================================= ========Mega Man X5 Guide======== ================================= by Reeve : http://www.megaman-x.com/ : reeve@megaman-x.com ====== Index: ====== 1. Introduction 2. Boss Weaknesses / Recommended Order 3. Power-Up Uses and Locations 4. Armor Descriptions 5. Power-up Modules 6. Statue stage 7. Chase the Truck! (Grizzly Slash) 8. Obliterate the Battleship! (Duff McWhalen) 9. Electric Trap (Squid Adler) 10. Fortress Lab Infiltration (Izzy Glow) 11. Escape the Space Trap (Dark Dizzy) 12. Destroy the Time Bombs! (The Skiver) 13. Red-Hot World (Mattrex) 14. Into the Jungle (Axle the Red) 15. Dynamo Strategy 16. Zero Virus stage 1 17. Zero Virus stage 2 18. Zero Virus stage 3 19. Final stage 20. Secrets and Tips 21. Legal ================ 1. Introduction: ================ Welcome to the official Mega Man X Online guide for Mega Man X5, the fifth installment in the MMX saga. Refer to the index above for an easy reference guide, and go to http://www.megaman-x.com/guides/ to find HTML versions of this guide, along with guides for all of the other games in the Mega Man X series. Happy gaming. ======================================= 2. Boss Weaknesses / Recommended Order: ======================================= Boss Weakness with X Weakness with Zero ==== =============== ================== -Grizzly Slash --- Spike Ball (Red) ------- Twin Dream (Red) -Duff McWhalen --- Crescent Shot (Slash) -- Crescent Sword (Slash) -Squid Adler ----- Goo Shaver (McWhalen) -- F-Splasher (McWhalen) -Izzy Glow ------- Tri-Thunder (Adler) ---- E-Blade (Adler) -Dark Dizzy ------ F-Laser (Glow) --------- C-Flasher (Glow) -The Skiver ------ Dark Hold (Dizzy) ------ Dark Hold (Dizzy) -Mattrex --------- Wing Spiral (Skiver) --- Wing Shredder (Skiver) -Axle the Red----- Ground Fire (Mattrex) -- Quake Blazer (Mattrex) =============================== 3. Power-Up Uses and Locations: =============================== Power-Up Use Location ------------------------------------------- Light Capsules - armor power-ups - One per stage Heart Tanks - more life added to meter - One per stage Sub-Tanks - life energy reserve - Found in the stages of: Grizzly Slash, Dark Dizzy Weapon Tank - weapon energy reserve - Found in The Skiver's stage. EX Tank - more lives per continue - Found in Izzy Glow's stage. ====================== 4. Armor Descriptions: ====================== X (Blue): X's basic armor. No special powers. Much weaker than all of X's other armors. X (Fourth): A reproduction of the armor from X4. If you start the game with X you get it automatically. Otherwise it's impossible to get. Gives you the power to hover, air-dash, and plasma shot, but the Nova Strike and infinite weapon energy capabilities from MMX4 are missing. X (Falcon): New armor. Very light and nimble. Pressing the jump button in the air lets X fly for a short time. The powered shot is a small but powerful laser. No air-dash ability, but makes X generally faster. You can use boss weapons while in it, but can't power them up like you could with the Fourth Armor. Nova Strike replaced with Falcon Strike ability. X (Gaea): Also a new armor. It's basically the opposite of Falcon, in that it makes X slower but much more powerful and defensive. It, however, also does not have an air-dash. Clinging to the wall lets you stick there instead of sliding off. X can also walk on spikes without any damage coming to him, and his powered shot is much more powerful than the Nova. Unfortunately, it's impossible to use boss weapons in the armor, and it makes X more sluggish. Nova Strike replaced with the Gaea Strike ability. X (Ultimate): This is a hidden armor, both ways you could possibly get it. It includes the same abilities as the Ultimate Armor from X4, in that it's exactly like the Fourth Armor, only allowable to do the Nova Strike infinite times. Of course, in this game the Fourth Armor doesn't allow X to do the Nova Strike at all, but the Ultimate Armor still does allow him to do it infinite times. Zero (Red): Zero's basic armor. Like X's blue, it has no real powers that set it apart. Zero (Black): Zero takes half the damage he would take otherwise, and the sabre included with the black armor can cut through some enemy projectiles and destroy the Sigma Virus. Note: X gets to choose which armor he takes into battle with him, but Zero's Black armor is a replacement armor. Therefore, you do not get to choose Red or Black at the beginning of each stage. ==================== 5. Power-up Modules: ==================== After beating a boss, you'll inevitably get their weapon. In addition, you'll get the option at times of choosing between getting a more life added to your meter, or more energy added to your meter. This choice will affect the Modules you get. Modules are not available in Easy Mode, and are harder to get in Xtreme Mode. Below is a full listing of the Modules, how you get them, and what they