Dry Bones

"I'm totally starving! Seriously. I mean, just look at me! I'm down to bones over here!"

- Dry Bones

Dry Bones (also known as Skeleton Koopas) are skeletal versions of Koopa Troopas. These undead Koopas will often collapse when attacked, but they will soon revive themselves and become completely normal once again. Dry Bones first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3, in which they were a simple edit of a Koopa. They have since become a very popular character among fans and a staple in Mario spin-off games. Dry Bones is ordinarily a lightweight character in games and is often accompanied by Boo. Dry Bones' emblem is a side-view of their heads.

''Super Mario Bros. 3
Dry Bones' debut is in the game Super Mario Bros. 3. Bowser raids the Mushroom Kingdom with his Airships, kidnaps Princess Toadstool, and transforms all of the Mushroom Kings into animals in the process. Dry Bones can be stomped on the head and turned into a pile of bones; however, they will soon reform, completely unharmed. The only ways to destroy them permanently are with a Star or the Hammer Suit. Unlike normal Koopas, Dry Bones is immune to the tail of Raccoon Mario and the fireballs of Fire Mario. Dry Bones appear most prominently in the multiple Forts of the game, where they often accompany Boos and Thwomps. The first level that they appear in is the Fort of World 1.

In the remake Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, Dry Bones can be defeated by the Cape Feather. This item, originally from Super Mario World, can only be obtained by scanning the "Cape" card with the e-Reader.

''Super Mario World
Dry Bones reappear in Dinosaur Land when Bowser takes Princess Toadstool hostage while on vacation in the game Super Mario World. Dry Bones retain their ability to rebuild itself when stomped from Super Mario Bros. 3. This time, however, they can be permanently defeated only with the cape or star power-ups. They can be eliminated even when they are crumbled with a swing of the cape. The Dry Bones of Dinosaur Land appear somewhat different from the Super Mario Bros. 3 creatures, due to the fact that they were much taller, being about as tall as Mario, and have longer necks. Some of the Dry Bones in this game can throw bones at Mario. Super Mario World is the first game that featured this variation of bone-throwing Dry Bones (this ability later appears in the Paper Mario series). In the game, Dry Bones can solely be found in the various Forts and Castles around the map. Once again, fireballs have no effect. This is the first platformer where the creatures turn around at ledges instead of just falling off upon reaching one; in other words, they act in a similar manner to a red Koopa Troopa.

New Super Mario Bros.
Dry Bones are a common sight in the various Towers and Castles of New Super Mario Bros.. They are placed there by Bowser Jr. to hinder Mario's progress in his attempt to capture Princess Peach. Much like previous platformers, when Dry Bones are jumped on, they crumble; in New Super Mario Bros., their head detaches and bounces away. Once they collapse, it is only a matter of time before Dry Bones revitalize themselves. This reviving takes place no matter what, even if the creature's head has fallen into a bottomless pit or into lava. If the head does fall into a pit or lava, it will take longer for the creature to regenerate itself. A new subspecies is also in the game: Super Dry Bones. This species is essentially a giant version of a normal Dry Bones. They, like their smaller cousins, can only be found in various castles and forts. It takes a Ground Pound to crumble these beasts, and they will rejuvenate themselves just as fast as a normal Dry Bones. Both types of Dry Bones can be permanently defeated by a Mega Mushroom, a Starman or a Blue Koopa Shell. The Super Dry Bones cannot be hurt at all by Mini Mario. Their immunity to fire remains constant in the game. Also, Dry Bowser, a Dry Bones version of Bowser, makes his debut.

Super Mario Galaxy
Dry Bones also appear in Super Mario Galaxy, when Bowser once again kidnaps the princess and tries to take over the universe. Dry Bones only appear in the Dusty Dune Galaxy, Bowser's Dark Matter Plant and the final level, Bowser's Galaxy Reactor. Unlike normal Koopas, they are bipedal. They are able to regenerate themselves, just as they did in previous games. When a Dry Bones successfully attacks Mario or Luigi, it cackles like a Boo. The only way to defeat these Dry Bones is by touching them while using a Rainbow Star or destroying them with a Bullet Bill, and give three Star Bits when defeated. If they are jumped on, spun or attacked with a Koopa Shell, they will crumble, but revive after a few seconds, like in the previous Mario platformer games. They are notably more aggressive than before, because, after seeing Mario or Luigi the dead Koopa will chase the Mario Bros. down; this can be used strategically to make them run into quicksand or down a bottomless pit.

