Clone Drone in the Danger Zone – Highway Through The Danger Zone

So you got harvested, and now your mind’s in some sort of combat drone, you’re doomed to die to entertain other, non-uploaded robots, and they gave you a nondescript energy sword. Great. Here’s how to make the most of your short existence in gladiatorial combat!

You’re A Robot Now: The Basics

All credit goes to Sintag!

So you got uploaded, handed a lightsaber energy sword, and there’s a blue guy with another laser sword charging right at you. Don’t panic!

• The game will provide you the basics of movement and combat, so there’s not much this guide will have to say here.
• For brevity’s sake: Kill everything that isn’t you, don’t die, upgrade, repeat.
• Enemies die if they lose both arms or both legs, take damage to the head, get bisected, or are otherwise unable to continue fighting. This applies to you, too.
• You can hit Shift to Dash. Dashing consumes Energy (the bar at the bottom you’ve no doubt noticed) and can be used to close the gap, make a gap, or to just move a bit quicker. All actions are interrupted and you cannot take any other actions while Dashing, however. Use it wisely lest you Dash into an arrow face-first.

It’s really that simple!

You’re Still A Robot: Basic Upgrades and Tactics

You survived a round, got back on the elevator, and there’s a bot with a grabby arm, a weldy arm, and a giant monitor blaring upgrade available at you. You’ve got options, but you only get one point per level survived. I’ll detail the weaponry/fire breath in the next section, but here’s everything else.

• Energy Capacity / Recharge: Increases your Energy Gauge and lets it recharge quicker. Very boring, but extremely practical, especially if you use a bow-heavy style or use the jetpack a lot.
• Kick: It’s right in the name. Kicking knocks opponents over and sends them flying, leaving them helpless to a coup de grace. If, of course, you’re not kicking them into lava, spike traps, saw blades, or each other. It’s simple, it’s versatile, it’s awesome. You can upgrade it further after clearing the Kick-Only Challenge, granting the Power Kick.
• Get Up: Lets you, well, get up faster. Trust me, this is more useful than it sounds, thank me later should a Spider-Tron or Kickbot connect.
• Armor: Takes a hit to a limb, knocking your would-be assailant away, then breaks. Does not cover your head or the torso, however.
• Repair: So you got hit, but only came away with a missing arm or leg. You can spend your upgrade point to get it back. As a bonus, if you have Armor, it’ll be fully repaired as well, free of charge.
• Clone: Creates a clone drone to send into the danger zone should you fall. It’s an extra life. You can only have five Clones tops, after which you won’t be able to send any more. Useful for making that one mistake you make non-fatal.
• Jet Pack: Replaces your basic dash with something akin to a sprint button. Drains Energy to use. Can be upgraded to go faster (Jet Pack II).

Now as for general advice and tips:

• Never take your eye off archers. While losing track of any opponent is a dangerous thing to do, this goes extra for the guys who can put an energy arrow into your back and kill you or hack off a limb. If you don’t know what an Archer is getting up to, make it priority one to get back in the know.
• Prioritize targets. What this spectrum is for you and I is likely going to differ, but my list is to first cut down any weaker threats or anything that can bowl you over; Even a Mark 1 Sword Bot can get lucky and take you out if you’re preoccupied elsewhere. Then, take out any ranged attackers. Then, clean up the rest. If your opinion is different, hey, that’s your opinion, man.
• Anything big or capable of setting you on fire is a major threat, since any hit they land can quickly turn into a fatal wound. It’s best to not approach anything with flaming weaponry and instead focus them down at range, or if you must close in, kick them over.

Stick ‘Em With The Pointy End: Weapons

This section’s going to be divided according to weapon order. So the first weapon is the…

Sword

The Sword is your first weapon. It’s simple, it’s highly versatile, and it can be used if you’re missing an arm.

Advantages

• Fast swing speed, little startup time, fast recovery
• Can deflect other swords and, with upgrades, arrows
• Can be set on fire from the word ‘go’, dealing damage to nearby parts
• Can be used if you lose an arm, unlike other weapons
• It’s a lightsaber energy sword

Disadvantages

• Can be parried by other sword robots
• Short range
• Can be knocked aside

Available Upgrades:

Anything in bold is my thoughts on the upgrade in question.

• Fire Sword I/II: Spreads Fire, which can deal additional damage around the area where your swing connects.
  Not my first priority, but it’s still pretty great.
• Deflect Arrows I/II/III: Deflects arrows in a 90, then 180 degree arc in front of you. Maxing it lets you aim your deflections. If your sword is on fire, any deflections will be set on fire for the return trip. Will not work if you’re currently attacking, however.
  Even just investing in the first instance of this upgrade gives you a safety net against Archers. Comes recommended highly.

