Earthshaker tips

 From: joelll@gnu.ai.mit.edu (Joel Herda)

Newsgroups: rec.games.pinball

Subject: Earthshaker, notes on playing   ***LONG***

Keywords: Earthshaker wizard long fnord rules-posting

Date: 23 Apr 91 00:11:15 GMT

Organization: The Internet

General ways to win:

The freeway ramp is Your Friend.  Since "miles" accumulated on the

ramp are your only bonus at the end of the ball, it's a good idea to

rack up a bunch of miles here.  If you earn a certain low number of

miles, the Cellar will light for extra ball (i've seen six or ten

miles needed).  At 60 or so miles, extra ball will light again.  The

Freeway ramp, in addition to adding miles (one mile, or the ramp can

be lit for two miles by the left inlane) scores points: initially

25,000 and adding 25k per hit, until it's worth 100k.  If you manage

to get it up to 75 miles, one outlane will light for special.  If you

manage to accumulate 99 miles, then the ramp is worth 200k per hit,

this is called "END OF THE ROAD".  It is useful to train yourself to

"orbit" the ball, from left hand flipper, up this center ramp, back to

left flipper, back up the ramp etc etc... During 3-ball multiball, the

center ramp must be hit to light the right-hand ramp for Jackpot (see

below).

Another friendly place to send the silver ball is up the Fault ramp,

on the right-hand side (from the left-hand upper flipper is the only

shot).  It isn't set up to be easy.  Putting the ball in the kicker

hole at the end of this ramp does many useful things: it will add

three miles to your bonus total; every Fault shot scores 20k bonus at

the end of a ball; if you are in the process of getting all the

numbers ("Earthquake Zones"),then it will spot a number; if it's the

last number (or you got them all already), then the ball will be

locked.  This shot is also how you score the Jackpot during multiball

after hitting the Freeway ramp, and where you pick up the million

points during Quick Multiball.  Depending on the situation, the

kicked-out ball will exit either to the Freeway return ramp or down

into the cellar.  To consistently hit the ramp, fire the ball into the

kicker pointed to by the number 5 arrow, and the kicker hole will feed

a nice slow ball to the upper-left flipper.

The 'Quake cellar is located in the upper left of the playfield, a

square drop-out hole just above and to the left of the entrance to the

Fault ramp.  Depending on which "mode" you're in (ordinary play,

multiball, "Gimme Shelter" last-chance-to-continue-multiall), this

drop-out can help you along immensely.  The return from the Cellar is

through a wire "habitrail" tube that feeds to the left inlane.  During

"ordinary" mode (when you're trying to get all the numbers), the

Cellar will award a random value, one of the following (this is called

Match-up):

  100,000 points        (common)

  2 miles               (common)

  5 miles               (less common)

  spot quake zone       (less common)  (spots random (or lowest) number)

  spot building         (rare)         (spots all remaining numbers)

  billboard 100k        (common)       (targets below billboard worth 100k)

  flash jet bumpers     (less common)  (sets all three pop bumpers flashing)

  light quick multiball (common)       (lights kicker near #5 for lock)

  extra ball            (rare)         (instantly award extra ball)

  light outlane special (rare indeed)

The match-up will not award a feature that is already completed (i.e.

it won't award "spot building" when the building has already been

completed).  It also isn't random, because, for instance, I hit it for

100,000 points five times in a row after it lit the outlane special

for me.  Anyway, the Cellar will light for Lock to lock the first ball

for 3-ball multiball (as well as when going for the shelter to

continue an ended multiball), and it is also where one goes to collect

extra balls (when lit for one of these two, and during multiball,

match-up isn't awarded).

The three jet bumpers are on the upper left of the playfield.  They

start out unlit, but the loop (entry above where the Fault ramp is)

will light them one-by-one, first steady-lit for 1000 points, then

flashing for 3000 points, and all three flashing at once scores 5000

per bumper hit.  The bumpers don't figure much in normal play, and

neither does the loop, unless all three bumpers are flashing, in which

case the loop is worth 100,000 points per go-around.

The three billboard targets below the jet bumpers to the right, are

worth 50,000 initially, add 10,000 each time you get them all, and

also change the value of the jackpot (which is shown on the bottom of

the backglass).  (the jackpot value also advances to the next-highest

value at the beginning of a ball).

The captured-ball rollup is located on the right-side, and is in

perfect position to cause you to lose the ball in play spectacularly

if you hit it.  Its value is 50k initially, and is advanced

(temporarily) by the center ramp, and (until end-of-ball) by locking a

ball.  If you can manage to crank it up to 250k and hit it, then the

#5 hole will be lit for Quick Multiball.  This is also the location of

the #9 earthquake zone.  This feature is generally not worth hitting,

even if it will spot a number during ordinary play (if you want to

spot a number, use the fault ramp -- safer, easier, gives you 20,000

more bonus at end of ball).

The bonus multiplier advances 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, 6x and-light-extra-ball,

and finally 6x-and-light-an-outlane-special.  The bonus multiplier is

advanced every time you complete a building (get all the flashing

numbers).

