Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
- For more uses, see Paper Mario (disambiguation).
Template:Infobox Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, known as Paper Mario: RPG in Japan, is the sequel to Paper Mario released for the GameCube in 2004. In this game, Mario is hunting the seven Crystal Stars to open the Thousand-Year Door, while Princess Peach has been kidnapped by a gang of aliens called X-Nauts. The game's entire storyline is divided into eight eventful chapters.
Plot
It has been requested that this article be rewritten. Reason: It is lacking a neutral Point of View.
This section covers the list of events that happened in Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, including the Pit of Trials. Template:Spoiler
Prologue: A Rogue's Welcome
The adventure begins when Princess Peach goes on a cruise with her steward, Toadsworth. The two end up in Rogueport, home of liars and thieves. She slips away from him and meets a mysterious hooded woman who offers her an ancient treasure chest. She claims that the chest can only be opened by "one with a pure heart." The Princess eagerly opens the box and discovers that it contains a Magical Map! She sends the map to Mario, and offers to go on a treasure hunt with him, asking that he meet her in Rogueport.
As Mario reaches Rogueport, he immediately finds trouble. The Princess is nowhere to be found, and a mysterious group-the X-Nauts-are attacking a Goomba girl named Goombella. The villainous Lord Crump directs the group to attack; Mario and Goombella escape in the massive pileup of bodies, and slip into the main town. Goombella introduces herself formally, and explains that she is an archaeology student under the great Professor Frankly. Mario shows Frankly the Map; he then explains the great legend tied to it. The map is connected to a massive gateway in the Rogueport Sewers- the legendary Thousand-Year Door! The door is rumored to contain a great treasure; however, a powerful seal holds the gate in place. The keys to the door are the seven Crystal Stars; the Map has the power to reveal where the Stars lie, if held before the door. Frankly reasons that if the Princess is looking for the Crystal Stars, then the map will eventually reveal her location. Goombella and Mario go down to the Sewers, and encounter a mysterious Black Chest Demon, who "curses" Mario with the ability to turn into a paper airplane! Mario uses this power to reach the Door; he holds the map in the air, and the first Crystal Star appears, in what appears to be a strange castle.
Chapter 1: Castle and Dragon
Mario and Goombella show Professor Frankly the Map, and he reveals that the castle upon it is in the same area as Petalburg, a village of Koopa Troopas. Mario and Goombella travel to the small town and discover that a monstrous dragon-Hooktail-lives inside the Castle, and the Koopas live in horrible fear of him. One particular Koopa-a coward named Koops-asks to travel with Mario, as he wishes to avenge his father, who vanished a decade ago after traveling to defeat Hooktail. The trio must pass through the Shhwonk Fortress and play a quiz game to earn the keys to the Castle. Once they arrive, they bypass Hooktail's traps and learn of his secret weakness-he cannot stand the sound of crickets! With help from Ms. Mowz and another Black Chest Demon which lets Mario become paper-thin, they reach and defeat Hooktail, who is actually a female. She fights the group, but in the end, she falls. Hooktail coughs up Koops's Dad, who also has the Diamond Star!
After the battle with Hooktail, Peach is revealed kidnapped, as usual. Strangely, though, she was not taken by by King Bowser, but the X-Nauts and their leader, Grodus. When an X-Naut tells Grodus someone nabbed the first Crystal Star, Peach guesses that it was Mario. Grodus overhears this and decides to have his Shadow Sirens-icy Beldam, silent Marilyn, and oft-abused Vivian- steal the map from Mario. Peach then meets the TEC-XX, or TEC for short. He is a massive computer that is interested in the Princess's concept of "love", and asks for her help to understand it. The Princess agrees; in exchange, TEC lets her use his keyboard to send e-mail messages to Mario.
At Bowser's Castle, Kammy Koopa tells Bowser that Mario is hunting the seven Crystal Stars; Bowser decides that they sound like good "world-conquering tools", and wants them himself. Kammy also reveals that Peach was captured by someone else. Bowser is outraged at this and leaves for Rogueport to kidnap her back.
Back in Petalburg, the residents are amazed to see that Koops went from a coward to a brave Koopa and that Hooktail has been slain. As they head for the Thousand-Year Door, they receive an e-mail from Peach. Peach tells him she's been kidnapped and the people who kidnapped her are after the map she sent Mario. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map to it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree
The second Crystal Star is revealed to be in the Great Tree in a pale forest. The Great Tree is inhabited by the Punies, a small, cowardly race of worm-like creatures. To enter the Great Tree, Mario and his gang must seek the help of Madame Flurrie, a Cloud Spirit with power over the wind. To obtain her help, Mario must find her precious Necklace. The Shadow Sirens hold it, and Mario must battle to recover it. With Flurrie as their third party member, the group enters the Tree to discover that the X-Nauts have imprisoned the Punies! Mario must navigate traps, the Jabbi tribe, and puzzles to recover the second star, in the heart of the Tree. There, Lord Crump snatches it, and uses his Magnus von Grapple to fight the heroes. He fails, and the group nabs the Emerald Star!
