======================================= ========Mega Man Xtreme 2 Guide======== ======================================= by Reeve : http://www.megaman-x.com/ : reeve@megaman-x.com ====== Index: ====== 1. Introduction 2. Mode Explanation 3. Boss Weaknesses / Recommended Order 4. Power-Up Uses and Locations 5. The Parts Shop 6. Zero's Moves 7. Opening stage 8. Jungle stage (Neon Tiger) 9. Hydrolic Power Plant stage (Volt Catfish) 10. Ocean base stage (Launch Octopus) 11. Factory stage (Flame Mammoth) 12. Weather Control stage (Wire Sponge) 13. Desert stage (Overdrive Ostrich) 14. Aerial Battleship stage (Blast Hornet) 15. Underground stage (Tunnel Rhino) 16. Soul Eraser stage 1 17. Soul Eraser stage 2 18a. Soul Eraser stage 3 - Berkana 18b. Soul Eraser stage 3 - Gareth 19. Final stage 20. Secrets and Tips 21. Legal ================ 1. Introduction: ================ Welcome to the official Mega Man X Online guide for Mega Man Xtreme 2, the second installment in the Gameboy MMX sub-series. 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. Mode Explanation: ==================== There are four modes in Mega Man Xtreme 2. The first two modes go hand in hand. There is X Mode and Zero Mode. In X Mode, you battle (as X) against Neon Tiger, Launch Octopus, Volt Catfish, and Flame Mammoth. In Zero Mode, you battle (as Zero) against Overdrive Ostrich, Wire Sponge, Tunnel Rhino, and Blast Hornet. These two are combined in Xtreme Mode, where all 8 bosses are present and the player can switch between X and Zero freely during stages. After beating Xtreme Mode, a special Boss Attack mode becomes available, where the player can battle against bosses from both this and the first Xtreme game using all the weapons available to them in this game. For the purposes of this walkthrough, I'll assume Xtreme Mode is being used. ======================================= 3. Boss Weaknesses / Recommended Order: ======================================= Boss Weakness with X Weakness with Zero ==== =============== ================== -Neon Tiger -------- Tornado Fang (Rhino) ----- Drill Crush (Rhino) -Volt Catfish ------ Ray Claw (Tiger) --------- Rising (Tiger) -Launch Octopus ---- Tri-Thunder (Catfish) ---- Tri-Thunder (Catfish) -Flame Mammoth ----- Marine Tornado (Octopus) - Fish Fang (Octopus) -Wire Sponge ------- Fire Wave (Mammoth) ------ Fire Wave (Mammoth) -Overdrive Ostrich - Strike Chain (Sponge) ---- Lightning (Sponge) -Blast Hornet ------ Sonic Slicer (Ostrich) --- Dash (Ostrich) -Tunnel Rhino ------ Bomb Bee (Hornet) -------- Earth Geyser (Hornet) Boss Attack Mode ================ Below are weakness listings for the bosses from the first Xtreme game playable in the special Boss Attack Mode: Boss Weakness with X Weakness with Zero ==== =============== ================== -Chill Penguin ----- Fire Wave (Mammoth) ---------------- Fire Wave (Mammoth) -Storm Eagle ------- Sonic Slicer (Ostrich) ------------- Dash (Ostrich) -Armored Armadillo - Tri-Thunder (Catfish) -------------- Tri-Thunder (Catfish) -Magna Centipede --- Bomb Bee (Hornet) ------------------ Earth Geyser (Hornet) -Wheel Gator ------- Tornado Fang (Rhino) --------------- Drill Crush (Rhino) -Morph Moth -------- Ray Claw/Fire Wave (Tiger/Mammoth) - Rising/Fire Wave (Tiger/Mammoth) -Spark Mandrill ---- Strike Chain (Sponge) -------------- Lightning (Sponge) -Flame Stag -------- Marine Tornado (Octopus) ----------- Fish Fang (Octopus) =============================== 4. Power-Up Uses and Locations: =============================== Power-Up Use Location ------------------------------------------- X's Leg Upgrade - allows X to air dash - Found in Volt Catfish's stage. X's Helmet Upgrade - headbutt some ceilings - Found in Neon Tiger's stage. X's Arm Upgrade - more powerful X-Buster - Found in Flame Mammoth's stage. X's Body Upgrade - allows Giga Crush - Found in Launch Octopus' stage. Zero's Leg Upgrade - break some bricks with kicks - Found in Wire Sponge's stage. Zero's Helmet Upgrade - headbutt some ceilings - Found in Overdrive Ostrich's stage. Zero's Arm Upgrade - allows Zero Final - Found in Tunnel Rhino's stage. Zero's Body Upgrade - more powerful defense - Found in Blast Hornet's stage. Heart Tanks - more life added to meter - One per stage Sub-Tanks - life energy reserve - Found in the stages of: Flame Mammoth, Wire Sponge ================== 5. The Parts Shop: ================== Using the DNA Soul Chips collected during the game, items and power-ups can be bought in a small shop. One small ball signifies four soul chips. Two signifies eight, and three signifies sixteen. The largest ones that you get from defeating stage bosses are worth 200. Yellow is life energy, and blue is weapon energy. Below are the listings for the items and prices. - - - - - - Row 1: |1|2|3|4|5|6| -- Comm Part (usable by both X and Zero) - - - - - - - - - - - - Row 2: |1|2|3|4|5|6| -- X Part (usable only by X) - - - - - - - - - Row 3: |1|2|3| -- Zero Part (usable only by Zero) - - - Listings: 1.1 - Hyper Dash (1000/3000) - invincible while dashing, distance and speed increase 1.2 - Super Recover (200) - doubles energy gained from life and weapon energy 1.3 - Energy Saver (100) - halves weapon energy use for special weapons 1.4 - Bar Extender (100) - halves damage done by hits 1.5 - XTREME MODE (2000/3000) - enable XTREME MODE in main menu* 1.6 - BOSS ATTACK MODE (2000/4000) - enable BOSS ATTACK MODE in main menu* 2.1 - Buster Plus 1 (200) - one more unit of energy taken off enemies 2.2 - Buster Plus 2 (200) - two more unit of energy taken off enemies 2.3 - Speed Shot (100) - faster shots 2.4 - Ultimate Buster (500/2000) - charged shot every time 2.5 - Hyper Charge (1000/2000) - faster charge 2.6 - Armor (2000/2000) - all of X's armor** 3.1 - Saber Plus 1 (200) - one more unit of energy taken off enemies 3.2 - Saber Plus 2 (500/2000) - two more unit of energy taken off enemies 3.3 - Ultimate Saber (800) - Zero does the third (and most powerful) slash while standing * Cannot