Medieval Madness
======================================================================
"Williams", and lots of other things are probably
trademarks and copyrights of WMS Industries. Sorry. Also, please feel
free to distribute this rulesheet in any form, just don't charge for it.
New Since Last Time
-------------------
Corrections to scoring in Castle Multiball and Multiball Madness
Quotes galore!
More game credits listed
Castle Hurry-Up corrected throughout
Fix Yer Trolls section
Minor fix to Skill Shot section
Info about Troll Bombs updated
Info about Video Mode added
Corrected info about Super Jets
A few Little Tweaks
Overview
--------
Medieval Madness is the long-awaited game from the Williams design team
which created the hit "Attack From Mars". In many ways (especially in
playfield layout), Medieval Madness is similar to Attack From Mars (AFM),
but it should not be classified as simply "AFM on steroids". In fact,
Medieval Madness is, for the most part, a slower-paced game than AFM. It
also tends to be a "friendlier" game, with few (if any!) shots which are
drain risks.
Medieval Madness also features the same sense of humor which made AFM that
much more popular. From the flying saucer on the backglass to the cursing
mobster whose castle you seek to destroy, Madness is _loaded_ with one-
liners. It's equally amazing how long some of the sound bites are. Catch
Sir Psycho's maniacal laughter if you get the chance.
Fix Yer Trolls
--------------
An important note for those who are playing "sample" versions of Medieval
Madness: there is a problem with the flaps for the Trolls; they tend not to
remain level with the playfield, as many have noticed. A fix for this
problem is in place for the production version, and an update for the
flaps is being shipped to distributors of sample games. If you have this
problem with your local Medieval Madness, get the operator to contact the
local Wms distributor.
Credits: 6.
-----------
Playfield Design: Brian Eddy
Software: Lyman F. Sheats, Jr.
Project Engineer: Robert C. Friesl
Dot Matrix Animation: Adam Rhine
Sound & Music: Dan "Toasty" Forden
Artwork: Greg Freres and John Youssi
and a cast of hundreds
-- A little more detail now! Still could use a little beefing up.
Playfield and Backglass Art
---------------------------
Both the playfield and glass are well done, in my opinion. The backglass has
an imposing king, holding up a sword... and surrounded by total chaos! Many
jokes here and there on the backglass, including a sign which reads "You must
be at least this tall to enter a siege", invaders being doused with
Dragonade, a sneaker-wearing troll, and an unusual flying carpet.
The playfield art is a little more subdued (as it should be), but watch for
some unusual crowns, and a cannonball with a note on it. Also check out the
plastic above the catapult, and the jousters in the orbits.
Goal
----
Defeat the "King of Payne" and All the King's Men in a Battle for the
Kingdom. Save damsels in distress, help the revolting peasants, launch
farm animals at castles, win jousting contests, kill wisecracking trolls.
In order to reach "Battle for the Kingdom" you must complete six tasks,
marked with blue lights on the playfield near the castle. These six tasks
are, from top to bottom:
- Master of Trolls
- Defender of Damsels
- Patron of the Peasants
- Catapult Ace
- Joust Champion
- Castle Crusher
Each is described in a separate section below.
Playfield and Basic Rules
-------------------------
If you have Web access, direct your browser to Jim Hicks' Medieval Madness
site at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/7856/madness.html --
there you will find a picture of the playfield, with comments about the
features of the game. Here, the playfield is described in all its textual
glory, from left to right.
Flippers: Just the two!
Left Inlane / Outlane: Plenty of rubber in the area makes saves a little
easier than on some games, but it is difficult to bounce the ball out
of the inlane/outlane area. Both the inlane and outlane light a letter
in FIRE (like KHAN on "Shadow"). Completing FIRE adds 2 Bonus X.
Completing FIRE a set number of times (default 10) lights Video Mode
in v1.0.
Catapult: the most difficult shot in the game, to the far left side --
about the same position as the Drac shot in "Taxi" or the Hang-On shot
in "Dr. Who"... more difficult than either, since there is no metal guide
to help. You are more likely to fall into the Catapult by a slingshot
bounce than from a direct shot, in my opinion, although there is value in
a direct shot (see below). The catapult fires the ball around the back of
the Castle and back to the left inlane. Catapult advances toward the
Catapult Slam! award and the "Catapult Ace" light. See "Catapult Ace"
section for more.
Catapult Standup: Shooting the Catapult shot directly from the right flipper
may hit the red standup target in the back of the Catapult area. This
target, in single-ball play, counts as a Catapult hit; since the ball
promptly falls into the Catapult, you get credit for 2 Catapult shots.
This is especially useful in Royal Madness (see "Royal Madness" section).