At the X-Naut HQ, the X-Nauts tell Grodus Mario took the Emerald Star; the alien lord is furious. Meanwhile, TEC calls for the Princess, and asks about a typical "love" action. The Princess recommends dancing, and TEC generates a hologram of her to dance. The Princess moves through a waltz, and TEC is intrigued by the emotion he feels.
Meanwhile, Bowser and Kammy are in Petal Meadows. Bowser passes through an area reminiscent of the levels Mario visited in Super Mario Bros.. Upon reaching Petalburg, they manage to find the Princess, only they discover it's actually a poster.
Back at the Great Tree, the Punies say good-bye to Mario and his team and tell them to visit the tree anytime. As they move on, they receive another e-mail from Peach. Peach tells him that the X-Nauts are on the search for the Crystal Stars and tell Mario and his team to be careful. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map to it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 3: Of Glitz and Glory
The third Crystal Star appears on a large stadium in a floating town. To reach the glorious Glitzville, Mario and the gang must visit the fierce Don Pianta, ruler of the West Side of Rougeport. He offers them the tickets they need-if they can find his missing daughter, Francesca, and his mobster Frankie. The two have run off to get married; when Mario brings them back, the Don is pleased with his daughter, and gives them the tickets as promised.
Once Mario and his team enter the Glitz Pit, they spot the Crystal Star on the Champ's Belt, held by the buffed and cocky Rawk Hawk! They decide that the best course of action is to sign up as a fighting team and become the champs themselves. Mario talks with the guffawing Grubba and his cold assistant, Jolene, and becomes the "Great Gonzales." As they battle through the ranks and gain a newborn Yoshi as a partner, a mysterious web of intrigue plays out: fighters vanish, cheating abounds, and a mysterious figure named "X" sends cryptic e-mails. The clues all reveal that the Star on the belt is a fake-the real Gold Star is being used by Grubba, to power a life-sucking machine that he uses to keep himself strong! He transforms into the fierce Macho Grubba, but the group overpowers him in the end. Jolene reveals herself as X, and explains that she was seeking her brother, Prince Mush. The Gold Star grants her wish by bringing him back to her, and everyone wonders about the power of the Crystal Stars.
At the X-Naut base, the Princess expects TEC to have her sing or talk; instead, he asks her to find out what Grodus is planning. Both are surprised-TEC has never questioned Grodus's authority before. The Princess goes undercover in an X-Naut disguise and learns that the alien lord is plotting to take over the world! TEC allows her to send this message to Mario, and continues thinking about the Princess.
Meanwhile, Bowser is searching for one of the Crystal Stars at the Great Tree in Boggly Woods. Unfortunately, he has absolutely no luck.
Back at the Glitz Pit, Mario tells the fighters and Jolene that he is retiring. They give him their thanks and say good bye. As Mario and company head for the Thousand-Year Door, they receive another message from Peach, telling them that the X-Nauts are planning to conquer the world. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map before it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and they go and visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 4: For Pigs the Bell Tolls
The gang sees that the fourth Crystal Star is on a frightening-looking church. Professor Frankly tells them that this "Creepy Steeple" is near a town covered in twilight; to reach the mysterious town, Mario must have his name inscribed on his pants!
Twilight Town is suffering from a horrible curse. A wicked monster lives in the Creepy Steeple, and rings a bell there every so often; when the bell is rung, a citizen transforms into a pig! Using a new Black Chest Demon power that lets Mario roll up like a paper tube, the group reaches the church. They release some Boos (and can even fight the mighty Atomic Boo) inside, and soon meet the monster, a Duplighost! He transforms into a copy of Mario, but the group still beats him and claims his Star...but in a twist, it is revealed that the monster stole Mario's name, transforming the plumber into a shadowy version of himself! His allies go with "Mario", who will only transform back if the real hero can guess his name. To this end, Mario seeks help from a strange source- Vivian, who is with her sisters in town! With her help, he discovers that the monster's name is Doopliss. They fight, and for a brief time, Vivian leaves because she is helping her enemy. However, she suddenly reappears and announces that Mario offered her more kindness than her sisters ever did, and joins him permanently! The two defeat Doopliss and reclaim the Ruby Star.
At the X-Naut base, TEC asks the Princess to participate in a sort of "quiz show" with him. She agrees, and he strangely demands that she answers every question, at any cost. By doing this, she discovers the true "treasure" of the Thousand-Year Door- the soul of an evil demon! The Crystal Stars also work as keys in both ways-they can unlock the door, and also lock the demon away! The Princess sends this news to Mario, and wonders why TEC revealed this crucial information.
Meanwhile, the hapless Bowser continues his quest for Crystal Stars by flying up to Glitzville in his Clown Copter. It malfunctions, and he must traverse an underwater level to return to town, soaked and angry.
Back in Twilight Town, Mario and his friends had explained to the townspeople of how Doopliss imitated Mario. The Mario who was taking all the credit for the end of the curse was an impostor and so, the townspeople apologize to Mario for the misunderstanding. Mario and his team are about to head for the Thousand-Year Door, until they receive a message from Peach, saying that the treasure is the soul of a 1000-year-old demon. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map to it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and they visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 5: The Key to Pirates
The fifth Crystal Star is deep within a pirate's lair, on a far-off island. To reach the island, Mario recruits the aid of the fanciful Flavio and the crusty sea Bob-omb, Admiral Bobbery. After discovering Bobbery's sad past, Mario convinces him to sail with Flavio and his crew, one of whom is a poorly disguised villain.
