Bob-omb Battlefield
Bob-omb Battlefield is the first course in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS. The painting through which Mario can enter Bob-omb Battlefield is located on the first floor of Princess Peach's Castle, through the door on the far left. It is one of the two courses which do not require Power Stars to enter (the other is Hazy Maze Cave). Bob-omb Battlefield takes place in a grassland area with many trees. It contains several mountains and hills which can be climbed. Bob-omb Battlefield is always in constant war, the Black Bob-ombs vs. the Bob-omb Buddies. Mario's enemies include Bob-ombs, Goombas, a Koopa Troopa and a Chain Chomp, the only one in Super Mario 64. There are several Wing Cap ! Blocks and six cannons in the level. It is impossible to fall off the course here. However, in Super Mario 64 DS, it is possible to perform a glitch by shooting at the bottom tip of the island with Mario's Wing Cap. Doing so will cause the player to go high into the air and go out of the level's boundaries, losing a life.
Levels
The level titles and numbers correspond to Super Mario 64 unless otherwise noted.
Star 1: Big Bob-omb on the Summit
In the very first level of Super Mario 64, Mario has to get to the summit of the mountain of Bob-omb Battlefield to fight the Big Bob-omb, an enemy to the Bob-omb Buddies, and essentially the first boss character of the game. Mario has to straightly follow the path that starts at the beginning of the level. There are several obstacles and enemies on his way, including Goombas, a Chain Chomp, water bombs, and big metal cannonballs called Big Steelies which roll down the path. Upon reaching the summit, Mario is confronted by the Big Bob-omb. Mario can defeat the Big Bob-omb by picking him up from behind and throwing him to the ground. When Mario misses and throws the Big Bob-omb from the summit plateau, he will come back claiming Mario cheated and Mario will have to start over again. Mario must throw him to the ground three times. On defeat, the Big Bob-omb releases a Power Star.
In Super Mario 64 DS, the battle is changed. Yoshi is the only character available at the beginning of the game, so the Big Bob-omb will throw Bob-ombs at Yoshi. As such, Yoshi has to grab a Bob-omb with his mouth and throw it at the Big Bob-omb, before the Bob-omb explodes in Yoshi's mouth. Technically, this mission can be done with other characters, if the player gets a star such as "Behind Chain Chomp's Gate" before this one. In Super Mario 64 DS Big Bob-omb bounces lightly with Yoshi having to dodge this attack. In Super Mario 64, Big Bob-omb bounced once and got up again.
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Star 2: Footrace with Koopa the Quick
For the second Power Star of the level, Mario has to race the Gargantua Koopa Troopa Koopa the Quick. Mario has to reach the flagpole at the summit of the mountain before Koopa the Quick does. This Star isn't too difficult since Koopa The Quick isn't especially fast and takes a rather long path. However, just like when racing the Big Penguin in Cool, Cool, Mountain, the player can't cheat. Using one of the Cannons scattered across Bob-omb Battlefield will make Koopa The Quick refuse to give away the star. However, players are allowed to use the warp on the side of the mountain, where the cannon balls fall out of. In fact, the player is allowed to take any short cuts at all as long they don't involve any of the cannons.
To get to the flagpole, the player must follow the dirt path to a wooden bridge, passing several Goombas. After crossing the wooden bridge, the player must follow another dirt path, this time avoiding a Bob-omb and a Chain Chomp. This path will lead to another wooden bridge that will tip if the player doesn't cross it fast enough. Meanwhile, Koopa the Quick will fail to cross this bridge, but then attempt to cheat by climbing the white rock that the player can't climb. There will be two spaces of land ahead of the player, but they should head to the right, in the direction towards the mountain. In this area, there will be several Bob-ombs and falling water bombs. The player should try to dodge these enemies. If the player gets to the end of the field, they will find a gate, allowing access to the mountain. The rest of the course is simple, but easier said than done. The player must climb the path which rotates in a circular motion. Giant metal balls roll down the path, having the player to dodge or jump over them. Once the player gets to the top, they will see a flag with a Green Shell on it. If the player stands near it or jumps onto it, they will beat Koopa the Quick and receive a star. If they fail, they will have to try again. If Mario gets to the Flag ahead of Koopa the Quick he also will have to wait until Koopa the Quick reaches the flagpole to win the Star.
This mission is pretty much the same in Super Mario 64 DS. However, there is a slight change. Koopa The Quick will only want to race against Mario himself. Since Yoshi is the only character available at the time, Yoshi must take a Mario Cap and then race against Koopa The Quick. However, the player can choose to get another Power Star to get the real Mario from defeating Goomboss. If Yoshi loses the cap during the race for various reasons, Koopa The Quick will wonder where Mario is and won't relinquish the Star. If the player regains their Mario Cap and wins the race, Koopa the Quick will act like Yoshi lost.