do. Grizzly Slash ============= + Life: Shock Absorber - 50% damage reduction + Energy: Hyper Dash - Enhanced dash Duff McWhalen ============= + Life: Super Recover - Items give more energy + Energy: W-Energy Saver - Weapons use half energy amount Squid Adler =========== + Life: Quick Charge (X only) - Faster charge for X-Buster + Energy: Z-Saber Extend (Zero only) - More range with the Z-Saber Izzy Glow ========= + Life: Burst Shot (X only) - 5 shots at a time instead of the usual 3 + Energy: Shot Eraser (Zero only) - Destroy enemy shots Dark Dizzy ========== + Life: Anti-Virus Guard - 50% less damage to Virus meter + Energy: Virus Buster (X only) - Ability to destroy the Sigma Virus The Skiver ========== + Life: Jumper - Higher jump + Energy: Speedster - Fast movement Mattrex ======= + Life: Speed Shot - Faster shots + Energy: Buster Plus (X only) - More powerful shots Axle the Red ============ + Life: Ultimate Buster (X only) - Charged shots used without any charge needed + Energy: Z-Saber Plus (Zero only) - More powerful Z-Saber ================ 6. Statue stage: ================ This is simple enough, especially if you have a basic grasp of X games. There are only two new commands that you might have to know for this level. Make sure you duck by pressing down when the ceiling falls inside the crumbling building, and make sure you grab onto the wire by pressing up when you're near it, so you won't fall down the pit. You can also avoid falling down the pit by Air-dashing or dash-jumping. Make sure that when climbing up the walls at the end of the level, you climb the right wall, then the left, then the right. This will help you avoid getting crushed in them. Giant Sigma Head ================ Sigma's Head is considerably harder than most opening stage bosses in MMX games, but that's not saying much. No matter who you are, X or Zero, staying to the left wall is the best strategy. Duck when he fires his giant purple beam or the little blue balls, and wait for a good time to strike. If he simply stays, it means he'll fire larger yellow balls. Stand your ground, and climb the left wall just as the yellow balls begin to move. This should help you avoid being hit at all. ========================= 7. Grizzly Slash's stage: ========================= The military train area isn't too hectic. As X, you'll have to get down on a platform below the front of the train to hit the blue spot and destroy each train head, but as Zero you can slash at it from above if you want. Make sure you duck when the blue spot is firing, or it could knock you off. When a timer is counting down, dash and dash-jump your way off the train before it blows. Before long, you'll find yourself on the ground after a train wreck. From this point, it's only a small distance before you reach the boss. Heart Tank ========== After blowing up a few trains, you'll be inside a train car. In the middle there will be a divide that if you climb up, there will be a ceiling full of spikes. Use X's Gaea armor to get to the Heart Tank, which is on the left side. It's also concievable that you could get to it with your Falcon armor, but you'd probably have to sacrifice a life for it. Sub-Tank ======== At the end of one train will be the Sub-Tank, sitting out in plain view. Just make sure you have enough time to grab it and get off the train before it explodes. It's not hard at all. Falcon Leg Upgrade ================== When just entering the cave after the train wreck, you'll see an alchove at the top. Get on the lower wall and dash-jump up to the wall above, or use Zero's double-jump to get into the alchove where the Capsule will be waiting. Grizzly Slash Strategy ====================== Grizzly Slash isn't that tough, and is a good starting point as far as bosses go. Whether or not you have the Spike Ball or Twin Dream, he shouldn't be that hard. Simply attack him. If you get hit a couple of times with his attacks, it's no big deal. Just keep powering up your Buster and shooting or slashing at him. He doesn't use his attack nearly as often as you can optimally use yours. When he burrows underground dash-jump from side to side on the higher ground level, and be prepared for him to appear nearby. When he does, attack him quickly and keep dashing. Continue this strategy until he's gone. ========================= 8. Duff McWhalen's stage: ========================= This stage is mostly a battle with the huge fish sub, U-555. At first you'll be dueling with just the head. Disarm the missiles by destroying the yellow-orange spots on it's face. These will regrow, but keep destroying them and doing damage afterwards to the face itself, and it will be damaged enough to be unable to grow new parts. Once the mouth laser is produced, either climb a nearby alchove or duck in a ditch, because you'll otherwise get dealt some serious damage. Once you get to a certain point, a life bar will appear. Aim for the mouth to