Firepower Tactics and Strategies

[Reagan Dow]

On iOS just about any hard plunge will land in the "E" lane so make sure it is open.
In addition almost all kickouts from the top lock will hit the "R" lane.
Throw the ball up there as much as possible to get that multiplyer up.
This is what I have done to get my best scoring games.

My best so far is a little over 1.5 million. Really fun table.

Wow! That's an impressive score for that table. My best is a little of 750,000. Roughly half of your score. You just killed my ego! Sigh Looks like I have a new goal

 

[Reagan Dow]

It's like I'm posting from your account. I prefer pinball when it's a game that suits "fast and loose" play (I learned that term while watching this video of F-14 Tomcat at a PAPA tourney) because it rewards reflexes and single-mindedness over planning and a steady hand.

In fact, that'd be the next game I would love to see on PA. Just brutal. There's no point in learning how to get good at pinball on an easy table. To paraphrase what those commentators said... this table (looks like it) scares the **** out of me.

Good pickup on the S. Ritchie parallel w/ TNG anf Firepower. They feel just as harsh as each other, but never feels like the table is cheating (actually, maybe a little moreso on TNG than FP).

GoodGod this particular table was punishing. One never sees Such quick drains with pro players. Makes High Speed look like a walk in the park!

 

[Extork]

so...... what is a good strategy for this table then?

stay up top, get F_I_R_E as much as possible, shoot only forehands?
it's not really reached any consensus in this thread so far, and this game is in my sights for the next week or so.

Here's a little tidbit I've learned...
If you're 1 shot away from starting multiball, make sure the inlanes are lit. Well, within reason. Like, if FIRE isn't lit up, and none of the 3 POWER targets have been hit, then just start multiball.

While you've got the top ball locked, shooting that spinner seems to really rack up the points. But I don't think it's as important as just starting multiball.

 

[Zaphod77]

F-14 tomcat is not that punishing unless it's been PAPAed up. the kickback is easily relit, the right outlane is narrow, and the only real sucker shot is striking the two center kill targets dead center, which will, as you'd expect, send the ball screaming between the flippers. Elementary physics there.

When it comes to TPA, I expect to be able to manhandle it with nudges that I could never do reliably in real life. But when it's not papatized, people have rolled the game in real life. in fact in league finals, TWO players rolled it.

 

[Reagan Dow]

Hu

Wow! That's an impressive score for that table. My best is a little of 750,000. Roughly half of your score. You just killed my ego! Sigh Looks like I have a new goal

 

[DanBradford]

Here's a little tidbit I've learned... If you're 1 shot away from starting multiball, make sure the inlanes are lit. Well, within reason. Like, if FIRE isn't lit up, and none of the 3 POWER targets have been hit, then just start multiball. While you've got the top ball locked, shooting that spinner seems to really rack up the points. But I don't think it's as important as just starting multiball.

thanks for the tip

 

[vikingerik]

I've found that the safest way to hit the 6 front targets is to shoot at the left bank from the right flipper, and vice versa.

This varies for every one of the 6 individual targets.

From a catch on the right flipper to 6 is almost a 100% safe return to the right flipper.

From a catch on the right flipper to 5 is almost 100% deadly, since the rebound goes left sling - right sling - left outlane.

A rolling shot from the right flipper to 2 or 3 mostly gives a safe rebound towards the flippers, at least if you can slap save on your device. A rolling shot from the right flipper to 1 is not safe as the rebound points to the left outlane.

I don't remember all the combinations offhand, but they are consistent and can be worked out. Shots from a catch or a roll are very different and you must not conflate them with each other.

 

[vikingerik]

My general strategy goes something like this:

Top priority: whenever the kickback is unlit, fix that, by completing either 1-2-3 or 4-5-6.

Next: whenever you're down to one or maybe two targets remaining, aim for those to light a lock and reset them. Don't aim for the targets when they're all fresh, you'll collect some by random bounces.

Next: whenever FIRE is lit and only one POWER target remains, go for that, to progress towards the special. (Except that the bottommost POWER target can't be hit from a catch, only from a rolling shot.)

Next: shoot for the spinner and FIRE, to progress towards the extra ball at 5x.

Locks: Shoot them only when all three are lit. Don't bother before that, as random rebounds may get them for you.

Multiball: this is what you do. Complete 1-6 to relight a lock. Lose one of the three balls (because you need one physically in the trough.) Lock a ball. The game will replace the locked ball with a new one in the plunger lane... which you can leave there as a backup! Play with the remaining ball, and if it drains, then you can plunge that backup ball to keep going. When in this "backup ball" situation, don't lock the one ball remaining in play, or else you'll have to plunge the backup ball. This is essentially a backdoor way of getting another virtual extra ball.

 

[Fungi]

My general strategy goes something like this:

Top priority: whenever the kickback is unlit, fix that, by completing either 1-2-3 or 4-5-6.

