Archon - NES (C) 1983, 1984 Free-Fall Associates and Electronic Arts (C) 1989 Activision and Bullet-Proof Software (BPS) Strategy Guide by SiliconHero 08.02.01 Objective: to defeat the opposing side by killing his/her pieces, or capturing the five Power Points on the board. Light Side Pieces - Knight This piece resembles the "pawn" in a regular game of chess. His weapon is the sword. It is very ineffective against enemies with long-range weapons, since most of them will kill this piece outright due to his low vitality. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Archer The Archer carries a bow and arrow. While it fires slowly and does only moderate damage, it will do well against some enemies. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Valkyrie The Valkyrie wields a spear, and has the ability to fly over its own pieces. Movement: Fly 3 spaces - Golem The Golem throws strong boulders at its opponents, but it moves rather slowly. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Unicorn The legendary horned horse can shoot beams of light from its horn. Movement: Walk 4 spaces - Djinni A floating spirit of the air, the Djinni attacks its foes with the power of its whirlwinds. Movement: Fly 4 spaces - Phoenix This bird of fire attacks its foes by burning them in its own flames. This attack can be used to shield the Phoenix from its enemies' projectile weapons. Movement: Fly 5 spaces - Wizard The Wizard is the main piece of the Light Side's army. He can teleport and cast spells. His attack is a powerful ball of lightning that shoots from his staff. Movement: Teleport 3 spaces. Dark Side Pieces - Goblin The Goblins wield clubs of stone to use for bashing foes. However, like the Knights, they are weak and defeated rather easily. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Manticore The Manticore attacks with its tail spikes. It flies slowly and does moderate damage. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Banshee Banshees, the spirits of the dead, subdue their foes with high-pitched screams. The Banshee is the only piece that can move while attacking. Movement: Fly 3 spaces - Troll Trolls are nearly identical to Golems in every way. They throw small boulders at their opponents. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Basilisk A Basilisk can wipe out the enemy with its powerful eyebeam. Movement: Walk 3 spaces - Dragon The Dragon, considered the power piece of the Dark Army, can burn its enemies to a crisp with fireballs. It has a very long life meter, even when placed on a Light square. Movement: Fly 4 spaces - Shapeshifter The Shapeshifter assumes the attacks and physical characteristics of the opponents it faces. Strategy against opponents varies when using this character. Movement: Fly 5 spaces - Sorceress The Sorceress commands the Dark Side's army. She knows all the same spells as a Wizard, but uses less powerful, but faster lightning bolts as her weapon. Movement: Teleport 3 spaces Spells - Teleport This spell allows one character to teleport to any square on the board. You can only teleport your own pieces. - Heal Restores one character to full health. - Shift Time Reverses the flow of time. If the time squares are becoming lighter, then they will turn darker, and vice versa. Effective at the end of the turn. - Exchange Exchanges one character's piece with another. - Summon Elemental Allows the spellcaster to summon an elemental spirit to attack the enemy. The elemental spirit cannot claim a space on the board, but nothing will be lost if the elemental loses the battle. - Revive Resurrects a character that was killed in battle. You have to place the revived piece on a square near the spellcaster. - Imprison Traps an enemy's piece, preventing them from moving until the flow of time comes to that piece's color. Strategies - When you start out the game, you have a choice of choosing whether or not you want to go first. If you choose to go first, however, you may be at a disadvantage, because the time always flows in the opposite color of the side that starts the game. Most of the squares on the board (I'll call them "time squares") change after each turn, in five shades of blue, as follows: *-------*-------*-------*-------*-------* LIGHTEST \NEUTRAL/ DARKEST To keep your pieces at an advantage, move your pieces to the color that matches their side. This will give them maximum vitality when they are challenged to a battle. On the flip side, if you put your piece on a square of your opponent's color, you will have minimum vitality when fighting. - The Power Points are safe zones on the board. When a piece is on a Point, it cannot be affected by any magic spell. There are five Power Points on the Board, on the West (Light) side, the East (Dark) side, the North and South sides, and in the center of the board. - Your opponent will try to occupy the center Power Points quickly when the time squares become neutral, flowing to their color. Let them occupy the squares for a while, and then when the time squares become neutral again, attack with a strong piece, such as a Djinni or a Dragon. - Don't move your Wizard/Sorceress from their initial Power Point Square unless there are only a few pieces left on the board for both sides. You'll need them to protect that spot if you want to take control of the board. - Pieces with long-range weapons have a distinct advantage over pieces with short-range weapons. Obviously, challenging the Dragon with a Knight is foolish. - Each of the seven spells can only be cast once per game. Every time your Wizard or Sorceress casts a spell, he/she will lose some life force when battling. If you want to have the upper hand during a Wizard/Sorceress battle, try to cast as little magic as possible. - If the game goes on too long without a winner, the game will end in a stalemate. You will then have 12 turns to initiate combat with your enemy. If you want to keep the battle going, use this time to defeat your opponent instead of capturing the Power Points on the board. *** END OF STRATEGY GUIDE *** That's the end of my Archon strategy guide. If you have any questions or additions regarding it, you can send them to waltos_1999@yahoo.com, or at siliconhero@skytowergames.net.