Enemy Strategies (Spoilers)

Serris

Edit history:

Serris: 2010-09-16 05:10:35 am

Serris: 2010-09-16 04:21:03 am

Serris: 2010-09-16 03:50:12 am

2010-09-16 03:35:43 am

Thought it would be nice to compile a list of optimal speed tactics for every battle. Will try to keep it updated. Haven't read any strategy guides, so if anyone has an official one, would be helpful to hear what they have to say - maybe there are some hidden Lethal Strike or Overblast opportunities or whatever. Wikitroid seems to have most (official?) enemy names, so if anyone feels like looking them up, go ahead. >_>

Here's what I'm doing - feel free to add more or point out improvements.

Purple bug boss:
Missile the eye between freezes
Finish core bug off with Missile

Armadillos:
Missile + Lethal Strike

Super Armadillos:
Super Missile + Lethal Strike (sometimes die from the SM, maybe only works if they're in ball form?)

Pre-Wave Beam Pirate fights:
1-2 Overblasts, can jump from Pirate to Pirate if they're close

Wave Beam Pirates:
Uncharged shots, some Sensemove instant charge shots thrown in depending on situation

Tentacle/Spark Pirates:
Charged shot + Lethal Strike, really small window, try to get them against a wall so the stun doesn't push them away from you. Stun seems to mostly occur if you hit them after dodging their kick+tentacle move. In the room with the icicle platforms, you can also push/lure them into the water for an instant kill.

Yellow robot:
Uncharged shots + missile on arms, uncharged shots on wheel, jump on top for Lethal Strike

Armored ray worm beetles:
Charge shot/Missile belly weak spot when possible, if head protrudes shoot to stun, run up to pull head out, finish worm head with a couple shots

Sidehoppers/Dessgeegas:
Missiles

Ridley:
Uncharged shots from afar, delay finishing the phase until he lands for Lethal Strike opportunity (haven't gotten more than two per fight), Super Missile when invincible

Nightmare 1:
Uncharged shots/instant charged shots from dodging projectiles, Super Missiles to the head (you can easily Sensemove through his slide-and-ram attack, no need to jump away). According to Theater Mode, you can Shinespark his head, but I haven't tested it yet so no idea how much damage that does

Nightmare 2:
Uncharged shots, Super Missiles to the head (can easily finish him before the black hole move)

Queen Metroid:
Sensemove + charge shot + Super Missile the Metroids, Seekers on the crystals

End sequence:
Missile the Power Bomb bug in your way and zoom on MB right away

Tree spider mini bosses:
Orb down: Missiles, Orb up: Missiles/Overblast?

Power Bomb bugs:
3 Super Missiles

Kihunter hive:
Sensemove + charged shot spam, Missile the flowers (exit & reenter FPV each time, two rounds seems to be as low as it gets though), Charge shot the initial Kihunter wave, lock onto hive target and spam missiles while FPV-dodging the Kihunter projectiles, if you dodge all the way to the right you can usually get clear shots on the hive without Kihunters getting in the way

Lava Crocofishmire:
Not sure really. Grapple when possible, get instant charge from dodging its falling body then spam uncharged shots. Can you kill phase 2 in one pass?

Diffusion Beam drones:
Charged shot + Missile when vulnerable

Twin Wall Snakes:
Missile, charged shot, Lethal Strike

Rio hives:
Missile hives + shoot remaining Rios in theory, rarely works though

Phantoon:
Shoot stuff, Lethal Strike when eye drops

Seeker Missile boss:
Uncharged shots, get close, dodge twice away from him + charged shot (if you stay close the whole time he will cancel the red charge move that allows you to Missile stun + Lethal Strike him). Haven't tried Super Missiles yet.

Gigafraugs:
Missile head open, Overblasts

Did I forget anything?

Thread title:

Thought it would be nice to compile a list of optimal speed tactics for every battle. Will try to keep it updated. Haven't read any strategy guides, so if anyone has an official one, would be helpful to hear what they have to say - maybe there are some hidden Lethal Strike or Overblast opportunities or whatever. Wikitroid seems to have most (official?) enemy names, so if anyone feels like looking them up, go ahead. >_>

Here's what I'm doing - feel free to add more or point out improvements.

Purple bug boss:
Missile the eye between freezes
Finish core bug off with Missile

Armadillos:
Missile + Lethal Strike

Super Armadillos:
Super Missile + Lethal Strike (sometimes die from the SM, maybe only works if they're in ball form?)

Pre-Wave Beam Pirate fights:
1-2 Overblasts, can jump from Pirate to Pirate if they're close

Wave Beam Pirates:
Uncharged shots, some Sensemove instant charge shots thrown in depending on situation

Tentacle/Spark Pirates:
Charged shot + Lethal Strike, really small window, try to get them against a wall so the stun doesn't push them away from you. Stun seems to mostly occur if you hit them after dodging their kick+tentacle move. In the room with the icicle platforms, you can also push/lure them into the water for an instant kill.

