Fire Piranha Plant

Fire Piranha Plant
	; Artwork from New Super Mario Bros. U
First appearance	Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988)
Latest appearance	Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Booster Course Pass, Wave 4) (2023)
Variant of	Piranha Plant
Variants
	Big Fire Piranha; Fire Nipper Plant; Fire Stalking Piranha Plant; Jumping Fire Piranha Plant; Lava Piranha; Paper Fire Piranha Plant; Petit Piranha; Piranha Plant (statue); Small Piranha
Relatives
	Ice Piranha Plant
Comparable
	Chewy; Dino Piranha; Elasto-Piranha; Glad P. Plant; Smilax
Notable members
	Fiery Dino Piranha; Mama Fireplant; Pakkun Mogura

A Fire Piranha Plant (also called a Fire Piranha in Paper Mario: Sticker Star and originally known as a Venus Fire Trap^[1]^[2]^[3]) is a variety of Piranha Plant that can shoot fireballs, and some have the ability to fire three at a time. Fire Piranha Plants come in either green or red varieties. Their original name, "Venus Fire Traps," is a play on the name of the Venus flytrap. The Ice Piranha Plant is the ice counterpart of the Fire Piranha Plant.

History

Super Mario series

Artwork of a Venus Fire Trap, from Super Mario Bros. 3.

Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3

In their first appearance in Super Mario Bros. 3, Venus Fire Traps appear as common enemies in most worlds. Their attack pattern basically consists of hiding in Warp Pipes, much like regular Piranha Plants, and, when Mario approaches, rising from the pipe and spitting an unstoppable fireball in his direction. Like regular Piranha Plants, they can only be defeated with power-ups, and depending on how tall they are, appear in red or green. In some levels, Venus Fire Traps can spit two times in a row, and some inhabit quicksand instead of pipes. Aside from the enemies, the king of Pipe Land was also transformed into an orange-headed Venus Fire Trap with a small pipe by Ludwig von Koopa in the original NES version of the game.

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 has a sideways variant of the Venus Fire Trap with a red head and one layer of red leaves. They are seen in the World-e level Piped Full of Plants.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

In Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, Venus Fire Traps once again appear as common enemies and have the same attack pattern as in Super Mario Bros. 3. Unique to this game, they appear to have spikes on their heads, but only in the in-game sprites; this may be to justify Mario's inability to jump on them despite them not biting upwards. Venus Fire Trap statues appear in Mario's castle; like their living counterparts, they spit fireballs, although they also come in comparatively big and small sizes, and are limited to shooting their much larger fireballs straight forwards.

Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS

Main article: Big Fire Piranha

Main article: Small Piranha

A Small Piranha on Tiny-Huge Island in Super Mario 64

While ordinary Venus Fire Traps do not appear in Super Mario 64 or its remake, large and small versions appear on Tiny-Huge Island and in Bowser in the Sky.

New Super Mario Bros.

In New Super Mario Bros., Venus Fire Traps appear as uncommon enemies. Venus Fire Traps appear grounded in World 2-6, and World 5-Castle, and in pipes in World 3-B and World 6-3. They attack and behave in the same way as in Super Mario Bros. 3. They can be defeated with a Fire Flower, Starman, shell dash, or by Mega Mario or Luigi.

Super Mario Galaxy / Super Mario Galaxy 2

Main article: Fiery Dino Piranha

In Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2, normal Venus Fire Traps do not appear, but a boss combining their traits with a Dino Piranha called Fiery Dino Piranha can be fought in both games.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

A Venus Fire Trap from New Super Mario Bros. Wii

In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, they behave the same as in New Super Mario Bros. and can be defeated in the same way as last time; however, they can now be frozen via Penguin Suit or Ice Flower. They first appear in World 1-3. Venus Fire Traps can also be helpful to the player because they can be found in dark caves where there are no Light Blocks. The fire these enemies spit can light up a small amount of the room, often revealing secret pipes and pits. Yoshi can swallow the fireball or the Venus Fire Trap itself to be able to spit a fireball out, which can be used to defeat enemies, although this fireball can still hurt other players. Larger versions also reappear in this game; they are the same size as Super Piranha Plants and take three fireballs to destroy. The fireballs they spit are also larger. Just as before, if a Venus Fire Trap is in a pipe, it spits a fireball and briefly retreats into the pipe; if it has no pipe, it spits a fireball then chomps in the air for a few seconds before doing it again. In World 9-7, one Venus Fire Trap will spit three fireballs in a row (instead of one) before retreating into its pipe.

