International Mushroom Games
The International Mushroom Games, or simply the Mushroom Games, are a competition that takes place in Leaping Lizards. Every six years, the competition takes place on a neutral area in the Mushroom Kingdom, with the participants being teams of six from across the world. The teams compete in a variety of events, some involving a single team member and some involving the entire team, although the use of outside tools and items is not discouraged. In each event, teams compete for medals: First place receives a tin medal, second place receives a wooden medal, third place receives a chocolate medal, and fourth place receives nothing. Teams are immediately disqualified if they eat any of the medals. The winners of the International Mushroom Games are rewarded with a Hoopster-shaped trophy, 50 coins, and the Magic Silver Whistle (which can be obtained only by winning the competition, and using it without having won it is against the law). The most recent competition is of particular interest to Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool, and Toad, as the Mushroom King has been turned into a rabbit, the only way to revert the transformation is with the whistle, and Iggy Koopa is both currently in possession of it and unwilling to give it up. The next competition is conveniently in three weeks, giving everyone the opportunity to train and prepare. The most recent International Mushroom Games are hosted by Feldspar, and the stadium is filled with audience members from the Mushroom Kingdom and beyond.
Teams
In order of introduction, these are the participating teams:
- Koopas – Iggy Koopa, Lemmy Koopa, Morton Koopa, Roy Koopa, Wendy O. Koopa, and a sixth Koopaling who goes unmentioned
- Hammers – three pairs of twin Sledge Brothers, notably Angus Boomer
- Sneaks – two Blooper Nannies, Cobrat, two Firesnakes, Rocky Wrench, and Spike
- Mushroom Kingdom Royals – Luigi (captain), Mario, the Mushroom King, Princess Toadstool, Toad, and Wooster
Events
Some of the teams' ranks depend on the reader's choices, while others always play out the same way.
Obstacle course
The first event is an obstacle course divided into three sections, comparable to a triathlon. The first third of the event contains multiple sets of platforms: some made of bricks, some made of wood, and some made of metal; each of them is packed close to each other, and some of them have sudden drop-offs. The second third is a long river containing a lot of hostile enemies, including electric jellyfish. The final third involves climbing a tall vine to reach a flying carpet, which must then be flown over a pit full of Munchers to the finish line. Roy participates for the Koopas, Angus Boomer participates for the Hammers, and Rocky Wrench participates for the Sneaks. Luigi has the choice of nominating either himself, Mario, or Toadstool to participate. The given puzzle, which involves following the individual lines connected to the three of them and seeing which one has a gap, recommends selecting Toadstool.
If Mario is chosen, the race begins with Rocky Wrench taking an early lead, though with the other competitors behind him. Mario ends up behind everyone else, but he then grabs a Super Mushroom from a metal box that lets him smash his way through the bricks. While smashing the bricks, he accidentally smashes the one that Angus is standing on, causing Angus to land on top of him at the edge of the pool. Angus pushes him aside and swims ahead, leaving Mario disoriented and without any power-ups. When he reaches the vines, Rocky Wrench has already started flying, and Roy and Angus start climbing onto the carpets. However, Roy knocks Angus off his carpet and towards the Munchers, letting Mario win third place and a chocolate medal.
If Luigi chooses himself, Mario and Toadstool immediately question his decision, but they do not get the opportunity to complain as the race is about to begin. The other competitors start running as Feldspar is in the middle of the countdown, while Luigi attempts to complain to the referee to no avail. Despite the late start, Luigi's superior jumping skills let him pass Angus to third place just as they reach the water. An electric jellyfish zaps Luigi almost immediately after he enters the water, giving Angus the chance to pass Luigi. Roy and Rocky Wrench are already flying when Luigi reaches the vines. He sees Rocky Wrench cut a hole in Roy's carpet to make him fall to the Munchers (Roy's flesh is tough enough that the Munchers refuse to eat him), which lets Rocky Wrench take first place. Luigi then attempts to do the same to Angus's carpet, but Angus ends up falling on top of Luigi, and the two plummet towards the finish line. Feldspar gives second place to Angus, but as Luigi is under Angus and completely unable to move or speak, Feldspar does not notice him and he fails to receive a medal. Mario then scolds Luigi for attempting to use his wrench for evil.