do damage to the fish sub. Next is the battle with the tail, which is basically like the head. Follow the same basic strategies. Then comes the top of the body. Only by fully charging your X-Buster, or swiping your sword downward, can you do damage to the missile launchers here. Keep dodging and destroying them, and get out of the way of the rocks the sub is leading you into. When you get to a certain point, it will occasionally expose its weak spot. Destroy it, like with the head, and the sub will fall for good. Heart Tank ========== In the large pit with spikes surrounding both sides, the ceiling is open. Use the Gaea armor or the Falcon armor to make your way up there, and then use the armor similarly to navigate through the spikes. You'll eventually find your way to the Heart Tank. Falcon Body Upgrade =================== After the water drops and you go through the planked area, you'll drop down to an area that has a capsule in plain view with a plank blocking it, and a mine nearby. Use a powered-up Goo Shaver to set off the mine and destroy the plank. Duff McWhalen Strategy ====================== Duff McWhalen is very easy with the Crescent Shot or Crescent Slash weapon, but not so easy if you're using the X-Buster or just slashing with the Z-Saber. Make sure you have the Crescent weapon and just let him have it. Barrage him with the weapon, and duck when he goes across the screen. If you keep firing while he's moving across the screen, you can easily take him down before he even gets the chance to try to push you against the spikes. If he does get that opportunity, though, just dodge the ice blocks quickly and keep pummelling him with your Crescent weapon to delay his attacks. ======================= 9. Squid Adler's stage: ======================= The first area here is perhaps one of the most frustrating in the game. The Ride Chaser section of the level is pretty hard. Unfortunately, talking about it would do no good. I can't say anything here that would help you get past that part except that all you really need is practice. Also, the end is a pain, but you really simply have to dash twice on the Ride Chaser in a row. The only problem is it's hard to get the timing right. Once again, practice makes perfect. Next comes the switches section. Using X, have his Fourth Armor at the ready. The plasma shot makes this part fairly easy. If you're using Zero, his Crescent spin will reduce headaches. Just destroy the enemies around, and then concentrate on the switches. This will lead directly to the boss. Heart Tank ========== In the switches area, you'll find a path that you can go left or right. The right path leads to the boss, but if you choose to go left first, and have X with his Gaea armor, you can shoot the switch and work your way into a room with spikes on the ground. Stand on the spikes and power up your Buster. Shooting the V blocks will destroy them. Then shoot the other switch to open the way to the Heart Tank. Falcon Head Upgrade =================== During the jetbike section, there will be blue balls of light floating around. Collecting all eight will expose an opening once you get off the jetbike, inside of which will be the Capsule. Getting all eight takes a lot of practice, though, so be prepared for some frustration. Squid Adler Strategy ==================== Squid Adler isn't that hard, with or without the Goo Shaver. Make sure you're ready to cling to walls to avoid his attack that covers the entire ground, and fire at him non-stop. His attacks are pretty predictable, so staying in the right areas will save you from most damage. Stay on the wall, but don't stay directly in front of Squid Adler unless you need to fire at him. ====================== 10. Izzy Glow's stage: ====================== This stage starts off simple enough. Just blast the enemies like you would anywhere else. To save the yellow hostage in the plank above, use the Ground Fire or Quake Blazer weapon, then navigate through the spikes. The spikes in this level aren't that hard to avoid, but can do some serious damage if you slip up. Proceed with caution. Next you'll find yourself on a staircase. Just blast away the enemies and avoid the Sigma Viruses, and you'll find yourself at a mini-boss. Charge your weapon and aim for the red eye of the black robot. It'll be destroyed, and then you have to avoid the lasers of the other two robots. The black one will be back next time for you to destroy again and again, until the whole mechanism is destroyed. Next you'll find yourself in another straight-forward area with several green wall robots firing off large red balls. These red balls are easy to avoid, but you can destroy them with the Crescent Shot/Slash if you're bored or just feel like it. Keep along this path to find your way to the boss. Heart Tank ========== The Heart Tank for this stage is right at the beginning. Equip X with the Gaea armor and fall down in