat the other enemies first. They do not give SP if you defeat them normally. Push the right Bowser block to the right to reveal a doorway on the back wall. This hallway will take you to a room with a locked door and a save block. Push the left block in this room to the left to reveal a hallway to a room with a Heal Block. Return east and push the block near the other open doorway to the right to reveal a new doorway. There is nothing through the other doorway. This doorway leads to the Castle Key. Return to the room with the Save Block and unlock the door.

Paper Mario: Chapter 7 -- A Star Spirit on Ice -- Part 2

Mario has just reached the Crystal Palace, where the last Star Spirit is being held. Go inside and go through the door on the front wall. There's a Save Block here and a red X. Go east and you'll find Swoopulas on the ceiling. They're Swoopers that drain your HP. Press (A) repeatedly to fill the meter to stop them from draining your HP. They have 8 HP and 2 attack power. They will hang from the ceiling unless you knock them from there with an earth-shaking attack. Bow and Parakarry can hit them on the ceiling. They give 2 SP. Go east again and you'll find a chest. It contains the Blue Key. Return to the main hallway.

In the main hallway, hit the red switch. This makes the floor with the doors move so you can now reach the blue door. Unlock it and go through it. On the right side of the room is a crack in the wall. Here is where the walls start blatantly lying to you. Have Bombette blow up the wall and you'll notice that a hole did not appear in the reflection, yet Mario and Bombette could walk through just fine. If you go back into this room, you'll see Mario and Bombette just standing around. Go through the wall and you'll find a brick block. Hit it for coins. In the middle of the room, there's a gap in the wall. You can walk through it to the other side, meaning the wall wasn't a mirror. Hit the brick block on this side for more coins, then bomb the left wall. Go through it and the other Mario freaks out that he's there. They reveal themselves as Duplighosts and battle Mario. There are two of them. After you defeat them, they say the real Mario is strong, then run off. Go west to the first part of the main hallway, with the switches.

Go through the back door and you'll find an item block with a Super Shroom. There is also a wooden panel on the floor. Tornado Jump on it and drop down. Go east twice from the room with the spring to reach a chest. It contains the P-Down, D-Up badge. Spring back up and go east to find a room with Duplighosts. Sometimes, Magikoopas of various colors may appear alongside them in battle. New ones include White and Gray Magikoopas. Each have 11 HP and 3 attack power. They can run from battle as well. Gray Magikoopas will make their allies temporarily transparent so you can't attack them. White Magikoopas will heal themselves and their allies. Healing a single ally restores 5 HP, but they can heal all allies, restoring 3 HP to each of them. Go east for a Shooting Star, then return to the main hallway. Leave the Crystal Palace through the front door and you can reach a small cave outside with a Star Piece. Go back inside, then go east so you can come in front of the wall, then go through the door on the front wall in the room with the switches.

To the right is a hole in the floor where the X was. Even though there is no mirror, what happens on one side affects the other. Drop down and go east. There's a crack in the east wall. Blow it up and five Bombettes return. They call each other imposters, but some of them speak differently. One of them has hearts, another stars, another many exclamation points, and the other is hesitant. The real Bombette does not do any of this. She's the second from the right. Hit the imposters with your hammer. They are Duplighosts as well, and run off. The real Bombette says if he had hit her, she'd bomb him while he was napping. She's happy he knew she was real and gives him a kiss. Go east to find a chest with the Red Key. Return to the main hallway and hit the blue switch to move the red door into position. Unlock it and go east.

In this room, there's a clear gap in the wall. Go east on the front side of the wall. There are White Clubbas here and statues on the other side. The first Clubba in the line says the Crystal King ordered him not to allow anyone to pass. Battle and defeat it to make the statue on the other side disappear. Defeat the other White Clubbas in the line to get rid of the statues, then go west. Go through the gap in the wall to the other side, then go east. You have a clear path to the door, so go east. There's a couple of red switches in the room that will flip part of the wall so you can go to the other side while standing next to the wall. To hit the switch, use Bombette, as you'll need a delay so you can stand near the wall. You can also blow up the east wall on the other side to reach a Duplighost with a chest containing the Triple Dip badge. Go east on the front side. You'll see White Clubbas pacing, with a Duplighost doing the same on the other side. Battle them if you wish. Go east on the side with the White Clubbas.

On the other side of the wall, you'll see Mario and Kooper walking to the right. Near the right wall, Mario will repeatedly kick Kooper's shell through a slot in the wall. Follow their example and more that just Kooper breaks through the wall. It's Luigi, Kolorado, Goompa, and Kolorado, and they all claim to be Kooper. Hit the imposters and Kooper will call them the worst disguises ever. The Duplighosts run away. Go through the hole in the wall. Go through the door on the front wall. The item block has a Maple Syrup and there's a hidden panel below it with a Star Piece. There's a large statue to the right. Return to the main hallway and go east. There's a large gap in this room. There's a switch on the other side of the wall. Kick Kooper's shell across the gap to hit the invisible switch on this side of the wall. This makes a bridge appear on this side. Go east.

There's a gap in the wall here, so you can go to the other side of the wall. Backtrack west to reach the door on the back wall. There's a smaller statue here. Push it to the left to reveal a hole. Drop down and go east twice to reach a chest with the P-Up, D-Down badge. Equipping this badge and the P-Down, D-Up badge at the same time will cause their effects to cancel out. Return to the front side of the wall and go through the door on the front wall. The large statue has been moved to the left, revealing a hole. Drop down and go east twice to reach a chest with the Palace Key. Return to the main hallway and go east until you reach the locked door.

The door leads to a room with Albino Dinos, white Dino Rhinos and statues of them. They guard the Crystal Palace and you must solve their puzzle to get them to reveal the door ahead. The statues towards the back must be moved onto panels on the floor. The statues can only be pushed in the direction that the Albino Dinos are facing. Talk to them from different sides to get them to turn the way you need them to, then push the statues. There is no wall here, so you can move freely back and forth. Once all three statues (and Albino Dinos) are on the panels, the door appears, along with some stairs. Go through the door to find a Heal Block and a Save Block. Once you are prepared, go east.

The door takes you outside. Walk up the snowy slope  and someone asks who comes to the Crystal Palace. The Crystal King appears, who has eyes, but no face. He won't let Mario save the Star Spirit. Instead, he'll defeat Mario and give Bowser an ice Mario as a gift. The Crystal King has 70 HP, 6 attack power, and 2 defense power. He'll summon Crystal Bits that he can launch at Mario. Each one will hit with 4 attack power, so clear them out. He'll also use a freeze attack to freeze Mario for a couple of turns. He can also heal himself, restoring 20 HP. When his HP gets low, he'll split into 3. Collectively, when they attack, they have an attack power of 8. Attack them all if you're not sure which one's real. If you attack them separately, you'll go through the fake ones. He can also split into 3 while floating in the air, so some attacks will not work. Multibounce works well for getting rid of the Crystal Bits, then Power Bounce to attack him when he's alone. Use Watt's Electro Dash to get past his defense power. Keep yourself healed and you'll eventually beat him. He'll give you 42 SP. He asks Bowser for forgiveness before he disappears and the last Star Spirit card appears.

End of Chapter
Mario has saved the last Star Spirit, Kalmar, from the Crystal Palace at the edge of the world. Now, with the seven Star Spirits together, he has the power to challenge Bowser... and the Star Rod. At last it is time for Mario's showdown with Evil King Bowser. Can Mario rescue Princess Peach and recover the Star Rod? Or will wishes forever go ungranted?

Paper Mario: Chapter 7 -- A Star Spirit on Ice -- Part 1

The pipe from the cold part of Toad Town Tunnels takes you to the center of Shiver City. The place is mainly populated by Bumpties. Talk to them and you'll find out that Starborn Valley is to the east and that there's scary monsters outside the city. There was also a suspicious individual in the city, who was complaining about the cold and wanting to find Mario. On the east side of the city, there's a frozen lake. You can crack the ice with a Tornado Jump, but a green Bumpty will warn you not to break the ice. Do it again and he'll kick you into the central part of the city. You can find Chuck Quizmo on the east side. Go to the west side of town and you'll find a Bumpty singing the Pengy Penguin Hop. In the song, it mentions snowmen in a line, with a bucket hat and scarf for each one. Go into the east house. Hop up the furniture and fireplace to reach the windows. Open them and walk outside. Cross the gap between the houses with Parakarry and open the window to go inside. There's a chest with the Attack FX E badge. Leave the way you came.

