Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars/Characters

The video game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, created by the Nintendo and Square Enix companies, has a unique set of characters that derive both from previous installments of the Mario video game series and new characters made specifically for the game. Standard bearers of Nintendo's Mario franchise, such as Luigi and Mario's main enemy King Bowser have roles in the game. The rights to the new playable character Geno, is owned by Square Enix, the game's co-developer and co-publisher.

Main Characters

The game's main characters include three of the main individuals of the franchise as well as two original characters. Mario is the silent main character, and the hero who often saves the world. On his way to find and rescue Princess Toadstool — a common objective from previous Mario games — he meets up with the cloud-like being Mallow, who believes he is a tadpole. As he returns to his home with Mario, he learns the truth, that he is not a tadpole, and he was found floating in a river by his adoptive grandfather, Frogfucius, and sets off with Mario in the hope of finding his true parents. On their search, they meet a being from Star Road, who possesses a young boy's doll, Geno, taking on the doll's name and persona. He explains that he is an otherworldly traveler sent by a higher authority to recover the seven Star Pieces that must be found in order to stop Smithy, the main villain of the game. They eventually run into Bowser, and save Princess Toadstool. Bowser decides to help Mario, so he can reclaim his castle from the Smithy Gang; and the Princess, desperate to help, sneaks out of the Mushroom Kingdom to help on their travels.

Mario

Mario is the protagonist of the game and is the only character used by the player.

After attempting to save Princess Toadstool (Known in other titles as Princess Peach) from Bowser, Mario gets flung from Bowser's Castle and crash-lands in his house. After venturing back to Bowser's Castle, Mario finds the giant sword Exor lodged in the roof of it. Learning that his world is being invaded by the Smithy Gang, Mario is forced to retreat to his house after Exor destroys the only bridge to Bowser's Keep.

Mario is well-known throughout the world, especially for his legendary jumping skills. He often has to use his jumping to identify himself, or just to impress other characters in the game.

Mario also parodies the silent protagonists common in RPGs at the time by never speaking and pantomiming events to other characters to explain them.

Where other characters can be switched for battle during gameplay, the player is forced to use Mario in every battle in the game.

Mallow

A cloud-like creature with the power to control the weather, Mario first meets Mallow when the cloud-being was being harassed by the crocodilian thief, Croco. Finding Mallow sobbing after having a special coin stolen from him by Croco, Mario decides to aid Mallow in getting his coin back.

Tracking Croco down to Bandit's Way, Mario and Mallow manage to defeat the thief and reclaim Mallow's coin. Returning to the Mushroom Kingdom, the two find it under the control of Mack, a member of the Smithy Gang. Defeating Mack, Mario and Mallow venture through Kero Sewers and, after a little trouble with the monster Belome, the two adventurers meet Mallow's grandfather, Frogfucius.

It is during this meeting with Frogfucius that Mallow learns that he, in actuality, is not a tadpole; one stormy night, Frogfucius found Mallow drifting down a river. Not knowing what to do, the old frog raised Mallow as his own. After learning this, Mallow decides to go journeying with Mario, hoping to discover his real parents and home.

Much later in the game, Mallow does find his parents. He learns from the sculptor Garro that he is the son of King and Queen Nimbus, making him the prince of Nimbus Land. Freeing Nimbus Land from the wicked Queen Valentina, Mallow finally met his real parents. After defeating Smithy, Mallow apparently returned to Nimbus Land to live with his family.

As far as combat goes, Mallow is one of the most powerful in the game. He is not the strongest (that honor goes to Bowser), but until Toadstool comes aboard, he is the only character who can heal party members without an item. Also, Mallow is the only one who has the powers of ice and lightning, the two powers that Mario does not possess that an enemy may be weak against.

Geno

An otherworldly traveler sent by a higher authority, whose real name is ♥♪!?, comes to Mario's world from Star Road to find the seven Star Pieces. Borrowing the form of Gaz's doll, Geno, a beam of light radiates from it bringing it to life, and he sets off searching for the Star Pieces. Since his name is hard to pronounce, he asks Mario and Mallow to call him "Geno", after the doll.

Encountering Mario and Mallow during his battle with Bowyer, Geno gladly accepts their help in battle. Defeating Bowyer, Geno explains to Mario and Mallow about his mission to find the Star Pieces and repair Star Road. Geno decides to travel with them to find the Star Pieces. Throughout the game, Geno offers advice to the party as a mystical sage-type figure. After destroying Smithy and reclaiming all seven Star Pieces, again a beam of light radiates from Geno, rendering the doll lifeless, and the otherworldly traveler bids farewell to his allies in order to repair Star Road.