Left Joust Orbit: Fairly standard-position orbit. Feeds bumpers during
multiballs, while Super Jets is lit, or when you score a Joust Victory --
otherwise screams around the orbit. Shots advance toward the Joust
Victory award and the "Joust Champion" light. See "Joust Champion"
section for more.
Left (Peasant) Ramp: fairly long and wide ramp, feeds around the Castle and
to the left inlane. The ramp is "split" (looks broken with a six-inch
lengthwise break), designed so that missed ramp shots feed directly to
the right flipper. Certainly a good idea. Shots advance toward the
Peasant Revolt award and the "Patron of the Peasants" light. See
"Patron of the Peasants" section for more.
Castle: the back left of the playfield is taken up by a large castle. The
castle has two entrances (the Lock and the Main Entrance, described below)
as well as a moat in front. Balls which fall into the moat (either by a
short shot to the Lock or a shot to the closed Main Entrance) are ejected
into the Left Joust Orbit and return to the left flipper.
Lock: in the same position as the Lock ramp on "Attack From Mars", this is a
short shot, jumping over the moat and into the castle through a door
(which the ball passes through easily). Lock advances toward the main
Multiball, and collects Super Jackpots and Double Super Jackpots during
Multiball and Multiball Madness. See "Castle Multiball" and "Multiball
Madness" sections for more.
Left Troll: the Trolls are under the two doors in the playfield (very much
like the Trap Door from "Theatre of Magic"). The Left Troll blocks the
Lock shot when raised, although it is possible to bank a ball into the
Lock off the other Troll. Trolls are active during the Trolls! round
and during Troll Madness. Destroying trolls advances toward the "Master
of Trolls" light. See "Master of Trolls" and "Multiball Madness" sections
for more.
Left Troll Standup: one of two standups to the left and right of the Main
Entrance. These standups light Trolls!, and can award Troll Bombs. See
"Master of Trolls" section for more.
Main Entrance: The Main Entrance is straight up the middle of the game.
Since the Castle is angled slightly, the Main Entrance is less of a drain
hazard than the Saucer on AFM. One of the main goals of the game is to
enter the Castle via the Main Entrance. To do this, you must go through
three stages:
1. Drawbridge up: a Drawbridge blocks the entrance; hit the Drawbridge
(actually, the eddy sensor in front of the moat) a number of times
to lower it. After hitting the Drawbridge, the ball will most
likely fall into the moat, and return via the left orbit.
2. Drawbridge down, gate down: the ball may cross the Drawbridge, but
a gate keeps the ball from entering the Castle. Hit the gate a
number of times to raise it.
3. Now, enter the castle to destroy it. Destroying castles advances
toward the "Castle Crusher" light.
See "Castle Crusher" section for details on the number of hits. You may
shoot for the Main Entrance toward Castles at any time, including any
Multiball. Once a Castle is destroyed, you may immediately begin making
progress on the next Castle. The Main Entrance also collects the Castle
Hurry-Up (see section for more).
Right Troll Standup: To right of Main Entrance. Advances toward lighting
Trolls! and toward Troll Bombs.
Merlin's Saucer: a standard saucer, a little to the left of the Stroke of
Luck scoop from AFM. The ball is kicked out of the saucer into the Right
Joust Orbit, returning to the right flipper. The saucer awards Merlin's
Magic (a random award, see "Merlin's Magic" section) and starts Trolls!,
Multiball Madness, and Royal Madness (when lit). Extra balls are also
collected at this saucer. It is possible to fall into the saucer from
the Jet Bumpers (far less likely than in AFM), where it will award Extra
Ball when lit, but nothing else.
Right Troll: blocks Merlin's Saucer when raised during Trolls! or Troll
Madness. It is possible to hit Merlin's Saucer during Trolls! by banking
a ball off the Left Troll. See "Master of Trolls" and "Multiball
Madness" sections for more.
Right (Dragon / Damsel) Ramp: The ramp is equipped with a diverter; most
shots travel around a short ramp and back to the right inlane, but
when lit, the shot travels straight to a hole in the back right of the
cabinet (to "save the damsel"), then feeds the rollover lanes. The ramp
entrance is "split" (like the Left Ramp), so that missed ramp shots fall
to the right flipper. Ramp shots advance toward the Damsel Save award and
the "Defender of Damsels" light. See "Defender of Damsels" section for
more.
Right Joust Orbit: functions identically to the Left Joust Orbit with respect
to feeds. Shots advance to the Joust Victory award and the "Joust
Champion" light.
Merlin's Magic targets: 3 red standups on the right. Shoot all 3 to light
Merlin's Magic if unlit.
Right Inlane / Outlane: spot FIRE for +2 Bonus X on either the inlane or
outlane, advancing toward Video Mode (v1.0 or higher). Right drains seem
to be more common than left drains.
Top Rollovers: identical to AFM. Two rollovers; complete both for +1 Bonus X.
