Shells

History:

When the first Grand Prix Council got together to determine what Items would be used, Bowser proudly volunteered an offensive options: The Koopa Shell. At first he only supplied standard Green Shells, but eventually his Shell Technology grew more sophisticated. He added homing powers with Red Shells from Paratroopas and finally, the Blue Spiny Shell, one of the most rare and deadly of any of the Mario Kart Items. For the 2003 Tournament he added his own Bowser Shell, the most monstrous and gigantic of all Shells.

The Green Shell Appears in:


SMK
64
Super Circuit
Double Dash
DS
Wii
7

The Green Shell is one of the most basic, stalwart offensive options in Mario Kart. It has hardly changed since its earliest days in Mario Kart History. Once fired it travels in a straight line, bouncing off any solid wall until it crashes into a racer or falls off an edge. It can also be used defensively, being held behind a Kart similar to a Banana, where it will absorb the hit of any other Shell or shell-like item (This option was unavailable in Double Dash). It can be fired behind the racer when held here, which is helpful in some instances, for instance if a player is far ahead and there is a higher danger of firing it forward.

The Triple Green Shell Appears in:

64
Super Circuit
Double Dash*
DS
Wii
7

The Triple Green Shell in practice acts exactly like a Green Shell,  a straightforward projectile. It is also a very able defensive weapon, though, because once activated, all three shells will encircle a player. If drivers run into anyone else, the result will be as if the opponent had hit a Green Shell. Players are still susceptible to damage, though, if an Item penetrates the Shell Guard players will still flail out. This is less an issue when all three are activated but when only one or two shells are circling around players are more vulnerable. Of course, they are no more vulnerable than if they had nothing at all.

*In Double Dash this was a Special Item reserved for Koopa Troopa and Paratroopa. The Shells did not encircle the players, making them less useful defensively, but still a great offensive option.

The Red Shell Appears in:

64
Super Circuit
Double Dash
DS
Wii
7

The Red Shell has been a staple of Mario Kart games from 64 on. It fires forward like a Green Shell, but instead of traveling in a straight line and then bouncing off walls it homes in on the closest player ahead in the race. It will become defunct if it strikes a wall though, necessitating a degree of precision during Battle Matches with many walls, such as SMK's Battle Course 4.




The Triple Red Shell Appears in:

64
Super Circuit
Double Dash*
DS
Wii
7

The Triple Red Shell once activated acts exactly like the Triple Green Shell, encircling and protecting players. Once fired they act exactly like Single Red Shells, homing in on enemy players.

*In Double Dash this was a Special Item that only Koopa Troopa and Paratroopa could use. They did not circle around the Kart, making them less useful defensively, but they are very valuable to use to specifically attack a wide number of opponents.

The Blue Spiny Shell Appears in:

64
Super Circuit
Double Dash
DS
Wii
7

This is another fairly rare and legendary Item. It often comes up while racers are near the back of the herd and is one of the only such weapons that his used offensively from back there. Using the shell's wings, it flies and seeks out whoever is in First Place and messes up their day. From Double Dash on the disaster has become more significant, causing a great Blue Explosion that will also engulf any players driving around the Blue Shell.

It is possible to avoid the Shell, but this is tricky and lucky to do. The key is that the Shell doesn't pick its victim until that final plunge, which is where you can escape. Still, there are dangerous parts of the track where getting hit is not only inescapable, it proves disastrous. This includes over any gap and particularly in Mario Kart 7 in many Air Portions.

The Bowser Shell Appears in:


Double Dash

The Bowser Shell is the Special Item of Bowser and Bowser, Jr. in Double Dash and is a pretty useful item. The enormity of the shell takes up most of any track and it will clobber anyone in its path. There is some caution when throwing it forward though, as the thrower may become a victim as well. It's best on straightaways shot directly behind to annihilate anyone who is considering challenging you. It can be disrupted by Giant Bananas, although it will destroy the Banana, as well as Hearts, which can pick it up to be used by either Peach or Daisy.

