A collection of hints, tips and tricks - By Simon "LuDeCk" Burrows
This document contains a large collection of hints, tips and tricks
which I have compiled whilst playing this excellent game from Team
17 over the past few weeks. It is not a player's guide and does not
therefore contain obvious points, explanations or guides on the
basic play of Worms. Instead, it contains a series of 'specialist'
points, only some of which each reader of this document will find
useful. Although I have attempted to structure the points under
some general sections and headings, to get best use from this
document you should take the time to read from start to finish so
you may take in all of the information.
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OPTIMISING WORMS: Affecting the difficulty of the game
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The team select option of the main menu gives you the opportunity to
affect the difficulty of the game. At its simplest level this can
be used to 'cheat' by setting your opponent's energy levels to a
minimal value, and your's very high. This, however, is a bit
pointless unless you really are crap at the game and need the
advantage. A better use for the energy-level option would be to
give handicaps to those teams which are better, or to extend the
length of each round by increasing worms' energy levels all round.
The latter option must also be accompanied by an increase in the
round time before sudden-death mode kicks in, because otherwise
you'll find that you'll never complete a round before the time's up!
Also on the team select screen you can affect the skill level of CPU
teams. By setting these to high you can give yourself more of a
challenge or see a better battle if there are no human players, and
setting them to low will give you a laugh and an easy victory.
OPTIMISING WORMS: Enjoying Worms to the full
--------------------------------------------
The whole point of a game like this is to have a whole lot of fun,
of course. With this in mind you should always be out to have as
much fun as possible in the moves you make, so long as this doesn't
affect your success. Often the best fun can be had near the end of
a round which you have almost certainly won - for example, when
you have 2 worms left of fairly high energy and there is only one
other worm still standing. At this point why not try and kill this
last worm in the most inventive, humiliating or satisfying way
possible, just for a bit of a 'laff? Try blasting him out of the
screen with a huge dynamite or sheep explosion, nudging him over the
edge of a platform and to his doom with a prod, digging or blasting
into him with the pneumatic drill or blow torch, or blowing holes in
him with a close range oozi or mini-gun attack.
I have included this point here because I have found absolutely no
reference to it anywhere in the manual, although I'm sure it is, or
should be in there somewhere! This feature allows you to enter your
own numbers to generate levels, rather then the computer using
random numbers to do this job automatically. The only point of this
feature is so that, if you find an access code which generates a
good level, you can make a record of this code and use it again at a
later date when you want a particularly good battle.
To enter your own numbers, press the [SPACE BAR] on the screen where
you are asked to press the left-mouse-button to accept the randomly-
generated level, or the right-mouse-button to reject it and move
onto the next one. You can then enter a code which can be made up
of letters, numbers, spaces and probably punctuation marks as well.
The maximum length of an access code is 10 digits (including any
spaces you put in it), although you can have any number of digits
less than ten and this will not mean you will get a crapper level or
a smaller one!
GAME TACTICS: Mixing 'dark side' & expansive play styles
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Although most players of this game, and certainly those who wrote
its documentation, are against so called 'dark side' play, it is a
very useful tactic to compromise and use 'dark side' to a small
extent, whilst still allowing for expansive, high-explosive play for
the majority of each round. This can be achieved by teleporting the
worm you use for your first move into a safe location, or by digging
him into a safe place. You can then get to work winning the game
with your other three worms in the knowledge that you will always
have one worm which is safe and will therefore be available late in
the game to win it for you when all the other surviving worms are
already badly injured.
In order to protect a worm which you have put away in an apparently
safe place, you may have to do something about enemy worms which
start attacking him at some stage in the round. This may be
achieved by constructing girders to barricade him in further, or by
attacking those worms which pose most threat to him. Alternatively,
you may wish to dig him in further or bring him out into the fray
and try to survive without him in a safe place if this seems viable.
GAME TACTICS: Playing against computer-operated worms
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Something which is immediately obvious from studying the computer-
operated worms is that they will go for those enemy worms which it
is easiest to hit with the most effect, as long as this action will
not injure a worm from their own team. With this in mind, you can
remain fairly safe by moving your worms out of harm's way, because
when the computer's worms see you have done this, they will do the
easier moves - scrap amongst themselves! This means you will
probably be thoroughly safe until all but a few of the enemy worms
survive, at which point you may have to emerge and finish them off.
GAME TACTICS: Guarding against teams winning both rounds
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In those matches where you must win two rounds to be the out-right
winner, it is good practice to remember which of the enemy teams
have won rounds so you can make sure they don't win another round
and therefore clinch the match. Of course, you can see which teams
have already won a round by scrolling up to the status bar at the
top of the play area and seeing which team's energy bar is marked
with a medal. If you see, for example, that Take This are the only
team to have won a round so far, you can then make sure they don't
win the next round, and therefore the match, by killing all of their
worms first. You will probably want to do this anyway to get
revenge at those teams which defeated you in previous rounds!
