Battle Strategies

Below are a few strategies that apply to pretty much every mode of battle. These are designed to help you no matter what mode you play.

Items - The Tools of the Master. Get the twin blasters before anyone else. These are always the first item to appear in the match. It takes a little while, so expect a wait. In each arena, there are 5 locations where items appear--know these. They are always in the center, or in the center of each cardinal direction (N, S, E, W). The twin blasters are easier to aim(especially with the arwing) and do twice as much damage. Using footmen, whose weapon is more powerful and fires faster, this can provide for some heavy destructive force. Next, get the bombs whenever possible. They can drain much life from a vehicle, and bring a footman down to next-to-none. Note, bombs do not seem to kill people, unless they have VERY low life. Usually it takes them down to that oh-so-annoying next-to-none life. A few shots of the laser will finish them off. Now that you know you weaponry, lets go see some more advanced techniques.

Lock - Holding, and Breaking. Locking onto your opponent is a rather easy method of taking him/her down. To lock, holding down the fire button [A], until the box turns red. When this box moves over an enemy target, it will 'lock' onto that opponent. A red box will be visible around him. Next, release and press the fire button to launch your charged up blast at him. This will do more damage than a regular laser blast, and you don't have to aim as well. At longer distances, it is harder to lock. You must keep the opponent in your field of view to maintain the lock. Even after you fire, the blast will only hit him if he is still in your sights. Note, you can lock, and then fire a bomb [B] to have the bomb home in on the target. If he moves too far away, or gets out of your sights, it'll miss.

Now that you can lock and fire, you may be wondering how to get this annoying pest from keeping that lock on you. Well, the easiest way to do this, is by performing one of two special maneuvers known as the loop (or somersault) and the U-turn. A somersault will do a completel loop. To perform this, hit down on the control stick while hitting the boost [Left C]. This may take a few tries to get used to. Usually, this technique with put you behind you opponent if he was following you. It could brign you closer if he is far away. Watch your radar. If he is far away, do a U-Turn instead. This can be done by hitting down on the stick, and hitting the break [C Down]. These only apply to the arwing, however. With the landmaster tank, a very different strategy is needed.

How can I break that infernal lock with the tank, you ask? The answer is much easier than you might expect. Tanks have a neat feature. When the R button is pressed, it will boost to the right very quickly. When the Z button is pressed, it will boost to the left. Press them both, and it will hover short distances. (Note: This drains the boost gauge.] The most effective method is to hit a boost, and turn in that direction, this will spin you around quick, and should break the lock. Make sure you wait a bit before turning, or your attempt will be futile. This is not so effective if the arwing is faraway. In closer distances it works mostly because the arwing is faster, and you are not really travelling much distance. The next best method is to hide behind and object, so you are not in the enemy's sight.

Barrel-Rolling: Mastering the Art Now, you might say, what is there to master? But if you have used the barrel-roll, you might notice its limits. First, to barrel-roll, you must tap one of the title buttons (Z or R) twice. The barrel-roll deflects lasers, and diminishes the force of a charged blast by a slight amount. Knowing how to put this to full use is essential. Second, the barrel-roll is not for the lazy. While it does deflect lasers and the like, it will not block everything; you cannot be continually rolling. If an enemy is behind you and is steadily firing, some shots will get through in the half-second between barrel-rolls. While this damage is minimal, it's still damage, and if your opponent has twin lasers, it can eat you away rather quickly. Combine maneuvering with barrel-rolling and you can avoid all shots.