be bought after they have already been earned ** Not available if X has already found his armor, only works for X's armor ================ 6. Zero's Moves: ================ Rising - Acquired from Neon Tiger - Up + B on the ground Fish Fang - Acquired from Launch Octopus - Up + B in the air (consumes energy) Fire Wave - Acquired from Flame Mammoth - Down + B on the ground (consumes energy) Drill Crush - Acquired from Tunnel Rhino - Down + B in the air The rest of the moves all consume energy, and must be used by selecting the picture in the weapons screen. They are Tri-Thunder from Volt Catfish, Lightning from Wire Sponge, Dash from Overdrive Ostrich, Earth Geyser from Blast Hornet, and Zero Final from the his upgrade. ================= 7. Opening stage: ================= The opening stage is pretty basic. None of the enemies you face will be extremely hard to take down. Most will be destroyed with a few shots of the Buster or a slash of the Saber. Once you get past a wall protected by a hand robot, X and Zero will split after a bit of dialouge. X takes the lower path, which involves some cannon turret robots and more hand robots, but not much else. Zero takes the higher path, which is composed of smaller and more agile enemies. Most of them fall with one simple slash of the Z-Saber, though, so it shouldn't be a problem. The two paths converge again in front of the boss door. Skullhead Strategy ================== Skullhead is pretty easy, especially as Zero. Simply slash constantly and he won't even be able to make a move against you. As X, use charged shots, but keep your distance more. Chances are he'll have more opportunities to hurt you. He will release small robots that can be destroyed easily, and sometimes will release a small spinning metal blade that can be jumped over to avoid. No matter what, it's fairly easy. ====================== 8. Neon Tiger's stage: ====================== The first threat in Neon Tiger's stage is woodcutting robots. To avoid their attacks, simply jump over the projectiles and get on top of the tree or behind them. There are also several bats in the area, so fire at them quickly before they get too close. Before long, you'll find your way to the Ride Armor. You have to use this to break through the thicket of trees that comes next, but there are no enemies in this area, so it's not tough. Heart Tank ========== At the tree where there's the lowest ground (the 7th, if you're counting), use the Ride Armor to float up to a higher breaking point in the tree. Break through it and the Heart Tank will be waiting there for you. Now you'll have to exit your Ride Armor and enter an area with a lot of falling hazards. If you see a crack in the tree limb, it means that it will crumble off after you've stepped on it, so be careful. There will also be a lot of bee bots in this area, so fire constantly to make sure they don't knock you over the edge. There will be a few floating platforms and spitfire robots around, but just be careful and everything should be fine. X's Helmet Upgrade ================== You can see the Helmet Upgrade clear as day inside an enclosed area after a few floating platforms. You need the Fire Wave from Flame Mammoth to burn the tree and get inside, but once that's accomplished there should be no problems getting in. Next there will be a few airborne enemies and then another Ride Armor that should glide you safely all the way to the boss door. Neon Tiger Strategy =================== Neon Tiger is one of the easiest bosses in the game, and doesn't really even require you to use his weakness. His patterns are pretty predictable, and this is what makes him so simple. Using X or Zero, the strategy is basically the same. He'll cling to the wall, and then either use his Ray Splasher (which moves slowly enough to be easily dodged), or he'll pounce (also fairly slowly). If you stay in the middle of the room, his pouncing can be avoided by dashing to either side when you see him start to do it. This is the best opportunity to hit him, and then the process just has to be repeated. The only real difficulty is if he starts to use his powered dashing move, which is less predictable and takes off more life. Still, with quick moves you can jump over him before he can hit you. ======================== 9. Volt Catfish's stage: ======================== The first thing to do in this stage is dispatch the somewhat easy enemies while keeping light on your toes to dodge the electric shocks floating around the floors and ceiling. Once this is done, you'll find a vertical climb with water flowing down it. The enemies here aren't that tough, but the vertical climb can make it hard to hit them sometimes. Be careful to only fire or slash when you really have the opportunity, and you'll be fine. X's Leg Upgrade =============== Once you reach the top of the vertical climb, keep climbing up the left wall. There will be an alchove on the right side that contains the capsule. Next you'll find rushing water that attempts to push you into sets of spikes. Stay on high ground, and when none is available, cling to the walls. If you get caught up in the water, you'll probably still be okay, but it's best not to risk it. The next area is much more difficult, as it involves the same rushing water, only electrically charged. Touching it kills you instantly. Cling to the walls (it really helps to have the Leg Upgrade here as X) and stay as far away from the water as possible. Heart Tank ========== After a few of the electric rushing water hazards, you'll enter a room with yet more of them. You'll be on the upper level, and the Heart Tank will be on the lower level. You need to wait until the rushing water stops and then make a very fast break for the Heart Tank. It helps to charge your Buster (if you're playing as X) before hand to fire at the enemy waiting for you at the end of the corridor. You might lose a life getting this, so it's a good idea not to try for it if you're running on