On their way to the island, Mario and his compatriots are attacked by ghostly Embers, which shipwrecks them! Undeterred, Mario and his gang venture deep into the jungles of the island. They eventually discover the entrance to the Pirate's Grotto with the aid of Bobbery and Flavio's Skull Gem. Inside, Mario gains his fourth Black Chest Demon power: the ability to fold into a paper boat! He uses this power to rescue imprisoned Toads and the honeymooning Francesca and Frankie Pianta...and to reach the lair of the dreaded pirate lord Cortez! After a fierce battle, Cortez relinquishes his Sapphire Star. More trouble arises when Crump abandons his disguise and leads the X-Nauts in an attack, but Cortez lends his ship as aid, and the aliens are defeated once again.
In the X-Naut base, TEC has another surprising assignment for the Princess. Grodus has a disk of private information in his lair, and TEC wishes to gain access to it. To this end, he helps the Princess make an invisibility potion, which allows her to infiltrate the villain's room. She brings the disk to TEC, who promises to analyze it.
In Twilight Town King Bowser|Bowser and Kammy Koopa run into Lord Crump, who is searching for the powerful Superbombomb, dropped by the Shadow Sirens. A contest between who has the bigger army begins, as Bowser assembles his Koopa Troop and Crump calls the X-Nauts. In the end, the battle is a stalemate- Bowser's fiery breath ignites the Superbombomb, which destroys everything!
Back at Keelhaul Key, Cortez ferries Mario and his teammates to Rogueport (and back, later on) on his ship. Mario gets an e-mail from Peach, telling them about what TEC is analyzing. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map to it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 6: Three Days of Excess
The penultimate Crystal Star appears in a foreboding building in a wealthy town. The only way to reach the town is on the fabulously famous Excess Express-and the only way to gain tickets is through the mob connections of the Don Pianta! The Don is sick with worry over his missing daughter, though, and he cannot grant any favors. Mario rounds up the Pianta couple, and Francesca decides that it is time for her to run the family business. Don Pianta is pleased, and grants the plumber his request.
Once on the beautiful train, Mario and his team become swept up in mysterious happenings, including thefts and threatening messages. They have the help of Pennington, a famous penguin detective, and manage to solve the crimes. On their second day of travel, a pit stop at Riverside Station is necessary, and the group fears that someone is trying to stop them in their quest. The guess proves correct, as a fierce beast attacks the other passengers on the last day of the journey! Mario and the gang soundly defeat the villain, and finally reach the Poshley Sanctum. The Shadow Sirens (with new member Doopliss) are inside, and seem to snatch the Garnet Star-but Pennington reveals that what they stole was a fake. He happily presents the heroes with the real Star.
The X-Nauts tell Grodus that Mario has six of the seven Crystal Stars; the alien lord seems surprisingly calm about the situation. Meanwhile, TEC tells the Princess the extremely terrifying data he gained from Grodus's data disk: the X-Nauts plan to use her as a sacrifice to the demon behind the Thousand-Year Door! Incensed, TEC prepares to help Peach escape-but Grodus enters and viciously attacks the computer. TEC gasps out "Iloveyou" just before he is shut down...
Later, Bowser learns that one of the Crystal Stars is through a passage in the Rogueport Sewers. He travels through an underground level to reach it, and finally claims the treasure in a workout room. Unfortunately, the "Star" is the fake Gold Star on Rawk Hawk's belt! The fighter enters the room, and is quite upset about Bowser breaking into his private area.
Mario and his team return to Rogueport and receive an e-mail from Peach, but the rest is cut off due to TEC being deleted. Mario and his team stand before the door and present their map to it. The next Star's location has been marked on the team's map and visit Prof. Frankly for details.
Chapter 7: Mario Shoots the Moon
Mario and his teammates learn that the last Crystal Star is located on the Moon, which is also where Princess Peach is being held. Prof. Frankly tells the team the only way to get there was to use a cannon at Fahr Outpost. Mario and his team had to obtain an Ultra Hammer to get to Fahr Outpost.
As Mario and his team make it to Fahr Outpost, the Mayor tells them that they must get Goldbob's permission to use the cannon. The team had to return to Poshley Heights to get Goldbob's permission and had to keep saying "yes" to his questions. Mario and company are given Goldbob's permission, and the only thing they must do is search for General White and the mayor tells Mario and company he's in Petalburg.
As they get to Petalburg, they ask the koopa at the gate to Petal Meadows where the general is. He tells them that he's on a deserted island to the south. Mario and his team learn he's on Keelhaul Key and ask Pa-Patch for a clue: He's at some arena. Mario and his team head on up to Glitzville and ask the bartender where he is: he's at some huge tree. Mario and his team head for the Great Tree in Boggly Woods and ask the Puni at the gate where he is: somewhere dark. Mario and his team head to Twilight Town and ask the man at the rest house where he is.