Your only ranged option might be a bit old fashioned, but bow to the…

Bow

Drains Energy to fire slow-moving arrows that behave like a sword strike.

Advantages

• Can hit at range, obviously enough
• Can be upgraded to slice nearly everything in half with some wide arrows
• Good for severing limbs, especially with wider arrows

Disadvantages

• Draws from your Energy supply
• Slow travel time; Leading shots becomes crucial at longer range
• Can be deflected and sent right back to you
• Depending on where the arrow hits, it might not be a kill even if it hits the torso
• Requires both arms to wield

Available Upgrades:

• Arrow Width I/II/III: Increases how wide the arrow is. This is essential as armor thickens. Can make arrows easier to deflect, however.
• Fire Arrows I/II: Set your arrows on fire, damaging the area around the impact point. Unlocked via completing the Endless Bow Challenge. Mitigates the risk of not landing kills and can, again, turn a sever into a kill. Not my top priority but it’s certainly up there.
• Aim Time I/II: Slow down time and aim, giving you room to breathe, lead the shot, or line it up. Consumes Energy while active. Kind of impractical, in my opinion, unless you’re in the Endless Bow Challenge.

Your second melee option? Drop the…

Hammer

The Hammer is pure brute force, great at demolishing opponents.

Advantages

• Long reach, helped by a potentially massive head
• Great at wrecking armor, as even if the target survives, odds are it’ll be knocked flat from the sheer force
• Good at destroying limbs, also

Disadvantages

• Slow startup
• Punishes missing more than other weapons
• Cannot deflect projectiles
• Requires both arms to wield

Available Upgrades:

• Hammer Size I/II/III: Increases the size of the hammer’s head, which increases the area it can smash. This and Fire Hammer are the only upgrades available, so there’s no reason not to take these if you’re lugging a Hammer.
• Fire Hammer: Sets the hammer’s head on fire, damaging areas around where it smashed. Unlocked via completing the Endless Hammer Challenge. Again, you’ve no reason not to take this Upgrade. Even if it is a tad overkill.

The fourth weapon, added recently, is

The Spear

Advantages

• Can easily target specific points, so it can more easily ignore armor
• Long reach
• Decently fast
• Includes a Shield as an upgrade. Shield’s properties:
• Shield deflects all incoming attacks and projectiles
• Has a unique Shield Bash, which is a Kick with some lateral coverage

Disadvantages

• Difficult to kill with
• Aiming can be tricky
• Shield Bash costs Energy
• Shield Deflections cannot be aimed
• Shield sans Shield Bash upgrade prevents Kicking

Available Upgrades:

• Shield
  Get this ASAP, the Shield is pretty much what makes the Spear something different than ‘Worse Sword’.
• Shield Bash: Lets you use the Shield Bash.
  Also get this ASAP, as the Bash is surprisingly useful in spite of draining Energy per use.
• Fire Spear: Ignites the tip of your spear.
  Unlocked via completing the Endless Spear Challenge

  Mitigates the Spear’s main drawback, being that it’s finicky to kill with. Get this after getting the Shield stuff.

This next attack isn’t really a weapon. It’s hardly even practical. But I love it for sheer fun.

Flame Breath

Unlocked by beating the Inferno Challenge

Advantages

• Can be used to set melee enemies on fire without risking a swing
• OK let’s be real here, you’re basically becoming a dragon, what part of that sentence doesn’t appeal to you?

Disadvantages

• Consumes 1 Bar of Energy to activate, then rapidly drains your remaining supply
• Short range
• You have to beat the Inferno Challenge to use it, that Challenge is pretty difficult.

Would-Be Psychotic Robotics: The Enemies [Part 1]

For most enemies, four variants exist: Mark I, Mark II, Mark III, and Mark IV.

• Mark I: Blue. Simple AI, tends to make dumb decisions.
  Can still kill you if you get caught unaware or get overconfident.
• Mark II: Red. Actually competent.
  Can pose a threat to the unaware or reckless.
• Mark III: Purple. Quite cunning, if still fairly predictable.
  Very dangerous, this is where the wheat and chaff split off.
• Mark IV: Black with glowing orange. Very smart.
  Has burning weapons as a rule. Do not engage up close.

The first type of robot you typically fight are…

Sword Robots

Their modus operandi is in the name right there.