Now I shall cover how to maneuver while barrel-rolling. Mostly this is common sense, but you'd be surprised how many people don't do this. Weave left or right while barrel-rolling to keep your opponent from aiming in one spot. This is more of a way to toy with him, and it will not shake him off. Instead, turn left or right while doing so. While barrel-rolling, your movement rates double (or maybe triple). If you turn while barrel-rolling, you'll evade your opponent quite successfully. During the time between barrel-rolls, your opponent will be tryign to realign his shots, and by the time he does, you'll be in another barrel roll. This is not always so effective as turning the tables. When performing a U-turn or somersault, you will be immune to shots during half of the turn; the middle part of it. During the rest, you will be completely open to attack. So, in order to prevent yourself from being shot while looping or U-turning, perform many barrel-rolls while doing so. It is hard to hit you while you turn, and chances are that if your opponent hits you while you turn, you'll be barrel-rolling. In addition to the roll, fire continuously while you do your U-turn or somersault. You'll be near invincible.

Stealth Arwings Have you ever noticed that tanks and footmen don't show up on radar? Well, your arwing doesn't have to either. The reason tanks and footmen don't appear on radar is because they are on the ground. Things on the ground just refuse to be detected. Great. So what do you do if you are the only one that can be spotted on radar? Try flaying on the ground...or at least close to it. You will disappear from the radar. This is useful for surprise attacks. Of course, knowing this, you wil; realize that tanks that hover or climb over pyramids, as well as jumping footmen will appear on radar.

How can it be done, you ask? Well, by using the sharp turn. If you hold the R button, you will tilt to the right. This enables you to turn right much quicker. Holding Z tilts to the left, with quicker left turns. By coming at the arch with the item, you can tilt, and swoop in, getting the item and remaining unharmed. However, this is quite difficult as you need to execute the maneuver at the correct moment--practice this a lot. It is very useful, and can sometime break lock.

Expect a competant arwing pilot to somersault or U-turn as soon as you lock. Take advantage of this. Lock onto him, then release the button--but don't fire, he will perform a maneuver, and drain his gauge a bit. Now is when you lock and fire, since he won't be able to perform this maneuver. This probably won't work if you are too close to him, so be at a good distance. Along the lines of somersaulting comes what I refer to as the "Somersault War" This occurs when two arwings are constantly somersaulting to get behind the other. One trick to winning, is, when he somersaults, aim up and fire. He could take a few hits. However, he'll probably do the same to you. There is a better method.

Ah, you now you expect me to tell you it. Well...Okay. As soon as he somersaults, you somersault. The result is that you will stay behind him, and you should have time to lock and fire. The trick to this lock is to charge your lasers when somersaulting, and when you near the end of the loop, hold down on the control stick to bring your 'lock-box' over him. This preparation will give you enough time to fire before his gauge fully fills. But, if this isn't working, or you are the poor pilot in the front, fool him, and pull a U-Turn. He probably won't notice till the next few somersaults--and you'll be long gone. Another way is to tilt while looping, and press in the direction of your tilt. If he is somersaulting, he probably won't notice your escape.

Another method that is sneaky is a technique with bombing. If you are engaged in a 'somersault war,' and happen to be the guy who is followed, this is something you can do, assuming you have a bomb. Pull a loop. Your opponent will most likely do the same. As soon as your nose points generally towards the ground, launch your bomb into the ground. The bomb will explode at about the time your opponent will be flying through that area. However, for him to be flying through it, you'll have had to be flying at about the middle of the screen, as will have your opponent.

Now, as we saw with the previous tip, it involved not locking onto your opponent to score a hit. Great. What does this mean? It means there are other ways to hurt your opponent easily without giving him prior notice (as locking on does). I was recently at a party, and it was actually some friece competition (And I was doing not as good as usual, somewhat because I hadn't played in ages, and the tv was different and I was in a different box than usual). Well, it came down that me and someone else had 3 points. The game was to 4. A competant player had almost no life left, and me and the other 3 point guy were after him. Well, this wounded player was good at breaking lock and avoiding our fire. So I pulled a neat little trick. I had my lasers lead him a bit, and then charged and fired--without locking--hitting him and destroying him. Thus, I won. This is a really easy tick to do, especially because your opponent will take extra damage from a charged blast, and will not know you are doing it. They are many Applicaions

First, this is a great thing to use while in a somersault war. If you are behind the other person, you can quickly charge and discharge, most likely hitting him becausse he'll be waiting for the lock. Also, I mentioned that while somersaulting you can fire and hit him while somersaulting too. So make some of your shots charged shots. It'll seriously tick your opponent off when he somersaults and still gets hit by a charged blast. Another use is manifested in what I call, 'The Hit and Run.' When you see the side of another player, boost towards him, and when you are almost on top of him, charge and discharge. This will not give him enough time to react to the attack, and since you are boosting, you'll be far enough away by the time he wants to counter attack, that you are safe to plot your next attack.

