Bob-omb

Bob-omb
Artwork of a Bob-omb from Mario Party: Star Rush.
Universe	Mario
Appears in	SSB Melee Brawl SSB4 Ultimate
Item class	Throwing/Explosive/Living
Article on Super Mario Wiki	Bob-omb

“	When grabbed and thrown at an enemy, this item explodes, but if left alone, it will start walking around until its timer reaches zero...	”
—Super Smash Bros.'s instruction manual

Bob-ombs (ボム兵, Bomb Trooper) are enemies from the Mario series.

Origin

Official artwork of Bob-ombs from Super Mario Bros. 3.

Bob-ombs made their debut in the Japan-only game Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (repurposed as Super Mario Bros. 2 for international markets) as a common enemy, and have become a common enemy in later Mario games. They are bomb-like enemies with simple eyes that feature two little legs and a wind-up key on the back. Recurring members of the Bob-omb species are King Bob-omb, monarch and leader of the Bob-ombs, and Bob-omb Buddies, magenta-colored passive Bob-ombs friendly to Mario.

Bob-ombs simply walk around aimlessly and explode after a short time. Jumping on one (except in Super Mario Bros. 2) causes it to become immobile, but it will also cause it to explode after a short time. In later Mario games, jumping on one can cause it to remain stationary without exploding. If they are left alone for too long, however, they will become mobile again. In either case, an immobile Bob-ombs can be picked up and thrown, defeating enemies and destroying blocks with its explosion, which can also damage the player. If it is not thrown quickly enough, the Bob-omb explodes on its own, also damaging its holder.

In Super Mario 64, Bob-ombs react to Mario if he comes close enough to them by igniting themselves and chasing after him. They can also be grabbed, and when thrown they explode immediately upon coming into contact with anything.

Overview

As an item

Artwork of a Bob-omb from SSB.

Bob-ombs debuted as an exploding/throwing/living item in Super Smash Bros.

Bob-ombs can be picked up by any player and subsequently thrown at opponents. Being an explosive, the item can easily inflict large damage and knockback to other players, but it can also potentially harm the attacker. Bob-ombs also explode if they are simply hit by an attack.

When a Bob-omb is held by a player for a while, it will begin flashing red, and shortly after will automatically explode in the holder's hands. While it is flashing red to signify its imminent detonation, it will be more powerful than usual, but it is also close to exploding, making for a risk-reward scenario. A held Bob-omb can also be detonated in the holder's hands if they are attacked and the attack hits the Bob-omb.

If a Bob-omb is not picked up, after a while, it will stand up and begin to walk back and forth on the platform it spawned on, turning around at edges. In this state, it will explode if it walks into a player. In Super Smash Bros. 4, it is possible to pick up the item after it starts walking. If it has not exploded after a brief period of walking, it will stand still while flashing red, and then explode, causing damage and knockback to anyone nearby. In SSB4, if a Bob-omb is close to any fighters, it will walk towards them when it starts moving, making it more dangerous than in previous games.

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Bob-ombs will meteor smash opponents when thrown downward. Otherwise, the knockback is diagonally upward as with previous installments. In addition, Bob-omb explosions will no longer harm the user. Much like Gooey Bomb before it explodes, characters will have a surprised look if Bob-omb is about to explode near them.

The Bob-omb is also one of the various unusual items Peach can pluck via her Vegetable special move. The chance of her plucking a Bob-omb is approximately 1/232 (0.43%), but in all games she has appeared in, it can potentially act as her most powerful attack.

In Sudden Death

From Melee onwards, if a Sudden Death match lasts for too long and a winner hasn't been announced, Bob-ombs will begin to fall from above the stage, instantly exploding upon striking players or the stage. They are intended to end a match more quickly, but can still be grabbed in midair. These Bob-ombs can be avoided by camping in certain places on some stages, but on most stages there is no completely safe position that can be occupied indefinitely. They can also be avoided by stalling on edges, but this also cannot be done indefinitely except through planking. They cannot be absorbed or reflected.

The falling Bob-ombs do not appear in Super Sudden Death.

Damage output

	SSB	Melee	Brawl	SSB4	Ultimate
Explosion	31%	25%	25%	25%	25%
Throw	36%	25%	32%	32%	31.6%
Up tilt throw	37%	33%	30%	33%	30.6%
Down tilt throw	31%	34%	25%	25%	30.6%
Dash throw	40%	34%	34%	33%	33.5%
Forward smash throw	40%	35%	35%	35%	33.5%
Up smash throw	40%	37%	31%	36%	30.6%
Down smash throw	31%	38%	25%	25%	30.6%
Air throw	38%	32%	33%	32%	30.6%
Air side tilt throw	38%	32%	33%	32%	31.6%
Air up tilt throw	39%	33%	31%	33%	30.6%
Air down tilt throw	40%	34%	30%	30%	30.6%
Air side smash throw	40%	32%	33%	32%	33.5%
Air up smash throw	41%	33%	31%	33%	30.6%
Air down smash throw	40%	34%	30%	30%	30.6%

In Smash Tour

The Bob-omb item in Smash Tour.

