Dry Dry Ruins
Dry Dry Ruins rises out from the ground
Appears in	Paper Mario (2000)
Greater location	Dry Dry Desert
Inhabitants	Chomps,Pokey Mummies,Buzzy Beetles,Swoops

Dry Dry Ruins is a place of ancient ruins inDry Dry Desert. It is the catacombs ofTutankoopa's crypt, and the native home ofChomps, includingStone Chomps.Goombario refers to it as an illusion ruin due to how difficult it is to reveal. It is lined by many pillars adorned with Chomp statues, and holds the sarcophagi of manyPokey Mummies. According to aDryite inDry Dry Outpost, Dry Dry Ruins is apparently the remnants ofKing Mousta's destroyedkingdom. Dry Dry Ruins is where the secondStar Spirit,Mamar, is imprisoned inPaper Mario. In Chapter 2,Mario and his partners must seekMoustafa's help inDry Dry Outpost in order to find the ruins in the desert, where they will defeat Tutankoopa in order to rescue Mamar. The archaeologistKolorado also explores the ruins. Dry Dry Ruins contains many puzzles Mario and his partners must solve in order to proceed further. TheSuper Hammer is found in the ruins, as well as several other collectible items such as theArtifact which may be brought to Kolorado in order to obtain aStar Piece.

Dry Dry Ruins is first mentioned whenPrincess Peach andTwink readBowser's diary at the end of Chapter 1. The diary states that it is where aStar Spirit is being held, and it can be found inDry Dry Desert after solving a mystery. Upon reading this, Princess Peach asks Twink to findMario and tell him the information, which Mario receives when he comes back toToad Town after clearing Chapter 1.

ThePulse Stone indicating the way to Dry Dry Ruins inDry Dry Desert

Mario and his partners encounter Dry Dry Desert in Chapter 2. There, they find thatKolorado is also exploring the desert in order to find Dry Dry Ruins. His assistants explain that they have tried to gather information from theoutpost to the east, but without success. After Mario goes there and solves the riddle, he is allowed to see the local leader,Moustafa, who explains that his ancestors have watched the ruins over generations to keep the evil folks out of it. Since he trusts Mario, he gives Mario thePulse Stone, which will guide Mario to the ruins. After Mario places the Pulse Stone in a stone pedestal in Dry Dry Desert, Dry Dry Ruins rises out of the sand before him.

As Mario and his partners progress through Dry Dry Ruins, they will hearTutankoopa's voice warning them to run away. They have to collectRuins Keys on their way in order to unlock several doors. When they reach a room with rotatable stairways, Tutankoopa seems frightened, but continues frightening them. After they solve the puzzle with the stairways, they find theSuper Hammer, which allows them to smashStone Blocks to collect thePyramid,Diamond, andLunar Stone. There are pedestals in a corridor down in the ruins. After Mario places the stones in the pedestals in the right order, stairs descend, opening the way to Tutankoopa's room. By defeating Tutankoopa, Mario and his partners save the secondStar Spirit in the game,Mamar. This marks the end of Chapter 2 of the game.

Kolorado's letter, with a picture showing him near the ruins

If Mario visits Moustafa after Chapter 2, Moustafa will ask Mario about Dry Dry Ruins. He is first shocked at the revelation thatBowser's minions had once been in the ruins, and then grateful to Mario for having gotten rid of them. Later in the game, hewrites to Mario, saying that Bowser's creatures no longer loot in the ruins, though some relics are missing. He also mentions a suspiciousKoopa, which probably refers to Kolorado.Kolorado also sends Mario aletter, saying that he has just finished his exhausting research of the ruins, but has not found any treasure as valuable as he has hoped. However, there is anArtifact in the ruins that meets his satisfaction. If Mario brings it to him, he will give Mario aStar Piece as thanks.

At the beginning of Chapter 3,Toad Town News reports that the ancient ruins have been discovered by Kolorado, and Mario may have played a key role. Later in the game, there is also a piece of advertisement for the "Exploration Tour of Dry Dry Ruins" offered by Toad Town Tours. Dry Dry Ruins is also the destination of the secondTrading Event.

Geography[edit]

Dry Dry Ruins' entrance is located in Dry Dry Desert, found in the area which is 2 screens east and 3 screens north of Kolorado's camp. After thePulse Stone is placed on the stone pedestal at the center of the area, the ruins rise out of the sands along with arecovery block to the left of it. Dry Dry Ruins looks like a temple, with stairs in the front of it leading to the inside.

In the second room from the entrance, there are three sarcophagi ofPokey Mummies. The second contains aSpike Shield badge.

Going all the way right leads Mario to a hub room, with rooms containing aRuins Key as well as aStar Piece to the upper-right and thePyramid Stone to the lower-right, the latter of which requires the Super Hammer to get. To proceed farther, Mario needs to use the Ruins Key on the lowest door to the left side and head west.

The next room is a long one, containing theArtifact. Defeating all the enemies in the room opens the door to the left.

To the left is a new hub room, with the Super Hammer room to the upper-left. Mario needs to solve the stairway puzzle to get theSuper Hammer. He can also fall on the ledge above the Super Hammer area to find theSlow Go badge.

This two-floor hub room also has two doors on the first floor. They both lead to an even lower area, with theDiamond Stone room to the left and theLunar Stone room to the right. There is also aSuper Block and a trampoline which can be used to get back to the previous area. After getting all three of the stones (all of which involve breaking aStone Block and battling twoStone Chomps), Mario needs to place them in receptacles in a corridor with Chomp statues. This unlocks the stairs to Tutankoopa's room, with arecovery block and aSave Block on the way.

Enemies[edit]

Forenemy formations in Dry Dry Ruins, seeList of Paper Mario enemy formations § Dry Dry Ruins.