Warning: the rollovers are _very_ hard to see!
Jet Bumpers: The bumpers score a marginal number of points, and advance toward
Super Jets. 50 bumper hits collects an award of 1 million (1M) and lights
Super Jets, worth 25,000 (25K) per hit for the rest of the ball, OR until
the next level of Super Jets is reached. For the next level of Super Jets,
you must score 25 more hits than the last; 1M is added to the initial
award, and the per-hit award increases by 25K: so Super Jets 2 requires
75 hits, scores 2M immediately, and 50K/hit for the rest of the ball, or
until Level 3 is reached. Like AFM, the jets will often kick back up the
rollover lanes. Balls coming from the jets roll down the Right Joust
Orbit, sometimes after falling into Merlin's Saucer. In single-ball play,
all timers and countdowns are stopped while the ball is in the bumpers.
Autoplunger: At start of ball, the normal plunge is to the rollover lanes,
but a Super Skill Shot exists (see "Skill Shot" section for more). All
plunged balls for multiball travel to the rollover lanes.
Ball Launcher: red button, launches the ball... also activates Troll Bombs if
you have any (see "Master of Trolls" section for more).
Ball Saver
----------
There is a brief (~5 sec.) ball saver (after the ball has exited the bumpers)
at the start of each ball. A ball saver is also in place at the start of
any multiball, at the start of Royal Madness (which is not a multiball), and
if you should complete Trolls! during Multiball Madness.
Skill Shot
----------
The normal Skill Shot is the same as it was on AFM: one rollover is flashing,
roll over it. 50K + 10K each successive Skill Shot is yours, as is
+5 Bonus X.
Or: you may go for the Super Skill Shot. Hold in the left flipper to enable
the Super Skill Shot. As in AFM, the ball will plunge around the orbit to
the left flipper, and all shots will light. Collect a shot to score 100K
and light a Castle Hurry-Up (see "Castle Hurry-Up" section). Collecting the
Super Skill Shot does NOT credit you with "completing" a shot (as it did on
AFM); you only get credit for the one shot toward any requirement.
I take the regular Skill Shot, since Bonus X can really count big in the long
run. In the short run, the Super Skill Shot is a little more valuable if you
can quickly and consistently shoot the Castle.
-- Game start quotes are mostly taunts from the King, but one stands out:
"It's a great day for jousting!"
Merlin's Magic
--------------
Merlin's Magic is lit to start the game, and collected at Merlin's Saucer.
It is relit by completing the 3-bank of standup targets on the right side.
Awards include:
- Light Lock
- Award Lock
- Castle Multiball
- Light Trolls!
- Start Trolls!
- +3 Troll Bombs
- +5 Bonus X
- Hold Bonus X
- Light Extra Ball
- 1,000,000
- 500,000
- 250,000
- ______ Madness (any of the 5 Madness rounds)
- Lower Drawbridge
- Destroy Castle Gate (!)
- Destroy Castle (!!)
There are probably other awards I haven't seen yet.
Video Mode
----------
Video Mode is lit by (default) 10 completions of FIRE (on the inlanes and
outlanes), and started in Merlin's Saucer. Note: Video Mode is only
available in the release ROM (v1.0), not in the sample games' ROM (v0.5).
I haven't seen Video Mode yet, so I am unable to describe it. I defer to
Jim Hicks:
"Save the Children" - video mode in which you must rescue thirty children
from large-winged birds in 20 seconds (might be 30). Sorry, I can't remember
what type of birds there are. The birds will attempt to snatch the children
while you fight them off (move sword/pitchfork (not sure which) with flippers
to kill the birds). You get points for each bird killed and a bonus if none
of the children are eaten. I don't remember the point values.
-- More to come...
Castle Multiball
----------------
Castle Multiball is started with shots to the Lock in the Castle. For the
first multiball, 3 shots are required; for successive multiballs, 6 shots
are required. Locks are virtual, like AFM; no balls are held by the machine.
There are 3 stages to multiball:
- In the first stage, either ramp is worth a Jackpot of 750K. Five ramp
shots are required to light the Super Jackpot.
- The Super Jackpot is double the Jackpot value (base of 1.5M). Super Jackpot
is lit at the Lock shot.
- If you collect the Super Jackpot, both ramps, both orbits, Lock, and
Catapult light for Super Jackpots. The orbits are separate Super Jackpots.
Complete all the Super Jackpots in the third stage, and you return to the
first stage, with the Jackpot increased permanently by 250K (so Super Jackpots
increase by 500K).
Needless to say, Castle Multiball is very valuable: going through all 3 stages
at the base value is worth a total of 14,250,000. Completing the second stage
(the first Super Jackpot) for the first time in a game lights an Extra Ball
at Merlin's Saucer.
