Lava Boost

For a tutorial on the RTA trick "Lava Boost", see the Lava Boost RTA guide.

For a tutorial on the fast red coin cycle in Bowser in the Fire Sea, see the Fire Sea Reds RTA guide.

If you are looking for the trick in the volcano, see Volcano Lava Boost.

Lava Boost is when Mario jumps after he comes into contact with lava, unless he is slide kicking. This action does not require A to be pressed. This is useful for various things, especially in the ABC.

Applications

Speedrunning

Some speedrunners use Lava Boost as a means to get around levels such as Lethal Lava Land faster. This is primarily useful for skipping long sections of the map, as instead of avoiding damage you can take a couple of hits to clear stars much faster.

Vertical Speed Conservation

If Mario lands on a floor after a lava boost, his vertical speed will not be set to 0. At max, Mario can have VSC80. This is used in an alternate method for LLL in the A Button Challenge to get to the platform with a spinning heart inside the volcano.