Rocky Wrench

Rocky Wrenches are enemies employed as crewmen on the Koopa Troop's vehicles. They pop out of manhole covers and attack by throwing their namesake wrenches. They have been described as mole-like turtles, but from New Super Mario Bros. Wii onward they lack shells (with the exception of the "classic" styles of Super Mario Maker), which, along with other changes in design, has resulted in them resembling Monty Moles. Their original description has not been applied to the redesign, and they have since been called moles instead of mole-like on at least one occasion.

Super Mario Bros. 3
Rocky Wrenches first appear in Super Mario Bros. 3 as enemies on airships, tanks, and ships belonging to the Koopa Troop. Upon sighting either Mario or Luigi, a Rocky Wrench will pop out of its hole on these vehicles and throw wrenches at them before descending back into its hole. They first appear in.

In most cases, a defeated Rocky Wrench will reappear, even when defeated by a stomp. However, some levels in Dark Land have red Rocky Wrenches that will be permanently defeated when attacked. In Super Mario All-Stars and Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, all Rocky Wrenches are red, though they still act like they do in the NES version between the various levels.

A Rocky Wrench appears on the cover and title screen for the GBA remake. Rocky Wrenches also appear in a few World-e levels.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Rocky Wrenches reappear in New Super Mario Bros. Wii on the airship of World 6. Their behavior is largely unchanged from their first appearance, though the potential initial vertical movement of their wrenches is lessened. Aside from being susceptible to stomps, they can also be frozen by Ice Mario and will be defeated permanently when attacked. In this game and most following it, Rocky Wrench shares a nearly identical model to Monty Mole, but with added goggles.

Super Mario 3D Land
Rocky Wrenches reappear in Super Mario 3D Land. Though they are commonly found in airship stages, they appear in several levels in the game and can even be found in Warp Pipes. Their appearance is the same as New Super Mario Bros. Wii and they conduct their usual wrench-throwing tactics, but some now appear in pipes and either throw Bob-ombs or even coins. Unlike other games, the wrenches they throw can be stomped on harmlessly, destroying them in the process.

New Super Mario Bros. U / New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
Rocky Wrenches reappear in New Super Mario Bros. U, once again retaining their design and attacks as in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. They only appear in Boarding the Airship of Meringue Clouds, and are one of the few enemies that do not appear in New Super Luigi U.

Super Mario Maker / Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS
Rocky Wrenches reappear in Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS, using new sprites for Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario World-styled courses, the former of which removes their goggles. If they are winged, they hop out of their manhole cover before throwing their wrenches, making their lower bodies more visible. This also occurs if they are enlarged, but they temporarily revert to their original size in order to hide. On certain platforms such as Semisolid Platforms, Donut Blocks, and Cloud Blocks, Rocky Wrenches fall through them when they attempt to hide in them. Rocky Wrenches retain their shells in the Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario World styles, but not in New Super Mario Bros. U style. In addition, their existing appearances have been slightly revised; they have a less plain palette and appear to lack tails in the Super Mario Bros. 3 style, and now have stubbier limbs and a slimmer, shorter body shape compared to a Monty Mole in the New Super Mario Bros. U style. In Course Maker, shaking them will change the slot to a Monty Mole and vice versa.

Super Mario Run
Rocky Wrenches reappear in Super Mario Run, appearing only in Throwing It All Overboard in the main game. Additionally, they can occasionally appear in the Airship courses seen in Toad Rally and Remix 10. Some Rocky Wrenches throw coins instead of wrenches. Rocky Wrenches come back out of the ground much quicker than they do in most games, almost immediately after they go down.

Super Mario Maker 2
Rocky Wrenches reappear in Super Mario Maker 2, where they now occupy a wholly separate slot from Monty Moles.

Super Mario Kodansha manga
Rocky Wrenches make various appearances in the Super Mario Kodansha manga.

Their first appearance is in the Super Mario Bros. 3 volume, appearing in an adaptation of.

They make another appearance in the third Super Mario Land volume, in which a Rocky Wrench appears as part of Bowser's baseball team when he challenges Mario to play alongside his other minions.

They make a minor cameo in the Super Mario All-Stars chapter from the second Donkey Kong volume. They appear in the background alongside several of Bowser's and Wart's minions.

