Soda Lake
Template:Level Soda Lake is an underwater secret area reached by entering the secret gate of Cheese Bridge Area in the game Super Mario World. This level is located in World 4, Twin Bridges. Mario will encounter a new and unique enemy who only appear in this level, the Torpedo Ted. This underwater Bullet Bill relative (which is dropped from Skull Boxes) can travel through walls and are always deployed in Mario's direction. They cannot be defeated in any way, so it is advised to simply avoid them. When Mario clears the area, he will unlock the third warp point to Star Road.
Access
To access this level, players must enter Cheese Bridge Area and use a Cape Feather or Yoshi to make their way under the first Giant Gate to reach an alternate Giant Gate, making it possible to access Soda Lake.
Overview
At the start, Mario or Luigi will descend from a gray pipe to begin their journey. Quite suddenly, a Blurp and a Skull Box appear on the horizon. The player must quickly climb towards the upper section of the screen to avoid geting trapped. Another three Blurps guard a ? Block containing either a Super Mushroom or Fire Flower, depending on Mario's or Luigi's current state. Be wary of two approaching Skull Boxes and a line of Blurps patrolling the bottom of the screen (note that they, unlike their Torpedo Ted allies, can indeed be killed by either a fireball or cape spin). The first Dragon Coin is situated between two Skull Boxes; this is very risky to obtain, and is not recommended if the player wishes to keep their power-up, or stay alive if small.
Up ahead, a school of four Blurps make their way away from a row of descending Skull Boxes. Along with many regular coins, the second Dragon Coin sits near the middle Skull Box. Time it so that the middle Skull Box has just fired before attempting to grab it. Move towards the bottom of the screen to avoid the treacherous Torpedo Teds. The next open area has a lone pillar and more pockets of Blurps (five or six this time), and the player must swim over them and continue on. A nearby chasm contains the third Dragon Coin, but beware the nearby Skull Box, which will fire a Torpedo Ted that will travel through the wall to attack Mario/Luigi. That same Skull Box is accompanied by three others in this next tricky section; it is best to stay low and quickly swim up amidst whatever Torpedo Teds that may be coming Mario/Luigi's way, along with three more Blurps. The fourth Dragon Coin is in plain sight right in front of yet another Skull Box, so make sure to be quick in the execution of snagging it.
Beyond said Skull Box, there is another one higher up, with two Blurps coming towards the player somewhere nearby. This second Skull Box becomes the first of three in a row, all surrounding the final Dragon Coin. It is perhaps the easiest one if the player can quickly catch it before either of the upper Skull Boxes gets a chance to launch a Torpedo Ted at them. A column of four Blurps will make further passage impossible until they pass. Three more Blurps drift past as the player arrives at a passage where they can simply walk across to avoid all the Torpedo Teds churning above them. All that remains is the pipe at the end, which will take the player to the surface. At this point, Mario or Luigi can just cross the Giant Gate to complete the level.
Enemies
- Torpedo Ted (only appearance)
- Skull Box (deploys Torpedo Teds)
- Blurp