Although the character Geno is copyrighted to Square (now Square Enix), in Little Fungitown of Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, a Geno doll is an instructional aid to explain to players how to play the "Star Stache Smash" minigame, and the sound of his speech is very robotic. Just as Gaz played with the doll in Super Mario RPG, a person's hand operates Geno, since the otherworldly traveler left the doll's body after defeating Smithy.

In combat, Geno's uniqueness comes from his ability to boost players' attack and defense power for the entirety of the battle using his "Geno Boost." It normally only raises attack power, but a timed action command can raise defense as well.

Bowser

Template:Mainarticle After a botched attempt to kidnap Princess Toadstool, Bowser and several of his minions are forced out of Bowser's Castle by the Smithy Gang. Traveling across the land with his rapidly deserting troops, Bowser eventually came across Mario at Booster Tower. Bowser, realizing he needs all the help he can get, lets Mario join the "Koopa Troop". Bowser joins the group, and Mario and his friends "join the Koopa Troop".

Despite being Mario's normal enemy, he does show minor signs of friendship and protectiveness of his allies. He joined the characters in sadness over Geno's departure and was given a farewell from the star traveler, as well as working cohesively side-by-side with his mortal enemies Mario and Toadstool. In a humorous part of the game, Bowser possesses a weapon that allows him to throw Mario at the enemy.

After the defeat of Smithy, Bowser regains his castle, and he and the Koopa Troop begin much–needed repairs.

Physically speaking, Bowser is the strongest of the party members. To counteract this, he has the fewest weapon upgrades, even fewer than Toadstool, who joins later in the game. He is the only party member who can cast a fear spell on enemies, reducing their attack and defense powers by 50%.

Princess Toadstool

Template:Mainarticle After Exor flung her from Bowser's Castle, Princess Toadstool lands in Booster Tower right on Booster's lap. Held captive after being discovered by the tower's owner, Booster, Mario and his allies eventually discover the princess.

Venturing through Booster Tower, Mario and company managed to reach Princess Toadstool, only for her to be rushed off in the arms of Booster, who plans on marrying her.

Tracking Booster down to the town of Marrymore, Mario, Mallow, Geno and Bowser manage to rescue Toadstool after fighting off a giant, living wedding cake. After bringing Princess Toadstool back to the Mushroom Kingdom, the princess, not wanting to stay at the castle, decides to sneak out by floating out of the castle with her parasol and joining Mario in his quest.

Toadstool is regarded as the most valuable party member in the game, not because of her combat skill, but because she is the only one in the game who can replenish the health of multiple party members at one time, as well as bring fallen allies back from the dead, without using items from the inventory. Nintendo Power's players' guide advises the player to equip her with special armor and accessories that max out her defense capabilities.

Friendly Characters

Toad

Template:Mainarticle After venturing to Mario's house to pick-up the princess, Toad discovers her missing. Asking the recently arrived Mario where she is, Toad learns that Bowser had, once again, kidnapped the princess. Sending Mario back to Bowser's Keep, Toad learns from Mario once he returns that a giant sword has embedded itself in Bowser's Castle.

Deciding to tell the Mushroom Chancellor what has happened, Toad, after teaching Mario how to battle monsters, rushes off to the Mushroom Kingdom. Throughout Mushroom Way, Mario will have to save Toad, who has gotten himself in some predicament or another. After defeating a pair of Hammer Brothers, Toad and Mario manage to get to the Mushroom Kingdom.

Once at the kingdom, Toad enters the Chancellor's castle where he, along with Mario, tells the Chancellor of the events that have transpired. After Mack and his minions take over the kingdom, Toad is seen among those who have taken refuge in Princess Toadstool's bedroom in the Mushroom Kingdom castle.

Near the end of the game Toad is encountered again, in the bowels of Smithy's Factory. Having, through unspecified means, reached Bowser's Castle, ventured through it along with Smithy's Factory, Toad will sell Mario various items he has obtained in order to aid the plumber in his quest.

Mushroom Chancellor

The chancellor of the Mushroom Kingdom, the Mushroom Chancellor (キノコ大臣, Kinoko Daijin, lit. Mushroom Minister) presides over the kingdom and its castle. After learning from Mario and Toad that the princess has gone missing, the Chancellor charges Mario with the responsibility of finding her.

Mario and his new ally, Mallow, returning to the Mushroom Kingdom after defeating the thief Croco, are horrified to find the kingdom under siege by the Smithy Gang. Venturing into the kingdom castle, Mario and Mallow find the Chancellor trapped in his chambers.

After defeating Mack, a member of the Smithy Gang, Mario and Mallow manage to free the Chancellor.

The chancellor in Super Mario RPG is possibly the inspiration for Toadsworth, the chancellor in more recent Mario titles, including the Mario and Luigi and Paper Mario series. This version of the chancellor makes an appearance in the first Paper Mario game.