If Toadstool is chosen, she readily takes her position at the starting line. Feldspar rushes the countdown to the point where all of the racers start late, but they make it through the platforms without any issues. Once they reach the river, Rocky Wrench is in first place and Toadstool is in second. Roy tries to trip Angus while he is running, which sends Angus flying over the racers into the water face-first, knocking him out. Roy then takes the lead, with Rocky Wrench and Toadstool trailing behind him. As the distance between Toadstool and the other racers increases, she suddenly gets the idea to remove a plate from Angus's shell and use it as a surfboard to ride her way to the vine. Using some waves, she easily surpasses the other racers, and she maintains this lead throughout the whole race, easily gliding her way to victory and winning a tin medal.
Beetlebowl
The second event is the Beetlebowl, where every member of the team participates. A diamond-shaped area is formed in the middle of the stadium, with four large buckets in each corner (one for each team) and a group of orange Hoopsters in the center. The goal is for teams to dunk only one Hoopster into their opponent's buckets while also protecting their own bucket. The teams are ranked based on who dunks a Hoopster first, and whoever fails to dunk a Hoopster is in fourth place. Though the competitors have more questions about the rules, Feldspar ignores them. Luigi consults with his team on how the players should be divided, with some of them protecting their buckets and the rest attempting to dunk into the other buckets. He has to choose between Mario, Toadstool, and himself dunking while the others defend; the Mushroom King, Toadstool, Wooster, and Toad dunking while the others defend; and just Toadstool and himself dunking while the others defend. The given puzzle, which is a word search featuring the names of the competitors, tells the reader to "split up the plumbers," therefore recommending the third choice.
If Mario, Luigi, and Toadstool are chosen to dunk, the three of them immediately charge to the center alongside the other attackers. Lemmy manages to grab a Hoopster, but Spike immediately takes it from him and throws a melon bomb at him, covering him in goo. The king, meanwhile, is distracted by some grass and hops away to eat it while Wooster chases after him, leaving Toad by himself. Immediately, Wendy jumps over Toad and dunks a Hoopster in, and Cobrat slips between Toad's legs to dunk another Hoopster. When the twin Sledge Brothers charge towards Toad, he runs away, letting them dunk it in. Although Mario, Luigi, and Toadstool have been passing a Hoopster back and forth, slowly making their way towards a bucket, the Sledge Brothers dunk their Hoopster before the Royals can reach a bucket, landing them in fourth place without a medal.
If Mario and Luigi are chosen to defend their basket, Toadstool and Toad run off to the center while Wooster attempts and fails to push the king there. Without any help, Toadstool and Toad are unable to grab a single Hoopster. At the same time, Cobrat slithers to the Royals' bucket with a Hoopster, but Luigi knocks the Hoopster away and Mario flings Cobrat to the center. Roy and Wendy then charge the bucket, and Roy dumps a bag full of garbage on Mario, incapacitating him. Wendy, Rocky Wrench, and Angus soon dunk their Hoopsters on the Royals, landing them in fourth place without a medal.
If Luigi and Toadstool are chosen to dunk, the two quickly run to the center. The Firesnakes make it to the center first and create a ring of heat around it, blinding anyone who goes in. Roy, wearing a pair of dark sunglasses, is unfazed and easily grabs a Hoopster. Rocky Wrench then throws a pot of ink at him, covering his sunglasses and causing him to trip and drop his Hoopster. One of the Firesnakes grabs the fallen Hoopster and slinks to the Royals' bucket. Toad is blinded by the light, and Wooster is distracted by the king hopping around, leaving Mario to defend the bucket. The king then hops past Mario, and as Mario is allergic to rabbit fur, he sneezes with such force that he extinguishes the Firesnake. As the Firesnake drops the Hoopster, Mario grabs it and throws it to Luigi, who leaps over everyone else and passes it to Toadstool, who dunks it into the Koopas' undefended bucket. However, the Hammers have already scored at that point, meaning that the Royals win second place and a wooden medal.