• Mark I’s are basically this game’s Goomba. They run at you and slice vertically and that’s all they do. They’ll only pose a threat if you’re either extremely new or knocked down, and are otherwise very easy to slaughter.
• Mark II’s can knock your sword aside, and are generally a bit more skilled in swordfighting, but that’s all they got going for them.
• Mark III’s are actually dangerous, as they typically attack from the side and while jumping, and can deflect arrows right back at you.
• Mark IV’s are Mark III’s, but with Fire Swords, so even a scrape will likely turn lethal. Don’t give them any chance to connect, and try to finish the fight in one swing if possible.

Sword Robots are generally easy to kill, though the Mark III’s and IV’s can pose a serious hazard due to forcing close combat. Don’t let them stick you, remember to deflect their swords (don’t attack if they’re swinging), and you should be okay. Or, kick them and chop them apart.

Your next encounter, generally speaking, are…

Archer Robots

These guys shoot arrows of varying degrees of lethality, and the higher tiers can be a pain in the neck to deal with. Note that they will gladly shoot through their buddies if it means getting a good shot on you too, though.

• Mark I stands still, jumping on occasion, and fires weaker arrows, but what makes them oddly dangerous is their completely erratic firing rate. It’s best not to approach these guys unless you can deflect projectiles, as their arrows can still one-shot you.
• Mark II’s are ironically a bit less dangerous due to the removal of that quirk, but they’re packing bigger arrows and generally won’t spray and pray them, preferring to hit where you are.
• Mark III’s actually lead the target, have the widest arrows of the lot, and even carry a sword for backup. Once they switch to the sword, they generally won’t switch back to the bow, instead becoming Mark III Sword Robots in all but name.
• Mark IV’s are the same as Mark III’s, but their arrows are on freaking FIRE. Again, even a scrape shot can become lethal, so don’t let them hit you.

As dangerous as Archers are, they all possess the same Achilles’ heel: Deflect Projectiles II. This upgrade neuters their main mode of attack and even makes it deadly for other robots on purpose.

Hammer Bots

Big, ungainly, and cumbersome, but capable of knocking you flat even if you have armor, and heavily armored themselves. These guys are the walls of the enemies. Don’t get too close and end them before they can swing.

• Mark I’s possess a small hammer, relatively speaking. They otherwise pretty much behave like Sword Robots, so the same strategies apply.
• Mark II’s have a bigger hammer head. Otherwise, same rules; Keep your distance and try to make your first strike a kill.
• Mark III’s have the biggest of hammer heads, in a clear effort to compensate for something. Third verse, same as the first.
• Mark IV’s have noticed this whole ‘agility’ problem and now possess jetpacks to rapidly close the gap. Oh, and as is customary for Mark IV robots, their hammer’s on fire. Though, again, bit overkill.

Hammer Bots are slow, but the Hammer, as noted, is stupid powerful. If you’re on the wrong end of that hammer, the best you can hope for is a broken limb or getting knocked flat on your tuckus. Take advantage of their sloth and hit them with a bow, or kick them over if you’re going to go for melee. If you’re really not confident in your ability to strike first, Get Up and Armor can let you survive a smack or two before going down for good.

Metallic Maladies – The Enemies [Part 2]

Spider-Tron

Crowd Pleaser

Unique

• 5000 is smaller compared to it’s bigger brother, only fires a single bomb at any given time, and has one weakpoint to hit and destroy.
• 6000 is too far off the ground to strike with melee weaponry normally, so cut out the legs. It also fires 5 bombs per shot, and has two weakpoints to attack.

Spider-Tron will be content to sit still and rain high explosives on you. These bombs can do damage and inflict knockdown. Lucky you, this also applies to your enemies, so if you’re getting tailed by a horde, let Spider-Tron assist you some in dealing with them. Other than that, anything Fire can do additional damage to their chassis, and Get Up can mitigate some of the threat their bombs pose.

Jetpack Bots

Rocketmaaan

These guys are just Mark II Sword Robots but they also have Jetpacks, anything that apples to Mark II Swords applies here.

KickBots

AKA Bruce Lee

They rush forward, they kick you. Quite hard, actually, so stay away from any environmental hazards if you can help it. Uniquely, removing a leg kills them instead of crippling them. Get Up can shorten the time spent downed, but it’s best to never close in against these guys if you can help it.

Spear Bots

Stab, stab, stab

• Mark I has no shield. All it does is try to stick you with the pointy end.
• Mark II DOES have a shield, and it’ll try sticking you with the pointy end. And bashing.
• Mark III has just the standard AI of Mark IIIs, i.e; DANGEROUS.
• Gee… I wonder if Mark IV lit their spear on fire?