GAME TACTICS: The effects of explosions caused by about-to-die worms
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Something which you should always be aware of is the impact which
explosions caused by dead worms can have (you know, when they blow
themselves up with the plunger and TNT). You should be aware of
this impact both so you can use it to your advantage and so you can
guard against it having a detrimental effect on your success.
An example of where it could be very useful to have these dying
worms exploding is if you have two enemy worms, one close to your
worm, and one a little further away. They both have less than 30
points of energy. In this situation, a good move would be to
approach the first worm and use the fire punch or dragonball on
him. This will send him flying over so he lands on or very near to
the other worm. Now, when this first worm dies, which he will do
because both the fire punch and dragonball take off a full 30 energy
points, the resulting explosion will take in the other enemy worm,
and if close enough will kill him as well!
In terms of guarding against these explosions harming your team, you
should be aware of them and think about the results of your moves.
If you can see that an enemy worm you are planning on hitting and
killing will land near one of your worms, you must decide whether
the damage this will do to your team makes the move one to avoid, or
whether it will be worth it for the damage you will do to the
opposition.
GAME TACTICS: When you're in control
------------------------------------
When you find yourself in control of a round - when you are the
one in the good positions and with the worms which still have high
energy - do not rush into the game trying to win it as quickly as
possible. Instead, take your time and ensure an easy victory by
moving to dominant positions in the play area, collecting weapon
crates even if this means teleporting around a bit to get them, and
making at least one of your worms completely safe from attack by
teleporting to a enclosed area or digging into the land. Also, why
not try a few original moves or practise some new tactics?
GAME TACTICS: Big explosions vs. carefully planned moves
-------------------------------------------------------
A good thing to remember is that it is not always the biggest
explosions which cause the most damage. Sometimes, careful planning
of seemingly minor moves can cause a lot more damage, and, of
course, you have much more control over these types of moves and are
less likely to make a mistake. A good example is using a dragonball
or fire punch to propel a worm into a mine. In this way, the
dragonball or fire punch will take off 30 energy points, and the
mine anything up to 40/50 depending on how sweetly the worm hits it.
This means that you could take off 80 points in one move, which is
more than one stick of valuable dynamite will do!
GAME TACTICS: The best ways to kill a worm
------------------------------------------
Further to the above point, it is, of course, easier to kill a worm
by propelling him out of he screen or into a pool than it is to
blast him with weapons like the bazooka and grenade, which can often
take several hits to complete the job. With this in mind, take all
the chances you get to kill worms in the water or out the screen,
particularly against computer-operated worms which are prone to
teleport away from precarious and dangerous positions as soon as
possible.
It is a useful point to remember that you don't have to use the
dragonball, fire punch, or prod to push a worm over the edge, and
often you wouldn't want to or wouldn't be able to because these
involve getting very close to your target worm. Instead, you can
fire at the worm from long range with the bazooka or grenade. If
you are going to do this, however, just make sure you hit the
opposite side of the worm to the edge of the screen or pool you are
attempting to kill them into. In this way, the explosion caused by
the weapon will blow the worm to their doom, either into the pool or
out of the screen, case depending. Another useful way of pushing a
worm into a pool or out of the screen is with the shotgun, but more
of this later...
GAME TACTICS: Waiting for the best time to strike at the enemy
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When you get into a situation where there are perhaps only one or
two enemy worms remaining from the same team, and one of your worms,
and you are in a safe position where you cannot immediately be hit,
do not rush into trying to win the round. Instead, wait until your
enemy uses his teleports, which he will often do if he has nothing
else to do. Usually you will find that he will teleport into an
area from which he will be easier to kill such as on top of an
exposed object. At this point, make use of this advantage and fire
at him, perhaps with your airstrike which I suggest you save for
these late confrontations, or maybe with a homing missile to ensure
success. More on the saving of airstrikes later as well...
GAME TACTICS: Using slippery ground to your advantage
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Something which can be both a great advantage and a great
disadvantage in Worms are those landscapes with greatly reduced
friction, notably the arctic but also others including, it would
seem, the candy world. By learning to cope with these, and at the
same time, using them to your advantage, you can have a much greater
chance of winning rounds than you do in other landscapes.
The most obvious tactic of them all in slippery conditions is to
push worms down the slippery slope by means of the fire punch or
the dragon ball. These pushes, which will result in the target
slipping down the slope a lot further than they would under normal
conditions, can be used to push the worm out of the screen, over the
edge and into a pool, or into a mine.
