Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam -- Part 23: Cartoon Cannons

The bros have destroyed Bowser's papercraft, but Bowser sent the Koopalings after the bros. Before dealing with them, go west. There are dirt walls and Shy Guys here. Climb the dirt wall and Drill Dash through the maze of saws to reach a gondola. Use Trio Hammer on its purple button to send it flying into the spiked rollers blocking your path back east. Go north. Grab the Bob-omb to the right and use it to destroy the Bowser statue ahead. Pull out the bridge and keep going. There are boost pads here. Grab another Bob-omb and use them to reach another Bowser statue. You can get a Bob-omb from the right side. Pull out another bridge. There's another gondola here. Grab it, then use Trio Hammer. There's another statue to the north of the first one that leads to items. Use the pipe to return east quickly. Hit the ! Block to lower the gate.

Go east. Dash across the gaps using the yellow platforms. The platforms ahead won't be in a straight line. Walk towards the back and you'll find a narrow path with saws. To get over them, Trio Glide. It's okay if you land in the middle. The saws will hit you, but won't send you back to solid ground. The next narrow path allows you to Trio Drill underground. Use the Trio Hammer on the gondola to the left. A blue platform will take you back to where you entered from the west. Go north. You'll have to Trio Glide across some gaps, but there are fans blowing periodically. You'll need to have the fan blowing for the last glide. There's a Mechakoopa and a gondola ahead. Use the Trio Hammer on the gondola to form a complete path for the bros. Return west using the pipe ahead.

There will be enemies in the main hallway. At the end of the long path are Morton, Iggy, and Lemmy. Iggy wants to push something. Lemmy says it's his job. Morton notices the bros and tells someone to do it. Iggy pushes the button. Morton says it will destroy Peach's Castle. They're referring to the massive cannon at the front of the castle.

In Peach's Castle, the princesses are thinking of the bros. Back in Neo Bowser Castle, Iggy remembers he was supposed to set a timer. He thinks five minutes is good. The bros have to smash the cannon before time runs out. Enemies will drop in out of the sky for battle. You can't flee the fights, so attack quickly. Using Paper Mario's hammer works well. Go south and dodge the Fuzzies by walking between them. Other enemies will attack you, but you can avoid the battles. Go as far south as possible and you'll find the cannon. The timer will stop here. Press (A) to start the Trio Hammer, which will dent the cannon so it can't fire. Starlow thinks they shouldn't stand directly above the cannon when it's about to fire. The bros leave and the cannon blows itself out. Walk north and take the elevator up.

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam -- Part 21: With Enemies like this, Who Needs Friends?

The bros have reached Neo Bowser Castle. You'll find Broozers here. They're tough enemies with powerful punches and increase their power every time they take damage. There's a button in the center. Hit it to make part of a panel light up on a fuel cell. Go west and you'll see another button as part of a maze. There are Paper Broozers here. Walk to the south to reach the maze. The sign says that (A), (B), (Y) flips yellow panels and (X) flips blue ones. What that means is that while you're moving to another panel, press the three buttons simultaneously when you're jumping from a yellow panel and (X) when you're jumping from a blue panel. Hit the button, then the ! Blocks to open the way back. Return east. Hit the button there, then walk south.

You'll find Nabbit here. Try talking to him and some minions will report that Nabbit's been stealing Bowser's stuff as well. Chasing after him is optional. Once you catch him, you'll have to battle. He'll toss coins and spike balls, both of which can bounce. He'll throw his bag at you, then pull out paper enemies. He'll also sneak up behind the bros and steal their hammer if they don't counter. After Nabbit takes a hit or two, he'll run away. Chase him again and he'll start a battle with some Broozers. He'll heal the bros each turn. Defeat the Broozers and he'll run off again. This time, he'll run to the west. Catch him to start another battle. He'll run away, as before. He'll start a battle with a Shy Guy, and fight alongside the bros and heal them. The easiest way is to run from the fight when he's battling against you. The last fight is the one you can't flee from. You'll get Peach's Peppy Gloves and the Bros. Attack Mega Thwonk for defeating him, as well as however many coins you earned during the fight.