Master of Trolls / Trolls!
--------------------------
To get the "Master of Trolls" light you need to destroy 10 Trolls. Trolls
may be destroyed in either the Trolls! round, or Troll Madness. Since you
need to complete Trolls! to light Troll Madness, let's talk about Trolls!
first.
To light Trolls! you must hit the Troll Standups (to either side of the Main
Entrance) the required number of times (factory default 8). Then, Trolls! is
lit at Merlin's Saucer. Hitting these standups an additional (default)
8 times, either before or during Trolls!, will award +1 Troll Bomb. You
can also light or start Trolls! from a "Merlin's Magic" award (see section).
During Trolls!, both Trolls pop up from under the playfield, and you must
hit each 3 times in 30 seconds. You may also use Troll Bombs by hitting the
launch button; they count as a single hit on one Troll. During Trolls! you
may earn additional Troll Bombs by hitting the standups, or by banking a
shot off a Troll and into either the Lock or Merlin's Saucer. A shot off one
Troll into the Lock or Merlin's Saucer gives +1 Troll Bomb. Another combo
is worth +3 Troll Bombs; this may be a bank shot off _both_ Trolls into the
Lock or Merlin's Saucer, but this is as yet unconfirmed. Note that although
you tend to receive Troll Bombs during Trolls!, you can use them _anytime_
Trolls are active (Multiball Madness, Royal Madness, Battle for the Kingdom).
Sometimes they may prove useful in these other rounds.
Note that you need 3 shots to record +1 Troll Destroyed toward the required
10. You do not receive a troll for each shot during Trolls!
Successfully completing Trolls! awards 1M and lights Troll Madness at
Merlin's Saucer, UNLESS...
- you already have Troll Madness lit, or have played Multiball Madness
already -- then completing Trolls! lights or extends a Castle Hurry-Up
(see section)
- or, Trolls! was started at the same time as Multiball Madness, in which case
Troll Madness is immediately added to the current Multiball Madness. This
is a very good thing to do -- all balls lost during Multiball Madness are
returned, a brief ball saver is given, and all Super Jackpots are worth an
additional 150K.
If Troll Madness is active during Multiball Madness, one of the two trolls
will pop up. Hitting the Troll scores a Troll Jackpot worth half the Super
Jackpot (for the curious, this is 125K + 75K * # of active Madnesses) and
the other pops up. Each Troll killed here counts toward the 10 Troll
requirement. You can use Troll Bombs during Multiball Madness; why you
would want to is beyond me.
-- Quotes: starting: "Beware, Knight!" "Trolls to fight!"
"Mmm, human burgers." "Do we get fries with that?"
"Trolls rule." "That's right. Rule the Universe!"
"Look, your shoe's untied!"
King: "Trolls, do not fail me again!"
killing one of the two: "He was useless. I am invincible!"
Defender of Damsels
-------------------
To get the "Defender of Damsels" light you need to save 3 damsels. To save
a damsel, shoot the right ramp 4 times. The first three shots will return
to the right inlane, and score 25K (Dragon Breath), 50K (Dragon Snack), and
75K (Dragon Death).
The fourth shot feeds to the window in the back right of the cabinet. This
shot scores 100K, gives +1 Damsel Save, and lights the Damsel Madness light
if not already lit. Sometimes scoring a Damsel Save will also light or extend
a Castle Hurry-Up (see section). There are at least 5 damsels to save, each
with her own set of funny quotes.
You may also earn +1 Damsel Save during Royal Madness (see section).
-- Quotes: "I'm getting hungry!"
"I feel like singing!"
"Oh my god, this dragon is, like, totally grody!"
"I'm, like, totally captured!"
"That dragon is big! But I bet you're bigger!" (sheesh)
"Is that a sword in your pocket?" (sheesh!)
"This dragon is an animal!"
"What am I, chopped liver?"
"Toasty!" (Dragon Snack)
"Fatality!" (Dragon Death)
Saving quotes: "What are you, some kind of prince or somethin'?"
"Uh, do you have a horse?"
"Totally chivalrous!"
"I always knew that someday my prince would come." (sheesh!!)
"Let's get married so we can get a divorce!"
Patron of the Peasants
----------------------
To get the "Patron of the Peasants" light you need to score 3 Peasant
Revolts. To score a Peasant Revolt, shoot the left ramp 4 times. All shots
return to the left inlane, and score 25K (Rabble Rouser), 50K (Angry Mob),
75K (Ugly Riot), and 100K (Peasant Revolt).
The fourth shot also gives +1 Peasant Revolt, and lights Peasant Madness if
not already lit. Sometimes scoring a Peasant Revolt will also light or
extend a Castle Hurry-Up (see section).
You may also earn +1 Peasant Revolt during Royal Madness (see section).