My various bit of random strategy:

Earthshaker gives away extra balls like candy.  Start out getting your

first extra ball with miles, and then continue working toward 60 miles

during the game.  Other opportunities will arise as the game goes on.

My very best first balls are actually 5 balls long, with three extra

balls off the playfield, and an extra one from Match-up if i'm VERY

lucky.

Obviously, it's a good idea to perfect the Freeway, Fault and

especially the Cellar shots.  (favorite nifty-shot, shoot ball into

fault for first ball, thus accumulating miles and bonus, then it exits

to the cellar, now lit for extra ball (which it collects) for locking

purposes.

Though some numbers are easy to hit, if you can really get handy at

the fault shot, you won't have to spend much time trying to hit stuff

like the 9-target (captive ball) or the 6-rollover (on the loop).

When starting multiball, if you can get the shot, the first ball you

usually have to cope with will come from the cellar return, to the

left flipper.  I've found that i can often shoot it up to the center

ramp to light the fault for jackpot (and there's a jackpot that awards

ANOTHER extra ball!).  (and another one of the jackpots awards a

replay... oh, bliss!!!!)...

At the end of multiball, if you're handy with the cellar shot, it

should be easy in the 10-20 second you have to hit it, to "gimme

shelter" and restart multiball.

The quick multiball is pretty easy, you're given two shots for the

Fault for a million points, if you shoot gently into the pop bumpers

from the plunger and they send it onto the upper-left flipper.

Multiball is made easier by not panicking and trapping balls on the

flippers, then sending a ball into the #5 kicker hole from the

right-hand flipper.  Before the hole releases, send a ball up the

Freeway ramp, then shoot for the Fault. (alternately, send the ball

from the left flipper into the Cellar).  Also, if you can shoot the

ball hard enough from the plunger, then you'll go past the 100,000

point skill shot and down the Freeway return ramp (oops, this awards 1

mile at any time)), and this can then be shot up the freeway from the

left flipper before the other two balls are released.

During 3-ball multiball, if a ball is sent into the Cellar before any

are lost, then it will remain there until a ball is lost.

After you have collected jackpot, and still have multiball going, the

fault is worth 250k per hit.

I personally have found Earthshaker to be a very playable and fun

machine, a challenge to rack up the really big scores, but easy enough

to get a real good value for a quarter, because the replay score tends

to hover around 6,000,000.  The replay score changes slightly with how

many games are won.

The normal-mode music is pretty annoying, but I LIKE the tune played

at the end of the game when a high-score is beaten, and one gets to

enter one's initials.  The replay-awarded "thwacker" is nice and loud,

and usually gets looks from across Tommy's Lunch (a nifty greasy spoon

open until at least 2am, where customer abuse is a way of life for the

management).

I apologize for the length of this posting...

Joelll "Special When Lit" Herda

"J H" on machines in the Boston area

"The only thing that separates man and the Great Pinball is Gravity"

                               - Motto of 1001 Plays Arcade, RIP

Article 535 of rec.games.video:

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From: wb1j+@andrew.cmu.edu (William M. Bumgarner)

Newsgroups: rec.games.video

Subject: Earthshaker Was: Re: Diner: some observations

Date: 5 Aug 90 17:24:56 GMT

Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA

Lines: 36

lopez@m.cs.uiuc.edu writes:

> The ramp shot in earthshaker is near impossible unless the game is in 

> real good condition.  There seems to be something wrong in the design

> which causes the top flipper coil to die much faster than it should.

> There is also the problem of aligning the cup (shot number 5).  If it

> is not aligned properly, you do not get a shot at the ramp when the

> ball kicks out. (The ball bounces off the wall and out from the top

> flipper far enough that you can not get enough power to put the ball up

> the ramp)

The ramp shot is a bitch unless the upper flipper's coil is in

excellent condition (and/or the flipper is adjusted for a reasonable

amount of kick).

The other killer on earthshaker is when the machine isn't aligned

properly front to back-- too much tilt on the playfield kills the

shot.  I'm considering taking a level with me and bitching at the

oerator if the machine isn't level...

Actually, it isn't the alignment of the cup that is the problem...

it's the flipper.  If the rubber is worn (which it does very quickly)

near the metal piece ( on some games, the metal piece is just a

fraction too long and will actually slowly cut the rubber) or if the

flipper is not aligned properly (is set in the wrong position, either

starting angle wise or front-to-back) then the ball will bobble as it

comes off the metal and onto the flipper... about your only hope is to

flip right as it comes to the flipper and try to bobble it back up the

lane slightly and hope for the best when it comes down again...

Diner:  annoying anti feature on Diner... at the cross point of the

ramps, the ball will frequently bobble and fall to the lower ramp...

destroying the oppurtunity to "stir the cup".

b.bumgarner            | Disclaimer:  All opinions expressed are my own.

wb1j+@andrew.cmu.edu   | I officially don't represent anyone unless I

NeXT Campus Consultant | explicity say I am doing so. So there. <Thpppt!>

"I ride tandem with the random/Things don't run the way I planned them.."