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
On the television series The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Rocky Wrenches appear in several episodes, most commonly as the guards of Bowser and the Koopalings' Doom Ship, although they are also shown to work on tanks and the Doom Sub as well.

They first appear in the episode Princess Toadstool for President. When Mario and Luigi enter Dark Land, they are ambushed by two Rocky Wrenches driving Tanks, with one Rocky Wrench attempting to throw a wrench at them before Mario and Luigi escape through a pipe.

They make a brief cameo in Mush-Rumors where they throw wrenches at the real-world family.

Rocky Wrenches also appear in the following episode The Ugly Mermaid in which King Koopa calls some Rocky Wrenches to attack Mario and his friends when they are approaching the Doom Sub, but Mario then throws the wrenches back at the Doom Sub, making it spin out.

Finally, a Rocky Wrench (referred to as Mr. Rocky Wrench by Toad) has a somewhat major role in Up, Up, and a Koopa in which he guards the cage Emperor Ed is in, growling at him when he attempts to threaten King Koopa. Later, when Mario and Luigi get trapped in the cage, they attempt to bribe Rocky Wrench with a Fudjie chocolate bar, which makes the Rocky Wrench growl at them. When Luigi asks to borrow the wrenches, the Rocky Wrench throws them at Mario and Luigi (with the wrenches coming back to him like boomerangs, which never happens in the actual Super Mario Bros. 3), with Mario then saying that he will not invite Rocky Wrench to his next plumbing job. Later on, Toad arrives with a giant magnet that he throws onto the ceiling, causing the Rocky Wrench to stick to it due to its wrenches (it shouts "Whoa!" in the process, which is the only time they vocalize in the episode outside of growls).

They also are referenced in the writer's bible from the DVD releases, being called sneaky turtles with severe overbite that hide in manholes to ambush unsuspecting plumbers. Several pieces of concept art can be seen, first being a Rocky Wrench in an airship similar to that of the World 8-Airship level despite not appearing in any episodes, second showing full-body artwork, and finally showing artwork of the Rocky Wrench tank mainly seen in Princess Toadstool for President.

Super Mario Bros. Print World
Rocky Wrench appears in Super Mario Bros. Print World as one of the printable characters.

Nintendo Adventure Books
"Hey! Something's stuck to the side of the bowl!"

- Rocky Wrench

In the Nintendo Adventure Books, a Rocky Wrench that carries a handbag around competes in the International Mushroom Games as a member of a team called the Sneaks in Leaping Lizards. True to his team's name, he uses underhanded tactics in the events, cutting a hole in Roy Koopa's flying carpet during the obstacle course and throwing ink in his face during the Beetlebowl. Rocky Wrench is also very skilled at most of the sports, winning a majority of them. Rocky Wrench's name also appears in a crossword puzzle (though it is shortened to "Rocky"). The artwork used in said puzzle is reused from Super Mario Bros. Print World. Rocky Wrench is also called a rodent in this book and the following one.

A Rocky Wrench appears as the guard of the Monster Mixer in Monster Mix-Up. They first make a brief cameo spotting Mario and Toad on the side of the bowl that is carrying the Monster Mixer. Later on, if Mario uses a Koopa Shell to hit a Starman Block, he will miss the block and the shell will hit the Rocky Wrench on the head. This causes the Rocky Wrench to get knocked out, making them drop their wrench into the Monster Mixer. The Monster Mixer proceeds to blow up, leading to a Game Over.

Super Mario 4koma Manga Theater


Rocky Wrenches appear in volume 2 and volume 6 of Super Mario 4koma Manga Theater. In volume 2, they appear in the "Dismantling Rocky Wrench" (解体屋プー) strip, where they throw several random objects and parts of the airship after running out of wrenches to throw at Luigi.

Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up
A Rocky Wrench cameos in Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up on the Race Car Driver and Mechanic page. The description reads as follows:

"Race car drivers Mario and Luigi had better make a pit stop right away. Their tires are almost worn out from the first leg of the road rally. Rocky Wrench is ready to change two tires."

Super Mario-kun
Rocky Wrenches appear in various volumes in Super Mario-kun.

In volume 5, they make a small cameo when Luigi crushes a Rocky Wrench and other enemies with a Warp Pipe.

They reappear much later in volume 30, in which Larry commands several Rocky Wrenches to throw wrenches at Mario.

In volume 31, a mole resembling a Rocky Wrench called Mogera Kong can be seen on a poster a Noki is holding.

