Hypothetical Mario Musou

Hypothetical Super Mario Musou

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* CONTROLS & MECHANICS *
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| CONTROLS |
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Y BUTTON - Normal Attack: Press it to perform a basic attack. Tap repeatedly to do a basic attack combo dependent on the weapon the character is equipped with. Each character has two basic combo strings; one when on the ground, and one while in the air. This button is also used for context-sensitive actions.

X BUTTON - Strong Attack: Press the Strong Attack button to perform a unique move whose properties depend on the character and the weapon they're equipped with. Pressing the Strong Attack button while in the midst of a normal combo (YX, YYX, YYYX, etc.) will perform a unique strong attack. Strong Attacks also differ depending on whether you use the ground, or the aerial combo string. In general, strong attacks fulfill a certain role in a character's moveset f.ex. for grounded movesets:
 X (C1) - Unique Move. Can be anything from a chargeable attack, a launcher, a crowdclearer, a buff, an enemy debuff, or something that the character's entire gameplan revolves around. Grounded movesets generally have the most powerful or gamechanging grounded uniques.
 YX (C2) - An enemy launcher that generally targets only a focal point in front of the character. For characters whose movesets aren't ground-based, the C2 will also have the character take to the air, allowing for you to combo launched targets into any of your aerial attacks as well.
 YYX (C3) -  This is usually your earliest crowdclearing tool. The attack generally hits a focused area in front or close around the character that launches enemies back and gives you some breathing room. Rarely, this attack also has an elemental effect tied to it.
 YYYX (C4) - This is usually the character's guardbreaker, designed to be used against a guard-happy enemy. Most guardbreaks also cover a decent line in front of the character, whether it's because the character charges ahead or maybe do a projectile, or something else. Enemies that do not guard against this will be stunned, which is a good time to initiate a combo on them.
 YYYYX (C5) - A powerful attack, always has an elemental effect tied to it. In contrast to C6, this move is mostly a frontal crowdclearer. Aerial-based movesets lack C5 and C6 attacks.
 YYYYYX (C6) - A powerful attack, always has an elemental effect tied to it. In contrast to C5, this move will often hit the area around the character as well, providing the best AoE coverage. However, only ground-based movesets have a C6 among their ground Strong Attacks.

B BUTTON - Jump: Pressing the Jump button makes your character jump. Jumping is a versatile maneuver for traversing the map, avoiding enemy attacks, and as a way to get you into the air to perform your aerial combos. The Jump button if used in the air will also allow you to perform an aerial dodge maneuver.

A BUTTON - Flower Special: The Flower Special button allows you to use a Flower Special when a bar of the Flower Gauge is filled, which will execute a powerful, crowdclearing attack against any enemy caught in the radius. Each character has one ground and one aerial Flower Special. You can also use it while you're in Superstar Mode to end it and execute a Star Special which is even more powerful.

R BUTTON - Lock-On: Locks onto a viable target. Press the Lock-On button again to stop locking on to an enemy. Right stick pushed left or right, while you're locked on to a target, will change targets if multiple viable targets are within Lock-On range.

ZR BUTTON - Guard: Allows the character to block attacks from the front. You can move slowly while guarding, and pressing the Jump button while guarding also allows the character to perform a dodge roll.

L BUTTON - Superstar Mode: Activates the character's Superstar Mode so long as the Star Power gauge is filled. When you activate it, you momentarily stun nearby enemies, and all your attacks will be able to guard break, and you will be invincible to flinching, stunning, and knockback to yourself and cannot be killed. Pressing L again will voluntarily deactivate Superstar Mode.

ZL BUTTON - Use Item: Use an item. Generally, items include Mushrooms, Power Flowers, or Small Stars.

You can choose between a Warriors/Musou or Mario Bros. controller scheme. The Mario Bros. controller scheme switches regular and strong attack buttons to B and Y, Jump button to A, and Flower Special button to X. The Warriors/Musou controller scheme retains the button layout as listed above.

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| MECHANICS |
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In general, platforming and jumping to scale vertical surfaces and traverse between different parts of the map are emphasized more heavily than usual. As a result, aerial fights to continue up on combos or otherwise are also much more emphasized than usual, with each character having different movesets for both ground and air, for each weapon they can use. Not every character or weapon are equally as good at fighting on the ground or in the air though.