Go east. There are many moving platforms moving past the button. At certain points, they will drop away. Use (X) to jump platform to platform. Hit the button and an Up button illuminates. Jump on the other set of platforms and return west. Hit the up button and the platform will rise to a different level. Walk to the north and Bowser is impressed the bros have made it this far. The Bowsers and Kameks appear. Paper Bowser says something has happened. A shadow falls over the bros. Up in the sky, the papercrafts are wrapped in duct tape. Toadette's been captured as well. She orders the Bowsers to release her masterpieces. Paper Kamek brings in the secret weapon: the enormous Papercraft Bowser. It breathes fire on the papercrafts. The Bowsers will be waiting for the bros, should they want to fight.

Toadette is quiet next to the smoldering ashes of her work. Luigi tries to talk to her, but she silences him. She has a great idea, but she'll need the bros' help. She needs them to collect the Fire Ore found around the castle. Fire Ore are the flame-like stones burning in torches around the castle. The bros can safely handle them. Toadette says Fire Ore is fascinating. Harnessing the ore's power will allow her to build a special papercraft. She says they'll need three units of the stuff. She saw some on the lower level, so the bros head there first. The Fire Ore is to the southeast. Iggy swipes it and Bowser asks what Mario's thinking. He won't let someone steal the ore he's stolen. Iggy challenges them. Starlow flies off to find them something to fight back, so the bros must toss bombs at the Koopalings and Bowser to keep them at bay. Starlow brings in the bombs. Iggy will toss three bombs at the bros at a time. You'll also throw Starlow at one point. Iggy will admit he's failed, so Wendy steps in. After Wendy takes a few hits, she calls Bowser for help. He throws one large bomb. Once he's defeated, he tells the Koopalings to never speak of this to anyone. Bowser acknowledges the Fire Ore is pretty, but he's not sure how it will help the bros defeat his papercraft. He tells them to leave it alone.

Go to the southwest to find the other piece of Fire Ore. Morton appears. Mario must use his hammer to return the regular cannonballs Morton throws. Use Trio Hammer for the huge ones. Once that's over with, you'll get the last bit of Fire Ore.

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam -- Part 20: The Evasive Staircase

Go into the cave. There are Shy Guys here. They can throw Paper Shy Guys at you. Use the dirt wall to climb higher, then break the stone brick block. This lead to an exit to the clouds. Ahead are Lakitu researching the summit to see where the cardboard platforms come from. Go east and you'll find a stumped Toad. Solve the puzzle of moving the blocks on the dirt wall, but you have two blocks on a single puzzle. Move the pink target as follows: up, left, down, right, down, left. For the blue crescent, up. left, up left, down, left, down. He'll give you a Blunt Hammer DX. Return to the west. Walk to the left and use Trio Glide through the ring to reach the cave.

Inside, the bros find a complex maze they'll have to navigate using Trio Drill and Trio Glide. Exit to the east. Trio Glide from the wooden platform to reach a higher wooden platform with items and coins. Go east. Luigi spots something. There's a strange gate in front of a large door in the side of the mountain. Use Trio Hammer on the large red button to make the red parts of the gate disappear. Walk to the south, then go east.

You'll find a panicking Lakitu here. He witnessed Toads being abducted. Agree to help him and he'll take you there. The bros must rescue the Toads while standing on a cloud. They will fail if three Toads are abducted. The Toads' colors could be a hint. To rescue them, jump when the minions fly overhead. Avoid jumping into bombs. Your reward is the Bold Heart accessory. Climb up the wooden platform and Trio Glide to the west. Use Trio Hammer to flip the spikes. Go west. Hit the blue button to remove the gate from the door. There's an elevator inside. Approach the door and hit the ! Block to make a path to the west.