your last one. After getting through the next electric rushing water hazard, you'll have to make a small climb to get to the boss. Volt Catfish Strategy ===================== Volt Catfish is a pretty tough boss, as he uses his electric currents to restrict your movement. The best idea here is to use the Ray Claw or Rising against him, as it will debilitate him long enough for you to get another shot off. If using your regular X-Buster or Z-Saber, be careful and use your air dash to dodge his electric currents, and cling to the walls often. When he fires off his Tri-Thunder, cling to the wall or jump to the area just above standing level. ========================== 10. Launch Octopus' stage: ========================== After a few very minor enemies in this stage, the path will split. The lower path leads to a submarine. Blast off it's scope first and then fire at it. It's not tough to defeat. The upper path leads to a few starfish robots like the ones nearer to the beginning of the stage. Both paths converge after these obstacles are done with. Next, you'll battle against some fish that will swallow you. You can blast them before or after they swallow you. Either way doing it fast will erase any threat they pose. There will also be some whirlpools that can shoot you up to collect life energy and other valuables. Heart Tank ========== The third whirlpool leads up towards a platform that holds the Heart Tank. Next you'll be faced with another path split. Going up in a whirlpool to battle against the massive Cruiziler ship will land you near an Utuboros. Battling these two enemies will lead to a capsule, but they can be tough. Going straight ahead poses zero threat other than a few spikes here and there, but you're unable to get the capsule with this path. To battle Cruiziler, jump up in the whirlpool how you did the others. Once you land on Cruiziler, fire straight ahead while occasionally jumping to dispatch the airborne enemies that would otherwise pose a threat. Once Cruiziler is destroyed, you'll drop down to the Utuboros room. Jump on its back and fire at its head or its tail, the only two weak points. Don't try to stay on it as it changes position, as it will usually get you hurt. When landing, make sure you align yourself with the green vertical poles. They signify a safe area without spikes. Once Utuboros is defeated, proceed right. X's Body Upgrade ================ Beating this optional Utuboros and the Cruiziler before it is what earns the body upgrade capsule. It will be in plain view and simple reach after proceeding right from the Utuboros room. Once again, the path splits here. Taking the upper path (which you'll need to air dash to reach) will lead to another submarine. This one is a bit tougher, and has spike hazards to avoid. But if you blast off the scope early and follow the same techniques you did with the earlier sub, there shouldn't be a problem. The lower path leads to some swallowing fish that swim over a lot of spikes. This shouldn't be a problem, though, as long as you make sure that if the fish swallow you, you don't destroy them while over a set of spikes. The two paths converge again in another Utuboros battle (or your first, if you chose not to battle it before). The same strategies as above apply, but this one burrows underground sometimes and you don't have to worry about limited ceiling space or a floor of spikes. In many ways, this one is easier. After beating Utuboros, you'll be at the boss. Launch Octopus Strategy ======================= Launch Octopus can be pretty challenging, especially using the X-Buster or Z-Saber. Neither of these dispell his attacks, one of which renders him invincible. Sometimes he'll get into the pattern of simply doing this one non-stop, making him impossible to beat unless you have his weakness handy. The best idea is to cut off his tentacles using the Ray Claw as X. This destroys his ability to use most of his devastating attacks, and all that will be left are the Homing Torpedos. Tri-Thunder (with both X and Zero) hurt him at this point, but the X-Buster works fine if his tentacles are gone. If you are unable to dispell his tentacle attacks, dash to one side to avoid being sucked in by his powerful whirlpool, and hope he doesn't get into the pattern of using his invincible attack. ========================= 11. Flame Mammoth's stage: ========================= First you'll have to run along the conveyer belts, destroying and avoiding enemies as you go. Eventually there will be a chasm to fall down. Go down it, and go towards another area with the grey bottom level. X's Arm Upgrade =============== Once at the bottom level, stand on the yellow platform. Stand on the very edge of the platform and do an air dash to the left. You need the Head and Leg upgrades to get this if you're X or Zero, but for different reasons. The Leg Upgrade allows X to dash, and allows Zero to break walls with a kick. Zero already has the air dash from the start. (see the Secrets and Tips section on why getting through with Zero in Xtreme Mode might be a good idea). When you climb up this wall, you'll find the capsule. Now you'll have to walk along a very dangerous path where fireballs will spit up from the ground and instantly kill you if you come in contact with them. Walk slowly to avoid this. Heart Tank ========== At the end of the fireball spitting platform, there's a Heart Tank in plain view. A fireball will destroy the ground near it, allowing access to drop down and air dash to the Heart Tank. Stepping in the lava does not instantly kill you, so it may be wise to simply walk in it and take a few hits rather than put up with the challenge of air dashing in an area so precise. Now climb up the wall at the end of the platforms. You can go forward (right) to move on in the level, or you can go back (left). Sub-Tank ======== Traveling left, fight your way through the pickaxe robots, moving from platform to higher platform. You're near the end when you