Yellow robot:
Uncharged shots + missile on arms, uncharged shots on wheel, jump on top for Lethal Strike

Armored ray worm beetles:
Charge shot/Missile belly weak spot when possible, if head protrudes shoot to stun, run up to pull head out, finish worm head with a couple shots

Sidehoppers/Dessgeegas:
Missiles

Ridley:
Uncharged shots from afar, delay finishing the phase until he lands for Lethal Strike opportunity (haven't gotten more than two per fight), Super Missile when invincible

Nightmare 1:
Uncharged shots/instant charged shots from dodging projectiles, Super Missiles to the head (you can easily Sensemove through his slide-and-ram attack, no need to jump away). According to Theater Mode, you can Shinespark his head, but I haven't tested it yet so no idea how much damage that does

Nightmare 2:
Uncharged shots, Super Missiles to the head (can easily finish him before the black hole move)

Queen Metroid:
Sensemove + charge shot + Super Missile the Metroids, Seekers on the crystals

End sequence:
Missile the Power Bomb bug in your way and zoom on MB right away

Tree spider mini bosses:
Orb down: Missiles, Orb up: Missiles/Overblast?

Power Bomb bugs:
3 Super Missiles

Kihunter hive:
Sensemove + charged shot spam, Missile the flowers (exit & reenter FPV each time, two rounds seems to be as low as it gets though), Charge shot the initial Kihunter wave, lock onto hive target and spam missiles while FPV-dodging the Kihunter projectiles, if you dodge all the way to the right you can usually get clear shots on the hive without Kihunters getting in the way

Lava Crocofishmire:
Not sure really. Grapple when possible, get instant charge from dodging its falling body then spam uncharged shots. Can you kill phase 2 in one pass?

Diffusion Beam drones:
Charged shot + Missile when vulnerable

Twin Wall Snakes:
Missile, charged shot, Lethal Strike

Rio hives:
Missile hives + shoot remaining Rios in theory, rarely works though

Phantoon:
Shoot stuff, Lethal Strike when eye drops

Seeker Missile boss:
Uncharged shots, get close, dodge twice away from him + charged shot (if you stay close the whole time he will cancel the red charge move that allows you to Missile stun + Lethal Strike him). Haven't tried Super Missiles yet.

Gigafraugs:
Missile head open, Overblasts

Did I forget anything?

KingBroly

2010-09-16 03:47:52 am

I'm sort of wondering how to do specific lethal strikes against enemies (namely the high kick against pirates).

For Phantoon, I mainly do 1-4 dodges then shoot depending on how many eyes I see. I fire off 1-2 super missiles once all 3 windows are broken. Oh, and Screw Attack the Hands for OHKO (eyes will hurt you though).

For the Gigafraug, Screw Attack kills them in 1 hit when you get it.

Serris

2010-09-16 03:52:38 am

Afaik the kick move against Pirates is just freeing yourself when they catch you, not a LS. You wouldn't want to do that on purpose.

KingBroly

2010-09-16 04:01:23 am

Aw man, but it looks so cool :(

sabata2

2010-09-16 05:08:24 am

ANKOKU

Might want to put "/Boss strategies" in that title or "[spoilers]".

Quietus

2010-09-16 06:00:35 am

Super Secret Area - Dead Ahead!

As far as Phantoon is concerned, I found him ridiculously easy, and all I did was charge a shot, sense, fire, sense, fire, sense, fire, sense, fire, and I was firing off almost constant charged shots for the entirety of the fight. Because he releases a constant stream of the flame things, you can do this almost without pause. I barely get hit.

sabata2

2010-09-16 06:12:43 am

ANKOKU

Same, but you need to know which direction to sense or else you may just get your ass handed to you.
You can't start that sense-fire-sense-fire-... too far back from him, or else your backwards senses will run you into a wall and you'll still get hit.

Quietus

2010-09-16 06:14:41 am

Super Secret Area - Dead Ahead!

I pretty much just did it left and right, alternating rolling one way then the other.

TheMG2

2010-09-16 06:35:41 am

Quote from Serris:

Thought it would be nice to compile a list of optimal speed tactics for every battle. Will try to keep it updated. Haven't read any strategy guides, so if anyone has an official one, would be helpful to hear what they have to say - maybe there are some hidden Lethal Strike or Overblast opportunities or whatever. Wikitroid seems to have most (official?) enemy names, so if anyone feels like looking them up, go ahead. >_>

Purple bug boss:
Missile the eye between freezes
Finish core bug off with Missile

Armadillos:
Missile + Lethal Strike

Twin Wall Snakes:
Missile, charged shot, Lethal Strike

Gigafraugs:
Missile head open, Overblasts

Did I forget anything?

First, we got the names from Prima, so take that as you will.

Purple Bug: You could also overblast instead of using a missile on the eye. A Trooper demonstrates climbing up there.

Armadillo: You could also overblast and lethal strike it.

Twin Wall Snakes (They are actually a Fune and a Namihe): You have to aim for their head when doing a lethal strike.

Gigafraug: You can perform a lethal strike on it.