Go through the door and get on the elevator. They reach a command center in the clouds. Starlow marvels that this evil lair has been on the summit the entire time. It’s the location of the cannons firing paper minions and cardboard platforms. The minions notice the bros are here, since there’s no way they have access cards. They sound off a Code Red and a Code Green. Big Bob-omb drops in, telling minions to relax. Starlow doesn’t feel she can relax in this situation. Big Bob-omb initiates the self-destruct sequence. The minions panic. No one can know about this mission, so Big Bob-omb will blow everyone up. The minions flee, while Starlow wants Big Bob-omb to relax and talk about this. Big Bob-omb repeats her earlier sentiments about relaxing.
The battle starts. The bros have 4 minutes to defeat Big Bob-omb. A boss battle on such a short time limit will be tricky. He’ll toss Bob-ombs at the bros. Jump on them to send them back. He can also pick up a bro and throw them. Counter with the hammer. Another attack is to roll a giant bomb. Counter with the hammer repeatedly to stun him. This will add a minute to the timer. Do not use jump attacks as his crown is pointy. Drill Shell also does good damage while taking a small amount of time to execute. After a while, he’ll get angry. If you run out of time, Big Bob-omb will explode. Hold (X) to Emergency Block. Even with that, the bros may not survive, even if you use a Battle Card. After a while, he’ll say he can’t lose to the bros because he’s a king and has a mustache. He then realizes they do as well. With that, he is defeated.

Two Lakitu appear with a big Paper Toad delivery. They drop off several Paper Toads. They know the drill, which is to help the bros reach Neo Bowser Castle. Toadette figured out a way for them to help and they’re helpful for the bros rescuing them. They’re going to form an ambitious set of stairs. It spirals higher and higher. At the base, they ask if they’ve reached the castle, but as with every game of Telephone, the message is soon changed. Somehow, the message comes back crystal clear that they’ve made it. A Toad says Toadette miscalculated and that there are more Paper Toads than necessary. It’s probably because we saved them all. The extras want to help, so they’ll form a new Bros. Attack: Toad Trail.

Head up the Paper Toad staircase with the Paper Toads cheering the bros on. A giant cannonball drops nearby. The staircase moves to dodge the onslaught and tells the bros to keep going. You’ll have to stop for some more evasive maneuvers.

At the castle door, Iggy’s surprised the bros made it. He leaves to spread the word.

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam -- Part 11: Snow Drill

The bros find themselves on Mount Brrr. There are patches of ice the bros will spin across. There are Buzzy Beetles here. You can't hurt them when they're in their shell. Climb up the stairs to find a gap in the rocks. Send in Paper Mario for some items. Try to go east and the bros will hear something loud. Go east. When you try to cross a patch of dirt, the ground rumbles again. Starlow thinks it's coming from above.

On the summit, Big Bob-omb, along with Morton Koopa Jr., Iggy Koopa and Lemmy Koopa, tells minions to fire something. It's a cannon launching cardboard platforms. Another cannon launches paper minions. Some of the cardboard nearly lands on the bros. Unfortunately, the way ahead is now blocked. Paper Mario is inspired by some nearby cardboard. Press (A), (B), then (Y) to use the Trio Drill. Use it to tunnel underground. You can also tunnel under spots marked with "X" to get items like beans without having to pop up each time. Hold (Y) to do a Drill Dash. Use it on the rock under a cardboard platform to destroy it. Starlow notices the question mark on the platform the bros just Drill Dashed under. Trio Drill into it from above to get Heart Boots. Use the Trio Hammer so you can go east into a cave.

Inside the cave are more Buzzy Beetles. There are dirt walls in the cave, so use Drill Dash to climb them. Drill Dash repeatedly into cracked rocks to destroy them. Beware of the saws on the walls. Drill Dash to exit the walls. Higher up is a puzzle. There are spikes in the gaps between the walls to avoid. Move them around by Drill Dashing into the pink ! Block on the wall. There's a crack in the wall near it. Destroy it and move the pink ! Block to the lower position to move forward. There's another crack in the wall on the left side. Cross over to that side and go west.