reach a moving platform. Dash-Jump from it onto the wall at the left and find an area where you can crush the blocks with your head and feet. After you do, you can get inside to the Sub-Tank. This area can also be reached by a straight up air dash from one of the earlier platforms, and may be easier that way. Now you'll have some more conveyer belts to face. Jump over the robots that will be firing at you and avoid the compressors trying to crush you. It's best to get the enemy robots trapped in them. Next will be a small network of pipes. Take the first ladder and simply jump over the spiked robot. Have a charged shot prepared to take on the ball-and-chain robot, and entice his weapon so he's vulnerable. Continue this process for the next network of pipes, and then you'll find yourself at the entrance to the boss. Flame Mammoth Strategy ====================== Flame Mammoth has some pretty simple patterns. When he jumps, jump before he reaches the ground or you'll be helpless for a few seconds while he can attack you. His fireballs aren't strong, but they are pretty accurate, so be prepared to do some fancy footwork. If you're using his weakness weapon, as X you must be directly above or below him, as the Marine Tornado goes vertically. The best strategy for this is to cling to the wall that the conveyor belt is going towards. He'll eventually reach near you, and you can simply use the weapon repeatedly until he goes down. As Zero, you can be to his side, and this weapon can be easier to use for some players. ======================== 12. Wire Sponge's stage: ======================== Heart Tank ========== This is the easiest Heart Tank to find in the game. Climb up the left wall at the start of the level and go inside the hidden wall to find it. Destroy the frog robots with a blast from your Buster or slash of your Saber. They don't attack quickly, so as long as you disable them fast, they won't even have a chance to attack. Inside a small alchove, destroy the sphere that is helping to control the weather. Blast the enemies that rise up on poles. Like the frogs, they don't attack quickly, so wiping them out fast will be beneficial. Wipe out another crystal, and cross the spikes. There are two ways you can do this. You can either climb across the floating poles right above the spikes, which is the harder route, or you can use the pole farthest to the left to do a Dash-Jump onto the tree-shaped alchove you just came out of. Climb up it, and you'll find some platforms to the left. Sub-Tank ======== If you take the higher route, a Sub-Tank will be on the second set of platforms in the middle. Cling to the wall and slide into the alchove to get it. Next you'll come to an elevator platform going upward. Zero's Leg Upgrade ================== If you time it right, you can go under the elevator platform and then to the nearby wall on the right side, which leads to the capsule. When you take an elevator platform up, some small robots will try to leap on you to hurt you. Simply stay in the middle of the elevator and let them jump past you. For fun, you can try picking them off as they jump past you as well. Some more frog robots and a crystal later, and you'll be outside again. Aside from jumping over spikes and destroying frog robots, this area has one new threat. Flying robots will drop small electric weeds on the ground. These can be destroyed or ignored. Destroy the robot after it drops the weed (or before), because it will go after you next. Go through the level following these patterns and blasting all the spherical weather-changing devices until you go inside. You'll find another rising elevator, but this time there are spikes around. Move from left to right on the elevator to avoid being killed by them, and then you'll find yourself at the boss. Wire Sponge Strategy ==================== Wire Sponge is much easier if you have access to the Fire Wave weapon, but it's very possible to beat him without. Avoid being hit by his chain by clinging to the walls and air-dashing, and don't take too many risks to hit him. Only hit him when it's very safe to do so. Destroy the weeds he lets out that block your movement, and make sure you dash from side to side when he turns red. This means he's going to use his Lightning attack, which is devastating. Dashing from side to side is the best way to avoid this. Keep following these strategies while hitting him with your choice of weapon and he'll go down. ============================== 13. Overdrive Ostrich's stage: ============================== This stage opens with a small Ride Chaser area. Use the wheelie attack to destroy enemies along the path. Other than that, there are a few simple jumps to make. This is really more of a warm-up for the later Ride Chaser area that comes later in the stage. Once the Ride Chaser crashes into the wall, proceed into the building and down the ladder. Destroy the enemies that show up periodically while making sure you don't step in the sandstorm generators. These can kill you instantly, and they can sometimes be tricky. Wait until one stops and then go through quickly, and don't try to go through more than one at a time. At one point, there's an alchove above the last sandstorm generator that has a little bit of life. This is risky to go to, though, so only try it if you're in desperate need of it. Once you're done with this area, you will find a ladder leading downwards. Zero's Helmet Upgrade ===================== If you stand at the edge of the ladder and do a well-timed air dash to the left, you can catch another ladder leading upwards to the capsule. The down ladder leads to another Ride Chaser area. This one is harder, but not all that tough. Use the wheelie attack again to get rid of the enemies along the way and also to destroy the small walls that block you. Heart Tank ========== You'll see a ditch in the Ride Chaser area that has some grating near it. You might instinctivly jump over it, but if you just ride into