Bill Blaster: Difference between revisions

'''Bill Blasters''', originally known as a '''Turtle Cannons'''<ref>Hiroo Tochikubo, ''[[How to win at Super Mario Bros.]]'', Tokuma Shoten, 1987, ISBN 4-19-720003-XC. Page 14.</ref><ref>''Nintendo Power'' Volume 13, page 9. "''Turtle Cannons relentlessly fire this living, deadly projectile at Mario.''"</ref> and also referred to as '''Bullet Bill Cannons''',<ref>M. Arakawa. ''NES Game Atlas'' Page 35. "''If you stay close to pipes with Piranha Flowers inside, they won’t come out. Likewise, Bullet Bill Cannons won't fire if you’re near.''"</ref> simply '''Cannons''',<ref>Nintendo ''Mario Mania'' Player's Guide. Page 167.</ref> '''Blasters''', or '''Bullet Bill Launchers''',<ref>''[[Prima Games|Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics eGuide]]'', ''Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island'' Confidential Information Tab.</ref> are black cannons that fire [[Bullet Bill]]s from either side. Bill Blasters are usually used as defense emplacements in [[fortress]]es and [[castle]]s. While some Bill Blasters are pure black, others have a design (usually a skull icon) emblazoned on their sides.

====''Super Mario Bros.''====

Turtle Cannons first appear in [[World 5-1 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 5-1]] in ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'', where they were placed throughout the Mushroom Kingdom during [[Bowser]]'s initial invasion. They are also found in [[World 5-2 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 5-2]], [[World 7-1 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 7-1]], [[World 8-2 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 8-2]] and [[World 8-3 (Super Mario Bros.)|World 8-3]]. They are found in locations that are difficult for the Bros. to travel through, such as on the ground or above the player where they would be hit if the player [[jump]]ed. They will not fire if the player is directly above one or completely within a sprite box next to one.

====''Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels''====

[[File:Bill Blaster Perfect.png|thumb|120px|''[[Perfect Edition of the Great Mario Character Encyclopedia]]'' artwork]]

In ''[[Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels]]'', Turtle Cannons return and this time are found in even more difficult places. They now are more common and act just the same as they did in ''Super Mario Bros.'' They sometimes appear in underwater levels, where in the original, their details are colored green due to having the same palette as the scenery; though they do not fire any Bullet Bills. They are colored normally in the ''[[Super Mario All-Stars]]'' version.

A different form called '''Pipe Cannons'''<ref>M. Arakawa. Nintendo ''Game Boy'' Player's Guide. Page 5.</ref> appear in ''[[Super Mario Land]]''. Unlike their stationary counterparts, Pipe Cannons move out of [[Warp Pipe]]s like [[Piranha Plant]]s and then fire a [[Bullet Biff]] before retreating.

In ''[[Super Mario Galaxy]]'', Bill Blasters (referred to as '''Bullet Bill cannons''')<ref>Fletcher Black. ''Super Mario Galaxy: PRIMA Official Game Guide (Collector's Edition)''. Roseville: [[Prima Games]], 2007. Page 55. ISBN: 978-0-76155-713-5.</ref> appear in many of the game's levels. They are often found on planets or other areas where various items are trapped in cages, where [[Mario]] must lure a [[Bullet Bill]] from the Bill Blaster to the cage or cages in order to access what is inside. Their appearance here is more typical of a cannon and noticeably lacks the familiar skull icon. The Bullet Bills they shoot out will home in on Mario upon becoming aware of his presence. Some Bill Blasters can be destroyed by luring the Bullet Bill back. Others are too far into their base for one to reach.

Bill Blasters and Bill Blaster Turrets reappear in ''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'', behaving the same way it did in previous games. This time, [[Roy Koopa]] utilizes a cannon in his boss battle. In the game's code, a [[List_of_New_Super_Mario_Bros._U_pre-release_and_unused_content#Unused_data|variant]] of the blaster that can stretch up and down appears, similar to ''New Super Mario Bros. Wii''.<ref> [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAr7S85SsqU Glitches, Skips, and Broken Stuff in New Super Mario Bros. U] </ref>

In ''[[Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island]]'', Turtle Cannons are green, like the Bullet Bills themselves, but act entirely like previous incarnations. Their cannon visibly expands upon preparing to shoot Bullet Bills, then returns to normal after having done so. They can be frozen with use of a [[ice watermelon|blue watermelon]], and then shattered by being touched or struck with an [[Yoshi Egg|egg]].

Only two Bill Blasters appear on [[Bowser Jr.'s Flotilla]] in ''[[Paper Mario: Sticker Star]]''. Here, they appear as mere obstacles and cannot be battled. However, they were originally meant to be fought, but were cut from the game.<ref>https://tcrf.net/Paper_Mario:_Sticker_Star#Enemies</ref>

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*'''Official Nintendo Player's Guide:''' ''Bill Blasters can fire only at the brother straight ahead of them, and the bullets move fairly slowly.''<ref>Thomason, Steve. ''Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga'' Player's Guide. Page 33.</ref>