The bros find themselves outside again. Someone says "Whoooooa." It's Bowser Jr., and he's higher up on the mountain. Paper Bowser Jr. is playing with the papercraft. Bowser Jr. leaves to play with it. Toadette appears, saying she knew there was a new one already. She says they need a new papercraft as well. She's got plenty of ideas, but not as many Paper Toads. She also needs a safe place to work. That cave to the east probably won't work. Luigi says there's no such thing as a safe place in this terrifying world. Toadette says she's heard of a Toad Village to the west, but it's much farther away than the bros anticipated. The path is also a puzzle. Once it is solved (and it can be solved), the bros will have a clear path to the village. Hop in the nearby pipe and hit the ! Block so you can return easily.

Drill up the wall and start breaking through the cracks. Toadette calls to them when they approach a puzzle, saying the bros are about halfway to the summit. Fiddle around with the puzzle contraptions to find a path to the village. The sign says to push the blue crescent and pink target stones into the corresponding slots. The stones can only move on the tracks. The blue crescent is close by. Drill Dash to move it up, left, up, left, down, right, then up. This makes corresponding platforms appear out of the mountain. Drop down to Toadette's level and go west. You'll find Bullies and Paper Sombrero Guys here. To reach the top of the middle area, go to the left and climb using the orange springs. Trio Grab to the other side. Go back east.

Hit the ! Block to make the rocks between the puzzles disappear, then go up to the puzzle. Move the pink target stone up, right, down, right, down, left, up, and left. This makes the corresponding platforms appear from the mountain. Go back east into the cave for a puzzle involving dodging saws in the walls. You'll find beans in the walls and get a Paper Speed Bracelet if you clear it. Back outside, take the dirt path as high as you can go to cross to the Toad. Go west into the Toad Village. A Toad welcomes them to the village. Starlow says they need a way to climb the mountain and deal with Bowser Jr., so they'll need to save more Paper Toads.  

New Super Luigi U: Soda Jungle- Castle -- Iggy's Swinging-Chains Castle

Iggy's castle has waves of lava, which make good timing a necessity. To cross some of the large gaps, you'll have to swing from chains. The first Star Coin is near the end of one chain. Slide down the chain slowly to get it, and climb back up to avoid the lava. Ahead are some platforms. Over the set of three brick blocks is an invisible block with a 1-up. Keep going and you'll see a Green Ring. Towards the end you'll see some solid floor in front of a giant Dry Bones. Drop down on the right side of the floor when the lava's not there, then walk to the left. The second Star Coin is hidden here. The third Star Coin is over the giant Dry Bones. Nearby is the boss door.

Iggy will send three flames at you. Any flame that is red will turn into a Blaarg in the lava below and chase you. Iggy will use the pipes on the sides of the walls to go on the ceiling and move around during his shell cycle. Try to stomp him as soon as he gets out of his shell cycle. Stomp him three times to win. With that, you have all of the Star Coins in the Soda Jungle.

Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga -- Part 14: Mini Bosses Galore

Now that the bros have reached Bowser's Castle, all they have to do is find Bowletta. Bowletta and Fawful are in the throne room. Fawful says, "O Great Bowletta! The Mario Bros. who I hate are coming this way!" Bowletta is confident that the bros will never make it to the throne room. She calls the Koopalings, who appear and go throughout the castle.

Ahead are new enemies, such as Magikoopas, Hammer Bros, and Gunner Guys. They take critical damage from electricity. Boos will also appear. As you level up, you'll want to be sure to increase the bros' speed. You'll understand later. To reach certain platforms, you'll have to Spin Jump around bars overhead. What this means is that you must Spin Jump in a curve away from the platforms, then go to the platform you want to go to, instead of Spin Jumping in a line. The door ahead leads to Iggy's Room.

Iggy will spin around the bros to make them dizzy. This will change the control scheme, so up may move them to the right, for example. There are flames on the floor. If you hit them, you'll have to start over. Run into Iggy to start the battle. He'll spit fireballs, which you can hit back at him. He'll also spin around the bros to make them dizzy and unable to defend. Hit him with a hammer before the bros get dizzy. Once you defeat him, a portal appears, a bridge to the Save Book appears, and a bridge to the next area appears. The portal warps you into the main hallway so you can continue through the castle.