the pit below the bridge that you extended. Veer right and the Heart Tank is right there. You can also fly over the spikes to it using the Falcon armor, but it's harder to do without wasting a life. EX Tank ======= At the area with the wooden ceiling and the trapped Reploid is also the EX Tank. Use your Ground Fire or Quake Blazer weapon to free the hostage and get the EX Tank. Falcon Arm Upgrade ================== After you climb a few of the ramps, one of the green wall robots firing red balls will be out of your view, right above you. Jump up to be able to see it and destroy it with the Crescent Shot/Slash to open up the path to the capsule. Izzy Glow Strategy ================== Izzy Glow is quick, but not tough. If you're usingthe Tri-Thunder or E-Blade, just stay below him and use when he's above you (in range). If using the X-Buster or Z-Saber, just fire at him whenever you get a chance and dodge his attacks. Be warned if you're using either of those, though; he gets awefully fast near the end of his life, and using these is much more effective to destroy him. ======================= 11. Dark Dizzy's stage: ======================= The opening of this stage is in outer space, where everything moves pretty slow. No big harm, though. Other than the slow-motion and the occassional bat problem, this part has nothing that differs from any other shoot-the-badguys strategy. Next you'll find yourself indoors, but again there's no huge threat here. The floor will become the ceiling and vice-versa when you go into certain switches, but this is really for your own good rather than a threat. Avoid the spikes, of course. The real fun is if you come here wearing Gaea Armor, and the threat of the spikes is removed, so there's virtually no threat at all. Navigate through the spikes and making sure the blocks don't fall on you, and you'll be at the boss in no time. Heart Tank ========== The Heart Tank is in plain view, and hard to not see in this level. It's accessible with skill using the Falcon or even the Fourth Armor, but the Gaea Armor makes it easiest. Switch the ground/ceiling so that the Heart Tank is accessible, and then just go to it with the Gaea Armor on. No problem. Sub-Tank ======== At the end of the outer space part (the first part of the stage), the Sub-Tank will be in plain view. It's high up, so using Zero's double-jump or X's Falcon Armor to reach it is easiest. A well-timed Dash-Jump from the platform you're floating on can reach it, but it's much tougher. Gaea Head Upgrade ================= Just before you reach the boss, there will be a pit. Drop down into it (careful not to hit the spikes on the left side, stay to your right). There will be a Capsule behind a tangled web of metal. Use the F-Laser and navigate it through the maze to hit the switch that will open the path to the Capsule. This can be tricky and frustrating, but if you run out of energy you can kill yourself on the spikes and get all your weapon energy back, and if you need to continue, the starting point is right in front of the pit. It may take multiple tries. Dark Dizzy Strategy =================== You need to make sure to cling to the walls a lot with Dark Dizzy. If you're using his weakness, the F-Laser, stay on the ground and fire when necessary. Otherwise, stay near the walls and be ready to dash-jump off of them if he gets ready to freeze time. Other than that, he's not too hard. ======================= 12. The Skiver's stage: ======================= Your first job in this level is to disarm the bombs that are counting down, guarded by robots. The last one is the trickiest, but you should be able to get to most of them with no problem. Missing one or two doesn't have any dire consequences, as long as you keep your life above half so the explosion doesn't kill you. There are also several yellow hostages in need of your aid, but they're out in the open and don't require any special strategy. Once out of the bomb-ridden area, you'll be going down an elevator. No real problems should arise here. There will be enemies every once in a while, but a simple blast or sabre slash should take care of them. After this comes an escalator area. Climb onto the escalator and then drop to the right side and cling to the wall until you safely pass under the spikes. Next comes another escalator with several alchoves that have bombs, enemies, and yellow hostages. Rescue the hostages, kill the enemies, and try to destroy the bombs. Next, you'll find yourself at the boss. Heart Tank ========== At the second elevator area, one of the alchoves with yellow hostages also has a Heart Tank behind a bomb. Whether you destroy the bomb or not, the Heart Tank remains, so it's not hard to find. Weapon Tank =========== On the elevator ride down (just after the bomb section), drop down below the elevator after it crashes through the first two floors. The Weapon Tank sits on the third collapsable