it, you'll be led into the grating where a Heart Tank is, and then exit back onto the normal path. After the Ride Chaser crashes into the sandstorm generator, you'll find your door to the boss. Overdrive Ostrich Strategy ========================== Overdrive Ostrich is pretty easy if you exploit his patterns, even if you're not using the optimum weapon. The strategy for using his weakness and using your regular weapon (Buster/Saber) remains the same. Scroll him off the screen, and then watch for his shadow to appear in the background. Have him land on a hill as you go to lower ground. Hit him a couple of times, and then be prepared to dash jump or air dash above him as he dashes towards you. Then, simply repeat the process. He might still be able to get off a few Sonic Slicer attacks, but as long as you watch them carefully they should be no problem to avoid. ========================= 14. Blast Hornet's stage: ========================= After dealing with a few small and simple bee enemies, you'll have to climb some ladders that lead to bug copters. Climbing up these and jumping from copter to copter involves some large jumps, some of which are leaps of faith. Luckily, none of the enemies on them are all that tough, so it shouldn't be too difficult. The two bug copter areas are interupted briefly by a small indoor area. Heart Tank ========== At the end of this area, go off the ledge and you'll be led to an alchove with a ladder leading down. The ladder leads to a few more bug copters that, after jumping from one to another, leads to the Heart Tank. You'll have to backtrack to get back on the path. In the second bug copter area, there will be some floating platforms (some of which need to be jumped on twice to change direction), and more enemies to deal with including cannon turrets. Be careful and don't take too many risks when navigating it. You'll soon find once again on stable ground, with many cannon turrets and spitfire robots around. Going through and destroying them will eventually destroy the ground underneath your feet, and you'll drop down to a new area. Zero's Body Upgrade =================== If you opt not to destroy all of the enemies on the indoor area, you can move past them instead of having the ground drop out. This will lead to a solid wall that can be destroyed using the Drill Crush (Zero's Tunnel Rhino move). Inside will be the capsule. After dropping through the floor, you'll find yourself at a mini-boss, four turrets attached to a wall in an enclosed room. They can only be destroyed when they turn red, and the bee robots make an extra obstacle. Destroy the turrets quickly and you'll be able to exit the room. Now you'll battle a few more bee robots and be at the boss door. Blast Hornet Strategy ===================== Blast Hornet is incredibly simple, whether you're using his weakness or not. Stay in the middle of the room and hit him while he's in the air. Then dash to the side opposite of him when he lunges for you. Go back to the middle of the room when he rises again, and repeat this process. His other favorite attack is to let out small bomb bees. These can be destroyed quickly, though, and so they don't disturb the pattern. ========================= 15. Tunnel Rhino's stage: ========================= At the beginning of the stage, there are a few small pits for boulders to drop into. Don't jump towards the boulders; they'll hurt you. Let them roll into the pits or destroy them. Once you get inside the cave, there will be a few small enemies to destroy and then you'll drop down into an area with a lot of boulders. The second one to roll down has some energy behind it, so once it has rolled away you can collect it. Another small tank will face you and then you'll find several pits with boulders dropping into them. Let the boulders drop before proceeding. There's two that land on the platforms, and they have to be destroyed before you can proceed on the platforms. Even though the boulders are staying still, they can hurt you if you touch them, so be careful. Next there will be boulders falling down a slanted walkway. Cling to the high walls to avoid getting crushed, and let the boulders pass. After this threat is through, you'll find a Ride Armor. Get in and use it to destroy the enemy Ride Armor. Destroying the second Ride Armor while standing on the unstable ground will make it fall through, taking you to the next area. Heart Tank ========== Instead of destroying the second Ride Armor, float above it and proceed on. Float above the uncertain floors, because one small area falls through as well. You'll be able to see the Heart Tank from a hovering position, so hover up to it and then jump out of your Ride Armor to reach it. Then backtrack to go to the area further underground. Zero's Arm Upgrade ================== Go left instead of right in the underground area and you'll come to a wall with two blocks in front of the entrance, blocking it. Use the Zero's Lightning ability from Wire Sponge to destroy the blocks, and proceed into the alchove to claim the capsule. Go right in this next area, destroying the enemy Ride Armor while staying in your own to protect yourself from them and the spikes. Once you reach a ladder, you'll have to exit your Ride Armor and climb down. This area has a few small enemies that shouldn't be a problem. The real obstacle is defeating them while avoiding the fire that rises from the ground. It covers about 2/3 of the screen, and most of the time there's high ground to stand on or cling to. If an enemy is in the fire area, destroy it and then proceed to high ground as soon as possible. The fire can't kill you, but it can do significant damage, especially if you're caught in it. Once you're safely through this area, you'll find the boss. Tunnel Rhino Strategy ===================== Tunnel Rhino is pretty simple to defeat. His weaknesses are good to use, but if using the Earth Geyser with Zero you have to make sure his back is to you. To do this, only