The next area has you jump over spikes. Magikoopas are here. They make rings of fire to jump through and heal allies. In the next room are yellow platforms, like the ones in Stardust Fields. The next room is Morton's. The Save Book is up the stairs to the right.

Morton will create shockwaves to dodge. Once you reach him, the battle will start. He'll flip in the air a number of times equal to the number of shockwaves he'll send out upon landing. He'll also shoot fireballs. Defeating Morton will allow you to progress.

Go up several flights of stairs, then Spin Jump across gaps and lava, using tornados. Lemmy's room is next. He'll spin around the bros, making three copies of himself. Hit the real one to start the battle. Otherwise, he'll spin around them again. In battle, he shoots fireballs and makes copies of himself. Eliminate the copies with Thunder Bros. Defeating him makes a portal appear and starts some water flowing outside. Have Mario drink the water to extinguish the flames.

In the next area, deal with a Magikoopa, then go into the next room. You'll have to shoot balls of water at Mecha-Koopas to hit them into the electrical circuits. You have 4 attempts to fill all three circuits before the Mecha-Koopas get released from the circuits. This opens the door ahead. There are two Piranha Plant buds in the ground. Have Mario drink some water, then have Luigi use the Thunderhand on him. Make the left Piranha Plant bud grow to produce a ! Block that opens the door ahead to Ludwig's room.

Ludwig crawls into his shell and moves towards the bros. Have the bros jump over him. He'll jump away. Try to leave and he'll drop down and attack you. In battle, he'll spin around in his shell, so jump over him. He'll also spin in front of the bros to make them dizzy. Once he's defeated, some spikes outside will disappear. Four Koopalings down, four to go.

New Super Mario Bros. U: Soda Jungle- Castle -- Iggy's Volcanic Castle

In this castle are continuous waves of lava. We get the Ice Flower so we can freeze enemies, but the lava will thaw them out if it touches them. Some parts of the floor move vertically, so be careful. The first Star Coin is under a ledge near the lava. Freeze a Dry Bones, and, with good timing, slide it into the coin, making sure the Dry Bones doesn't hit the lava before it hits the Star Coin. After the midpoint is a Red Coin Ring. Overhead is a pipe. Bounce off of the Dry Bones or freeze it to reach it, then use the POW Block inside to make the second Star Coin and some coins drop down. Go through the yellow pipe. Go past some Podoboos and you'll find a green pipe in the lava just before the boss door. The third Star Coin is over a giant Dry Bones in the lava. Bounce off it to get the Star Coin. Once through the boss door, take the cannon to Iggy's Airship. His Airship has lava below the floor. Iggy goes through the pipes in the room, then throws three fireballs: two green ones, one red one. The red one becomes a Blaarg once it hits the lava. Dodge the Blaarg and Iggy will drop down so you can hit him. His shell cycle is longer than the other Koopalings so far because he goes through the lower pipes. Hit him before he can start moving around to finish him quickly. Once he's defeated, the path to the Rock-Candy Mines opens up.

New Super Mario Bros. 2: 2-Castle

To get around in this castle, we'll have to take a pressure-sensitive boat across the lava. If we step on it, it will move forward, but stops the moment we jump off. Hop on the taller stack of brick blocks for the first Star Coin. There will be Buzzy Beetles just waiting to hop on the boat. Just before the midpoint are a couple of Thwomps. Trigger them before the boat is underneath them to make them fall into the lava and get rid of them permanently. There's similar boat on the other side of the midpoint. Hit the item block over the lava for a spring and take it with you. Soon, you'll find the second Star Coin circling around. Beware of the fireballs that appear from the lava. There are rotating stacks of brick blocks that can push you around if you're not careful. Use them to your advantage, such as trying to get the Red Coins. Make sure they don't push the spring into the lava. You'll need it to reach the overhead red pipe, which takes you to the third Star Coin. Fly or hit the P-Switch to get it. You'll soon come to the boss door. There's an invisible block with an item on the right wall. Iggy slaps himself and hops into his Chomp-driven car. We have to stomp him three times for victory. The Chomp will look in the direction it will go next. Once hit, the Chomp will go to either the ceiling or floor, then lunge up from wherever you see dirt coming from. All the while, Iggy will attempt to hit you with fireballs. Once defeated, you'll get the key and Wendy O. Koopa will take Peach to the fort of World 3.