[quote="Serris"]Thought it would be nice to compile a list of optimal speed tactics for every battle. Will try to keep it updated. Haven't read any strategy guides, so if anyone has an official one, would be helpful to hear what they have to say - maybe there are some hidden Lethal Strike or Overblast opportunities or whatever. Wikitroid seems to have most (official?) enemy names, so if anyone feels like looking them up, go ahead. >_>

Purple bug boss:
Missile the eye between freezes
Finish core bug off with Missile

Armadillos:
Missile + Lethal Strike

Twin Wall Snakes:
Missile, charged shot, Lethal Strike

Gigafraugs:
Missile head open, Overblasts

Did I forget anything?[/quote]

First, we got the names from Prima, so take that as you will.

Purple Bug: You could also overblast instead of using a missile on the eye. A Trooper demonstrates climbing up there.

Armadillo: You could also overblast and lethal strike it.

Twin Wall Snakes (They are actually a Fune and a Namihe): You have to aim for their head when doing a lethal strike.

Gigafraug: You can perform a lethal strike on it.

kesvalk

2010-09-16 12:09:31 pm

Indie Lover

why use uncharged shots on the yellow truck? you can dodge it even when it's not moving...

just stay near it...

Hitaka

2010-09-16 01:17:53 pm

Phoenix

Can you Overblast the tree spider giraffes? I never tried, I figured they were too big to jump on.

Muteki

2010-09-16 01:20:52 pm

I like to go fast!

I've always used missiles. Now that you ask, they do take too long to kill.

Hitaka

2010-09-16 01:30:58 pm

Phoenix

A good one to try it on would be the second one, since the ledge where that moving platform is puts you high enough to be able to jump on the spider's yellow bulb thing.

Serris

2010-09-16 01:39:22 pm

Keep in mind that I'm compiling speed strategies, not every possible approach to a battle.

For LS on Gigafraugs, I'm not sure how to trigger the opportunity. Missile to their backside sometimes makes them fall, but not always.

Uncharged shots generally seem to do more DPS if stuns and instant charges aren't issues, so I'm using them where applicable.

Running around below the tree spiders makes them drop to the ground, which allows you to jump onto the orb, but the positioning seems really finnicky and it's also slower than spamming Missiles.

Zeke

2010-09-16 02:10:29 pm

Time bomb set get out fast!

Is there a reliable way to get Dr. Octopus (seeker boss) to pull the purple or red beam attack? I find it only happens when I'm far enough away, but doesn't always happen; he can go a long time just constantly approaching you. There's almost no point in attacking when he's not using those moves. His Sensemove is even better than yours and he'll use it to get into melee range, which is just where you don't want him.

Serris

2010-09-16 02:31:35 pm

It doesn't really matter what he's doing, but if he's meleeing, always dodge twice before shooting by spamming the direction of choice. After unleashing the charge, you can get more uncharged shots in before he recovers for his next move. Other than that you want him to use the red charge as soon as possible (which seems entirely luck-based), there's really not much to him.

kesvalk

2010-09-16 02:59:20 pm

Indie Lover

i don't like luck-based systems...

TheMG2

2010-09-16 03:48:06 pm

Some bosses have attack patterns like the giant lava thing where you get the varia. It always does the same thing for me. However, bosses like Ridley are luck based.

The red eye might occur after a certain amount of attacks. Test it out.

Aruki

2010-09-16 09:56:17 pm

I'm not sure if people here are already aware of this but it's new to me so. I found this on youtube by mastersamus101:

Apparently if you're in midair then you can rapidfire missiles. Could maybe help out on a few enemies?

Prime Hunter

2010-09-16 10:16:50 pm

It's hard to see anything because of how bright the video is, but are those missiles firing about as fast as in the 2D games when you're in mid-air?

If so, perhaps we could use them on those pesky seeker doors?

sabata2

2010-09-16 11:49:45 pm

ANKOKU

Crappy vid but we should try to test it out on a tall room with multiple enemies.

It may be a glitch with the Bullet Time or with firing while falling.

And that should go into the Speed Tricks and/or Glitches topic.

Aruki

2010-09-16 11:59:49 pm

Eh I figured it would mostly be helpful against enemies if anywhere so I posted it here. Nice idea about seeker doors though prime hunter, we gotta test that...

Turtle

2010-09-17 12:10:58 am

I like turtles.

It would be very hard to hit all the Seeker targets with precision during the short time you stay in midair.

KingBroly

2010-09-17 12:24:36 am

With Seeker Missiles you do get some kind of timer on them if you don't hit all of the targets at once. I doubt you could hit all 5 in a short time frame with something like this, but it'd be interesting to see.

Prime Hunter

Edit history:

Prime Hunter: 2010-09-17 06:12:42 am

2010-09-17 06:12:02 am

I was just thinking with regards to the seeker doors. The only ones I can think of are the one leading towards Nightmare and the two or three at the end leading to the Queen. For Nightmare at least, don't you need SJ/SA to make it through the gravity rooms to get to Sector Zero in the first place? What exactly would be the point of SBing beyond that door even if we wanted to? (Or if this somehow worked.)

Still, would be nice to at least go into those rooms early if we somehow pulled it off. I'd still see that as a major victory.