Caps, items and movement abilities
Understand the original N64 power-ups and the movement tools behind difficult stars.
Original Nintendo 64 game with 120 Power Stars; not Super Mario 64 DS.
5 items · one picture per entry · open a picture for full size.
Item directory
Wing Cap
Activate the red switch to make red cap blocks solid. Take off with a triple jump or cannon launch, then manage dives and climbs rather than expecting unlimited upward flight.
Metal Cap
The green cap lets Mario sink and resist many hazards. Its time limit makes the route to underwater switches important; decide where to go before collecting it.
Vanish Cap
The blue cap allows passage through compatible obstacles. It does not make every wall traversable, so look for the intended grate or barrier.
Cannons
Speak to the pink Bob-omb Buddy associated with a cannon to open it. Aim slightly above a distant landing point and avoid treating a dangerous first shot as a precision shortcut.
Coins
Yellow, red and blue coins have different values. Build a route for the 100-coin star and collect that star when it appears before leaving the course.
Quick notes
- Long jump and backflip. Crouch while running and jump for a long jump; crouch while standing and jump for a backflip.
- Wall kick and ground pound. Jump into a wall and press A again to wall kick; press Z in mid-air to ground pound.
In the game
Mario’s three caps and the ! Blocks that hold them, drawn from their models in the game. A cap’s blocks stay see-through until its switch is pressed in its secret course.
Wing MarioRed ! Blocks; switch in the Tower of the Wing Cap.
Vanish MarioBlue ! Blocks; switch in Vanish Cap under the Moat.
Mario without his capKlepto, Ukiki and the wind in Snowman’s Land can take it; Mario then takes more damage.! Blocks
Pictures made from the Super Mario 64 (USA) game data: characters, enemies and items are drawn from their own 3D models, posed with a frame of one of their own animations; courses are drawn from their level geometry with their objects in front of their own sky. They are rendered without the game’s fog, shadows or moving water textures, so they look a little cleaner than on the console.