FLOWER SPECIAL GAUGE: A horizontal gauge under the HP gauge that fills up over time as you damage enemies. Picking up Power Flowers or a Rainbow Star will also completely fill it. When a bar of the gauge is filled, press the Flower Special Button to execute a Flower Special attack.

STAR POWER GAUGE: A vertical gauge to the left of the HP gauge that fills up over time as you damage enemies and rack up combos. Picking up Small Stars will also fill the gauge, while a Rainbow Star will completely fill it. When it's full, press the L Button to activate Superstar Mode. While Superstar Mode is active, the gauge is drained until it's empty, at which point Superstar Mode is deactivated. Voluntarily deactivating Superstar Mode will retain what's leftover in the gauge, while executing a Star Special by pressing the Flower Special button will forcibly drain the entire gauge.

FISHING LAKITU: If you happen to jump or fall into a bottomless pit, a Lakitu with a fishing rod will immediately come to your rescue. You will lose a bit of health though, even if this won't kill you. The Fishing Lakitus are neutrally-aligned however, and will pick up any targetable enemy with HP left that falls into a bottomless pit. Giant Bosses who are able to be knocked out won't even lose health; simply jumping back up, no worse for wear.

POWER STAR: Fulfilling certain requirements in certain levels will spawn a Power Star in a certain location, which can be collected thereafter. Collecting a Power Star unlocks a piece of an illustration, and completing these illustrations will unlock special missions on the Star Road Map which are based on these illustrations.

WARP PIPE: Certain levels have Warp Pipes which you can discover. Get close enough to a Warp Pipe and you will activate it. You can travel between any Warp Pipes you've activated by jumping into one.

GOAL POLE: Certain missions in the story or in Super Musou Bros. simply require you to get to a specific point and touch the Goal Pole, a pole with a flag on it. In these missions, KOs are not counted for overall rank.


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* CHARACTER ROSTER *
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| PLAYABLE CHARACTERS |
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Characters who are playable, unlocked during the story or through Super Musou Bros. They can appear as allies or enemies in a mission.

MARIO - The hero of the Mushroom Kingdom itself. Mario's courage and jumping capabilities have foiled many a villainous plot. He's adept at jumping and using a hammer, but he can also enter battle with the Fire Flower, the Super Nut, the FLUDD, or the Super Bell.
>WEAPONS
 >Hammer: Mario's initial weapon. Using his trademark jumping abilities alongside whacking foes with the hammer, Mario is equally capable of battling enemies in the air and on the ground. (Balanced)
 >Fire Flower: In his Fire Mario form, Mario is capable of throwing fireballs, small and large, to deal with a variety of enemies from range. Unlocked during Story Mode. (Balanced)
 >Super Nut: Transforming into a Flying Squirrel, Mario is capable of gliding through the air and unrivaled aerial combat compared to his other forms. (Aerial)
 >FLUDD: Equipped with Professor E. Gadd's FLUDD on his back, Mario can utilize it's various nozzles for long-range attacks and to quickly get around the battlefield. (Aerial)
 >Super Bell: Transforming into Cat Mario, he will be able to utilize claw swipes and agile pounces for a speedy fighting style. (Grounded)

LUIGI - Mario's brother. Despite his cowardly nature, Luigi is not one to back down from doing what is right. Like Mario, he can put his masterful jumping and hammer skills to use in battle, but he can also forego using his standard abilities in favor of the Poltergust 3000, the Ice Flower, or the Super Leaf.
>WEAPONS
 >Hammer: Luigi's initial weapon. Using his trademark jumping abilities alongside whacking foes with the hammer, Luigi favors fighting in the air. (Aerial)
 >Poltergust 3000: Equipped with Professor E. Gadd's premier ghost-hunting tool on his back, Luigi can suck in enemies and utilize it's blowing effect to spray enemies with elemental streams of fire, water, or ice. Unlocked during Story Mode. (Grounded)
 >Ice Flower: In his Ice Luigi form, Luigi is capable of skating across the ground and fire balls of ice at enemies for short- and long-ranged coverage. (Balanced)
 >Super Leaf: Transforming into Fox Luigi, Luigi can fly through the air and deliver a world of hurt to enemies in his path. He can also assume his Kitsune Luigi form to smash into enemies from above by turning into a statue. (Aerial)

