Koopatrol

Koopatrols (named Armored Koopas in Mario Pinball Land ) are elite soldiers of the Koopa Troop that made their debut in Paper Mario, and have appeared in two of its sequels, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and Super Paper Mario. Their name is a portmanteau of "Koopa" and "Patrol". These warriors are the high-ranking guards of Bowser's Castle, and most Koopa Troopas dream of becoming Koopatrols. They appear in physique similar to Koopa Troopas, but they wear intimidating spiky armor, including spiked helmets which protect them from being jumped on. However, they'll flip over (or retreat into its shell in Super Paper Mario) like normal Koopas if a badge or Pixl that allows jumping on spiked enemies is used on them.

They are one of the few original Paper Mario series characters to reappear in other Mario games, along with Tweesters, Whacka, Goomboss, and the Star Spirits.

Paper Mario
During the events of Paper Mario, Koopatrols patrolled Bowser's Castle and Peach's Castle after it was taken into the sky by Bowser. During Chapter intermissions where the player takes control of Princess Peach, they can be found patrolling most rooms of the castle. If Princess Peach is caught in the line of sight of a Koopatrol, she will be escorted back to her room. Later on in the game, two Koopatrols named Spiky John and Spiky Tom participate in a Hammer Bro by the name of Mr. Hammer's quiz show, the 64th Trivia Quiz-Off. If Peach wins the quiz show, she wins a Jammin' Jelly. Regardless if she wins or not, however, she will be rewarded the Sneaky Parasol as a consolation prize. During Chapter 8, Koopatrols appear as enemies in Bowser's Castle. They are tough opponents, having a normal attack power of 4 and a charged attack power of 10. However, as with both the player and other enemies, the charge move takes up a turn, so using Bow's Outta Sight move or simply defeating it if its health is low enough is ideal. In addition, Koopatrols can call in other Koopatrol reinforcements, prolonging the battle. Two Koopatrols can also be fought in Shy Guy's Toy Box if Princess Peach tells Bowser that Mario fears them.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Koopatrols were later found in Rogueport Sewers during the events of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door after Mario and his team clear Chapter 5. They also appear in Bowser's Castle at the end of Chapter 1. A stronger type of Koopatrol, the Dark Koopatrol, is also found in this game in Glitzville and the Pit of 100 Trials.

Super Paper Mario
Koopatrols appear again in Super Paper Mario, where they, along with most of the Koopa Troop were brainwashed by Nastasia into working for Count Bleck, and served as guards in Castle Bleck. They can also be found in Rooms 19 and 86 of the Flipside Pit of 100 Trials.

Koopatrols attack by ramming into the player. Their attacks are sudden and difficult to anticipate. There is another kind of Koopatrol that lives in the Flopside Pit of 100 Trials called a Dark Koopatrol. It is the strongest Koopa enemy in the whole game.

Mario Pinball Land
Koopatrol appear as enemies in Bowser's Castle during the events of Mario Pinball Land. In their only 3-D appearance, the Koopa soldiers have loads of defense and can only be defeated by being bashed into a wall, which crushes them.

Super Princess Peach
Koopatrols also make a cameo appearance in Super Princess Peach as statues on the Bowser's Villa map. At the left side of the map, a statue can be seen holding a sword while at the right side, the statue holds a spear. Every once in a while, two red pupils will appear in the statue's eyes, search its surroundings, then vanish.

Notable Koopatrols

 * Spiky John
 * Spiky Tom
 * The Koopinator (Dark Koopatrol)

Related species

 * Dark Koopatrol
 * Terrapin