Coin Total: 14,278
We get a message saying "A new world is available for the Mushroom Pack in Coin Rush!"

New Super Mario Bros. 2: 2-Fort

Time for stone slab platforming. There's a giant Dry Bones at the start. Go up, left, and duck under a ledge for the first Star Coin. You'll reach the midpoint after a while and deal with some spiked stones. Go through the door to enter a room with moving stones. Go up past the door for the second Star Coin. Go through the door. Near the boss door, wall jump up on the stones on the left side and run over the ceiling for the third Star Coin. We go through the boss door and find 4 Reznor to battle. After defeating them, Iggy comes down on a chain, like Roy, and takes Peach to the castle.

Coin Total: 12,794

New Super Mario Bros. Wii: 5-Castle -- Walking the Dog

I got an Ice Flower and climbed up the rotating grate wheels. I once again have to dodge fire, this time green. I lost the Ice Flower to a Podoboo and fell in the lava.

Take 2- I used a Super Shroom and lost it to a Podoboo, but got another one. This was good because I found a Helishroom. I use it to get the 1st Star Coin. I lose my Helishroom to a Podoboo and die from a bad wall jump.

Take 3- I use a Super Shroom, get an Ice Flower, and fall in the lava.

Take 4- I get a Super Shroom and a Helishroom, which I lose to the green fire. I die from another bad wall jump.

Take 5- I get a Super Shroom and a Helishroom. I lose it to the green fire and fall in the lava.

Take 6- I get the Shrooms, reach the midgate and find some springy green checkered blocks. I reach the boss door. Iggy is sitting in a saucer-like object chained to a Chain Chomp. Kamek's magic makes the Chomp grow bigger. The Chomp will move along, dragging the saucer around a rectangular path. After hitting Iggy, he does not go in to a shell cycle, but the Chomp becomes enraged, turns red, and starts lunging around the room, while Iggy sits upside down. I get in the last 2 hits, but I lose my Shrooms. After Iggy is defeated, Mario chases the airship saying "Stop!"

This is the second level where I have had to re-evaluate my strategy for defeating the Koopalings. Normally, my strategy is to get in a hit, and then hit them after they stop spinning in their shells, preferably before they can use their magic wands again. I had to re-evaluate the strategy in 4-Castle, because it was impossible to stomp Wendy O. while she was under water. My strategy also needed re-evaluation in 5-Castle, because Iggy does not spin in his shell at all and you have to dodge the Chomp instead. My strategy seems to always work in the Forts. Let's see if I need to make any changes for 6-Castle and 7-Castle.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii: 5-Fort -- Nice Platforming

I am still going solo on this level. This level contains a moving spiked wall that covers and uncovers platforms. There are a few Dry Bones, but the main challenge is negotiating the platforms while avoiding the spiked wall. I got and lost a Super Shroom to the spike wall and the spike wall killed me.

Take 2- I got a Super Shroom and the 1st Star Coin. I get and lose an Ice Flower to the spike wall. I eventually reach the Boss Door. Iggy shoots green flames and jumps on 3 raising and lowering platforms. This is kind of like the battle in 1-Castle, but there is nothing to contain Iggy in a smaller area. I got in one hit, but touched the shell. Fortunately, with the platforms, and Iggy's shell timing, there is always a height advantage to be had in avoiding his shell. I got in the last 2 hits and sent him to the castle.

Since World 4, the Koopalings will not stand on top of the Castle while they wait for you. All of them so far will stand on top of the Fort.