Mario franchise strategy guide/Enemies/Dry Bones

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Dry Bones as it appears in Mario Party 7

Dry Bones (カロン, Karon, Karon) are a fictional species of undead koopa in Nintendo's Mario series of video games.

Dry Bones are the skeletal remains of Koopa Troopas that have been re-animated. They are immune to most of Mario's attacks and will fall apart when stomped on, only to reassemble moments later. However, they can be defeated with certain special attacks (such as with the Cape Feather, Hammer Bros. Suit or Starman). Dry Bones usually prefer dark places, mainly castles, but have been known to live in other areas like the desert or sunken ships.

According to Goombella's Tattle in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Dry Bones are former Koopas whose spirit animates its bones.

Appearances in the Mario series

Super Mario Bros. 3

Dry Bones' first appearance was in the NES game Super Mario Bros. 3. Much like Koopa Troopas, they walked on all four feet. Dry Bones could only be defeated by Mario with a Hammer Bros. suit, Starman, or shell. They were only found in fortresses.

Super Mario World

Dry Bones' later appear in the SNES video game, Super Mario World. They walked like Koopa Troopas as in past Mario titles. Early on in the game, they only walked back and forth and regenerated, but later in the game, they would gain the ability to throw bones at you. They can only be defeated by the Cape Feather or a Starman, or by knocking the block that they are standing on from underneath (provided that said block is knockable).

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars for the Super NES, Dry Bones appeared as an enemy in the Sunken Ship. It also had a more powerful version named Vomer, who is found inside the Barrel Volcano. Both enemies could only be defeated with Special Attacks or the "Pure Water" item, as normal attacks would inflict damage, but they would never kill them--their HP count in fact read as zero, and the game uses a unique script to produce the effect.

In addition to being an enemy, a Dry Bones was one of three members of the "Three Musty Fears", a trio of undead creatures which also included a Boo and a Greaper (a Shy Guy variant). The name, The Three Musty Fears, is a parody of The Three Musketeers.

Paper Mario

Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64 featured Dry Bones as an enemy in Bowser's Castle. They would attack Mario by throwing bones at him, both in and out of battle. If a normal attack knocks out Dry Bones, it might revive itself a few turns later. However, a fire attack such as Kooper's Fire Shell can defeat them instantly.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

Dry Bones return in the Game Boy Advance video game Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, although instead of being undead variations of the Koopa Troopa, they are undead versions of the Troopea, a bean themed Koopa Troopa. Unlike recent Mario games, Dry Bones went back to walking on all fours and attacked Mario and Luigi by throwing its head. There are two versions of Dry Bones in this game; the first is located on Hoohoo Mountain and appears to have a rib cage instead of a shell. The second version is found in Teehee Desert during Mario's second visit and looks similar to the original Dry Bones, but they can poison him if he receives a hit from its head.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Dry Bones reappeared in the GameCube sequel to Paper Mario. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. There are now more variants of Dry Bones, including Dull Bones, Red Bones, and Dark Bones. Dry Bones is found in the Palace of Shadow (the final area of the game) and the Pit of 100 Trials, and fights similar to the previous Paper Mario game, but have gained the ability to build more Dry Bones. Dull Bones (the weakest version) are the victims of the Koopa-eating dragon Hooktail, and as such, are commonly found inside her castle. Both Red Bones and Dark Bones are minibosses at Hooktail's Castle and the Palace of Shadow respectively. In the Palace of Shadow, there is a puzzle where you must defeat the different variations of Dry Bones going from weakest to strongest (Dull, Red, Dry, and Dark).

Mario Superstar Baseball

Dry Bones appeared in the game with a new, redesigned look. Dry Bones' were generally weak characters in the game, appearing on Bowser's baseball team in the Challenge mode of the game. They were also on Bowser Jr.'s team if you were to encounter him in the Challenge mode overworld.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time

In the Nintendo DS sequel to Superstar Saga Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, Dry Bones is an enemy inside the stomach of the Yoob. In this game, they stood on two feet again and threw bones at Mario and Luigi. They were also statues in the Gritzy Desert.

Mario Kart DS

Dry Bones appeared in the Nintendo DS installment of the Mario Kart series as an unlockable player. It is the lightest of the LIGHT category players, with a high acceleration, but somewhat low top speed, and good handling.

Mario Party 7

Dry Bones appeared in the seventh installment of the Mario Party series as a playable character.

Super Princess Peach

Dry Bones reappeared in the Nintendo DS platformer Super Princess Peach. They have the ability to throw their bones at Peach, and can only be defeated by using the Rage and Joy Vibes or using the Poundbrella attack. Like several other enemies in the game, there is a special depressed, crying variation of the Dry Bones. It meanders forward with tears streaming from its eyes, and throws a trio of bones in one attack.

Mario Party 8

It has returned from Mario Party 7 as a playable character.

New Super Mario Bros.

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Dry Bones Bowser

The Dry Bones' next most recent appearance is in the Nintendo DS video game, New Super Mario Bros., which features two sizes of Dry Bones. The regular sized Dry Bones can be caused to fall apart by merely jumping on them, while the larger Dry Bones (called Big Bones) can only be caused to fall apart by using a Ground Pound on them. As usual, they will reanimate soon afterwards. Mario can permanently defeat either by using the Mega Mushroom, Blue Shell or Starman, or if it's dislocated head after jumping on it falls into lava or a bottomless pit.

Bowser is turned into a Dry Bones-like creature after he falls into lava at the end of World 1. Mario later fights him in this form. In this form, he is similar to Dry Bones, in that he is immune to flame and can throw bones. When he jumps up to meet Mario, he collapses into a pile of bones in a similar manner to Dry Bones, before reassembling. In the final boss battle, Bowser Jr. throws the broken skeleton Bowser into a magic cauldron, causing him to come back to life and grow bigger than he had been.

Mario Strikers Charged

Dry Bones appears in the sequel to Super Mario Strikers, Mario Strikers Charged, as a playable sidekick like (most recently) Toad, Koopa Troopa, Birdo, Hammer Bro, Shy Guy, Monty Mole, and Boo. He is a fast character who has maximum defense. His special shot is charging the ball up with electricity.

Playable appearances

In 2005, Nintendo began to put Dry Bones in a playable role in many of their spinoff titles. Its first role as a playable character was in the GameCube game, Mario Superstar Baseball. It was a technique character, meaning it was best used for pitching and fielding. They were also on Bowser Jr.'s team if you were to encounter him in the Challenge mode overworld.

Dry Bones later appears in the GameCube party game, Mario Party 7. It could be unlocked by collecting 1,000 mileage points and then bought at the Duty-Free Shop. Dry Bones was also Boo's partner in Mario Party 7.

Dry Bones became playable once again in the Nintendo DS racer, Mario Kart DS, as a light weight driver. It could be unlocked by winning a gold trophy on every cup in the Nitro Grand Prix on 50cc. Its Dry Bomber kart is very good at acceleration and handling, and is unlocked upon winning the 100cc Special Cup.

Dry Bones appears again in Mario Strikers Charged, as a playable sidekick like Toad, Koopa Troopa, Birdo, Hammer Bro, Shy Guy, Monty Mole, and Boo. He is a fast character who has maximum defense. His special shot is charging the ball up with electricity.

Other media

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A Dry Bones from The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3.

Dry Bones made several appearances in the Super Mario Bros. television series under The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World.

A talking Dry Bones is also shown to be Bowser's helicopter pilot in the Nintendo Comics System story "It's Always Fair Weather".