Next: whenever you're down to one or maybe two targets remaining, aim for those to light a lock and reset them. Don't aim for the targets when they're all fresh, you'll collect some by random bounces.

Next: whenever FIRE is lit and only one POWER target remains, go for that, to progress towards the special. (Except that the bottommost POWER target can't be hit from a catch, only from a rolling shot.)

Next: shoot for the spinner and FIRE, to progress towards the extra ball at 5x.

Locks: Shoot them only when all three are lit. Don't bother before that, as random rebounds may get them for you.

Multiball: this is what you do. Complete 1-6 to relight a lock. Lose one of the three balls (because you need one physically in the trough.) Lock a ball. The game will replace the locked ball with a new one in the plunger lane... which you can leave there as a backup! Play with the remaining ball, and if it drains, then you can plunge that backup ball to keep going. When in this "backup ball" situation, don't lock the one ball remaining in play, or else you'll have to plunge the backup ball. This is essentially a backdoor way of getting another virtual extra ball.

Mind... Blown!

 

[JefferyD]

Multiball: this is what you do. Complete 1-6 to relight a lock. Lose one of the three balls (because you need one physically in the trough.) Lock a ball. The game will replace the locked ball with a new one in the plunger lane... which you can leave there as a backup! Play with the remaining ball, and if it drains, then you can plunge that backup ball to keep going. When in this "backup ball" situation, don't lock the one ball remaining in play, or else you'll have to plunge the backup ball. This is essentially a backdoor way of getting another virtual extra ball.

Firepower is probably my favorite TPA table, and have never been able to figure out what was going on with that weird extra ball deal. Thought it was a random quirk of some kind. I read this, played and got the multiball right out of the chute only to lose all 3 in a tragic left lane, right lane, straight down the middle massacre, so your advice remains unexploited, but I'll get someday. Thanks!

 

[Fungi]

...multiball right out of the chute only to lose all 3 in a tragic left lane, right lane, straight down the middle massacre, ...

Hah! Been there done that!

 

[vikingerik]

a tragic left lane, right lane, straight down the middle massacre

Was the kickback lit? It should be, that's always a higher priority than starting multiball.

And I bet the right-side drain was the ball that came out of the right lock. There's about a 50% chance that an eject from there drops right down that outlane if you don't nudge. I don't have a system for saving it but can do it by instinct most of the time.

As for the center, slap save. Harder to do on touch screens than with gamepad or keyboard input, but that's a critical skill across all TPA tables.

Yes, surviving the multiball start in Firepower is a challenging art in itself, but can be done with skill and experience.

 

[Slam23]

Hi Viking,
Have you seen shutyertrap's idea of playing "a table of the week"? He chose Genie (ad random I might add, otherwise I would have questioned his sanity ) Would be fun if you joined in and shared some wisdom with us earthbound players. Genie is driving us nuts over there!
Thanks for sharing the virtual extra ball trick, that's way cool, hadn't thought of that.
Slam23

 

[JefferyD]

Was the kickback lit? It should be, that's always a higher priority than starting multiball.

I try to keep that lit, but when I'm on a ball 3 I tend to just go for multiball if it's available. It always feels like a victory when I get that going, even if the balls conga line off the stage. I suppose I should get over that, huh? The primitive portion of my brain (also the largest portion) hates to get so close to all that action and not see it happen. Feels like I'm wasting a quarter!

My experience with the 1-2-3-4-5-6 targets falls in line with your tips, but 2 and 5 — particularly 5 — give me a lot of straight back down the middle action. I have better luck with slow rolling shots rather than aiming out of a cradle, tho.

 

[vikingerik]

2 and 5 — particularly 5 — give me a lot of straight back down the middle action. I have better luck with slow rolling shots rather than aiming out of a cradle, tho.

They're all about slap saving. Any table with such targets near the middle becomes much easier with precise keyboard or gamepad controls for slap saving. To be honest, touch screen controls really just can't compete there.

Slow rolling shots aren't better than precise cradle shots. They feel so because your expectations are lower and you notice and mind less when you miss, but they're not as accurate.

Slam23, I did see the Genie thread. But there's already great strategy stuff in the Genie forum, started by Tann. I chimed in there too. Just go read that stuff instead of having a bunch of 'earthbound' players try to reinvent it.

 

[Slam23]

Hi Viking,
Good point, just curious if you had some new insights. I'm an avid reader of those strategy threads, also started one or two of them and/or added to them. I even mentioned the great save vs. not-save shot chart that Tann made. There's a lot of flow vs. control arguments flying around now in the Genie thread, good reading I must say, that's a subject that never gets old.

 

[superdan]

I wish I read this thread along time ago. Vikingerik, your advice post is like money in the back pocket...awesome to find and makes playing this addicting firepower game even more fun.