Whispering Woods

Whispering Woods is a location in Paper Mario: The Origami King, a lush, green forest filled with sentient trees. It is located in the red streamer area and is one of the first areas to be visited in the game.

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When Mario, Olivia and Bowser are rescued and taken away from Peach's Castle, they become separated, with Mario and Olivia landing in the woods. Mario lands in a tree, in which case the player must tap a few times. Doing so gets Mario out of the tree, as well as a collection of confetti. Olivia is nearby, though she is on the other end of a Not-Bottomless Hole. She gives him an empty confetti bag, allowing him to collect and store confetti, which he can get from the trees and flowers nearby. Upon doing so, he is able to fill the hole and rescue Olivia. Now that Mario has Olivia, they can use the 1,000-Fold Arms technique to knock over a nearby tree, allowing them to reach the other side. Here is a ? Block containing a Super Mushroom. He can then head right to the next area.

In the next area, Peach's Castle can be seen atop a mountain in the background, wrapped in streamers. The area where Peach's Castle used to be can also be seen close in the background, with the ground torn up and covered in rubble. Mario and Olivia decide to return there and search for Luigi. After this area, Mario enters the deep wooded section, where whispers such as "Someone's here..." and "Who is it?". These whispers appear to come from the trees, and tend to change based on Mario's movements and actions. For example, if Mario hits one of the trees, they may comment on his hammer or scorn him for disrespecting the environment. There is a small pile of spikes nearby, with a Not-Bottomless Hole below a ? Block containing a sack of gold worth 1,000 Coins. The next section consists of a few trees with vines dropping down. Some drop coins, some drop leaves, some drop confetti, and some drop items, such as a Faded Fire Flower. Items such as these can be restored in the nearby lake, as seen in the background.

If Mario finds the leaves, he can use the Hammer to flip them over, revealing bags of confetti, coins, or a Super Star allowing him to run across a long layer of spikes to reach a treasure chest containing a collectible. One of the trees drops a log, which rolls against the nearby wall, allowing Mario to reach a tree with a golden ball. If Mario tries to pull the vine, however, it snaps rather than dropping the ball, causing the trees to poke fun at his incompetence. However, if Mario hammers the tree with the golden ball, a 1,000-Fold Arms circle appears, allowing Mario to yank the vine to pop open the ball to reveal confetti as well as a Shriveled Seed. Once Mario is ready, he must head up to the next area or head right to a ? Block containing a sack of gold.

The next section is interesting, as there does not appear to be anything to do, but if Mario tries to leave the area, he ends up in the same place. After looping a few times, Olivia realizes what is going on and asks to rest on the nearby stump. Doing so angers the nearby trees, who reveal themselves to be sentient. They introduce the stump as Ol' Grandsappy, who is ill and asks them to leave. The trees allow Mario and Olivia to leave the area to reach the pond and dip the Shriveled Seed in, turning it into the Soul Seed. They can then head back to Ol' Grandsappy, where it is revealed some of his face has been torn off. Fortunately, Mario can use some confetti to restore it, then give him the seed to return him to his old form. The trees separate the bushes and allow Mario and Olivia to move onward.

In the next area, Mario and Olivia encounter a Toad crumpled up and stuck in a bush. Mario must whack the bush with his Hammer and save the toad, who will then tell Mario about saving other Toads and Cheering in battle. Mario and Olivia then continue on into Toad's BBQ Foodeatery, where many more Toads have been folded and need saving. In Toad's BBQ Foodeatery there are tents, a swingset, a campfire, some benches, and a log cabin. Many of the wooden things in the area are made of trees from the woods, and the firewood seems to like being burnt. Mario and Olivia continue on to Toad Town after facing a few more Goombas.