use the move when you've just dodged one of his charges. To beat him, cling to the wall to avoid being hit by his Tornado Fang. When he charges at you, jump over him and hit him, then rush to the other wall to repeat the process. Sometimes he won't use the Tornado Fang in between charges, making it harder to dodge as it gives you less time to do so. This is where the air dash comes in handy, as it gives you more than enough room to go right over his head. When he gets weak, he'll change colors sometimes as he charges, and kick up rocks. Just make sure you're not in the vertically-based path of these rocks and keep utilizing the same strategies. ======================== 16. Soul Eraser stage 1: ======================== First in this stage are some floating platforms. Use the air dash to get from one to another while taking care of the bat bots that will try to knock you off of them. After getting back on solid ground and climbing up a small ladder, there will be ball-and-chain robots. Air dash behind them quickly and destroy them before they can turn around. When you find a Ride Armor, get in and use it to dispatch the bat bots that will try to knock you into the giant pit. Just make sure that they're not near you at the time that you're hovering over the pit. Destroying them shouldn't be a problem with the powerful Ride Armor. Get out of it when you come to a steep incline, and you'll find a path that branches. The left path has ladders with spitfire robots and cannons planted around. The right path has an awkward climb and spiked robots falling down the path. Either way, make sure you destroy the enemies as soon as you see them, or you'll take some damage. Once you reach the end, there will be a laser alarm that will fire at you if you cross in front while the laser is on. Wait until it goes off, and then carefully destroy the first spitfire robot. Jump to the next platform after the next one is destroyed as well. There will be more lasers in this next area, so step lightly. Once you're through it, you'll be at the boss. Velguader Strategy ================== Velguader has speed on his side. He moves quickly, so you'll have to match his agility to stand a chance. Stay on the walls and be prepared to air dash off of them when the time comes. You'll most likely have to perform a frenzy of jumps from the wall to the floor, and back to the wall again, etc., while hitting him whenever the opportunity arises. Watch out for his fire attack, as he can control it to come towards you no matter where you are in the room. You might find Velguader easier with X than with Zero, as a long-range fighter more suits his style. While his weakness seems to be the Ray Claw/Rising attacks from Neon Tiger, the Buster and Saber can be just as or more effective if they're upgraded with a few modules. ======================== 17. Soul Eraser stage 2: ======================== The first obstacle in this stage is a steep decline with small enemies planted all over it. You could carefully destroy these enemies, but a well-timed air ash will glide you over most of them. Cling to the walls of the ceiling and air dash some more to make it over all of them. Afterwards, you'll find a floating platform. While on the path, bat bots will come to attack you. If you jump up to hit a bat, make sure you land back on the platform, and you'll have to jump on it again to keep it going in the right direction. Be careful not to hit the ground below, because the electricity will kill you instantly. Next, you'll find more floating platforms, these time much thinner and going up and down. Cling from one to another. The air dash helps here. You can destroy the enemies if you want, but if you climb fast enough, they don't really pose a threat. Next there are several electric floors on your descent downward. Be careful while clinging to the walls. Let yourself slide down a bit and then air dash to the opposite wall. Repeat this over and over while dodging/destroying the enemies on the walls. There will be more floating platforms and more electric walls here. The first set is pretty easy. Just keep your balance on the thin platforms. In the second set, you have to make use of the small alchove above the second platform. Jump into it and cling there until the platform is to your left side. You can drop down and air dash to the right, or you can cling to the platform and let it carry you there. In the next area, there are electric walls and spitfire robots. This area is easier if you have X's air dash, since you can use it to dash straight up and cling to the walls easier. Stay on the platform sides opposite the spitfire robots, and you'll be fine. The next area a few electric floors about, some enemies, and fire rising from the floor. The spaces with high ground are few and far between, so don't be afraid to backtrack if you think the fire might be rising soon. There might be high ground nearer behind you than in front of you. Don't take chances here; it's not worth it. Destroy the enemies and continue on in the area until you get to the boss. Ether and Souel Strategy ======================== This is one of the toughest bosses in the game. Ether (the top head) fires aimed horizontal purple shots while Souel (the bottom) fires missiles that approach vertically. These two attacks together can be devastating, so concentrate on one head and then the other. The problem with the bottom head is that the spike at the front of the tank structure does a lot of damage, and the floating platform never goes low enough to hit him. It's weak to X's Fire Wave and Zero's Fish Fang. You can destroy the missiles from Souel on their way up, so they usually won't be a problem. Keep firing with his weaknesses, and don't go directly in front of or behind him, or you'll be crushed. You might have to use a Sub-Tank or two here. Note: The "Super-Powerful X" trick found in the Secrets and Tips section makes this boss much easier. It's possible to not even use one