The other main attacking tactic which can be used in slippery
landscapes is the use of big explosions to propel worms into long
slides which will often take them to further danger, in, for
example, the form of faraway mines. This is best achieved by
causing the explosion just by the side of the target worm so they
are propelled to the side rather then upwards which they may be if
you hit them dead on. If you are using the dynamite or mines, drop
them beside rather then on top of the worm, and then watch the
results!
The best method of coping with the down side of slippery slopes -
that is, your worms slipping to their doom in a variety of ways -
is to be aware at all times of the danger your worms may be in, and
acting on this. For example, you may wish to put up a girder
between your worm and a danger at the bottom of the slippery slope
which they're standing on so that they do not get pushed onto this
danger.
Another good idea is to dig in, or teleport to a safe location, at
least one of your worms early in a round taking place on a slippery
location because these rounds can often be over very quickly, and to
have one worm protected will be a great advantage and will ensure
that your whole team isn't wiped out before you know it!
GAME TACTICS: Inducing the computer into certain moves
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It becomes fairly obvious from watching the computer that he goes
for maximum injuries on every move. That means that if at all
possible he will aim to mix up more than one opposing worm in each
of his moves. With this in mind, you can induce the computer-
operated teams into making certain moves for you with the advantage
of both saving your worms from being hit instead, and of helping you
to win the round.
The best way to inducing the computer into a move is to try and
huddle at least two worms together which are neither in your team or
the computer-operated team you want to carry out the move. This
can be achieved either by pushing or blasting a worm into another.
When the computer sees these two worms next to each other, he will
not be able to resist the temptation to blast them, unless of course
there is no way for him to do this.
In order to protect your worms from being caught up in multi-worm
incidents, just keep your worms separate both from the opposition's
worms and from your own. This way, the computer-operated teams are
far less likely to want to go for you because you are a single
target and therefore you will be seen as having only limited scope
for damage. On the large scale, try to stay out of groups of worms
early in the round where the computer-operated teams use their
airstrikes. Instead, push worms into huddles so the computer teams
will use up their airstrikes on these both with the advantage of
saving your worms from being airstriked and of injuring several
enemy worms in one go.
GAME TACTICS: Pressurising opponents/inducing the use of teleports
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An interesting tactic which I doubt is used very often is to
teleport onto the heads of computer-operated worms. This should
only be done right at the end of a round where the only teams
remaining are your's and the one which you are teleporting onto.
There are two main advantages of doing this. The first advantage is
that the computer-operated worm will get scared and teleport away if
he has any teleports left, even if he has far more energy than you
and could kill you by sticking around. The main reason for wanting
to make computer-operated opponents teleport is that they often do
this to exposed locations such as on top of high points, and from
there they can be easily picked out and killed.
The other main advantage of teleporting onto the heads of enemy
worms, this time when they don't have any teleports remaining, is
that you will obviously end up very close to them. This means that
so long as you have enough energy to survive one battering from
them, you will then be in a prime location to kill them next move.
The best way to utilise this tactic would be to leave one worm in a
safe place, and teleport your other worm into the danger zone. This
way, you can kill or at least injure the enemy worm and still have
one worm hidden away so if you are killed first you will not have
lost the round. With this second worm you can then teleport onto
the head of the enemy worm again, this time with him seriously
injured, and then it will be the simple matter of finishing him off
with your next move.
I suggest you do NOT teleport onto the head of a human-operated
worm, because it is likely that the human in question will know some
way to kill you from close range, and will be unlikely to teleport
away. If he has only a very small amount of energy and you have
loads, teleporting onto his head may be a fun way of pissing off the
computer opponent and scaring him, however!
GAME TACTICS: The explosive personalities of weapon crates
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As it says in the game's manual: exploding weapon crates is a tactic
in itself. If you manage to explode a weapon crate next to an enemy
worm, this, in association with the damage caused directly by your
weapon, can be quite devastating. If you can't hit a worm directly,
but a weapon crate stands very close by which you can hit, blast
this instead and the ensuing explosion will take in the enemy team
member, causing some damage.
Unfortunately, the blasting of weapon crates is one of the
computer's favourite occupations and so a worm of yours close to a
weapon crate is likely to be a target for computer-operated fire.
It is good practice, therefore, to keep your distance from weapon
crates, and one way to do this is to teleport on top of any that are
near. Of course, this means you will collect the crate's contents
at the same time which can often be a valuable addition to your
weapon inventory.
The fact that computer-operated worms go for other worms standing
close to weapon crates can be used to your advantage - by pushing
another worm close to a weapon crate you will create an attractive
target for a computer-operated hotshot!
