Toad House

"Toad houses. Ah, the simple life."

- Kersti

Toad Houses (also known as Toad's Houses) are Mushroom-shaped buildings that first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3. They have since made appearances in more recent games. Toad Houses are usually located across every world map except for the last world within the Super Mario games. Toad Houses always hold either a useful surprise or reward for the player, most frequently power-ups. Within most games, Toad Houses are generally run and hosted by ally characters such as Toad, Toadsworth, and a variety of other Toads.

Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3


In Super Mario Bros. 3, upon the player entering a Toad House, Toad will appear and present the player with three treasure boxes. While it is implied that each box has a different content, the game's code randomly decides the item given only after the player opens a box, meaning there is no advantage to pick a box over the others. Some Toad Houses will only ever have one item, typically a more powerful item. Toad Houses in earlier worlds tend to hold more basic power-ups such as Super Mushrooms and Super Leaves, while the ones in later worlds may hold Tanooki Suits and Hammer Suits. The player may open only one box, after which the Toad House cannot be accessed again.

In World 1-3, if the player presses and holds on the white block near the end of the level, Mario or Luigi will fall "behind" the level's objects (bushes, blocks, enemies, etc.). If the player continues to run right, they will end up behind the black background at the end of the level, where a secret Toad House holding a Whistle can be found.

In Super Mario All-Stars and Super Mario Advance 4, the Toad Houses may be either yellow or red. In the former, there does not appear to be any pattern as to which house gets what color, but in the latter game, those featuring three random items are always yellow, while those that ever have only one item in them are always red.

Dark Land is the only world in the game that does not feature Toad Houses.

White Mushroom House
If a player collects a certain number of coins in a world's particular level, a White Mushroom House,  also known as a White House, will appear. Despite their name, White Mushroom Houses are colored a shade of blue in remakes of the game. Within these special Toad Houses lies a single box. A Magic Wing can be found in the box in odd-numbered worlds, while an Anchor will appear in even-numbered worlds.

The following shows the criteria for unlocking the White Mushroom Houses.

In Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, the player will gain unlimited access to default Toad Houses after total completion. Also, an extra feature was added: After the game is completed, a Mushroom Coin appears at the beginning of the above stages, which displays the number of coins necessary to unveil the White Mushroom House on the bottom left corner when hit.

World-e
There are also three different-colored Toad Houses in the bonus World-e of Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3. However, instead of containing items in boxes, they have minigames that reward random items. To unlock the gates blocking them, one must collect the required number of Advance Coins. However, the full complement of e-Reader level cards was released only in Japan. In North America, the maximum number of Advance Coins obtainable in the GBA release was 44 (49 counting the one promotional level), leaving only the first minigame unlockable, while in other regions, the e-Reader was not released at all.

In the Virtual Console release of the game, all e-Reader levels were available worldwide without the need for cards, and so all of the minigames can be unlocked.

BS Super Mario Collection
In BS Super Mario Collection, Toad House is a screen with a pink background where the player simply chooses one of the three boxes, which may include 1-Up Mushrooms. They appear in week 2 and 3 installments, which are based on Super Mario Bros. 3.

A variant known as 「 なえのいえ 」 (Nae's house) is hosted by Nae Yūki, who narrated the game with live audio. This house appears as a Fire Flower panel on a world map on all the known installments. Similar to Toad Houses, they are screens with a yellow background. By answering yes to both of Nae's questions, players activate 「おばけモード 」 (ghost mode) that allows them to become Fire Mario as they exit a level but prevents them from participating in rankings.

Super Mario World
Pre-release screenshots of Super Mario World showed Toad Houses were going to appear in this game. The Top Secret Area has a similar function to the Toad Houses in the final game, but it can be used infinitely.

New Super Mario Bros.
Toad Houses reappear in New Super Mario Bros. on the world map, often requiring Star Coins to open up (or completing a bonus, lettered level). Toad Houses (except the Blue Toad House) disappear after one use. However, if the Mario Bros. can complete all 80 levels in the game, all Toad Houses will reappear and become permanent (marked by a blue circle on the world map), providing up to 99 lives and infinite items to help find all the Star Coins. Manned by Toadsworth, the Toad Houses supply all the helpful items in the game in four different varieties:

Red Toad House
Red Toad Houses (or red Toad houses) are capped by red mushrooms on the world map. A giant Roulette Block alternates between a Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, Blue Shell, and Mini Mushroom. Whatever is displayed when Mario or Luigi bumps it from below is what will be stored as the backup item. If a brother has a backup item already and the item chosen has less or equal value to the original backup item, 1,000 points are awarded instead.