It would seem Mario and his team had no luck searching for the general, until they found him back at Fahr Outpost, sleeping at his house. They manage to wake up the general and tell the mayor they found him. Mario will be led to the cannon and will be blasted into space! As they reach the moon, they manage to find a warp pipe leading to the X-Naut HQ and they manage to fight off two Elite X-Nauts at the front gate. After taking out the X-Nauts, they had to go through many difficult tasks to get to the Crystal Star, like going through electric floors to retrieve items, compete in another Super-Fun Quirk Quiz and even play a crane game after Mario and his team found a cog in the Teleportation room. After getting the keys to the elevators and the card keys to the factory, Mario and his team seem to be ready to face the boss: Magnus Von Grapple 2.0, an upgraded version of Magnus Von Grapple and is a lot tougher than the Magnus Von Grapple Mario and his team battled back at the Great Tree. After Mario and his team defeat Magnus, it will explode, shooting Lord Crump into space. Mario and his team will earn the final Crystal Star.
During Bowser's event, Bowser will arrive at Poshley Heights, searching for one of the Crystal Stars. After he and Kammy break into the Poshley Sanctum, they manage to get one of the Crystal Stars, only Pennington tells them it is a red herring. A Paragoomba will fly into the Sanctum and inform Bowser Mario is heading for the Thousand-Year Door. Because of what the Paragoomba told them, Bowser and Kammy are determined to get their hands/claws on the treasure.
Back at the X-Naut Fortress, Mario and his team notice the doors are locked and they can't get out, so they go to the computer room on Sublevel 4. There, they meet TEC. TEC is running on a backup generator after Grodus deleted his memory and he will tell them Peach was taken to the Palace of Shadow and will start to go haywire. He will unlock the teleportation room on Sublevel 2. After Mario and his team escape the fortress, the fortress will be destroyed. After they go through the teleporter, they wind up in Rogueport Sewers. Prof. Frankly meets Mario and co. there and Mario and co. tell him they got the final Crystal Star, but they weren't able to rescue the Princess, since Grodus took her and took off for the Thousand-Year Door.
Chapter 8: The Thousand-Year Door
Now that Mario has received all 7 Crystal Stars, the time has come to open the Thousand-Year Door and enter the Palace of Shadow to rescue Princess Peach from Grodus.
As Mario and his team enter the Palace, they run into some Bombshell Bills blocking their path. After taking out the Blasters, they continue through a spiked floor maze, avoiding the spikes, they cross a room with firebars and as they enter the next room and examine the Dark Bones lying on the ground, the room starts to flood with Dry Bones (similar to what happened in Hooktail Castle) After they chase and defeat the Dark Bones, they continue into another room full of Bombshell Bill Blasters. After defeating the Bill Blasters, they continue their way into the palace and into a maze. Mario follows the torch's path: bottom, bottom, top, top, bottom, top, bottom. After getting through the maze, they reach... outside of the palace? Well, actually they are outside what seems to be a tower.
As they continue their way through the corridors of the Palace, they run into Gloomtail, Hooktail's older brother! After defeating Gloomtail, something expels from Gloomtail's belly-- a Star Key. Mario and co. backtrack through the corridor of the Palace and outside the riddle tower. Mario tosses Bobbery down the mouths of two Chomp Statues, revealing warp pipes leading to the two switches that open the path to the Riddle Tower. As they enter the riddle tower, they head up to level 3 and put the Star Key into the slot. After doing so, they search for 8 palace keys. After getting the keys, they place the keys into the slots and a secret path in the corridors that led them to Gloomtail is opened. Before they can enter the secret path, the Shadow Sirens ambush them along with... Professor Frankly?! Well, that's not Prof. Frankly, because the Prof. Frankly they were with when Mario and co. opened the door was actually Doopliss!
After Mario and co. defeat the Shadow Sirens, they head down the stairs into the secret path. Flurrie blows open a path to the next room with her Gale Force and Yoshi carries the team across. They go into the next room and Koops uses his Shell Toss to create a floor to fill the gap to get across. They wind up outside a room and hit the small green block to make the huge green block vanish and Yoshi gets them across and the team falls to hit a small, purple hammer and ride the elevator to the next room, with Yoshi carrying them. Mario crosses the gap with his spring jump and they head to the next room. As they get there, they have Bobbery blow up a switch to create a floor, allowing Mario and co. to cross a gap. They jump on a wheel and have Koops snag a palace key which opens a door at the top of the stairs to the next room. Mario rolls up into a tube and climbs the stairs. Mario and his team hit 4 switches from right to left: Blocks 2, 4, 5 and 7, activating the wheel and allowing Mario and co. to get to the next room, where they have to blow away paper and smash a huge, gray block and smash a wooden floor to get to the next area. Mario and co. cross the floor carefully and down the stairs and to the next room. Mario activates plane mode and heads into the next room, where a palace key awaits. Mario hits the red switch and has Yoshi carry them to the column, allowing them to cross it and get the palace key. Mario heads back to the previous room, jumps off the floor, jumps on a trampoline and activates plane mode, allowing Mario and co. to get to the Boss.