Super Mario 3D Land

A Fire Piranha Plant from Super Mario 3D Land.

Fire Piranha Plants appear in Super Mario 3D Land, with a slight change in appearance. They are now black with orange spots, likely so they can be differentiated from regular Piranha Plants from afar, as they share the same stance in this game. Some leave behind a Fire Flower when they are defeated by Mario.

New Super Mario Bros. 2

Venus Fire Traps also appear in New Super Mario Bros. 2. They reuse their appearance from the previous New Super Mario Bros. games, with red and white spots. Big Venus Fire Traps also appear in the game. In World 6-2, using a Gold Ring inside a bonus room turns the Venus Fire Trap into a golden Venus Fire Trap; it acts the same as a normal one, but when it is defeated Coins emerge from the Warp Pipe, like a normal Piranha Plant.

New Super Mario Bros. U

Fire Piranha Plants in New Super Mario Bros. U

Fire Piranha Plants also reappear in New Super Mario Bros. U along with their ice counterparts. They mostly retain their behavior and appearance from their previous New Super Mario Bros. series appearances, except that they always face up while not spitting fireballs.

Their fireballs can also melt Frozen Coins.

Super Mario 3D World / Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury

A Fire Piranha Plant from Super Mario 3D World.

A cat-like Fire Piranha Plant

Fire Piranha Plants return in Super Mario 3D World. In this game they retain their appearance and behavior from Super Mario 3D Land.

They return in the game's port, where their fireballs are now more realistic-sounding. In Bowser's Fury, Fire Piranha Plants are replaced by Cat versions of themselves which act the same way as normal ones.

Super Mario Maker / Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS

Fire Piranha Plants reappear in Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS, appearing when the player shakes a Piranha Plant or a Jumping Piranha Plant, depending on which style. Despite never appearing in Super Mario Bros., they are given a new sprite based on the standard Piranha Plant's sprite in that style. They are also given new sprites in the Super Mario World style.

Super Mario Odyssey

A Fire Piranha Plant after being captured by Mario.

Fire Piranha Plants appear in Super Mario Odyssey, where they can be found in the Lost Kingdom, the Luncheon Kingdom, and the Metro Kingdom. Unlike in prior 3D games, they look the same as normal Piranha Plants (which do not appear in this game), and when they are about to spit a fireball, their heads glow orange. Cappy will become trapped in a Fire Piranha Plant's mouth if Mario throws him at one, stopping it from spitting fireballs. If a rock is thrown at a Fire Piranha Plant, it will similarly hold it in its mouth, allowing Mario to capture the enemy and use it to shoot fireballs. Throwing Cappy at a fireball that a Fire Piranha Plant spits causes it to be knocked in a different direction. If a Fire Piranha Plant's fireball makes contact with a torch, the torch will light up.

Super Mario Maker 2

Fire Piranha Plants reappear in Super Mario Maker 2. In the Super Mario 3D World style, they retain their appearance from the game, and are able to be defeated by being jumped on.

DIC cartoons

The Magic Piranha Plant with eyes from The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode, "Butch Mario and the Luigi Kid"

A Venus Fire Trap from The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 episode, "Tag Team Trouble"

Piranha Plants with fireball exhaling abilities appear in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, though they are referred to as Magic Piranha Plants. Kid Koopa used one during his draw with Butch Mario in "Butch Mario and the Luigi Kid", where it briefly gained eyes when squeezed. Venus Fire Traps also make several appearances in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3. In the Super Mario World television series episode "Gopher Bash," Cheatsy sends a Venus Fire Trap (here called a fire plant)^[4] as a replacement for one of the Cave People's crops. Here, it is depicted as a normal piranha plant with three spikes on top. When Yoshi eats it he notes that it tastes like salsa, while a normal piranha plant tastes bland. In "Fire Sale," Kootie Pie kidnaps Mama Fireplant, a fire plant from Dome City, and takes her to her ice castle to warm it up.