They reappear again in volume 45, in which Boom Boom pushes a button to have several Rocky Wrenches come and throw wrenches at Mario. They were redesigned to look like their modern design rather than the classic design. The manhole lid they have is also darker and more detailed.

In volume 46, Pūko takes the appearance of a Rocky Wrench when she is first shown alongside the other members of AKG48.

Mario Kart DS
In Mario Kart DS, Rocky Wrenches appear as obstacles on the airship portion of Airship Fortress. Popping out of their holes at random, these Rocky Wrenches can cause a kart to spin out of control if it runs into them. One mission involves Wario using a Star to defeat fifteen Rocky Wrenches. Compared to Super Mario Bros. 3, Rocky Wrenches more closely resemble Monty Moles, having seemingly been edited from their appearance in this game, but are further from Monty Mole than the design used in following games. They have brown upper lips, four pointed fangs, and large goggles in front of glowing pupils that seem to be based off of their Super Mario Bros. 3 sprites. Due to the graphics for Rocky Wrenches being flat textures that always face the camera, it is impossible to tell whether they are intended to have shells in this game.

Mario Kart 7
In Mario Kart 7, Rocky Wrenches appear in the retro course, DS Airship Fortress, as well as. They retain their tactics from Mario Kart DS, though they appear with their updated design. They can also be jumped on safely, and the player can even perform a trick off them.

Mario Kart Tour
Starting with the Pirate Tour in Mario Kart Tour, Rocky Wrenches reappear in DS Airship Fortress, where they retain their tactics from Mario Kart DS and Mario Kart 7, though they appear with their updated design like in Mario Kart 7. However, unlike in previous appearances, Rocky Wrenches use fully 3D models instead of a single layer sprite. Unlike in previous Mario Kart games, however, driving into a Rocky Wrench knocks it back into its hole and grants the player bonus points instead of causing the player to spin out. If the player drives over it while it is peeking out, they perform a Jump Boost.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Rocky Wrenches make their Paper Mario series debut in the Nintendo 3DS game Paper Mario: Sticker Star. They only appear on Bowser Jr.'s Flotilla.

Outside battle, they throw wrenches at Mario. In battle, a Rocky Wrench will either hide inside their manholes or have their heads peeking from the manhole. If they are hiding inside the manhole, they cannot be attacked and Mario's attacks will miss. Rocky Wrenches, just like in previous games, throw their wrenches to attack. They also have bigger wrenches that deal more damage to Mario, and mostly use this attack when they are attacked. A Rocky Wrench may sometimes drop a Wrench sticker after battle.

Uniquely, Rocky Wrench's body in this installment is fully rendered and animated, but cannot be seen in-game since they never appear out of their manholes.

Paper Mario: Color Splash
Rocky Wrenches return in Paper Mario: Color Splash. They can be fought in the levels Toad Trainworks and Sunset Express. Outside battle, they throw wrenches at Mario, like in the previous game. Once more, in battle they attack by throwing at Mario a normal wrench or a bigger one. The manhole cover they wear on their head is yellow in this game.

Rocky Wrenches also have a Battle Card that they can occasionally drop. When the card is used, a Rocky Wrench will be summoned to throw a wrench at a single enemy. Like the other enemy cards, the Rocky Wrench will be defeated if it takes too much damage.

Paper Mario: The Origami King
Normal Rocky Wrenches reappear in Paper Mario: The Origami King as NPCs. One Rocky Wrench appears in Toad Town in a port behind the red warehouse which sells Mario the Legion of Stationery collectible treasures. Another Rocky Wrench NPC is found on Picnic Road, outside the Sensor Lab talking about how strange the Toad Researcher is. To interact with them, Mario must hammer their lid. If Mario hammers the lid while standing on top of it, the Rocky Wrench will look around briefly before going back underground.

Origami variants of Rocky Wrenches appear as enemies exclusively in the Spring of Rainbows. In the overworld, they pop up and throw wrenches at Mario that can be jumped over or destroyed with his hammer. In battle, they have three main attacks. They can use "Pass Belt" in which the group of Rocky Wrenches hide in their manholes to pop up under Mario and fling him in the air one by one, dealing damage each time they launch him. They also use "Wrench Throw", which has them throw a wrench. They can also use "Spanner Throw", in which they throw a gold-colored wrench in an arch (similar to Hammer Bros.).