Green Toad House
Green Toad Houses (or green Toad houses) are capped by green mushrooms. Six ? Blocks are spread out. Three contain a 1-Up Mushroom card. One contains a 1-Up Mushroom ×3 card, which is equal to 3 1-Ups. One contains a ×2 card. One contains a Bowser card. The ×2 card doubles all cards already revealed, and the Bowser card ends the minigame (though Mario keeps any 1-Ups revealed). Up to twelve 1-Ups can be won, and if Mario hits the ? Block with a Bowser card right away, no extra lives are awarded.

Orange Toad House
Orange Toad Houses (or Orange Toad houses) are Toad Houses that look like Mega Mushrooms. When Mario or Luigi enters an Orange Toad House, Toadsworth will create a Mega ? Block. When the block is hit, a Mega Mushroom will be stored; it will override any item in the item slot. Like with other houses featured in New Super Mario Bros., Mario will usually have to pay five Star Coins to pass the signpost leading to the Mega Mushroom House. These Toad Houses are featured in every world of New Super Mario Bros.

Blue Toad House
A Blue Toad House (or blue Toad house) is found at the beginning of World 1 after the player beats the game. Inside it, there are blocks with different designs on them. These are the different backgrounds the player can select for their Nintendo DS's touchscreens, and they cost 20 Star Coins each. After Mario or Luigi opens up all the Star Coin Signs in the game, a fifth background can be chosen.

Extra Toad Houses
By ending the level with the last two numbers of the time limit being the same (except 00), three things are triggered: the Super Mario Bros. "Course Clear" theme plays instead of the normal one, fireworks go off (one for ending in 11, two for ending in 22, and so on, awarding 4,000 points per explosion for a maximum of 36,000), and an extra Toad House appears at the starting point where Mario first enters the world. Time limits ending in 11, 22, or 33 yield a Red Toad House that awards items; 44, 55, and 66 yield a Green Toad House for an extra life minigame; and 77, 88, and 99 yield an Orange Toad House for a Mega Mushroom reward. None of these houses are permanent, even after the player completes all of the levels in the game.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Toad Houses reappear in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Unlike the first New Super Mario Bros., this game does not require Mario to collect Star Coins to open Toad Houses. Instead, the player will automatically unlock them when certain levels are completed. Also, a Toad House will appear at the start of the world if fireworks are triggered, like in the predecessor. In single-player mode, this is accomplished by rescuing a Toad. In multiplayer, all players must reach the flagpole when the last two digits of the remaining time are the same. In both modes, the last digit of the remaining time tells how many fireworks are set off, and each one adds 4,000 points to the player's game score. After using a Toad House, the players will get a tip, reminding them to use items on a tough course in Red Toad Houses or to visit Peach's Castle to watch hint movies in Green Toad Houses. There are three colors of Toad Houses: red, green, and yellow. If Mario gets a Red Toad House, he will play Power-up Panels. If he gets a Green Toad House, he will play 1-up Blast. If he gets a Yellow Toad House, he will get a Super Star as a reward in the treasure chest. All Toad Houses become permanent in this game, as well, when the player's save file contains five stars.

Red Toad House
In Red Toad Houses, Power-up Panels is played by matching two of the same items. If two Bowser or Bowser Jr. images are matched, the game ends and Mario keeps the items earned from the game.

Green Toad House
In Green Toad Houses, 1-up Blast is played by hopping into a cannon and pressing to shoot out and pop balloons to earn extra lives.

Yellow Toad House
Yellow Toad Houses contain one Super Star in a chest, and they are much rarer than the other Toad Houses. These houses have white roofs with multiple stars around the houses.

Extra Toad Houses
Like in New Super Mario Bros., Toad Houses can appear at the starting points of worlds by using the same strategy. In multiplayer mode, the strategy is exactly the same, but since there are no Orange Toad Houses, Yellow Toad Houses appear when the time limit's last two digits show 77, 88, or 99, and the times for the Red Toad House and Green Toad House are flipped. In single-player mode, the strategy is slightly different. Instead of finishing the stage with the last two digits of the time limit being the same, if Mario or Luigi saves the Toad in the level and takes him to the end, only the last digit counts (e.g., 1, 2, and 3 make a Green Toad House appear instead of 11, 22, and 33). Once again, these Toad Houses are not permanent.