MOVEMENT SKILLS: Ensuring the blow torch blasts proper tunnels
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A problem which sometimes occurs with the blow torch is it stopping
almost as soon as you start blasting into a wall because the area
you are digging into is 'messy' and there are air holes. If you hit
an air hole big enough with the blow torch it will stop, and you
will have got nowhere. To ensure this does not happen, first use
the shot gun to tidy up the area you are digging into. If one shell
is enough to do this you could use the other shell to hit an
opposing worm, or you could get yourself under some cover before
firing the other shot into the air, thus ending your turn.
MOVEMENT SKILLS: The best way of safely emerging from a tunnel
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One problem which is often encountered with the digging of tunnels
is the tunnelling worm being hit between the move when he opens the
tunnel to the outside world, and his next move when he gets the
chance to strike out against the opposition. This will often occur
when you dig a tunnel with the aim of finding safety, but later
decide to extend the tunnel so you may get back to battle. The
problem is, your turn will finish when the blow torch used to
complete the tunnel reaches open air, and then you are badly exposed
to enemy fire until your next go when you can move on or shoot the
threatening worms.
The solution to this problem is to use a firing weapon to open up
the tunnel instead of the blow torch. This may be achieved by
starting the horizontal movement to the outside world with the blow
torch, but when you get near the open air, by stopping and
retreating back to the start of the horizontal tunnel. From there
you can face back down the tunnel once again and blast the remainder
of the distance to the open air. This blasting can be achieved with
the shotgun if the distance left to blast is small, the oozi if it
is a bit greater, or with the bazooka for larger distances. You
could even use the dynamite if you can retreat a good distance and
if you wouldn't rather save this for a more constructive use.
When carrying out the blasting process, make sure you don't stand
too close, of course, otherwise you will injure yourself in the
resulting explosion.
When your weapon has opened the tunnel to the open space beyond, you
will still be standing in safety, a little way back down the tunnel.
This time, however, you will be able to continue down the tunnel,
climb back out into the open air, and strike out at the enemy worms.
MOVEMENT SKILLS: The Bungee
---------------------------
Remember to always use the bungee at those times where it is
possible that you will need it to protect your worms against falls
long enough to end your go. This includes those times when you
don't think it will be necessary, because if you don't bother and it
turns out that you did need it, you will have wasted you go and you
may be left in a very exposed position until your next turn.
Remember also that the bungee will only kick in if you walk off a
high point, and not if you jump over it, so make sure that you keep
your feet firmly on the floor when going over the top if this is at
all possible.
Do not use the bungee as an easier replacement for the ninja rope
when you want to swing underneath a platform which you are standing
on to get to a particular location. You will find that this will
not work because you cannot extend or retract the bungee once you're
swinging on it and so you will find yourself stranded on the end of
the bungee in a tricky situation, particularly if over a pool!
Instead, you should shoot the ninja rope into the side of a hole in
the platform you are on, and if not available into the side of the
chasm below you which you are hoping to swing into.
MOVEMENT SKILLS: Vertical tunnelling
------------------------------------
Have you ever got into the situation where you have tunnelled in,
near the bottom of a large mound of earth, and now you want to
tunnel upwards to get into the open land at the top of the mound?
This cannot easily be achieved because the blow torch will not
tunnel vertically, and zigzagging upwards with diagonal blow torch
tunnels will not work (you'll see why if you try it). The answer
lies in the fire punch which can be used to cut a narrow shaft
upwards. However, this on its own will only be successful if the
distance needed to get to the top of the mound is small, because one
fire punch will only reach a certain distance, and if this is not
long enough you're stuck...or are you?
The answer to this problem is to first use the fire punch, and then
on your next go to fire a bazooka at full power, vertically up the
shaft. This will result in a round 'cave' being formed at the top
end of the shaft. You can now use the ninja rope on your next go to
climb up the shaft, then when you reach the top, you can swing from
side to side for a minute, before releasing your grip on the rope so
you land on one of the rounded sides of the 'cave'. To get a rope
up this shaft, and to climb up it, will require a bit of
experimentation and shifting around, because the computer will only
let you throw the rope if you are standing in the perfect place and
facing in the right direction. Once you are up in the round 'cave',
you can do a further fire punch, fire your bazooka again, and then
climb up further. This process can be repeated until you reach the
summit of the mound where you can happily climb out into fresh air
and once again cause havoc to enemy worms!
