Paper Mario (character)

Paper Mario is a paper form of Mario that came out of a magical book in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. Paper Mario is an independent character from Mario and interacts with him, Luigi, and various other characters from both the real world and the Paper world within the book during the events of the game. Mario himself is depicted in the "paper" style in the Paper Mario series, but Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam is the only game in which Paper Mario is a distinct character from normal Mario.

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
Paper Mario makes his debut as a unique character from Mario in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. He first appears by saving Mario and Luigi from the threat of Paper Goombas. He agrees to help his three-dimensional counterpart and brother gather the Paper Toads and defeat Bowser and Paper Bowser, returning all Paper characters to the book from whence they came.

Whenever the trio encounters an obstacle, Paper Mario will usually be the character to come up with a solution, being the ones to develop the Trio Moves for use on the field. He is also given a distinct role during the Gloomy Woods, where he and his counterpart are kidnapped by King Boo, and Luigi must face his fears to rescue them. Paper Mario is rescued second, and he is held hostage during the battle with King Boo.

Once the two princesses have been rescued and the Bowsers defeated, Paper Mario returns to his book, where he immediately re-enters battle with Paper Bowser.

In battle, Paper Mario uses different mechanics to Mario and Luigi. He is the only character able to perform Trio Attacks, in lieu of using Bros. Attacks. He is also the only character able to employ the Copy Block, making six copies of himself (eight and ten if Rank-Up Bonuses are used) to take hits and increase the damage he is able to deal. Thirdly, his dodge commands are more versatile than Mario's and Luigi's, able to hover in the air longer while using a Jump Dodge and swinging multiple hammers during a Hammer Dodge. His weaknesses include his low defense and HP (though he can use his Copy block ability to make up for this), his position in formation, the high BP cost of his attacks, a weakness to fire-based moves; and if either Mario or Luigi faints, he cannot employ any Trio Attacks, while Mario and Luigi can perform Bros. Attacks if Paper Mario has fainted.

Super Mario Maker
Paper Mario, alongside Mario and Luigi, appear as one of the many unlockable Costume Mario costumes in Super Mario Maker. The costume is unlocked by clearing the Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam event course.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
Paper Mario does appear in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, but only as a collectible trophy.

Trivia

 * When Paper Mario joins the team in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, the battle theme changes from the Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga battle theme cover to the battle theme for the game, called Mixed-Up Scramble. However, the Superstar Saga battle theme will not play during battles when he is kidnapped in Gloomy Woods.