One more thing about bombs. If your opponent pays attention to what I said about breakinga somersault war, and likes to u-turn... Get into a somersault war with him when he is failry far awway from you. He'll probably U-Turn eventually. If you have a bomb, He'll start to fly towards you. launch your bomb at his nosecone (you shouldn't have to lock) and detonate it when it's right in front of him. Since he's blind while U-Turning, he'll probably be unable to avoid the bomb, as he'll finally be turned aroudn and then *boom*. Once again I will stress the importance of doing a sharp turn while somersaulitng and U-Turning.

Arwing vs Landmaster - Air to Surface Strikes. When fighting tanks with arwings, take care to watch the tank's radar. Tanks won't show up on yours, since they are on the ground. (They will show up if hovering.) Tanks are much slower than you, and this can be a disadvantage, or an advantage. It is hard to stay behind tanks, unless you brake often, and even then, you will probably gain on them. This will also leave you open for attack by other players. The best method to take out tanks is to get to the side of them, fire off a volley, then fly over them for a distance, U-Turn, and repeat. You will probably have to adjust, and the competent tank drive will evade. Frankly, if the tank driver knows what he is doing, he will make it difficult on you. Use bombs on them as often as you can. Just aim a little ahead of the tank, and he'll probably get hit. Don't lock, as he can break that all too easily. All-in-all, stay away from the tank and attack from a distance!

You can also you the non-lock technique on the tank. Approach from the side, boost, charge and discharge, and fly away quickly. If anything, this will allow you to defeat the tank much easier without having to worry about the tank's advantages over the Arwing. In fact, it greatly help you out. Tanks often take the longest time to figure out where an attack is coming from and when they are being attacked. By not locking, you give them no warning, and will almost always escape unnoticed. Repeat this many times and the tank will usually not be able to find you.

Arwing vs Footman - Dealing With Pests No doubt about it. Those footmen are some of the most annoying units in battle. They are hard to see, don't show up when on the ground, and have a weapon that fires faster, and hits harder than yours. You can sit there and get hit and hit and hit, and still not find the buggers before you become a burning pile of wreckage. But, they do have their weakness, so exploit them!

You can't lock onto them, but you can do some heavy damage with twin blasters and a bomb. The trick is to watch their radar. Head to where they show up, and look for a very tiny speck that is shooting at you ::grin::. Toss a bomb, and fire a few lasers and they are toast. However, you'll probably take some damage doing this in any old way. The best method is to sneak up behind them, low to the ground. That way, you won't show on their radar, and you can perform this without getting plastered. If they are on a pyramid, you have it easy. Any shot in their vicinity will hurt them. I believe this is probably a game bug, but they could be on top, and you could be firing away at the base of the pyramid, and hurt them. Bombing a pyramid will almost surely nail them good.

Of course, if the footman actually plans his attack on you, chances are that your job won't be so easy. The trick is to have a bomb. The bomb is almsot vital when dealing with footmen. Firstly, oftentimes a Footman will stand on top of one fo the Pyramids on Coneria. This is probably the dumbest place for a Footman to stand. Simply grab a bomb, fly towards the pyramid and bomb near the tip of whatever pyramid he is standing on. You've got a mostly-dead footman. Just keep swarming in with your lasers and you should finish him off. He'll usually be surprised by the attack and not be too evasive. If he is evasive, you'll have to serach a little harder.