The Yoshi Egg Appears in:


Double Dash

The Yoshi Egg has properties very similar to Shells, so it is included here. Technically the Yoshi Egg is the Special Item of Yoshi (as well as Boo and Petey Piranha) and a pink version, the Birdo Egg is the Special Item of Birdo. Both have exactly the same function and operate basically like a Red Shell, seeking out and destroying whoever the next in line is. The key though, is that once struck, the Egg will crack open with Items such as Stars, Mushrooms, Bananas, or Stationary Green Shells. It could also pop open a Bob-Omb. All this means that the Egg could either be very beneficial to the user, or it could be hazardous. It's even possible that the enemy struck will come away with a star. It's not that useful.

Koopa Paratroopa

History:

After Wario supplanted him in the mid-90s the loyal Koopa Troopa Bowser had chosen to race with him in the Grand Prix was looking for any chance to get back into the Races. When the Partner Rules of the 2003 Grand Prix were settled Koopa managed to wrangle another one of Bowser's forces, Koopa Paratroopa to ride with him. Paratroopa had seen heavy aerial combat in the many Wars against the Mushroom Kingdom, and although he would have rather been fighting Mario he agreed to race instead. Although Koopa has since found some stability, appearing in later races, Paratroopa disappeared after his only appearance. Koopa suspects that he used too many of his Red Shells on Lord Bowser, possibly sealing his fate after hours.

Double Dash:

Paratroopa only appears in Double Dash, as the default partner of Koopa Troopa, tho Koopa came back for Wii. I imagine in DS and Wii his role as a minor enemy has been taken by the more aesthetically interesting Dry Bones. Anyway, Individual Characters didn't matter in Double Dash as much as their Karts did. Characters determined Special Items and Kart Selection but not Stats. Each Character, though, has his or her own Vehicle. Paratroopa rode in the Para Wing.

The Para Wing is decent among Light Karts, but not the best. Its Acceleration is the 3rd Best in the game and its weight is 16th (both 3rd among Light Karts). It's relationship to the Koopa Dasher is similar to the Goo Goo Buggy's relationship to the Rattle Buggy. It has better turn speed but slower Top Speed and Acceleration as well as average shocks for those bouncy courses. It also somewhat inexplicably has one of the worst Offroad Speeds for a Light Kart, beaten only by the Bullet Blaster.

Paratroopa shares Koopa's Item with no changes at all, making that pair basically identical. The Triple Shell is one of the better Items in the game, although they no longer circle the Kart providing protection from aberrant objects. It's still a very good defensive and offensive item. Red Shells are especially useful in that Second or Third Place position to directly take down those ahead. Since you can't hold Items behind you it's a bit more difficult to deflect incoming objects but not impossible. They're pretty useful for climbing up a Grand Prix ladder.

There are Secret Staff Ghosts for each Track in Double Dash. Since no Secret Characters are used as Ghosts, the Koopas inherited the Mushroom Tracks from the Toads. Paratroopa leads on Mushroom City with Koopa in tow using the Koopa Dasher in 1:50:663. He also appears on Mushroom Bridge this time behind Koopa and goes a time of 1:31:458/

Highway Tracks

History:

The Mushroom Innerkingdom Highway System was completed in 1954, which finally linked the many distant parts of the Kingdom together and allowed for both the many Adventures of Mario and Luigi as well as opportunities for Competition. Unlike ever before residents could travel across the lands and get to new places, most of which had new Race Tracks springing up as the Sport grew in popularity. As such, many of the power players from around the Mushroom World bought up land to make a Course or two, that is, except for Toad.

Toad was Consigliere to the Toadstool Royal Family and as such was forbidden to put his own money down to purchase land for commercial purposes. It was simply a conflict of interest. In order to get in on the Racing Action though, Toad was able to use certain portions of Public Roads as Race Tracks. It was a dangerous move, as he didn't shut the Highways down while doing this. In order to properly manage the tracks, many are close to his home of Mushroom City, tho some are also near his workplace, Peach's Castle.