MOVEMENT: Doubling back, diagonally upwards, on horizontal tunnels
------------------------------------------------------------------
Something which many people think to be impossible is to use the
blow torch to go diagonally upwards in the opposite direction to a
horizontal tunnel which has already been dug. It is, in fact,
possible to do this, although it is difficult and will therefore
cost you a girder, and a few moves to complete. To carry out the
manoeuvre, first move your worm to the far end (end, not start) of
the horizontal tunnel you have already dug, then lay a horizontal
girder along the tunnel which traps your worm in a very small space
at the end of the tunnel. Now, in your next move switch to the blow
torch, face your worm back down the tunnel and start tunnelling
diagonally upwards. Often, this first effort with the blow torch
will not work because it does not successfully 'catch' into the
girder and start blasting through. If it does not work, wait for
your next go and then try again, perhaps moving from your previous
position slightly. Eventually, and sometimes immediately, your blow
torch will 'catch' into the girder and you will dig diagonally
upwards in the opposite direction from the horizontal tunnel as you
hoped.
MOVEMENT SKILLS: Using the Ninja Rope most effectively
------------------------------------------------------
Having being playing Fury of the Furries quite a bit recently, where
one of the many means of getting around is by wildly swinging on a
rope and then releasing it to fling you to your location, this is
how I expected the ninja rope to be used in Worms. However, in
almost all cases you should not use the ninja rope in this way
because when you release the rope you will fall almost vertically,
even if you were swinging vigorously when you release. Instead, the
trick to using the ninja rope is to swing backwards and forwards
(by holding down either the left or right button), and then, when
you reach the desired height, to suddenly lengthen the rope so your
worm extends onto your desired location. To lengthen the rope,
simply press the down arrow. This requires a little practice but is
easy to master. Because the ninja rope is of limited length, be
aware that this tactic will not be possible on all swings where to
extend to your desired location would require a rope of extreme
length.
A useful point to remember is that the rope will link onto weapon
crates, so if it easier to join onto one of these than to a physical
piece of the landscape then go ahead. You can then climb the rope
to collect the crate, although you should approach the crate slowly
because otherwise when you collect it and therefore leave your rope
with nothing to keep hold of, you will be flung away. Remember that
your rope will not be able to join onto other worms.
Something which can be both an advantage and a disadvantage about
the ninja rope is that whilst swinging on it your move timer is not
counting down, but instead a standard 5 seconds are deducted each
time you throw a rope. With this in mind, line up the rope cross-
hair carefully so you don't miss your target and have to have
another go. To use this stopped-clock feature to your advantage,
take all the time you need to make sure you get to exactly the right
spot once you are joined onto a sucessfully-thrown rope. You can
even extend the rope further than you need to so that you end up
past your target location and therefore don't need to walk as far
after your swing, saving a couple of seconds of valuable time!
A final point about the ninja rope is that you should watch out for
mines as you swing around because you often forget about them when
you are careering about in mid air, but if you happen to set one off
you will be injured and your turn will be over.
MOVEMENT SKILLS: Avoiding being hit in a tunnel
-----------------------------------------------
This point is quite an obvious one, but one which should be
remembered at all times. It involves the way in which tunnels are
started. My general rule is that no tunnel should be started with
the pneumatic drill because this offers an inviting pit for an enemy
worm to drop a grenade or bomb into. Instead, you should start off
with the blow torch, and if you need to, use the drill on your
second tunnel-digging turn when you are no longer at so much risk.
Similarly, if it is at all possible you should aim to start your
tunnel with a upward diagonal blow torch move so that grenades or
bombs can't be rolled down your tunnel. Once your tunnel has been
started, aim to vary the direction you tunnel in so that it will be
far more difficult, if not impossible, for an enemy worm to find a
way of harming you. For example, you may choose to zigzag you way
along, using first a diagonally upward blow torch stroke, and then a
diagonally-downward one.
WEAPON SKILLS: Ensuring accurate shots with the shot gun or oozi
----------------------------------------------------------------
A problem which is sometimes encountered when lining up to hit a
target with the shot gun or oozi is that you can't get the cross-
hair at exactly the right degree to hit the designated target in
exactly the right spot. If this is the case, don't give up and go
for the next best angle, but instead move your worm slightly to
either side. In this way, you will change the line between yourself
and your target and may therefore be able to line the cross-hair up
perfectly this time. Getting the right angle by experimenting for a
few seconds in this way will certainly be worth it!
One tactic which may be of use in some circumstances is the laying
of dormant mines - that is, mines which do not explode when laid
- on goes when you have nothing better to do. These mines can then
be used to good effect in later goes. An example when this may be a
good tactic is where there is a group of enemy worms which are yet
to be hurt much. By laying a mine fairly close to this group, but
not so close that they immediately explode, you will then be able to
blast into the group of worms on your next turn (with an airstrike,
perhaps), and this strike, combined with the resulting explosion
from the mine, may be enough to kill off some of the worms in one
go. Of course, once you have laid the mine you will have to get out
of the area yourself, otherwise it will simply blow up in your face,
so only lay one if you have a good escape route, preferably away
from the worms which you want to hurt with the mine later on, for
obvious reasons!