PEACH - The ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and the usual damsel in distress. She enters combat wielding an parasol in conjunction with magic, which makes her adept at striking from the skies.
>WEAPONS
 >Peach Parasol (Aerial)

TOAD - A retainer to Peach, from the cowardly but cute species that his name is derived from. Contrary to his puny appearance, he is both fast and strong, and a good vegetable thrower, but he is also proficient with the use of Boomerangs if he chooses to enter battle with the Boomerang Flower in lieu of his usual abilities.
>WEAPONS
 >Pickaxe: Toad's initial weapon. Utilizing the Pickaxe as a weapon while throwing turnips at enemies from afar, Toad has what he needs to deal with enemies at all ranges. (Grounded)
 >Boomerang Flower: In his Boomerang Toad form, Toad is capable of masterfully throwing and catching boomerangs in ways to cover many directions at range. (Balanced)

TOADETTE - A female Toad. She is skilled at wielding the Super Hammer to do construction work and to smack around foes of the Mushroom Kingdom.
>WEAPONS
 >Super Hammer: Whether through whacking enemies or creating boxes and blocks to control the battlefield, Toadette with the Super Hammer is not to be trifled with.

YOSHI - A dinosaur who also doubles as Mario's trusty steed in many games. His standard abilities include flutter jumping, ground pounding, and egg-tossing.
>WEAPONS
 >Yoshi Egg: With his trademark eggs among his arsenal of moves, Yoshi is capable of close-range combat and sniping enemies from the ground. (Grounded)

DONKEY KONG - The grandson of a former enemy of Mario, Donkey Kong himself has an on-again, off-again rivalry with him. He has deceptive speed for his size and strength, and can cause carnage on the battlefield by grabbing enemies or items to use as makeshift weapons.
>WEAPONS
 >DK Fists: Donkey Kong's body is his own weapon, charging and rolling at enemies or utilizing his strong arms to punch, grab, slam, and throw enemies and objects alike. (Grounded)

DIDDY KONG - Donkey Kong's little buddy and sidekick who has been on many an adventure with him. His jetpack and peanut-firing popgun serves him well in a struggle.
>WEAPONS
 >Peanut Popgun: Armed with his trusty jetpack and dual popguns, Diddy Kong is capable of bringing an aerial assault on enemies from afar. (Aerial)

WARIO - An opportunistic treasure hunter, this greedy parody of Mario is only in it for himself. His strength and signature shoulder bash serves him well in combat, but he can also enter battle with the Wario Bike to run over foes and pelt them with explosives from a safe distance.
>WEAPONS
 >Wario Gloves: Wario's initial weapon. Utilizing his super strength, Wario delivers unrivaled close combat and will punch, smash, and bash enemies with surprising speed. (Balanced)
 >Wario Bike: Riding his trademark Wario Bike, Wario can run over enemies at close range or pelt them with explosive bombs from afar. (Grounded)

BOWSER - Mario's archenemy; he often kidnaps Peach and forces Mario to rescue her. His usual abilities include his superstrength and fire breath. Bowser can also go into battle wielding the Star Rod whose magic he uses to great potential.
>WEAPONS
 >Bowser Bangles: Bowser's initial weapon. The Koopa King seldom needs more than his trademark strength and fire breath to pulverize enemies in his way. (Grounded)
 >Star Rod: Having grasped the wish-granting rod with his villainous claws, Bowser terrorizes the field with his wishes, generating powerful earthquakes and shockwaves on the ground and raining down catastrophic bolts of lightning from the sky. Unlocked during Story Mode. (Aerial)

BOWSER JR. - Bowser's son and a villain in his own right. He prefers to fight from the safety of his Koopa Clown Car which houses lots of gadgets, including his paintbrush.
>WEAPONS
 >Clown Car: Junior's Clown Car is fitted out with all the toys and weapons a son ccould ever want. His punching gloves, Mechakoopas, and cannonballs all hurt, but the ace in his arsenal remains his magic paintbrush. (Balanced)

KAMEK - A Magikoopa and Bowser's oldest retainer. This crafty old Koopa uses his magic wand to cast harmful spells and conjure lots of enemies. A favorite trick of his is to make someone grow.
>WEAPONS
 >Magikoopa Wand: With his trusty magic wand, Kamek rides on his broom firing salvos of damaging spells at enemies from afar. Yet, with a penchant of conjuring and gigantifying Bowser's minions and bringing in bosses to execute their signature attacks, simple spell slinging is not even his worst trick in the book. (Aerial)