Princess Toadstool's Grandmother

A graying Toad and the grandmother of Princess Toadstool, Princess Toadstool's Grandmother can be found in the princess' room in the Mushroom Kingdom castle. During Mack's invasion of the kingdom, Toadstool's Grandmother would allow Mario to rest in the princess' bed.

When Princess Toadstool is returned to the Mushroom Kingdom castle, her grandmother decides to imitate the princess while she is off adventuring with Mario and his allies.

Frogfucius

A wise frog who lives in Tadpole Pond, Frogfucius (カエル仙人, Kaeru-sennin, lit. Frog Hermit), a reference to Chinese philosopher Confucius, raised Mallow after finding him adrift in a basket in a stream. After navigating their way through Kero Sewers, Mario and Mallow meet with Frogfucius to deliver his order of Cricket Pie.

It is during this meeting that Frogfucius reveals Mallow's true origin to him. After telling Mallow this information, a forlorn Frogfucius instructs Mallow to journey with Mario and discover his true family. After this discussion, Mario can give Frogfucius his Cricket Pie in exchange for the Froggie Stick.

After having Princess Toadstool join his party, Mario visits Frogfucius once again, this time seeking advice. Frogfucius tells Mario to travel to Star Hill, where some odd occurrences have been happening.

If Mario finds a jar of Cricket Jam in Land's End, he can trade it to Frogfucius for several Frog Coins.

Toadofsky

A famous Toad composer, Toadofsky (キノコフスキー, Kinokofusukī, Kinokofsky in Japan), a reference to Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, lives and composes in Melody Bay, a small section of Tadpole Pond. In exchange for rewards such as Tadpole Pond Juice Bar membership cards, Mario must compose music for a creator's–blocked Toadofsky.

Gaz's Mother

Gaz's mom, she runs the Rose Town Inn. When Mario visits the inn looking to rest, it is Gaz's mother who convinces Mario to play with the thrilled Gaz. Unfortunately, Mario is knocked unconscious while playing and is rushed to bed by Gaz's Mother.

Waking up several hours later, Mario sees Gaz telling his mother that he saw his toy Geno, alive, wandering around the woods. Gaz's disbelieving mother scoffs at Gaz's story, thinking he is lying.

Even if Mario returns to the Rose Town Inn with Geno in his party, Gaz's Mother still does not believe Geno is living, possessed being, thinking he is nothing more than a man in a costume.

In a humorous cut-scene, Gaz is thrilled beyond belief Geno has come to life and believes him to be stronger than Mario saying :"Mario needs all the help he can get," to which Mario actually attempts to punch him, but Mallow restrains him.

Yoshi

Mario's long-time friend, Yoshi, inhabits an island with the other Yoshis, known as "Yo'ster Isle" in the game. Like in previous games, Mario can ride Yoshi, but in this game, he can only ride him on Yo'ster Isle. Mario can race Yoshi, with or without riding him, to win Yoshi Cookies, which Mario can use in battle in order to summon Yoshi to swallow enemies.

After passing through the optional Pipe Vault, Mario finds himself at Yo'ster Isle, meeting up with Yoshi, the only Yoshi on Yo'ster Isle who can speak Mario's language. Yoshi agrees to translate for Mario, and then Mario speaks to Boshi, who wants Yoshi Cookies for a one–on–race in the Mushroom Derby. Yoshi wins the race, earning respect among the other Yoshis. Instead of being number one, Yoshi just wants for everyone to race together again, which they do. During the ending of the game, Yoshi's dream of becoming the truly fastest racer in the Mushroom Derby comes true.

Boshi

A blue yoshi who lives on Yo'ster Isle with the other yoshis, Boshi is somewhat different in appearance to the other yoshis of the game, wearing sunglasses, a spiked red collar, and shoes which allow his three toes to poke out, instead of the usual yoshi shoes. He also has a red crest protruding from the back of his head. He is a bully and the fastest runner in the Mushroom Derby. In the Japanese version, his name is Washi (ワッシー, Wasshī), similar to Wario. This is both a play on names and words, like Waluigi, combining bad (悪い, warui) & yoshi (ヨッシー, yosshī).

During the ending of the game, when Croco loses to Yoshi, Boshi meets Croco and gives him solace as they walk away from the celebrations.

Ma' Mole

The mother of Dyna and Mite. While her children are lost in the Moleville Mines with her husband looking for them, Ma' Mole stays at home worrying manicly.

After Dyna, Mite and Mario end-up crashing through the roof of Ma' and Pa' Moles house in a minecart, Ma' Mole, after making sure Dyna and Mite are safe, gratefully thanks Mario for his help.