-- Most of the quotes here involve peasants complaining about what's been
taken from them. "They've taken our shrubberies!" "They've taken our
shoes!" "They've taken our pinball machines!" "They've taken our cows!"
"They've taken our wives!" (cheering) "They've taken our children!"
"They've taken our Troll!" (cheering) "They've taken our gruel!"
"They've taken our livestock and treasured historical monuments!" (heh)
Others: "Grab a pitchfork and come with me!" "The castle burns!... Get
the marshmallows!" "I'll drink to that!" "Let's revolt, who's with me?"
Catapult Ace
------------
To get the "Catapult Ace" light you need to score 3 Catapult Slams. To score
a Catapult Slam, shoot the Catapult (or the Catapult Standup) 3 times. The
first two shots score 50K (Catapult Wham) and 75K (Catapult Bam).
The third shot allows you to play the brief Catapult Video Mode, where you
can choose which of 5 items to throw at the castle -- a duck, a cat, a cow, a
bowling ball, and a skull head (not that Skull head, sorry). Before making
your selection, you will be told the values of each item (from 25K to 500K).
Flip both flippers to choose -- it helps to remember the sequence of the
items, or at least which item comes before the one you want. You only have
about 5 seconds to choose, so be quick. Successive Catapult Video Modes
tell you which items you have already fired, challenging you to fire all 5
items. If you manage to do this, enjoy! Moo.
The third shot scores 100K (additional to the launching bonus), gives +1
Catapult Slam, and lights Catapult Madness if not already lit. Sometimes
scoring a Catapult Slam will also light or extend a Castle Hurry-Up (see
section).
Keep in mind that the Catapult Standup can make your life easier, reducing
3 shots to 2. The Catapult Standup won't count for the third shot, since
you'll fall into the Catapult immediately anyway.
You may also earn +1 Catapult Slam during Royal Madness (see section).
-- "Pull!"
Joust Champion
--------------
To get the "Joust Champion" light you need to score 3 Joust Victories. To
score a Joust Victory, shoot the orbits 3 times (either orbit counts; the
lights on each orbit show the same progress). The first shot scores 50K
(Joust Charge), and the second 75K (Joust Clash). Both these shots will go
all the way around the orbit, unless Super Jets is active.
The third shot awards 100K and feeds the bumpers. It also gives +1 Joust
Victory, and lights Joust Madness if not already lit. Sometimes scoring a
Joust Victory will also light or extend a Castle Hurry-Up (see section).
You may also earn +1 Joust Victory during Royal Madness (see section).
-- "Sir Missalot charges up the center lane!" "Oh my, he breaks the lance!"
"Boom shaka laka!" "That had to hurt!" "Gory but good!"
"Sir Loin of Beef charges up the center lane!" (jeeez)
"Sir _______ with the shish kebob!"
Castle Hurry-Up
---------------
The rule about Castle Hurry-Up is somewhat confusing. If you've just
completed Damsel Save, Catapult Slam, Peasant Revolt, Joust Victory, or
Trolls! (in single-ball play), and this completion _lights_ the corresponding
Madness for Multiball Madness (ie sets the light to flashing), then this
completion will NOT light or extend a Castle Hurry-Up. Otherwise, it will.
In other words:
- If you haven't played Multiball Madness yet, you won't get a Castle Hurry-
Up unless you repeat something you've already completed.
- If you have played Multiball Madness (but not yet Royal Madness), you get
a Castle Hurry-Up every time.
- Trolls! won't give you a Castle Hurry-Up during Multiball Madness.
(On games where it is possible to get more than one Multiball Madness before
Royal Madness, the second condition never applies.)
The Castle Hurry-Up value starts at 1M and decreases rather quickly, to a
minimum of 250K (?). Collect the Hurry-Up at the Main Entrance, regardless
of the status of the current Castle.
If you complete another row of lights which would normally start a Castle
Hurry-Up while one is running, the Hurry-Up resets to a higher value. A
second completion increases the value to 3M, and a third to 6M, although it
seems that if you let the Hurry-Up wait too long, its value will not
reset to the next maximum, but to a lesser value. Presumably a fourth would
increase the value to 10M. It is acceptable to complete the same award more
than once to advance the Hurry-Up value (so if you're really good at the
Peasant ramp, go for it).
Each Hurry-Up collected is counted, and 10 Hurry-Ups lights Extra Ball at
Merlin's Saucer. You get as many toward this total as you started (so a 6M
Hurry-Up would contribute 3 to this total).
-- Merlin congratulates you on completing a Hurry-Up. "Magnificent!"
"Beautiful!" "What skill!" "You did it!"