In one of the pieces of concept art showing the origami Rocky Wrench's mechanics, it is revealed that they have no legs, with the body seemingly being able to be slipped in and out of their holes.

NES Remix series
In NES Remix 2 and Ultimate NES Remix, Rocky Wrenches appear in some of the Super Mario Bros. 3 challenges, appearing in levels in which they originally appeared. In one specific challenge, the player must defeat one Rocky Wrench in.

Mario Golf: World Tour
In Mario Golf: World Tour, Rocky Wrench is one of the names that can appear on the tournament scoreboard.

Mario Golf: Super Rush
In Mario Golf: Super Rush, Rocky Wrench's name appears on the Bonny Greens Open scoreboard.

Nintendo Badge Arcade
Rocky Wrenches appear in Nintendo Badge Arcade as part of the Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Bros. arcades, with their Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros. style sprites.

WarioWare Gold
Rocky Wrenches appear in WarioWare Gold in the microgame Super Mario Bros. 3, despite not appearing in the original version of the microgame in WarioWare: Twisted!, and they serve as one of the enemies that try to attack the player. Their wrenches also home in on the player, instead of being thrown in a straight line like in most games.

Other appearances
Sprites found in development materials of Super Mario World include sprites for Rocky Wrench meant for the Sunken Ghost Ship, but it is not included in the final game in any way.

Sprites found in development materials of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island include sprites for Rocky Wrench as well as potential vehicles, but they were again removed. Their head shape and face shading is reminiscent of Monty Moles' in Super Mario World, though they are still taller and lack some of the white patches. Only their wrench and possible lower body exist within unused graphics in the final release. Snifits were alternately considered to utilize the vehicles designed for Rocky Wrenches.

A Rocky Wrench appears in LEGO Super Mario as part of the Bowser's Airship set.

Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3

 * Super Mario Bros. 3 English instruction booklet: "Rocky is a turtle who kind of looks like a mole. He will suddenly appear and start to throw wrenches from his fingers at Mario or Luigi."
 * Super Mario Bros. 3 Japanese instruction booklet: "モグラようなカメ族. 穴からニョキッと出てきてスパナを投げてくる. 飛行船の乗組員だ. " ("Mole-like members of the Turtle Tribe. They will pop out of a hole to throw their spanner. They are the maintenance crew of the airship.")
 * Nintendo Power Super Mario Bros. 3 feature (volume 11): "Watch out for Rocky Wrench and the Ninja Gophers!"
 * Nintendo Power Super Mario Bros. 3 full guide (volume 13) (enemy bio): "These turtles often serve as crew of Koopaling Airships and military vehicles."
 * Nintendo Power Super Mario Bros. 3 full guide (volume 13) ("Rocky Wrench, Ninja Turtle" section): "He's not a mutant or a teenager, but Rocky is a turtle and he does throw ninja throwing wrenches! He's also a major nuisance in World 8."
 * Nintendo Power Super Mario Bros. 3 full guide (volume 13) ("It's Raining Wrenches" section): "Six Rockys wait for you here, throwing wrenches at various heights. Avoid jumping if possible; you might lose control."
 * Nintendo Power Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 Player's Guide: "As the crew of the Koopalings' airships and Bowser's fleet, Rocky Wrenches defend their vehicles by throwing tools."

Super Mario Run

 * Notebook bio: "This guy serves as an engineer on an airship. It'll pop up and throw a wrench at you from time to time."

Item description

 * Rocky Wrench Statue: "Rocky Wrenches are often found guarding airships. Don't you just want to stomp on this statue?"

Trivia

 * A Sammer Guy by the name of Spanner of Rock appears in Super Paper Mario; his name and speeches including references to Rocky Wrenches.
 * In official artwork for an airship in Super Mario Bros. 3, Roy Koopa hides in a trench and throws wrenches in a manner very similar to Rocky Wrenches.
 * for the Broodals from The Art of Super Mario Odyssey labeled "Powered-Up Regular Enemy Designs" depicts Rango as a Rocky Wrench based on their original design rather than the contemporary one, having the shell, taller orange body, white-rimmed sunglasses, round snout, and sharp teeth. This design along with the rest were scrapped due to being too similar to the Koopalings.
 * Montys from Super Mario Galaxy have very similar attack patterns to Rocky Wrenches.