Game of Thrones Pinball Rulesheet

I had a Martel value this morning for over 100M (mode totalled out just under 200) after completing it very very quickly. A couple quick shots with a loop pass and then the center ramp. So Martel seems to be greatly dependant on timing.

This game (LE version) is really confounding me. I know one of my shortcomings is I’m very bad with complicated rulesets (took me a month to figure out TSPP when I owned one) but I can’t for the life of me gather what I should be doing and when. What strategies are you guys using? I’ve mostly just been trying to complete modes (using Martel) and take blackwater as I can get it but the best scores I’ve managed are in the 1Bs. If I go for playfield X I always lose my ball with no points (outlanes, see below) and hitting combos I’m useless at, I’m not someone who ever hits things on the fly if I can help it. That may be having a pretty big impact on my scores and adding to my frustration with the game.

I’m also having a ton of playability issues with this thing… most notably, this is the drainiest outlane game I own right now. I feel far better about my chances nudging off the wire guides on the left side of future spa. I’ve moved the posts to the middle position with only minimal improvement. I’ve played other GOT (pro) games that were not nearly this bad. Nudging balls off the sling or lane posts will typically bounce them up and then they curl back to the right or left. It takes a huge move to bounce a ball all the way out of the outlane area. It’s pretty weird actually.

At the risk of further whinging, I’ll leave out the list of mechanical features that barely work or work poorly but should mention that I’ve noticed taking a warning when LOL is lit will drain the ball without plunging a new one AND take away the LOL for the next ball. Hopefully that gets fixed in a software update.

I’m also playing a premium, so I understand. My current HS table goes from just over 4B to just over 3B.
My best strategy I can offer is to use the upper playfield during modes to increase the timer. And know this: You cannot increase the timer for any mode above what the timer starts out as. So for example, the Greyjoy timer is by far the shortest one at 12 sec. If you start the mode and right away get on the upper playfield, don’t shoot the targets, because you cannot raise the timer above 12 seconds. Wait until you have missed some shots and are in danger of the mode timing out, then shoot the upper playfield to get some more time.

To illustrate the usefulness of adding time via the upper playfield, I did this the other night:
I scored 750M from Stark mode. How? Looped the center several times, then got up on the mini playfield and hit all three 5 second time extenders, then collected the castle. Then back down to main playfield for more center loops. When I reached the max 75M I noticed I still had like 18 seconds left, so bash the ram several times to get 2x playfiled, then shot the left orbit. It was 75M with a 10X multiplier!

Another strategy that I like to use is the one Keith showed us all at PAPA19. Begin the game as Martell, BUT do not play or complete the Martell mode. That way you don’t get the Martell penalty if you make it to Hand of the King. In fact, there are 4 houses only that add up to the perfect storm to take into HOTK. They are Stark, Greyjoy, Tyrell, Lannister. Thanks Keith!

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For combos, it’s not so much about playing “on the fly” as much as it is live-catching as much as possible. The combo timer is super long so if you say, hit an orbit, you can live catch it on the way back around, then take your time choosing what shot to go for next. The only on-the-fly shots I typically make on GoT is a ramp to an orbit shot, then to a live catch if possible. I am envious of those that can loop pass on this game, that would provide more flexibility. We have a Pro on location here and the loop pass isn’t working from either side in its current setup.

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Thanks for the tips! I’ll try the Martel but not Martel again tomorrow.

I can loop pass on this one most of the time but mainly from left to right. Right to left seems to feed a bit in towards the sling typically. I also get the impression that the ball occasionally doesn’t complete the orbit when it’s supposed to and then occasionaly does dribble around when it shouldn’t.

Seems like Keith suggested somewhere (before Papa) playing as greyjoy, then finishing martell, Stark and one other before HOTK. That’s what I’ve been doing lately. You get the martell penalty, but once you get thru the penalty (must hit every shot twice), the jackpots are bigger in the stark phase of HOTK because you’re playing as greyjoy. I’ve looped the left ramp for jackpots as high as 2.8B per shot. No idea (yet) if power cycle changes this. From practice, playing as greyjoy and bringing in stark, martell and lanister has brought the biggest jackpots for me.

The martell penalty may not be worth the risk when competing, but the jackpots are much bigger playing as greyjoy from what I’ve seen. If you’re going for GC, greyjoy is the way to go.

If HOTK remains much more valuable than IT, would people be disappointed? I’m kinda getting used to it. Like TV mini wiz mode being more desirable (and achievable) than sperm attack on FGY.

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That would be the power cycle bug. I believe (?) it should cap out at 60M per shot normally.

