L27Ace

Unlike the "Shoot & Scoot" (used to kill the level 7 boss, see L7Ace), there is no "magic bullet" for the level 27 boss. (Unless, of course, you count the "nine hour bug." :-) But fortunately, there are numerous invulnerability spheres available.

There are two keys to beating the level 27 boss: stay invulnerable and ignore the minions.

The large, upper room behind the yellow door is well-stocked with invulnerabilities and cloaks. I use only one of each to clear that room. That leaves two of each for use against the boss. In addition, there are two invulns in the red room itself. One is in the "pass-through" closest to the red door, and another is in the U-shaped room behind the door in the far left corner (from the red door). You must be aware of when your invulnerability is about to wear off and move quickly to another one. You don't last long in the red room once you start taking damage.

Once inside the red room, pay little or no attention to any 'bot but the boss. Only if your path is blocked should you worry about a minion. Since you should be invulnerable, just let them harmlessly fire away at you.

At the start of the demo, I grab a cloak and invuln behind the yellow door. Note that I grab the cloak first, which means that it will wear off first. Not only does this maximize my invulnerable time, but when the cloak wears off, I'll know that the invuln is about to do the same.

I then enter the red room, quickly locate the boss, and unload on him until he teleports. Ignoring all the other 'bots, I then search out the boss again. Since the boss is always in one of the four wells, I look for him by going from well to well via the pass-throughs.

When my invulnerability is about to wear off, I find myself near to the pass-through containing another one. I grab it and repeat the above procedure, except this time, I get the invulnerability in the U-shaped room. Keeping track of your invulnerability status is critical.

I am able to finish off the boss without need for another invuln. The countdown starts, and I escape the mine while still invulnerable! :-)

Note that there is a cache of weapons (most notably Mega and Smart missiles) behind and below the main red room. I did not make use of this stuff for two reasons: (1) I didn't need it, and (2) I found that I wasted considerable invulnerable time clearing the room.


Fred Scheifele
www.Scheif.net