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Tank Star
| Tank Star | |
|---|---|
 Artwork of the Tank Star from Kirby Air Riders. | |
| Details | |
| First game | Kirby Air Riders (2025) |
| Type | Tank |
| Strength(s) | Weight Turning HP |
| Weakness(es) | Glide Boost |
| Similar to | Bull Tank Slick Star |
The Tank Star is a tank-type Air Ride Machine that appears in Kirby Air Riders. Its most signature trait is that it maintains its direction and momentum while holding a boost, and sharply changes direction to match the direction the rider is facing when one is released.
Contents
Appearance[edit]
The Tank Star is a rather mechanical machine in appearance. Most of its body is orange, with accents of off-white throughout. The central body is boxy, with orange on the top and the off-white on the bottom. The front of the vehicle has a cube-shaped blue headlight sticking out, and the back has two vertically extended hexagonal thrusters. The rim of these thrusters glows blue-white while the machine is in motion and emit similarly colored fiery emissions. Additionally, blue and whispy trails can be seen emerging from each engine in normal motion. When charging a boost, they glow red and produce red trails. After a perfect landing or boost charge, the emissions temporarily turn blue. At the very top of the main body is a grey seat, with blue glowing accents resembling a crosshair and a glowing yellow circle around where the rider sits. This panel rotates to match where the rider is facing when the machine is boost charging.
On either side of the machine are large treads contained in a similar orange and off-white covering, with the off-white potion having blue lights on it. In regular motion, the treads attach sideways to the vehicle, with the lights on their inside glowing blue. They are also slightly split in the middle, revealing another line of blue lights, and slowly rotate idly. The top side of these treads have a small fan-like structure lined with blue in the middle. While boost charging, the treads flip downwards and make contact with the ground, no longer being split down their middle. Additionally, the blue lights on the inside of the treads change to an orange color. Upon release of a boost charge, the treads remain momentarily on the ground before resuming their original position, and beige trails are produced behind the treads until they leave the ground. The inside of the treads also contains two wheel-like gears with blue glowing lines on them that enable the treads to rotate. When the Tank Star is in the air, streams can be seen from the outermost edges of each tread with respect to the main body.
Mechanics[edit]
The Tank Star is the main representative of the tank-type vehicles, only being accompanied by the Bull Tank. The central gimmick of this style of machine is how it handles boosting. When the button is held down, the Tank Star will keep moving in the exact same direction, decelerating fairly slowly in the process. The panel that the rider is on allows them to change directions without altering the vehicle's current trajectory. Upon release of a boost charge, the Tank will rapidly change direction and start moving in the direction the rider was facing when the button was released, even if that direction is directly opposite of the one it was traveling in previously. Tanks, like Chariot or Bike machines, cannot glide whatsoever. As for the Tank Star in specific, it has a top speed when ridden by Kirby of 27 mph (44 km/h), will gain speed off of ramps, and falls at speeds up to 64 mph (104 km/h). It turns sluggishly on its own, but has solid charging, decent offense, and a high amount of HP and weight. It also has relatively poor acceleration.
In Air Ride, the Tank Star's unique mechanism of turning can make it tricky to handle, but when utilized correctly can allow the player to take turns without losing as much speed as many other machines. This is a benefit not dissimilar to that of the Slick Star, though its handling is far less unorthodox than that vehicle. Brake pumping (repeatedly tapping the boost button to follow curves better) is not very effective with this vehicle, so it is recommended to simply hold the boost button down to some degree in order to improve the machine's turning. Its HP and weight make it a relatively tanky machine, with good survivability in City Trial. Its low acceleration can make it difficult to collect Patches with early on, but it does well for itself later in the game when this weakness has been addressed. It can be used successfully in Stadiums like Button Rush and Kirby Melee due to it being able to make turns well while boosting, and is a reasonable choice for combat stadiums like Dustup Derby. It is worth noting, however, that other players can inhibit its ability to turn, as getting hit while charging a boost will interrupt it. Its inability to glide also makes it completely unviable in Stadiums such as Air Glider, so it is advised to avoid them.
How to unlock[edit]
The Tank Star is an unlockable machine for all main modes and can be obtained by completing objectives on the Checklist. It can also be bought at the Miles Shop for 6,250 Miles each. Additional Tank Stars are customizable in My Machine.
- Top Ride: Steam - Go through the hidden passage and finish within 0:55.00
- Road Trip: Air Ride - Perform perfect landings 2 times in an Air Ride challenge
For usage in Road Trip, the player has to obtain the Tank Star seperately. This can be done by jumping onto one encountered on the road, or by purchasing it from a shop if it was missed. It can be located in Freezing Freeway or Mushgloom Route.
Update history[edit]
| Version | Adjustment details |
|---|---|
| Version 1.2.0 |
|
| Version 1.3.0 |
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| Version 1.3.1 |
|
Gallery[edit]
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Artwork of King Dedede riding the Tank Star from Kirby Air Riders -
The Tank Star's icon from Kirby Air Riders -
License icon from Kirby Air Riders, featuring the Tank Star's icon -
License icon from Kirby Air Riders, featuring artwork of the Tank Star -
License icon from Kirby Air Riders, earned by scanning a King Dedede & Tank Star amiibo -
License sticker from Kirby Air Riders, featuring the Tank Star's icon -
License sticker from Kirby Air Riders, featuring artwork of the Tank Star -
License sticker from Kirby Air Riders, featuring artwork of the Tank Star while boosting -
Gummy of the Tank Star -
The Tank Star in the Retirement screen in Kirby Air Riders -
My Machine decal of the Tank Star's icon, from Kirby Air Riders -
License theme from Kirby Air Riders, earned by scanning a King Dedede & Tank Star amiibo -
The Tank Star's idle animation from Kirby Air Riders (click to animate) -
The Tank Star's boost animation from Kirby Air Riders (click to animate) -
King Dedede on the Tank Star amiibo -
Tank Star amiibo -
King Dedede & Tank Star amiibo packaging
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | タンクスター Tanku Sutā |
Tank Star |
| English | Tank Star | - |
| Chinese | 坦克之星 tǎnkè zhī xīng |
Tank Star |
| Dutch | Tankster | Tank star |
| French | Étoile tank | Tank star |
| German | Panzer-Stern | Tank Star |
| Italian | Stellarmata | From "stella" (star) and a feminine form of "carro armato" (tank) |
| Korean | 탱크스타 taengkeu seuta |
Tank Star |
| Portuguese | Estrela Tanque | Tank Star |
| Spanish | Estrella tanque | Tank star |
