Editing Spiny Shell (red)

{{about|the shells of the [[Spiny]] enemy|the blue shell that sometimes has wings and is a ''[[Mario Kart (series)|Mario Kart]]'' item|[[Spiny Shell (blue)]]}}

{{item infobox

|image=[[File:SMMSpinyShellNSMBU.png|83px]]<br>Model of a Spiny Shell in the ''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'' style in ''[[Super Mario Maker]]''

|latest_appearance=''[[Super Mario Bros. Wonder]]'' ([[List of games by date#2023|2023]])

'''Spiny Shells''' are the shells worn by [[Spiny|Spinies]], as a counterpart to [[Koopa Shell]]s worn by [[Koopa Troopa]]s. Their uses vary by game series—in platformers. Typically, the spikes on the shell prevent jumps from above, but when upside-down, empty, or in other series, they can be carried.

In ''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]'', Spiny Shells made their debut. Unlike future appearances, Spiny Shells cannot be jumped on even while upside down without taking damage, though they can be held after being rendered immobile by [[Raccoon Mario]]'s or [[Tanooki Mario]]'s tail swipe. Notably, in the [[Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3|Game Boy Advance version]], upside-down Spiny Shells are harmless, and can thus be stomped.

Like in ''Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3'', in the ''[[New Super Mario Bros. (disambiguation)|New Super Mario Bros.]]'' games, Spiny Shells flipped upside-down will not harm the player characters when they stomp them.

====''Super Mario Maker'' / ''Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS'' / ''Super Mario Maker 2''====

In ''[[Super Mario Maker]]'', ''[[Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS]]'', and ''[[Super Mario Maker 2]]'', Mario is able to wear Spiny Shells like [[Buzzy Shell]]s on his head like a helmet and become '''Spiny Mario''' (except in the ''Super Mario 3D World'' style). They are created by shaking a Spiny in the editor mode to make it hide inside its shell. Spiny Shells defeat just about every enemy outright on contact; this includes even the tougher enemies, such as Thwomps and [[Boo]]s. It deals a single point of damage to [[Bowser]] per hit in ''Super Mario Maker'' and three points in ''Super Mario Maker 2''. When ducking as [[Small Mario]], walking enemies will bounce off Mario as if he was a wall. Spiny Shells can break Blocks like [[Brick Block]]s and [[Hard Block]]s.

The Spiny Shells can be kicked and act similarly to any other shell that slides along the ground, meaning they can harm Mario on contact while sliding unless Mario touches one from below, in which he will wear the shell. Despite idle Spiny shells being empty, they can still harm Mario, due to the spikes, unless the player holds the dash button when touching one, during which Mario will pick it up, regardless of how he approached it (except in the ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' style). A unique property of the Spiny Shell when compared to other shells is that it can break [[? Block]]s even at normal size, completely destroying them without releasing the contents inside or turning them into an empty [[Block]].

In ''Super Mario Maker 2''{{'}}s story mode, Purple Toad dons a Spiny Shell after Mario completes the job [[Spiny Shell Smashers]]; he uses it to destroy Hard Blocks under three nearby ? Blocks, which lets Mario access them and unlock the [[Superball Flower]] for use. He then wears the shell for the rest of the story, even during the staff roll.

Spiny Shells appear as obstacles in the ''[[Mario Party 3]]'' minigame [[Ice-Rink Risk|Ice Rink Risk]]. They also appear the ''[[Mario Party 6]]'' minigames [[Cash Flow]], [[Crate and Peril]], [[Cog Jog (minigame)|Cog Jog]], and the ''[[Mario Party 7]]'' minigame [[Fun Run]]. In addition, there is an orb in ''[[Mario Party 5]]'', ''[[Mario Party 6]]'', and ''[[Mario Party 7]]'' called the [[Spiny Orb]], which has a Spiny Shell as its symbol. They retain their function in Ice-Rink Risk and Crate and Peril in ''[[Mario Party: The Top 100]]''. In the original version of Ice Rink Risk, they uncharacteristically have hexagonal plates making up the carapace instead of a smooth surface, despite the official artwork for said minigame showing otherwise. In ''[[Mario Party Superstars]]'', they reappear in Ice-Rink Risk.

In ''[[Paper Mario]]'' and ''[[Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door]]'', Spinies use their shells to attack by lunging at Mario. Using a [[POW Block]] or [[Quake Hammer]] will flip them over, allowing Mario to jump on them and lowering their defense. In ''[[Super Paper Mario]]'', Spinies will retreat into their shells to attack, and can also fall from the ceiling to attack from above. In ''[[Paper Mario: Color Splash]]'', there are pits in [[Kiwano Temple]] that are filled with [[Spike (obstacle)|spikes]] that resemble Spiny Shells. In ''[[Paper Mario: The Origami King]]'', at [[Shangri-Spa]], a Spiny is spinning rapidly under a pile of leaves. When Mario destroys the leaves, the Spiny exits its shell and explains that it was trying to trim the leaves from the inside.

Spiny Shells, also known as '''Spiked Shells''',<ref>{{cite|date=2007|title=''Mario Strikers Charged'' instruction booklet|page=5|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en}}</ref> function as [[List of items|items]] in ''[[Super Mario Strikers]]'' and ''[[Mario Strikers Charged]]''. When fired, they will shoot towards the other players, similarly to [[Green Shell]]s. However, instead of just hitting one player, then disintegrating, the Spiny Shells will keep going. This can be compared with the green [[big shell|Giant Shell]]s. They continue to bounce around the stage until, at long last, they wear out, and get destroyed on their own. The more effective counterpart of the Spiny Shell is the spiked Giant Shell. Spiny Shells usually come in groups of three. In these games, Spiny Shells have a hexagon-plated carapace rather than the usual smooth one.

SMB3 Spiny Shell cave.png|''Super Mario Bros. 3'' (cave)

PMSpinyShell.png|''[[Paper Mario]]''

SMA4SpinyShell.png|''[[Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3]]''

DashFlow.png|''[[Mario Party 6]]''

Spiny Spin Football.png|Spiny Shell icon in ''Super Mario Strikers''

MSC Red Spiny Shell.png|''[[Mario Strikers Charged]]''

Super Mario Maker - Mario artwork 03.png|''[[Super Mario Maker]]''

SMM SMB Spiny Shell Helmet.png|''Super Mario Maker''

SMMSpinyShellSMB3.png|''Super Mario Maker'' (''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]'' style)

SMMSpinyShellSMW.png|''Super Mario Maker'' (''[[Super Mario World]]'' style)

SMM-SMW-Spiny Shell.png|''Super Mario Maker''

SMMSpinyShellNSMBU.png|''Super Mario Maker'' (''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'' style)

SMM-NSMBU-Spiny Shell.png|''Super Mario Maker''

Super Mario Maker - Artwork 12.png|Mario wearing a Spiny Shell in the ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' style in ''[[Super Mario Maker]]''.

SMM-NSMBU-SuperMario-Spiny.png|Mario wearing a Spiny Shell in the ''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'' style in ''Super Mario Maker''.

Spiny Shell PMTOK sprite.png|''[[Paper Mario: The Origami King]]''

[[Category:Mario Strikers Charged items]]

[[Category:New Super Mario Bros. Wii objects]]

[[Category:Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 objects]]

[[Category:Super Mario Bros. 3 objects]]

[[Category:Super Mario Maker objects]]

[[Category:Super Mario Maker 2 objects]]

[[Category:Super Mario Strikers items]]