ROSALINA - The elegant and mysterious ruler of the cosmos. The powers of the Lumas and the galaxy are hers to command.
>WEAPONS
 >Luma: Rosalina's Lumas are ever present to aid their mommy in vanguishing evil across the cosmos. Rosalina herself is no slouch with the power to bring forth the wonders of space with a single flick of her wand. (Aerial)

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| UNIQUE NPCS / BOSS CHARACTERS |
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UNPCs are nonplayable characters who can appear as allied or enemy commanders in a mission. Bosses are larger-than-usual enemies who require certain tactics to defeat.

WALUIGI - This shifty partner of Wario wields a tennis racquet which he uses to lob and smack explosive bombs and entangling thorny roseplants in addition to the usual tennis ball. He can be a possible battlefield commander as well as an enemy or ally.

BOOM BOOM - This brute of Bowser's Minions will charge at you, fists spinning. He also has the capability of flight and can be a dangerous opponent to take down in the right circumstances. He can be a possible battlefield commander as well as an enemy or ally.

KING BOB-OMB (BOSS) - King of the Bob-Ombs, this oversized Bob-Omb will throw Bob-Ombs, and the characters if he manages to grab them.

PETEY PIRANHA (BOSS) - A large Piranha Plant with a mean streak, Petey Piranha uses tornados and his huge body to crush anyone in his way. He is also capable of flight.

BIG BOO (BOSS) - A large Boo created by many Boos fusing together, it is capable of more powerful magic than it's brethren.

WIGGLER (BOSS) - While Wigglers are generally docile caterpillars, this particular Wiggler has been enlarged by Kamek's magic and made more violent to match.

GIANT BOWSER (BOSS) - In a last-ditch effort to beat Mario, Kamek has used the power of the Star Rod to gigantify Bowser and give him additional magical abilities and protection.

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| TROOPS |
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YELLOW TOAD (NORMAL)

GOOMBA (NORMAL)

SHY GUY (NORMAL)

BIDDYBUD (NORMAL)

BLUE TOAD (NORMAL, RANGED)

YELLOW YOSHI (NORMAL, RANGED)

SNIFIT (NORMAL, RANGED)

YELLOW LUMA (NORMAL, AERIAL)

PARAGOOMBA (NORMAL, AERIAL)

FLY GUY (NORMAL, AERIAL)

PARA-BIDDYBUD (NORMAL, AERIAL)

SWOOP (NORMAL, AERIAL)

GREEN TOAD (STRONG)

KOOPA TROOPA (STRONG)

BLUE YOSHI (STRONG, RANGED)

DRY BONES (STRONG, RANGED)

SPIKE (STRONG, RANGED)

BLUE LUMA (STRONG, AERIAL)

KOOPA PARATROOPA (STRONG, AERIAL)

SMALL BOO (STRONG, AERIAL)

SPEAR TOAD (ELITE)

CHARGIN' CHUCK (ELITE)

SUMO BRO (ELITE)

RED YOSHI (ELITE, RANGED)

HAMMER BROS. (ELITE, RANGED)

MAGIKOOPA (ELITE, RANGED)

GREEN LUMA (ELITE, AERIAL)

LAKITU (ELITE, AERIAL)

LARGE BOO (ELITE, AERIAL)

MONTY MOLE (SPECIAL)

BOB-OMB (SPECIAL)

PIRANHA PLANT (SPECIAL)

POKEY (SPECIAL)

THWOMP (SPECIAL)

BULLET BILL (SPECIAL)

CHEEP CHEEP (SPECIAL)

CHAIN CHOMP (SPECIAL)

MECHA-KOOPA (SPECIAL)


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* MODES *
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| STORY MODE |
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Play through the story of Super Mario Warriors. Split up in parts with the Prologue, Mario & Peach, Yoshi, Luigi, Epilogue, Bowser Returns, and Grand Finale as the playable segments, with two interludes in-between the Prologue and Epilogue that details the heroes splitting up and reuniting.