Go into the west house, which has a large snowman next to it. The purple Bumpty inside says that her husband is in the other room and Mario can go inside if he wants to talk to him. Go through the back door and there's a Bumpty wearing a hat, collapsed on the floor. Check the body and you'll find out that Mayor Penguin is out cold, and is holding a slip of paper that says "Herringway". The mayor's wife comes in and notices the mayor isn't moving. She runs off, calling for help and saying that the mayor's been murdered. It's a penguin murder mystery. She brings in help, in the form of the patrolling green Bumpty. He checks the body and agrees that the mayor has been murdered. The wife accuses Mario of the murder, saying he barged right in without permission. She says the mayor was alive until Mario showed. Mario pleads his innocence. The wife says she saw him and pegged him as the only one in the room. Mario's party member sticks up for him. The patrol Bumpty says they now have a backroom murder case, something he never trained for. They must find the real murderer, and this burden is placed on Mario. Yes, the suspect in a murder investigation must look for the real murderer. Mario can't leave town until he finds the real killer.

Go outside, where you'll notice a change in the music. The Bumpties will display a distrust of Mario, or will tell him about Herringway, a writer of mystery novels. He lives on the east side, but his house is empty. Now that the frozen lake is clear, Tornado Jump on it a few times to crack the ice completely. Swim with Sushie and dive underwater to get the Warehouse Key. Unlock the warehouse, which is next door to Herringway's. Inside, go up the stairs and spring through the chimney. Walk to the left and you'll slide onto Herringway's roof. Go through the chimney and land in the fireplace. A Bumpty with large eyebrows is here, asking why Mario's in his fireplace. He's Herringway, and surprised you found his secret room through the chimney. Mario explains the situation and Herringway claims he's innocent. He says he'll go to the mayor's house. Stairs appear so you can leave his house.

Go to the mayor's house, where the patrolling Bumpty notices Herringway. Mario explains that he found a piece of paper in the mayor's hand with his name on it. The patrol Bumpty says he didn't notice the paper, but checks again and finds it. He calls it a dying message and now knows why Herringway's novels are so suspenseful and exciting: he lives out his own plots. Herringway thinks this is ridiculous because he and the mayor were good friends. The Patrol Bumpty counters by saying that their friendship is a cover to avoid suspicion. Herringway says he wouldn't be so predictable. His alibi is that he's been working on his new novel in his house for weeks with no time to come over and kill the mayor. The wife still suspects Mario. Just then, the mayor starts twitching. He groans, then stands up. His wife freaks out. thinking he's a ghost. The Patrol Bumpty says that the backroom murder mystery is a wash, which is quite the plot twist. Mayor Penguin says he went to the shelf to get a souvenir for Herringway he picked up in Toad Town. He reached up, slipped, and hit his head. He says he'll regale Herringway with his stories about Toad Town later. Herringway agrees and says he has an ideal for a sequel to his novel. Patrol Bumpty tells the mayor to be more careful, as his accident had the city up in arms. After everyone leaves, the mayor welcomes Mario to Shiver City and gives him permission to leave the city. His wife says she knew Mario was innocent all along.

Go east out of town and you'll run into the suspicious person the Bumpties were talking about. It's Jr. Troopa, who's been waiting forever to find and battle Mario. He doesn't like the cold, so he'll beat Mario in record tie and go someplace warm. This time, he has 50 HP, 8 attack power, and 1 defense power. He says he took a magical course on the side and wields a wand. Use attacks like Power Bounce, hammer attacks, and Watt's Electro Dash. He'll give you 23 SP when he's defeated. If you leave the area and come back, you'll find him frozen in a chunk of ice.

Go east and you'll find snowmen in a line. Go east and you'll find some new enemies. The Frost Piranha has 10 HP, 4 attack power, and an ice breath attack that can freeze Mario. Ice attacks are not effective, but fire attacks work well. They give 2 SP. Gulpits have 12 SP and 2 attack power. They typically attack by picking up a rock and spitting it out. Large rocks have an attack power of 7, while small rocks have 5. You can target the pile of rocks to get rid of their ammunition. They give 3 SP. While you're in the area, pick up a letter located behind some ice. It's for Merlow on Shooting Star Summit. Up ahead are steps in the snow. At the top of the steps, someone says "Boooooooaaaaaah!" It's a sparkling ghost, telling Mario to turn back or it will eat him. Choose to fight and the battle will start. It's called Monstar. Goombario has no idea what it is, or what it's attack power is, but it has 20 HP. It will use a star-powered attack, which has an attack power of 1. Monstar asks if Mario's scared yet. It's a short fight. Monstar will give you 13 SP. When defeated, it screams "Noooooo! Run away!" and splits into many Star Kids that fly off.

Go east to enter Starborn Valley. Merle is there to greet you. He, a couple of Toads, and some Ninjis care for Star Kids here. Follow him to his house. He apologizes for the Star Kids attacking Mario, saying they frighten strangers too keep Starborn Valley safe from Bowser's followers. They didn't expect Mario to arrive as soon as he did. Inside, he says that Star Kids are born here and raised until they can rise into the sky. The place's power has weakened and no more Star Kids can rise into the sky because the Star Rod was stolen. Fortunately, he knows that the last Star Spirit is being held in the Crystal Palace atop Shiver Mountain. The Crystal Palace was originally built to honor the stars, but faded from memory with time. No one knows how to reach it now. Merle does know that the path to Crystal Palace involved two items passed down through generations. He gives Mario the first item, an ordinary Scarf. He says the other item is in Shiver City. He mentions that there's a shrine on the path to the palace. He also tells Mario that "Truth lies not only in the eyes. Sometimes, even walls may lie." Mario must keep this in mind.

If you talk to the residents, you'll find out that one Star Kid is hiding. He's next to Merle's house, flipped sideways, so he's just barely visible. One of the Star Kid misses Twink, the last Star Kid to rise into the sky before the Star Rod is stolen. Talk to Frost T., the Toad with the green cap, to deliver the letter. He has a letter for Goompapa. If you deliver the letter to Goompapa, he'll give you the Lucky Day badge, ending the chain letter madness. Deliver the letter to Merlow on Shooting Star Summit. It's from Merle, his father. He doesn't write to him enough. He gives you a Star Piece, so you can trade it back to him for a badge.

Return to Shiver City and talk to Mayor Penguin. He'll give you the other passed-down item, an ordinary Bucket. While you're leaving the city, you may run into Chuck Quizmo again. Go to where the snowmen are. Two of them are missing items. Put them on the snowmen and the snowmen will thank Mario. Because Mario was kind enough to give him the items, they'll tell him their secret. They bounce out of the way and reveal a door. Go inside, where you'll find a Save Block.

Go up the stairs and you'll find a large gap. Drop down and Tornado Jump to break the ice. Hit the green switch to make the floor rise to the same level. You'll find more Frost Piranhas and Gulpits here. Up the stairs is a brick block. Hit it to break it, then Tornado Jump for an Ultra Shroom in an invisible block. Go east and use Kooper to hit a switch across a gap. When the shell returns, two Koopers are standing behind you. One of them runs to Mario's right and calls the other an imposter. The one on the left talks suspiciously, and suggests Mario hit the imposter with his hammer. Hit the one on the left. It is revealed to be a Duplighost, a ghost that can change its appearance. It says that Mario hitting him was luck because no instincts are that good. It battles Mario. Duplighosts have 15 HP and 4 attack power. They can also change into party members and use their attacks, but they seem to have less attack power this way. They give 2 SP. The Duplighost leaves when you defeat it.

Up the stairs are White Clubbas. They have 12 HP, 5 attack power, and can attack consecutively, meaning repeatedly hitting Mario with their maces. Ice attacks are not effective, but fire attacks are. Go up the stairs in the area for a Super Block. I upgraded Bombette. Go east and you'll find some items in the wall. If you take them, a wall will drop down in front of you. You must put something in its place to make the wall rise up again. You can leave the items alone and go through with ease. Go east and walk next to the back wall to slip behind the stairs. There's a crack in the right wall. Blow it up to reveal a chamber. Walk through the right wall to find a star-shaped stone in ice. The image of a woman appears. She is Madam Merlar, the ancestor of Merlon and Merle, and she's glad Mario found this place. The stars told her he'd come. She guards the way to the Crystal Palace, which Bowser's followers have invaded. She tells Mario a long story and he falls asleep. He wakes up at the end and his nose bubble pops. She says Mario needs the Star Stone to reach the Crystal Palace. She pulls it out of the ice and Mario takes it. Leave the chamber and go upstairs. Place the Star Stone in the wall and the floor rises up, sealing off the chamber forever. The floor separates into stairs that go up to the Crystal Palace. Go to the right at the top of the first flight of stairs to find the Mega Jump badge. At the top of the second flight is a Save Block. At the top of the stairs is a Heal Block. Go east to reach the Crystal Palace's front door.

