Rocky Wrench (プー, Pū) is a mole-like enemy found in airship levels in several Mario games. They first appear in Super Mario Bros. 3.
Profile[]
Physical description[]
In all of their appearances, Rocky Wrenches wear a manhole lid on their head. In their debut, Rocky Wrenches wear a shell and are described as a turtle-mole hybrid. Years later, by the time Rocky Wrenches returned in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, their turtle-like features were removed, and they retroactively became a variant of Monty Moles, despite debuting before them. Rocky Wrenches have large whiskers and make squeaky sounds like Monty Moles do.
Behavior[]
Rocky Wrenches pop up out of manhole-like coverings beneath the airship's deck and throw their wrenches at Mario. They are defeated by a stomp on the head whenever they are above ground. They can be unpredictable at times but defeating them is generally easy as any attack can beat them.
In the Super Mario series[]
Super Mario Bros. 3[]
Rocky Wrenches make their debut in Super Mario Bros. 3 primarily appearing on the various Airships found throughout the game as well as in several levels of the Dark Land. They work as mechanics on the Airships and as soon as Mario/Luigi approaches, the Rocky Wrench will stick it's head out of it's hole and toss it's wrench before diving back down. A Rocky Wrench can be destroyed with stomps or the effects of a Fire Flower, Super Leaf, Tanooki Suit, Hammer Suit, or a Starman. Defeating a Rocky Wrench earns the player 100 points.
Super Mario World[]
Rocky Wrenches were originally planned to appear in the Sunken Ghost Ship level in Super Mario World. However, they were later removed for unknown reasons.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii[]
Rocky Wrenches make a return in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. In this game, they are now purely a variety of Monty Mole and no longer wear shells. They only appear on World 6-Airship and retain their behavior from their earlier appearances. They poke their heads out of the manholes which they work in and toss their wrenches before ducking back in. Rocky Wrenches can toss their wrenches from any given distance, they can be very bothersome to avoid especially during heavy platforming sections. Rocky Wrenches can also briefly poke their heads out ever so slightly to see if the heroes are approaching, whenever they do this, they can easily be stomped to be defeated. All other attacks including the effects of the Fire Flower or Starman can easily take out a Rocky Wrench, Rocky Wrenches can also be frozen with the effects of an Ice Flower or Penguin Suit however due to being in the ground, the frozen Rocky Wrenches cannot be picked up and instead must be ground pounded to be destroyed.
Super Mario 3D Land[]
Rocky Wrenches appear again in Super Mario 3D Land appearing mostly on Airship levels as well as various sky-themed levels such as World 8-3. In this game, they poke their heads out of their manholes just as before however, due to the game being in a 3D environment, the Rocky Wrenches can also turn around and take aim with their wrenches this time. In addition to appearing in manholes, Rocky Wrenches can also be found in Pipes and can also toss Bob-ombs or even Coins in addition to their usual tools, the wrenches. Also this time, a Rocky Wrench's wrench can be stomped on harmlessly destroying it in the process. Rocky Wrenches can be defeated with stomps or the effects of a Fire Flower, Boomerang Flower, Super Leaf, Statue Leaf, Invincibility Leaf, or a Starman.
New Super Mario Bros. U / New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe[]
Rocky Wrenches also appear in New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (they don't reappear in New Super Luigi U). In these games, they retain their behavior from New Super Mario Bros. Wii (poking their heads out of the manholes and tossing wrenches). They are commonly found on the Airship areas, Rocky Wrenches are rather rare enemies as they only appear in Boarding the Airship. A Rocky Wrench can be defeated with stomps or the effects of a Fire Flower or Starman and can be frozen with the effects of the Ice Flower or Penguin Suit.
Super Mario Maker / Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS / Super Mario Maker 2[]
Rocky Wrenches appear in Super Mario Maker as well as its two sequels as placeable enemies. In these games, they can be made by shaking a Monty Mole. Unlike most mainline games, Rocky Wrenches can be made to appear in a wide range of themes no longer solely limited to Airships. A Rocky Wrench can be given a Super Mushroom to become a Mega Rocky Wrench or wings to become a Flying Rocky Wrench. Flying Rocky Wrenches can fly out of their holes and throw their wrenches with better range before ducking back in. The Rocky Wrenches possess their original turtle-mole hybrid traits in the Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario World styles however they are merely Monty Mole varieties in the New Super Mario Bros. U style.
Super Mario Run[]
Rocky Wrenches return in Super Mario Run this time only appearing in one level, Throwing It All Overboard. The Rocky Wrenches can be found all throughout in this Airship-themed level tossing wrenches at Mario as he approaches however there are some Rocky Wrenches that toss Coins instead of Wrenches. Rocky Wrenches also emerge and retreat to their holes much faster than they do in most of the other games.