Castle Crusher
--------------
To get the "Castle Crusher" light, you must destroy the 6 Castles of the King
of Payne and All The King's Men: Sir Howard Hurtz (a mobster), Francois de
Grimm (a Frenchman), the Earl of Ego (a narcissist), the Duke of Bourbon (a
drunk), and Sir Psycho (a... uh, psycho). The order in which you go after
the King's Men in random, but the King of Payne is always last (similar to
the cities in AFM).
To destroy the Nth Castle, you will need to do the following:
- hit the Drawbridge N times to lower it (1 for the first, 6 for the King)
- hit the lowered Gate N+1 times to raise it (2 for the first, 7 for the King)
Each hit to the lowered Gate scores 200K * Castle # for the first 5 Castles,
and 2M per hit for the King's Castle.
- enter the Castle to destroy it (watch for the cool effect)
Destroying a Castle scores 2M * Castle # for the first 5 Castles, 20M for
the King's Castle.
As noted above, there isn't anything special about the King of Payne's Castle
except that it is more difficult than the others, and his taunts are a little
more direct...
Destroying all 6 Castles is worth at least 78 million (28 million in Gate
hits and 50 million in bonuses for destroying Castles), so it's a decent way
to get a replay or high score if you work at it above all else. Multiballs
can help, and remember that the Main Entrance is a much safer shot than
AFM's saucer.
If you complete Castle Crusher before the other 5 lights, the Drawbridge will
remain open but the Gate will remain down. Battle for the Kingdom will only
light during single-ball play, so if you destroy the King's castle during a
multiball, you'll have to wait a bit.
Destroying a certain number of Castles (default is 2) lights an Extra Ball
at Merlin's Saucer.
-- "I'm the Duke of Bourbon... I think!"
"Come on in, and we'll take this outside!"
"Didja bring any princesses?"
"I don't remember inviting you...!"
"Quit making all that noise!"
"Where's my castle?"
"I'm Howard Hurtz. Who the -bleep- are you?" (more than one bleep!)
"You know why they call me Howard Hurtz? Lord, Howard Hurtz!" (groan)
"I'm Howard Hurtz, and I'm gonna put the hurt on you."
"You think this is funny?"
"Get away from my castle, you dirty rat."
"You're gonna be sleepin' with the fishes."
"I'm gonna make you look like an accident."
"He made me an offer I couldn't refuse." "You fool!" (King, to Hurtz)
"I'm a dead man."
"I am Francois de Grimm, and I will get medieval on your derriere!"
"I am Francois de Grimm, and I will get medieval on your behind!"
"I will reduce you to french fries!"
"I will sic my hamster on you!"
"You will remove that battering ram from my castle!"
"Big deal. I have another one just like it down the road."
"Sir Psycho declares war on you! Ya hear?"
"You can't beat me, I'm medicated!"
"Don't... make... me... ANGRY!"
"I'm... getting... ANGRY!"
"You're driving me crazier!"
"AGAIN!"
"I am the Earl of Ego, and I am far superior to you."
"I am the Earl of Ego, kneel before me."
"We are not amused!"
"My castle is ruined!"
Multiball Madness
-----------------
Multiball Madness is a 2- to 4-ball multiball round, where every major shot
(orbits, ramps, Catapult, Lock, and possibly the Trolls) is worth either a
Jackpot, a Super Jackpot, or a Double Super Jackpot! How about that!
To start Multiball Madness, shoot Merlin's Saucer when at least one of the
five Madness lights is flashing. How to get each light:
Troll Madness: finish Trolls!
Damsel Madness: save a Damsel
Peasant Madness: score Peasant Revolt
Catapult Madness: score Catapult Slam
Joust Madness: score Joust Victory
It is therefore easy to light Multiball Madness. However, the more Madness
lights you have flashing going into the round, the better. Why?
- The shots corresponding to each flashing light will be lit for Super
Jackpot instead of Jackpot.
- The value of the Jackpot and Super Jackpot increases with each Madness lit.
- The number of balls in Multiball Madness is determined by the number of
Madness rounds lit:
1 Madness light -- 2 balls
2-4 Madness lights -- 3 balls
5 Madness lights -- 4 balls and a loud introduction (Sunday! Sunday!)
Scoring in Multiball Madness is as follows:
Jackpots in Multiball Madness are worth 75K + 25K * (# Madnesses lit) --
minimum 100K, maximum 175K.
Super Jackpots are worth 250K + 150K * (# Madnesses lit) -- a minimum of
400K and a maximum of 1M.
If Troll Madness is active, the raised Troll is worth a "Troll Super
Jackpot" which is half the Super Jackpot.
The Lock shot is worth a Double Super Jackpot, up to 2M.
The Catapult Standup does not seem to do anything special here.