Landmaster vs Arwing - Destruction from the Ground. Landmasters rule the day when fighting Arwings. The little machines pack a lot, and can take down a skilled arwing pilot easily. At a distance, they can lock onto an arwing and fire, and they do this quite easily. They also have the advantage of being small--thus making them harder to see.

The best method for your surface-to-air assault is this. Get behind the arwing any way you can, and just keep firing. It is not difficult to aim at an arwing. If it is near the ground, it's even easier. Lock and fire a lot. Usually, the arwing pilot will pull a U-Turn to try to get you, but will end up flying over you instead--aim upwards to hit it as it does this. Then, hit a boost, and turn in that direction. You will spin around rather quickly. When you see the arwing, stop. Fire again, it will probably pull another U-Turn. Turn and repeat. It should be toast rather quickly. Especially if you have twin blasters or even a bomb. If it keeps going, just keep locking and firing. If it turns, you turn. If it somersaults, you could have a problem.

So, what do you do about an arwing when it somersaults to get behind you? Glad you asked. This is not all that complicated. Usually it will only be slightly behind you. And since it moves faster, it should soon be slightly ahead of you. Unless it brakes. But still, it will get ahead of you sooner of later. What you should do, is speed the process up a lot. Hit your brake, and you will virtually stop. This should get them ahead of you, because even their brake won't stop them as much as yours. Then you are set up to fire. If they should pull a somersault again, they will be further behind you, however. Just barrel roll (tap the boost twice), and turn in that direction. You will move to the side a bit, then turn around a bit faster than just boosting; however, this is a bit harder to control. They should be well ahead of you now, and you should have taken very little to no damage.

Now, much has been written elsewhere that you should stay behind pillars and arches and near pyramids to remain out of sight if you are a tank, but after reading what I wrote above about arwings hunting footmen, you should be thinking that to do so would be foolish. That's exactly what I think, too. The landmaster needs breathing room to plot its attacks sucessfully. If needs the room to be able to dodge shots and then retalliate. That is the biggest misconception about these tanks. It's also why many people think tanks have big disadvantages. If you are good at piloting the tank, you can evade that lock. (Z or R Boost, and then aftera bout 1/2 to 1 second, start turning in the direction of the boost.) Once evaded, It's easy to center the arwing in your sights and then blast away using the above method. This really isn't a strategy, but it is a retort to the common assumptions given tanks.

Landmaster vs Landmaster - Defeating Your Equal Ah! The real thing that the landmaster is weak to--another landmaster (there is another...you'll see below). You may be able to crush an arwing or a footman with the mighty tank, but crushing another tank is quite another matter. The best way to destroy a tank with the tank is to get a few lengths behind it and unleash a large volley of fire upon the beast. When it turns, you turn. Since you are moving at the same speed, you should remain behind it. If it performs the 'boost turn,' you should too. The same goes for when it barrel rolls, just plain boosts, or uses a barrel-roll turn. It is quite difficult to shake a tank off your back when you are a tank. Be careful not to get too close, however. A tank can easily evade if you are straight behind it. The only true way to shake off a tank, is to hover and turn while doing so. A few barrel-rolls and boost turns, and you could reverse the odds.

Okay now, You've been wondering how you shake a tank off your back for awhile now I bet. And the truth is, I really didn't know for a long time. But there is a way. And it is really simple. Something to be know about tanks if their hovering ability (Z + R Boost). Normal hoevering does nothing to shak that tank. But you can use some hovering variants to do so easily. If you hit Z + R Boosts and the Normal Boost (Left C), you'll do a very quick forward hover/flight. This baby can move you very far ahead of the tank if it's following you correctly (Which means it is a fair pace behind you.) SUre, they could do it too, but you'll be far enough ahead that you'll be able to do some fancy boost-turning, and thus, you should be able to get it in your sites. This is a great way to reverse the odds! Another thing you should know. If you hit the Z + R Boost and the Retros (Bottom C), you'll practically hover in midair, and not move. Watch the tank go straight under you if he's too close. If he isn't too close, he'll become too close, and allow you to do a turn and break away from him. Thus broken away, you'll be able to center him in your sites, and this should reverse the tables.

