EarthBound/Characters

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.



Ness

Don't get homesick!

A perfectly average boy living in Onett, Eagleland. Sets out to find the eight "My Sanctuary" locations and to locate the other three heroes. Little is said about his personality in-game, but his appearances in Super Smash Bros. describe him as being courageous and good-natured.

Voiced by Makiko Ohmoto in Super Smash Bros.

"Even if he had telepathic powers, I don't think he'd use them to mess with you like that. I hear he's a good kid.", from Solid Snake's Codec call on him.

  • Nice Hat: That lovely baseball cap.
    • Heck, it's the one sole piece of clothing he keeps on in the Japanese version of Magicant where he's running around nude. He must really be attached to it a lot if it's the one thing he didn't lose and kept on even at that point of the game after losing the rest of his articles of clothing.
  • Official Couple: With Paula.
  • Out-of-Clothes Experience: In the Japanese version, Ness is naked in Magicant, complete with Barbie Doll Anatomy (remember that, in Japan, nudity is used as a symbol of purity). This was changed in the US version, where he's in the pajamas he was wearing at the start of the game.
  • Psychic Powers
  • Pure Energy: This is what PSI Rockin' is.
  • Took a Level in Badass: After defeating the darkness in his heart in Magicant, gaining several levels and strong boosts to his statistics.
  • Trademark Favorite Food: Steak, or whatever you put as the favorite food at the start of the game.


Paula Polestar

I'm calling out to you who I've never met...

A young girl who lives in Twoson and who possesses powerful psychic abilities. Ness must come to her rescue after she is kidnapped by the Happy Happyist cult.

  • Alliterative Name: Not official (the guide says that her last name is 'Jones'), but most people think her last name is Polestar, the name of the preschool she and her parents work at.
  • Badass Adorable: Cute little girl dressed all in pink. Can set you on fire with her mind.
  • Black Mage: She's the primary offensive magic user, later sharing this spot with Poo.
  • Chekhov's Skill: Her unique ability, 'Pray', is generally useless in battle, as its effects are completely random—a full-party heal is nice, but do you really want to risk reviving all your defeated enemies or having everyone start feeling strange? You use it to call out to the whole world for help in the final battle against Giygas.
  • The Chick
  • Damsel in Distress: Happens three times. Getting her back the third time is one of the hardest parts of the game; you will not take her for granted afterward.
  • Every Girl Is Cuter With Hair Decs: Wears a large red ribbon in her hair, and has access to unique ribbon accessories.
  • Expy: Of Ana.
  • Fire, Ice, Lightning: She's got all three as her offensive PSI.
  • Fragile Speedster: She has the highest speed of the four heroes, and is about as durable as a wet piece of tissue paper.
  • Frying Pan of Doom: Uses a frying pan as her main weapon.
  • Glass Cannon: She can deal absolute carnage with her various PSI attacks, but there's literally no point in the game where she's more than two or three direct attacks away from being defeated.
  • Hair Decorations: Has a large red ribbon in her hair, and has ribbons as most of her 'other' equipment.
  • Hair of Gold: Dearly loved by the local children, and her hometown of Twoson as a whole.
  • Lady of Black Magic
  • The Lancer
  • Official Couple: With Ness. D'aww.
  • Pink Means Feminine: As with most of Nintendo's female protagonists.
  • Psychic Powers
  • Squishy Wizard: Easily two-shotted due to her low level at first, and then two-shotted at later levels due to her mediocre defense and terrible HP growths. She has around 250HP at LV60-LV70, and that's if the game was generous with RNG and if you're not (ab)using the game breaking rock candy + sugar packet trick. The other party members' HP will be double (or triple in Ness' case) that. She has the best offensive spells (and a couple good defensive spells too), and is fast enough to get them off before her foes can act, but she'll always trail behind the other party members in terms of HP and defense.
  • White Magician Girl: Subverted: has the personality of one, but almost all of her PSI are destructive in nature. Make of this what you will.

Jeff Andonuts

Uh, those glasses look good on you.