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60M including multipliers? Doesn’t playing as greyjoy increase the base HOTK jackpot value compared to playing other houses?

If they’re all gonna be capped at 60M including multipliers, that’s gonna suck. It wIll be more balanced than it is now for sure, but taking away huge points like that sucks. At least with Wheel, it didn’t make that big of a difference.

Yep. There will be no way to get those 2.8 billion shots in HOTK stark rounds after the next update. The hurry ups will still be there, but not the broken Stark round scoring.

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The Stark round shots seem to start at just above your base shot value (2.5m), and go up to exactly double that (5m). So since you can have 30x multiplers during HOTK, the cap should be 150m during Stark rounds (75m otherwise).

All Greyjoy does for HOTK is let you get to the hurry-up one set sooner. And I suppose the trade-off is that the potential hurryup is smaller since you have one less set to build up its value. Come to think of it, all the houses that make it “harder” can also make it more lucrative.

What I’m more concerned/interested about is how exactly the hurryup value gets initialized. Zach and Keith both started off with 1.7 billion in the hurryup right off the bat. Is this in any way related to the need to have the power cycling “fix”? I notice when I play the one on location that if the other pinheads haven’t touched it that day, I start building mine up from zero since I’m the first one to make HOTK that day.

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The attributes carry over as well. So you can have a perfect storm of all 7 houses if player 1 brings in different houses than you.

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This is going to be the biggest takeaway of points ever. I hope Dwight beefs up scoring in IT to compensate somewhat.

I just see it as a fix. I mean it was pretty ridiculous that before you could get over 12 billion points from one HOTK multiball. Just seemed very unbalanced. Isn’t that type of scoring one of the biggest reasons why the IFPA says to not use Champion Pub in a tournament setting?

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My best HOTK ever was still just based off rolling up multiplied SJP’s into a huge, 4x multiplied hurryup that was a 4.6 billion+ shot. No Stark rounds. That’s how I think the giant HOTK scores should be happening. If you put that much work and risk into one giant money shot, you deserve that payoff. Contrast that to the Stark round post-hurryup, where I’d consider that to be a rather glaring bug. Sure, getting to the hurryup isn’t particularly easy, but dinging the ramp for a billion a hit without a particularly large multiplier starts tingling my buggy senses.

Iron Throne’s scoring is pretty decent, but if there’s any beefing up to do in that department, it’d be sfx/callouts.

Disclaimer: I am a software developer, but not necessarily a “pinball software developer”.

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I saw there has been little chat about the “Golden Hand” for 2750. For the cost, the value just doesn’t seem to be there. 750k is really nothing in this game.

I always thought there had to be more to it, and I think yesterday I may have figured it out. I think if you have the Golden Hand it prevents the flipper from freezing in Winter is Coming mini-wizard mode.

When avoiding starting HOTK in order to start it with an add-a-ball available it’s really tough to know what else you can do while flailing around avoiding the center ramp because that’s the only thing explicitly lit.

Does anyone know what’s actually available?

As I was spinner-all-day’ing until I lost the ball, I accidentally had a shot fall short and stay up in the top lanes, and it ended up making progress towards Wall MB. With that gate open, the ball rarely didn’t make it all the way around, so instead of I shot the right orbit to see if that gate was closed. It was open, BUT, that shot started Winter is Coming. That then led me to believe that you could actually make progress on other non-center ramp shots to start Winter Has Come . . . and you totally can.

Obviously Blackwater is out of the question because you have to shoot the center ramp, but I believe that WHC and Wall MB are both still available while you are killin time. Anything else available to work towards?

Also during Iron Throne, since you can play it in single ball play, can you wait to use your Add-a-ball when that last single ball drains? I used it when I drained down to two balls thinking the “multiball” still had to be going, and I haven’t been back to IT since.

Yes

Battering ram?

I can confirm this as well.

Interesting insight about what to do when you have HOTK lit and already used your add-a-ball prior to ball 3.
How much did you get your spinner up to?

It was in the 10-15 mil range per shot. The live catch is pretty nice on our GOT so was able to grind out a good 500-600 mil in HOTK purgatory.

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If you get Iron Throne and you’re not on your last ball, drain it, and let the ball sit until around 11:58 PM. Because apparently you can get Midnight Madness during even Iron Throne! And yes, you do make Iron Throne progress during it.

Yes. Check your spinner level. If you’re at level 4, you can get upwards of 100 million per spin. That’s what I do when I’m in purgatory. That or just still rip the spinner and get your end of ball bonus X as high as it can go, and hope for some goodies via pop bumper awards. Haven’t seen much else to do though.