Landmaster vs Footman - Crushing Bugs The tank is much less skilled at taking out footmen than the arwing. Tanks have to surprise the little freaks in order to do any good. Tanks don't show up on radar, so use this to your advantage. First off, grab the twinnies and the bomb! This is so important in fighting them. Always warp to the side closet to the item you want, unless that'd force you to have to run over the sucker to get it. (That is okay, as long as he doesn't notice, and you get away in time.) Boost as much as possible, it helps a lot. Grab the twinnies first, then grab the bomb. Now, it's time for rabbit hunting! (Well, maybe frog, fox or hawk, too.) Find out where they are. Head towards the and launch a bomb at them. (Make sure you aren't too close or too far ,and it'll hit by itself.) Then hold fire low to the ground (hold up), and rapidly. Just keeep doing this. Usually the footmen will be confused by the shock and should basically stay in the same area. Then just keep firing and run over them. If they aren't dead, just boot-turn to the left or right, and then boost your way out of there, and fast! Then, once you are away. Grab the bomb and repeat.

Alright. The real big question is that of getting out of the way of the little guys. Well, there really is only one way that works a majority of the time. First, figure out where they are firing from. (Look at where their shots are in respect to the landmaster.) Then get at about a 45 degree angle form them, so that you are more facing towards the footman than away from him. Then do a Z + R + Left C Boost-Hover for as long as possilbe. When you land, started veering left or right and then mix it up, and boost again as soon as possible. If you are lucky, you've evaded. If that's confusing... look at this diagram:

Footman vs Arwing - Ground-Based Powerhouses. These little guys aren't bad at taking out arwings. The trick is not to fire until they are very close to you. It is easier to aim that way, and your fire won't give you away. Chances are they won't see you. If you fire up close, they will probably start to turn to get around you. Footmen turn very well. Just stand still (run only if necessary) and blast the plane as it circles. Make sure you lead your shots just ahead of it, or you might miss. If they pul la U-turn over your head, just constantly fire up, and you'll hit it once or twice. If they pull a somersault, just stop moving, and they'll either end up farther ahead of you, or right above you. Just fire at them, if you stay under them, or next to them, they won't be able to hit you. If the pilot spots you, and is heading towards you, run in a fairly-wide circle, to prevent him from hitting you.

A somewhat decent tenchinique when you're playing the footman is to immediately grab the bomb. Mostly because offensive strategies against you almost always involve bombing you. If you have the bomb, well... they can't bomb you! Then, go immediately around the pillars or arches (Usually it'll be where you grabbed the bomb). You are very hard to see if you hide behind a pillar, and will mostly likely be able to fire at your opponents unseen as they come near. If your opponent is like most people, he'll try to find you, allowing you to hit him more as you running behind pillars and generally confuse him. But be wary this technique, as it can be used against you. For examples of this look at some of the above 'vs. footmen' techniques. Oh yeah, and only use the bomb when you are near death. That way, you're opponents cannot use bombs to bring you to near death.

Footman vs Landmaster - Anti-Tank Crew Footmen are a tank's worst enemy. They are so adept at destroying tanks, it's not funny (cliche!). Grab the twinnies if they are close by, if not, get the bomb. Warping helps a lot. It is easy to spot the tank if you are a footman. Just look at your opponent's radar first, and head towards it. Try to approach from behind, and then launch the bomb. This'll nail it good. Then just stand still and fire at the tank. Turn when needed. You can laugh as the tank tries vainly to turn and fire at you. If the tank hovers, just adjust your fire to hit it. If it boosts away, you'll still get a lot of shots off as it tries to escape. And then you can do it again. Tanks have trouble seeing footmen--use this to your advantage.