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Star 3 (N64): Shoot to the Island in the Sky
In the original Super Mario 64, the third Power Star of Bob-omb Battefield is found in a ! Block on a floating platform/"island", which is floating near the big mountain. In order to get it, Mario first has to talk to the Bob-omb Buddies at the beginning of the level to open the cannons, the cannon right at the beginning of the level can not be used to shoot to the floating island, but, it can be used to shoot to the cannon that is located about right underneath the floating island inside a rock formation. When the player blasts off to the floating island, it is possible to go over the island if aimed incorrectly when fired and land on top of the mountain. If this happens, there is a cannon located on the mountain that can be used to shoot to the floating island. The cannon near the summit is the only other cannon that can be used to shoot to the floating island. Also, when performing this mission, the player should try to aim for the tree on the floating island, as Mario will grab it. Then break the mystery block on the floating island to grab the Power Star that comes out of it.
This level was removed in Super Mario 64 DS.
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Star 3 (DS): Five Silver Stars!
In Super Mario 64 DS, the player, who can play this mission with any character, has to find the five Silver Stars which are scattered throughout the battlefield. This is the only mission where the Chain Chomp is running loose on the battlefield. The locations of the Silver Stars are:
- Revealed after defeating the Goomba with Wario's cap.
- Revealed after defeating the Goomba near a tree and a cannon.
- Near the Chain Chomp.
- Atop a tree (as shown in the image to the right).
- In a patch of flowers.
- Names in Other Languages
Star 4 (N64)/6 (DS): Find the 8 Red Coins
For the fourth Power Star, Mario has to find the eight Red Coins of the level. They are scattered throughout the battlefield. The locations of the Red Coins are:
- One is on moving platforms beside the main path.
- One on the Chain Chomp's peg.
- One on a small hill near the Chain Chomp and the Koopa Troopa.
- Two near the Star Marker.
- Another on a slope down the mountain.
- One on the tree on the floating island.
- One in a small area where the ground ! Switch is.
When Mario has collected all Red Coins, the Power Star appears.
- Names in Other Languages
Star 4 (DS): Big Bob-omb's Revenge
The player has to fight the Big Bob-omb, this time with a character other than Yoshi, because in this battle, there are no projectiles to throw. To get the Power Star, Mario, Luigi or Wario has do the same objective as Star 1 in the N64 version. However, if the player throws the Big Bob-omb off the mountain, he'll jump back to the mountain and say, "You must fight with honor! It is against the rules to throw the king out of the ring." Once Big Bob-omb is thrown three times, the Power Star will appear. It is best to do this mission as Wario because he will not slow down when he picks up Big Bob-omb.
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Star 5: Mario Wings to the Sky
This level was exactly the same in both Super Mario 64 and its remake. Mario has to fly through five rings of coins in the air using the Wing Cap (aquired after collecting ten Power Stars, going into the castle and looking up when there is sunshine beaming down on the rug) and collect all five middle coins of the rings to make the Power Star appear. Taking off from the Island in the Sky, he has to use the Wing Cap and shoot himself from a cannon to have enough speed to hit all the rings, as well as being able to fly upwards. The Power Star appears in the meadow near the Star Marker. It is also possible to use the cannon on its own to go through all the rings, but this takes good aiming and can't be done in one try.
- Names in Other Languages
Star 6 (7 in DS): Behind Chain Chomp's Gate
The sixth Power Star of Bob-omb Battlefield is located behind iron bars near the Chain Chomp. To get it, Mario first has to free the Chain Chomp by Ground Pounding its pole three times. Freed, it will destroy the iron bars and Mario will be able to get the star. A glitch is to hold a Bob-omb near the bars and wait for it to explode. The force of the explosion will push Mario inside the gate.
The star in Super Mario 64 DS is the same as if it were gotten in the original version of the game and collected as if it were done in the same way. However, there are several alternatives to getting the star normally, such as using Vanish Luigi to phase through the bars, ground-pounding the stake a single time as Wario, or collecting the star during the third mission (since the Chain Chomp has been moved to the adjacent field). Additionally, in the original game, a higher jump is required to collect the star, since it is too high to collect with a normal one; in the DS version this has been changed so that a normal jump may be used.
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Quotes
- Upon entering the course in the Nintendo 64 version:
"Wow! You're smack in the middle of the battlefield. You'll find the Power Stars that Bowser stole inside the painting walls. First, talk to the Bob-omb Buddy (Press
to talk.) He'll certainly help you out, and so will his comrades in other areas. To read signs, stop, face them and press
or
- Upon entering the course in the DS version:
"Chasing Mario led you smack in the middle of the battlefield. Where's Mario? First talk to the Bob-omb Buddy. In Standard Mode, you can do this by pressing
. He'll certainly help you out."
Enemies
Statistics from Super Mario 64
- Total Number of coins: 146
- Caps Found: Red
- Warps:
- Mario can warp from a bush of flowers near the Goombas and the cannon to another bush which is near the Star Marker.
- Another warp is a hole midway up the mountain where rolling balls are coming out. Mario can warp to another hole near the top of the mountain.
Names in Other Languages
Media
Trivia
- Bob-omb Battlefield is very similar to Wario's Battle Canyon, as both feature a war between Bob-ombs and Bob-omb Buddies.
- In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, if one plays at least 50 hours of brawling, then the level's theme song (simply known as Main Theme Super Mario 64) will be unlocked on the Delfino Plaza stage.