Paper Mario: Chapter 6 -- Dark Days in Flower Fields -- Part 2

Mario has obtained a Magical Bean, as well as Fertile Soil and some Miracle Water to help it grow. It still needs sunlight. Heal if you need to and go northwest of Wise Wisterwood and you'll see many thorns ahead. Nearby is a blue plant blowing bubbles. It's called the Bubble Plant. Give it a Bubble Berry and it will blow a large bubble. Jump into the bubble and it will take you across the pit of thorns. On the other side of pit are more Spinies. Sometimes, you'll find a Green Magikoopa. They have 11 HP and 3 attack power. They can increase the defense of their allies and run away. Go up the stairs, and walk through the log (it opens up) to reach a Star Piece. Go through a different log and go west.

There are more Lakitu and Spinies here. Go up the stairs and have Bombette break the rock at the top. Drop down where the rock was to reach the Mega Smash badge. Go west and the music changes. There's a tall tower in the area. Walk around on the ground and you'll find a doorway. Go inside and use Bombette to blow up the rock. This will make part of the tower lower so you can reach a doorway higher in the tower. Go up the stairs to the top of the tower. The sun is at the top. It says it was the sun. The clouds in the sky prevent it from climbing into the sky. It says it's failing as a sun with all the plants and flowers suffering. It tells Mario that the Puff Puff Machine is likely to the east, as that is where the clouds seem to be coming from. It then tells Mario to just go home and give up.

Go back east and a voice says to stop. It's a Lakitu wearing sunglasses. He says his name is Lakilester, then changes it to Michael, then Spike. He has no personal problem with Mario, but has orders from Huff N. Puff to deliver a beat down. He then wonders to himself if he sounded cool. It's time to battle. He appears under the name of "Spike?". He has 50 HP and 4 attack power. He throws Spiny Eggs like other Lakitu. Bow's Fan Smack and Power Bounce work well. Defeat him and you'll get 12 SP. At the end of the battle, even his cloud is frowning. He gives up, saying Mario is tough as nails. He then tells Mario to do his worst, whatever he does to those he defeats, be it a Fire Flower in the eye or a POW Block.

Someone else says to wait. It's another Lakitu, one with a ponytail. Her name is Lakilulu. She asks for mercy on Lakilester. He says she's embarrassing him, but this makes him like her even more. He then says to forget he said that. He lost a challenge and he and Mario must settle it. Lakilulu asks Mario to forgive him. Forgive him and he says he joined Huff N. Puff to be part of something big. Unfortunately, all he's been doing is picking pointless fights. He asks Mario what he's fighting for. He decides to join Mario. Lakilulu wants to go with him, but he wants her to stay. He's going to return to her after he becomes a man. She agrees to wait, but tells them not to make her worry. He joins the party, revealing that his name is really Lakilester. His starting attacks are Spiny Flip and Spiny Surge. He can also carry Mario over spikes and lava.

Return to Wise Wisterwood, then go northeast. There's a platform puzzle here. There are colorful platforms over thorns. If you ground pound the platform, all of the platforms of the same color will move in the direction that the arrows on them indicate. There are three green platforms, two red ones, and two purple ones. Keep Lakilester out, as you'll need him to carry you over the thorns as you manipulate the platforms. The way to solve the puzzle is to pound the platforms in the following order: right green, left purple, left red, left green, right green, then right purple. This will take you to the ledge on the other side of the pit of thorns. You may find a Yellow Magikoopa battling alongside other enemies. According to Goombario's Tattle, yellow's the new black. They have 11 HP and 3 attack. They can electrify allies, so do not attack them directly. They can also run away. They give 2 SP. Use the spring under the back ledge to reach a Super Block. I upgraded Lakilester.

Go east and you'll find a few logs over the thorns. You can use them or Lakilester to cross the thorns. You'll find a letter in the flowers here addressed to Minh T. I delivered the letter when I returned to Toad Town to heal. She'll give you a Star Piece. Go east of here and you'll here some mechanical sounds. To the right are some Lakitu and a Yellow Magikoopa, and the Puff Puff Machine. Hit it on both sides with the hammer and it will start falling apart. The Lakitu will tell you not to hit the machine. Once it's destroyed, all four will battle Mario at once. Defeat them and they'll retreat. The sky clears and the sun once again rises into the sky. The plants of Flower Fields are thankful. Lakilester says helping people feels good, so he'll follow Mario around.

Return to Wise Wisterwood and he'll say to plant the Magical Bean in the nearby soil patch. The order is soil, bean, then water. The bean sprouts and the stalk spirals up to the clouds. Jump on the cloud to reach Cloudy Climb. Ride the cloud towards the back to reach a cloud with the Super Jump Charge badge. When you're fully healed and ready, go east. Go up the cloudy stairs and you'll see a lump in the clouds. It shakes and asks if Mario is who he thinks he is and if he broke a Puff Puff Machine. Mario ruined his plan to cover Flower Fields in clouds to make a paradise. He can't expect Mario to understand. If Lakilester is out, he'll notice him and says Lakilester has betrayed him and he will be punished. He has a Star Spirit that he refuses to give up. Huff N. Puff says that Mario will pay dearly. The battle starts.

Huff N. Puff has 60 HP and 5 attack power. His thunder attack does massive damage, but he has to charge it up. Use Outta Sight when you see him charge up. Each time he takes damage, Tuff Puffs appear from him, representing the amount of damage done. They ask permission to attack Mario and it is granted. They'll crowd Mario, doing damage until he can fill the meter by repeatedly pressing (A). He can also inhale them, effectively negating any damage you did, so don't leave them on the field for long. Use attacks that hit all enemies, like Spiny Surge, to clear them out, which is especially effective after using a move like Power Bounce. Some more Tuff Puffs will appear because you hit Huff N. Puff, but he can't heal as much. Huff N. Puff also has a wind attack. Press (A) repeatedly to fill the meter as much as you can so you only take 2 or 3 HP worth of damage. Keep attacking and you'll eventually defeat him. You'll get 31 SP. Huff N. Puff says he can't lose before exploding into smaller clouds. The Star Spirit's card appears.

End of Chapter
So it is that Mario and party defeat cruel cloud Huff N. Puff and set free the sixth Star Spirit. The thick clouds that once cast dark shadows have gone, and Flower Fields is bathed in sunshine again. A single Star Spirit waits to be rescued, waits to take its place in the Star Sanctuary. Perhaps you will see Princess Peach soon... Perhaps... Just wait and see. Kammy Koopa, who watches impatiently from Bowser's Castle, is waiting, too... for you to try to save them...

Paper Mario: Interlude After Chapter 5

In her castle, Peach tells Twink that she wants to sneak out again. Twink says she's become so bold, when he originally thought she was gentle and delicate. Peach emphasizes that she is delicate and is behaving just like the Ministers taught her. Hit the switch on the wall and you'll end up on the other side of the revolving door. Deposit any badges you have into the chest, then go downstairs, then to the door on the left.

A Koopatrol is on the other side of the door and immediately notices her. A Hammer Bro walks up, saying it isn't so bad if Peach wanders around because she can't escape from the castle. The Hammer Bro asks Peach to be the third member in the game they're about to play. He won't tell Bowser about her sneaking out if she participates.