Footman vs Footman - the little people To tell you the truth, in my experience, I have never lost a 1 on 1 footman battle. And I only got the twinnies during on of them. From my observations, the match can go either way. Just out-confuse the other :) Run in circles and jump a lot while firing, and look for his fire, and head towards it. if he is rotating clockwise, you should do the opposite. Standing still helps, and does running in an erratic pattern. Not much to say here, just out-run his fire, and hit him more :).

Ah! A true battle. None of this general mumbo-jumbo. Here you will find true blue tactics for use in Point Match. Enjoy!

What is Point Match? Point match is a battle for hits. Everytime you shoot down aanother player, you get one point. Collect a certain number of these points, and you win. You can play for 1-5 points; the default is 3. When 1 point is selected, the first person to shoot down another player is the victor. If 5 points are selected, one must shoot down five ships to be victorious. My personal favorite is a 4 point match.

Herein lies the methods for destroying your opponents the quickest, and reaching your ultimate goal. These are tried-and-true strategies from my own playing experience. If they worked for me, they should work for you, but I guarantee nothing.

The strategy various a bit depending on how many points and players you have selected, but not so much that you can't improvise. First of all, grab the twin blasters and a bomb right away. I can't stress this enough. You can wreck so much havoc with them, that it makes G.I. Joe look like bunny rabbits. Next, stay around the edge of the map with your goodies, and let the others fight for awhile. Watch their lifebars and don't even hesitate to flip to the other side if you are targetted. When you see a lifebar get skimpy, head over to the ship that is doing the damage, and lock on and fire a few times to distract him, then swoop in (or roll in), and blast his target until it's roadkill. Then either drop back to the edges and wait, or finish someone else off. If done right, you coudl get 2+ points at a time. Of course, this isn't so viable in a 2-player match. In that case, just grab the supplies, and get the other person using some carefully planned strategy (or recklessly planned--either one works).

If using the tank or footman, stay clear out of the way of the others, but in range to fire at them. It is so easy to take down two arwings like this. Just fire at the one who is winning, then as they both near oblivion, destroy the attacker, and finish off his victim. Beware if there is another tank. He could be setting you in his sights. If there is another tank, take him out first! Chances are, he'll be tryign to take out somethign else (like an arwing), and won't be watching for you. If you take him down, any arwings can be destroyed happily.

Have fun with your bombs. They are there to be used. If you spot two players near each other in a somersautl war, or a tank battle, by all means, lock onto that lead arwing, and you will probably get both of them with the same bomb. Just make sure the rear one doesn't finish the lead guy off. If two tanks, lock and bomb the first one, or bomb just before him. The lock will really damage him, and hit the other. If you just shoto ahead, you could miss, but will definetely hit both, since there shoulbe little warning.

In a one point match, follow the above information, but do it *quickly*. Stay away and blast the weakest one as soon as possible.

Which vehicle is the best for Point Match? Well, from what I have seen and experienced, the landmaster is the best. It is harder to find, and can take down arwings and footmen easily. Even other tanks can be crushed if you find them first. The only real disadvantage is that they are slower to maneuver, so if you can't get to the action, your potential point could become someone else's real point. Arwings are good if you need to get someplace fast. I'd stick to the arwing if you aren't experienced with the tank, but watch out for those tank driver's and footman. They can get you quite easily if you aren't too attentive.

This section tells how you can clean up in Battle Royale! While not always requiring the best of strategy, you can be in deep trouble when you can only die once...

What is Battle Royale? Battle Royale is probably closest to Mario Kart's battle mode in similarity. The last man alive wins. You only get one chance to clean up. If you get shot down, blown up, or squashed, you can considered yourself the loser. This mode can provide for some of the fiercest combat in any of the 3 modes. Whether you feel the thrill of the hunt, the heat of the laser, the pounding of your heart, or act like it's cakewalk, Battle Royale can be quite fun.