''New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Dry Bones reappear in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. They are most commonly found in tower and castle levels. They act the same way they did in the game's predecessor. However, there are new means of defeating a Dry Bones. The player will need to use a Starman, a POW Block, a Koopa Shell, or the Ice Flower/Penguin Suit to defeat one.

Super Mario Galaxy 2
Dry Bones reappear in the game's sequel, Super Mario Galaxy 2 again, on four legs. They feature the same aggressive behavior and resistance to most attacks that was featured in the original. However, they seem to be more intelligent as they don't follow Mario/Luigi into quicksand or lava anymore. They appear in Bowser Jr.'s Fiery Flotilla, Bowser's Lava Lair, Bowser's Gravity Gauntlet, Bowser Jr.'s Boom Bunker, Bowser's Galaxy Generator and the Slipsand Galaxy.

''The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
Dry Bones make a few appearances in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3. They have a main role in the episode "Do the Koopa", in which one tells Bowser that upon spotting them, Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess Toadstool have sneaked into Dark Land and are attempting to find the Doom Dancer Music Box. Later on, Mario's group encounters more Dry Bones that they crush with the debris of broken Brick Blocks. They are later uncovered and freed by Cheatsy Koopa, Bully Koopa, and Big Mouth Koopa.

Super Mario World television series
Dry Bones also appear in the Super Mario World animated series, in the episode "The Night Before Cave Christmas". Here, one of them makes a very small appearance as they try to keep Mario and Yoshi from infiltrating Bowser's Castle. The Dry Bone grabs a bone from out of its throat and throws it at Mario. It is never seen after that.

Nintendo Comics System
A single Dry Bones appears in the Nintendo Comics System in the story "It's Always Fair Weather" as the pilot of Bowser's personal helicopter. When Bowser expresses outrage after discovering his image is being used for a carnival dunking booth, the Dry Bones cheerfully responds to his complaint of "I am really insulted!" with "Gee, I'd be flattered!" The two try to ruin the fair with miniature tornadoes created by the helicopter, but are stopped by Mario, who uses the copter against Bowser, launching him into the dunking booth with it.

''Hotel Mario
Dry Bones (known as Skeleton Koopas in the game) appear as enemies in the CD-i game Hotel Mario, when Bowser and the Koopalings once again kidnap Princess Toadstool. Skeleton Koopas only appear in the level Ludwig's Thump Castle Hotel. As usual, the Skeleton Koopas in this game revive themselves once they are knocked out. They, however, can be defeated with a Fire Flower, which is impossible in games before this one. This weakness to fire reappears in the Paper Mario series of games.

''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Dry Bones appear as enemies in the Sunken Ship. They guard the ship's midsection. The dead Koopas have an infinite amount of HP, meaning that regular Attacks will never defeat them. The only way to defeat them is with a special attack, which defeats them instantly. When defeated, they simply crumble on the overworld map. However, they always resurrect after a short amount of time and attempt to re-engage battle with Mario. A stronger sub-species of Dry Bones known as Vomer makes an appearance in Barrel Volcano.

''Paper Mario
Dry Bones reappear in Paper Mario in Bowser's Castle when Bowser captures Princess Peach and her castle. Dry Bones only appear in Bowser's Castle in the game, protecting the upper regions of the castle from Mario and his partners. They are a relatively powerful enemy, as they appear about halfway through the Castle. This variation of Dry Bones is able to walk upright and throw bones at Mario. They are also capable of building more of themselves, with the same amount of HP as the original unit. They regenerate themselves if all their HP is taken, but can be permanently be defeated with flames or explosions.

''Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
There are four different varieties of Dry Bones in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door during the invasion of the X-Nauts. The first type appears in Hooktail Castle. This variety is named Dull Bones and is the weakest in the game. This type of Dry Bones cannot come back to life once its HP was taken, but it is able to build more allies. Many dead Koopa Troopas appear all around Hooktail's Castle, many of which are previous residents of Petalburg. Some of these are animate Dull Bones and others, like Kolorado's Father, were truly dead.