Super Mario 3D Land
Toad Houses make a reappearance in Super Mario 3D Land, where they are manned by Toad himself and a variety of other colored Toads (depending on the situation). Unlike in previous games, Mario can explore a Toad House's surroundings before entering the building itself. The Red Toad Houses, which are run by Toad (Tanooki Toad in the Special Worlds), provide Mario with power-ups that will be able to help the hero on his journey. If Mario or Luigi leaves the Toad House without collecting a power-up, the Toad House will still disappear. The Toad Houses also allow players to access gifts that they receive via StreetPass, known as StreetPass Gifts. The number of power-ups that Mario can receive from StreetPass Gifts depends on how many times the player has encountered the same Mii with StreetPass. A maximum of five power-ups can be received at the same time, from among Super Mushrooms, Fire Flowers, Super Leaves, Boomerang Flowers, and Statue Leaves. P-Wings may also appear occasionally. Without the use of StreetPass, only Super Mushrooms, Fire Flowers, and Super Leaves can be received. A single Blue Toad House is found in World 3, where players can see an album of the photos they have received (12 in total).

New Super Mario Bros. 2
Red Toad Houses, Green Toad Houses, and Yellow Toad Houses return in New Super Mario Bros. 2. Like in the original New Super Mario Bros., some of them require Star Coins to access, while others are unlocked either automatically or by secret exits in other levels, like in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Completing all levels in the game, including World Star (without White Raccoon Mario), makes the Toad Houses stay permanently on the map, providing the player with endless items, including Gold Flowers and Super Stars. Unlike in the previous two games, Toad Houses cannot be summoned by fireworks, as that feature is replaced by Rainbow Courses.

Red Toad House
Red Toad Houses are run by Toad again, and Mario and/or Luigi may select one of the power-ups provided by Toad as an inventory item, if it is empty (should be chosen first), and another as the current power-up. The player may choose not to include an inventory item too. In the first Toad House, Toad will provide a Super Mushroom and two Fire Flowers. After that, Toad Houses provide the same three items: a Fire Flower, a Super Leaf, or a Mini Mushroom.

Green Toad House
Mario/Luigi plays a simple minigame in this house. He needs to hit a glove from below to knock 1-Up Mushrooms that Toad throws in the beginning to an above platform down to him so he can collect them to earn extra lives. It is possible to miss the 1-Ups that come down, wasting them.

Yellow Toad House
Yellow Toad Houses function in a similar way as they did in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. In all of these houses, though, Mario will get a Gold Flower from Toad this time around instead of a Super Star. However, a single Yellow Toad House in World Star that can be unlocked by getting all Star Coins in the game gives Mario a Super Star to use in his item reserve.

New Super Mario Bros. U
Red and Green Toad Houses reappear in New Super Mario Bros. U. Additionally, there is also a Purple Toad House between Acorn Plains and Sparkling Waters. No Toad Houses appear if the player gets double digits on the timer at the end of a course; rather, a Toad will appear behind the end-of-level fortress and give the player an item. A Red Toad House can be seen in the background during the game's credits; later, Nabbit is seen robbing the Toad House.

Red Toad House
There are two Red Toad Houses: one involving hitting the right ? Block for the items, and another that involves Baby Yoshis. In the first one, there are three, four, or five Winged ? Blocks. One will have an icon of a Super Star, another will have a Super Mushroom, and the rest will have Bowser's symbol on top. Then they will disappear into the ? Blocks, and the blocks will fly around the Toad House, swapping positions. When they stop moving, the player has to hit the ? Blocks, and they will get whatever power-ups are inside the blocks. If the player hits the ? Block with the Bowser symbol, the game ends, but they get to keep what power-ups they earned before hitting that block.

In the latter, Baby Yoshis swallow icons that give the player a chance to win or lose the minigame. Balloon Baby Yoshis have the item icons that determine what power-up the player will get, Bubble Baby Yoshis hold multiplier icons that determine how many power-ups the player will get, and the Glowing Baby Yoshis hold a Toad icon or a Bowser icon. The former allows the player to get the power-up, and the latter automatically marks as a loss. The player must fit the Baby Yoshis in their respective color spots.

Green Toad House
On both sides of the Toad House are cannons, which shoot out 1-Up balloons, coins, and Bowser balloons. The player(s) must collect more 1-Up balloons than Bowser balloons and coins to gather up lives. Collecting the Bowser balloons decreases the number of 1-Ups the player(s) get(s) in total (except those technically earned from coins). The game is over when the timer runs out.

Purple Toad House
There is a single Purple Toad House situated on Secret Island, and it can be reached via a Pipe Cannon only after the game is completed. The Toad House contains various records, such as how many coins players have collected, how many Boost Blocks were placed, and so on. The house belongs to Nabbit.