In the Paper Mario series[]
Paper Mario[]
Although Rocky Wrenches do not appear in the first Paper Mario, they do appear in early obscure concept art for the game back when it was referred to Super Mario RPG 2.
Super Paper Mario[]
Rocky Wrenches don't appear in Super Paper Mario however, a Sammer Guy by the name of Spanner of Rock appears in the game, his name and speeches including references to Rocky Wrenches.
Paper Mario: Sticker Star[]
Rocky Wrenches make their physical Paper Mario series debut in Paper Mario: Sticker Star. In this game, they can only be found in Bowser Jr.'s Flotilla. They are seen lurking in the manholes just as they do in the mainline games however as soon as Mario approaches, they Rocky Wrenches will toss their wrenches at Mario hoping to net some damage on him. In battle, Rocky Wrenches attack by tossing their wrenches at Mario, in addition, a Rocky Wrench may also toss a spanner at Mario which deals more damage than a regular wrench does. During battle, the Rocky Wrenches may sometimes duck underneath their holes to hide from attacks, whenever the Rocky Wrenches are hiding, most (if not all) attacks directed at them are guaranteed to miss, this can make them rather tough customers so this is why it is recommended to come with Thing Stickers or other Powerful Stickers when going up against the Rocky Wrenches. Upon defeat, Rocky Wrenches may sometimes drop Wrench Stickers.
Paper Mario: Color Splash[]
Rocky Wrenches appear again in Paper Mario: Color Splash this time, appearing in Toad Trainworks and Sunset Express. In this game, the manhole lids the Rocky Wrenches wear are now yellow and also much bigger looking slightly less consistent with the grounds. Just as before, the Rocky Wrenches toss their wrenches outside of battle and in battle, attack with the Wrenches. They can either toss Wrenches or Spanners at Mario (the latter of which is stronger just as before). They can once again hide in their manholes to avoid attacks as well.
Paper Mario: The Origami King[]
Rocky Wrenches return in Paper Mario: The Origami King this time with a new role. Origami Rocky Wrenches appear as enemies on the path to the Spring of Rainbows. They attack in the same way as the Rocky Wrenches do in the previous games by either tossing wrenches or stronger spanners as well as hiding in the manholes from time to time.
Normal Rocky Wrenches appear as actual allies that aren't battled. One Rocky Wrench appears in Toad Town in a port behind the red warehouse which sells Mario the Legion of Stationery collectible treasures. Another Rocky Wrench Ally is found on Picnic Road, outside the Sensor Lab. To interact with the Rocky Wrenches, Mario must hit their lid with his hammer. If Mario hammers the lid while standing on top of it, the Rocky Wrench will look around briefly before going back underground and thus nothing will happen in this instance.
In the Mario Kart series[]
Mario Kart DS[]
Rocky Wrenches appear in Mario Kart DS exclusively appearing in the Airship Fortress . They attack enemies by bursting from the ground (in a similar fashion to the Monty Moles however they only poke their heads out rather than jumping) which can cause your kart to get hit and thus spinning out of control upon contact which can really impede your speed so be careful. They are on the deck of the ship, right after the Bullet Bills. Rocky Wrenches can be knocked away with the effects of a Bullet Bill or Starman.
Mario Kart 7[]
Rocky Wrenches appear again Mario Kart 7 in the game's remake of Airship Fortress. In this game, they behave identically to how they did in Mario Kart DS however this time, they emerge and drop slightly slower than how they did previously. Also, this time, their appearance has been updated to match their look from New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Just as before, running into a Rocky Wrench can knock one about so be careful. They can be knocked away with the effects of a Bullet Bill or a Starman once again.
Mario Kart Tour[]
Rocky Wrenches reappear in Mario Kart Tour starting with the Pirate Tour in 2020. They are seen in the remake of Airship Fortress, where they behave pretty much identically to how they did in Mario Kart DS and Mario Kart 7. Unlike in previous Mario Kart games, driving into a Rocky Wrench does more help than harm as it knocks the Rocky Wrench back into its hole and grants you bonus points instead of causing you to spin out. If you drive over it while it is peeking out, a Trick can be preformed.
Appearances in other media[]
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3[]
Rocky Wrenches appear as recurring enemies in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, where they are a part of King Koopa's army and are usually seen on board or operating on several of his vehicles.
Gallery[]
To view Rocky Wrench's image gallery, click here.
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Trivia[]
- Toad refers to Rocky Wrench as "Mr. Rocky Wrench" in the episode of the Super Mario Bros. 3 cartoon, Up Up and a Koopa.
- In the Super Mario Bros. style of the Super Mario Maker games, Rocky Wrenches don't possess glasses for some reason, looking more heavily to the Monty Moles in that style.