Important note: if Trolls! begins at the start of Multiball Madness (and it
often will), completing Trolls! will _instantly_ add Troll Madness to the
ongoing multiball, and act as if it had just started. All lost balls are
returned (and, depending, you may get more balls), the ball saver comes back
on, and the Super Jackpot value increases.
Like AFM's Total Annihilation, watch the display at the end of Multiball
Madness to find out how you did. There is a Master of Madness award for the
highest-scoring Multiball Madness round. If the display reads "Multiball
Madness Champion" instead of "Multiball Madness Total", well, congratulations.
Once you have played Multiball Madness, you may not play it again until after
you have played Royal Madness (see below) by lighting all 5 Madness lights.
This appears to be a machine-dependent feature; some have reported being able
to play Multiball Madness more than once before Royal Madness. This is a
little confusing, and makes for interesting strategy. If you could play
Multiball Madness more than once, you might prefer lots of multiballs for
smaller jackpots, especially if you are playing to destroy all 6 Castles.
If you can only play Multiball Madness once, it makes sense to wait until
you have as many Madness lights flashing as possible. I'm not sure what the
default behavior is.
(100,000 is a jackpot now? Man.)
Royal Madness
-------------
Royal Madness is lit at Merlin's Saucer when you have lit all 5 of the
Madness lights, and have already played Multiball Madness. Royal Madness is
a single-ball round where the goal is to make all 10 shots before time runs
out. If you manage to make all 10 shots, you are immediately rewarded with
an Extra Ball.
For some reason, Royal Madness gives the player a brief ball saver, even
though only one ball is in play. Go figure. Take advantage.
The timer is set to 20 seconds; making any shot resets the timer (and you'll
hear it count down from 5 seconds left). To complete the round, 2 shots are
required to each ramp, 2 to the orbits (either is OK), 2 to the Catapult,
and 1 to each Troll. Additionally, the Lock shot stays lit; it will award
one shot, starting with the Catapult. The Catapult Standup counts as a shot
to the Catapult, so it is possible to finish the difficult Catapult
requirement with one solid shot.
The first shot of the 2 required (or the first Troll) scores 200K and awards
+1 of whatever award is given for completing that shot in regular play
(+1 Catapult Slam, etc.). The second shot awards a Jackpot, whose value
seems to be dependent on your performance in Multiball Madness (the Jackpot
seems to be about one-tenth of the total from Multiball Madness). I have
seen this value as low as 300K and as high as 3M or more.
Orbit shots careen back around, so watch out!
Note that you _can_ use Troll Bombs during Royal Madness. Although it is
relatively easy to hit the Trolls anyway, you may want to keep this in mind
if you have 2 seconds left on the clock and need a shot, or the Troll is the
final shot of Royal Madness (unlikely, but possible).
Royal Madness ends when you finish the 10 shots and collect the Extra Ball,
or when time runs out. Either way, the process of setting up Multiball
Madness begins anew.
Battle for the Kingdom
----------------------
If all 6 blue lights (Master of Trolls, Defender of Damsels, Patron of the
Peasants, Catapult Ace, Joust Champion, and Castle Crusher) have been lit,
Battle for the Kingdom is lit at the Main Entrance. You can only start BfK
in single-ball play.
BfK is a 4-ball multiball with about a 15-20 second ball saver to start.
You must hit each of the following shots (all are lit to start):
Catapult, both ramps, both orbits (separately), both Trolls, Lock.
Each of these shots awards a 2.5M "Battle Jackpot" -- note that you must hit
the Lock as well as the Troll blocking it. You _can_ use Troll Bombs here,
and it wouldn't be a bad idea, since you want to get all these shots as
quickly as possible.
If all shots are completed, the lowest blue light will flash; this is your
cue to start pounding away at the Castle (the Gate will be down). Each shot
to the Gate awards a 2.5M Battle Jackpot and advances the blue lights.
After 6 shots, the white Battle for the Kingdom light will flash. Hit the
Gate once more for a 5M "Battle Super Jackpot". The gate will raise, and the
red arrow toward the Main Entrance will flash.
I wonder what you're supposed to do next. Do it, and you will have won the
Battle for the Kingdom and a 50 million bonus! And pat yourself on the
back, because it's quite hard, much harder than Rule the Universe!
Word of warning: BfK has probably not yet been programmed in full. In other
words, don't expect the fanfare of completing AFM's Rule the Universe.
When BfK ends, everything resets. In order to make it to BfK a second time,
you will need 20 Trolls, 6 each of Damsel Save, Peasant Revolt, Catapult
Slam, and Joust Victory, and _all 6 Castles_ a second time. The Castle
Crusher requirement seems to be machine-dependent; on other settings, you
only need to defeat the King to complete it.
End-of-ball Bonus
-----------------
The only bonus is a switch bonus, which is added to throughout the ball. A
lengthy ball can advance this bonus to 400K or so; with a high bonus
multiplier, the total bonus can be over 10 million. I do not know the
maximum bonus multiplier, but it is likely the same as AFM's (250x).
