Sunbaked Sand Castle

Follow our step-by-step guide to collect the Sunbaked Sand Castle Power Star in Super Mario 3D All-Stars' Dusty Dune Galaxy. Includes tips for defeating enemies and navigating hazards.

This page offers a guide on the Sunbaked Sand Castle Power Star in the Dusty Dune Galaxy.

The Rising Sands

You’ll start the level on a platform with large Brick Blocks above you and a button. When you press the button, the platform will start to rise. As you ascend, you’ll encounter a Cluckboom, a ? Coin, Star Bits, and a 1-Up Mushroom. You’ll need to avoid getting crushed by the Brick Blocks as you go up; they stay in place. Once you reach the top, there’ll be a Launch Star to take you to the next planet.

Note: The Brick Blocks will act as hazards as they won't move as your platform rises.

Tower of Star Chips

On this planet, you will see a Star Chip in the center along with a button. There will also be a Koopa Troopa and Dry Bones that can damage you. You’re going to need to collect five Star Chips to make the Launch Star appear. By pressing the button, a tower will start to emerge and rise from the center of the planet, revealing that the Star Chips are placed in a variety of locations around the tower.

There will be a Star Chip in a chest, halfway up the tower, that you will need the Green Shell from the Koopa Troopa. A Green Shell and a Koopa Troopa will continue to spawn for this reason.

Once you have collected all the Star Chips, a Launch Star appears at the top of the tower. It takes you to a small planet with rising and falling levels of sand. Here you’ll find yourself faced with coconuts, Mini Goombas, Red and Blue Crabbers, and a Big Thorny Flower. You need to spin attack the Coconuts to launch them at the Big Thorny Flower to defeat it. When you defeat the flower, another Launch Star will appear to take you to the next planet.

A Wild Big Pokey Appears

You’ll land on one of two planets in an area. There’ll be a Sling Star on each so you can travel between them. The planet you land on will have a Big Pokey whom you need to defeat. Similar to the Big Thorny Flower, if you touch the Big Pokey in any way, you will take damage. You have to go to the other nearby planet, which is covered with coconuts.

Once you get to the other planet, spin attack the coconuts to launch them to the other planet. They will head towards the other planet and will fall on the surface due to gravity. You can do this by hitting the coconut at a distance where you can see the horizon and the other planet, rather than hitting the coconut directly under the planet.

When you have a coconut on the Big Pokey’s planet, use that coconut to reduce the Big Pokey to a head. Jump on the head to defeat the Big Pokey for good and cause a Launch Star to appear. If you don't jump on his head in time, he will reform, and you’ll have to get another coconut.

Tip: The best angle to hit a coconut is from a distance where you can see the horizon and the other planet, to guarantee your coconut makes it to the other side.

Descending the Upturned Castle

The Launch Star will take you to the underside of the final planet where the Power Star resides in a castle. You’ll be able to see a wooden box hiding a Warp Pipe outside, and it’ll take you inside the castle.

When you have taken a few steps inside the castle, it’ll start receding and slowly become filled with sand. As the sand levels rise, you need to make your way through the castle, sometimes having to wait for sand levels to reach a certain height so you can progress. In addition, you’ll be faced with wooden obstacles that you can break with your spin attack, but this will slow you down.

The Power Star will be waiting at the end of the tower and will be all yours, provided you don't get crushed along the way.