Also in the castle is a different variety of Dry Bones, adequately named Red Bones. This alteration is slightly more powerful than the Dull Bones and has a red tint to its entire body. In the first battle, Red Bones is accompanied by four Dull Bones. This variety can also create reinforcements of more Dull Bones and can revive itself if fallen, unlike its weaker counterparts. Red Bones is first encountered by Mario and his party in Hooktail's Castle, and the dead Koopa later reappears in the Palace of Shadows. In the first confrontation, Red Bones calls upon countless numbers of Dull Bones and they swarm in on Mario and his partner. The player has to use Mario's hammer to scatter the Dull Bones and engage the Red Bones in a battle, or get tossed out of the castle.

Later in the game, normal Dry Bones appear in the Palace of Shadows and the Pit of 100 Trials. The normal variation is able to get back up once defeated, and is also able to build more allies at any point in a battle. To damage Mario and his partner, Dry bones can throw bones at the pair. The normal Dry Bones is stronger than both Red Bones and Dull Bones.

The palace is also home to Dark Bones. This variety is to Dry Bones as Red Bones is to Dull Bones; Dark Bones, much like Red Bones, are stronger than and able to build their weaker counterparts. Dark Bones are fought twice in the palace. The first encounter is when the Dark Bones call in innumerable amounts of Dry Bones, much like Red Bones do in Hooktail's Castle. The player once again has to use his hammer to clear away the minions and get to the leader of the troop, initiating a fight. If the player does nothing while Dry Bones are crowding around them, he or she gets a Game Over.

All of the types of Dry Bones are encountered once more during Mario's travels. They are encountered all at once in one room of the Palace of Shadows. The four types have to be defeated in the order of weakest to strongest: Dull Bones, Red Bones, Dry Bones, and finally Dark Bones. Doing so gives Mario a key to another part of the palace.

Dull Bones also occasionally appear in the Audience. Strangely, Dull Bones are the only audience members that don't give out Star Power upon successful Action Commands and Stylish Moves; they do, however, give out Star Power for Appealing.

''Super Paper Mario
Super Paper Mario once again features Dry Bones. When stomped, Dry Bones collapse, but come back very quickly, much like previous platformer games. Like in previous Paper Mario games, the undead creature throws bones at Mario and company. Dry Bones were found in The Underwhere and the Flipside Pit of 100 Trials in this game.

A new subspecies – the Dark Dull Bones – appear in the Flopside Pit of 100 Trials, where all the enemies are dark counterparts of the regular ones. This subspecies is stronger than its colored cousin, like all Dark enemies are.

''Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Dry Bones reappear once more in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga in the Beanbean Kingdom when Princess Peach's voice is stolen. The Dry Bones of this game look somewhat different from other versions, as they have no shell. They do walk on four legs just as the ones in Super Mario Bros. 3. They are found all along Hoohoo Mountain as the Mario Bros. tried to scale the peak. Dry Bones attack by launching their heads at their opponents. If a Dry Bones's head twists counterclockwise, it will attack Mario; if its head spins clockwise, then Luigi will be the victim. To counterattack the Dry Bones while the creature is attacking, the Mario Bros. have to jump onto the spinning bone head as it flies towards either one. The Bros. can also initiate a battle with an attack if one of the pair stomps on the Dry Bones's body or its kamikaze head. When they are defeated, Mario and Luigi would occasionally receive a Mushroom.

A stronger variety can be found in Teehee Valley, which is also known as Dry Bones in English, but named differently in other languages.

''Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Chronologically, Dry Bones' first appearance is in the game Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time. They appear during the Shroob invasion of the Mushroom Kingdom. Dry Bones reside exclusively inside Yoob's Belly in the game. When a battle is initiated, a Dry Bones throws bones at Mario and Luigi to attack. Usually, the Dry Bones stays still while throwing the bone, which causes the bone to go straight towards a single brother. To dodge this attack, the player needs to simply jump. However, if the Dry Bones jumps before throwing a bone, the bone bounces over the brothers' head and only causes damage if one of the Bros. jumps. Furthermore, Dry Bones is able to attack the Bros. one after the other. If the Dry Bones gnashes its teeth, the skeletal Koopa attacks Mario before attacking Luigi, and if the Dry Bones twirls its head around, the undead monster attacks Luigi before attacking Mario.

