Dark Tortoise

A Dark Tortoise is an enemy found in the game Virtual Boy Wario Land. They are tortoise-like creatures who live on land and possess a shell on their back, which reaches their shoulder blades and forms small spikes on either side of their neck. Dark Tortoises are encountered in the sixth level of the game, in areas with strong water currents. When alone, they can be seen patrolling small areas of land above the water. They wear an object upon their heads that appears to be a ninja star, which the Dark Tortoise uses as an object to throw.

When they catch sight of Wario, they can be seen chuckling quietly to themselves. They will then take the star off their head and throw it towards Wario. The star’s spikes will rotate in the air and it traces a path of flight where it will loop around and return to the Dark Tortoise’s hand, ready to be thrown again. If the star’s spikes touch Wario, it will inflict damage. If Wario, however, jumps atop the harmless part of the star during its flight, it will fall to the ground and will not return to its thrower. The Dark Tortoise seems to have an inexhaustible supply of stars, as it will gain a new one a few seconds later and the process will repeat. If the stars of the Dark Tortoise miss Wario several consecutive times, the creature will move to a different position so that the stars may have a better chance of gaining contact. Wario can defeat these enemies by dealing a Ground Pound to the head or a Dash Attack to the side. Dark Tortoise can be stunned by jumping on its head, or simply running into it without the power of a Dash Attack. When stunned, they can be thrown or pushed into the water current nearby, which will wash them away out of sight.

While described as tortoise in the English version of the game, these creatures are based on the famous Kappa from Japanese folklore, also represented in the Mario series by Kappa Mountain.