Editing Hard Block

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{{distinguish|Stone Block}}

{{item-infobox

|image=[[File:SMM2 Hard Block SM3DW icon.png]]<br>A Hard Block in the ''[[Super Mario 3D World]]'' style from ''[[Super Mario Maker 2]]''.

|latest_appearance=''[[WarioWare: Get It Together!]]'' ([[List of games by date#2021|2021]])

}}{{quote2|AARGH! I can't hit the [[? Block]]s because those annoying Hard Blocks are in the way.|[[Toad (species)|Purple Toad]]|''[[Super Mario Maker 2]]''}}

A '''Hard Block''' is one of the many [[block]]s in the ''[[Mario (franchise)|Mario]]'' universe. They are commonly used to make stair-like structures. Unlike [[? Block]]s and [[Brick Block]]s, Hard Blocks cannot contain [[List of items|items]] or [[Coin]]s. [[Mario]] and [[Luigi]] are not normally able to destroy Hard Blocks, but certain methods, such as entering a [[Mega Mario|Mega]] state or using a [[Big Thwomp]], can be used to destroy them.

[[File:SMB NES World 6-1 Screenshot.png|thumb|right|Hard Blocks in ''Super Mario Bros.'']]

Hard Blocks make their debut in ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'', and reappear in ''[[Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels]]'' with an identical appearance and purpose. Their most notable use is to create stairs at the end of many levels leading to the top of the [[Goal Pole|flagpole]], which itself has a Hard Block as its base. In some levels, they are used to create much more gently-sloped stairs as a minor obstacle.

[[File:SMB3 Wood Block Sprite.png|frame|left]]

[[File:Wooden Block.png|thumb|left]]

Hard Blocks also appear in ''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]'', where they are known as '''Wood Blocks'''.<ref>Peterson, Erik. ''Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3'' Player's Guide. Page 31.</ref> Some Wood Blocks are bouncy; these blocks bounce Mario or Luigi away if they run against their sides, and are sometimes found near [[pit]]s as an obstacle. Some of these blocks also hold items, only releasing them if they are bumped into or hit with a [[shell]] or [[Raccoon Mario|tail]] [[Tanooki Mario|whip]].

 

[[Chain Chomp]]s are usually found attached to Wood Blocks. Larger inert Wood Blocks appear in the fourth world, [[Giant Land]].

Hard Blocks, now called '''Gray Blocks'''<ref>M. Arakawa. Nintendo ''Mario Mania'' Player's Guide. Pages 71, 89, 108, 153.</ref> (alternatively '''gray Block'''<ref>M. Arakawa. Nintendo ''Mario Mania'' Player's Guide. Page 57.</ref> or '''Grey Block'''<ref>M. Arakawa. Nintendo ''Mario Mania'' Player's Guide. Page 73.</ref>), appear once again in ''[[Super Mario World]]'' with a different redesign, this time resembling blocks of stone. They reprise their purpose from previous games.{{br}}

Hard Blocks reappear in ''[[New Super Mario Bros.]]'' at the end of most levels like in ''Super Mario Bros.'', used as a staircase to reach the flagpole. The flagpole itself has a new [[fortress]]-styled base instead of a Hard Block. If Mario gains a [[Mega Mushroom]] and turns into [[Mega Mario]], he can destroy Hard Blocks simply by running into them. [[Volcanic debris]] can also destroy Hard Blocks.

Hard Blocks reappear in ''[[New Super Mario Bros. Wii]]'', but only in {{world-link|coin|2|World Coin-2 (New Super Mario Bros. Wii)}}.

Wood Blocks from ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' return in ''[[Super Mario 3D Land]]'', where they are usually twice as large (like those in Giant Land) and have a more yellow color. Hard Blocks with the design from ''Super Mario Bros.'' return at the end of [[World 2-3 (Super Mario 3D Land)|World 2-3]] and [[Special 1-3]].

====''New Super Mario Bros. U'' / ''New Super Luigi U''====

[[File:NSLU Piranha Heights Luigi Sighting.png|thumb|left|An 8-bit Luigi made out of colored stone blocks in ''New Super Luigi U'']]

Hard Blocks return in ''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'', referred to as '''stone blocks'''{{ref needed}}. Colored stone blocks also appear in ''[[New Super Luigi U]]'', used mostly for decoration, or to make pixel art such as [[List of Luigi sightings in New Super Luigi U|8-bit Luigi]]s, a common [[Easter egg]] in the game.

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Hard Blocks also appear in ''[[Super Mario Maker 2]]''. They have the same functionality as they did in ''[[Super Mario Maker]]'', except that they cannot be broken by [[Big Mario]] from the side. [[Link]]'s bombs can now also destroy Hard Blocks. Hard Blocks can be destroyed by [[Big Thwomp]]s, [[Bob-omb]]s, and Big [[Spike Ball]]s. A Big [[Blasta Mechakoopa]]’s missile explosion, a Big [[Zappa Mechakoopa]]’s laser beam, [[Ground Pound]]s from most bosses, and Big [[Bowser]]’s [[Fireball]]s and body can destroy hard blocks. Hard blocks can also be given wings and when playing a course, they will fly a few blocks left, then fly twice as many blocks right, then fly that many blocks left, and repeat the latter two.

In the ''[[Super Mario 3D World]]'' style, they take the form of [[Rock Block]]s. If the player uses the [[Super Hammer (Super Mario Maker 2)|Super Hammer]], they can break these blocks with a hammer swing. They can also be broken by [[Banzai Bill]]s. Just like the other styles, [[Big Thwomp]]s, [[Bob-omb]]s, and [[Giant Spiked Ball]]s can break these blocks. A [[Porcupuffer]]’s explosion from [[Fireball]]s and [[Big Bully|Big Bullies]] can also break them.

[[File:HardBlocks W1-2 SSBB.jpg|thumb|right|Hard Blocks in the World 1-2 version of Mushroomy Kingdom in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'']]

In ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'', ''[[Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS]]'', and ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', Hard Blocks appear as part of the [[Mushroomy Kingdom]] stage. They are arranged just as in [[World 1-1 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 1-1]] (and in ''Brawl'' only, [[World 1-2 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 1-2]]) of ''Super Mario Bros.'' However, they now appear worn, chipped, and cracked, matching the stage's ruined appearance. The block the [[Goal Pole|flagpole]] stood on in World 1-1 is gone, but only in ''Brawl'' and ''for 3DS''; it is in the background in ''Ultimate''. Additionally, Hard Blocks also form the top two layers of the stage's [[Final Destination]] form in the 3DS game, and the [[Battlefield]] form's platforms in ''Ultimate''.

|Jap=木目ブロック<ref>Shogakukan. 2015. ''Super Mario Bros. Hyakka: Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook'', ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' section, page 41.</ref><br>''Mokume Burokku''<br>石ブロック<ref>Shogakukan. 2015. ''Super Mario Bros. Hyakka: Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook'', pages 118, 149, 199, 215.</ref><br>''Ishi Burokku''<br>硬いブロック<br>''Katai Burokku''

|JapM=Woodgrain Block (''Super Mario Bros. 3'')<br><br>Stone Block (''New Super Mario Bros.'' games)<br><br>Hard Block (''Super Mario Maker 2'')

|FraE=Bloc solide

|FraEM=Solid block