Tippi

Tippi
Artwork of Tippi’s Pixl form from Super Paper Mario
Full name	Lady Timpani
Species	Human (pre- and post-Super Paper Mario) Pixl (during Super Paper Mario)
First appearance	Super Paper Mario (2007)
Latest appearance	Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (trophy cameo) (2014)

“I'm going to believe in them... And I'm going to believe in HIM... most of all.”

—Tippi, Super Paper Mario

Tippi (real name Lady Timpani) is a rainbow-colored, butterfly-shaped Pixl, and a major character in Super Paper Mario. She takes Mario to Flipside to meet Merlon and fulfill a prophecy to save the worlds from Count Bleck, who she once loved.

As per her name, Tippi provides tips for progress and battle. When the Wii Remote is pointed at the screen, she becomes a cursor; by pressing over a highlighted object or character, she advises on what to do next (pointing at the player character), informs about enemies, or reveals secrets such as hidden doors and blocks.

After Tippi disappears to an unknown location in human form with Count Bleck, she can no longer be used, but can be replaced by Francis' Tiptron for 999 coins (the maximum amount carriable). Her real name's origin, timpani, is a set of orchestral kettledrums.

Tippi succeeds Goombario and Goombella as a first partner who uses Tattle, but unlike them, it is her only move. Uniquely among Paper Mario series partners, she is always present (except when unavailable at certain plot points) without needing to be selected or summoned. Later games include allies (Kersti, Huey, and Olivia) with similar story and gameplay roles to Tippi.

Tippi's Catch Card is found on the tenth room of the Flipside Pit of 100 Trials.

History

Background

Prior to becoming a Pixl, Tippi lived in an unspecified village as an ordinary human girl named Timpani. At one point, she happened across an injured man known as Blumiere, lying at the base of a cliff. She took him to her home and did what she could to nurse him back to health, not caring that he was a member of the Tribe of Darkness.

The two continued to see each other after Blumiere recovered. Blumiere's father disapproved of their relationship, fearing that a union with a human would dirty the blood of the tribe and dilute its magic. After her safety was threatened, Timpani tried to avoid and part with her lover. Later, Blumiere proposed to her, suggesting eloping from their home dimension to find a place where their love could flourish, even if they spent their lives searching. Timpani agreed, finding happiness for some time and at one point going stargazing with Blumiere.

Ultimately, Blumiere's father followed through on his threats; although the exact fate he subjected Timpani to is unclear, Blumiere was unable to find her even after searching through every world he could think to look. Merlon found an injured, amnesic Timpani in the interdimensional town of Flipside, and used the power of his ancestors to transfer her soul into the Pixl known as Tippi. However, Blumiere believed Timpani to be gone forever, leading him to attempt to end all worlds as Count Bleck.

There are conflicting details about the nature of Timpani's banishment. When recounting how he originally found Tippi, Merlon claims that she had been cursed to wander through worlds to the point of death, despite not knowing her origins or past due to her amnesia. Additionally, after Chapters 6 and 7, Tippi remembers conversations between Blumiere and his father that took place after the supposed curse. It is unclear whether Timpani was still present to overhear without being noticed, or she recalls the events by some indirect means.

Super Paper Mario

Mario and Tippi

After the abductions that Count Bleck carries out at Bowser's Castle, Tippi rouses an unconscious Mario, introduces herself, and teleports him to Flipside. Along with Merlon, she explains the events foretold in the prophecy of destruction, as well as how Mario matches the description of the hero in the Light Prognosticus. Tippi agrees to accompany Mario in his quest to find the Pure Hearts.

As Mario reunites with his friends and progress is made through the game, Tippi begins to recall memories of her past with Blumiere.

At the start of Chapter 3, Francis, a nerdy chameleon, kidnaps Tippi and imprisons her in his fort as a "rare collectible" that he names "Francine". After Mario and company defeat Francis and rescue her, Tippi expresses her gratitude and comes to trust the heroes more. The Green Pure Heart then appears from her, to her surprise; Merlon later explains that it was sealed in the fort and could only be gained by strong feelings of trust and friendship.