List of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episodes featuring Magic Piranha Plants

Butch Mario & The Luigi Kid
Count Koopula
Koopenstein
The Great Gold Coin Rush

Nintendo Comics System

In the Nintendo Comics System story "The Fish That Should've Gotten Away", a giant green Venus Fire Trap appears among the large group of monsters attacking and chasing Mario.

Paper Mario series

Paper Mario

Main article: Lava Piranha

While Venus Fire Traps do not appear as normal enemies in the original Paper Mario, a Lava Piranha, which appears as the boss of Mt. Lavalava, is heavily implied to be one (referring to itself and its Lava Buds in the plural first person). In the Japanese script, it has the same name as a regular Venus Fire Trap and it is indicated that living in lava is not normal of the species, thus indicating it is an abnormally designed generic Venus Fire Trap. The English version hints at its connection to them with Goombario and Koopa Koot referring to the Lava Piranha in a context that indicated there are more than one; neither version has the Lava Piranha addressed as a specific individual.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star

Standard Fire Piranha Plants make their Paper Mario series debut in Paper Mario: Sticker Star under the name Fire Piranha in the American English version. They appear in Rugged Road and Rumble Volcano. They look like regular Piranha Plants, but will eventually start spitting fireballs at Mario as he gets near them. If any of these fireballs touch Mario, he loses 5 HP. In battle, Fire Piranha Plants can either spew a cloud of hot ash towards Mario or more rarely spit out a fireball at him.

Paper Mario: Color Splash

Fire Piranha Plants return in Paper Mario: Color Splash. They can be found in Redpepper Crater and shoot fireballs at Mario even outside battle, which deals 8 HP of damage.

Another one is found in Plum Park inside a bucket, and has to be First Strike-attacked with a hammer in order to not get damaged. The Fire Piranha Plant in Plum Park does not shoot fireballs outside of battle.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong series

Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis

Venus Fire Traps, known as Piranha Plants,^[5] are common enemies in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. They are introduced in Mushroom Mayhem and continue to show up frequently throughout the game, most notably in the boss level of Pipe Works. They only have one fireball to shoot (merely called a "ball"^[6]), which bounces off an opposing surface and returns into their mouth. Often, two Piranha Plants face each other, passing the ball from one to another. Piranha Plants keep their mouths open until they get their fireball back. In the Pipe Works boss fight, they come out of the pipes on the ceiling and shoot fireballs at the player without waiting for them to come back, retreating in their pipe immediately after launching a fireball. Piranha Plants are completely invincible in this game.

Piranha Plants appear to have stout heads comprising most of their body, with leaves on their bottom. Their heads are entirely red, without white spots.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!

Venus Fire Traps, classified along with the variety that does not produce fireballs as Piranha Plants,^[7]^[8] reappear in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!. They first appear on the second floor, Sandstone Stroll, and are specific to this floor's construction kit in the Construction Zone. Generally, they have a slimmer appearance than in the previous installment of the series. However, the Piranha Plants that appear in Floor 3 Donkey Kong, the boss level of Magnet Mania (which is almost identical to the boss level of Pipe Works from the predecessor) retain their stout appearance.

Piranha Plants behave completely the same as in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. They are also invulnerable to any attacks.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!

Venus Fire Traps, now known as a Piranha with Fire,^[9] appear alongside normal Piranha Plants in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! They are first encountered in Warped Mansion. They retain their slim appearance from Minis March Again!, but display white spots on their heads like in their classic appearance. Starting with this game, it is possible to defeat a Piranha with Fire by attacking it with Hammers, a slope slide or by shooting from a Cannon.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars

Fire Piranha Plants appear in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars, behaving as in previous titles. This time, they are labeled under their current name in the Workshop. They are first found in Crumbling Cavern and do not display any significant difference from their appearance in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!