1. PROLOGUE - Bowser has launched a large-scale attack on the Mushroom Kingdom and kidnapped Princess Peach again. Mario and Luigi end up chasing him down to the Koopa Fortress, picking up Toad, Toadette, and Yoshi along the way, and discovering the Fire Flower which he takes for his own use, and fighting Boom Boom and King Bob-Omb. (Luigi, Toad, and Yoshi are unlocked in this part.)

Interlude 1 - Having successfully rescued Peach, bad news soon break that Bowser's troops have almost conquered the entire Mushroom Kingdom and the surrounding lands. Bowser issues an ultimatum to the Mushroom Kingdom Coalition; he will give up some land to the Mushroom Kingdom in exchange for Peach. The Coalition naturally declines his offer. They realize the need to acquire enough resources to mount an effective counterattack. Peach makes the hard decision to split the Coalition into three groups: Mario & Peach's group will travel to the Dry Dry Desert to explore the area for treasure that they can use to fund the war efforts. Yoshi and Toadette's group will travel to the conquered Yoshi's Island to sabotage one of Bowser's main supply depots to hinder his own war efforts (and draw his attention away from what the other groups are doing). Luigi and Toad's group are sent to Boo Forest as there are rumors of a large mansion housing a library of forgotten tomes to scour for info that could further help the coalition.

2. MARIO & PEACH - Having procured some valuable artifacts that they can sell for war funds, Mario and Peach's group are ambushed by Wario and Waluigi who are looking to fill their pockets with gold for themselves. They Protect their haul and drive off the two gold diggers, and acquire a map in the process detailing the spot of a hidden temple filled with treasure. Searching the desert and driving off Wario and Waluigi again (trying to get back the map this time), they unearth the hidden temple and brave it's traps to get a mysterious-looking key, as well as some important hieroglyphs pertaining to it. After fending off a surprise ambush from Wario and Waluigi yet again to escape the pyramid, they decide to hold onto the key and the hieroglyphs until they figure out it's purpose; the treasure they've already sold is enough to mount an effective counterforce for the time being.

3. LUIGI - Traversing Boo Forest, Luigi and Toad run afoul of Kamek who is running experiments in the forest to enhance Bowser's troops further. Battling Kamek and his minions, Luigi eventually directs the troops to meet at a certain point in the forest as an ally is contacting them there to help their efforts. Once at the spot, they establish contact with E. Gadd who pixelates a treasure chest containing the Poltergust 3000 to Luigi, as well as a gadget to use for transcribing written information to it's memory banks. They subsequently defeat Kamek and uncover the path to the mansion, where they scour it's hallways, corridors, rooms, and traps to uncover the hidden library, and battling the resident Boos that have haunt the place. After finally finding and entering the library, they are ambushed by the Boos one final time who fuse together into the Big Boo. After winning the battle, they uncover information about the legend of the Star Rod, using the transcription device to store their findings before hightailing it out of the mansion. Their haste in leaving the place however leaves the book out in the open, allowing Kamek who has been spying on them to take it and peruse it for his own ends.

4. YOSHI - Landing on Yoshi's Island, Yoshi and Toadette immediately get into battle with the troops, Bowser has stationed there. After opening up some bridges with Toadette's engineering skill, Yoshi and Toadette are in the process of engaging some enemies when Donkey Kong appears and single-handedly defeats the group. Making an impromptu team-up, the Coalition and Donkey Kong barrel through the Yoshi's Island base so much that Bowser's troops decide to release Petey Piranha to deal with them after the group defeat Boom Boom. After Petey's defeat and the area cleared of minions, Yoshi and Toadette learn that Donkey Kong is on the island because he and Diddy were brought here by Bowser's troops, with the former escaping his shackles and scouring the island for the latter. The Coalition and Donkey Kong track down Diddy Kong to the Koopa Troop's HQ on the island where the operation is ran by Bowser Jr., storm the base, free Diddy Kong, and beats Bowser Jr. (who manages to escape), ending Bowser's operations on Yoshi's Island, and giving the Coalition both more allies and a small airship fleet. (Donkey Kong is unlocked in this part.)

Interlude 2 - Using the resources they've gathered, the Coalition has finally mustered up enough forces to stand a viable chance of pushing Bowser's army back. Luigi's group's findings on the legend of the Star Rod, a wand that is able to grant wishes upon anyone who makes one in it's presence, allows Peach to surmise that the key they found will open up the way to it's location, and the power of it's wishes can grant the coalition the decisive edge they need to soundly beat Bowser and his army for good. In order to keep Bowser distracted from their movements, Peach sends Mario and Luigi to lead a large force to meet Bowser's forces in battle while she and the others take a group to find the Star Rod.

