Ghost Rider table tips

[skidmarkgn]

Since I have only... for lack of a better term, mastered a limited amount of tables I'm only going to do write ups for individual tables after I feel confident enough in my skills. This time, it's Ghost Rider.

The Ghost Rider table is, in my opinion, the easiest table in the bunch and a great place to develop your skills.

The Ghost Rider table doesn't have an all important crucial shot like the Wolverine table that needs to be mastered but it certainly helps to be able to hit the sea-saw (on the far right side of the table above the launcher) via the left and right orbit on a regular basis.

The orbits and sea-saw:

probably the most important skill to have on this table is being able to hit the left and right orbits (the two outside lanes at the far right and left of the table) from the hold position at will. putting the ball across the sea-saw -not under it- is the first step to starting a mission and hitting the orbits is required for 3 of the 5 table missions. Hitting the left orbit and going under the sea-saw is also the first step to starting the hell-uv-a-multiball mode which lets you exploit a ton of easy points.

Hitting the orbits isn't too terribly tough at all. From the hold position just let the ball roll to the tip of the flipper and shoot.

Getting 100 million + points:

While there are those that scoff at a measly 100 million points the majority of us see it as a respectable goal so I'll use it as a benchmark for high scores. The best and funnest way to achieve this milestone is by simply doing all the table missions, each one gives a huge reward when you finish it and none of them are overly difficult, they can be kind of confusing at first though.

The next best way to grind some easy points is exploiting the hell-uv-a-multiball mode, which is uncharacteristically easy to initiate on this table.

Starting a mission:

Starting a mission is a two step process. First, you have to shoot the ball across the sea-saw via the right or left orbit, note that the ball must go across the sea-saw so you need to hit the end that's touching the ground, if the end nearest the launcher is touching the ground then shoot the right orbit, if it's not then shoot the left. After crossing the sea-saw the word "villain" will be flashing under Lucifer. Hitting the ball into the pit of fire will allow you to select a villain, aka mission, with the shoulder buttons and x button

The Orb:

The first mission I'll describe is "the Orb". Hitting him requires you to shoot the ball through one of the orbits, which one depends on the position of the sea-saw. If the sea-saw is touching the ground near The Orb's feet then you must first hit the right orbit, if it is acting as a ramp for the ball to bean his head then you must hit the left orbit first. From there it's just a matter of alternating the shots. The appropriate lane will be highlighted with flashing arrows so you don't have to worry about keeping track of your shots.

The one thing to keep in mind during this mission is to try and keep the ball away from the middle area of the table because The Orb will zap it, which may cause you to lose control and have to waste time readjusting to regain your ball control.

Death Race:

This mission had me stumped for a while. You'll notice that the spiral tower that the launcher shoots the ball into will have a light flashing by one of the three holes, that's your goal. Hitting the right stunt ramp (the one directly below Ghost Rider and next to the "jump" ramp) will bring the ball back into the launcher. Before you do that you want to make sure to note which hole is flashing, if it's the bottom hole then you only want to pull the launcher back to about the first notch on the right side of the lane, if it's the middle hole then anywhere between the first and second to last notch will work and if it's the top pull it to the second to last, pulling it all the way will most likely cause the ball to deflect over the top hole and fall into the middle. Three hits and you win.

Scarecrow:

this mission consists solely of hitting the highlighted orbit. Whichever one has the flashing arrows is the one you want to shoot. The only difficult-ish part of this mission is the final hit. The birds will pick up the ball and fly in a small circular pattern above the center of the table and you have to use the shotgun to hit them. It's not too hard but the traditional view 1 on the table can make judging it a tad deceiving. I suggest waiting until they're closest to the gun to up your chances of a hit, just be patient and they'll line up eventually.

The other thing to keep in mind (at least for me) is remembering to NOT tilt the table. Sometimes I get so caught up in maintaining the hold position through bump passes that I forget that you have to give the table some time to "heal" after the second pass.

Mephisto:

This one is still a bit hazy for me. I know that you have to alternate shooting the left and right stunt ramps (the left stunt ramp is the loop-de-loop in between Lucifer and the left orbit and the right stunt ramp is directly below Ghost Rider next to the right orbit) but I'm not sure how to tell which one you need to begin with. I know that the successful shot will usually be flashing but I have failed the mission before when I though I was winning. I usually just start with the right ramp and alternate. Alternating successfully five times will win the mission for you.

Zadkiel:

The final mission on the table is surprisingly easy. Zadkiel will fly down to the jump ramp and wait for you to kill him. The first time I tried this mission I ran out of time trying to figure it out. First, you have to ignite the ball, I originally thought shooting it into Lucifer's crotch was how it's done... after all, it is a pit of fire right? Wrong! To ignite the ball you have to first, make sure the sea saw is touching the ground nearest the launcher, then hit the left orbit. This will roll the ball into the "damned soul" area and ignite it. Once it's ignited you have about ten seconds to shoot the left stunt ramp, instead of going all the way through the loop-de-loop the ball will shoot out and bap Zadkiel. Hitting him three times with a flaming ball wins the mission, gives you about 60 million points total and a trophy (as long as you have defeated all of the other villains and not just fought them)!

NOTE - failing this mission will reset the ENTIRE table, meaning you have to start again from scratch

By the time you're done with all five mission you'll easily break the 100 million point barrier.

Hell-uv-a-multiball:

The multiball mode for the Ghost Rider table is absurdly easy to initiate and can be exploited for a ton of points. Hitting the left orbit when the sea-saw is touching the ground nearest the launcher will cause the ball to go into the "damned soul" area. There is a flipper in this area that shoots the ball down. If you hit the ball with this flipper before it rolls out it will go into the "ball lock" lane. Try storing two balls (huh huh) in this lane. When one or two balls are locked you can hit the target that the balls are leaning against with the left flipper. shoot the ball just before it reaches the tip of the flipper to hit the target. Hitting the target will unlock all the balls and start the hell-uv-a-multiball mode. During this mode you should have two goals: 1 - hit as many of the jackpot ramps as you can, they'll be the ramps with a flashing light under them. 2 - try and get the balls into the shotgun in the lower left side of the table. Lighting the lane to enter the shotgun will most likely be (as far as I know) random, when the word "hell fire" located under the gun is flashing try and hit the left stunt ramp to load the balls. This will accomplish two things, the first is a trophy. Second, if you shoot one of the four targets near the right stunt ramp with the gun, it's worth 2 million points.

I'm getting pretty close to being where I want to be with the Spiderman and Thor tables, hopefully I'll be able to do a write up for one, or both, of those soon

[Piggie_Pie]

Your pain and hard work has paid off... good job on the Pinball skillz and thanks for the tips!

[Wade_VC]

Again, just an exceptional write-up on this table, and I will indeed be using these as a guide.

[Wade_VC]

Man-o-man...I have read and re-read this guide, as well as a few others out there, and this friggin' Mephisto mission is just a bastard. No other way to put it than that. I can complete all the other missions no problems, but Mephisto just remains a thorn in my side.

If I can ever figure this damn thing out, then I may have a shot at your score skidmark...but for now I am hung up on this one mission.

[skidmarkgn]

Since the Zen 2 update I have had a HUGE problem with the Scarecrow mission. At least half the times I hit a successful shot through the left orbit into the bumpers it spits the ball straight down the right outlane. It seems to happen more often on the Vita than the PS3 (for me at least) and is making the table far more frustrating that it should be... a successful shot should NEVER cause a ball out. Zen 2 is proving to be as much a curse as a blessing.