The game they're about to play is the 64th Trivia Quiz-Off, brought to you by Koopa Korps. The host is Mr. Hammer. He'll ask 10 questions. Answer the most to win a fabulous prize. There is also a participation prize. If you have the answer, press (A). The questions are as follows:

1. What's the name of the boss inside the volcano on Lavalava Island? Lava Piranha
2. Where did Master Huff N. Puff imprison the Star Spirit? Flower Fields
3. What's the name of the scary round monster living in Dry Dry Ruins? Chomp
4. How would you get to Flower Fields? Pass Flower Gate
5. What's the name of the person who King Bowser really loves? Princess Peach
6. What thing is most deeply related to Flower Fields? Flower
7. What's the name of the most admirable, invincible, most downright cool guy around? Bowser (No, really, the answer is not Mario. Bowser's minions wrote the questions.)
8. What's the name for the ghosts who live in and around Forever Forest? Boo
9. What's the name of the area just to the south of the post office in Toad Town? The Flower Garden
10. Where is Peach's Castle now? On Bowser's Castle

Many of the questions are less than subtle hints about where Mario should go next. If Peach wins, she'll get a Jammin' Jelly, an item that restores 50 FP. Regardless of who wins, Peach will get the participation prize, the Sneaky Parasol. If Peach faces someone and press (B), Peach will transform into them. Mr. Hammer makes her promise not to use it to sneak out, as no one would know it's her. Bowser walks in, wanting to play the game. Peach tries to sneak out. Mr. Hammer breaks the news that the game is over. Bowser is disappointed, then surprised when he notices Peach in the room. He orders them to take her back to her room. The guards apologize when they pick her up.

Back on Lavalava Island, Misstar is thankful that they escaped the volcano safely. Kolorado is still upset about missing the treasure. Misstar chastises him, saying no treasure is more valuable than life. She also says that Lavalava Island was imperiled by Bowser's men's meddling. The eruption will subside and the island will be the same as before. She gives Mario more Star Energy and the new ability Smooch, which restores 20 HP. Misstar is thankful and wishes Mario success. She returns to Star Haven. Kolorado returns to Yoshi Village, dejected.

Go through the village to reach the jungle. Go west to reach the chest with the Volcano Vase, the treasure. Talk to the Bub-ulb and he'll tell you he gave the seed to Kolorado. Return to the village to give the Volcano Vase to Kolorado. He's joyful, calling Mario the "cat's meow". In return, he gives Mario the last Magical Seed and calls the trip a success. He now wants to return to Toad Town. Heal and save and make sure you have the Spiky Shield badge equipped. When you're ready, go and board the whale. He'll leave just as Jr. Troopa reaches Lavalava Island with a yell. He swam the whole way here. He still wants to beat Mario, but soon notices that Mario has already left. He swims after him.

When they reach Toad Town, Kolorado announces that he shall never again travel by tuna and he will be returning home. Jr. Troopa finally arrives, declaring that he will never swim again in his life. He wants to battle Mario once again. Because he is tuckered out from swimming, he loses half his HP, leaving him with 20 HP. He also has 6 attack power and 1 defense power. To make life difficult, he grows wings and has a spike on his head. Some party members can easily reach him, namely Watt, who's Electro Dash bypasses defenses. If you have the Spike Shield badge equipped, Mario can use jump attacks. Otherwise, use items or Star Powers. He'll attack with a dive kick. Once you defeat him, you'll get 22 SP. He then realizes that flying to and from the island wouldn't have reduced his HP and he might've defeated Mario.

When you try to leave the port, you'll see Goombaria and Goomama. Bring out Goombario and they'll tell him that they're proud of him. Leave the port and go to the train station to deliver a letter to Dane T. He has a letter for his uncle Frost T. in Starborn Valley. We'll deliver it later. Go to Russ T., the Toad who translated the Shy Guy's note, and deliver the letter. He'll give you a Star Piece. Go into the Toad Town Tunnels and go to the mansion. Deliver a letter to Igor, who runs the shop in the basement. He'll give you a Star Piece. Heal and save outside the mansion, then return to the tunnels.

Use Sushie to swim across the water east of the blue pipe that leads to the mansion. When you reach the other dock, Super Blooper will appear. It has 70 HP and 5 attack power. It can produce Blooper Babies or charge up, turning red in the process. The Blooper Babies have 6 HP each. When they appear, use a Shooting Star or Star Storm to get rid of them. You'll get 25 SP when you defeat it.

A switch will appear. Hit it to make the blue pipe to Lavalava Island appear. Go east in the tunnels. There are Dark Koopas here. Go east again and you'll see an area with some invisible blocks. Go through the pipe on the right to an empty room. Have Bombette blow up the right wall to find the hideout of Rip Cheato. He'll sell you mystery items for 64 coins each. Some are worth the deal, others are not (like Dried Shrooms). Go through the pipe in this room to reach the inside of the locked house in Toad Town. The key is in the upper left corner, so unlock the door to leave.

Koopa Koot has some more favors to ask of Mario. First, he lost his glasses somewhere in Koopa Village. They're in the shrub with the flower near the Toad House. Your reward is 1 coin. Next, he asks for a Lime. They can be found in the oasis in Dry Dry Desert. The reward is 3 Star Pieces. After that, he wants a Kooky Cookie. Have Tayce T. cook with a Koopa Leaf and a Cake Mix, then bring it back to him for 1 coin.

If you're feeling confident, you can try to take on the Master of the Dojo one more time. This time he has 99 HP, 10 attack power and 1 defense power. Equip the Zap Tap badge (obtained from Merlow), have Watt as your partner, and keep a Repel Gel on you. His attacks are very strong, and he can hit multiple times in a single attack for massive damage, unless the Zap Tap badge is equip. The badge will shock him, only allowing him to hit once (and it does a little damage). Have Watt power up Mario's attack, and use Electro Dash to get past his defense. Power Bounce works well. Be sure to heal when you need to. Smooch comes in handy here. Use the Repel Gel to dodge attacks for a few turns. Keep at it and you may defeat him. He'll say you've bested the strongest of fighters and award you the Diploma. Heal and save.

Near the Toad House, you'll find Kolorado. He says he can't go home because Kent C. Koopa is blocking Pleasant Path and charging a toll of 100 coins. He's a strong Koopa. Kolorado is going to look for a secret way into the village. Instead of telling him about the Toad Town Tunnels, go east to challenge him. He's a giant Koopa wearing glasses. Tell him twice that you want to fight and he'll battle you. He has 70 HP, 3 attack power, and 6 defense power. He'll slowly attack Mario and his partner with his shell, causing the partner to sit out a few turns if you don't successfully guard. He'll also stomp Mario with 10 attack power. He's difficult to beat unless you make him fall asleep. Sleepy Sheep or Lullaby will work. Then, flip him over on his shell and stomp his tail, his weak point. Once again, have Watt power up Mario, then use Electro Dash. Keep at it until you defeat him and get 20 SP. He says Mario must be really strong and runs away crying. Return to Toad Town, heal and save.

Across the road from the Toad House is the Flower Garden, tended to my Minh T. There are some Bub-ulbs here from Flower Fields, saying Flower Fields is in a state of despair due to Bowser's minions. Minh T. says to get to Flower Field, you need four kinds of seeds only Bub-ulbs have and you need to find them. We already have them, so hand them over so she can plant them. They bloom instantly. The archway in the middle lights up and flowers flow through it. A door appears and Mario can go through it to start the next chapter.

Paper Mario: Chapter 5 -- Hot Hot Times on Lavalava Island -- Part 2

Once Mario enters the volcano, a Piranha Plant sees him and sounds the alarm. He leaves to alert the boss. Go east at the bottom of the slope. Kolorado is here and says he senses danger. He jumps on a nearby rock that starts sinking, but he doesn't get off the rock. The lava burns him and he decides to follow Mario's lead. Jump on the rocks quickly to keep them from sinking. The large rock ahead won't sink. Wait a while and a rock will appear. Jump on it and it will take you to another rock. Equip the Ice Power badge now. There are Lava Bubbles here. They have 9 HP and 4 attack power. They can attack your party member, rendering them unable to attack. Use ice or water attacks for extra damage. They give 2 SP. Once on the other side, equip the Spiky Shield badge and go east.

There is a zipline here. You can drop off at any time by pressing (A). Doing so with good timing will allow you to reach certain things. You'll find Spike Tops in the area. They have 4 HP, 3 attack power, 4 defense power, and give 2 SP. You can flip them over to reduce their defense. Like Buzzy Beetles, fire attacks have no effect on them. Use Watt's Electro Dash to get rid of them quickly. While wandering around, use Kooper to get a POW Block. Go east and you'll find some fire bars. Past them is a Super Block. I upgraded Sushie to Ultra Rank. Return to the previous area and drop down to a Save Block. There's a zipline here as well. Drop down with good timing to reach the Fire Shield badge. Equip this one as well if you can. Drop down and go west.

