Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door Chapter 1 Walkthrough

After wrapping the prologue in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, players will head on to the Petal Meadows in search of the missing Crystal Stars. In this walkthrough, we will take you through the entire chapter from start to finish.

To complete this chapter, players will head to Petalburg, dungeon dive for missing relics, and then make their way to the Hooktail Castle, where a powerful dragon awaits.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door – Chapter 1 Guide

After going through the Pipe, Mario and Goombella will find themselves in the Petal Meadows. Be sure to investigate the strange marks on the rocks here, as they will be important a bit later in the chapter.

Now it’s time to head to Petalburg and figure out what is going on with the Crystal Star and the large dragon that is lurking in the area.

How to Build The Bridge to Petalburg

Start heading to the left, and you will enter an area with some bushes and a river blocking the path forward.

Using Mario’s hammer, smash the large bush beside the fencing to reveal a Green Pipe. Jump inside to pop up on the hills in the background. Follow the hills to the blue exclamation box and jump on it. This will activate an animation reel of a bridge being built.

Star Piece #1

Go far to the left on the hills where the blue exclamation box is located to find a Star Piece.

Use the Green Pipe to get back to the bridge, and cross it to enter the town.

Exploring Petalburg

Like Rogueport, Petalburg has several stops for Mario to investigate. Take time to find the in and rest up if HP is low, and use the shop to stock up on items.

After the refresh, head into town and talk with everyone. Mario will learn that the town’s mayor is very old and several people are unsure if he is still the best leader – especially with so many townsfolk getting carried off by the dragon.

Speak with Mayor Kroop to learn that the dragon can only be reached using the Sun and Moon stones, which are locked away in a dungeon outside of town.

After speaking with everyone in town, and confirming the next step with Mayor Kroop, head to the wooden gate and pass through. It’s time to take on the first major dungeon crawl of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

How to Get to Shhwonk Fortress

To get to Shhwonk Fortress, Mario and Goombella must cross through several wild areas outside of Petalburg. There are numerous battles to get through and items to grab.

Star Piece #2

Hit the grass patch between the two trees right off the bridge after leaving town.

Shhwonk Fortress Bald Cleft Fight

Enter the first dungeon and pay attention to the two pillars in the room. Hit one of the pillars to activate the Bald Clefts. The battle with these baddies is a bit tricky, as they are fireproof.

After defeating both Bald Clefts, the gate to the next stretch of the yard will open. Hit the grass near the next dungeon entrance for another POW Block.

Shhwonk Fortress Dark Bristle Fight

We found that the second battle against the two Dark Bristles in the second dungeon wasn’t as difficult as the one against the Bald Clefts. Like with the first dungeon, enter the room and hit the pillar to knock the enemies down. Once they are defeated, the door will open, and the next stretch of yard will become accessible.

All Shhwonk Fortress Quiz Answers

While players might be expecting a difficult fight in the third dungeon space, Paper Mario puts things on its head, with players held hostage to answer a series of questions. If you spoke with everyone in Petalburg, the questions won’t be too difficult to navigate, but just so players can double-check answers, we have the correct choices in the key below.

• Questions #1 – “What is hidden in Shhwonk Fortress?”
  • Sun & Moon Stones
• Question #2 – “What do one Mushroom and one Fire Flower cost at the shop in Petalburg? Total.”
  • 12 Coins
• Question #3 – “What is the name of the Mayor of Petalburg?”
  • Mayor Kroop
• Question #4 – “Where is the Crystal Star?”
  • Hooktail Castle
• Question #5 – “How can one get from Rogueport to Petal Meadows?”
  • Go through a pipe
• Question #6 – “Which of the following characters can be found in Petalburg?”
  • Koopa Trooper

After successfully completing the quiz, go through the pipe. Hit the Question Box to pick up the Multibounce Badge.

How to Get the Moon Stone

Go to the left doorway of this room to collect the Moon Stone. When interacted with, a battle will activate, but it is a quick and easy fight.

Be sure to smack the Question box for a Mushroom before leaving.

How to Get the Sun Stone

Head back to the main room with the pipe and then go through the right doorway. Like with the Moon Stone, players need to defeat an enemy before picking up the Sun Stone.

Hit the Question Box in this room for a Fire Flower.

Take a moment before leaving this room to heal up. A boss fight will activate when you return to the main pipe room.

Shhwonk Fortress Boss Fight – Gold Fuzzy

The boss fight for Shhwonk Fortress is a Gold Fuzzy. This fight is particularly hard due to the backup Fuzzies that join the Golden Fuzzy. The best way to beat the Fuzzy enemies is by using Fire Flowers and the Multibounce Badge move. These have the ability to damage multiple enemies in one combat turn, increasing the chances of multiple knockouts.

After beating the Golden Fuzzy, complete the following:

• Return to town
• Sleep and restock items
• Head for the Sun and Moon pillars we mentioned when entering the Petal Meadows
• Add Koops to your party
• Place the stones to reveal the pip to the Hooktail’s Castle. You will need to use Koop’s ability to successfully do this.
• Head through the pipe and into the castle

The Hooktail’s Castle in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Now that we have accessed the Hooktail’s Castle, it is time to retrieve the Star Fragment. However, the castle is a maze filled with hazards.

When you enter the castle, make a note of the Saving Block that is in this space. You may want to come back to it each time you finish a room. After saving, use the bounce pad behind the pillar to reach the second floor.

On the second floor, there is a healing block that will fully restore the party for coins. This is going to be a true lifesaver, and we recommend you revisit it frequently, as there are many difficult fights in the castle.

After topping off Mario’s health, head through the door on the left. Use the Airplane Mode to cross the broken bridge to the other side of the castle.

Go through the door and fight the enemies to access the second door. This door will drop the player in the dungeons. Approach the skeleton with the blue clothing to enter a conversation with Koops. He will say he is sure the skeleton is that of his father, who allegedly died fighting the Hooktail. He will spot a letter. Encourage him to read it, and he will learn the skeleton isn’t his father.

After reading the letter, attempt to go through the door on the lefthand side of the room and a Red Bones will attack. Use the hammer to knock back the hordes of Dull Bones and then smack the Red Bones to start combat.

The trickiest part of the Red Bones fight is that the Dull Bones and Red Bones can summon more enemies if they aren’t killed quickly. Use heavy attacks to take them out, and end the fight as quickly as possible.