Later in the game, large Dry Bones statues appear in Gritzy Desert. When these are encountered, the player has to split up the Babies and the adults. After doing this, the player has to hit four blocks within ten seconds of each other. There are two pairs of blocks in the Desert and once the two pairs are hit, a hidden door to the Koopaseum opens.

''Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
In the game, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, some Dry Bones are seen in the Fawful Theater. One is in the lobby of the building, and the rest attend Fawful's show. There are also two Dry Bones standing in the watchtowers of Bowser's mechanized castle during Bowser's fight against it.

Mario Baseball series
Mario Superstar Baseball was Dry Bones's spin-off debut. Dry Bones is introduced as a Technique character as a part of Bowser's team. His four colors are white (by default), red, green and blue. His strongest points are pitching and fielding. He is an average runner and below average hitter. This is one of Dry Bones's only appearances as playable from the start. Dry Bones Buddies in the game are Koopa Troopa and Bowser.

Dry Bones also appear in the sequel Mario Super Sluggers. Dry Bones is a powerful hitter in this game despite being a rather weak batter in Mario Superstar Baseball. Like in Super Mario Galaxy, the Dry Bones in this game have two voice sets: One similar to the previous title's, and an older Boo-like voice from Super Mario 64.

''Super Princess Peach
Dry Bones later appear when Bowser steals the Vibe Scepter and kidnaps the Toads along with Mario and Luigi in the game Super Princess Peach. They only appear in Shriek Mansion and Bowser's Villa. These Dry Bones look similar to the models used in future games. They are able to throw bones at Princess Peach, and the bones can be blocked by a swipe from Perry. If a Dry Bones itself is hit or jumped on, it crumbles and revives itself in about three seconds, which is relatively fast compared to previous games. Dry Bones can be defeated permanently when Peach attacks them with her Rage vibe. This weakness is a throwback to Paper Mario, in which Dry Bones are weak to fire. There is also a subspecies that is introduced in the game. This variation is called the Sad Dry Bones, and it weeps openly whenever it is seen. It is also able to throw bones at the Princess, except that these bones are much faster and more difficult to avoid.

Mario Party series
Dry Bones has only appeared in three titles of the Mario Party series. The first game it appeared in is Mario Party 7 as an unlockable, playable character. It can be purchased in the Duty-Free Shop for a price of 1000 Cruise Mileage Points. The Magic Orb is Dry Bones' special Orb which doubles the number on the dice block and then turns Dry Bones invisible. In artwork of the game, Dry Bones is usually portrayed with Boo.

Dry Bones reappears in the next game in the series, Mario Party 8, once again as a playable character. This time, it is available from the start of the game.

''Mario Party DS
Dry Bones' biggest appearance in the Mario Party series is in Mario Party DS where it appears as a non-playable boss character. In the story mode, it takes over the board DK's Stone Statue and turns Donkey Kong into stone. Diddy Kong asks Mario & co. to rescue Donkey Kong and then the Party begins.

On the board, Dry Bones can be found sleeping in a coffin. If the player stops on a Green Space nearby its coffin, Dry Bones wakes up and lifts the coffin lid slightly. It then shuts the lid with such an amount of force that the player is sent back to start or right next to the Star. When the player completes the board in story mode, a boss fight with Dry Bones begins in the minigame Hexoskeleton. Dry Bones attempts to destroy Mario by crushing him underfoot and Mario must Ground Pound switches on the battle field to fry it with lightning.

It is also possible to acquire a trophy of a beaten-up Dry Bones by beating the Hexoskeleton minigame five times.

Mario Kart series
Later, Dry Bones is playable in Mario Kart DS as a secret character. It is unlocked by winning the gold trophy of the Nitro Grand Prix, on 50cc. Its karts are the Standard DB, the Banisher, and the Dry Bomber.

Dry Bones reappears in Mario Kart Wii, and it is unlocked by getting a Gold Trophy in the Leaf Cup on 100cc. Being a small racer, it has low top speed but good acceleration and off road ability. Each of its karts are recolored gray and black. Dry Bones gets a small acceleration and drift bonus, but its best bonus is its mini-turbo. That enables vehicles like the Booster Seat and Bullet Bike to perform slightly stronger mini-turbos after a drift.