Super Mario 3D World
Toad Houses also appear in Super Mario 3D World. They work like the boxes in Super Mario Bros. 3, but they contain two presents (big and small) instead of three. When a player opens one of the boxes, the other one disappears, and there is a 75 percent chance that the chosen box contains four power-ups and a 25 percent chance that it contains only one Super Mushroom. Each world's Toad Houses are hosted by Toads of different colors. Yellow Toads host houses in World 1 and World 2, Green Toads in World 3 and World 4, and Purple Toads in the rest of the worlds with the exception of the special worlds (Star, Mushroom, Flower, and Crown). Some Toad Houses are hidden in bushes, pipes, or buildings in the worlds. They reappear if the player gets a Game Over or beats The Great Tower of Bowser Land.

Super Mario Run
In Super Mario Run, Toad Houses can be used as buildings in the Kingdom Builder. There are also three special Toad Houses that can be placed in Kingdom Builder granting access to their bonus game.
 * Red Bonus Game House: The minigame takes place in a Ghost House.
 * Blue Bonus Game House: The minigame is based on the bonus game from Super Mario World.
 * Yellow Bonus Game House: The minigame is based on the Battle Mode stage from Super Mario Bros. 3. It features a green pipe shooting out coins, Rally Tickets, and fireballs.

Super Mario Maker 2
In Super Mario Maker 2 versions 3.0.0 and later, three different types of green Toad Houses can be placed on a world map in World Maker, each with its own minigame that can be played to earn extra lives:
 * Match & Win!: Directly based on the Spade Panel slot minigame from Super Mario Bros. 3. Making a Super Mushroom grants the player one life, making a Fire Flower gives three lives, and making a Super Star gives five lives. If the player fails to make any of those, the Toad House generates the resulting picture as an object and no lives are awarded.
 * Pop & Win!: The player has to press repeatedly to inflate a green Toad House balloon as much as possible. The player can earn one, three, or five lives depending on how large the balloon is inflated before it pops. This minigame is a reference to the Famicom Disk Writer kiosks when it writes new games for the Famicom Disk System, and even uses an SNES-styled arrangement of the original music and sound effects.
 * Catch & Win!: The player has to jump and catch 10 baseballs fired by a Bill Blaster-like cannon so they do not hit the green Toad House behind them. The cannon fires baseballs at varying speeds and trajectories. The player can earn five lives by catching every ball, three lives if the Toad House is hit once, and one life if the Toad House is hit twice. If the Toad House suffers three hits, the player fails the minigame and Weird Mario appears from inside the house and shoos them away. This minigame uses sound effects and an SNES-styled arrangement of the title theme from the NES game .

After the player plays a minigame, the Toad House disappears.

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
In The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Toad Houses are shown to be the actual residences of the Mushroom People living in the Mushroom Kingdom. Toad's house in particular is a frequently used location during the course of the series. In addition to the houses, most commercial buildings are shaped like Mushrooms, such as the Mushroom Land Central Library and the Mushroom Kingdom Orphanage.

Yoshi's Island series
In Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Mario's parents' house, seen at the end of the credits, closely resembles a Toad House. In Yoshi's New Island, the same Toad House is shown in the introduction, and a Toad House that more closely resembles its modern design (Mario and Luigi's actual parents' house) is shown in the closing scene.

Paper Mario
In Paper Mario, Mario and his partners can restore their HP, FP, and SP at a Toad House. Toad Houses appear in almost every town, and they are each run by a Toad, with the exception of Star Haven's Toad House. The Toad House in Goomba Village has the slogan "Refresh your body and mind," while the others have "Refresh your body and soul." In the later Paper Mario games, the Toad Houses are replaced by Inns. Unlike in the sequel, Mario can sleep in a Toad House free of charge.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Toad Houses reappear in Paper Mario: Sticker Star. They are seen only in Decalburg and do not serve the same purpose as in the original Paper Mario. A few Toads are trapped in the houses during the beginning of the game. Some notable Toad Houses include the Sticker Museum and the Sticker Shop.

Paper Mario: Color Splash
Four Toad Houses appear in Paper Mario: Color Splash. Prof. Kinopio resides in a yellow house in Château Chanterelle, containing a doghouse and a barn in the backyard. The Green Energy Plant contains a Toad House with electronic equipment in and around it. On Vortex Island, a purple Toad House has an entrance to the parallel world behind it. In the parallel world, the house remains, except a friendly Shy Guy inhabits it instead.

