Hellbender Strategy Guide:
Welcome to the world of Hellbender. If you liked Fury3, you will love Hellbender. But be warned, it is a LOT tougher than Fury3, and that's good! Following are some hints and tips for Hellbender:
FIRST, USE A QUALITY STICK!!! Let me say it again, USE A QUALITY STICK!!! There, enough said.
SECOND, use the VAL cannon as much as possible! It is probably THE weapon of choice, and since its ammo is infinite, USE IT! (The next weapon of choice is the VIPER missile.) In the first several levels of the first three planets or so use the VALS for EVERYTHING. The reason is simple: COLLECT AS MUCH AMMO FOR EVERYTHING ELSE AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO NEED IT LATER ON!!! So use the VIPERS only when you are surrounded by a swarm of enemies, then switch back to VAL when it's less hectic. I got to the final planet with 1000 VIPERS, 800 SLEDGEHAMMERS, 5000 RFLS, well, you get the picture . . . I had plenty of firepower for everything! You should also know that there are lots and lots of treasure troves (i.e., weapons caches) all over the place, and some are HUGE! So look for them. There are all kinds of secret areas and an occasional trap or two. So, save often! One other little trick is to use weapons targeting systems to find out where your enemies are. Some weapons like VIPERS target air targets, others like SCORCHERS target ground targets, etc. Also, don't disdain the humble little DOOMSDAY MINE. Remember, each weapon has its own unique "personality."
THIRD, use HELLION missiles ONLY for your life! Don't waste them on enemies. (Well, if you need lives, and there happens to be an enemy you can take out at the same time, good!) When you use one they act as an "extra life" and refill almost everything!!! So save them up. Up to the last planet (Snow City) I only had to use four HELLIONS. In Snow City . . . well, we won't talk about how many I had to use to survive. (Hehe.)
FOURTH, learn how to use your instruments! Learn to use the map and objectives screen. It really helps when you get lost in the tunnels. But, be warned, in some levels and planets, the map and objectives screen does not work! Microsoft says that this is by design and not a bug. Also, figure out how to fill up your thrusters. (Hey, I'm not going to tell you everything.) And cloaking is available too, but I never used it . . . probably should have though. You should also note that there are a few "problem areas" in the game where you will have to search and search and search for the next target or exit to a tunnel. One more thing, LISTEN TO YOUR MISSION OBJECTIVES!!! Sometimes, it's the only way to make it.
NOW, FOR THE ENEMIES:
Watch out for SAM (Surface to Air Missiles) sites, they are B-A-D!!! You will know when you are being targeted. You can either run using thrusters (maybe you will make it, maybe you won't) or you can go on a search and destroy mission. That's my choice - face them head on. Ignore everything else and take out the SAM sites or you will be sorry. (For taking out SAMS I used SLEDGEHAMMERS as my weapon of choice.)
Different enemies require different weapons! If one isn't working, switch quickly to another. This is one of the reasons you need a quality stick with lost of programmable buttons that work well with Windows 95. (For instance, there are some alien craft later on in the game that can "only" be killed with the DISPERSION CANNON.)
An easy way to take out the robots, tanks, and stationary anti-bender sites is to come in either very high, or very low (hugging the ground). If you do this, most of the time they can't hit you.
As in Fury3, when you face a Guardian, look for shields that need to be taken out first. Some, but not all Guardians have them.
LET ME SAY IT AGAIN: SAVE OFTEN!!! I would suggest that you do a special "Save as" at the beginning of each main planet, and give that save the name of the planet. Also, save before you go into the tunnels!!! Some of the tunnels are MEAN! Don't say I didn't warn you.
Well, that's it for now. If you have any tips or cheats, let me know. Maybe I'll add to this and post it from time to time, as it grows. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to drop me an email.
Randar
mimpchnk@paloverde.com
______________________
Thanks to "Doc" at Microsoft for the following . . .
I have a few other tips to add:
1. Don't use the Valkryie cannon for everything. As you point out, some
enemies are not affected by it. Also, sometimes you need to save your
energy for shields, cloaking, or the headlight.
