Grrrol

Grrrol
Artwork from New Super Mario Bros. U
First appearance	New Super Mario Bros. U (2012)
Latest appearance	New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (2019)
Subject origin	Thwomp
Variants Mega Grrrol
Comparable Bristle Spiky Tromp

Grrrols are spiked stone enemies debuting in New Super Mario Bros. U. Grrrols resemble circular Thwomps with rolling red eyes and a big grin with one tooth missing; the spikes they are surrounded by subtly alternate between lighter and darker shades of gray. Their name is a pun on "grrr", a growling sound, and "roll". They roll around trying to hit the playable characters, and bounce off the walls, themselves, and other solid objects, similar to spiked balls and Spiky Tromps.

History

New Super Mario Bros. U / New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

Grrrols in Grinding-Stone Tower

Grrrols first appear in New Super Mario Bros. U. Similar to Thwomps, Grrrols are nearly invincible enemies, and only the Super Star has an effect on them, as does hitting the Item or Brick Block they are on from below; this makes them slightly weaker than spiked balls. Grrrols are spawned by specific pipe-like walls, which can make infinite units. They can also defeat any enemy they roll into.

Grrrols first appear in a secret room in the Stoneslide Tower of Layer-Cake Desert. They are found again in the Rock-Candy Mines tower, Grinding-Stone Tower, where they are the main obstacles. This level also introduces Mega Grrrols. In the New Super Luigi U variant, Grrrols appear in the Layer-Cake Desert stage Underground Grrrols as the main obstacles. They also appear in Stone-Snake Tower of Soda Jungle and Smashing-Stone Tower of Rock-Candy Mines.

Mario Party series

Mario Party 10

A Grrrol in Mario Party 10

Grrrols reappear in Mario Party 10 as obstacles in the minigame Hop, Drop, and Roll. They are periodically produced by a device on the ceiling, which moves across the screen. After falling on the ground, Grrrols move in a direction until they fall off the ledge. The characters are required to jump over the Grrrols and not get hit, otherwise they lose the minigame.

Super Mario Party

Grrrols in Super Mario Party

Grrrols reappear in Super Mario Party, where they appear as obstacles in the minigames Get Over It and Follow the Money, wherein the former they must be dodged by jumping over them, and in the latter they must be dodged by moving around them (this also has their larger variants). A Grrrol, along with a Wiggler and a group of Chargin' Chucks, appears in Rattle and Hmmm, where it and the other two cause the player's Joy-Cons to rumble. Later, the player must match the subsequent rumbling to the Grrrol or the other two. They may appear as one of the images in Absent Minded.

Gallery

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  New Super Mario Bros. U

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  LEGO Super Mario

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  LEGO Super Mario

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	ゴロー[?] Gorō	Pun on「ごろごろ」(goro-goro, onomatopoeia for rolling) and possibly "roll", or the given name「五郎」(Gorō); same as the Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 Spike Balls
Chinese	刺滚轮 (Simplified) 刺滾輪 (Traditional)[?] Cì Gǔnlún	Spike trolley wheel
Dutch	Grrrol[?]	-
French (NOA)	Grrroul[?]	Grrrol
French (NOE)	Mabroule[?]	Pun on "maboul" ("crazy" in a colloquial way) and "rouler" (to roll)
German	Grrroll[?]	-
Italian	Grollo[?]	Portmanteau of grullo ("fool", possibly in reference to their expression) or "growl" and rullo ("roll") or "troll"
Korean	데구르[?] Degureu	Pun on "데굴데굴" (degul-degul, onomatopoeia for rolling) and "구르다" (gureuda, to roll)
Portuguese	Grrroda[?]	Pun on "grrr" and "roda" (wheel)
Russian	Шипокат[?] Shipokat	Portmanteau of "шип" (ship, thorn) and "покатить" (pokatit, to roll)
Spanish (NOA)	Don Machucón[?]	Mr. Bruise
Spanish (NOE)	Cróncher[?]	-