You'll be in a long tunnel with gas near the ceiling. Don't worry about the gas, just follow the tunnel. Go west. Near the entrance to the tunnel is an invisible block with a Life Shroom. In the middle of the room is a river of lava. Use Parakarry to cross the river at the top. There are three blue blocks here. Push them into the river to form a bridge and staunch some of the lava's flow. Cross the bridge, drop down and cross the narrower channel of lava. Go west. There's another river of lava and two blue blocks nearby. Push the blocks into the lava so they form a line partway across the lava. Stand on the farthest block and have Parakarry carry you across. There are more Lava Bubbles here. They may be accompanied by Red Magikoopas. They have 11 HP and 3 attack power. They can also charge up their allies' attack or run away from battle. Deal with them quickly. Go up the stairs and drop down to reach a large chest. This contains the Ultra Hammer, which powers up Mario's attack and allows Mario to break metal blocks. There's a metal block nearby so you can try it out.

Go back to where the Save Block is and break the metal block so you can go east of the Save Block. Kolorado is here, saying the treasure is on the other side of the block. To the east is a zipline. Kolorado fails to use it and runs off the ledge. Take the zipline almost to the end before dropping down to find an upgrade block. I upgraded Watt. When you head back to the zipline, you'll see Kolorado flailing about on his shell. He says he's investigating the floor more closely. Take the zipline to the end to go east. A rolling spiked rock will chase you down the tunnel.

Once you exit the tunnel, cross the lava, dodge the fire bars, and go east. There's another spiky rock at the top of some stairs with metal blocks. You can't reach the metal blocks, so walk far to the right. Kolorado says that the treasure should be nearby, but they must go farther. There's a blue block here, so push it all the way back to where the metal blocks are. Use this to reach and break the metal blocks. Once all of them are gone, the spiky rock will start rolling. Run out of the way to where Kolorado is. The spiky rock will hit Kolorado before breaking a hole in the wall. Go east.

There's a Heal Block here and a Save Block below. Go due east from the Heal Block (without dropping down) and you'll find item blocks with a Super Shroom and a Maple Syrup, but no treasure. Return and save, then walk due east from the Save Block. The Piranha Plant from before appears, saying that Mario is still here and he's searching for the Star Spirit. It leaves to report to the boss. Go east to the lava pool.

The boss appears. It's Lava Piranha. He says Mario and his partners are the bad guys, here to steal the Star Spirit. Mario will get hurt before it lets that happen. Lava Piranha got to control the volcano in exchange for trapping the Star Spirit. The battle starts. Lava Piranha has 40 HP, 5 attack power and breathes fire, but slowly. It has two Lava Buds, each with 8 HP and 4 attack power. They breathe fire or seeds at Mario. They will wilt when they run out of HP, but can be regenerated. Stomp on it and use attacks like Electro Dash, Power Bounce, and Smack to deal with the Lava Piranha. You'll also want to get rid of the Lava Buds so they can't attack you. Once Lava Piranha runs out of HP, it will fall into the lava and 15 Star Points will appear. Lava Piranha will be reborn, but this time with fire, with the same amount of HP. After you get in one attack, Kolorado rushes in to save the day, but falls in the lava, saying he can't do anything more to help. This is Sushie's time to shine! If she's Ultra Rank, she gets an attack called Tidal Wave. Press the buttons that appear on screen quickly and she'll swim around and fill the battlefield with water. This will do a lot of damage to Lava Piranha and get rid of the Lava Buds. Attacking with Snowman Dolls or with the Ice Power badge equipped will make this part of the fight fairly easy. Once you defeat Lava Piranha for a second time, you'll get 30 Star Points.

After the battle, Kolorado says there's nothing between them and the treasure. He runs off to the east. The Star Spirit's card appears from the lava.

End of Chapter
Venturing deep into the steaming Mt. Lavalava, Mario and friends plucked the Lava Piranha... and rescued the fifth Star Spirit, Misstar from a fiery fate. But the "treasure" Kolorado is looking for is yet to be found. Wherever could it be? What's that...? Something... strange... is going on around here...

Back in the volcano, the ground is shaking. Misstar says they should get out of the volcano, so head east. Kolorado is complaining that he can't find the treasure. Go upstairs and Kolorado will join you. He thinks Misstar might be the treasure, or some sort of starfish. He's still looking because the adventure's not over until the treasure is found. He thinks the Lava Piranha had it, so he tries to go back, The ground starts shaking violently and he dismisses it as kids playing with fireworks. He then notices that the lava is rising. Misstar says the volcano will erupt soon, so they can't go back and must leave another way. She feels a breeze come through a crack in the wall. Use Bombette to break the wall. Go through the wall and you'll see a chest on a pillar Kolorado can't reach. He says he'll risk his life to get it. Misstar picks everyone up and takes them out of the volcano. The volcano erupts and the treasure flies out, landing in the jungle near the Bub-ulb.

Paper Mario: Chapter 4 -- Trials in the Toy Box -- Part 2

When you arrive at Green Station, you'll notice four Star Boxes, red, green, blue, and yellow. If you hit them from left to right, you'll get four coins. Hit the boxes in almost any other order, and four Shy Guys will pop out. Go southeast and return to reset the blocks. Go southeast and you'll see Kammy Koopa place Peach's last choice to guard a chest.

This part of the Toy Box is filled with moving conveyor belts and wire fences. Use Bow's power to go through the fences so you can reach the Shy Guy holding the Mystery Note. Defeat it to get it, but you can't read it. To the right is the slot machine. Getting two or more coin panels will get you some coins, two or more Shy Guy panels will make Shy Guys appear, and two or more stars will make mushrooms appear. Farther right are moving platforms. The brick block over the pink area has many coins, but the platform moves away from the brick block. Cross the gaps with Parakarry. There's a blue building next to the moving platforms. When the platforms lower, you can go inside for a Star Piece. Cross over to the building's roof and open the chest for Russ T.'s Dictionary. Leave the Toy Box to return it to him.

Russ T. lives in the house near the pipe to Mario's house. Return the Dictionary for a Star Piece as a reward. Talk to him again and he'll translate the note, which is written in the Shy Guy language. It says to hit the blocks in the following order: yellow, green, red, blue. Heal up and return to Green Station. Hit the blocks in the correct order. Panels from the wall on the other side of the tracks fall down to fill in the gap in the tracks. The star blocks disappear. Go east to the Red Station.

Take advantage of the Heal and Save Blocks, then go southwest first. There's a lot of platforming here, including a Ferris wheel. Hit the invisible item block between the two item blocks for the Deep Focus badge. On the tall green block in the back is a Super Block, but all of our party members have been upgraded. This is about to change. Have Bow out, then go west.

To the west is a dark room. Someone says that someone's in the dark and it's Mario. It's a Big Lantern Ghost and he won't let Mario go. The battle starts and he says he'll take care of Mario quickly, then return to his darkness. He hates the light and will take Mario to the deep dark. When it's dark, all you can target is the lantern. Have Bow smack the lantern to make the light brighter. Repeated hits make the light brighter. The Big Lantern Ghost says that it's so bright, which isn't good. When the lantern is at its brightest, the Big Lantern Ghost will shine its light on Mario and his party member. If you don't guard, your party member will be blinded and temporarily unable to do anything. Now that the light is bright, you can target the Big Lantern Ghost. He has 40 HP and an attack power of 5. The light attack has an attack power of 2 on Mario, regardless of whether he guards, but guarding will protect party members. After hitting him for one or two turns, he'll dim the lantern's light by blowing on it. Attack the lantern again to restore the light. He gives 15 SP when defeated. He then runs off, leaving the lantern behind. Check it out.

The lantern talks, saying it wants out. Hit the lantern with the hammer to free a Li'l Sparky named Watt. She's happy to be free and recognizes Mario, calling him a hero. He saved her from the lantern ghost and to make it up to him, she'll go with him. She heard the Shy Guys say that Mario's trying to save Peach from Bowser. She joins the party. She can illuminate dark areas and reveal the location of hidden blocks, even with the lights on. She can shock enemies with Electro Dash or paralyze them with Power Shock. Oddly enough, she kind of likes the dark. Leave the room and use the platforms and Parakarry to reach the Super Block to upgrade Watt right away. Use her power to reveal an invisible block with a Snowman Doll.