• 

  Pokey Mummy

• 

  Buzzy Beetle

• 

  Swoop

• 

  Stone Chomp (mini-bosses)

• 

  Tutankoopa (Chapter 2 boss)

• 

  Chomp (aids Tutankoopa)

Collectibles[edit]

In addition to the ones listed below, enemies found in this area can also drop items.

Field/Object[edit]

Item	Location	Location Image
Artifact	On a ledge by the corridor between the two hub rooms.
Diamond Stone	At the west end of the area beneath the second hub room. Required to progress.
Lunar Stone	At the east end of the area beneath the second hub room. Required to progress.
Pyramid Stone	To the lower-east of the first hub room. Required to progress.
Ruins Key (x4)	In the lower room right of the first coffin area. Required to progress. In the rooms to the upper-east of the first hub room. Required to progress. Falls down after Mario defeats thePokey Mummies in the corridor between the two hub rooms. Required to progress. In the east of the area beneath the second hub room. Required to progress.
Spike Shield	In the first area with three coffins, the badge can be found in the second coffin.

Star Piece[edit]

Location	Location Image
In the room by blasting the wall to the upper-east of the first hub room. Exposed after draining the sand.

Super Block[edit]

Location	Location Image
In the area with two floors of stairs, Mario must go left from the first floor to find the Super Block.

Treasure Chests[edit]

Item	Location	Location Image
Slow Go	In the area with theSuper Hammer, falling on the ledges above the chest and following them will lead to the badge.
Super Hammer	Inside a small room with rotating stairs and a Stone Block blocking the way out. Required to progress.

Profiles[edit]

One of the areas where sand drains into the floor

The area after being drained

• Tattles:
  • It's Dry Dry Ruins. Weren't you totally blown away when it rose out of the sand? That was awesome! I wish we could make it happen again!
  • That's the entrance to Dry Dry Ruins. It's called the illusion ruin. Nobody could find this place for ages. But we did!
  • Legend has it that there are many traps and puzzles in these ruins. When this was a great palace, the keepers set all the traps up to keep looters from stealing their treasures.
  • Compared to the desert, it's cool in here.
  • There's a great view of the desert from the upstairs floor. The farther down we go, the cooler it'll get. It'll get darker, too, though. Should we go down there?
  • It's a bit sandy, huh? Well, when you're buried in the desert, you pick up some sand.
  • Now that I've helped you find Dry Dry Ruins, will I become famous, too? You don't care. You're already a household name. Hmmph. Hey, a picture of some Chomps. Maybe there are Chomps guarding these ruins.
  • It's amazing that these ruins still have moving parts. Haven't they been buried here for ages and ages? And yet, when we push switches, stuff moves... Amazing craftsmanship. You've gotta applaud the designers.
  • My mouth is so dry... I feel like I ate dust. I feel like my skin is cracking off and my eyes are turning into sandpaper. D'you have any moisturizer?
  • Look at these stairways! How do they make 'em revolve? Whoever built this place must have been brilliant.
  • Look at the Chomp statues! Even though I know they're just statues, they still scare me. This seems to be the very center of the ruins. In case I haven't mentioned it before, the architects of this place were geniuses. Moustafa's ancestors must have been amazing people.
  • I'm pretty beat. Phew... Well, heroes don't take rests, I guess.
  • It's pretty dark around here. We'd better be careful not to get lost or ambushed.
  • I'm sure that ruins like these are full of hidden rooms. We should keep our eyes open for anything suspicious.
  • I knew this place would have lots of hidden areas. Ancient palaces always do! It's like a law of ancient architecture, I think. And by the way, there's always supposed to be treasure, too. I wouldn't mind finding something nice...
  • I feel hungry for some reason. Did you hear that? My belly is making sounds like a Chomp! Boy, a cold drink and a hot sandwich would taste good.
  • We'd better get ready for a fight!
  • It's Tutankoopa's old lair. That guy wasn't so tough. You're much tougher, Mario. I can't believe Tutankoopa was the master here. This kingdom was originally built byNomadimice, many generations ago. I'll tell you, Tutankoopa didn't look much like a Nomadimouse.
• In-game map descriptions
  • These ancient ruins appeared mysteriously in Dry Dry Desert. It seems that a Star Spirit is being held here by Bowser's men.
  • The ancient ruins appeared mysteriously in Dry Dry Desert. A Star Spirit was once held here by Tutankoopa.

Gallery[edit]

• 

  Mario andParakarry getting theSuper Hammer

• 

  TheStar Piece in the ruins

• 

  TheSuper Block in the ruins

• 

  Mario andGoombario battle two Pokey Mummies

• 

  Tutankoopa being chased by his ownChain Chomp

• 

  The Star Spirit's light is revealed

• 

  The outside of the temple in bright sunlight

• 

  Trading Event Toad

Click an area to open the relevant article.

Names in other languages[edit]

Notes[edit]

• Dry Dry Ruins is given a very brief reference inPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, whereLumpy writes in his journal that the area on which he digs for oil is somewhere between Dry Dry Ruins and Dry Dry Desert's oasis.
• The concept of Mario being constantly warned by a ghost wail while exploring Dry Dry Ruins is similar to that ofPirate's Grotto in the sequel,Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
• Because of its design and various puzzles and traps throughout, Dry Dry Ruins greatly resembles aLegend of Zelda temple.
  • Additionally, earlier in the chapter afterSheek reveals himself to be Moustafa, Goombario says "Da Da Da Duuum!", which is a common jingle played inThe Legend of Zelda games when treasure is discovered.

• Dungeons
• Temples
• Paper Mario locations

• Articles with unsourced foreign names