A child prodigy attending a boarding school in Winters. Comes to Ness and Paula's rescue after they are captured by zombies, after receiving a telekinetic message from Paula.


Poo

I am the one who will fight beside you.

The prince of Dalaam who comes to Ness's aid to fulfill a prophecy dictated by his mentor. He arrives after Ness and company accidentally trip out on some Magic Cake.

  • Badass Adorable
  • Bald of Awesome
  • Bare-Fisted Monk: At least if you don't pick up the notoriously rare Sword of Kings. Even then, the command isn't changed to slash. Either he equips it because he becomes stronger just having it, or only uses the hilt (or the "Sword" part was symbolic).
  • Battle Butler: Swears to serve Ness upon meeting him.
  • Big Damn Heroes: He swoops in (literally) and deals the finishing blow to Master Belch.
  • The Big Guy: Besides Ness, he's the muscle of the main party.
  • Can't Catch Up: He joins at an extremely low level for the point of the game you're at, and has trouble catching up.
  • Chick Magnet: Very popular with the ladies of Dalaam.
  • Colony Drop: PK STARSTORRRM!!!
  • Dynamic Entry: Seems fond of this—he drops out of the sky in his first appearance to Ness and company, and it is also a big part of his Big Damn Heroes moment against Master Belch.
  • Heroes Prefer Swords: The Sword of Kings, one of those infamous rare item drops.
  • Informed Attractiveness: When playing as him, you get a lot of attention from the ladies in Dalaam.
  • Jack of All Stats: He can use both healing and offensive PSI, and has decent overall stats as well.
  • Look What I Can Do Now!: PK Starstorm Alpha.
  • Mega Manning: Has the unique ability to transform himself into certain enemies during battle.
  • Mind Screw: So, was Ness controlling him, just watching/having a premonition, or happily tripping out while Poo set out for unrelated reasons?
  • Picky Eater: Dislikes (or just isn't used to) most Western foods, and gets minimal HP restoration from eating them.
  • Psychic Powers
  • The Red Mage: Has access to a variety of both healing and offensive PSI, unlike specialists Ness and Paula.
  • Royals Who Actually Do Something: He's the crown prince of Dalaam, and one of the Chosen Four who saves the world from a Bad Future.
  • Spoony Bard: Oh, boy... his PP is low, but he can restore it by drinking cheap bottles of water. He isn't used to Western food and gains minimal HP restoration from it. He can only use certain pieces of equipment, and any others will lower his stats—he has exactly ONE weapon, and it's an incredibly rare drop from an enemy in a one-time-only area. It's also extremely difficult for him to catch up level-wise because he requires the most EXP for each individual level up.
  • Training from Hell: His Mu training, at the end of which he is ritually, symbolically killed by the spirits of his ancestors.
  • Unfortunate Name: It isn't as unfortunate in Japan, as his name is read as "Puu" there. It's intended to be Asian-sounding, but the North American release Romanized it differently... and unfortunately. Prerelease images indicate it was almost Romanized as "Pu"; you have to wonder whether the change had anything to do with the game's unfortunate advertising campaign.
  • Warrior Prince


King

Awoooof! (I'm outta here!)

Ness's lovely little pet dog. He's a Guest Star Party Member early on in the game, and does substantial damage. He chickens out and runs away when Buzz Buzz appears, because the party limit is four.

BUT! It was meant to be five! That's right, King was meant to be a permanent party member. This model does however return in Boney.

King: I'm not going out again. I don't care if everyone thinks I'm a stubborn mutt.


Porky/Pokey Minch

Come and get me, loser!

Ness's next-door neighbor. A selfish, spoiled brat who loves to cause trouble and is Giygas's right-hand man, pulling strings behind the scenes.


Giygas

Ness... Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness.

The Universal Cosmic Destroyer who once again menaces Earth, and according to Buzz Buzz, successfully obliterates it in the future. Things are... different this time.


Mr. Saturn

Dakota!