2. Cloaking will help you take out the SAM sites in relative safety. When
you're cloaked the missiles cannot lock on to you, however your main energy
will drain quickly so find those SAMs fast.
3. Look for some secret technology hidden in the levels to boost your
power at the end.
4. Drop beacons at power ups that you don't need at that time (e.g. repair
droids and energy cans). You can then go back and get them later when you
need them.
5. Nyx is TOUGH! In your final battle you may need to use some
unconventional weapons to take him down.
6. Hellions are very effective vs. lots of targets. When there are lots of
enemies (air or ground) around just hug the ground, point your nose in the
air, and launch a Hellion. I think you'll enjoy the results. :-)
And, Doc from Microsoft, gives one more super tip!!!
Have you found the super weapon yet?
The first piece is hidden on Morbos 1 in one of the tunnels. Look for the
wall texture without the "x" across it. Shoot that section of wall then hit
the switch inside. That opens the secret area to the first super weapon
piece.
The second piece is fairly easy to find on Eyrie. Look for switch on the
ground.
Doc
______________________
The following comes from Misael of Argentina . . .
Hellbender
"Easter Egg": when choosing a ship in multiplayer mode, click craft 7
twice, then craft 2, and then 3 and see what happens.
Cheat Codes Effect
TOTLPWR Makes main energy 100%.
URDEAD# The # represents a number from 0 - 9. These correspond to the
weapon number a player pushes to get a particular weapon.
MAXMEUP Makes the hull 100%.
IMPUMPD Gives the player all weapons as if they picked up a powerup for
each weapon.
AUNTEM# This warps the player to the planet corresponding to the number
entered at the end of the code. The numbers are 1 - 8.
IMSTUCK This skips the current mission on a planet and advances the
player to the next mission on the planet.
Hellbender Areas of Interest
To find these areas, press M to display the Map, and then navigate to any of
the coordinates listed below.
Planet/mission Highlights
-Morbos 1 Tunnel and chambers @ 2,32 (secrets in tunnel walls).
-Morbos 3 Chamber system @ 35,1.
-Eyrie 1 Transports to destroy @ 98,106 (2nd objective in Nav computer).
-Eyrie 2 Transport platform @ 60,77.
-Iowah 2 Base and waterfalls @ 101,107.
-Iowah 2 Chamber System @ 45,94 (6th objective in Navigation computer).
-Iowah 2 Chamber system @ 10,19. Take doors to get into the escort area.
-Kresh 3 Start this level and fly around the city.
-Chimera 1 Lava platform areas @ 63,59.
-Chimera 1 Chamber System @ 89,100; lava tunnels.
-Chimera 2 Landing pad area @ 2,5
-Chimera 2 Underground base and tunnels @ 21,4.
-Snow City 1 Chamber system @ 100,31.
-Snow City 1 City and skimmer vehicles in the city @ 69,76.
-Snow City 3 City areas.
-Tricerius Belt 1 Space system of the game, whole level.
-Tricerius Belt 4 Area where Nyx's support ships are stored @ 33,82.
-Shiva 1 Under ship entrance @ 83,43.
-Shiva 1 Back of ship entrance @ 114,77.
Here is the complete list on how to get stuff. This current stuff is
updated. You may want to check the exact coordinates for each secret
weapon piece. The coordinates that I place are estimates and I did not go
back to my TXT file to double check the exact coordinates.
SW - refers to Super Weapon
Morbos - Mission 1
Near the last chamber that has the Two Fusion Reactors, you come through
a door where the morphing opening is. You turn left and follow that
tunnel to it's mid point at (115, 24). There is a hidden chamber on the
left side (look for a different texture and shoot it). Inside there is
the First SW Switch at (115, 23). It opens a door back near the first
area where you come underground at (19, 55). When you go underground,
find the area where the robots are guarding in an area with the eagle
symbol on the walls and the large orange bands on the ceiling and floor.