floor, so grab it and get out before the elevator crushes you. Gaea Body Upgrade ================= Bring X and equip the Falcon armor. At the escalator area, jump and fly up and to the left as soon as you see the first spikes. This will lead you to a platform with the armor Capsule. The Skiver Strategy =================== This battle greatly resembles Storm Eagle's from Mega Man X1. All you really need for this battle is the ability to dash-jump and a good weapon by your side. Skiver doesn't seem to have much of a weakness towards anything, the Dark Hold does stop him in his tracks for a few seconds, allowing you to get a few hits in. Other than that, it's just a straight out battle. Dash-jump over him when he charges at you, and dash back and forth when he goes into the air to charge you. Zero is really best for this battle since he can inflict more damage while Skiver is frozen than X can. Keep up that strategy and he should go down. ==================== 13. Mattrex's stage: ==================== The opening of this stage is simple to get through. Just dash a lot to avoid all the fire-breathing dragon head robots, and kill the enemies as fast as possible. Even if you don't kill them, avoiding them quickly is the best method to get through quickly. Next, you'll be over some rushing lava. Wait for it to stop coming and instantly drop. Then dash and dash-jump as fast as you can to an area that the background is black instead of red. Cling to the wall there and you'll be safe from the next rushing lava. Keep doing this, heading as fast as you can for an area with a black background, until you're out of the rushing lava pit. Next you'll find a large lava pit. There are two paths. You can get into the Riding Armor and go under the lava, or you can stay above it and do battle with a fire dragon. It's up to you. Neither is all that hard. After conquering one of these two obstacles, you'll find the boss. Heart Tank ========== In the large rushing lava area, wait for the lava to just have stopped coming, drop and rush to the left. Drop down the pit and you'll find a Heart Tank waiting for you, along with a life. Gaea Arm Upgrade ================ In the large lava pit, get into the Ridden Riding Armor and go into the lava. Make your way through it until the end, and then carefully jump out of the armor and on to dry land. The Capsule is there waiting for you. Mattrex Strategy ================ Mattrex is one of the harder bosses in the game, but as long as you have the Wing Spiral or Wing Shredder from Skiver, he's not that hard. Use it, and take advantage of the time that he's floating in the air to cling to the very top of a wall. This will avoid most of his attacks completely. The few that will hit won't take off enough to really kill you before you can kill him. From the wall, air-dash off the wall to go over him and use the weapon again. It's a pretty simple pattern. ========================= 14. Axle the Red's stage: ========================= This stage is pretty straight-forward. The only areas that might present problems are the two wire areas. One has spikes on the sides, and one has a pit on the bottom. Navigate carefully through these, and destroy enemies as you go along. Heart Tank ========== Right when you get into the cave, just before you climb the vines that have the spikes on the sides, there are some V blocks. Destroy them with your Gaea armor, and keep going along the path until you find a cliff. At this point, dash into some of the V blocks laying around, and push one of them to the edge of the cliff. Stand on top of the V block and dash-jump from it to the ledge carrying the Heart Tank. Gaea Leg Upgrade ================ In the second wire area there will be an alchove at the top with spikes surrounding it. Use X's Falcon armor to fly into the alchove to find the Capsule. Axle the Red Strategy ===================== Axle the Red is easy. Just use the Ground Fire or Quake Blazer and allow him to jump over you, then use it again. By the time you come to this stage you should have the weapon, but if you don't, he's still not all that hard. Just attack him like normal, and avoid his attacks by clinging to the walls. Don't be fooled by his alternate self. Just keep your eye on him and keep firing. ==================== 15. Dynamo Strategy: ==================== You'll face Dynamo twice during the game. Once after you've beaten two of the Maverick bosses, and again once you've beaten six of the Mavericks. As X ==== Dynamo isn't too hard with X. Using the Fourth or Ultimate armor, keep charging your Buster and letting him have it. Jump over his spinning boomerang, and then duck to avoid it coming back (or vice-versa if he does it in that fashion). The second time you face him he'll use an air-slash attack when he jumps over you, and will sometimes pause in mid-air to release blue energy beams. These are both easy to dodge. Simply to not attack him from