5. EPILOGUE - For most of this until the end, you play as Peach. Peach's group visit the Mountaintop Glacier which is where the key needs to be used. Battling her way through ghostly illusions sent to test her and a surprise offensive from Wario and Waluigi who intends to raid the area for treasure, she manages to clear the trials and opens the path ahead. However, when she does, Kamek ambushes her and attempts to capture her then and there, having figured out what she is trying to do from perusing the book. After his defeat, he summons a Wiggler and enlarges it with his magic, turning it violent and destructive. Peach and her group battles and defeats the Wiggler, then Peach enters the Star Road and quickly finds the Star Rod, hidden behind a protective barrier, and makes her wish upon it to give her allies the strength they need to defeat Bowser and restore everything to it's former peaceful state. After this, Peach and her allies use the airships left behind to reinforce Mario and Luigi against Bowser Jr.'s air fleet. Finally, with everyone reunited, they mount a siege on Bowser's Castle and, after beating Boom Boom and then Bowser, forcing him to halt his invasion and his plan of capturing Peach again, and restoring peace upon the Mushroom Kingdom.

6. BOWSER RETURNS - However, that peace would be shortlived. Bowser, reeling from defeat, wonders how they managed to turn the tables so easily. Kamek appears and explains to him about the legend of the Star Rod and it's wish-granting power, and how Peach used the Star Rod to turn the tables on him. Kamek then advices Bowser to take all of his troops that are still able to fight, and invade the Star Road, take out the security measures there, and take the Star Rod for himself. Kamek managed to snatch the key from Peach and her troops when they met on the mountain peak, so Bowser will be able to gain entry. Bowser, who has not given up yet, agrees, and takes Kamek, Bowser Jr., and Boom Boom alongside a small, able force to travel to the Mountaintop Glacier. There, they run afoul of Luigi and Donkey Kong who had been dispatched to the area to search for the missing key. Soundly defeating the two, Bowser and his forces invade Star Road where he battles illusions of his own troops, including King Bob-Omb, Petey Piranha, King Boo, and Wiggler. At last, Kamek dispels the barrier and Bowser obtains the Star Rod which he tests it's power by using it to soundly trash Wario and Waluigi who snuck in with his troops in search of treasure. With unlimited wish-granting at his command, Bowser soon rebuilds his army and launches a large-scale assault upon the Mushroom Kingdom again against the remaining army led by Peach. He first defeats Mario (who escapes) and Yoshi, then undermines Toad and Toadette's attempts at sabotaging his army. Finally, he faces Mario once again and defeats him. Peach, realizing that it's do or die, enters the battlefield, reinvigorating Mario. Ignoring his hated archenemy's repeated comebacks, he goes for Peach, defeats her, and finally captures her and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom Coalition. (Bowser and Bowser Jr. are unlocked in this part.)

7. GRAND FINALE - Peach is unavailable for the entirety of this part. Bowser, having been victorious in the last battle, has taken her somewhere else, and imprisoned the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom Coalition within his castle walls. As Mario and the rest are trying to find a way to escape the prison, a wall into the prison quarters is surprisingly blown up: Wario and Waluigi have arrived in Bowser's Castle to loot it for revenge of their prior defeat at Bowser's hands. Mario and company team up with the unexpected guests, promising to aid them in looting the castle if Wario uses his explosives to free them from their cells. Together, they assist him in exploring the castle for treasure until they've had their fill. Eventually, upon a chance looting of Bowser's throne room, they find out where Bowser has gone: the Star Road, where the Star Rod can directly tap into the power of the Stars, letting him establish an invincible empire with Peach by his side. Deciding they will need a strategist to come up with strategies and manage their war funds for them to rescue Peach, Mario and Luigi strike a deal with Wario to have him manage their forces and come up with their battle strategies against Bowser for a large salary and a large cut of any remaining funds once Bowser is defeated. From there, they enter the Mountaintop Glacier and fight Boom Boom and Kamek again, who also summons King Bob-Omb, Petey Piranha, and Big Boo during the battle. Finally, entering Star Road, which is starting to get corrupted by Bowser's usage of Star power, they initially beat back the giant Wigglers summoned by Bowser Jr., then utilizing Wario's strategy; the coalition escorts Toadette to blast a pathway through to Bowser Jr.'s stronghold while Diddy Kong distracts him from finding out what Toadette is doing. Finally, they meet and fight Bowser, powered by the Star Rod, but he proves to be insurmountable head-on. Wario pinpoints Princess Peach's location and distracts the powered-up Bowser alongside Waluigi so the coalition can enter Peach's location and free her. Peach taps into Star Road's connection to the stars to make a wish that denies Bowser from abusing it's power, and this causes the Star Rod to disintegrate. Before it is lost forever, Kamek grabs the Star Rod and combines it's power with his magic to supersize Bowser and give him one last shot at defeating Mario and his allies before it is utterly destroyed. After a long, grueling battle, Bowser is defeated and his plans for Peach and the world are foiled at last. With Bowser and his troops retreating to his castle, Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, Toadette, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom residents return back to Mushroom Kingdom, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong return to their own homes, and Wario and Waluigi leave with their monetary reward.