Return to Green Station, heal and save, then go southeast. Be sure to have some healing items on you. There's a Shy Guy that jumps over a wall when it sees Mario. Blow up the crack in the wall with Bombette, which will knock the wall over. A bunch of Shy Guys are on the other side of the wall and they run away screaming. Use Watt to locate an invisible block, then hit it. Stand on it, then send Koooper to retrieve a Shooting Star. Avoid battling and go east into a dark room. The Shy Guys are still screaming. They say to run for it and break through the wall. Follow them.

There's a Shy Guy dressed in military dress here. He's General Guy and he has the Star Spirit. As long as they keep the Star Spirit secure, Bowser lets them do whatever they want. He says Mario's trespassing and that the treasures in the Toy Box are for Shy Guys only. His army charges at Mario. First up is the Shy Squad, a group of 15 Shy Guys. Each Shy Guy has 1 HP and 1 attack power. One Shy Guy will be lost from the squad for every 1 HP of damage the squad takes. This will reduce their ability to attack. When they attack, each Shy Guy gets to attack and they move quickly. Repeatedly guard to reduce the damage Mario takes. When there are about 8 or so left, or if you happen to defeat them, they'll run off, General Guy will appear, and say the Shy Guys must stand their ground. He'll send out his next wave in front of his tank so you can't attack it. This wave is made up of two Stilt Guys, which have 7 HP each and 4 attack power. They'll try to jump on Mario. Using attacks that shake the ground will turn them into normal Shy Guys, but you can also just defeat them when they're on stilts. After you defeat the Stilt Guys, the third wave will be of Shy Stack, four Shy Guys stacked on each other like the Koopa Bros. They have 10 HP and 1 attack power for each of the Shy Guys in the stack. They attack with slingshots. Spinning attacks will knock members out of the stack. Once you defeat these guys, General Guy will now battle you. General Guy has 30 HP , 2 defense power, and will throw bombs at Mario with 4 attack power. He can also use the light bulb on his tank to shine a light with 5 attack power. It will blind your party member if you don't guard. To keep this from happening, first target the bulb. It has 1 defense power, which is completely useless against Watt's Electro Dash. Power Bouncing also works. After the bulb breaks, he can no longer use this attack and you can focus your attacks on him. He says his defenses are useless, your attack is too powerful, and that you're breaking the rules of war. Your hammer can get past his defense, but a basic attack won't do much damage. When you defeat him, his tank falls apart and you get 33 SP. The Shy Guys run off screaming. Watt is happy that she got to beat them up. The Star Spirit's card appears.

End of Chapter
To save the fourth Star Spirit, Muskular, Mario and team disbanded the gang of Shy Guy toughs. Slowly, it seems as if the life force is return to the once bleak night sky... But the stars won't truly shine until the Star Rod is wrested from Bowser's evil grasp. Three Star Spirits still await rescue. Where in the world are they being held?

Paper Mario: Chapter 3 -- The "Invincible" Tubba Blubba -- Part 2

Enter Tubba Blubba's castle with Bow at your side. There are UFO-like creatures called Sentinels that guard the foyer. If they catch you, they'll take you outside the castle, which can be advantageous when you want to reach the Save Block quickly. When they pursue you, have Bow make Mario transparent until they stop pursuing you. Spin dash quickly to the door on the left. There are Clubbas in the hallway. Some of them are sleeping, so you can snake past them if you walk slowly. If you want to battle them, they have 8 HP and give 2 SP. They'll hit you with their maces. Don't jump on them without the Spiky Shield badge. Go through the far left door on the back wall. There's a Star Piece on the table you can reach by jumping on the chair. Go through the west door.

There's a Star Piece on the table you can't reach yet. You can hear snoring here, and it's not just the Clubbas. Go through the left door on the back wall and go down the stairs. There's a panel on the floor. Spin jump on it to reach the basement. There's a chest with a key. Drop down to find a Heal Block and a Boo. He came to the castle with friends to find Tubba Blubba's weak point. He says there's something important in Tubba Blubba's room on the highest floor and to not fight him. Take the door to the left to the base of a different set of stairs. There's an upgrade block here. I upgraded Bow. The stairs lead to the table with the Star Piece you can't reach. Go the foyer and unlock the east door. Saving is a good idea.

To the right of the door is a set of stairs to the second floor. There are Sentinels at the top of the stairs near the west door. The door leads to a hallway over the foyer. Go west. In the middle of the hallway is a crack in the wall different from the others. Bombette can break the wall. Go through the hole in the wall and you'll find three panels. Break the back left panel first, which is over a spring. Spring back up to the second floor, then break the back right panel. This will drop you down onto the table below. Use Parakarry to cross the gap to reach the D-Down Jump badge. Spring back to the second floor. Return to the hallway and dodge the Sentinel. Go through the back left door into a room filled with spikes. When the spikes retract, move quickly to the right. When they're about to appear, use Bow to become transparent. At the far right is a chest with a key. Return to the hallway and go west.

The door leads to a room with a broken railing. Approach the railing from the left and drop down onto the table below with the Star Piece. Return to the second floor and push the clock on the back wall to the left. This reveals a hidden doorway. There are coins on the bed and a drawer is pulled out. Pull out the lower drawer to the right to form stairs, then cross the gap with Parakarry. Grab the coins and climb up the shelves to the left. There is a hidden area to the left with the Mega Rush badge. Return to the hallway and unlock the west door. At the base of the stairs is an item block with Maple Syrup. Go up the stairs and through the door.

Tubba Blubba is in the hallway and smells something fishy. The floor will shake as he gets closer. Hide with Bow until he turns around, then walk east until he turns around. Only move when he's not looking. Go through the door on the back wall and you'll find an area filled with sleeping Clubbas. Quietly walk past them to the left to get the key. Sneak past them and return to the hallway. Unlock the east door, which leads to a Save Block and a Heal Block. Defeat the sleeping Clubbas in the back room of the previous hallway if you like. When you're ready, go east into Tubba Blubba's room.

Tubba Blubba will walk into the room soon after. Mario hides and eavesdrops. Tubba Blubba says he may be in trouble because the Star Spirit escaped and someone suspicious is in the castle. He doesn't want Bowser mad at him. Despite being invincible, he thinks Bowser is scary, because Bowser can return him to normal. He decides to take a nap. Nearby is a chest. Open it and a key appears. This is Yakkey, a "faithful and chatty follower of Tubba Blubba". Yakkey guards Tubba Blubba's valuables. Soon, Yakkey realizes the obvious that Mario is not Tubba Blubba. Yakkey asks if this means Mario's stealing the magical key that unlocks Windy Mill at the foot of Gusty Gulch and find Tubba Blubba's secret. If you answer "No", Yakkey calls you a terrible liar. Yakkey calls for Tubba Blubba and wakes him up. He wakes up and chases Mario. Run for it!

Go through the hallway and Tubba Blubba will ground pound the hallway over the foyer, causing it to collapse. This crushes the Sentinels below. Go through the door. There are Boos here to help Bow out by holding the door shut once Mario exits the castle. Mario must run quickly to Windy Mill and leave the Boos behind. Tubba Blubba smells Boos. They hold Tubba Blubba inside the castle as long as they can.

While running through Gusty Gulch, do your best to avoid enemies. There's a Heal Block inside the village of Boos if you need to heal. Unlock Windy Mill with the mystical key that is Yakkey. Spin jump on the wooden panel on the well and drop down. Go east through the long tunnel and avoid the Hyper Goombas. The signs keep telling you to keep out. At the east end of the tunnel is a heart on a pedestal. It says it's the secret strength of Tubba Blubba. The Tubba Blubba in the castle is really a shell controlled by it. The Heart can't let Mario out now that he knows the secret. Mario now has to deal with a heart attack.

The Heart has 50 HP and 6 attack power. It can charge up and unleash a terrible attack with 12 attack power. Mario can't dodge this attack alone. When it charges up and starts glowing, have Bow out so she can use Outta Sight. The Heart will unleash smaller hearts to attack Mario. The Heart wants Bow to stick around so Tubba Blubba can eat her. Hit it with attacks like Power Bounce, Smack, and Shell Shot. Smack may be the better choice as it doesn't use FP. Get the Heart down to about 3 HP and it will flee, realizing it's in danger. Follow it out of the tunnels and out of Windy Mill. It will then reunite with its body. This is Tubba Blubba's true self. Unfortunately for Tubba Blubba, when his heart and body reunite, he is no longer invincible. After the beating the heart took, Tubba Blubba has a measly 10 HP. His attack power is 4 when pounding, except when he does his hip attack, which has 6 attack power. The battle is pretty easy and he'll give you 30 SP.