Perhaps the easiest way to win is to avoid all combat. This obviously won't work if the other players think this way. What follows next is what I called the cheat-that-isn't-a-cheat. It's sneaky and dirty, but hey, it works, and it isn't a bad strategy. However, it could easily be viewed as a sign of weakness. And you don't want to be weak, now do you? First, as always, grab the blasters and bomb. Then stay low to the group along the edges. Be ready to jump to the other side. Let the othes duke it out. When there is one left, chances are, he's weaker than you are. Just use your bomb and blasters to make mince-meat of him. This obviosuly won't work at all in a 2 Player match. In that case, just use your well-learned and practiced tactics and kill him quicker.

Everything that applies to Point Match can apply to Battle Royale for the most part, but you only live once. That means you must modify those tactics. Be sneaky, cunning and quick. And don't let yourself be hit. Break lock every chance you can, and take revenge. Battle Royale is more a test of your speed and wit than the other modes are.

What vehicle is the best for Battle Royale? Well, pretty much any will do, just as long as you can use it to take out the others quicker. I recommend using whichever feels the most natural to you. I prefer the landmaster, so I use the landmaster. If you like the arwing the best, by all means, use it!

This will teach you to gun fast, and flee quickly so that you may be the best marksman in the world of StarFox64!

Time Trial? Isn't that in Mario Kart? Well, yes it is! But this time trial is like none other. You don't race through coruses as quickly as possible. That'd just be plain dumb. Instead, you blast "clay-pidgeon" ships to get hits. Whoever has the most hits when time runs out, wins! Sound easy? Think again. If you get shot down, blown up, squashed, or have suicidal tendencies, you lsoe all your hits. Time can be set for 1 min--if you want a really fast-paced frenzy, to 5 minutes for a nice, slow, and competetive game. Me? I like 4 minutes the best.

This is perhaps the most Strategy-Intensive mode of battle. You have more than just crushing other players to worry about. You have to worry about killed dummy ships, and staying alive so that you don't lose your record. Your skills will be put to the limit as you aim for the ships, and dash out of the way of your friends' barrages. Know your vehicle, and aim true!

First of all, grab the twin blasters! They can be aimed much better, and do more damage. The dummy ships take 3+ hits normally. With twin blasters, This is reduced by half, making your life much easier. Bombs are useful if you see a group of dummies heading in the same direction. Just lock onto the lead ship and bomb it, everything else will fly into the explosion and die. If you are lucky, you can get 4 hits doing this. And who knows, you may hurt another player too!

Second, whenever you see another player, shoot what it is shooting at. Killing those takes away their potential points, and adds them to your score! Then, take as many potshots as you can at their hull. This damage will help immensly at the 'end-of-time.' Always kill dummies as quickly as possible. They are your life-blood in Time Trial. The more you kill, the happier you will be. (This wasn't meant to promote violence...). Remember that the ships circle around the pyramid, so stay nearby it. The items in the sides appear quite a ways away from the pyramid, so don't worry too much about them (except do get the twim blasters).

At the last minute or so, the person in the lead will be hunted down. Have some fun as use MindFrame's technique of flying low to the ground so that you don't show on radar. Stay near the edges if you are ahead by a lot, otherwise stay nearby the pyramid and crush more dummies. Pull U-Turns, somersaults, and anything else to avoid being harmed. Kill off the ships that you have damaged before. If you took plenty of potshots at them, they should go down easily, leaving you with a huge lead.

What vehicle is the best for Time Trial? Well, It's more or less a tie between the footman and the arwing. The arwing can maneuver quickly and is quite fast, enabling it to take down many ships. However, the footman's weapon is very strong. A footman only has to stand on the pyramid and shoot around to take down many ships. And if an arwing attacks, he can just run down the backside of the pyramid, out of the range and sight of the arwing. However, they don't last long at the 'end-of-time,' which can be bad if they are in the lead. Decision? Pick which one you like the best!

And thus, my battle strategy page comes to a conclusion. I hope you gained something from it. If you have any great strategies, pop me a message, I'll test it out, and if it's good, I'll throw it on here and give you credit.