One cheeky way you can spend your points in Paper Mario: TTYD is a build that players have termed “Danger Mario.” The idea is that if you maintain Mario’s HP at 5, you can exploit badges to deal massive damage.
If you decrease Mario’s HP to 5 to push him into danger status and equip multiple Power Rush badges and some Last Stands, then Mario can take on almost any challenge. However, this isn’t fully available until much later in the game. This is because you invariably start the game at 5 HP.
In order to adjust this and achieve Danger Mario status, you’ll need to visit Chet Rippo. You can access him by going down the pipe in front of Professor Frankly’s door and using Bobbery to blow open the crack in the wall. This means that you won’t be able to reach them until after Chapter 5.
Chet Rippo can then reallocate your stats, so you can shift your HP to BP. Each adjustment costs 39 coins. If you move it down to 5HP, Mario will be permanently in the danger zone.
However, keep in mind that you still need FP. Even while focusing on BP, you still need to be able to use your abilities. I’d recommend stockpiling at least 20 FP, but you may want more.
It’s also a good idea to have Life Mushrooms on hand at all times. These will revive you if things don’t break your way. You can get them from the store in Twilight Town or from the shop in the Westside Rogueport.
What badges to equip
The purpose of the Danger Mario build is to capitalize on status boosts offered by certain badges that buff you up when you drop below 5HP. Power Rush and Last Stand are the main badges to look at.
Power Rush badges can be bought at Pianta Parlor (the casino in Rogueport) for 34 Pianta Tokens with the gold card (obtained through the Trouble Center) and are sometimes carried by enemies (Paratroopas, specifically). There is also one available at the Lovely Howz of Badges above Rogueport’s inn.
Last Stand Badges, which will halve the damage Mario takes when you’re at or below 5 health, are less easy to access. One is found in the hallway of the Glitz Pit, while the other is found in the Lovely Howz of Badges. It can also be stolen from enemies (specifically Hyper Goombas and Green Fuzzies) using Ms. Mowz ability. The badge provides diminishing returns, but they only require one BP to equip, so keep piling them on.
You may also want the Lucky Day badge. This is found on the 90th floor of the Pit of 100 Trials and also for matching all four numbers on the lottery. This badge causes enemies to miss, and equipping multiple raises your chances.
Since being able to attack is a very important part of this build, you’ll want to open up your options. You can keep jumping your primary method of attack if you get the Spike Shield badge from the room beneath Rogueport with the trail of stabbing spikes. You use Vivian to protect Mario whenever the spikes are about to emerge upward. You’ll also want the Ice Power badge, which is found beneath the bridge on Keelhaul Key. These will let you jump on spiked or fiery enemies without taking damage.
With that in mind, you’ll want to concentrate on jumping attacks. Multibounce will allow you to attack all enemies facing you, allowing you to wipe out most groups without allowing them to get an attack in. You should also use either Power Jump or Power Bounce or both. Power Bounce requires you to continually hit the action command for maximum effect, so if you have a habit of missing these, it may be better to use Power Jump instead. Again, you can use both, but you should definitely pile on as many as you can hold to increase their attack power.
The idea is to have so much attack power that nothing can stand up to Mario’s mighty feet.