Tubba Blubba remembers that he's not invincible with his heart in his body, which is lame. He gives up and will give back all the ghosts he's eaten. Deep down, he's a sensitive guy trapped in a huge body. He doesn't want to be invincible if it means fighting guys like Mario. He then runs off. Bow is happy. She says she should tell the others not to scare Tubba Blubba, who was originally a coward. She feels that this was an invigorating and good learning experience. Bow wants to experience more of the outside world and will stay by Mario's side, this time with his permission. She returns the Star Spirit.

End of Chapter
After solving the secret of "Invincible" Tubba Blubba, Mario and party set free the Star Spirit Skolar. Now, with Tubba Blubba just a bad dream, the Boos are free to haunt to their hearts' content. Even the lonely wind echoing through Gusty Gulch seems to be celebrating the victory... at least for now. With newest party member Bow in tow, Mario and friends are ready to take on their next challenge.

Paper Mario: Chapter 2 -- The Mystery of Dry Dry Ruins -- Part 2

Now that Mario's found the Dry Dry Ruins, go inside. A creepy voice calls out to Mario. He is Tutankoopa, the remorseless king of the desert. He tells Mario to leave or face disaster. Hit the Save Block and go east. There are several sarcophaguses in the next room. They open up to reveal Pokey Mummies. They have 4 HP and give 2 SP. They are poisonous, so guard against their attacks to avoid getting poisoned. In the middle sarcophagus is the Spiky Shield badge. Equip this immediately. This badge will allow Mario to jump on spiked enemies. Be sure to have many healing items and return to the Heal Block outside often. The path splits ahead. Drop down to the lower path and go east. The room only has a key and a doorway you can't reach. Grab it and go back to the room with the sarcophaguses, then take the upper path. Unlock the door and head east.

This room is filled with sand. Stand on the switch and the sand will drain into the room below. Return to the room below. The sand will allow you to reach the doorway. Go east. Tutankoopa says Mario isn't listening and that if he keeps exploring, he will become a mummy. There are Buzzy Beetles in the area. They have 3 HP and give 2 SP. They are immune to fire. Jump on them to flip them, eliminating their defense, just like Koopas. Go upstairs and cross the gap. Blow up the wall to go into the room to the east. Stand on the switch to make the sand drain from the room. Before you leave, grab the Star Piece in the corner. Drop down the stairs and go to the room below to the east to get a key. Leave the room and drop down to the lowest door in the area, then go west.

Go all the way to the left side of the room and hit the item block. Pokey Mummies will appear and the door will be blocked off. Swoopers may join the Pokey Mummies in battle. They are bats that like to hang on the ceiling. They have 4 HP and give 2 SP. You can't jump on them when they're on the ceiling. You can use earth tremors, Hammer Throw, or Parakarry to hit them. They'll then fly in the air, so you can jump on them. Defeat all of them for the key to the locked door on the left side. Go through it. Cross the gap and go to the west.

This is the puzzle room. Tutankoopa warns you not to go in here. What you need to do is stand on the switches to flip the stairs. The switches flip the all of the stairs of the same color. There are three levels here. Here's what you need to do: Go up to the second level. Hit the green switch and go up the green stairs to the third level. Hit the green switch, then go down the pink stairs to the second level. Hit the pink switch, then go down the pink stairs to the first level, the floor. Go up the green stairs, then the pink stairs, going to the left. Drop down and you'll reach a large chest. It contains the Super Hammer. This makes Mario's hammer attack more powerful and Mario can now destroy stone blocks.

Go back to the room where you were locked in with the Pokey Mummies. Go up the pink stairs, hit the switch, then go up the stairs to the right. Break the stone block to get the Artifact. Go east, go up the stairs, then east. There's a stone block in the room. Break it and the door closes and a chomp from the hieroglyphics comes to life. Grab the Pyramid Stone and battle the Stone Chomp. They have 4 HP and give 4 SP. They'll charge at Mario. Use the hammer to defeat them. The door opens.

Go west twice and down the stairs. There's a crack in the wall. Blow it up, go through it, then drop down. There's a Super Rank Block down here. I upgraded Parakarry. Blow up the crack to the left. Break the stone block, where a Stone Chomp is hiding. Battle it and get the Diamond Stone. Go east twice to enter a long hallway. There are Buzzy Beetles and a map of the Ruins here. Go east and hit the stone block. Stand on the switch to make stairs to the key appear. Spring up and go east three times, meaning the door at the bottom of the stairs on the right. Tutankoopa says to retreat or be in grave trouble. In the middle of the room, there are five Chomp statues. Go up the stairs and unlock the door. Stand on the switch to make the sand drain and take note of the Chomp statues here. They have a pattern: Triangle, space, Diamond, space, Moon. Keep this in mind, then drop down to the door below and go east across the sand. Break the stone block, grab the Lunar Stone, then battle the stone chomp.

Once you're done, return to the room with the Chomp statues. Approach the statues and place the stones in the same pattern as the statues in the next room: Pyramid Stone, space, Diamond Stone, space, Lunar Stone. The ground starts shaking, the Chomp statues' eyes start sparkling, and Mario and his partner start panicking. The music changes. Stairs appear that go below. Use the Heal Block at the bottom of the stairs. Go east. Tutankoopa will give you a final warning. Save and go east again.

Tutankoopa laughs and a headdress appears. It floats up and Tutankoopa materializes. He says Mario ignored his very scary warnings and says he shouldn't mess him, a faithful follower of King Bowser. He stands on a ledge and summons a Chomp. Tutankoopa has 30 HP. He'll throw shells at Mario and use magic. The magic may drop debris on Mario or himself, knocking him off the ledge. The Chomps he summons have 4 HP and 3 defense. They don't like Tutankoopa because he works them too hard. Mario should attack the Chomp if it's there, and the partner should attack Tutankoopa, or else you won't win the battle. Parakarry's Sky Shot is very powerful and useful here, as it can hit Tutankoopa on the ledge or the ground. Keep hitting him and you'll win. You'll get 28 SP from the battle. After the battle, a Chomp appears and chases Tutankoopa around. The card with the Star Spirit appears.

End of Chapter
Thus Mario and party unearthed the legendary Dry Dry Ruins deep within Dry Dry Desert/ They smashed Tutankoopa the Wizard and freed Mamar, the second of the wish-granting Star Spirits. But the enemies awaiting Mario grow ever stronger... and the challenges more difficult. What's in store for Mario and friends... Where will their adventure take them next?

Paper Mario: Interlude After Chapter 1

In the castle, Peach paces, wondering about Mario. Twink provides encouragement, saying Mario's probably saving some Star Spirits now. Peach wants to leave her room, but there are guards right outside her door and jumping out of the window isn't an option. She remembers the Minister telling her of a secret passage out of her room, so she starts to look for it. Check out her dresses and she'll tell Twink that they're all slightly different and very fashionable. If you check out the cosmetics, she'll powder her nose. She doesn't want Twink looking at the picture of Mario for some reason.

Check out the fireplace. For some reason, Twink finds the warm fireplace to be suspicious. Check out the picture to the right of the fireplace and Peach will find a switch behind it. Hit the switch and the fire goes out and the grate falls, revealing a passage through the fireplace. It leads to a dark hallway. Walk to the left and you'll find a wall with a switch. Hit the switch to make the wall rotate into the next room.

The door leading out of the room is locked. On a table to the left is an open book. It's a private diary. Twink asks Peach if she will read it. She starts reading it. The first entry says the owner of the diary went to Star Haven, stole the Star Rod, and captured the Star Spirits. The second entry says they used their castle to lift Peach's Castle in the sky, beat up Mario, and kidnapped Peach. They hope Peach likes them. It becomes obvious to Peach and Twink that this is Bowser's diary. Peach has a choice to either stop reading or to continue. If she continues reading, she'll find the third entry says that the Koopa Bros. were defeated by Mario and the Star Spirit they held was freed. But there is no way that Mario can save the Star Spirit in Dry Dry Ruins because he'd have to solve the mystery of the sand and find the ruins in Dry Dry Desert. Mario wouldn't know to go there to look for a Star Spirit. Twink says he'll go inform Mario.

