This game is confusing the living crap out of me! You get a new 'helper' every level, what?! It was World 1-5 before everything that happened didn't pop up with a freaking info page that took away control, yet at the end of all this handholding, I don't understand the basic principles involved in so much of it.

Match blocks.

That part makes sense to me. It's all the helper color, team construction, wood block rewarding, superflous crap I don't get. I thought I was getting a block matching RPG game. Instead, I'm getting a math puzzle with blocks.

Like rol said play Z for a bit it has a better tutorial explaining most all the problems you listed (except the helper system thats exclusive to the mario bros version and I have no clue how it works).

That's great advice. Thanks! I was blinded by the mushroom kingdom folk.