Lineguard
Install
Catapult
The second boss, at 1,000 metres in the Red Desert. It doesn't shoot at you directly. It lobs boulders high into the sky and lets gravity do the rest.
- Where
- 1,000 m, Red Desert
- Hits to win
- 3
- Best ink
- Pen or rubber, never steel
- Watch out for
- The Siege Master's fire boulders
- First-win badge
- Siege breaker, 100 coins
- Every lap
- One more hit to win
What it does
A wooden catapult with an operator sits ahead of you. It winds up while a dotted arc shows the path of the next boulder, then throws it high. While the boulder is in the air, a red cross on the ground marks where it will land, and that's always where the ninja is about to be.
How to beat it
Knock the boulders back. A boulder that lands on one of your lines with enough force bounces back along its arc toward the catapult. Three direct hits wreck it.
- Watch the arc while the catapult winds up. Note where it comes down.
- When the boulder is on its way down, draw a slanted line under it, above the red cross, leaning back toward the catapult.
- The boulder bounces off and flies home. A good hit shakes the whole screen.
Best ink
Use pen or rubber. Rubber throws boulders back especially hard. Do not use steel: steel shatters boulders on contact. That saves the ninja, but the boulder never reaches the catapult, so it doesn't count as a hit.
Staying alive
Even if a return misses, your line still protects him. A boulder that bounces anywhere except onto his head is a boulder survived. If you're low on ink, a plain roof over him is always the safe answer.
Common mistakes
- Drawing too late. The boulder falls fast at the end. Draw while it's still high.
- A line that's too flat. Flat lines stop the boulder but don't send it anywhere. Lean the line back toward the catapult.
- Switching to steel out of habit. Great against normal rocks, useless for hurting this boss.
The Siege Master and his fire
The Catapult is now worked by the Siege Master, a giant red warrior in a horned helmet who winds it himself. Some of his boulders are on fire. They're the ones to go for: a fire boulder you send back hits twice, two of his three hits in one go. Leave one alone and it sets the ground alight where it lands for a few seconds: bridge the flames the way you bridge thorns.
A boulder you send back flies at the Siege Master himself, and it counts whether it hits him or his catapult.
After your first hit he gets angry and fires faster. His boulders now burst into three at the top of their arc. A red ring marks the burst point, and three dotted falls show where the pieces go. Knock them aside with a slanted roof, or keep him busy with returned fire boulders.
Reward
50 coins, points and the Siege breaker badge. Next: the Rival Ninja in the Snow Peaks.