Mario Football series
Dry Bones makes his appearance in Mario Strikers Charged Football as a sidekick. Classified as a defensive player, Dry Bones's highlights are his speed and defense, meaning he can react quickly and run fast towards the ball, while his defense is Tackling the opponent fiercely to knock them off in a short time. However, like the defensive captains, Dry Bones also shows a bad passing skill and power as to kick the metallic ball immediately on its maximum power.

His Skillshot is the Shocker. After charging the ball completely, Dry Bones electrifies the ball, making the rival's Goalkeeper unable to move and react briefly for another shot. When evading a potential opponent attack while having the ball, Dry Bones can turn around and disappear, making him almost invincible, capable of passing hazardous obstacles, such as power-ups dropped on the field or dodging the Goalkeeper's moves. However, Dry Bones can't use his deking capabilities to pass through the electric fence; he will be electrocuted, which results in losing control of the ball. The durability and effect of Dry Bones's deke depends the light the ball is emitting. Therefore, if the light is white, Dry Bones can go further while invisible. Once Dry Bones has performed his evasion in this way, the light of the ball changes, lowering its power.

Mario & Sonic series
Dry Bones appear in Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games as Wii-exclusive referees. In the follow-up, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, they appear as rivals. On the Wii, three of them appear along with Dry Bowser as the final rivals in Festival Mode in the event Ice Hockey on the last day. Dry Bowser is the goalie and there are three Dry Bones as the field players. Also in the Wii (Team Festival Mode) and in the DS Version, they appear without Dry Bowser in the event Curling with four Dry Bones instead of three.

Sub-Species

 * Dark Bones
 * Dark Dull Bones
 * Dull Bones
 * Red Bones
 * Sad Dry Bones
 * Super Dry Bones
 * Vomer

Mario Party 7 Info

 * Partner: Boo
 * Special Orb: Magic/Surprise

Gray Dry Bones

 * Challenge Mode Captain: Bowser
 * Player Type: Technique
 * Special Skill: Sliding Catch

Stats

 * Batting: 5
 * Pitching: 4
 * Fielding: 3
 * Running: 4

Red Dry Bones

 * Challenge Mode Captain: Bowser
 * Player Type: Technique
 * Special Skill: Sliding Catch

Stats

 * Batting: 6
 * Pitching: 4
 * Fielding: 3
 * Running: 3

Blue Dry Bones

 * Challenge Mode Captain: Bowser
 * Player Type: Technique
 * Special Skill: Sliding Catch

Stats

 * Batting: 5
 * Pitching: 4
 * Fielding: 4
 * Running: 3

Green Dry Bones

 * Challenge Mode Captain: Bowser
 * Player Type: Technique
 * Special Skill: Sliding Catch

Stats

 * Batting: 6
 * Pitching: 4
 * Fielding: 3
 * Running: 3

Good Chemistry

 * Koopa Troopa
 * Bowser

Bad Chemistry

 * None

'''Bio
''"A bony underling of Bowser. Some mysterious power binds the skeletal bodies of Dry Bones together, but they shatter to pieces when they take damage. Of course, over time, they go right back to the way they were without ill effect. Dry Bones throws cursed balls when he pitches."

Stats Mission

 * 1) Drive in a run!
 * 2) Make a big play!
 * 3) Win MVP!!
 * 4) Get 3 strikeouts in a game!

''Mario Strikers Charged Football

 * Type: Defensive
 * Skillshot: Shocker
 * Deke: Teleports to another area.

Stats

 * Movement: 10
 * Shooting: 3
 * Passing: 3
 * Defense: 10

''Mario Kart Wii

 * Size: Small
 * Actual Bonuses
 * Acceleration: +1
 * Drift: +1
 * Mini-Turbo: +2

''Mario Kart DS

 * Karts:
 * Standard
 * Bone Kart
 * Dry Bomber

Gallery
For pictures, see this subject's gallery.

Trivia

 * The name "Dry Bones" is likely an allusion to the Biblical Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 37, in which Ezekiel prophecies to "dry bones" which then "came alive and stood upright", much as Mario's skeletal enemy soon comes back to life after being attacked.