As they get there, they meet up with Grodus, who thanks them for opening the Thousand-Year Door and Grodus wants to finish them once and for all. After Mario and. co. defeat Grodus, they see Peach trapped in a barrier. Grodus threatens to kill Peach if Mario and co. ever got any closer. Just then, a rumbling sound is heard and who should drop from the ceiling but King Bowser and Kammy Koopa?! Mario and his team defeat them and when they discover Grodus is gone, they hear Peach screaming! Grodus is taking her to the demon's crypt! They follow Grodus into the demon's crypt, only to discover they are too late! Grodus has already awakened the Shadow Queen from her deep sleep and the Queen has possessed Peach's body! Grodus orders the Queen to attack, but the Queen destroys Grodus' body. The Shadow Sirens arrive and took full credit for the awakening of the Queen. The Shadow Queen asked Mario and co. to be her eternal slaves, but Mario and company refused and engaged into battle with the Queen, but the Shadow Queen found Peach's body too weak and used her true form to destroy Mario and company, not to mention having to devour the souls of Mario's audience to restore all of her HP. The Crystal Stars scattered throughout to where they were found and let everyone know Mario and his team were in trouble and sent their positive thoughts and wishes to them. Peach managed to break out of the evil Queen's control and replenished Mario and his team's HP, FP and Star Power. Mario and co. defeated the Shadow Queen and released Peach from her control. After the Queen was defeated, it was sent back to her grave. Prof. Frankly arrives and shows Mario and his team the real treasure behind the door.
After the Prof. shows Mario and his team the treasure, Mario, Luigi, Peach and Toadsworth depart for home and wave good-bye to the team and Punio and Petuni come along and gives Mario and Peach fresh mushrooms for the trip home. At the Mario house, Mario receives an e-mail from Goombella, telling him that she's Prof. Frankly's lab assistant, Koops is running for mayor in Petalburg, Flurrie is a top-class actress alongside Doopliss and they're making a play about Mario's adventure (with Doopliss playing the role of Mario), Yoshi goes solo at the Glitz Pit as the Great Gonzalez Jr., Vivian is reunited with her sisters, who have ended their villain activities and said they won't be mean to her again, Bobbery is sailing the seas with Cortez, Ms. Mowz is back running the Lovely Howz of Badges, Lord Crump and the X-Nauts couldn't do any evil activites anymore and Grodus is still alive, only his head is intact and who knows-- maybe the X-Nauts will plan revenge against Mario, and TEC is alive as well. Peach and Toadsworth visit the Mario house and show the Bros. another treasure map and decide to hunt for the real treasure.
The Pit of 100 Trials
The Pit of 100 Trials is an optional challenge. Before or after saving the world, Mario decided to take on the enemies found in the 100 basement floor area known as the Pit of 100 Trials. He was wary as he continued to venture deeper into the pits, knowing the enemies located on levels 50-99 were very strong. When Mario reached floor 100 he gazed up at Bonetail, long-lost relative of Hooktail and Gloomtail. After defeating Bonetail, Mario got the Return Postage Badge and decided to leave.
Gameplay
Paper Abilities
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door brings up new gameplay elements not present in the original Paper Mario game. Throughout the game, Mario finds four black treasure chests, which give Mario special abilities to use in the overworld. They all base on the Paper element of the game's graphics. With the first ability (called Plane Mode), Mario is able fold himself to a paper airplane at certain spots, allowing him to fly over large gaps. The second ability (called Paper Mode) allows him to turn sideways, making him as thin as paper, so that he can get through very narrow passages. With the third ability (called Tube Mode), Mario can roll himself up, allowing him to roll through low passages. With the fourth ability (called Boat Mode), he can fold himself to a paper ship at certain docks, allowing him to move over water. It is noticeable that, to use Tube Mode, Mario has to activate Paper Mode first, and then roll himself up.
Background
Another element introduced in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is the background scenery, which is actually accessible for Mario through certain pipes. Several places which only appear in the background can be visited this way, including Hooktail Castle, the Great Tree, and Merlee's house in the Rogueport Sewers.
Intermissions
After each chapter, there is an intermission where the player is able to control Princess Peach, who is held captive in the X-Naut Fortress. The Peach intermission is followed by a Bowser intermission, a new addition in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Bowser usually visits the places Mario has been to one chapter before, and several missions include a side-scrolling platformer level in the style of Super Mario Bros. In these levels, Bowser has the ability to breath fire, and by using the only available item, the Meat, is able to radically increase his size, thus crashing everything in his way. While enemies like X-Nauts charge at Bowser, others like Goombas are actually scared by him and turn away when he approaches them. The levels are called 1-X, 2-X and 3-X in reference to the world numbering of Super Mario Bros., while X stands for the number of tries Bowser has used for the level. He has endless lives for the levels. They are set in the three basic terrains of Super Mario Bros.: Overworld, Underwater and Underground/Castle.
Battle System
Attacking enemies
While Mario and his partners are battling enemies, they can attack enemies with extra power using the Action Command.
- Countdown: Tilt and hold the control stick left, then release when the red light flashes.
- Tricky Timing: Pressing A just before landing on Mario's opponent.
- Aiming: Aligning a cursor in the center of the targeting reticule
- Button Mania: Holding on to or repeatedly tapping a button or input an entire sequence.