WEAPON SKILLS: The Shotgun
--------------------------
It is worth considering the use of the shot gun at all times because
of its twin-shell advantage. One useful way in which it can be used
is to push a worm out of the screen or to their death into a pool.
By using the shot gun to carry out these tasks rather then the prod,
dragonball or fire punch, you will get another shot, and therefore
the chance to do further damage. To ensure that you propel the worm
in the right direction so as they fall out of the screen or into the
pool, simply shoot at them from the opposite side to that which they
must be propelled into.
Another advantage of using the shot gun is that because you have two
shots, you can move after your initial shot. This will be useful
when you have a worm which is safely under cover and whom you don't
want to move into a shooting position because when you turn is over
they will be left prone to attack. By using the shot gun you can
emerge from your cover, have a pot shot at an enemy worm, then
return to your cover before firing the other shot at a wall or
whatever to end your turn.
The most obvious advantage of the double-barrelled shot gun,
however, is that you can shoot at two separate targets, and so long
as both of these have low energy, you can kill two worms in one
move. If the target you are shooting at cannot be killed with just
one shotgun shell, however, try to see a way by which you can cause
further damage with your shot. This may be achieved by firing your
target into a mine or over an edge. Another option would be to fire
an enemy worm into another worm with your first shot, so that so
that when you shoot at him with the second shell, you will also
damage the other worm into the bargain!
WEAPON SKILLS: Rolling Grenades or Bombs down slopes
----------------------------------------------------
One great advantage of the grenades, cluster Bombs and banana Bombs
which is often overlooked is that they do not explode on contact
with the ground and can therefore be 'bowled' along it. For best
results this should be done by 'rolling' the 'ball' down a slope so
it travels far enough from your worm to keep you from harm whilst
exploding in the face of some unsuspecting enemy worm at the bottom
of the hill.
To carry out this trick of rolling grenades or bombs down hills, you
need to calculate the time it will take for the 'ball' to roll down
the hill and to reach your target, and then adjust the detonation
time by pressing a number between 1 and 5 on your keyboard. Now, to
roll the weapon down the hill simply stand close to the top of the
slope and fire the weapon with little force. The ball should go
forward only a short distance, bounce a couple of times down the
slope, then roll and come to a rest, hopefully when it comes into
contact with the target worm.
Bombs and grenades can also be used from close range to hit a worm
standing at the bottom of a pit, perhaps one dug with the pneumatic
drill. By standing by the entrance of this pit, and firing one of
these weapons with absolutely minimal force, you will, for all
intensive purposes, simply drop the weapon down the pit, causing
extensive damage particularly with the cluster and banana Bombs.
WEAPON SKILLS: Make-shift Airstrikes with Banana or Cluster Bombs
-----------------------------------------------------------------
An interesting alternative to the valuable airstrikes which you may
like to try is to detonate a cluster- or banana bomb while it is
still in the air so that it showers the ground below with the small
Bombs contained within it. To so this, simply calculate the time it
will take for your bomb to get above your targets (usually one
second), and set the detention period to this time by using the 1 -
5 keys on your keyboard. Now fire the bomb into the air and watch
the results. Of course, it is not as accurate or powerful as
airstrikes are, but since you get five cluster bombs and only one
airstrike as the default, it is an alternative when you have no
other choice. If you are shooting from long range and if the bomb
detonates high in the sky, the pieces of the bomb will also be
spread wider than from an airstrike, and this could be an advantage
or disadvantage depending on the exact situation.
WEAPON SKILLS: The Dynamite and the Mine
----------------------------------------
It is useful to notice the differences between mines and dynamite.
The first is that you get only one dynamite as the default and two
mines, so if a mine will suffice it is best to use one of these.
The most noticeable difference other than this is that the explosion
caused by the dynamite will fling worms caught up in it much further
than the explosion caused by a mine. If you are interested in your
target worms being flung a long way (perhaps if they are close to
the edge of the screen and you want to blast them out of it), you
should, therefore, use the dynamite. If you are only interested in
the amount of damage the weapon itself will cause, then note that
the mine will take 50 health points if laid perfectly, and the
dynamite 70. Use these figures to decide which weapon to choose.
The other main difference between the two weapons is the way in
which your worms lay them. With the dynamite, worms place it in
front of them a small distance. However, with mines, then are
dropped directly on the spot where the worm is standing. With this
in mind, you must stand on the head of your target worm when
dropping a mine for it to have full effect (and take the full 50
points of damage), whilst you should stand a little to the side of a
worm which you are targeting with a stick of dynamite.
