Festoad

Festoad is a Toad-based character created by @FUSIONISA on January 12, 2023. It is the main antagonist of its setting, being an AU of the original Super Mario Bros.

Appearance
Festoad is based on Toad's debut in Super Mario Bros., which explains its color scheme. It has many red and bloodshot eyes across its cap, a large and toothy grin almost at all times, and a slightly more detailed vest. There is an eye on its chest. Its Liar form, Mushroom, has a skin tone more accurate to the original. Its skin tone, eye, and outfit colors become darker as it becomes stronger.

Overview
Festoad is the result of a parasite quickly latching onto Toad and grabbing complete control of him, both physically and mentally. Toad is powerless to its grasp and abilities, having no choice but to have it carry out its long-term objective: contaminating the world with its fungus and leaving nothing free from its plague. Festoad is a being that is determined in its goal, infecting any living thing it sees and doing anything it can to grow and gain more power. It won't stop until it is fully finished, and it will continue to grow and evolve until it finishes. More clearance is provided in the biography.

Biography
With waiting for Mario to arrive at Bowser's first castle, Toad finds himself catching an unknown virus, coming from an unidentified fungus within the cracks of the stony floor. The virus takes no time when it comes to intruding his body and infecting him, its effects instant and latching onto his mind and body. Once Bowser is flung into the lava, the axe being collected by Mario, he arrives to see Toad...with something off about him. The room he was staying it smelled of rot, making Mario wince. Toad lacked his typical red spots, and his arms remained at his sides, almost as if he was an alive statue. His typical black eyes were replaced with new fleshy orifices, bare and lacking anything of a soul or morality.

This form, Mushroom, just stares at Mario blankly, with soon beginning to speak. "THANK YOU MARIO," it spoke in a crackly and wheezy voice. "BUT THINGS HAVE JUST BEGUN." After saying this, Mario tightens his grip on the axe, unsure of what to do, just making sure to keep guard. Mushroom's face changes, his blank expression changing into an unusually large grin. It begins to cackle madly, its freakish teeth exposed, and its true form beginning to show, the grotesque spots of it becoming red bloodshot eyes, the holes on his face are filled up by flesh, its skin tone becomes lighter, leaving just a smiling mouth, and his robe stretches out and gains a line of detail. Its body is seen twitching and pulsating grossly, the many veins within it seen pumping as it reveals itself to Mario. No longer was this Toad...it was...Festoad. An infestation within Toad that didn't display a kind citizen of the Mushroom Kingdom...instead being what would lead it, and every other living organism to its demise. It will not stop until it has completely contaminated the world, plaguing it with its fungus once and for all. With Mario seeing it begin to flee, he tries to throw the axe at him, missing and it clinking against the ground in failure. Its psychotic laugh echoed against the walls of Bowser's castle, its escape successful.

Once Mario regains the axe, he realizes that this was his new goal now: to stop whatever this monster was, and prevent it from corrupting the world with its wicked plague.

Throughout Mario's quest, Festoad goes through multiple phases during its goal of world infestation. The more living victims it infects, via shroom reproduction, and fungi it consumes, it becomes stronger and more difficult to deal with. Once it has grown enough, it will become Corruptoad, a form that has its eyes fully fill its cap, make its teeth more plentiful, exposes its fleshy tendrils, and ultimately allows it to move and infect more efficiently. Reproduction becomes more common with this phase, though it becomes much more frequent with its next and final form, Shroomrot. The virus fully takes over Toad's body, completely destroying his original form and making him outright unrecognizable. It becomes something of a huge, scattered heart, vulnerable, yet still difficult to take out. It will reproduce at a much more frequent pace. It chooses to rest underground and within Bowser's castles, places that are more rich with the virus.

Abilities

 * It is able to detach any of its limbs, mostly for movement advantages.
 * It has the ability to infect any living being it comes into contact with, using spores and its tendrils to send them into a state of paralysis and causing fungus to grow out of their orifices. It leaves behind a trail of disease, and only gets stronger as it both infects more organisms and consumes fungi.
 * It is asexual, and can reproduce on its own. It reproduces through methods of spore dispersal, consuming its own seeds, bloating up, and allowing its offspring to burst out of its stomach, allowing them to carry on its objective.
 * It is able to create bodyguards for itself, being broader, taller, and nude versions of Festoad. They are known as (insert name here). Despite their bulky appearances, they can be easily taken out when going for the eyes on their chests. They're also quite slow, but not enough to make killing them effortless.
 * It is able to bury into and burst out of the ground, being how it plants itself when it is Shroomrot. It mainly just does this for fun, though.
 * It can remove its cap at will, being something of a panic mode. This is Festoad in its quickest, yet most vulnerable state.
 * All of its eyes are functional, and allow him to see many angles around himself. They lack eyelids, and do not need to blink.

Weaknesses

 * Its cap is its weakest spot, as only a few deep cuts will be a surefire way of killing it.
 * Its chest eye is also a good weak spot, especially since it does not have much coverage of this area, only being its hands.
 * Its lack of fingers make it hard to get a strong grip on things.
 * It has a very cocky attitude, and has a tendency to make unnecessary risks just for the fun of it.
 * Its Corruptoad form has more exposed tentacles, and has many more eyes, more targets being available.

Trivia

 * It constantly speaks in ALL CAPS.
 * Its voice is similar to Toad's, though being more crackly and wheezy.
 * It cares about nothing but itself and its offspring. Its offspring carries the same mindset.
 * Its body is filled with nothing but fleshy and slimy tentacles, excluding the eyes.
 * It does not like eating meat, it dislikes the taste. At times, it will use its teeth to stun its victims, but it will immediately spit out any blood and torn off flesh.
 * All of its tendrils come from its cap.
 * It is uncertain whether Luigi is alive or not in this universe.
 * Festoad goes by the pronouns he/it. Though usually, "he" may be written by mistake.
 * It is the type of character to backstab you, so do not trust it.

W.I.P
This page is a work in progress, and parts of it may be changed. First time creating a page on here, BTW, and becoming more involved with EXE stuff!