The Bob-omb appears as a red trophy item. When used, the player will start the battle holding a Bob-omb.

In World of Light

In the vertically scrolling first phase of the final stage of World of Light, 18 Bob-omb items, which activate and begin walking almost immediately upon appearing, are placed as obstacles during the ascent.

Trophies

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

Bob-omb's trophy in Melee

Bob-omb

These little guys are just what they appear to be: walking bombs. Pick one up and hurl it for an incredibly potent attack. If no one picks them up, Bob-ombs light their own fuses and start wandering around armed and dangerous. In Super Mario 64, Bob-ombs chased Mario down once they noticed him. Pink Bob-ombs are nice and capable of speech.

Super Mario Bros. 2 (10/88)

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Bob-omb's trophy in Brawl

Bob-omb

A mobile bomb with a fuse on its head. It can be picked up and thrown as a powerful explosive, but if no one grabs it, it will tire of waiting and start wandering, then detonate whenever it likes. Its power and unpredictability make it an accident waiting to happen. In sudden-death matches that go on too long, Bob-ombs rain from the sky to move things along.

: Super Mario World

: Super Mario 64

In Super Smash Bros. 4

The Bob-omb trophy appears in both versions. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U it is part of the Super Mario Bros. 2 & 3 Trophy Box.

Bob-omb's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Bob-omb's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Bob-omb

This enemy lacks any kind of subtlety—a fuse on its head, a slowly turning key in the back, and two short legs to carry its little bomb body. You can figure out what happens next. When a Bob-omb starts flashing, you better start running!

: Super Mario Bros. 3 (02/1990)

: New Super Mario Bros. U (11/2012)

A bomb for a body, burning fuse on top, two little legs and a wind-up key spinning away on the back... We probably don't need to tell you what's going on here. Now, that doesn't happen too often! Then again, who knows? Maybe some people will look at a Bob-omb and think it's an eight ball having an identity crisis.

: Super Mario Bros. 3 (08/1991)

: New Super Mario Bros. U (11/2012)

Spirits

The Bob-omb appears in Ultimate as an Advanced-class support spirit.

The Bob-omb Spirit Battle uses a Kirby puppet fighter and is fought on the Mushroom Kingdom stage. During the battle, the Bob-omb appears as the item while Kirby's throwing-type items have increased power. Also, Kirby has increased move speed, referencing how the Bob-ombs will run at the player in later Super Mario games.

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Cost	Ability	Series
50		Bob-omb		★★	1	Bob-omb Equipped	Super Mario Series

In addition to the above, equipping the Linde, Paz Ortega Andrade, Bomb Man, or Risky Boots support spirits will give the player a Bob-omb at a start of their stock.

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Cost	Ability	Series
628		Linde		★★	1	Bob-omb Equipped	Fire Emblem Series
767		Paz Ortega Andrade		★★	1	Bob-omb Equipped	Metal Gear Solid Series
879		Bomb Man		★★	1	Bob-omb Equipped	Mega Man Series
1,297		Risky Boots		★★	1	Bob-omb Equipped	Shantae Series

Gallery

• 

  A Bob-omb in Smash 64

• 

  A Bob-omb in Melee

• 

  Render of a Bob-omb from Brawl.

• 

  A still Bob-omb beside a walking Bob-omb in Smash 4.

• 

  Render of a Bob-omb in Ultimate.

• 

  King Dedede inhaling a Bob-omb in Ultimate.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	ボムへい	Bomb Trooper
English	Bob-omb	—
French	Bob-omb	—
German	Bob-omb	—
Spanish (PAL)	Bob-omb	—
Spanish (NTSC)	Bob-omba	—
Italian	Bob-omba	—
Chinese (Simplified)	炸弹兵	Bomb Soldier
Chinese (Traditional)	炸彈兵	Bomb Soldier
Korean	폭탄병	Bomber
Dutch	Bob-omb	—
Russian	Боб-омб	Bob-omb

Trivia

• Bob-ombs also appear as enemies in several games of The Legend of Zelda series, where Toon Link could use them to destroy obstacles and other enemies prior to his appearance in Brawl.
• The noise Bob-ombs make when they wander in Melee onward resembles the noise Green and Red Shells made in Super Smash Bros..
• In Super Smash Bros., using Fox's Reflector on a walking Bob-omb will make it one-hit KO him. Alongside the Home-Run Bat, it is the only item in the game which can perform a one-hit KO.
• In Super Smash Bros. 4 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, a walking Bob-omb can be reflected. This Bob-omb will not explode upon contact with the owner of the reflector until it turns around, but will still explode for teammates. [1]
• In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, CPUs will have odd behavior when they happen to hold a Bob-omb; they may either throw it as soon as they pick it up (which is dangerous) or go to a random location and never throw the Bob-omb, most likely leading to their death. This erratic behavior also happens in Training Mode with CPUs that are not in "Attack" mode.