"Appears in Deepwood Shrine. These mushroom beasties scatter spores all over dungeons. When their caps are red, they are invincible." — Figurine

Puffstools are enemies from The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. They are microscopic, mushroom-like enemies that are found in the Deepwood Shrine and certain Minish locations. They are usually impervious to Link's sword attacks as it bounces off the mushroom cap heads, but can be stunned with the Gust Jar. They attack Link by wandering around aimlessly in random patterns, damaging him should he be careless and bump into one.

Puffstools have rounded beige bodies, stumpy feet, and red bell-shaped heads that resemble mushroom caps. They have no arms and no facial features apart from two large, blank eyes. When Link blasts them with the Gust Jar, their heads briefly turn gray; when Link uses the jar to suck out their spores, their whole bodies turn gray, indicating they are vulnerable to attack. They may also be killed by throwing a pot at them.

They often vent spores all over the floor at regular intervals. When they vent, the spores usually cover four "squares" of the ground. If Link steps in these small patches of spores, his movement speed is noticeably impeded. These spore patches can also serve as a hiding place for Puffstools; they may randomly pop out to attack the unaware Link. Certain objects such as switches and torches can be found lying underneath patches of spores. These can be cleared away with the Gust Jar.

Other appearances

Puffstools are enemies from Pikmin, the first instalment in another Nintendo series. Though similar in appearance, the Puffstool's spores are not used to hide, and instead brainwash any Pikmin nearby. The Puffstool enemies from Pikmin are also much larger.

However, the name similarity only applies to their English names, as the Puffstool's Japanese name in The Minish Cap is "Powāru" and "Bonenameko" in Pikmin.