Invincibility

This article is about the mechanic used by various power-ups. For the stage in Super Mario Land 2 - 6 Golden Coins, also known as "Invincibility!", see Roots Course.

Invincibility is a mechanic found in various game in the Super Mario franchise, usually obtained by collecting certain power-ups. In this state, characters are usually invulnerable to attacks for a short period of time.

History[edit]

This article needs improvement. Specifically:

Update links on the various pages which still erroneously use the Invincible Mario article as a general page for "Invincibility as a concept in video games." That is what this page was created for, and thusly, those links should direct readers here instead.
Due to the recency of its creation and scale of the page, there are many subjects on this page which are not mentioned, or not fully covered.
- Invincibility in the Wario Land series
- Invincibility in WarioWare. (Assuming that it exists at all. If it doesn't, remove this section of the list accordingly.)
- Invincibility in Super Smash Bros.
- Various invincibility granting items/badges in the Paper Mario games. Super Stars, Mega Stars, and Flower Points are mentioned, but certain items which might count, such as the Boo's Sheet or the Stone Cap, are not mentioned.
- Other invincibility-granting power-ups and forms. White Raccoon Mario is mentioned in the gallery, but not in the history.
The temporary invulnerability characters receive upon taking damage may be worthy of inclusion on this page, albeit in its own section separate from the history.

Requested improvements must be clear, pertinent, and well-formed. Please refrain from adding bullet points such as "Add more information" or "Write the rest of the article".

Super Mario series[edit]

Artwork of Invincible Mario from Super Mario Bros. Wonder with shadow.

Invincible Mario, which is the most commonly used Invincibility powerup in the series.

Main article: Invincible Mario

The primary invincibility Power-up in the Super Mario series is the Super Star, which turns Mario into Invincible Mario. In this form, Mario can instantly defeat enemies upon contact, and his running speed is increased, although it will wear off after a few seconds.

In All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros., the Super Star is replaced by an item called Hiranya, although it otherwise functions identically.

In BS Super Mario USA, collecting a Love-Love Fire, will grant Mario the effects of a Super Star while also fully refilling his Life Meter.

Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS[edit]

While Super Stars, and by extension, Invincible Mario does not appear in Super Mario 64, two new power-ups appear with similar functionality. One is known as the Metal Cap, which turns Mario into Metal Mario. Like Invincible Mario, this form allows Mario to defeat enemies upon contact, and will also allow him walk underwater without breathing, and not take damage from smoke, although his overall mobility is decreased until it wears off.

The other is the Vanish Cap, which turns Mario into Vanish Mario. Unlike, the Metal form, Mario becomes intangible to enemies, rather than instantly defeating them on contact. He can also pass through certain objects and become undetectable to enemies such as Mr. I.

In the DS remake, both power-ups are replaced by Power Flower. Collecting a Power Flower as Wario will turn him into metal, while collecting a Power Flower as Luigi will turn him intangible. Exclusively in the DS version, the player can also find Super Mushrooms which will allow them to grow to a massive size, and destroy enemies and certain objects on contact, gaining extra lives if enough objects as destroyed in this way. Doing so while playing as Yoshi will also allow him to punch, which is an ability he normally does not have in this game.

New Super Mario Bros / New Super Mario Bros. 2[edit]

In New Super Mario Bros., alongside the returning Invincible Mario, the Mega Mushroom appears as another invincibility granting item. Functioning similar to Super Mario in Super Mario 64 DS, Mega Mario can instantly defeat enemies upon contact, including most of the game's bosses, although due to his large size, he can also destroy certain otherwise unbreakable objects, such as Warp Pipes, and ? Blocks. Mega Mario returns in New Super Mario Bros. 2 albeit less frequently, due to the lesser amount of Mega Mushrooms in the game. New Super Mario Bros. 2 also introduces White Raccoon Mario, an invincible counterpart to Raccoon Mario, gained via the returning Invincibility Leaf.