Turnip Toss
The Turnip Toss is the third event. As its name suggests, it involves throwing a vegetable as far as possible within a given area, with the farthest distance within the area winning. The other competitors throw their vegetables as far as they can, but Wooster arranges his vegetables in a neat and orderly pile. He attempts to argue with Feldspar that they look much nicer when arranged that way, but he ignores him, and the Royals win no medals.
Waterfall Race
The Waterfall Race is the fourth event. It involves swimming from the bottom of a rushing waterfall to the top. Toadstool participates in this event, but as Iggy spins her around wildly at the start of the race, she ends up swimming down towards the bottom of the pool instead of up. Before she realizes that she made a mistake, the event is over, and the Royals again win no medals.
Fungus Lift
The Fungus Lift is the fifth event, involving lifting a series of weights. Toad is able to lift 12,000 pounds, incredibly surpassing everyone else who participated, including the Sledge Brothers. Due to his stellar performance, he wins a tin medal for the Royals.
Super Triple Jump
The Super Triple Jump is the final event of the competition. It involves the competitors clearing a high bar, jumping through a pipe, and leaping out of the pipe as far as they possibly can. Iggy and Cobrat step forward to represent their teams, while the Hammers recognize that their legs are too short to jump properly and they forfeit. Luigi, after the other team members complain about his poor leading skills, has the choice of either remaining as captain and participating in the event or letting Wooster be the captain and have him choose who jumps. During this event, there is no puzzle that recommends one choice over another.
If Luigi remains as the captain, he walks to the field while the others worriedly look on. Cobrat goes first, sliding neatly through the pipe and reaching 150 "Mushroom Meters." Luigi then goes next, and how his jump goes depends on whether he has the pogo stick, wings, or both of them. If he has both items, he uses them before he jumps into the pipe. However, his first bounce with the pogo stick, combined with the lift of the wings, gives him such a tremendous amount of height that he is launched into the sky and over the horizon. Feldspar then disqualifies him. If he has only one of the two items, Luigi again uses it before entering the pipe, although this time he neatly lands at 152 Mushroom Meters, narrowly beating Cobrat. Iggy then takes his turn and uses the propulsion from a giant spray can to launch himself to the 160-Mushroom-Meter mark. Iggy ends up in first place, with Luigi in second (and a wooden medal) and Cobrat in third. If Luigi does not have any items, his jump lands him only at 30 Mushroom Meters, while Iggy uses a rocket-powered booster to land himself at the 160-Mushroom-Meter mark. Luigi is now in third place with a chocolate medal.
If Luigi decides that Wooster should be the captain, the others are unsure about the decision, but Booster begs them to be the captain until they relent. He then chooses the rabbit Mushroom King as the jumper; Iggy complains about the choice, but nothing comes of it. He leads the king to the starting line and pushes him forward. The king then jumps over the bar, jumps through the pipe, and lands at the end of the field, which is more than 600 Mushroom Meters. Feldspar then awards him two tin medals: one for being in first place, and one for setting a new Mushroom Kingdom record.
Results
Once all of the events have been completed, Feldspar works out the final score of every team with the judges, which depends on the number of medals that each team won. Tin medals are worth ten points, wooden medals are worth five points, and chocolate medals are worth one point. If the Royals win 29 points or fewer, the Koopas are named the International Mushroom Games Champions. The audience quietly leaves the stadium, and as the Royals are contemplating their defeat, it starts to rain. Iggy taunts his victory at them, and though Luigi attempts to encourage the others by saying that they can win at the next International Mushroom Games in six years, Wooster complains that the king is going to continue being a rabbit for those six years. If the Royals win more than 29 points, they are announced as the winner. The teammates celebrate their victory with each other, Feldspar awards them the trophy and coins, and Iggy resentfully gives them the Magic Silver Whistle.
