Puzzle Plank Galaxy

Puzzle Plank Galaxy is the first galaxy of World 2 in Super Mario Galaxy 2. The galaxy features wooden planks floating in a blue sky, that Mario can stand on them as platforms. However, some sections of these platforms are cut by Grinders that eventually remove a part of the plank that falls to the void. If the plumber stays on these platforms, he would lose a life, falling to the void. Some enemies such as Wigglers and Mandibugs can be found here as well as the prominent appearance of the Grinders.

Planets
NOTE: Unless otherwise noted, all names are unofficial.

Starting Planet
The planet is split up into two sections. The top section is made up of two large, wooden blocks connected by a wooden structure in the shape of an "H". Ground pounding the symbol on the "H" will take the player to the second portion of the planet. In this area, there are two Wigglers walking in a circular fashion. There are also four red switches, one in each of the corners. The bottom left contains Star Bits. The upper left activates musical notes that will go in an inwards spiral motion. The notes will play the Bonus Game theme from Super Mario World. The upper right has coins, and the bottom right switch reveals the Launch Star.

Pound Pillars Planet
This planet has three pillars on it, each pounded on the other side of the planet. The player has to ground pound them again so he can access the Launch Star by using them. There are also Grinders along the sides and some Octogoombas scattered around the planet. There is also a Hungry Luma who wants 70 coins and a green Warp Pipe that leads into a room with a ? Coin, which will make many sets of 3 coins appear. If the player collects all coins before time runs out, he'll get a 1-Up. The player can also backflip and spin jump next to the Launch Star on the planet to activate it. This planet is also one of three planets that appear on the cover of Super Mario Galaxy 2. The launch star may be reached with Luigi by ground-pounding the red block once then back flipping up to the star.

Purple Coin Vault
This is not a planet, but rather a location only accessible during the Purple Coin Shadow Vault mission. It is located inside the Warp Pipe on the Pound Pillars Planet. The vault has a total of 100 Purple Coins, split up into 25 separate groups of four coins. Cosmic Clones are found in this area as well. In other missions, it has generic coins inside.

Grinder Planet
This planet is split up into several "parts", the entirety of it being infested with Grinders, Slurples, Flipbugs, and Mandibugs. The Grinders will activate when the player is in close proximity to them. These will cut out pieces of the level, creating gaps and making traversing the planet harder. However, some of the Grinders are needed to proceed through as they cut out pieces of the level that open the way to continuing. The Comet Medal is located in the light brown section where the player first lands.

Picture Block
This planet is a picture block puzzle, with the picture being that of a green beetle with large, swirly eyes and a long antennaes. The player has to solve the puzzle and get the full Mandibug picture. To complete the puzzle, the player must ground pound blocks into the open space until all the blocks form the picture. After that, a couple of Mandibugs appear and the player has to defeat them to get the Power Star.

This planet is named in the first mission, The Puzzling Picture Block.

Bugaboom's Planet
This is the planet where the player battles Bugaboom. The player must feed a Hungry Luma 70 coins on the Pound Pillars Planet to allow it to transform it into this planet. It is a wooden bonsai-like planet that has trampolines, several Cloud Flowers, and dandelions on it. The planet also has some parts of it covered in shallow streams and lakes of water. The planet's environment resembles an autumn version of the same planet in Honeyhive Galaxy in the first Super Mario Galaxy.

Green Star 1
The player will redo The Puzzling Picture Block mission. When the player first lands on the Starting Planet, they should make their way north to the trampoline. The player should make sure to carefully execute a jump on the trampoline and land on top of the ? Block without breaking it. Above the ? Block is the Green Star, which can then be obtained with a backflip followed by a Star Spin.


 * Planets Visited

None
 * Enemies

Green Star 2
The player will redo The Puzzling Picture Block mission again. This time, the player should make their way to the Grinder Planet. Once the player lands on the planet, they should quickly run to the piece of wood that is stood up vertically, forming a wall. Before the Grinder cuts the wood, the player should Wall Jump off the wood to reach the Green Star. The Co-Star Luma can also stop the Grinder, making this Green Star easier to recover. If the player is too late to wall jump off the wall, they can triple jump with the second jump landing on the little round part that sticks out and they should be able to get the star.


 * Planets Visited

Green Star 3
The player will need to redo The Puzzling Picture Block mission once more and make their way to the Grinder Planet once more. However, the player should go to the area right before the Mandibugs and Slurples. They should wait until the platform they are standing on it cut by the Grinder. The Green Star should be in reach during the platform's slow descent.


 * Planets Visited

Prima Official Game Guide description

 * "The Puzzle Plank Galaxy is a system of wooden blocks and boards. Buzz saws and bugs infest this galaxy, but if you are fleet-footed, you can keep one step ahead of danger and solve the riddles."

Trivia

 * Oddly enough, once the Hungry Luma is fed 70 coins, it will transform into three planets rather than one: the Wood Island Planets as well as Bugaboom's Wooden Planet.
 * In the E3 2009 trailer for Super Mario Galaxy 2, the Comet Medal in this galaxy is actually not present. A 1-Up Mushroom was on the platform instead.
 * On the cover of Super Mario Galaxy 2, Dash Yoshi is seen running around the Pound Pillars Planet in this galaxy, despite the fact that neither Yoshi nor Dash Peppers ever appear in this galaxy at all.
 * A remix of the Puzzle Plank Galaxy's music appears as an available track that can be played in events in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games and Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games.

Puzzleplanken-Galaxie