Shoot the pyramid crystals to gain energy or shields. The
upside-down crystals regain energy, while the others replenish
shields. These crystals are found in lots of places, mainly on
the lighter side of the moon. The shed in Amethyst contains blue
and yellow crystals, and two of these will fully energise your
shields if they are really low, so don't waste them. When the
crystal supported by a cube has the cube shot away, it is worth
extra shields. The other supported crystal, when shot,
regenerates the three ordinary crystals, so shoot them first, then
shoot the aforementioned supported crystal to get them back for
later.
The crystals in the shed in Obsidian completely restore your
attributes, once again, the upside-down ones giving you
energy, whilst the others replenish shields. However, on entering
this shed, go in by the rear door as there is a particularly nasty
laser waiting for you at the front. If you do attempt to destroy it
though, raise the height of your vehicle and enter with your laser
positioned at the top of the screen. This way you should get it
within a couple of shots. Also, shooting the strip lights just goes
to show the attention to detail that has gone into this game.
Another way to gain energy and shields is to shoot the treed-like
structure in Emerald. It disappears after a few shots so, once
again, don't waste it.
Most laser beacons can be destroyed with a couple of shots, but
the laser in Topazcan rotated away from you by shooting it -
effectively deactivating it. If you hear an alien alarm and you
are attacked by something that you cannot see, rotate upwards,
using the right mouse button on the up icon, and you will see a
Ketar Skanner in the sky, shooting at you. Simply shoot at it to
destroy it.
Generally, if you can't immediately see the answer to a puzzle, try
viewing it from as many angles as possible: eg, move around it,
over it, next to it....this way you may see a previously hidden
switch. Never move off a platform on a side where there is no
visible wall, or you will fall to your death. The only platforms
where there is an exception to the rule are Amethyst and Ruby;
you can walk through the wall in Amethyst to get to Niccolite, and
out of Ruby on to the Girders.
SOLUTIONS TO PUZZLES & SPECIFIC TIPS
In Amethyst, shoot the arch to gain some points, then shoot the top
of the tall tower for some more. Shoot the white box on one of the
walls to reveal a door to Obsidian. Whatever you do, DON'T shoot the
store shed, or it will disappear, taking the valuable energy and
shield crystals it holds with it. As this is the first stage, the
puzzle is fairly easy; just plant your rig on the cross on the
floor. Once you have found the jet, a useful way to refuel is to
land on top of the tower. The floating dock above Amethyst is a
secret room which is used to activate the teleports.
Additionally, activating the teleports can be done by going to Topaz
and, having shot the laser turret so that it is pointing the other
way, moving to the block next to the floating room and getting on
it. Once you are on, turn around and then shoot the red box on the
right. You will now be lifted up. Enter the room and head straight
for the block on the wall. Behind it, you will find a secret
passage. Go through it and you will end up in a room containing
four boxes.
To activate the teleports, you must shoot all four so that
they all disappear at once. To do this, mentally number them 1
- 4 from left to right, and shoot them in the order 4 - 2 - 1
- 3. Return to Amethyst (through the passage - not the slot)
and you will see a large T-shape. There will also now be T-shapes
in Ruby, Emerald and Beryl, and touching them will take you from
one T to another. Additionally, if you are in the jet, you can get
to the secret room simply by flying through the slot.
To obtain the jet, follow these instructions; go from Amethyst to
Topaz, and cross to the other side by using the steps. Enter Beryl
and shoot the three telegraph wires until they disappear -
cutting off the laser's supply. Enter the building that it was
protecting and face the three shapes on the wall. Shoot these and
they change their order, so shoot them into the sequence: Hexagon,
Square and Triangle then exit the room to find that a new door
has appeared opposite the building. Go through this, and you will
enter Aquamarine. Go to the left hangar and shoot the doors.
Within this now open hangar is the jet, so trundle in and
position yourself directly beneath the jet. Dock with it, and
control is yours. The jet is only useful for exploration and cannot
lay rigs, so if you want to position one, land on the hangar and
re-enter the tank.
To cross the gap in Obsidian, shoot or bump into the tall, thin
block until it falls over, bridging the gap. Within the gap there
are several energy and shield crystals to shoot, but be careful not
to fall in. To get through Lapiz Lazuli, shoot all five
pyramids then weave through the blocks to reach the wall. Using the
up icon, raise your tank until you see a block on the other side.
Shoot it and lower yourself back to ground level. Go beneath the
wall and shoot it again. A door out will now be revealed.
When you first wish to enter Ruby it is best to go via
Aquamarine. Level your tank to the ground and follow the arrow
until you meet another arrow pointing in another direction.
Follow this one now, and move right up to the side of the room. Lift
your tank from the ground, and move forward into Ruby. Lower the
tank again and traverse the girders. To cross the girders safely,
change the forward step to 25 units, and the turning step to 90
degrees. This makes it easier to move along the girders and allows
you to turn at exactly the right step.
To get into Diamond, shoot the switches in Niccolite, Alabaster,
Opal and Quartz. To disable the annoying laser in Quartz,
shoot the thin wire suspending the heavy block, causing it to
snap, thus dropping the block which, in turn, demolishes the
beacon. You can get to the other side by squeezing through by the
block. Once all the switches have been shot, the wall in Opal
will disappear and you can then enter Diamond through it. There
are crystals here which can be shot to replenish any diminishing
energy levels - which you undoubtedly will have!
To get into Trachyte, the final section, shoot the switches in
Basalt (not forgetting to blast the Christmas tree for extra
points!), Ochre and Graphite. At first, there won't be a switch
in Graphite, but to make it appear, cross the river on the bridge,
then line up the 'gunsights' on the wall. Shoot the wall where the
sights line up and the switch will appear. The switch in Obsidian
is the last one to be shot, but it won't appear until ALL the
other 17 sectors have been cleared of gas. When they have, shoot
the switch and you can then enter Trachyte to clear all of the
sectors.
DRILLING CO-ORDINATES
SECTOR X Y FACING
1. Alabaster 3741 4192 East
2. Amethyst 6038 6059 North-East
3. Aquamarine 5124 290 South
4. Basalt 1383 1196 North
5. Beryl 7146 4144 North-West
6. Diamond 4120 2724 North
7. Emerald 4543 4128 West
8. Graphite 1126 6740 South
9. Lapis Lazuli 1789 3654 North-East
10. Malachite 5895 5785 South
11. Niccolite 0512 1698 North
12. Obsidian 7063 6788 West
13. Ochre 2075 6810 West
14. Opal 7423 7741 East
15. Quartz 2786 1799 West
16. Ruby 3752 2506 East
17. Topaz 2299 0513 East
18. Trachyte 4496 6912 Left.