Bowser walks in, worried about leaving his secret diary out in the open. He'd be embarrassed if anyone read it. He sees Peach, figures out that she read it, and freaks out. He has the guards take her to her room.

Outside Koopa Bros. Fortress,  Eldstar, the Star Spirit Mario saved, is talking to Mario. He's thankful for being saved and believes Mario can save the other Star Spirits. Now that he has been freed, the seal on his power has been broken and he will slowly recover it. He powers up Mario, giving him the ability to use the Star Spirits' power in battle. Mario will need Star Energy to use these powers. Star Energy appears as a gauge under HP. If there is a Star filled up at the end of the bar, he has that many units of Star Energy to use. His first Star Power is Refresh, which heals 5 HP and 5 FP. When it's Mario's turn, a bit of Star Energy is restored. Using Focus during battle restores a greater amount of Star Energy. Mario can also fully replenish Star Energy by staying at a Toad House. Eldstar tells Mario he must save the other Star Spirits quickly so they can give him the Star Beam, an attack that counters the Star Rod. Eldstar will go to Star Haven for now, but is always watching over Mario and his friends. It's time to leave the fortress.

Have Bombette blow up the cracked wall blocking access to a pipe. The pipe will take you onto the roof of a structure. There's a chest here with the FP Plus badge. Drop down and go west. Back in Koopa Village, Koopa Koot wants Mario to retrieve a tape from Goompa. Once you give the tape to him, he'll give you one coin. Head west to Toad Town, but stay healed. At the edge of Toad Town, Jr. Troopa appears, then falls into the water. He's back and asks if Mario remembers him. He's confident he'll beat Mario. He has 15 HP and will give 20 SP when defeated. He'll hide in his shell to increase his defense. Use the hammer, Shell Toss, or Body Slam to do damage. Once you defeat him, go into Toad Town.

Once in Toad Town, Twink finds Mario, saying he heard that Mario saved a Star Spirit and that Bowser's angry about it. He says there's a Star Spirit held in the Dry Dry Ruins in the Dry Dry Desert. He'll send more news once he and Peach get more information.

In Toad Town, you can reach more places. The badge shop is now open and Mario can head to the southern part of the town. Here, you'll find the train station and the port. There's a pink Bub-ulb, who'll give Mario the pink Magical Seed. You'll also find the pipe into the Toad Town Tunnels, the sewers that run under the town.

Inside the tunnels, you'll find Gloombas and Spiked Gloombas, dark Goombas with more health and more powerful attacks. They each have 7 HP and give 4 SP upon defeat. Go all the way to the east and a Blooper will appear. It has 30 HP and gives 20 SP upon defeat. It will drop down onto Mario or hit him with a blast of ink. It floats over the ground, so use jump attacks and Headbonk. Once you defeat it, you can access the chest with the Shrink Stomp.

Return to the surface and check out the Dojo. You'll initially fight Chan, a Buzzy Beetle with 15 HP. Flip him over with a jump to decrease his defense. Once you defeat Chan, you'll get the First-Degree Card from the Master. Heal and challenge Lee, the Duplighost. He'll imitate one of Mario's partners. He has 20 HP and you'll get the Second-Degree Card for defeating him.

Go east, then south to reach the train station. The train is the only way to reach Dry Dry Desert, but a boulder fell on the tracks when Peach's Castle was lifted into the air. Use Bombette to clear the path, then board the train.

When Mario enters Toad Town, Twink finds him, saying that he heard Mario saved a Star Spirit. Bowser's angry about it. He tells Mario that there's a Star Spirit in the Dry Dry Ruins in the Dry Dry Desert. Twink will send more news when he and Peach get more information.

Paper Mario: Chapter 1 -- Storming Koopa Bros. Fortress -- Part 2

Mario has arrived at Koopa Bros. Fortress. When you approach the front door, Black Koopa opens the door and is surprised to see that Mario's already here. Inside, you'll find Koopas. Battle them and you'll find Bob-ombs battling alongside them. They have 3 HP and give 2 SP. You must attack them at a distance, as they will explode. Be sure to defeat them immediately after hitting them, or else they'll get angry and explode when they attack you. Use your hammer or Kooper to attack. Defeating the only Koopa in the area will give you the key to the door to the east.

In the next room, Green Koopa places another key in a cage. To the right is a badge in a cage. You can slip into this cage from the right near the back wall. The badge is the Power Bounce badge. Go east into the next room. There's a set of stairs suspended by chains. You can't take them to the next floor. Battle the Koopa and three Bob-ombs to make the switch appear. This lowers the stairs so you can go downstairs. Go downstairs and go west.

As soon as you enter this room, the doorways move so they are out of reach. Defeat the three Koopas in the room to move the doorways back into place. While you're here, jump over the fire bars repeatedly to make them disappear and give you coins. Go west to retrieve the key. Go back upstairs and unlock the locked door.

You'll see Yellow Koopa working on the floor near an item block before leaving. Go upstairs and hit the item block. It's a trap and the item block activates a trap door below Mario. He drifts down into a cage below holding many Bob-ombs. The Bob-ombs say that they were locked down here by the Koopa Bros. The Koopa Bros. worked them into the ground. The pink Bob-omb, Bombette, says she was imprisoned after she exploded near them. Others were locked up to prevent a rebellion. They want help breaking out. Agree to help them and she'll join your party. She can blow up cracked walls to reveal new paths. Heal and save, then have her blow up the crack in the cage. She never thought about exploding near cracks. She and Mario leave the cell and a Koopa and a couple of Bob-ombs come to investigate. Defeat them, then go west and up the stairs.

Walk to the east side of the room and blow up the cracked wall. This leads outside to a chest with the Refund badge. Go west twice to the room with three cages and blow up the cracked wall to reach the key. Walk up the ramp to reach the locked door. This will take you to the room with the three cages. Use Kooper to hit the switches. The switches will make stone slabs appear in the gaps between the cages and walls appear. Cross the slabs in the gaps, then hit the switch again so you can reach the next switch. Go all the way to the left and go through the door.

Hit the blue switch in the room to make the stairs lower. Go downstairs and blow up the cracked wall to reach the key Green Koopa hid. Go back up the stairs to unlock the door. This will take you above the first room of the Koopa Bros. Fortress, where the pool of water is. Hit the switch to make the stairs under the water rise, making the Koopas in the water panic. The stairs will rise to your level and the Koopas may attack you. Use the stairs to reach the ramp. Go to the top of the ramp for the Smash Charge badge, then go partway down to the door. The door leads to the roof.

The Koopa Bros. are here and didn't think Mario would make it. They'll stop him with a barrage of Bullet Bills. The Airship music plays. Drop down near the door and blow up the rock for a Maple Syrup. Keep going to the right. You may battle the Bullet Bills that they fire. They have 2 HP and give 1 SP. They will hit Mario and explode. Drop down near the Bill Blasters to heal and save. Jump on the Bill Blasters to battle them. They have 4 HP and give 3 SP. They have a decent amount of defense, so use attacks that do at least 2 HP of damage when they land, such as the hammer and Body Slam. Once you defeat them, heal and save again, then go through the door to the east when you're ready.

The Koopa Bros. are setting up their special attack, trying to make sure everything looks cool. Bowser??? appears and battles Mario. It has 10 HP and is theoretically invincible. Hit it with the hammer and other attacks that can do 2 HP of damage at once and you'll slowly damage it. The Koopa Bros. will mention that it's starting to fall apart. Once it does, the Koopa Bros. will appear in battle. They'll stack on each other and do a spin attack that will do 1 HP of damage for every Koopa Bro in the stack. Use the hammer to knock them off balance, then have either Bombette or Kooper use their basic attack to knock them over. You can then attack them like normal Koopas. They are Ninjakoopas and have 12 SP each. Once you defeat them, they fall into the cage where they held the Bob-ombs, but the hole in the wall has been patched up. The Bowser robot fell down here as well, and there's a poster of Peach in it. A card with a Star Spirit appears. Get it to free the Star Spirit.

END OF CHAPTER!
And so Mario and friends beat the Koopa Bros. at their fortress and rescue the first Star Spirit. Stilll, six Star Spirits remain imprisoned, and they must save them as quickly as they can. The future of the Mushroom Kingdom, Star Haven, and of course, Princess Peach... lies in the hands of Mario... and his new friends. Their adventure has just begun.