Sub-Tank if using the Ultimate Buster, Speed Shot, Buster Plus 1 and Buster Plus 2 combo, as each hit will do a lot of damage. ====================================== 18a. Soul Eraser stage 3 with Berkana: ====================================== The opening of this stage is fairly simple. A few small jumps must be made, and some enemies such as small bee bots and scorpions must be destroyed, but other than that, there isn't much to worry about. After a short while, X and Zero meet with Berkana and Gareth, and split up. X goes after Berkana, while Zero goes to handle Gareth. Therefore, the stages for these two becomes different at this point. There are some electric floor traps to air dash over before going down the ladder. There are some enemies here, but the bigger threat is the electrically charged rushing water, which can kill you instantly. Don't go down when there's any chance of the water coming soon, and when you feel the ground rumble, get to high ground fast. After climbing down the ladder, you'll find a much harder area. You need to cling to the high floating pole using your straight-up air dash quickly before the rushing water comes, or you'll die. Climb from one pole to the other and go through the door leading to a new, and much less treacherous, area. There are simply a few enemies to dispatch here before you'll find a ladder to climb up, where there will be floating platforms to climb surrounded by electric walls. If you're trying to get the Shotokan moves, this is the area (see the Secrets and Tips section for more details). Go up the platforms to the next ladder, and then through the door that leads to the boss. Berkana Strategy ================ Berkana's power is in her ability to strip you of your strengths. She fires off two of these kinds of attacks. An A ball, bouncing on the ground, will destroy your ability to jump (the ability assigned to the A button). Spikes will appear on both walls, and will kill you if you touch them. A B ball, which goes in more of an arc movement, will destroy your ability to fire (the ability assigned to the B button). In this, spikes will appear on the floor, so you must jump onto the wall quickly to avoid instantly being killed. She also has iceburg-like projectiles that move about the room, but these are nothing compared to the threat of not being able to fire or jump. Although the Ray Claw stops her, it can be hard to get close to her, so you may want to use the just-as-effective charged Buster shots. This is especially easy if you have the Ultimate Buster or the Shotokan moves, or if you've implimented the Super-Powerful X trick (see Secrets and Tips). Dodge the ability-impairing balls that she fires, and she doesn't pose very much of a threat to you. ===================================== 18b. Soul Eraser stage 3 with Gareth: ===================================== The opening of this stage is fairly simple. A few small jumps must be made, and some enemies such as small bee bots and scorpions must be destroyed, but other than that, there isn't much to worry about. After a short while, X and Zero meet with Berkana and Gareth, and split up. X goes after Berkana, while Zero goes to handle Gareth. Therefore, the stages for these two becomes different at this point. This area has a lot of flowing water, a few enemies, and some electric floor traps. Be careful when navigating around and destroying the enemies, and always look before you leap. Once you cling to a wall on the right side with electric walls on the left side, there is electricity directly below you that you can't see. You'll need to slide down and air dash right as soon as you fall to avoid it. After climbing the ladder, there will be some more ball-and-chain robots and running water that will come sometimes. As long as you beat the robots fast enough, you'll only have to cling to a high wall once to avoid the water. Climb up the ladder and jump on top of the floating platform quickly to avoid more electric running water, and jump across the electric floor once the running water has stopped. Go through the door to an area composed of some drill tanks and electric floor traps. None of this should be too difficult, considering what you've already successfully gotten through. After battling through some more tanks, there will be a tricky area with electric walls on each side. Drop from floating platform to floating platform until you've reached the last one in your line of sight. From here, you'll have to drop off the platform directly towards an electric floor trap. Be prepared to air dash right into the alchove that leads to the boss. Gareth Strategy =============== Although you can reflect Gareth's spears back on him to do damage, it doesn't seem to do nearly as much damage as would be expected from the difficulty of it. An advantage of it, though, is that he'll stop moving for a few moments, allowing you time to hit him with your Saber or to simply plan your next move. The best advice here is to power up your Saber as much as possible and simply hit him directly while avoiding his attacks. When he's on the ground, he'll sometimes jump from one side of the room to another, but most of the time he'll stay put and chuck his spears at you. Stay near him and go under him when he jumps into the air. Go to whichever side he's not throwing the spear, and hit him in the back. You can usually do this several times and deal significant damage before he leaps high into the air. You can't hit him head on, because he has a shield that protects his front side and he'll probably hit you with his spear if you try. When he leaps into the air and out of sight, there will be a spear coming about every two seconds to wherever you're standing. Dash from side to side to avoid being hit, and after four spears, he'll land again. He'll usually land to either side, so staying near the middle will make his landings fairly safe for you. Keep avoiding his attacks while hitting him when the opportunity arises, and