Master Crown
The Master Crown is the object Kirby unknowingly helped Magolor obtain by repairing the Lor Starcutter in Kirby's Return to Dream Land. Magolor used this to transform into Magolor Soul and attempted to use its power to take over the entire universe, starting with Pop Star. This Crown was being guarded by Landia before it was stolen.
Appearance and Function
The crown takes on many shapes, depending primarily on how much power it is exerting. With more power being utilized, it grows larger and more spiky, culminating in its maximum size when worn by Magolor Soul.
On Landia / On the ground
The crown is fairly small and could comfortably fit on the heads of any of the small characters in the game. (Kirby included) It resembles a golden tiara with some small gems inset, though with small spikes protruding over the front that cover the forehead. It outputs almost no power in this form.
On Magolor (after transforming)
The crown becomes a very large regal spire fit for a high king. Its gems grow larger and it is topped with many spherical towers, with the spikes on the bottom embedding into the head of the wearer. Power output is high in this form. Additionally, the crown will wobble on its own accord, implying it has a mind of its own.
On Magolor EX, the crown looks largely the same, though it bears a slightly altered color scheme.
On Magolor Soul
The top of the crown largely shrinks to a mere bauble, but the spikes grow to nightmarish proportions and serve as the supporting structure for Magolor Soul's body. In this phase, the crown is in more or less full control, and the wearer has almost no input, if not entirely unconscious. The magical capabilities of the crown in this phase is utterly dumbfounding, as illustrated by the attacks Magolor Soul can do.
In Magolor Soul's true form, the crown is even more ludicrously spiked, and bears a silver color scheme.
Power Limit
Although the Master Crown is cited by Magolor as a "source of limitless power", it apparently has an upper limit to how much power it can output at a time before it overloads. This is illustrated when Kirby and his friends finally beat Magolor Soul, and it shatters, presumably destroyed for good.
Backstory
The origin of the Master Crown is unknown. However, Landia was tasked with its protection, having guarded it and the Lor Starcutter on Halcandra since ancient times. Landia wore the crown on its top head at all times, but it never seemed to use it when fighting. This is likely because the crown itself has an evil will, and could easily corrupt anyone who taps into its power. As such, Landia's task seemed to be to specifically guard the crown, to prevent its use by anyone.
Magolor's entire drive during the story of Kirby's Return to Dream Land was to retrieve the crown from Landia, and he stole the Lor from Halcandra to try and achieve this goal. Once the crown was destroyed by Kirby, however, Magolor seemed to lose his evil nature and later became friends with the pink spud. This could allude to the notion that perhaps Magolor once in the past wore the crown, and it dominated his mind, even after removal. Its destruction then finally freed Magolor from its grasp.
Trivia
- It has been speculated that the Master Crown has ties to Dark Matter from previous games, as its incarnation as Magolor Soul possesses a huge red eye similar to that of Zero and 0².
- An item of similar function exists in the Fire Emblem universe, also known as the Master Crown. It similarly powers up its wearer, causing them to go up a rank, though this item is not evil or even self-aware.
