King Croacus IV

"Trash is garbage, no matter how you dress it. This world is made for BEAUUUUUTY!"

- King Croacus IV

King Croacus IV, usually called just simply King Croacus, is a boss in Super Paper Mario. The flamboyant king of the Floro Sapiens, Croacus adores beauty and spends most of his time brainwashing Cragnons to rebuild his castle full of jewels. He is also the owner of the sixth Pure Heart. He was the regent for King Croacus III until he came of age, and when the young ruler wilted, Croacus IV, popular due to his stabilizing influence, was appointed King. He doesn't care for fighting, but when Mario, Princess Peach, and Bowser enter his chambers, he decides to dispose of them. He resembles a giant flower and is named after the real life Crocus plant. His obsession with beauty may be a nod to another flower named Rosie, from the first Paper Mario. It is notable that in his theme song, a voice saying "I'm a champion", and "Me" can be heard, emphasizing King Croacus's narcissistic personality.

King Croacus is fought in two phases. In both, his head is normally protected by impenetrable petals, but will frequently expose itself, allowing him to be damaged. In the first phase, he fights with three extra heads, all attached to a single point via vines, the one holding the main head being covered in thorns. His main head sways above while the others attempt to crush the heroes by dropping on top of them. Croacus can also converge all three to the main root, then cause their vines to grow thorns as they quickly spread out in a grid pattern until hitting the heroes or a wall. The heads can be used as platforms to reach his main head, and can also be picked up and thrown by Thoreau. After taking enough damage, his entire body will disappear other than his head, which will now float around the room, periodically releasing shuriken-like petals to bounce around with him. These can also be picked up by Thoreau and used against Croacus.

After he is eventually defeated, it is revealed that the Cragnons were polluting the waters that the Floro Sapiens drank from, and that King Croacus was trying to save his people by mind-controlling the Cragnons with Floro Sprouts. Upon witnessing the scene, Flint Cragley declares that he will show his tape to the Cragnons, ending the war between the two races.

If the player visits Croacus after Chapter 5 but before completing Chapter 7, he will still lie on the same spot on the floor, supposedly dead ("wilted"). The Floro Sapien who is watching over him says that he thinks that Croacus will revitalize, which he eventually does.

Following the defeat of the final boss, King Croacus can be found in healthy spirits once again; initially, he will claim his intentions are to wage war upon Mario and the Cragnons again. However, he quickly makes it clear that he is only joking and reverts to a more normal personality, saying that most of the polluted water was drained while he 'slept'. He then expresses his desire to begin a new era of peace between the Cragnons and Floro Sapiens.

Painting
''King Croacus the Fourth (Reign: 1385-present). Formerly a regent for King Croacus III, he ruled in place of the frail child king. After Croacus III's wilting, his service was recognized, and he was made king. His stabilizing influence and politicial savvy made him popular and well-known. His recent achievements include: In Flora year 1625, he invented a method for mind-controlling Cragnons. In Flora year 1626, he spearheaded an initiative to enslave Cragnons en masse.''

Quotes

 * Ooooooo-weeee-ooooooo! Where, oh, where are my pretties?!
 * Pretties... Beautiful things... Ooo-wee! Bring them to me... More! More! More!
 * So you must be the intruders I've heard SO much about... Well, I will NOT forgive the great trashening of my beautiful kingdom. NOO-WEE-OO! ...Thus you are warned!
 * Trash is garbage, no matter how you dress it. This world is made for BEAUUUUUTY!
 * Ooo? What is THIS hideous, clashing thing?
 * Ooooooo-weeee-ooooooo! I am back!

Names in other languages
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Re Cardo IV König Krokus