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| SUPER MUSOU BROS. |
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1. OVERVIEW

A side mode, similiar to Hyrule Warriors's Adventure Mode and Fire Emblem Warriors's History Mode. The story goes like this: "Peach has been kidnapped by Bowser. Traverse through eight worlds with eight castles to rescue her." Your chosen character travels on a world map, with each level being a mission that can range from a standard army vs. army campaign using the full map to a challenge mission making use of a limited portion of the map. Some levels place restrictions on which characters you may use for those levels until you ace them to remove the restriction.

 Level Space: A standard army vs. army campaign. Complete the main mission and defeat the enemy commander

 Map Enemy: A challenge mission where your character needs to fulfill a certain task to complete it. This can be anything from a certain number of KOs to making your way from a certain point on the map to another point of the map, to a trivia challenge. The Map enemy is often featured in the mission as well.

 Fortress: A somewhat more complex challenge mission that involves boss enemies, either as the focal point or as part of the challenge.

 Castle: An army vs. army campaign with a more involved enemy commander, culminating in a battle against a boss enemy. Beating these unlocks the way to the next world on the map.

Occasionally, a level may have two ways to complete it (denoted by the level space being red, though some fortresses also has two ways to complete them; the flag they hoist upon completion will be a red flag, instead of white). In addition, levels with two possible ways for completion will have a unique border when you select them, giving an additional hint. This could make it possible for you to find secret levels (where most Power Stars can be found) or shortcuts through a given world.

Completing a map (except for the Star Road Map) for the first time will unlock Time Attack mode in addition to being able to enter the map normally. In this mode, you pick one character available to you and start at the beginning of a map and try to make your way to World 8 Castle. You are able to save your progress separately for every map available for the mode, and completion will save your best time for the map. In the Time Attack version, all character-specific requirements for levels that have them are done away with. You are also able to choose from Easy, Normal, and Hard difficulty which affects how much higher leveled and aggressive compared to the original worlds the enemies are.

2. BASE GAME MAPS

SUPER MUSOU BROS. MAP: A standard map that wouldn't be out of place in a normal Mario game. On this map, Toadette is unlocked after clearing Castle 1, Wario is unlocked after clearing Castle 3, Diddy Kong is unlocked after clearing Castle 5, and Kamek is unlocked after clearing Castle 7. Mario's FLUDD and Super Bell, Luigi's Ice Flower and Super Leaf, Toad's Boomerang Flower, and Wario's Wario Bike can be found here to expand their arsenal. Beyond that, the worlds are also gated by story progress; You may access World 1 at any point after Super Musou Bros. is unlocked (by clearing the first chapter of the Prologue), World 2 is unlocked by clearing the Prologue, World 3 is unlocked by clearing Mario & Peach's route, World 4 is unlocked by clearing Luigi's route, World 5 is unlocked by clearing Yoshi's route, World 6 is unlocked by clearing the Epilogue, World 7 is unlocked by clearing Bowser Returns, and World 8 is unlocked by completing Story Mode in it's entirety.