Stylish Moves are extra commands to please the crowd more and gain more star power.
Guarding
To perform a guard action command, press A or B when Mario's opponent is about to strike him. Guarding will reduce the damage he takes from enemy attacks and help the player resist status effects. The player must time it right, though.
Guard: To perform a Guard move, press A to dodge enemy attacks, reducing the damage they do by 1, also protecting Mario from negative status effects. The player will have a 1/2 second to guard.
Superguard: To perform a Superguard move, press B to dodge enemy attacks, negating the attack completely, damaging their opponent if it is attacking directly. The player only have a 1/4 second to superguard, making it naturally harder than guard.
Leveling Up
Star Points
Every time Mario wins a battle, he'll earn Star Points. When Mario's Star Point Level gets up to 100, he'll choose whether to upgrade his Heart Points, Flower Points or Badge Points. Choosing HP and/or FP will raise Mario's HP or FP by 5 and choosing BP will raise Mario's BP by 3. Mario stops levelling up at 99, however it is very hard to reach this level.
Shine Sprites
When Mario and co. collect Shine Sprites, Mario can give 3 of them to Merlon and Merlon will power up Mario's partners, increasing their HP and teaching them new moves. Getting the Up Arrow in Hooktail Castle will cause Merlon to remember he has an Ultra Stone which will allow Mario to power up his partners a second time, and Merlon will teach Mario's partners ultra-rank moves.
Star Power and the Audience
It has been requested that this article be rewritten. Reason: currently behaves like it was its own article
- Main article: Audience
As in the previous game, using special Crystal Star Powers requires the use of Star Energy. However, in this adventure, it is an Audience that determines how much Energy Mario recovers. The Audience, which consists of various enemies and allies, sits and cheers as the group attacks. If Mario or his allies use the Appeal action or a Stylish Move, they will recover more Star Energy.
The Audience occasionally takes "active participation" in the battles; some spectators throw helpful items, while others may incapacitate other audience members, making Star Power recovery more difficult.
Bingo!
An icon will appear next to Mario's Star Power Gauge whenever the player nails an Action Command. If the player has two matching icons and if the player executes an additional Action Command, Mario can take the Bingo! wheel for a spin. Press the A button to match the third icon to the first two. Matching anything but poison mushrooms also brings Mario's audience to max. 3 Mushrooms will fully recover Mario's Heart Points, 3 Flowers will fully recover his Flower Points, 3 Stars will refill Star Power, and 3 Shine Sprites will fully restore everything!
Mario's Partners
Goombella
A female goomba who studied at Goom University. She's the first character to join Mario after he defeats Lord Crump. She has the same ability to uncover an enemy's stats, like Goombario has.
Koops
A timid koopa who lives in Petalburg. To prove to Petalburg he is not a coward, he joins Mario's team to avenge his dad, Koopley's death. He has the same ability Kooper has outside of battle, using his shell toss move to flip switches, grab items and attack enemies.
After defeating Hooktail, he finds out that Koopley isn't dead after all, and because it, he is able to give the heroes the Diamond Crystal Star.
Madame Flurrie
She can blow wind at enemies to make them dizzy and blow fake walls away, revealing secret passages. She is an actress, although when Mario meets her, she is on hiatus.
Yoshi
Call him by any name the player wish and people will call him by that name. Press X to ride on his back like most Yoshis and hit A to fly briefly over places that have no solid ground, which is the same ability Parakarry possesses in Paper Mario. That same ability can be used to walk faster than Mario alone, pretty much like Lakilester's ability. Yoshi also can be a different color based on when it was hatched.
Vivian
One of the Shadow Sirens. At first, worked for Grodus, but joined Mario's team to help Mario get his name, appearance and teammates back, because Mario treated her a lot nicer than Beldam and/or Marilyn. She can hide Mario from enemy attacks, in which that is the same ability Lady Bow has, but instead of turning Mario and company invisible, she'll pull them into the shadows.
Admiral Bobbery
A retired admiral who refused to help Mario at Keelhaul Key, but decided to help him after Mario gave him his late wife's letter. After Mario saves him from Cortez's underlings and gives him Chuckola Cola, he joins Mario's team. He has the same ability Bombette has outside of battle: with his bomb attack, he can destroy fake walls, flip switches and attack enemies. However, he can be tossed upwards to walk on ledges.
Ms. Mowz
Optional Partner: A Little Mouser cat burglar/badge hunter and the manager of the Lovely Howz of Badges. Mario and his teammates encounter her at Hooktail Castle, the Great Boggly Tree, and the Glitz Pit Storeroom. She joins Mario's team if Mario chooses to solve her trouble at the Trouble Center in Rogueport. To help her, Mario gets the Attack FX B badge in Hooktail's lair and gives it to Ms. Mowz. She can also seek out hidden items and penetrate enemy's defenses like Watt from the first Paper Mario did.