the air when he jumps over you to avoid the air-slash, and get between the blue energy beams. He's rather simple, really. As Zero ======= For however easy Dynamo is with X, he's ten times easier with Zero, as long as you have the Crescent Slash. Keep using it on Dynamo and he'll fall easily. Dodge his attacks in the same way you would with X, but keep slashing. You should be able to take him out quickly. ======================= 16. Zero Virus stage 1: ======================= The biggest, and practically only real threat in this stage are the lasers. They kill you one hit and irritatingly fill the entire screen sometimes. This is where a very important creedo comes in: There's no shame in using the Dark Hold to stop time. This will make things immensely easier. Pick up the weapon power that's lying around, and try to make sure you have a full Weapons Tank to refill when there isn't any weapon power around. Before long, you'll find yourself at the boss. Shadow Devil Strategy ===================== Shadow Devil can be pretty tough. As X, the Tri-Thunder works, but your X-Buster works better. It's larger anyway. As Zero, good old fashioned sabre swiping works best, and even beats the Shadow Devil faster than X could. The only time he's weak is when his red eye is open. Aim for that eye. Jump and duck to avoid the parts going from one side of the room to the other, and make sure you can always see the parts that haven't yet moved so you can be prepared. It's easiest to avoid his attacks when he forms into the Wily Skull Tank. Just get on the wall and air-dash off of it before it hits, then repeat for the other side. Also, dash under it when it is "jumping" around. This is also the optimum time to attack the red eye when it's exposed, as it will stay that way for longer than usual. Eventually it will get back into the form with the red eye so you can deal more damage. The toughest attack to dodge is when half of it's body is on each side and it fires from both sides. Fast reflexes are the only way to avoid this, and as long as you keep your life fairly full, it shouldn't be a problem. ======================= 17. Zero Virus stage 2: ======================= This stage is pretty straight forward, and all you really have to do is destroy enemies as usual. However, the enemies usually have the tactical advantage, and you have to find ways to overcome this. Having Zero infected with the Virus is a great way to restore your life bar, and don't be afraid to use your special weapons. After a lot of enemies and a lot of spikes, you'll find your way to the boss. Rangda Bangda Strategy ====================== Rangda Bangda makes his second appearance in an X game with this, but this is somewhat different from the first time. The trick here is to exploit the weaknesses of the individual face parts of Rangda Bangda. The green eye is weak to the Crescent Shot and Crescent Slash. The red eye is weak to the Tri-Thunder and E-Blade. The blue eye is weak to the Ground Fire and Quake Blazer. And the nose is weak to the Goo Shaver and F-Splasher. If all the eyes are destroyed, the walls will close in and stay that way instead of branching back out like they would otherwise. This makes a greater danger since spikes can appear from the walls as well as the floor. Keep your eyes sharp to avoid the wall spikes, and be ready to slide down or jump up quickly to avoid them. ======================= 18. Zero Virus stage 3: ======================= This stage is pretty short, and the main danger is in the spikes. Air-dashing is a must here. Don't be too afraid to run into enemies on the wire area. It's long, but you should have enough life to withstand the attacks. Before long, you'll find your way to the boss. Zero/X ====== If you're X, you'll fight Zero. If you're Zero, you'll fight X. As X, just keep near the walls and make sure you charge up your Buster often. Zero's most dangerous attack is one that covers most of the screen, with small gaps between each blue pillar of light. It's hard to dodge, but not impossible. Zero is much harder if he went Maverick earlier in the game. His speed goes up and he becomes trickier, but utilize the same strategies to beat him and don't be afraid to use your Sub-Tanks. X poses a much different danger. He can change his color and use attacks from Mega Man X4. These don't pose too much of a danger. Slash at him like crazy as Zero, using your Crescent Slash often. Zero is much harder than X, but the result is the same. ================ 19. Final stage: ================ This level is very straight-forward, and shouldn't present any problems. You'll find yourself at eight capsules, repeating battles of the eight bosses you've already faced. The order of them, from left to right, is Mattrex, Dark Dizzy, Izzy Glow, Squid Adler, Duff McWhalen, Grizzly Slash, Axle the Red, and Skiver. Employ the same strategies as before, but conserve your life so you