STAR ROAD MAP: Unlocked by getting Power Stars hidden in Story Mode and in Super Musou Bros. More specifically, the map's missions are initially locked until you can gather certain Power Stars that complete an illustration. Upon completing the illustration, a mission on Star Road Map that is based on that illustration is unlocked. Each illustration also has their own unique restrictions on which character is allowed to be used. Clearing any Star Road mission also unlocks Rosalina for use, and the Star Road missions are the only missions where Rosalina appears as an enemy or ally in the base game.


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* DLC *
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Some current thoughts that I might flesh out in the future:

WALUIGI and BOOM BOOM get promoted to playable in an update coinciding with the Lost Levels DLC Pack.

A Lost Levels Pack featuring a harder Super Musou Bros. map and adds an additional Star Road mission. DAISY debuts as a new playable character. Mario, Peach, and Bowser also get new movesets.

A Yoshi's Island Pack featuring a new Super Musou Bros. map based on the Yoshi games and adds an additional Star Road mission. BABY MARIO debuts as a new playable character, and Yoshi gets a new moveset.

A Luigi's Mansion Pack featuring a new Super Musou Bros. map based on the Luigi's Mansion games and adds an additional Star Road mission. KING BOO debuts as a new playable character, and Luigi gets a new moveset.

A Donkey Kong Country Pack featuring a new Super Musou Bros. map based on the Donkey Kong games and adds an additional Star Road mission. CRANKY KONG and KING K. ROOL debuts as new playable characters.

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| DLC CHARACTERS |
*----------------*

WALUIGI - This shifty partner of Wario wields a tennis racquet which he uses to lob and smack explosive bombs and entangling thorny roseplants in addition to the usual tennis ball.
>WEAPONS
 >Tennis Racquet: Armed with his trusty tennis racquet, Waluigi is capable of smacking, lobbing, and sending down bombs, seeds capable of spawning forth thorny walls and Piranha Plants, and standard tennis balls to direct enemies right where he wants. (Balanced)

BOOM BOOM - This brute of Bowser's Minions will charge at you, fists spinning. He also has the capability of flight and can be a dangerous opponent to take down in the right circumstances.
>WEAPONS
 >Boom Boom Shell: With his fists of fury that can transform into a pair of wings and his special shell, Boom Boom encloses and overwhelms his enemies in close combat, whether it is from the ground or in the air. (Balanced)

DAISY - The Princess of Sarasaland is nimble and agile, capable of conjuring magical flowers and smacking enemies away with her golf club. As an NPC enemy or ally, she only appears in the Lost Levels pack content.
>WEAPONS
 >Golf Club

BABY MARIO - When Mario was a baby, the Yoshi's helped him reunite with his Brother by carrying him on their back. In this game, Baby Mario glides through the air with the Super Cape, utilizing it as a means of transport and as a terrifying weapon. As an NPC enemy or ally, he only appears in the Yoshi's Island pack content.
>WEAPONS
 >Super Cape

KING BOO - A servant of Bowser, the mischievous king of the Boos defeats at the hand of Luigi has earned the younger Mario brother his eternal enmity. With the powerful jeweled crown on his head, he conjures halberd-wielding armors, manifests ghostly illusions, brings down powerful lightning, and summons his minions all in a bid to destroy Luigi once and for all. As an NPC enemy or ally, he only appears in the Luigi's Mansion pack content.
>WEAPONS
 >Boo Crown

CRANKY KONG
>WEAPONS
 >Cane

KING K. ROOL
>WEAPONS
 >Blunderbuss

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| DLC WEAPONS |
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MARIO: Elephant Fruit - In Elephant form, Mario gains slow, heavy-hitting attacks that can send packs of enemies flying, and can blow gouts or streams of water from his nose. (Grounded)

LUIGI: Poltergust G-00 - This Poltergust model allows Luigi to team up with Gooigi, a recent creation of E. Gadd, to suck, blow, and slam any foe in their way, on top of powerful flashes from their Strobulb flashlights. (Grounded)

PEACH: Frying Pan - Enemies beware, Peach can whip up a large repertoire of cakes and other pastry products to knock them silly... or just give them a good clean smack with it. (Grounded)

YOSHI: Yoshi Wings - With the Yoshi Wings, Yoshi is capable of taking to the air and down enemies from above with a far-reaching fire breath. (Aerial)

BOWSER: Warp Whistle - A single tune from this whistle will summon Bowser's minions to execute direct orders from their beloved king. (Balanced)