The door leading into the SW should now be open and there you are, at the
first piece approximately located at (19, 60).
Eyrie - Mission 2
On the ground area you will find a large enclosed pool of water
underneath a floating rock at (63, 91). There is a building attached to
this pool, but you can not get into it yet. There is a little road that
you follow across some bridges to the first SW Switch at (65, 50), this
switch will drain the water down in that pool at (63, 91). Shoot it and
turn back around and go back to the pool. Shoot the second switch which
is right next to the pool at (65, 84) and the access door to the weapon
will now be opened at (62, 88). Go in and get the second SW piece located
approximately at (61, 82).
Iowah - Mission 2
There is a set of three switches in a little alcove. The switch at (90,
97) will morph the wall and open up the room that contains the first SW
switch at (88, 97). This switch will open the walls around the SW. The
other two switches in this area will open up other chambers that contain
powerups. Go back to the switches at (105, 61) or (105, 64) to morph
open the wall leading into the SW room and you should find the SW in the
middle of the room that opened located approximately at (112, 66). There
are other weapons bunkers in alcoves all around that room, and the other
walls that did not open around the SW if shot will close off those
chambers so that you can not get to those powerups, so be careful what
you shoot in there.
Kresh - Mission 3
This SW is hidden in plain site underneath a building at (59, 99). The
only way to get to this is from the underground chamber system. Once you
are pretty much done with the level and are on your way out, you will
come across a tunnel that has purple metal on the ground. Follow this
purple tunnel down to the end and go up through the ceiling to get into
the building where the SW is stored. Grab it and go back down and out to
continue on.
Chimera - Mission 3
This SW is in an area where you will have to do a lot of back and forth
to get to it. Locate the underground chamber and the first switch at
(48, 71) and activate it. This switch opens the building on the surface
at (54, 58). Go inside and down into a little chamber with four SW
switches. Shoot the switches at (54, 53), (54, 58), (49, 58), and
(49,53) to open up the four barriers back in the chamber where the first
switch was at. The switches above open the barriers at (48, 65) to (48,
68). Go back down to this chamber and shoot the wall at (47, 66) or (47,
67) and the wall will morph open and reveal the SW chamber. The SW piece
is in the middle of the SW chamber located approximately at (43, 66).
Asteroid - Mission 4
There are ground switches located at (8, 107) and (10,111) that open a
chamber right there. Proceed into the chamber quickly since it will close
up itself after 8 seconds and you will be unable to go back out that way.
You're not trapped though. The switch to open the SW chamber is located
at (19, 109) and will open the doors at (16, 104), check the ground near
the switch and you will see that "X" marks the spot. The "X" grid
pattern on the ground helps signify which switch to shoot. Once inside
this SW room you will find the 5th NYX ship and the SW piece right next
to it located at approximately (16, 98). This is a hidden NYX ship that
is not part of the normal Objective list so this is an extra bonus. To
get out of this area you can also shoot the "X" marked boxes and they
will lead to an alternate exit for you. The other NYX "how to get to" is
in another message.
Snow City - Mission 2
This is a strange one. The first SW switch to open the SW chamber is
located in a door jam at (33, 30). This switch will morph open the wall
at (102, 81) which then leads into the SW Chamber. Once in there you have
four switches to choose from. The true SW switch is located at (105, 78)
and will open up the walls surrounding the SW piece located approximately
at (109, 82). The three other switches located at (112, 78), (112, 85),
and (105, 85) will bring the ceiling sailing down on you but will not
crush you, just push you down (unless of course you were on top of a
switch at that time). This will lock the ceiling down on you for 30
seconds before it resets itself, which means you can try again.
Shiva - Mission 1
This SW piece is just hidden out in nowhere's land. Locate the ship at
(107, 11) and find the one box that has a different colored texture on
the top of it. Shoot this box at (107, 11) and go into the little
building there. The SW piece is just sitting in the center of the room
at (108, 12). Now it is time to rock. :)
Games International Product Manager
Misael Pablo Dotti
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