Pa' Mole

The father of Dyna and Mite and husband of Ma' Mole; while his children are trapped in the Moleville Mines, Pa' Mole goes looking for them, only to come to a dead-end. It is only after Mario finds a Bob-omb to blow up a wall that the dead-end becomes passable.

Despite wanting to travel further into the mine, Pa' Mole is sent home by Mario, who believes he could become injured in the mine. After Mario comes crashing through the roof of Ma' and Pa' Moles house with Dyna and Mite in tow, the parents gratefully thank the hero for finding their children.

Dyna and Mite

The children of Ma' Mole and Pa' Mole; after exploring the Moleville Mines, Dyna and Mite became trapped in there. Deciding to look for the children while he searched for the Star Piece in the mine, Mario, after defeating the explosion-happy Punchinello, managed to find the lost siblings.

Going on a minecart ride with the moles, Mario, Dyna and Mite were sent flying out of the mine and crashed through Ma' and Pa' Moles roof. Relieved that her children were home safe, Ma' Mole hugged and reprimanded the mole children and thanked Mario for bringing them home safely.

Notice that the names together are called Dynamite.

Jonathan Jones

The complete name of this shark-like pirate is Johnathan "Johnny" Jones. He is the captain of the Sunken Ship and the new owner of the fifth star piece. He is always with his crew, the blue and red bandanas. Yaridovich asks Mario to defeat him and retrieve the star piece.

The player must challenge Johnny to get the Star Piece. Johnny starts out the battle with four henchmen (called Bandana Blues). If the player defeats all four henchmen, Johnny challenges Mario to a one-on-one duel, excluding the other characters from the fight. If at least one henchman is left, however, the one-on-one battle will not take place and the fight will proceed normally. After defeating Johnny, Mario earns his respect, and when Mario is forced to hand over the star piece to Smithy's cohort Yaridovich, Johnny and his pirates stop the cowardly Yaridovich from fleeing, forcing Yaridovich to fight Mario (Johnny does not, however, actually assist in the fight).

Seaside Town Elder

The oldest resident of Seaside Town, when Yaridovich took over the town, he has the Elder, along with the rest of the town's residents, sealed in a warehouse; with Yaridovich posing as the Elder, along with the rest of the town.

Once Mario learns of Yaridovich's treachery, the evil monster forces Mario into handing over the Star Piece he received from Johnny Jones, under the threat of torturing the Elder by tickling the soles of his feet with a feather.

After Yaridovich is defeated, Mario gains the key needed to release the town from captivity. The Elder, grateful for being released, gives Mario a reward. He will give Mario a Flower Box if he wasn't tickled, a Flower Jar if he was tickled once, a Flower Tab if he was tickled twice and a single coin if he tickled more than twice.

Jagger

A former minion of Bowser, Jagger deserted the Koopa Troop in order to train under Jinx, a martial arts master. Mario can spar with Jagger and later, his sensei.

Jinx

A diminutive, yet powerful master of the martial-arts, Jinx runs the dojo in Monstro Town. After defeating Jinx's student, Jagger, in combat, Mario can battle Jinx. If Mario can beat Jinx in battle three times, he will gain the Jinx Belt and Jinx's respect.

Occasionally, Magikoopa will summon a Jinx doppelganger to fight Mario and his companions in battle.

Magikoopa

A former minion of Bowser, Magikoopa is captured by Smithy and mind-controlled. Upon returning to Bowser's Keep after defeating the Axem Rangers, Magikoopa will generate many groups of enemies for Mario to fight in the two battle rooms (if you happen to choose those rooms), and when 4 rooms are completed, you will fight Magikoopa, who can summon a clone Jinx, a King Bomb, or a Bahamut (a recurring character from other Square Enix games). When he is defeated, the effect of the mind control will dissipate and he will conjure a treasure box with infinite coins.

Monstermama

An aging Toad and founder of Monstro Town, Monstermama, after a somewhat confusing conversation with Mario, gives him directions to Bean Valley and hires Sergeant Flutter and his troops to aid Mario in reaching the valley.

Sergeant Flutter

A blue-shelled Koopa Paratroopa wearing aviator-goggles, Sergeant Flutter is a long-time friend of Monstermama. After being summoned by Monstermama to help Mario in reaching Bean Valley, Sergeant Flutter and his troops can act like platforms to help Mario scale a large cliff. Depending on how fast Mario jumps from shell to shell, he may get a reward from Sergeant Flutter upon reaching the top of the cliff.

Garro

A famous sculptor who owns a studio in Nimbus Land, upon realizing that Mallow is the son of King Nimbus, Garro decides to help Mario take-down Queen Valentina. Covering Mario in a layer of gold, Garro manages to sneak him into the Nimbus Land Palace, saying that Mario is a statue of Valentina's nephew, "Mariotta".