A race of cute, innocent creatures that live in the secluded Saturn Valley. Actually highly intelligent in spite of their goofy personalities, they help Dr. Andonuts create the time machine necessary to reach Giygas.

  • Big Ol' Eyebrows: They all have thick black eyebrows that are much larger than their eyes.
  • Black Bead Eyes: Like everyone else in the series, but exaggerated: they're much smaller than their eyebrows.
  • Cephalothorax: A variation without arms.
  • Cloudcuckoolander: Their very eccentric text font and speech mannerisms are hilarious to read and defuse anything that might make you take them seriously.
  • Every Saturn Is Cuter With Hair Decs: Every Mr. Saturn sports a cute red ribbon in their (single) hair.
  • Gag Nose: They possess a round, large nose that's almost as large as their body.
  • Genius Ditz: The entire species.
  • Painting the Fourth Wall: Mr. Saturns weird very font have, boing!
  • Planet of Hats: Every Mr. Saturn is named Mr. Saturn.
  • Punny Name/Lost in Translation: Mr. Saturn in Japanese is Dousei-san - which means both "Mr. Saturn" and "Mr. Samename".
  • Ridiculously Cute Critter: All Mr. Saturns are absolutely adorable and eccentric creatures; they're usually what people think of when the EarthBound/MOTHER series is brought up.
  • Verbal Tic: Their speech is littered with "zoom"s, "boing"s and "ding"s.
  • Waddling Head: Their main "body" consists of their head, their face and a pair of feet.
  • Wingdinglish: Mr. Saturn's speech is displayed in loopy, childish font to emphasize their odd speech patterns, zoom.

Buzz-Buzz

A small, bee-like (or not) visitor from the future, who has traveled back in time to warn Ness of Giygas' pending invasion.

The Runaway Five (The Tonzura Brothers)

A famous jazz band that the party befriends in Twoson after helping them out of their debts.

  • Big Damn Heroes: Bursting into the room to save Ness and Jeff in the Monotoli Building.
  • Cut the Juice: How they defeat the Clumsy Robot.
  • Expy: Themed after the Blues Brothers. The English version reduced this by recolouring their black suits into brighter colours.
  • Work Off the Debt: They're not too great with contract negotiations. The party has to bail them out twice. Though they do repay the favor by giving them rides in their tour bus, and by bailing Ness and Jeff out of a boss fight.


Dr. Andonuts

Would you like a donut?

A brilliant scientist from Winters. He is Jeff's father, and helps the party on numerous occasions with his inventions; from the flying Sky Runner to the time machine necessary to reach Giygas.

He reappears in MOTHER 3, having been kidnapped by Porky to work on his machines, most notably, The Absolutely Safe Machine.

Tony

Jeff's best friend and roommate at his boarding school. He frets over Jeff during his friend's long and dangerous adventure and worries about his health and safety; even going so far as to try to get to know the mysterious person guiding them.


Apple Kid

Orange kid is much better.

An aspiring inventor that Ness & Co. inadvertently start funding. His odd (and oddly-specific) inventions come in handy throughout the game. He proves himself capable by helping Dr. Andonuts and the Mr. Saturns create the time machine necessary to reach Giygas.

  • And Your Little Dog, Too: Is targeted for kidnapping by Giygas' forces and stuffed into a People Jars in Stonehenge Base.
  • Fat Bastard: Played with and averted nicely. He's perceived as one by the people of Twoson owing to his bulk, lack of self-hygiene and poor social skills... but he proves himself to be anything but and is critical in Ness's success.
  • Gadgeteer Genius: Apple Kid's inventions are odd, but they get the job done. His special "erasers" can erase iron statues, making him a necessity for Ness and party to progress, and his zombie paper is very effective in dealing with zombies.
  • Mad Scientist
  • Never Accepted in His Hometown: Widely disliked in his hometown of Twoson in favor of his more charming and less talented rival, Orange Kid.
  • Phlebotinum Bomb: Specializes in making extremely specific machines that only erase, for example, pencils. Or erasers.
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