he'll fall in no time. ================ 19. Final stage: ================ There are a few simple traps to navigate through here. Bat bots will try to knock you into the many pit hazards lying throughout the stage, and when you climb up the wall, you'll have to do carefully timed air dashes from one wall to another to avoid the spikes on either side. Before long, though, you'll find your way to the boss capsules. Below is a map of where all the bosses are: -Tunnel Rhino- -Blast Hornet- - - -Wire Sponge- | Energy Capsules | -Overdrive Ostrich- - - -Launch Octopus- -Volt Catfish- -Neon Tiger- -Flame Mammoth- After beating the bosses, a capsule will appear near where the energy used to be, and it will take you to the last area. There are a few minor enemies here. Wall crawlers and Ride Armors are the only threat, and by now you should be powered up enough to beat them with no problems. Before long you'll find your way to the boss. Sigma Strategy ============== Sigma is tough, but he can be easier if you exploit his patterns. As soon as his dialouge is finished, jump to the wall nearest you and stay there. He'll slash at the wall for a little while, so air dash to the opposite wall. He'll most likely surround himself with purple energy balls that will come after you one at a time. Dodge these while clinging to the wall and fire at him if you're X. If you're playing as Zero, slash at him when he's done with his purple energy balls and then cling to the wall again. These patterns will bring him down eventually, but if you give him long enough, he'll sometimes jump from wall to wall and use devastating claw attacks. Drop to the floor when he jumps toward the wall and get back on the wall when he approaches the floor. If he disappears, get to the floor and dash quickly to avoid his pouncing attack. If you're lucky, you'll be able to destroy him before he can use these attacks. Sigma Form 2 Strategy ===================== Sigma is pretty tough in his giant wolf-like armor. Luckily, your life will be refilled after the first Sigma form, but your Sub-Tanks won't be. Hopefully you saved them. In battle, only the face of his armor (the wolf face) is vulnerable. Hit it repeatedly while dodging his attacks, and he'll eventually get thrown out of his armor for a moment. Hit him, and then repeat the process when he gets back in his armor. The armor also changes color. When it's yellow, it's vulnerable to hits from both X and Zero. When it turns blue, it's vulnerable only to hits from X. When it's red, it's vulnerable only to hits from Zero. As X, you'll have to air dash straight up and fire to hit the face, but since Zero lacks this ability, you just have to jump up and slash near the face. He fires off small green orbs that must be dodged. He'll also sometimes fire huge forcefield-like projectiles of the same color, and the only way to dodge those is to dash under them repeatedly. He'll also sometimes have the forcefield appear in front of the armor, and he'll dash himself. This attack can be avoided with the invincible Hyper Dash module, but just make sure he doesn't get a chance to use it too much. When he jumps into the air, make sure you dash out of the way if you see him coming towards you, because otherwise he'll land directly on top of you, instantly killing you. Keep employing the dodging strategies while firing and he'll eventually go down. Don't be afraid to use both of your Sub-Tanks now. This is your last battle. ===================== 20. Secrets and Tips: ===================== 1. Easy Sub-Tank Fill - The easiest way to fill up your Sub-Tanks seems to be to equip the Super Recover module and go to Flame Mammoth's stage. Get on the conveyor belts and destroy all of the enemies that come out of the hatches, collecting the life energy that they drop. This is also a good way to raise DNA chips for buying items in the shop. 2. Shotokan Capsule - As with the first Xtreme game, there is a ninth capsule that contains the Shotokan moves. Of course to get it you need to have collected all of the Armor Upgrades and Sub-Tanks. It's also necessary to collect all of the Heart Tanks. In the third Sigma stage, after X and Zero split up to take care of Berkana and Gareth, there will be a long vertical corridor with rocket platforms to climb, and electric walls on both sides. At the top, you can air dash through the discolored electric wall to the right to find the special capsule. This is a bit of a leap of faith, though, as the electric wall can kill you if you do it incorrectly. To make sure you get the right area, look for the piece of wall that is a gray tone instead of the purple color that all the other walls are. 3. Super-Powerful X - As long as the Shotokan moves don't matter to you, you can have an unarmored X more powerful than the armored one. It can only be done in Xtreme mode. Unarmored X can have 4 modules equipped. Armored X is restricted to only 2. If you give X all the functionally useful pieces of his armor, but refrain from getting the useless piece of armor (his Helmet upgrade), you can have all the benefits of the armored X with 2 more module slots as well. The Helmet Upgrade is really only useful for getting to the Arm Upgrade. If you have Zero's Helmet and Leg Upgrades, however, you can go into Flame Mammoth's stage, and use Zero to get up to the capsule location. Then, switch to X to get the Arm Upgrade that lies there. This way, you don't have to pick up the Helmet upgrade, and you can have four module slots equipped. Using the Speed Shot, Ultimate Buster, Buster Plus 1 and Buster Plus 2, many bosses fall without the need to use a single Sub-Tank. 4. Easier Boss Attack Mode - The Boss Attack mode is a fun way to pass time, but a major problem of it is that with no armor, it can be tricky. Hold Select as you press Start to enter the Boss Attack mode, and both X and Zero will start out having all of their armor upgrades. ========== 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.