Lucky 7

History:

In honor of the Seventh Grand Prix, the committee elected to field a brand new item, the Lucky 7. The Lucky 7 used rotating Shell Technology to cause seven Items that could both help and hinder Racers to orbit an activating Driver.

7:

The Lucky 7 is simultaneously one of the better and one of the more dangerous items in the game. Once activated, your Kart will be surrounded with a Green Shell, Red Shell, Bob-omb, Star, Mushroom, Blooper, and Banana. Each Item when orbiting, acts like any other Item in play. They form a wide diameter around a Racer, so those used to the smaller Triple Shell scheme may need to adjust their tactics. Securing a Lucky 7 essentially sets a Racer up with everything he or she needs, but it requires some careful strategy.

The Racer will fire or use whichever Item is closest to the front of the Kart, so keep that in mind when deploying. The big key here is that Bob-omb. Be very careful that you don't accidentally set that thing off, or get sniped by someone else with a shell. I'd recommend getting rid of that thing as soon as possible, especially considering that once it goes off and you're caught in the blast, you'll lose everything else. After that the next Item to use is the Blooper to blind everyone ahead of you. It's notable that when an opponent runs into the Blooper as it circles you, only his or her screen will go black. Once everyone is blinded, go for the Star and wipe them out on the way to the top of the pile. After that, use your shells to take out any stragglers left, and then the Mushroom to boost away from the chaos. Finally, drop a Banana to secure your lead.

It's a dangerous item, though, because anyone who runs into the Star or Mushroom will ride away with it, and there is a high margin for error. Still, in the hands of a careful skilled racer who fins themselves screwed in last place, the Lucky 7 can deliver.

Heart / Super Leaf

History:

The Heart was first crafted by Princess Peach, who, being generally against the violence inherent in the male-dominated Grand Prix, sought to develop a more peaceful, defensive item for the 2003 rendition. Using the Power of Love, she formed the Heart, which would circle a Kart, deflecting most small-scale warfare. It was never that popular outside of herself and Daisy, who claimed it as their special item.

Some of that deflection technology was mimicked, however, in adapting the Super Leaf to the Grand Prix. Millennia ago, the Ancient Tanookis infused their magic onto certain brown leaves. When consumed, people would forcibly be transformed into Half-man / half-raccoon creatures. The effect was temporary, although in stronger doses, this "Super Leaf" would encase the consumer in a suit that resembled the Tanooki itself. Like all raccoons, users gained the power to smash things with their tails, as well as use them to slow their falls through rapid rotation. Like all Tanooki Raccoons, the suit also granted some limited powers of flight. With some ingenuity, the powers of the Super Leaf were adapted to affect the Karts themselves, which granted them similar effects.

Double Dash:

The Super Leaf are lumped as a deflecting successor to the Heart here. In Double Dash, each Racer had a Special Item shared with his or her partner. Peach and Daisy used the Heart, along with King Boo and Petey Piranha, who used every Special Item. The Heart is a unique Item in that it is purely defensive. When activated, two Hearts encircle the Kart, picking up any Item the Driver runs over. This includes Stars and Mushrooms left on the track, which essentially wastes a Heart, although there is some benefit in picking them up and then finding an optimal time to use these Items rather than an immediate activation (into say, a cliff). The pick-up also only works if neither Racer is already holding another Item. In this case, though, it will be used and prevent a spin-out at least.

The Heart overrules Bowser Shells, Giant Bananas, and Fireballs, although when the latter is re-issued, only a single flame, not five are sent out. It is powerless against Chain Chomps and Blue Shells, though, and the Hearts will be destroyed if struck by a Thunderbolt. They also may pick up sitting Bob-ombs, but cannot protect against Bob-omb explosions.

7:

Like the Fire Flower, once activated, the Tanooki Tail lasts for either ten seconds or ten swipes. It can bat away many items, from shells to bananas, but this requires careful timing. If an item strikes the tail while it is not swiping, it will be destroyed. Also like the Heart, it offers no protection against Blue Shells. It may also be used offensively, and works as a melee similar to the partner-attack from Double Dash, with a bit more potency.

It is also a rare item in that it actually affects the sea and air properties of the kart - becoming a propeller underwater, and gifting a little more speed and lift to flight when activated in the air.

Fireball / Fire Flower

History:

The Fire Flower was indigenous to the Mushroom Kingdom, and its thorough study by Mushroom Scientists transformed it into one of the more potent weapons of use against the Koopa Hordes. They found, however, that it was a wildly unwieldy weapon, which in untrained hands often led to catastrophic friendly fire incidents. Mario and later, Luigi, were among the first to suitably master the Firebrand, and through their expertise, eventually the power of the Fire Flower was adapted for use as an Item in the Grand Prix.

Double Dash:

Each Racer has his or her own Special Item in Double Dash, and both Mario and Luigi use the Fireball, Mario's being Orange and Luigi's Green. They may be released either forwards or backwards, thus used offensively or defensively, and cover a wide portion of the track. All these racing balls don't last that long, though, and they tend to be bigger, slower, and bouncier than shells, which makes them easy to doge. Still, they are deadly in tight corridors. Since King Boo and Petey Pirhania use every character's Special Item, they too have access to these Fireballs, but they only use the Orange Variety.

7:

The Fireball returns, in a sense, through the Fire Flower in 7. When a Racer activates the Flower, he or she has either ten seconds or ten fireballs to shoot. Again they may be thrown forwards or backwards. While they have the same disadvantages as the Double Dash Fireballs in that they are slow and bouncy, it's the most effective assault weapon in this game, as you may fire off ten rapid shots to make up for any errors, making them a bit more valuable than shells.They also bounce off walls like shells and form an assault most effective in tight corridors with many other hapless Racers around.