64:

64 was again the initiator of this Track Trend. Toad's Turnpike opened up the Flower Cup which would be a common place for these kinds of tracks. It's virtually just a figure 8 with some hills that gently slope up and down along with some heavy traffic. The cars are a killer but it's really the big trucks that are very tricky to pass, especially when they pull up next to each other. The meridians are safe, but with 64's steering it's tough to stay there. There aren't any tough turns and plenty of straightaways, but you're never really going straight because there's a constant need to dodge other vehicles. Acceleration and handling are the absolute keys to all the Highway Tracks. In terms of geography, all of these are pretty close together, Toad's Turnpike is likely a highway leading into Mushroom City

Double Dash:

Super Circuit didn't have any Highway Tracks but Double Dash added two in Mushroom Bridge and Mushroom City. Mushroom Bridge is the rare Highway Track that takes place during the day. It's a bit more suburban than the hustle and bustle of the city and includes a huge bridge that has some nasty boosts but is cool if successful. Atop the bridge you can see Peach's Castle off in the distance, indicating that it's somewhat closer to the Heart of the Mushroom Kingdom. Mushroom Bridge again leads off the Flower Cup and is a pretty simple course, mostly a big loop with some curves through some tunnels, but again, the traffic, including a couple Bomb Karts makes it tricky, although this may be the most mildly dangerous one. Since no unlockable Character has a Secret Staff Ghost, the Ghost on this track is Koopa with Paratroopa in tow riding the Koopa Dasher in 1:31:458. It does return in DS however with Toad in the Mushmellow driving a  1:30:600.

From the Bridge we move on to the City, which is the only Highway Track to ever be in the Star Cup. It's actually pretty similar in construction to Toad's Turnpike, tho the overpass is a bit longer and there are multiple paths to take, although only the Secret Cut-Through Route is the smart one. It's also the only course that's featured in another course as Double Dash's Rainbow Road takes place in the skies above this City. For the Secret Staff Ghost, Paratroopa switches places with Koopa but stays in the Koopa Dasher with a time of 1:50:663. Again, the traffic here really isn't terrible to deal with (except for the Final On-Ramp) and the turns aren't really awful. If you drive on the edge of the wall you can avoid most of the Bigger Vehicles, I think you can go for Speed on this one, using something like the Piranha Pipes.

DS:

Shroom Ridge exists on the outskirts of Mushroom City and definitely contains the most complex course layout of the Highway Tracks. It has some brutal turns as well as oncoming traffic for the first time. The cars drive on the left-hand side, coming straight at the Player, in prior installments the Drivers always went with the flow. There is also a deadly drop-off for the first time. See, the gimmick of Highway Tracks used to only be that there were other Vehicles on the road. Shroom Ridge would be a fairly dangerous difficult track on its own (although maybe not concluding the Flower Cup), but the added Traffic makes it even tougher. You need to be able to react very fast here, so someone with expert Handling and Acceleration is key. Yoshi in the Egg 1 sounds good. The Ghost here is Toad in the Mushmellow again at 2:05:123.

Wii:

Half-Ridge...Half-City

Moonview Highway is really interesting. It's actually simply a big mash-up of Mushroom City and Shroom Ridge, with even a bit of Mushroom Bridge in there for good measure. Still, it's the only Highway Track in the Special Cup and it deserves to be there as one of the most difficult tracks in the game. There are huge cars and trucks that come barreling down the road, the most tricky parts are the blind turns that spell instant doom. There are also Vehicles that will actually swerve and change direction on the straightaways, meaning you go down one path to try to avoid something and it instead veers straight at you. If you're real sloppy you'll also fall off that bridge into the Unforgiving Abyss Below. There are two keys to this course: 1) Stay either in the middle of the road across the dividing lines where Cars are less likely to cross or on the left-hand side where you'll at least be going with traffic and 2) Hit the Double-X Boost while in the city. There are a series of boosts that go from left to right then right to left, do it while avoiding traffic and you'll get far ahead. Finally, there are Bomb Karts but no Mushroom Karts. Unfair.

Funky in the Spear is really good here although it's a bit uncontrollable and too slow to accelerate for effective Grand Prix Play. I prefer Daisy in the Mach Bike or Dolphin Dasher. The Staff Ghost is Peach, who has some Association with this track, there being a Giant Picture of her in Downtown and all. She's just a City Nightlife kind of Girl. She does a 02:16.802 in the Standard Kart M and then the Expert goes 02:04.163 in the Mach Bike.