King and Queen Nimbus

The rulers of Nimbus Land and parents of Mallow; King and Queen Nimbus, through unspecified means, ended-up losing their son one stormy night. While Mallow was gone, King and Queen Nimbus were imprisoned by Queen Valentina; who planned on usurping the throne of Nimbus Land by marrying "Prince Mallow", who was in actuality, Valentina's assistant, Dodo.

Defeating Valentina and her minions, Mallow was reunited with his long-lost parents. After a tearful reunion with his family, Mallow managed to get permission to go to Barrel Volcano from his parents.

Later, after defeating the Axem Rangers and Czar Dragon, Mallow was allowed to use the Royal Bus by his parents. Using this bus, Mallow and his companions were capable of travelling to Bowser's Castle.

Hinopio

An odd Toad who lives in Barrel Volcano near Czar Dragon's den, Hinopio operates Hino Mart and will happily sell Mario and his companions items and accessories, displaying figurines of the F-Zero machines of Captain Falcon and Samurai Goroh, as well as the Star Fox Arwing. He also runs an inn, although instead of beds, Hinopio has a pile of crates.

Enemies

Smithy Gang

The Smithy Gang (カジオー軍団, Kajiō Gundan, literally "Kajiō Corps") is a fictional organization and are the antagonists of the game. They are a strange group of weapon-like creatures and weapon manufacturers bent on world domination, coming from a dark and void-like dimension. The Smithy Gang is led by Smithy, a being of immense power and an obsession with weapons, which shows in his minions/creations, all of whom are based on weapons in appearance and are under Smithy's orders to retrieve the seven star pieces. Smithy names the gang after himself, and the members are all dangerous, ruthless and cruel in their methods, not caring if innocent people are harmed in their missions.

Mack

Smithy designed him like pogo stick with a tip of a "big knife" (剣, ken, literally "sword"), a play on the song Mack the Knife from The Threepenny Opera that Louis Armstrong covered and popularized.

After defeating Croco and reclaiming the Rare Frog Coin, Mario and Mallow return to find the Mushroom Kingdom overrun with Shysters causing chaos and frightening its citizens. Mario confronts Mack and six Shysters in the throne room. Mack primarily uses fire attacks and becomes stunned, just once, if Mallow uses his Thunderbolt special attack. When Mario and Mallow defeat Mack and four of his Shysters, the other two Shysters flee, and Mario finds the first Star Piece.

Bowyer

Bowyer (ユミンパ, Yuminpa, literally "Bownpa") is the second Smithy Gang member Mario and his allies, Mallow & Geno, battle. His body resembles a bow (弓, yumi, literally "bow"). He has a rather loose grip on the English language, speaking in object agent verb permutations of expression, similar to Yoda from Star Wars. Like Mack, he possesses minions in his own theme, Aeros (Also known as flunkies.), living arrows, however, he shoots them; they never battle.

Mario encounters him in the Forest Maze, similar to the Lost Woods from the Legend of Zelda series. As he shoots arrows upon nearby Rose Town, Mario runs forward, "fists flying", but Mallow pulls Mario back saying, "Who do you think you are, Bruce Lee?" Immediately after an Aero finds a Star Piece, Geno appears and attempts to battle Bowyer in order to retrieve it, and Mario and Mallow join.

Bowyer possesses several lightning attacks such as Bolt, Static E!, and Lighting Orb, however, his unique ability disables actions by firing arrows on the battle screen at a corresponding icon of a button on the SNES controller.

The trio defeats Bowyer, and Mario claims the second Star Piece.

Yaridovich

Yaridovich (ヤリドヴィッヒ, Yaridovihhi, literally "Speardovich") possesses a long, thin, metal body with a sharp point on his fleur-de-lis like shaped head, giving him a similar appearance to a spear (槍, yari, literally "spear"). In fact, one of his attacks is to pluck his head from his body, place it on the tip of his staff, and skewer Mario, Extremely vain, he says he is "such a genius" and it is "no wonder" he is "so important".

When Mario and his party first arrive in Seaside Town, the townspeople act extremely odd, pausing between their sentences, and asking others for their "lines", in addition to looking as if they are running in place, gray skin, and standing on top of counters and staring at the walls as if it normal. In actuality, Yaridovich, able to divide himself, poses as all the townspeople as part of his scheme to get the Star Piece. After Mario returns with the Star Piece from Jonathan Jones, Yaridovich reveals himself and forces Mario to "hand it over", threatening the imprisoned townspeople. If mario refuses to "hand it over", Yaridovich will torture the towns people by tickling them. As the disguised group flees, the Blade is "late", foiling their escape, and Jonathan Jones prevents them from leaving. Merging together, the group takes their disguises off in "formation" and battles Mario's party.