Crystal Stars
- Diamond Star
- Found in: Hooktail Castle
- Power: Earth Tremor
- Emerald Star
- Found in: The Great Tree in Boggly Woods
- Power: Clock Out
- Gold Star
- Found in: Glitzville's Glitz Pit
- Power: Power Lift
- Ruby Star
- Found in: Creepy Steeple
- Power: Art Attack
- Sapphire Star
- Found in: Pirate's Grotto in Keelhaul Key
- Power: Sweet Feast
- Garnet Star
- Found in: The painting in the Poshley Sanctum
- Power: Showstopper
- Crystal Star
- Found in: X-Naut Base on the Moon
- Power: Supernova
Special Moves
Sweet Treat
- Crystal Star Received: N/A
- What It Does: Replenishes UP TO 8 HP for both party members and 8 FP, as well as curing the poison status effect.
- Power Needed: 1
Earth Tremor
- Crystal Star Received: Diamond Star
- What It Does: If successful, this power creates an earthquake that can do up to 6 damage against all enemies.
- Power Needed: 2
Clock Out
- Crystal Star Received: Emerald Star
- What It Does: If successful, immobilizes enemies temporarily.
- Power Needed: 2
Power Lift
- Crystal Star Received: Gold Star
- What It Does: Boosts attack and defense power for a short time for both party members.
- Power Needed: 3
Art Attack
- Crystal Star Received: Ruby Star
- What It Does: Any amount of damage can be done depending on how many times the player encircles around the enemies
- Power Needed: 4
Sweet Feast
- Crystal Star Received: Sapphire Star
- What It Does: Much like Sweet Treat, the player will replenish up to 24 HP for each party member and 24 FP.
- Power Needed: 5
Showstopper
- Crystal Star Received: Garnet Star
- What It Does: If successful, destroys enemies in a single blow! NOTE: Does not work on the more powerful enemies such as Glitz Pit rivals, minibosses and bosses.
- Power Needed: 2
Supernova
- Crystal Star Received: Crystal Star
- What It Does: Does up to 15 damage to all enemies, 3 each time the player fills the gauge.
- Power Needed: 6
Badges
Badges are what Mario may need throughout the game. They can be purchased at the Lovely Howz or by Charlieton, traded for Star Pieces by Dazzle, won at the Pianta Parlor or found in one of the places Mario and company visit. The blocks in which badges are found in the field are red in color, unlike normal item blocks which are yellow.
When leveling up, Mario can gain Badge Points which allow him to use badges he has already found. Some of the badges add new Jump or Hammer moves to Mario's commands during battle and other new abilities.
Badges can also affect Mario and his partners outside of battles. After the battle certain badges can increase the amount of points defeated enemies leave. Enemies might also carry badges in battle, which only Ms. Mowz can steal right away, and there's a likeliness that they might leave them when they're defeated.
Two special badges, the W Emblem and the L Emblem, can change Mario's clothing. With the W Emblem, Mario gets Wario's clothing, with the L Emblem, he gets Luigi's clothing, and with both Emblems combined, he gets Waluigi's clothing.
If multiple copies of the same badge are worn at once, the FP requirements will increase, but so will the attack power.
All badges found in RPG's like Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door are listed here in detail.
Bestiary (Tattle Log)
Goombella has the ability to analyze enemies and state their HP, Attack and Defense, as well as a short description. Their information is stored in the Tattle Log, also known as Bestiary.
Trouble Center Side Quests
- Main article: Trouble Center
In Rogueport there's a "Trouble Center" which offers the citizen's troubles for Mario to solve. An anonymous quest comes from Ms. Mowz and requires Mario to find a badge she has hidden. Only then she joins Mario's team.
Bosses
Yellow signifies chapter bosses.
| Whereabouts | Name | HP | Attack | Defense | Special Attack |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prologue | Lord Crump (1) | 5 | 1 | 0 | none |
| Gus | 20 | 3 | 0 | Spear Throw (3) | |
| Blooper | 12 | 1 | 0 | Ink (1 x 2) | |
| Chapter 1: Castle and Dragon | Gold Fuzzy & Fuzzy Horde |
10 | 1 | 0 | Call Fuzzy Horde |
| 20 | 1 (per fuzzy that attacks) | 0 | none | ||
| Red Bones, Four Dull Bones | 5, 1 (each) | 3, 2 (each) | 1, 1 (each) | Rebuild & Revive, Rebuild | |
| Hooktail | 20 (+10) | 5 | 1 | Trick (5), HP Recover (+10HP) | |
| Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree | Vivian & Marilyn (1) & Beldam (1) |
10 | 1 | 0 | Burn (1 x 2) |
| 12 | 2 | 0 | Charge (+2 Attack Power) | ||
| 9 | 1 | 0 | Various Magic | ||
| Magnus Von Grapple | 30 | 2 | 1 | X-Fist (5), Earthquake (2 x 2) | |
| Chapter 3: Of Glitz and Glory | Armored Harriers (Two Iron Clefts) | 6 (each) | 4 (each) | ??? (each) | none |
| Bowser (1) | 30 | 3 | 1 | Ground Pound (3, you lose an attack) | |
| Rawk Hawk | 40 | 3 | 0 (1 according to Tattle Log) | Air Attack (4), Super Slide (6), Falling Hazard (1 x 12) | |