Extra Balls
-----------
Extra Balls can be lit by:
Destroying Castles (default 2)
Super Jackpot in Castle Multiball
(adjustable) 10 Hurry-Ups and 50 Hurry-Ups (good lord!)
Merlin's Magic random award
Lit Extra Balls are collected at Merlin's Saucer, and remain lit between
balls. Completing Royal Madness will immediately award an Extra Ball.
Cows and Other Easter Eggs
--------------------------
Cows abound. A cow on the backglass. Hurl a cow at the Castle in the
Catapult Video Mode. The peasants complain that the King has "taken our
cows!" The default Grand Champion (and Multiball Madness Champ) initials
are MOO!
Look for Barnyard Madness. Think of something difficult that the game is
challenging you to do... complete it and you will have access to Barnyard
Madness. Chickens! Horses! Pigs! Oh my!
I don't know of any other Easter Eggs at this time -- let me know if you find
anything worth adding here ... find a DOHO yet, anyone?
Entering Initials
-----------------
Besides the regular high score board, Medieval Madness allows you to enter
your initials for:
- Master of Madness: highest total score in one Multiball Madness
- Master of Trolls: highest Troll total in game
Neither of these awards an additional credit.
You do not get to enter your initials for finishing Battle for the Kingdom
(at least in v0.5).
Notes on Strategy
-----------------
Try to get as many of the Madnesses lit for Multiball Madness before
starting it. If you are stuck with a lousy Multiball Madness, you may want
to shoot for the Castle instead. Those Gate hits are worth a lot!
If Multiball Madness becomes lit, be sure to avoid Merlin's Saucer until you
have enough Madnesses lit that it becomes worthwhile. The ramps are the
easiest to complete, although the orbit is also fairly easy.
If you've got an Extra Ball lit at Merlin's Saucer and a lousy Multiball
Madness lit there as well, you've got a tough decision to make. Don't forget
that you can still get VERY good points out of Multiball Madness by
concentrating instead on the Castle. (See what Greed will get you?)
Starting Trolls! along with Multiball Madness is one of the best things you
can do. It is much easier to finish Trolls! with 2 or 3 balls than with 1,
and the benefits for finishing Trolls! during the multiball outweigh the
benefit of starting the multiball with Troll Madness.
Be sure to get as many of the bonuses out of Royal Madness as you can,
since this makes getting to BfK that much easier.
Don't forget about the Castles! Since you're much less likely to complete
or advance toward a Castle by luck or balls bouncing around during a
multiball, you really have to concentrate on Castles often if you want to
get through them all (especially the later Castles which require lots of
hits). As on AFM, a good tactic is to start multiball (the regular
multiball is much easier to start) and bang at the Castle all the way
through. Since you can move right along after destroying a Castle, a good
multiball can net you 2 or even 3 Castles.
During Multiball Madness, both orbits and the right ramp feed the bumpers.
This is an excellent way of "parking" one or more balls so you can get a
clean shot at the Double Super Jackpot, especially if some (or all) are
lit for Super Jackpots themselves. Note that if Troll Madness is running,
the Left Troll blocks this shot! Get rid of the Troll right away when this
happens (you may even want to use a Troll Bomb if you're desperate).
My personal best is 308 million. 1 billion is certainly an acheivable score
on this game, since it is significantly higher-scoring than either Arabian
Nights or Scared Stiff. It is very much lower-scoring than Attack From Mars.
Help!
-----
I would like to include more of the game's great quotes in this rulesheet.
I would equally like to _hear_ more of the game's great quotes by playing it
in a location without a loud redemption machine next to it. If you know a
quote which you think belongs here, email me. Also email with comments and
corrections; although I have fixed a few things here, I'm sure there are
many more wonderful pieces of misinformation.
Special Thanks
--------------
Thanks to Jef Lepine and Henry Rieke for providing the means by which I get
the chance to play Medieval Madness.
Thanks also to Jim Hicks and Dave Edson, each of whose Medieval Madness web
sites helped me to jog my memory about a few of the more obscure playfield
rules and names. Visit them for Madness pictures and more information.
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/7856/madness.html (Jim Hicks')
http://www.replayamusements.com/medieval.htm (Dave Edson's)
Thanks for comments and corrections:
fuzzy for some more game credits
Brian Cheatwood for many quotes
Robert Deloura for gameplay help and quotes galore
Koi Morris for general fixes and comments
Jeremy Edmonds for quotes and corrections with
help from his own, personal Medieval Madness. (Lucky guy...)
Mark Phaedrus for some corrections
Thanks for reading all the way through (Again!). Enjoy the game! See you at
PAPA 6 :)