Yaridovich has a variety of magic attacks, several being water–based. His distinguishing tactic is his ability to create an illusion of himself. Unlike Mack and Bowyer, Yaridovich appears to have no soldiers. This may be because of his extreme power and ability to split into several people and change shape.

Mario and his allies defeat Yaridovich and reclaim the fifth Star Piece.

Axem Rangers

File:Screen volcanoaxem-new.png

The Axem Rangers fire the Breaker Beam of their Zord, the Blade.

The Axem Rangers (カジオー戦隊オノレンジャー, Kajiō Sentai Onorenjā), a group of five elite soldiers who all have spikes on their heads and use matching–color axes (斧, ono, literally "axe"), reference the television programs' Sentai and Mecha of Super Sentai in Japan and Power Rangers and Zords of Power Rangers in North America. Their team title imitates the naming scheme for Super Sentai (スーパー戦隊, Sūpā Sentai) character teams. They are not technically lieutenants, but their powerful fighting skills elevate them above other soldiers. They also possess an enormous and constantly late" Zord the Blade. The Axem Rangers appear in Barrel Volcano in order to steal the Star Piece the Czar Dragon guards. After Mario chases them, they confront onboard the Blade. Despite their power, Mario's party soon defeats them, and thus, they are forced to use the Blade 's powerful "Breaker Beam", referencing the Power Rangers' "Power Blaster". Mario and his allies defeat them again, and an enormous explosion destroys the Blade, falling down Barrel Volcano.

Boomer

Boomer is a robotic samurai skilled in kenjutsu (剣術, kenjutsu, けんじゅつ literally "sword-fighting") who fights Mario's party on a pair of chandeliers, similar to the fight with Bowser at the beginning of the game. He is the penultimate boss of Bowser's Keep. He is "impressed" Mario "made it this far".

In addition to his sword skills, Boomer can switch from red mode, with low attack power and high defense, to blue mode conversely, with high attack power and low defense.

After Mario and his allies defeat Boomer, he becomes very dramatic, cutting the chandelier's rope and plummeting to his apparent death.

Exor

Exor (カリバー, Karibā, エクスカリバー literally Excalibur) is a gargantuan sword, with a large face for the end of the sword, his weak point, on the face of the pommel. He is the first Smithy Gang member encountered; he crashes into Bowser's Keep at the beginning of the game and claims it for the Gang. When Mario attempts to return to the Keep to search for the Princess, Exor destroys the bridge, closing off access to Bowser's Keep for the main duration of the game.

Mario does not encounter Exor again until after Mario's party defeats Boomer, and then Mario's party fights and defeats him, however, with his last breath, he sucks the party into the machine world, revealing he is the contact between two worlds.

Exor has four targets: the face on the pommel (the only one marked "Exor"), his two eyes, and his mouth, Neosquid, also famous for being one of the few bosses susceptible to Geno's "Geno Whirl" special attack. Mario's party can only harm the face when they disable one of the eyes.

Exor's name is a pun on the XOR logic gate, as he is the gate to the machine world.

Clerk, Manager, and Director

The Clerk, Manager and Director are three of Smithy's highest ranking minions; located in the Factory, they oversee the production of the soldiers of the Smithy Gang. Dressed in an attire similar to Viking armoring, the Clerk, Manager and Director each wield a large axe and have a group of assistants/bodyguards with them at all times. The Clerk wears dark yellow armor, the Manager has blue armor and the Director wears red.

Factory Chief and Gunyolk

The Factory Chief is a ninja enemy in charge of factory production. Although he is not skilled in fighting, he is very intelligent, and his mechanical genius has allowed him to not only keep a steady and efficient production of soldiers, but make deadly machines, such as his masterpiece Gunyolk.

Gunyolk (ラスダーン, Rasudān) is a machine that seems to be a robotic vat, filled with molten lava. The lava seems to be sentient, as it will form a face when Gunyolk attacks. It is very powerful, and along with the deadly Breaker Beam, knows several attacks that can destroy intruders.

The two are the final battle before Smithy and attempt to stop Mario's party. Ultimately, Mario and his allies defeat the two and advance onward to Smithy's lair.

Smithy

File:Smithymario.jpg

Mario and his allies confront Smithy in the bowels of his Factory.

Smithy (カジオー, Kajiō, literally "Smith King") is the leader of the Smithy Gang, and the final boss of the game. He is an evil, megalomaniacal blacksmith, with an enormous hammer, which he usually uses to create soldiers with the help of his machine, Smelter (ようこうろ, Youkouro, 溶鉱炉 literally "Blast Furnace"). .

Smithy's ultimate goal is to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom. Why exactly he desires this is not known, but it is suggested in a statement, that he wants all life to be like his world: dead, mechanical, and under his rule. He seems to especially despise the Star Road and its power of granting wishes, knowing it has the power to stop his reign.