Following Chapter 4, Tippi mysteriously falls unconscious. Merlon reveals to the heroes how he had found and saved her from death, and that she cannot survive much longer even in her Pixl form. Despite this, he is able to revive her. She chooses to continue traveling with the heroes, stating her desire to be near Mario.

During their trek through the near-destruction Sammer's Kingdom, Tippi and the heroes encounter Count Bleck, who first hints of his true motives by mentioning the name 'Timpani'. Tippi is surprised by this, having heard the same name in her memories, but the count disappears before she can say anything more to him. She concludes soon after that she knew Bleck in the past but cannot remember when or how.

After the heroes defeat Bonechill and obtain the eighth and final Pure Heart, Tippi recalls the last of her lost memories, and finally learns to her horror that Blumiere is indeed Count Bleck. Despite this knowledge, however, she keeps her past a secret from the heroes as they travel through Castle Bleck to defeat the count, knowing that only his death can end the prophecy of destruction.

When Count Bleck is defeated, Tippi is caught between killing the man she loves and letting every world be destroyed; Bleck himself begs for the heroes to end his game, wanting the universe to be saved so that Tippi herself can live on. Dimentio then appears and banishes Tippi, Bleck, and a dying Nastasia to Dimension D. While there, Tippi encourages Bleck not to give up, exclaiming that staying alive was how they were able to find each other again. Her hope for all worlds, as well as the loyalty of Bleck's remaining minions, restores power to the previously drained Pure Hearts. Tippi returns with them to Mario and aids the heroes in the fight against Super Dimentio. When the Chaos Heart remains intact despite Dimentio's defeat, Tippi follows Bleck to his castle's chapel; they exchange vows and wed each other at long last, using their true love as a last effort to shatter the Chaos Heart and save the universe.

Timpani (right) at Blumiere's side

Upon their marriage, Tippi and Bleck disappear to an unknown location. Nastasia is confident that they are living happily together. At the end of the credits, Timpani and Blumiere are shown in silhouette, walking off into the distance over a grassy hill. Timpani appears to be a thin, dress-clad woman, slightly resembling Princess Peach's sprite in Super Mario Bros..

Situations of unavailability

There are several situations in the game when the player cannot use Tippi's abilities:

• In the prologue to Chapter 1.
• During Chapter 3, Tippi is kidnapped by Francis and held in a cage in his fort. (In an early screenshot of Super Paper Mario, Tippi is present during the battle with Big Blooper, a scenario that cannot occur in the final game.)
• During the interlude after Chapter 4, Tippi suddenly faints and Merlon looks after her.
• In the interlude after Chapter 6, Dimentio sends Mario to the Underwhere, leaving the rest of the party unavailable.
• In Chapter 8-3, Luigi insists on fighting Dimentio by himself while the others go ahead, leaving the rest of the party unavailable.
• In Chapter 8-4, in the first few moments of the Super Dimentio battle, Tippi is trapped in Dimension D. (Luigi is also unavailable during all phases.)
• After beating the game, Tippi vanishes with Count Bleck and the player cannot reunite with her. To use her abilities again, the player must buy the replica Tiptron from Francis for 999 coins.

Super Smash Bros. series

In the Super Smash Bros. series, a few items depict Tippi, including a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and a trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Super Mario-kun

Tippi as she appears in Super Mario-kun.

Lady Timpani and Lord Blumiere's silhouettes in Super Mario-kun

In the Super Mario-kun manga series, Tippi has a much more cartoony appearance. Her wings are rounded, and she has an apricot-colored body with a face and limbs. While in-game Tippi ends most sentences with an ellipsis, in the manga, she is much more cheerful and upbeat (sometimes to the point of annoying Mario). As Lady Timpani, she has a much clearer silhouette, and appears to have a shorter haircut compared to the one seen at the end of the game.

General information

Personality

Tippi has a somewhat reserved personality, which is shown by the fact that almost all of her sentences end with an ellipsis. She often talks to herself about her past life, although she never really discusses it with other characters until the end. She is shown to be very caring and kind. She is not easily embarrassed: this is shown when she openly tells Mario of her love for Blumiere and makes it known that she "wants to be near Mario". However, she does get rather embarrassed when Luvbi makes fun of her for, what Luvbi interprets as, a crush on Mario and Luigi.