Super Mario Galaxy / Super Mario Galaxy 2[edit]

In Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel, a similar form to Invincibility Mario appears as Rainbow Mario. It makes Mario invincible, much like the Super Star, but the effects of the Rainbow Star are more extensive and longer-lasting than those of a Super Star, and Mario can break through certain objects. However, he earns Star Bits by defeating enemies instead of extra lives, and he cannot combine this power-up with any other power-up; if Mario touches one while invincible, the other item will be kicked off-screen, and collecting a Rainbow Star as any other form will immediately overwrite it.

Super Mario 3D Land / Super Mario 3D World / Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury[edit]

In Super Mario 3D Land, the Invincibility Leaf debuts, which grants the player an invincible version of Tanooki Mario. It appears if the player loses enough lives in a normal world level. Invincibility Leaves and Mega Mushrooms return in Super Mario 3D World and its Nintendo Switch port, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, with the port introducing the Invincibility Bell. This power-up is solely obtained via amiibo, and grants the player an invincible version of Cat Mario.

Super Mario Odyssey[edit]

Although traditional power-ups, including Super Stars, do not appear in Super Mario Odyssey, Mario can still become briefly invincible if any Mario amiibo is used. In this game, the music is recycled from World 2-3 in Super Mario 3D Land, and Mario does not instantly defeat enemies upon contact; his life meter does not decrease whereas he still receives knockback.

Donkey Kong series[edit]

In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, and Donkey Kong Land 2, the Kongs can become invincible by breaking through an Invincibility Barrel. While invincible, they temporarily gain the same effects as a Super Star, such as immunity to most obstacles and the ability to defeat enemies by touching them. However, even in this state, they still lose a life if they fall in a pit.

Yoshi's Island series[edit]

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, and Yoshi's Island DS allow Baby Mario to become invincible by grabbing a Super Star. In this state, he is referred to as Superstar Mario and is able to touch spikes safely, glide with a cape, run up walls, and run faster than the Yoshis.

Yoshi's New Island[edit]

Yoshi's New Island features the Yoshi Star, which turns the Yoshis themselves into Super Yoshis, granting them the same abilities as Superstar Mario bar the cape glide. A variant known as the Red Yoshi Star also appears with similar functionality, but with the added ability to Fly. Another invincibility granting power-up, the Golden Flutter Wings is grant if the player loses enough lives in a level.

Yoshi's Woolly World / Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World[edit]

In Yoshi's Woolly World and Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World, once Yoshi touches an Invincibility Egg (which spawns after five deaths), he glows orange and is immune to damage from enemies and their attacks. However, Yoshi cannot instantly defeat enemies by touching them, and he still takes knockback from enemies, and is instantly defeated by spike pits, bottomless pits, lava, and being crushed.

Yoshi's Story[edit]

Yoshi's Story features the Super Happy form, gained by eating a Heart Fruit or collecting six melons from a minigame. In this form, not only are the Yoshis briefly invincible, they also gain super strength (including improved Ground Pounds), a longer tongue, a better Flutter Jump, and an infinite supply of eggs for the form's duration.

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars[edit]

In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars and its Nintendo Switch port, Super Stars can be found on the overworld in certain areas, allowing Mario to defeat enemies without battling them. This method still gives his party experience points.

Paper Mario series[edit]

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door[edit]

In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and its Nintendo Switch port, during Bowser's sidescrolling level segments (World 1, World 2, and World 3) in his intermissions, if he collects enough pieces of meat in one level, Bowser will grow to a gigantic size, allowing him to smash through everything in the level, similar to Mega Mario.

Super Paper Mario[edit]

In Super Paper Mario, invincibility is mainly granted by a Mega Star, which will turn the player into their Mega form for a short period of time. Additionally, in the Tilt Island minigame, collecting a Flower Point will cause the player to being rapidly Spin Dashing in place for a short time, becoming invulnerable during this period while also defeating falling obstacles on contact.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star / Paper Mario: Color Splash / Paper Mario: The Origami King[edit]

From Paper Mario Sticker Star onwards, traditional Super Stars can be found in certain courses, which turn Mario into Invincible Mario. This power is exclusive to the overworld sections of game, and cannot be used in battle, as making contact with any enemies will defeat them instantly, as in Super Mario RPG.