Which Paper Mario characters serve as hosts in Mario Party 5?

The Star Spirits serve as the hosts in Mario Party 5.

These characters originated in the 2000 Nintendo 64 role-playing game Paper Mario, where seven Star Spirits are imprisoned by Bowser and help Mario oppose the Star Rod’s power. Their appearance in Mario Party 5 connects the party game to that earlier role-playing adventure.

Mario Party 5 uses the group as its guiding hosts instead of relying on the larger host cast seen in Mario Party 4. In this game, they are also referred to as the Star Guards, which can cause confusion when identifying them. “Star Spirits” remains the recognizable Paper Mario name and is the intended answer to this question.

The game itself takes place in Dream Depot, a dream-themed setting with multiple boards. It was released for the GameCube in 2003, between Mario Party 4 and Mario Party 6. The Star Spirits should not be confused with Piantas, Sprixies, or Koopalings, who have different roles elsewhere in the Mario franchise.