He initially appears as a large robotic creature with a crown, and a snowy white beard. After being defeated, he smashes the floor in a rage, and destroys the floor of the factory, plunging everyone into a setting that represents a subterranean mechanical Apocolypse. It is there that he reveals his true form, a giant, bug-eyed, mechanical skeleton.

In this form, Smithy is able to change his head into four different heads. The Tank Head allows him to use immensely powerful attacks, including Magnum, an instant death attack. The Magic Head gives him magic attacks of the highest level; among them, Meteor Swarm, Arrow Rain, Sword Rain, and Spear Rain. The Mask Head is not very powerful, but has very high defense, thwarting most attacks. The Treasure Chest Head allows him to inflict any status ailment upon the entire party. In addition to all these attacks, Smithy's Body can attack separately, although if damaged enough, it will be temporarily immobilized, stopping it from attacking and locking Smithy into his current form for several turns.

After Mario's party defeats him, he explodes. He briefly appears during the ending parade riding the Blade, behind Mack, Bowyer, and Yaridovich.

Croco

A thieving purple biped crocodile with a hat, Croco is a dangerous boss who Mario and his allies battle twice.

In Bandit Way, after Croco steals Mallow's frog coin, Mario joins Mallow to attempt to recover it. After chasing Croco throughout Bandit's way, Mario and Mallow fight him. A relatively powerful boss, Croco carries bombs that Mario and Mallow cannot block and a weird mushroom to recover himself. After defeating Croco, Mario may jump on a warp trampoline to return to the Mushroom Kingdom, which then becomes plagued with Mack's Shysters.

In Moleville, Mario jumps on a trap trampoline which slams him into the ceiling and Croco and his crooks steal all of Mario's coins. Thus, Mario must chase and fight Croco. During the battle, Croco steals the party's entire inventory. After defeating Croco, Mario recovers all the stolen goods and receives a bomb to give to the mole worker.

In Nimbus land, Mario will encounter Croco apparently robbing an empty house. After bragging about a new item he owns, Croco will rush out, leaving behind a Signal Ring, an item that makes a distinct tone when there is a hidden chest in an area. The tone is the "message block" sound which can be heard in Super Mario World.

In Bowser's Keep, Croco again attempts to make a profit, selling rare items and apologizing for his previous actions. However, while the items are indeed rare, some of them are weak. For example, the Royal Dress, which goes on Toadstool, does not offer near as much protection as the Lazy Shell, which you can collect in Nimbus Land.

Booster

Booster is the rich, greedy man who owns Booster's Tower. He is the seventh male in the Booster family line as indicated by the portraits hanging on his walls and is sometimes said to resemble Wario. When Mario first encounters Booster, he has fallen in love with Princess Toadstool and intends to marry her. After Mario and his allies defeat him, he forgets about Toadstool (for no apparent reason) and marries Valentina instead later in the game.

Booster's Tower is home to many odd enemies and objects. Weapons for both Mario and Bowser are found there. Mario can find the Masher Hammer and Bowser finds Chomp, a female Chain Chomp that bit Booster and has been locked away.

Belome

A bizarre, vaguely dog-like monster with an extreme appetite, Belome is encountered twice in the game. Although not necessarily evil, Belome is a dangerous enemy nevertheless.

Belome is first encountered near the end of Kero Sewers; in battle Belome will utilize status ailment causing attacks such as "Sleep Sauce" and "S'crow Funk". Belome will also occasionally eat Mallow, leaving Mario alone in battle.

Once defeated, Belome will vanish and the switch he was sitting on, which stopped the sewer from flooding, will pop back up; flinging Mario over a waterfall.

Belome is next encountered in Belome Temple, which is located below Land's End. Much more powerful in this battle, Belome now has the ability to create unarmed clones of Mario and his party (with different abilities and lower stats, though the same amount of health). When Belome is defeated, the path to Monstro Town will also be opened.

Punchinello

A bomb-maker, Punchinello is the boss of Moleville Mines. Although not connected to Smithy, he has control of a Star Piece, which you must fight and defeat him for.

Encountering Mario, Mallow and Geno, Punchinello planned on defeating the trio, believing that doing so would make him famous. Utilizing a variety of Bob-ombs in combat, Punchinello was eventually defeated when, in a desperate attempt to defeat Mario, Punchinello tried summoning a gigantic Bob-omb, which landed on top of him, which shortly exploded and freed the Star Piece from the rafters.

His name is based on the Commedia dell'arte character punchinella.

Bundt/Raspberry

A gigantic, living wedding cake, Bundt and its lower portion were created by Chef Torte and his apprentice. Through unspecified means, Bundt attains life and begins to attack anyone nearby. Despite being capable of using powerful magic, Bundt/Raspberry was destroyed when it was eaten by Booster at the urging of his Snifits.

