Tutankoopa

"You!! You ignored all those very scary warnings... Don't you have the common sense to get scared and run away?! What's wrong with you?!?!"

- Tutankoopa

Tutankoopa the Wizard, commonly known just as Tutankoopa, is the second boss of Paper Mario. He is notable for his pharaoh complex, his magic abilities (such as shattering into fragments at will, leaving only his eyes and crown visible), and his heavy association with Chomps. Chomps act as his primary minions, though they have grown annoyed with him due to being overworked. His name is based on the ancient Egyptian pharaoh.

Tutankoopa is the boss of the Dry Dry Ruins and the guardian of the second Star Spirit, Mamar. When Mario and his partners enter the Dry Dry Ruins, Tutankoopa's voice can be heard warning them to run away. He continues to deliver such warnings as the heroes progress through the ruins, losing his cool and starting to shout frantically when they approach the Super Hammer. Cortez uses similar warnings in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, later revealing he prefers not to do so.

Mario and co. finally reach the Koopa's room, where he summons an endless amount of pet Chomps and can also attack with shells or magic from a high platform. Tutankoopa's attack pattern entails summoning a Chomp, throwing a Buzzy Shell, and using magic, after which the sequence repeats. When he uses magic, he conjures up a giant Chomp to slam onto the floor, causing rocks to crumble from the ceiling onto Mario. However, this also has a chance of backfiring until Tutankoopa's HP is less than 3, causing him to be damaged, knocked from his perch, and briefly stunned. After he gets back up, he uses his magic to lift himself back into the platform. After all three shells are exhausted, Tutankoopa will go straight to using magic after summoning a Chomp. His boss fight is one of the few where Mario can farm 100 Star Points in a single battle by repeatedly defeating his Chomp. When Tutankoopa is defeated, he falls off his platform and is approached by a Chomp. After he attempts to call it over, it angrily chases him out of the ruins.

In the ending parade of Paper Mario, Tutankoopa can be seen, still being chased by the Chomp until he sidestepped at the last moment. Afterwards, he briefly attends the parade, only to end up chased by three Chomps. The method in which he evades his Chomp resembles the Paper Mode ability in later Paper Mario games.

In Super Mario-kun, he appears in volume 25's chapter 7. Like in the game, he is instructed to stop Mario from saving Mamar. Tutankoopa attacks Mario, Kooper, and Goombario with his numerous spells and protects himself with a magic barrier. A Stone Chomp that Kooper previously aided comes and passes them a D-Down Pound badge. Kooper uses it to break through Tutankoopa's shield, defeating him. A similar plotline, in which a previously-aided Chain Chomp comes to the rescue of the heroes, turning its back own its owner, would be re-used in the New Super Mario Bros. Wii arc during the Iggy Koopa battle.

Tutankoopa is referenced in Mario Party 7; a Bowser sphinx appears on the Pyramid Park map, wearing a pharaoh crown and nemes with the same colors as Tutankoopa's. The crown also has a Chain Chomp ornament. The map itself is also heavily associated with Chain Chomps, as is Tutankoopa.

Trivia

 * The miniature Chomp head on Tutankoopa's hat seems to be alive, since it moves its mouth at times.
 * When Mario first enters Dry Dry Ruins, Tutankoopa refers to himself as the "remorseless king of the desert." Bowser can call himself a "Remorseless King of Evil" in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door in response to a question asked by another character.
 * Tutankoopa has an unused sprite depicting him without his nemes, showing him to have short blond hair.

Tutankoopa Tutankoopa