The fact that dynamite is placed a little in front of the worm can
be useful if you want to drop the dynamite into as pit or over an
overhang. To do this simply walk right up to the edge of the pit or
overhang, and when you drop your dynamite it will be placed past the
edge of the ground you are standing on ad therefore drop below.
This is a good way of killing a worm which has drilled itself down
into the ground, or a worm on a precarious platform which you don't
want to drop down onto just to kill it.
As with all other weapons, think about which side of your target
worm you are placing the dynamite or mines so that they are flung in
the best direction for you (e.g., into a mine, out of the screen,
into a pool, or away from your worms so they don't injure you with
their death explosions).
WEAPON SKILLS: The Girder
-------------------------
Although the girder could not exactly be classed as a 'weapon' as I
have suggested in the title for this point, it can be used in a
number of very useful ways, some of which are very attack-minded,
and has therefore got a place in this section of my document. Of
course, the obvious example of a very defensive way in which a
girder may be used is in trapping your worms in an enclosed space so
they cannot be got at by enemy worms. This may be a particularly
useful move when you have a worm other then the one which you are
currently moving, which is in danger. Using up your move to protect
him with a girder could quite possibly reap rewards in the long
term, although it won't always be the best move if it leaves the
worm who is laying the girder in trouble. This defensive use for
the girder is not all the girder has to offer, however.
One very good way in which the girder can be used is to block in the
enemy's worms so they cannot go anywhere, and cannot shoot at
anything. This is an excellent way of making the opposing teams use
up their teleports, because without using a teleport, the worm which
has been girdered in will be effectively put out of the game and
will have to skip goes. Some of the most stupid computer-operated
teams may injure themselves from attempting a shot of some kind from
inside their enclosed space, and so this is another example of how
the tactic could be very useful. The other advantage, of course, is
that the enclosed worm will no longer be able to attack your worms,
which may be a life saver if you have an exposed worm in danger of
being picked off. If the worm which is girdered in has no teleports
he will be no danger to you and you can start to move around the
level without fearing attack from him. Do this to all the enemy
worms and then you can wander around the whole landscape, picking up
all of the weapon crates in readiness for an attack on the enemy
when you get back into hiding.
It is useful to remember that your target worm does not need to be
in some sort of three-sided pit or cave to be blocked in by a
girder. Instead, if they are simply standing on a suitable
hillside, or in open space beside a vertical structure of some kind,
the diagonal girder can be used to block them in. YOU MUST
REMEMBER, however, that you should not lay the girder too close to
the worm because otherwise he will be able to shoot grenade or bombs
through it. Instead, try to leave at least a 3mm gap between him
and the girder, and he should be well and truly disabled.
The other main use of the girder is in providing a structure for
your ninja rope to join to. An example of how this may be very
useful is if you have a canyon which you are standing on one side of
and which you want to get to the other side of. If the canyon is
too wide for your rope to reach from one side to the other, you can
put up a horizontal girder above your worm and half way between one
side of the canyon and the other. Next move, you will be able to
send your rope up to the girder, and then swing across to the other
side.
WEAPON SKILLS: Shooting whilst in a tunnel
------------------------------------------
Firstly a most important point: do not use the cluster bomb, grenade
or banana bomb whilst standing in a standard height tunnel dug by
the blow torch. Doing this would result in your worm attempting to
kick the 'ball' but it getting stuck in the ceiling above his head
and exploding with often devastating effect, particularly in the
case of the banana bomb. I suppose this could be used to your
advantage if you, with very low energy, were standing next to an
enemy worm in the tunnel who had higher energy. You could attempt
to kick one of these weapons, it would get stuck, explode, kill your
worm, but more importantly kill or seriously injure the other worm
who would have probably killed you with his next go anyway!
What can be done in a tunnel, however, is to shoot a bazooka, or
preferably a homing missile. These should be shot from fairly close
to the mouth of the tunnel, in the exact direction that the tunnel
goes, and with fairly high power, otherwise they won't make it out
of the tunnel. Experiment with this one, it can be very useful but
at the same time quite damaging if you get it wrong. Treat the
tunnel like a arrow slit - you can get them, but they can't get at
you!
