Dry Bones
Dry Bones is a skeleton version of a Koopa. The way to "beat" them is to jump on their heads, causing them to fall apart. But don't think that they stay in little pieces, because they will soon reassemble themselves to their original form!
Dry Bones' first appearance is in Super Mario Bros. 3, but he can also be selected as an unlockable character in Mario Kart DS and Mario Party 7, and a starting character in Mario Superstar Baseball. He is also seen as an enemy in a few other Super Mario side-scrolling platformers.
In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, there are three more varieties of the original Dry Bones (which is able to revive and build reinforcements): Dull Bones (weakest and cannot revive, but able to build reinforcements), Red Bones (stronger than the dull kind, but weaker than the original dry kind and able to revive), and Dark Bones (strongest of the bones bunch and capable of reviving).
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
In Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, Dry Bones reside inside Yoob’s stomach. In battle, a Dry Bones will throw bones at Mario and Luigi to attack. If the Dry Bones jumps before throwing a bone, the bone will bounce over the Mario brother’s head; if Dry Bones does not jump, the bone will bounce towards Mario or Luigi and must be evaded by jumping. Additionally, if the Dry Bones gnashes its teeth, the skeletal Koopa will attack Mario before attacking Luigi. If the Dry Bones twirls its head around, the undead monster will attack Luigi before attacking Mario.
It is unknown how the Dry Bones ended up in Yoob’s stomach. They may have been normal Koopas that were eaten and digested by the monstrous Yoshi. However, Yoob apparently does not like the taste of Koopas, as the monster spits out both Kylie Koopa and Kamek Koopa (but, strangely, does eat Baby Bowser). Thus the Dry Bones in Yoob’s stomach may have appeared there by some other means.
Large Dry Bones statues also appear in the Gritzy Desert.