Mario Kart series
In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, on the course Mushroom Bridge, Toad House-like buildings can be seen on a hill next to a dirt path shortcut; however, they do not provide power-ups, and the player cannot go inside them.

In Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, some Toad Houses can be seen in the backgrounds of the new Mario Circuit and, as well as in the Deluxe version, and on the ground below the SNES and N64 Rainbow Roads. A red Toad House can also be seen on top of a cloud in the background of in Mario Kart Tour and the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass.

Mario Sports Mix
In Mario Sports Mix, several Toad Houses make a cameo in the background during the tournament mode of the Mushroom Cup.

Fortune Street
In Fortune Street, Memory Block takes place inside a Toad House. It is based upon the Toad House's appearance from New Super Mario Bros. Wii.

Mario Party 9
Toad Houses appear in Mario Party 9. They can be accessed only by landing on a Lucky Space. They are run by Yellow Toad, and they give the player the items on the back of the cards they turn over. There are always four cards, and one card will always contain nothing on it. Before the player gets to turn over the cards, the cards are shuffled, making what the player wins random.

The player can win any of these items:
 * 1-2-3 Dice Block
 * 0-1 Dice Block
 * 4-5-6 Dice Block
 * Slow Dice Block
 * Three Mini Stars

The item all depends on the two cards the player turns over.

The Toad Houses also appear in several minigames, such as Goomba Village, Goomba Bowling, and Toad and Go Seek.

Mario Party 10
Toad Houses reappear in Mario Party 10, appearing only in Mario Party mode. When a player passes by a Toad House, all of the players enter the Toad House to obtain Special Dice Blocks. Additionally, the current captain's roulette cycles more slowly, and they have the option to discard one of their Special Dice Blocks if they already have two, unlike the other players, who cannot obtain another Special Dice Block if they already have two.

Mario Golf: World Tour
In Mario Golf: World Tour, Toad Houses appear in the Toad Highlands downloadable course as objects that may be hit.

Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition
Toad Houses appear in Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition, where the player can make their teammates stronger or enhance their Skills using the six spots inside. Toad Houses appear at the start of each world, but the player can also access one from the Select World menu.

Edit Team
Hosted by a green Toad, Edit Team allows the player to create and edit up to six teams of allies before entering a course.

Power Up
Hosted by a red Toad, Power Up allows the player to raise the XP of an ally enough to level up by depowering other allies for their XP. Depowering allies removes them from the player's Ally Box, and up to five allies can be depowered at a time. Teammates getting an ally's XP will receive 50% more if their attributes match. Coin Coffers and King Coin Coffers provide a significant power up for teammates using this method.

Aside from experience points, an ally being powered up may sometimes receive additional stats in the form of stars next to their current stats called pluses from depowered allies. For a listing of which allies provide which type of plus for allies being powered up, see List of plus bonuses in Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition.

Transform
Hosted by a yellow Toad, and unlocked by clearing, Transform allows the player to use Transformation Items to evolve their allies into stronger forms. For a listing of which Transformation Items are used to transform into which forms, see Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition.

Lucky ? Blocks
Hosted by a Purple Toad, and unlocked by clearing, Lucky ? Blocks (known as ? Lottery in the PAL version) lets the player try their luck at winning items for 100 coins each attempt. Prizes include 1-Up Mushrooms, Transformation Items, and Skill Items. After the player clears all the normal worlds, Lucky ? Blocks will include rare Skill Items and Star Gems. Clearing updates it again by giving the player a better chance to win rare Skill Items, and clearing  updates it one last time to give the player an even better chance at winning rare items.

Awaken
Hosted by Tamadra, and unlocked by clearing, Awaken lets the player use Star Gems to awaken allies who have transformed as far as they can. Allies that have awoken can use Awoken Skills, and can be given more Star Gems to boost their Awoken Skills further. For a listing of how many Star Gems are used to awaken which allies and to boost their Awoken Skills, see List of Skill upgrades in Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition.

Skill Up
Hosted by a Blue Toad, and unlocked by clearing, Skill Up lets the player use Skill Items to raise Skill levels of characters, reducing the number of turns needed to use Skills. For a full list of how many Skill Items are needed to raise a character's Skill level, see List of Skill upgrades in Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition.

New Super Mario Bros. 2

 * European Website bio: "Those friendly Mushroom Kingdom tykes insist on building houses in the strangest of places, but luckily for you, they're very hospitable. Cash in enough Star Coins to reach their house, and you could lay your hands on some 1-Up Mushrooms, or other useful items to aid in your quest."

Super Mario 3D World

 * Instruction manual bio: "Open the big or small box to get the items inside."