WarioWare series

In WarioWare: Twisted!, Venus Fire Traps with their Super Mario Bros. 3 sprites appear in the microgame Super Mario Bros. 3-Lift, as one of the enemies who try to attack the player. They reprise this role in WarioWare Gold. They also may appear in 9-Volt’s Super Mario Maker microgame if the player is instructed to shake a Piranha Plant.

Mario Kart series

Mario Kart DS

In Mario Kart DS, there are two Venus Fire Traps in Warp Pipes that spit fireballs at the player in Mario Circuit. If the player is hit by a fireball, they will spin out.

Mario Kart Arcade GP DX / Mario Kart Arcade GP VR

A few Fire Piranha Plants appear at the starting line on the course Kingdom Way, spitting fireballs into the air. However, they do not affect gameplay.

Mario Kart Tour

DS Mario Circuit returns in Mario Kart Tour in the 2023 Mario Tour, bringing back the Fire Piranha Plants. In this game, the fireballs are spit at a slightly faster pace, attacking the same section of the road each time.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

The Fire Piranha Plants in the remake of DS Mario Circuit.

Fire Piranha Plants return in DS Mario Circuit in the Booster Course Pass for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. They function identically to their Mario Kart Tour appearance.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

Fire Piranha Plants appear as enemies in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, with the same design and behavior as in Super Mario 3D World.

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam

Fire Piranha Plants also appear in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, where they are found in the lighter side of Gloomy Woods. Their paper variants later appear during the second visit to Twinsy Tropics. Fire Piranha Plants can attack by spitting fireballs at the bros. They can either spit two small fireballs, which target Mario and Luigi, or a large fireball, which targets Paper Mario. The fireballs occasionally cause the burn status ailment. Fire Piranha Plants can also attack by stretching their head backwards, causing it to be pulled forwards quickly into one of the bros., which can be countered with a hammer.

Mario Tennis Aces

The playable Fire Piranha Plant in Mario Tennis Aces.

Fire Piranha Plants appear in Mario Tennis Aces with their Super Mario 3D Land color scheme. They appear in Piranha Plant Forest as stage hazards where if they catch a ball, they will fire a Zone Shot at the opposing player. They also appear in the mission Rapid Fire in Adventure Mode, where they also fire Zone Shots.

One Fire Piranha Plant appears as a playable Technical character, appearing in a pot and holding its racket in its mouth.^[10] It was available as a participation bonus in the tournament that took place from June 1, 2019 to June 30, 2019 and became automatically unlocked for all players after July 1, 2019. Excluding capturing in Super Mario Odyssey and the Piranha Plant fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, this marks the first time a Fire Piranha Plant is playable.

Other appearances

Sprites found in prototype revisions of Super Mario World include sprites for Venus Fire Traps, but they are not included in the final game in any way.^[11]

While they do not appear in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Fire Piranha Plants are mentioned briefly by Viridi during the Palutena's Guidance dialogue for Piranha Plant. Piranha Plant also spits fire from its mouth for its back air attack, referencing Fire Piranha Plants.

Textures for Fire Piranha Plants have been datamined for Mario Kart Tour, though they are currently unused.^[12]

Profiles and statistics

Perfect Ban Mario Character Daijiten

ファイアパックン
種族　フラワー族
性格　いやらしい
登場ゲーム　3、ランド2
ファイアをはき出すぞ
ファイアをはき出すようになった、パックンフラワーの強力版。マリオを狙って、上だけでなく下にもファイアをはき出してくる。その前にファイアでやっつけちゃおう。^[13]

Fire Piranha
Tribe: Flower clan
Disposition: Obscene
Game appearances: 3, Land 2
I'm gonna spit fire out
A powerful version of Piranha Plant that now spews fire. Aiming at Mario, it spews fire not only upward but also downward. Let's kill it with fire before it does.