Shy Away

A Shy Away and minion of Queen Valentina, Shy Away, unlike the other members of its kind, wields a watering can instead of a spear. Shy Away is first encountered in Bean Valley, where it has been charged with blocking the entrance to Nimbus Land by Valentina.

In order to do this, Shy Away uses an extremely large Piranha Plant, dubbed "Smilax," as a guard to the entrance to Nimbus Land. In battle against Smilax, whenever one of the creatures heads is destroyed, Shy Away would appear and, singing cheerfully, water the plant to make it grow more heads. Once Megasmilax is defeated, Shy Away flees from Bean Valley, back to Nimbus Land.

Shy Away is encountered once again in Nimbus Land's palace, this time it can be found caring for a giant egg by watering it. Once Mario approaches Shy Away, it will flee, leaving Mario to fight the egg, which is later revealed to be Birdo.

After Birdo is defeated and Mario gains access to the palace's throne room, Shy Away can be seen warning Valentina about Mario. After seeing Mario, Shy Away, along with Valentina and Dodo, tries to escape him. Unlike Valentina and Dodo, Shy Away succeeds in evading Mario.

After Valentina is deposed, players, if they find an invisible path on Nimbus Land, can find the frightened Shy Away. Not wanting to fight Mario, Shy Away will give him some fertilizer (used to find a secret weapon) and flee.

Valentina and Dodo

Valentina is a vaguely human character, who has a bird on her head and a martini glass in her hand (her original name is "Margarita," hence the glass).

Apparently, Valentina once worked at the Nimbus Land palace, but eventually, she rebelled against King and Queen Nimbus. Sealing King and Queen Nimbus within their chambers, Valentina told the populace of Nimbus Land that the King and Queen had fallen terminally ill. Valentina then had her henchman, Dodo, pretend to be the long-lost Prince Mallow; Valentina then had Dodo "propose" to her in order to make her queen. She assigned another cohort, Shy Away, to raise carnivorous plants to block off the entrance to Nimbus Land and keep outsiders from interfering in her plans.

Eventually, Mario and his allies discovered Valentina's plan after eavesdropping on her and clearing the Nimbus Land Palace of Valentina's henchmen. Valentina attempted to escape from Mario by rushing out of the palace, but she was caught by Mario after being distracted by the curious inhabitants of Nimbus Land.

Engaging Mario in battle, Valentina used a variety of magical attacks and had Dodo aid her in combat. In the end though, Valentina was defeated, but before she could be captured, she escaped with Dodo.

It is later revealed that Valentina and Dodo had both crashed landed on the balcony of Booster's Tower. The tower's owner, Booster, instantly fell in love with Valentina and the two ended up marrying in the Marrymore chapel, with Dodo as minister.

Culex

File:Culex.JPG

Mario's party battles Culex and the four elemental Crystals.

Culex is a hidden Final Fantasy–style boss, who resides in the vortex located behind the Locked Door in Monstro Town. Like Final Fantasy characters, he has a small overworld sprite compared to his in-battle sprites, unlike nearly all other characters in Mario's world, aside from Valentina, who use the same sprite. Culex is a Dark Knight from Vanda who crossed into Mario's dimension to fight for the Dark Mage, but Mario's world is uninhabitable for Culex and his kind, and he must return to his own world. Before he goes, though, he would like to challenge the strongest knight.

Fire, Water, Earth and Wind elemental Crystals, a running theme in Final Fantasy games, join Culex in battle. His battle includes the boss battle theme of Final Fantasy IV, and the traditional pre-Final Fantasy VII victory theme. At the start of the battle, Culex has a monologue proclaiming his power, another common Final Fantasy theme. After the battle, he rewards Mario with the Quartz Charm, and the Final Fantasy prelude plays. He also breaks the fourth wall by talking to the player in his final comment:

“

Your spirit........is strong! Thank you, brave knight. I will treasure this memento of my journey here. Perhaps in another time, another game, we may have been mortal enemies... Let us part as comrades in arms.

”

This boss is the single most difficult in the game, surpassing the ability of even Smithy. This is supported by the fact that Culex and his crystals have a combined total of 12,396 Hit Points compared to Smithy's 10,000. In addition, Culex alone has an attack stat of 250, which is greater than all of Smithy's forms with the exception of his Tank Head, which has the same attack strength as Culex. As further testament to Culex's difficulty, the official Nintendo Power Player's Guide for the game recommends not attempting this battle until the player's party has reached level 25. Even still, Culex himself is not necessarily the main cause of this difficulty, but rather the elemental crystals, whose combined HP without Culex still adds up to 8,300, in addition to overwhelming the player with 4 extra enemies to fight.