Koopa Paratroopa

"What a gorgeous day!"

- Koopa Paratroopa

Koopa Paratroopas (also known as Parakoopas, Sky Troopas in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, or simply Paratroopas, in Japanese パタパタ Patapata), are Koopa Troopas with wings. Hit them in the air once and they'll lose their wings. They traditionally come in two varieties. Red Koopa Paratroopas will usually fly up and down or side to side in a set path, while green Koopa Paratroopas will often bounce in the player's general direction. Red Koopa Paratroopas first appear in World 1-3 of Super Mario Bros., while the green ones first appear in World 3-1 of the same game. Their name comes from "paratrooper", a term used in the military to describe soldiers who parachute down to attack.

Background
While Koopa Troopas weren't always the main soldiers of the Koopa Troop, Koopa Paratroopas were always common flying enemies. As seen in Yoshi's Island titles, Koopa Paratroopas outnumbered the Koopa Troopas serving Baby Bowser at the time; the majority of the footsoldiers were Shy Guys.

Super Mario Bros.
Paratroopas truly debuted in Super Mario Bros., when Bowser decided to overrun the Mushroom Kingdom and steal Princess Peach. They would, as usual, lose their wings and turn into normal Koopa Troopas if Mario or Luigi jumped on them. They kept their two different attack patterns: Green Paratroopas would jump off ledges, while the Red variety could actually fly back and forth.

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
Once again, Bowser decided to kidnap Princess Peach in the Japan-only game (until Super Mario All-Stars) called Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. Here, Paratroopas were a very common enemy, and in some levels even more common than Koopas or Goombas. Also, a new feature was added in this game: If Mario or Luigi jumped on them to clip their wings before they touched the ground, they would turn around and go whichever way the player was. Their attack pattern is very different from any other game, as both colors could jump up and down and actually fly. They also appeared in certain water levels, where they could not be stomped.

Super Mario Bros. 3
Although absent in Super Mario Bros. 2, Paratroopas made an appearance in Super Mario Bros. 3. Here, they retained the exact same role they played in Super Mario Bros., even keeping both Green and Red Paratroopas. Nothing much about the Koopa Paratroopas changed, however. An item called the P-Wing, meaning "Paratroopa Wing", could be used in Super Mario Bros. 3. It would allow Mario or Luigi to fly around an entire level, without the wings wearing out. The effects would stop in the next level, however. They were much less common here than in Super Mario Bros. or Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.

Super Mario World
Koopa Paratroopas reappeared in Super Mario World when Bowser wrecks Mario, Luigi and Peach's trip to Yoshi's Island. However, in this game most of them actually did fly, instead of just hopping around. They can also still lose their wings from one jump by Mario or Luigi. Yoshi could defeat them in one stomp. The ones that flew always flew up and down, or side to side, and always act as dangerous obstacles. However, they can also be used to traverse large gaps.

Green-shelled Paratroopas either jump in one direction or fly in one direction, while the red-shelled Paratroopas only fly back and forth. Oddly enough, even though blue-shelled Koopas and yellow-shelled Koopas were introduced in this game, only the yellow-shelled Koopa had a Paratroopa variant. Yellow-shelled Paratroopas don't fly around, but they will chase after Mario and jump over any shells that are in its way. Jumping on it will get rid of the wings. The yellow-shelled Paratroopas only appeared in the levels, Awesome and Funky, making them very rare enemies.

Another species of flying Koopas was also introduced in this game; the Super Koopa. These were not true Paratroopas, as they used a Cape to fly in one direction.

New Super Mario Bros.
Paratroopas made an appearance as a common enemy in the 3D Platformer, New Super Mario Bros. They did the exact same that they did in Super Mario Bros. Paratroopas were now given a complete 3D appearance.

"King Mario of Cramalot"
In The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Koopa Paratroopas made only one appearance, in the episode "King Mario of Cramalot", where they appeared to drop a net on top of Mario, Luigi, Toad, Princess Toadstool and Mervin the Magician. It should be noted that the Koopa Paratroopas were based off of show's Koopa Troopa design, except that they were depicted in shades of red, and had wings similar to a bee's, rather than their usual feathered ones. Much like the Koopa Troopas that appeared in that same episode, the Koopa Paratroopas were dressed up as knights to fit the medieval setting of Cramalot.

"Flatbush Koopa"
Additionally, in "Flatbush Koopa", after falling off a roller coaster and into Lower New York Bay, a Koopa Troopa muttered that he wished that he had joined the Paratroopas, claiming that they received parachutes.

"Do the Koopa"
Koopa Paratroopas had a very brief cameo in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 episode "Do the Koopa", where several of them could be seen dancing along with a few Paragoombas in the Doomship's cargo hold. Unlike the Koopa Paratroopas from The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, these ones were redesigned to better resemble their in-game counterparts. Standard Koopa Troopas never appeared on the show.

"Marios Rückkehr"
A Koopa Paratroopa also appeared in the Club Nintendo comic "Marios Rückkehr" where it collides with Raccoon Mario, causing him to turn to normal Mario.

"Fire Sale"
While no Koopa Paratroopas ever made an appearance on the Super Mario World television series, the design of the single Koopa Troopa that did appear in the episode "Fire Sale" was apparently based off of the ones from The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3.

Super Mario Adventures
Koopa Paratroopas made a few appearances throughout Super Mario Adventures. A few green and red ones could be seen in the onslaught at the beginning of the story. Later, after recapturing Princess Peach, Bowser sends some Paratroopas, mostly red and green ones, to attack the Mario Bros. (Luigi curiously mistakes them for Mecha-Koopas.) Mario manages to fight off the Paratroopas while Yoshi eats them up, until he eats a blue Troopa and gains wings.

