Hisstocrat
| Hisstocrat | |
|---|---|
 The first Hisstocrat and his minions | |
| Species | Snake |
| First appearance | Super Mario 3D World (2013) |
| Latest appearance | Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (2021) |
The Hisstocrats are bosses appearing in Super Mario 3D World and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, with both a violet-colored male and a pink-colored female version, each with several smaller snake minions. They are named as a portmanteau of the words "hiss", a sound made by snakes, and "aristocrat", referring to their regal attire. The pink Hisstocrat is also referred to as Hisstocrat (pink).[1]
The male Hisstocrat is fought first as the boss of A Banquet with Hisstocrat, the second boss stage of World 3. Hisstocrat has only two attacks; one is to emerge from the ground and cause boulders to fall on the arena. The second attack is to send out snakes with plates for the players to jump on, which sometimes have Super Bells on them. If the plate is cracked, the snake will bite and damage players if they stand on it for too long. Hisstocrat sometimes commands his minions to sink beneath the sand. Occasionally, Hisstocrat will send a snake without a plate to attack, which is telegraphed by the snake's eyes emerging from the ground first before coming up. These snakes cannot be used as platforms, as they will simply bite the player if they attempt to stand on them. His only weak spot is the top of his head, where he has a large X-shaped bandage. The player must use the plates provided the other snakes as platforms in order to reach this weak point, although it is possible for Luigi and Rosalina to jump on Hisstocrat's head directly without the need of the plates by careful use of the Spin Jump. Players can also throw their allies on top of his head. After three hits, Hisstocrat is defeated, two large circles of coins appear, and the Warp Pipe to the Goal Pole as well as a Green Star are revealed.
The female Hisstocrat serves as the boss of Hisstocrat Returns, with her attacks being similar to that of her male counterpart, except she has fireballs instead of boulders raining down to the ground, and she also spits fire.
In Boss Blitz, both Hisstocrats are fought at the same time. In this battle, both Hisstocrats have fireballs raining down, and when one Hisstocrat is hit, the other pauses and stares in shock, giving the player an opportunity to strike that one as well. This can be made easier by using Tanooki Mario. Similar to their previous battles, their defeat will cause a Warp Box, coin circles, and a Green Star to appear.
Appearance[edit]
The Hisstocrats appear to be giant, round snakes. The male one is bluish purple and has a red diamond pattern on his belly. He has a rounded snout, which looks like a somewhat flatter version of Yoshi's. He wears a royal outfit with a blue, circular gem in the center. He has two yellow eyes with slits for pupils, white bandages in an "X" shape on top of his head, and wears a golden crown. His mouth has four fangs and a rounded tongue with a small split in the middle. The female one is magenta, has visible eyelashes, a gray tiara, and a lozenge-shaped gem.
The male minions are a cyan color with a tan underbelly and they carry red plates, while the female ones are magenta and have blue plates.
Additional names[edit]
Internal names[edit]
| Game | File | Name | Meaning
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario 3D World | content/ObjectData/TentackHead.szs, content/ObjectData/TentackHeadLv2.szs, content/ObjectData/TentackTentacle.szs, content/ObjectData/TentackTentacleLv2.szs, content/ObjectData/TentackPillar.szs, content/ObjectData/TentackPillarWhite.szs) | Tentack | A pun on "tentacle" and "attack" |
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ヘビースネーク[?] Hebī Sunēku |
Heavy Snake;「ヘビー」is a derivation of「蛇」(hebi, "snake") | |
| Chinese | 沉重蛇[?] Chénzhòng Shé |
Heavy Snake | |
| Dutch | Hisstocrat[?] | - | |
| French (NOA) | De LaPersifle[?] | "From the Persifle" | |
| French (NOE) | Roi Mambaristo[2] | King Manbaristo | |
| Reine Mambaristo[2] | Queen Manbaristo | ||
| Mambaristo[?] | From "mamba" (the species of snake) and "aristocrat" | ||
| German | Von Zischel[?] | From von ("from") a derivation of zischen ("to hiss") | |
| Italian | Sua Sibilanza[?] | Play on Sua Altezza ("Your Highness") and sibilanza ("sibilance") | |
| Sua Sibilanza rosa[3] | Pink Hisstocrat | female variant | |
| Korean | 헤비스네이크[?] Hebi Seuneikeu |
Heavy Snake | |
| Portuguese | Sua Serpenteza[?] | Pun of Sua Alteza ("Your Highness") and serpente ("snake") | |
| Russian | Гадейшество[?] Gadeyshestvo |
The word гадюка (gadyuka, "viper") transformed into monarchy style ("His Viperness") | |
| Spanish | Su Serpenteza[?] | Play on Su Alteza ("His Highness") and "serpent" |
Trivia[edit]
- The whistles they make sound very similar to the Flute in Wario Land 3. Both sounds are based on a stereotypical melody associated with snake charmers.
- The Hisstocrats are likely inspired by the eight-headed snake of Japanese folklore, Yamata no Orochi, additionally suggested by fact that their minions are internally referred to as "Tentacles". Their appearance as fat snakes also resembles another Japanese mythical creature, the tsuchinoko.
- The Hisstocrats and their minions are somewhat similar to the Sandmaargh enemies from Super Mario 3D Land, both of them being reptilian enemies that burrow out of the sand and may attempt to bite the player.
- Bitefrosts from Super Mario Odyssey also resemble Hisstocrat's minions in their behavior and function. Both are tall enemies that come up from the ground, are used as platforms to reach higher places, and may bite the player if they stand on them for too long.