| Macho Grubba | 60 | 4 | 0 | Various "Macho" Upgrades | |
| Chapter 4: For Pigs the Bell Tolls | Atomic Boo (optional) | 40 | 4 | 0 | Confuse, Immobilize, Invisible |
| ????? (aka Doopliss - 1) | 40 | 4 | 0 | Doppelgänger | |
| Doopliss (2 - Fight with Partners) | 40 | 4 | 0 | Doppelgänger, Partner Attack (Each deals damage present to current Shine Sprite standards), Partner Swap (After partner dies) | |
| Chapter 5: The Key to Pirates | Three Embers | 8 (each) | 3 (each) | 0 (each) | Burn |
| Cortez | 20 x 3 | 4 | 1 | Charge (+4 Attack Power), Haunted Weapons (4 x 4), Poison Hook (4, poison) | |
| Chapter Intermission | Lord Crump (2), X-Nauts | 30, 6/10 | 3, 5 | 0, 0 | Call X-Nauts & HP Recover |
| Chapter 6: Three Days of Excess | Smorg | 50 | 5 | 1 | Grope (10 x 2) |
| Chapter 7: Mario Shoots the Moon | Two Elite X-Nauts | 10 (each) | 5 (each) | 1 (each) | Huge, HP Recover, Dodgy |
| Magnus Von Grapple 2.0 | 70 | 6 | 2 | Flying X (6 x 2), X-Punch (9 x 2), Machine Gun (3 x 10) | |
| Chapter 8: The Thousand-Year Door | Dark Bones, Four Dry Bones | 20, 8 (each) | 5, 5 (each) | 2, 2 (each) | Rebuild & Revive, Rebuild & Revive (each) |
| Gloomtail | 80 | 8 | 2 | Poison, Megabreath (15) | |
| Doopliss (3) & Marilyn (2) & Beldam (2) |
40 | 6 | 0 | Doppelganger | |
| 40 | 7 | 0 | Charge (+7 Attack Power) | ||
| 30 | 5 | 0 | More Various Magic | ||
| Sir Grodus & Four Grodus Xs |
50 | 7 | 1 | Various Magic | |
| 3 (each) | 4 (each) | 0 (each) | Increase Grodus' Defense, Make Grodus Invincible, Ice Beam, Fire Beam | ||
| Bowser (2) & Kammy Koopa |
70 | 7 | 2 | Ground Pound (7, player temporarily loses an potion such as Items or Jump), Burn, Poison | |
| 50 | 5 | 0 | Various Magic | ||
| Shadow Queen | 150 | 7 | 1 | Various Severely Dangerous Magic | |
| Pit of 100 Trials | Bonetail (optional) | 200 | 8 | 2 | Various Severely Dangerous Magic |
Voice Acting
Similarities
There are many similarities between the original Paper Mario and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, including:
- The opening is identical to that of the previous game, right down to Parakarry delivering a letter from Princess Peach.
- The first partner of both games is a Goomba that will give Mario hints on both enemies and the area. They both have headbonk, tattle, and multi-bonk as attacks.
- The second partner of both games is a Koopa Troopa. Both will be able to be shot out to hit switches, etc. Both of them are also able to use Shell Toss and Power shell in battle.
- The fourth partner of each game will allow the player to travel across gaps.
- Both games have a Bob-omb as a partner, both are able to destroy cracked surfaces.
- Both games have a partner that allows Mario to become invisible to enemies.
- Both games have a partner who has betrayed an enemy to join Mario's party.
- The main plot point of both games is to find seven stars.
- In both games the player is able to play as Peach between chapters. The player is required to dress Peach up as an enemy to learn secrets. Also, the player can cook something in both games.
- Mario and Peach contact each other using friendly characters in both games. Twink helped in Paper Mario and TEC in The Thousand-Year Door.
- Mario must solve a mystery in both games. A Bumptie is Mario's fellow detective in both.
- In one point of the games, Mario falls for a ploy created by the boss of the level which led him to be confined in a cage. A ? block in Paper Mario, and a fake puni pedestal in The Thousand Year Door.
- Chapter 1 in both games features a castle/fortress as the location of the boss.
- The partner acquired in Chapter 2 in both games required Mario to bring him or her an item.
- An oversized Clubba is the boss of Chapter 3 in both games.
- In both games, at one point, Mario has to chase the Chapter 3 bosses (Grubba and Tubba's Heart).
- Chapter 4 in both games features a childish opponent: the Shy Guy Army in Paper Mario and Doopliss in The Thousand-Year Door
- Chapter 5 takes place on a tropical island with coconuts in both games and both involve an expedition.
- Chapter 6 takes place in a beautiful area and has a boss that can do a very high amount of damage when charged up: 16 for Huff N. Puff, 10 for Smorg. Also, both are blob-shaped and made up of a smaller species.
- Chapter 7 features a snowy region.
- Chapter 8 includes a minor battle against Bowser before the final battle. Also, Kammy Koopa is fought in both chapters.
- Mario's final battle is divided into multiple parts. At one point, each boss is invincible and Peach must save Mario by sending him psychic energy.
Media
References
Trivia
- A reference is made to The Legend of Zelda in TEC's Question & Answer test with Peach. When he asks her "How do you seal the Demon?", a selectable answer is "A Legendary Sword". This is referring to the Master Sword that Link uses to seal Ganondorf.
