Sand Cheep

The Sand Cheep (written as "Sand-Cheep" in the European release's German-language version of the unused enemy name text ) is a type of enemy that first appears in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga and its 3DS remake, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, where it is found in Gwarhar Lagoon. The Nintendo Power guide refers to it as Puffer-Cheep or Puffer Cheep ; the name actually belongs to a variant of Cheep Cheep encountered on the seabed of Oho Ocean (which is, itself, erroneously referred to as "Puffy Cheep" ). The easy mode hints in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions officially refers to them as "Sand Cheeps."

Sand Cheeps appear as Blurps with the dorsal fin of a shark strapped to their back, and are always found with Sharkbones; both remain submerged up to their dorsal fin in the sands in order to disguise themselves, though Sand Cheeps may leap at Mario or Luigi in the overworld. Both enemies are also often fought with Beanerang Bros.

Sand Cheeps also make a brief appearance in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, where they are used as projectiles by Shrooba Divers and bounce over the Mario Bros. when thrown.

Battle
In battle, Sand Cheeps and Sharkbones appear under the name ????; only their dorsal fins are visible, making it hard to tell them apart. Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, the tops of any Sand Cheeps present are visible for a few seconds at the start of the battle, hinting at their position. Sand Cheeps attack by swimming through the sand to approach one of the Mario Bros.; unlike Sharkbones, they will immediately leap out of the sand and over the target brother. This is designed to contrast with the Sharkbone, whose attack can only be dodged or countered by jumping, as Mario or Luigi will take damage if they jump into the Sand Cheep. Any Sharkbones and Sand Cheeps that have attacked and were not defeated will promptly shuffle positions after their turn, making it harder to track them.

If the brothers perform a Thunder Bros. attack or an Advanced Fire Bros. attack on a group of Sand Cheeps and Sharkbones, any Sharkbones that are hit will immediately attack Mario and/or Luigi, revealing the non-attacking fish to be Sand Cheeps. In addition, targeting one of the underground enemies with the Advanced Thunder Bros. and Chopper Bros. attacks will reveal their identity as Luigi uppercuts them out of the ground.

In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, Sand Cheeps are level 24, which makes them distinguishable from the level 25 Sharkbones. The easy mode hints will also show which of the enemies named "????" are Sand Cheeps.