Super Mario World: Yoshi's Island
Chronologically, Paratroopa's first appearance was in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, when Kamek kidnapped Baby Luigi. They were basic enemies, alongside their kin; the Koopa Troopas. There were two varieties: red and green-shelled. The red variety could actually fly back and forth on a set path. The green ones, on the other hand, could only do short hops towards Yoshi. They have a very detailed look in this game, unlike the ones in other games, as their appearance looked more like their official art. Stomping on them caused their wings to fall off, a trait that would come back in later years. Yoshi could not swallow these Parakoopas, as when they got in his mouth, he could only spit them back out. When he did lick them, a cloud of feathers appeared. Paratroopas were very common in this game, sometimes even more common than their land-based brothers.

Yoshi's Island DS
The Yoshis encountered the Paratroopas in Yoshi's Island ' s sequel, Yoshi's Island DS. Once again, Kamek decides to kidnap the babies, except this time it is because he wants the Stars inside of them. Yet again, they acted as a common enemy along with the Koopa Troopas. They also attacked the exact same way they attacked in Yoshi's Island, with the two different shell-colors. In the Island Museum, Paratroopas appeared in the Ground Exhibit, in the exact same area as the Koopas. Their appearance was much like the ones in Yoshi's Island, but with a much lighter outline, and were slightly larger.

''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
The flying Koopas made yet another appearance in the game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, when Smithy takes over the Mushroom World. However, they went under the name of Sky Koopas. In this game, all Sky Troopas have red shells and do not lose their wings when hit. These shells give Sky Troopas a high defense rating. Additionally, Sky Troopas use their shells for offense. To attack, they hide in their shells, then ram into their opponents with massive force. In Mushroom Way, some Sky Troopas guard Treasure Boxes while others will actively pursue Mario. One Sky Troopa even kidnaps Toad.

The Sky Troopa has a bulky relative called a Heavy Troopa, and also have a stronger relative the Malakoopa. Standard Koopa Troopas were absent from the game.

Mario Party series
The character called Paratroopa usually makes an appearances in the Mario Party games, as a non-playable character, although his role changes each time.

Mario Tennis series
Paratroopa has been a playable character in many sports games as well. He was playable in Mario Tennis, and was an unlockable technique player in the sequel, Mario Power Tennis.

Paper Mario
Paratroopas made their second RPG appearance in Paper Mario. The Paratroopas and Koopas of this game wore sunglasses, which separated them from the Koopas who would help Mario. This feature was carried on into the next two Paper Mario games. They only had red shells. They were found in Pleasant Path, and would usually just attempt to headbutt Mario when he approached. In-battle, they are immune to Hammer attacks, but are weak to Jump attacks. Jumps would turn them into normal Koopas. They are defenseless when tipped on their shell. A Paratroopa mailman named Parakarry is also one of Mario's Partners in this game. He would carry Mario across small gaps, and was a very powerful fighter.



Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Koopa Paratroopas were surprisingly absent from Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, but managed to still appear in Paper Mario's sequel, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. They are first seen in Hooktail Castle, where they still attempt to headbutt Mario if he passed by. Paratroopas retain the exact same battle style and statistics they had in Paper Mario, except that they now do two damage, not one. The Paratroopas of this game also wore sunglasses. Additionally, Parakarry makes a cameo in this game.

Super Paper Mario
The Paratroopas most recent appearance was in Super Paper Mario. They acted as a common enemy, and retained the same role they have had in all platformers, while looking exactly the same as their Paper Mario relatives.

Super Smash Bros. series
Paratroopas appeared in the first stage of the Adventure Mode of Super Smash Bros. Melee. One Paratroopa was red, the others green. When a character jumped on them, they lost their wings and fell to the ground. Additionally, a trophy of a Paratroopa appeared. The Paratroopas reappear in the Subspace Emissary of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Here, they are tougher enemies, as they can also attack the players and defend themselves.

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
A red Paratroopa was a playable racer in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, where he was a light racer, along with his partner, a green Koopa Troopa.

The Koopa Paratroopa is absent in Mario Kart Wii though.

Sub-Species

 * Colossal Koopa Paratroopa – Extremely large Koopa Paratroopa who are only capable of hopping, instead of flying.
 * Dark Paratroopa – Powerful, purple-shelled Koopa Paratroopas.
 * Glad Red Paratroopa – Extremely happy Koopa Paratroopa who fly in a figure-eight pattern.
 * Heavy Troopa – Extremely fat Koopa Paratroopa who attack by body slamming opponents.
 * Tub-O-Troopa – More powerful Heavy Troopas wearing green shells.
 * KP Paratroopa – Koopa Paratroopas wearing gold shells.
 * Mad Green Paratroopa – Enraged Koopa Paratroopas.
 * Malakoopa – Powerful, green-shelled Koopa Paratroopas.
 * Paratroopea – Blue-shelled, sprout wearing Koopa Paratroopa.
 * Scaratroopea – Red-shelled, more powerful Paratroopeas.
 * Shady Paratroopa – Pale, powerful Koopa Paratroopas wearing a blue shell.
 * Z Koopa – Koopa Paratroopas wearing suits who fly in erratic patterns.

Notable Paratroopas

 * Corporal Paraplonk – ''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
 * Parakarry – ''Paper Mario
 * Postmaster – ''Paper Mario
 * Sergeant Flutter – ''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

Mario Hoops 3 on 3 Information

 * Type: Tricky
 * Special Shot: Wing Shot
 * Letter to Tap: N

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!

 * Kart: Parawing
 * Partner: Koopa Troopa
 * Special Item: Triple Shells
 * Bio: You might think Paratroopa is a cute little tortoise - right up until he blasts you off the course with a Triple Shell attack, that is!