Tippi also appears to take an especially strong liking to Mario and tends to speak for him during cutscenes. She often does not get along well with characters who travel with the heroes, such as Squirps and Luvbi, though by the ends of their respective chapters, she generally comes to appreciate them more.

Prior to the battle with Fracktail, Tippi appears to recognize Dimentio immediately after he appears. The reason for this is never explained or even hinted at throughout the rest of the game. However, in the Japanese version of the game, this line more closely resembles recognizing him as a minion of Count Bleck, as opposed to knowing him personally.

Powers and abilities

Although Lady Timpani has no known powers, as Tippi she can see invisible objects and make them visible to the player. She also holds an abundance of information on the many different characters and enemies found throughout the game.

Tippi also has the ability to transport the heroes to Flipside independently of the Return Pipe, although the extent of which she can do this is unknown; as she claims later in the game that it 'just happens'. There are three times she demonstrates this power in-game:

• When she first meets Mario in Bowser's Castle.
• When the heroes first visit Outer Space and find they cannot breathe there.
• Following the destruction of Sammer's Kingdom.

Profiles and statistics

Super Paper Mario

Catch Card
	Card Type: Rare Card Description: It's Tippi, your friendly...friend. And guide. Her name was Timpani before Merlon turned her into a Pixl.

Super Smash Bros. series

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Sticker Tippi
	Artwork from: Super Paper Mario
	Effects in The Subspace Emissary: [Flame] - Resistance +5
	Usable by: Anyone

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Trophy Tippi

Category: Series Related

() Appears in: Wii Super Paper Mario (04/2007)

() Trophy Box: 13: Paper Mario

How to unlock: Random

In Super Paper Mario, Mario and his buddies use a special kind of tool—no, wait. That's rude. Pixls have feelings, you know! This one here is named Tippi, and she looks a bit like a math teacher's drawing of a butterfly. She's very helpful, but she also has her own motives, it seems... (American English)

In Super Paper Mario, Mario and friends use a special kind of tool that- No, calling them tools isn't very nice – Pixls have feelings too! This one in particular is called Tippi, and she looks a bit like a maths teacher's drawing of a butterfly. She helps Mario on his adventures, but seems to have her own motives too... (British English)

Gallery

• 

  Tippi's appearance in Super Mario-kun

Names in other languages

Tippi

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	アンナ[?] Anna	Pun on「案内」(annai, "guidance") and the given name "Anna"
French	Tippi[?]	-
German	Tippi[?]	-
Italian	Consilia[?]	Clipping of consigliare ("to suggest")
Korean	안나[?] Anna	From "안내" (annae, "guidance") and the given name "Anna"; also from her Japanese name
Russian	Типпи[?] Tippi	Tippi
Spanish	Pisti[?]	From pista (hint/clue)

Lady Timpani

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	エマ[?] Ema	Emma
French	Dame Timpani[?]	Lady Timpani
German	Frau Timpani[?]	Lady Timpani
Italian	Lady Farfalà[?]	From farfalla ("butterfly")
Korean	에마[?] Ema	Transliteration of the Japanese name
Russian	Леди Тимпани[?] Lady Timpani	Transliteration of the international name
Spanish	Lady Pistina[?]	Portmanteau of Pisti (Tippi's Spanish name) and the female termination ending -na

Francine

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	ジャスミン[?] Jasumin	Jasmine. Compare with「ジャスミン２世」(Jasumin Ni-sei, Tiptron). Often called「ジャスミンちゃん」(Jasumin-chan, Jasmine-chan) by Francis
French	Francine[?]	-
German	Konradieschen[?]	A diminutive and feminine nickname based from Francis' German name, Konrad
Italian	Ginetta[?]	A diminutive and feminine nickname based from Francis' Italian name, Ginoleonte
Korean	재스민[?] Jaeseumin	Transliteration of the Japanese name
Spanish	Paquita[?]	Given name, diminutive of Paca, nickname of Francisca, referencing Francis