Ztar

The Ztar is a black star owned by Bowser, and various other villain characters. They are commonly seen throughout the Mario Party series.
== In Mario Party series ==
=== Mario Party ===
Bowser owns it in Mario's Rainbow Castle as one of his Bogus Items. He may sell it to the player for 40 coins. It is relatively useless in this appearance.
=== Mario Party 2 ===
If the wheel on most Bowser Spaces hits an event called "Bowser's Multiplying Toads", a Toad clone would appear, if the player lands on the fake Toad, it would reveal that he is actually a Koopa Kid as it gives the player a Ztar, though it doesn't take away the player's star, so it has no effect on the Star count.
=== Mario Party 4 ===
Ztar appears in the background on the boards Thwomp's Mega Board Mayhem and Thwomp's Mini Board Madness as extras. It flies in a circle and is not important. Later in the game, Ztar challenges the player to a game of beach volleyball.
=== Mario Party 5 ===
The black star's effect was first introduced in this appearance, where it mainly appears in the Card Party. Sometimes when a Star Card is reached this star will appear, referred to as a Ztar Star. It makes the player lose a star, If the Ztar stays for a while in the card, It may get brighter, and suddenly it reveals a Star. Or sometimes it shows a small "Yellow Glow" but it turns black again. Ztar may also appear from a Star, the star when it stays in the card, it starts growing bigger, if it grows too much, it starts shaking, and it explodes, Revealing a Ztar Star. Bowser may also award it to a player as a "Star Present", It first resembles a glowing, Yellow Star, But it starts shaking, and it explodes, Revealing a Ztar (As said before, this may also happen with normal Star cards). He can also give it away on a Bowser Space.
=== Mario Party 6 ===
Ztar appears as the Shadow Star (or Z Star in PAL version). Here, it once again counts as a negative star. It is given to the player by Bowser on Bowser's Battle Yacht in Castaway Bay. He also gives it to the player on Clockwork Castle where it even has a space known as the Shadow Star Space. Here, the 20-coin Shadow Star is also introduced, given to the player by Bowser if they have no Stars. It makes the player lose 20 coins.
=== Mario Party 7 ===
A Blooper in Grand Canal may also give the player a Dark Star (as it is called in this appearance). At a ? Space at the top of the board, it is put in a chest and recycled with other chests with various prizes. If the chest with the Dark Star is chosen, the player will lose one star.
=== Mario Party DS ===
Ztar makes a small appearance in Mario Party DS. In the game, a Hidden Block may summon one of these, causing the player to lose a star. It also appears as the penultimate figure.
===Mario Party 9===
Although Ztars don't appear in Mario Party 9, Mini Ztars do make an appearance, where they deduct from the current amount of Mini Stars a player has.
===Mario Party: Island Tour===
As with Mario Party 9, Ztars do not appear in Mario Party: Island Tour. However, Mini Ztars return. They are found exclusively on the Star-Crossed Skyway board and have the same function as before, deducting Mini Stars when collected.
===Mario Party 10===
Ztars themselves do not appear, though Mini Ztars do, and function as they do in Mario Party 9 and Mario Party: Island Tour.
==Cameo Appearances==
===Mario Party 3===
In the mini-game Cosmic Coaster, if one of the teams get the Star in the goal first and the other team doesn't get it but they get close to it, the losing team can see the Star in the goal as a Ztar falling to the ground. Also, before reaching the goal, the star looks like a Ztar.
===Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars===
This game marks the debut of Ztars. The Ztar only appears in the attack Dark Star which is used by certain bosses (most notably Culex). The Ztar bounces on the screen and damages the target.
== Trivia ==
* Since its name is the opposite of "Star", the "S" is vertically reflected to a "Z".
*There is an unused music clip from Mario Party 8 which is a variation on the You Got a Star! jingle, suggesting that Ztars were originally going to appear in the game.
**As such, Mario Party 8 is the only game to not feature or mention any Ztars in the final game.
*A similar entity based on the Ztar makes an appearance in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, known as the Dark Star, in terms of appearance, especially at the front.
de:Z-Star
fr:Étoile Z
es:Eztrella
no:Ztar
it:Fosca
ja:ズター
Category:Items in Mario Party
Category:Items in Mario Party 2
Category:Items in Mario Party 4
Category:Items in Mario Party 5
Category:Items in Mario Party 6
Category:Items in Mario Party 7
Category:Items in Mario Party DS
Category:Items
Category:Stars
Category:Items in Mario Party 9
Category:Items in Mario Party: Island Tour
Category:Items in Mario Party 10