can refill it completely with the two energy capsules nearby. The bosses will be more powerful, but their power is purely in a larger lifebar, so the same strategies you used before will take them down. After this and a few more minor obstacles, you'll find yourself at the boss, which is two-fold. Sigma Strategy ============== This battle resembles your first battle ever with Sigma if you've played the entire series, except this time he doesn't have a beam sabre. He jumps from wall to wall, but is easy to avoid. Either stay on the wall above him or duck near the corner of the room. Stay on the walls when he's firing off his electric shocks. It's somewhat hard to get a slash or a shot off at him, but take advantage of the opportunities when you can. You need to conserve your life for his second form. Surviving this battle with all of your life in tact is difficult, but definately worth it. Oddly enough, Sigma is weak to Squid Adler's attacks even though he's firing off shocks himself. With X it's pretty easy to hit him, especially since the Tri-Thunder goes up and down. Zero's E-Blade attack is much harder to hit him with, but if you can get the knack for it it's convenient. Otherwise just slash when you get the chance. If he disappears all of a sudden, he'll appear on the right side of the screen. He'll fire a few of three large shots; high, low, and both. He usually does them in this order, but not always, so be nimble at the fingers. When he fires high, duck. When he fires low, get high to the wall clinging, and when he fires on both, air-dash between them if you're on the ground. If you're clinging to the wall, simply slide down and you'll go right between them. Once this form is defeated, you meet the more difficult boss. Giant Sigma Body Strategy ========================= Sigma's second form is tough, and you need to be prepared. His weakness is the Spike Ball for X and Twin Dream for Zero. Both have about the same range, but Zero's weapon is more awkward to use as far as pressing the buttons on the controller goes. Either way, the red spot on the giant face's forehead is the weak spot, and needs to be hit by the Axle's weapon. Climb on the hands and from there make your way onto the wall. You can air-dash from there towards him to use your weapon, or jump from on top of his hands. Staying on the hands is dangerous, though, since it makes it harder to dodge being crushed when the hands move. If you get caught up in any of the hand movements, it takes off quite a bit of life. Sometimes his hands will disappear, meaning he's about to do one of two attacks. One is to fire off four large balls of energy that will move to the bottom of the screen, and then make jerky movements toward you. Cling to the wall and then dash to dodge these. If you're clinging to the right wall, this is a perfect opportunity to use your weapon against him. The second attack is a huge purple cube that will move around the room and take off serious amounts of life. Dash on the floor, climb the wall, air-dash, etc. in a circular pattern. Don't be afraid to use your Sub-tanks, especially at the purple cube. This is the last time you'll need them, especially since Sigma only uses the purple cube when he's getting weak. ===================== 20. Secrets and Tips: ===================== 1. X's Ultimate Armor - While in the character select screen, make sure X is highlighted and press up twice, and down nine times. X will start with his Ultimate Armor, which is exactly like his Fourth Armor except that it lets him use the Nova Strike an unlimited amount of times. 2. Zero's Black Armor - While in the character select screen, make sure Zero is highlighted and press down twice, and up nine times. Zero will start with his Black Armor. This gives him better defensive ability, and a more powerful purple sabre with the ability to despell the Sigma Virus. 3. The Ninth Capsule - If you want to acquire the Ultimate Armor and Black Armor without using a code, go to the third Zero Virus stage. As X, you have to enter without your Fourth Armor. At a small platform that's out of place, go down the left wall and slide down it, then jump to the right wall. Sliding down it will open a small alchove with the ninth capsule. As unarmored X he gives you the Ultimate Armor. As Zero he gives you the Black Armor. If you get one, you can die and come back as the other character to acquire both. 4. Virus Effects - As X, you should always avoid the Sigma and Zero Viruses, as they can kill him instantly. As Zero, however, these viruses are beneficial. Becoming fully infected will refill Zero's life completely, and make him invincible for a short while. ========== 21. Legal: ========== This guide must always be shown in full form with credit given to the author, and a link and credit must be given to Mega Man X Online (http://www.megaman-x.com/). All associated characters and games are copyright to Capcom.