We have a branching path at the beginning of Vanilla Dome. For the heck of it, let's go through the main path first.
Overworld map by Rick Bruns. All other maps by Stefan Mahrla.
Vanilla Secret 1
This is a strictly vertical level, complete with springboards and plenty of Para-Troopas. The springboards will prove useful if you are proactively looking for the Dragon Coins, as will the vines you'll be uncovering through this stage.
When you reach the gap blocked by the six Para-Troopas, take the nearby springboard to the left, and use it to jump to the pipe to the left. This takes you to a secret exit that will take you to Star World 2. That works if you have the Blue ! Blocks activated; otherwise, you'll have to get up there with Caped Mario.
The traditional exit will take you to the pipe at the top of the left-hand path, which will take you to more levels at the roof of Vanilla Dome.
Vanilla Ghost House
There are four hidden one-ups on the small platform section shortly after the beginning of the stage that I did not know about. Interesting.
Unlike past Ghost Houses, this one is far more straightforward. There is a block that contains a vine where the first Big Boo is, and it takes you to a path above another Big Boo and a Boo Buddy carousel - and some Eeries! - as well as a Dragon Coin.
The second section has these large, floating green orbs. You cannot defeat them, but if you spin jump on them, you can hold A to make a high bounce off of them. There is a gold door at the end, but it takes you back to just before the first Big Boo. Instead, hit the blocks before it to find a P Switch, then hit it and go beyond the gold door. There is the exit. Just make sure to grab the coins surrounding where it will be first.
Vanilla Dome 3
For this one, you will be riding a skull raft through several rivers of lava. You will meet the Blarrgs here - invincible fire dragons who will peek their heads out, look both ways, then dive at you.
You can fly up after the second skull raft to enter a special bonus room where you can play the three-block game for a few one-ups before showing up just before a Yoshi (if you can hit the block) as well as the checkpoint.
If you didn't go into the bonus area, you will have met the upside-down Pirahna Plants, which look more like the traditional Piranha Plants of old. You can kill them with a fireball, a cape spin or Yoshi. If you did, you'll meet them near the end.
Vanilla Dome 4
This stage may seem short, but you will be hounded by Bullet Bills. Yep, the bullets with angry eyes and clenched fists are back, and while they do show up later on as they always have, in this course, they come out from out of nowhere and come at you from all sides of the screen. The ones that come from the left are the worst, as you'll want them to get off the screen as you can easily outrun them, causing unwanted slowdown and making getting around Bullet Bills even worse.
At the beginning, they come from only the left and the right, but after the checkpoint, they come from all sides.
The blue pipe you will see shortly after the all-sides barrage will take you to a lava raft section that will take you close to the end when you reach the other side.
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