WEAPON SKILLS: Using Cluster Bombs and Banana Bombs to best effect
------------------------------------------------------------------
Sometimes it is desirable to have the cluster bombs and banana bombs
exploding into several mini-bombs and these being scattered over a
fairly wide area, taking in many worms in the process. However,
often the cluster bomb or banana bomb is used simply because it, and
all the separate explosives within it, pack a greater punch than,
say, the grenade with its single explosion. In these cases, it would
be desirable for the bomb and the inner explosives to explode
immediately upon impact so they all injure the target worm. For
this to happen you should fire the bomb into an enclosed space such
as into a fairly enclosed pit, down a tunnel or into some sort of
three-sided cave. If this goes to plan, the ensuing explosion will
cause massive damage on the target worm, and will take off far more
than 100 points of damage, particularly with the banana bomb. This
attack, when successful, is the most powerful attack in the whole
game, but because of the lack of situations where it would work, and
the difficulty of pulling it off properly, you will not be able to
use it very often, if at all!
WEAPON SKILLS: The Kamikaze
---------------------------
The kamikaze can be perhaps the most destructive weapon in Worms,
although you must use it sparingly and carefully otherwise you will
forfeit your worms for little gain. There are two main points to
remember about the kamikaze: it will cut through the first piece of
landscape it comes to, but if it meets air and then attempts to go
through another piece of landscape, it will end; it will be blown
off course or ended completely if it sets off a mine. The kamikaze
is used most often in association with a bridge. The only reason
for this is that, due to bridges being flat, all of the worms on
them will be on the same level and will therefore all be hit my the
kamikaze king! Despite this, you can, of course, use the kamikaze
in all situations where you are level with one or more worms.
The main advantage of using the kamikaze is that it flings all worms
it hits a huge distance, both upwards and across. By using it
fairly close to the edge of the level, therefore, you can kill
several worms by charging them off the screen. If they don't fly
off the screen they may fly into pools or mines, and this may cause
damage in other parts of the level, which may be both good or bad
for your team. The kamikaze move will also knock 30 energy point
from each worm hit, so even if you can knock them out of the screen
you may be able to kill off some badly injured worms nevertheless.
A nice trick to use with the kamikaze is to do it when in line with
the middle of the bridge, rather than in line with the top of it.
That way, your worm will charge 'through' the bridge, cutting it all
away and leaving nothing for the worms previously standing on the
bridge to stand on. They should plummet to their doom in the pool
below. This trick is hard to do however, and will be spoilt by
holes in the bridge or mines. It will also not work on fancy
bridges like those in Hades which are made from bones and are
therefore too thick to be cut in one go.
The main decision you have to make about the kamikaze is whether it
is worth using it in the first place considering since it will kill
the worm who uses it. You need to work out how many worms you will
kill, what teams they are on, and make your final decision from
this. Take into account that if the worm due to make the kamikaze
run is almost dead, or in grave danger of dying anyway, you may as
well use him so long as by doing the kamikaze run won't affect other
team members.
One final way in which the kamikaze may be used is to kill off the
final enemy worm in a round, possibly from very close range. This
may be done to win you the round if you have two or more worms left,
or to draw it if you have one and there is one other which you will
kill. You may want to draw the match if you are pretty sure that to
try and win would eventually result in you losing or the round
dragging on and becoming boring.
ANGLES OF ATTACK: From below
----------------------------
Although perhaps a tactic which is not immediately obvious, it is
often useful to fire at a worm who is standing on a narrow ledge
from below. In this way, although you won't hit the worm itself,
but instead the ground which he is standing on, he will still lose a
certain amount of energy, and if you shoot with a powerful-enough
weapon he will often be flung into the air. This, in turn, may
result in him activating a mine to cause further damage. A very
satisfying way to finish a worm in this way is to shoot at him from
underneath so the ground he is standing on is blasted away and he
plummets down into a pool below. By blasting to one side of the
ground below the worm, you can affect the direction which he is
flung into, and this may be used to blast a worm out of the screen,
into a pool or into a mine. If the worm is standing on only a very
narrow piece of ground, using the shot gun will often be enough to
send him falling, and in some circumstances this will be useful in
that you will then have another shell to fire at another target.
ANGLES OF ATTACK: From the side
-------------------------------
This point has been touched upon many times in this document already
and concerns your ability to affect where target worms will be flung
by explosions you cause around them. By causing explosions to the
left side of the worm he will go flying off to the right, and vice
versa. The degree to which he is flung depends on the distance from
the worm that the explosion is made, and the ferocity of the weapon.
By controlling where the worm is flung you can make sure that you
get the most from your move. For example, for worms near the edge
of the screen you can blast them out of the screen, for worms on the
edge of pits which lead into the pool at the bottom of the screen,
you can blast them into the pool, and for worms close to mines you
can blast them into mines. Alternatively, in those cases where you
need to protect your worms from the enemy worm which you are
attacking, you can blast him away from your worms and into a
location more safe for your team.
