For safe but somewhat slow tournament points, shoot the left orbit all day. Get Theatre letters (which are part of the bonus), earn bonus X and 5,000,000 awards from the top lanes, and ignore everything else.
For game progress: Left orbit spells Theatre for a hurry-up. Ramps lit for Spell Magic qualify locks. Hit the trunk repeatedly to expose a hole to start Illusions. Collect clock time at the right orbit or post-lock skill shot. Finishing Theatre, starting a Multiball, advancing the clock to Midnight, and starting all 8 Illusions lights the Grand Finale wizard mode.
The main big thing to shoot at. This can actually be quite a dangerous shot. I prefer to shoot it only from the left flipper, as that bounce back is frequently (but not always) nicer. Besides, it's usually optimal to shoot for the left orbit when the ball is on the right flipper anyway.
When nothing else is running, hit the trunk 3 times for it to rotate to a side with a hole, then shoot the hole to start an Illusion mode. The modes are as follows:
During Illusions where the trunk itself is not the scoring shot, hitting the trunk itself is worth 2,000,000 at first, and subsequent shots are worth 1,000,000 more than the previous. This buildup can be done across multiple Illusions, but resets at the end of a ball.
When Theatre is spelled from left orbit hits, the hurry-up is collected here. It is worth 50,000,000 plus exactly 101,320 points for each bumper hit in the game so far. The timer for the Theatre collect starts at about 12 seconds, but can get as low as 6 for future Theatre hurry-ups after successful collects.
The game can be set to reset the Theatre value to 50,000,000 after being collected.
After two balls have been locked, Multiball is started at the trunk when it exposes its magnetic bullseye side.
During Multiball, Jackpot is lit at the trunk after a certain number of hits (2 for the first Jackpot, increasing by 1 for each Jackpot after), and Jackpot is also collected at the trunk hole.
During Midnight Madness, the trunk magnet is exposed for a repeated collect. The value starts at 24,000,000, decreases by 2,000,000 every five seconds, then stays at 10,000,000 for about 25 seconds until the mode ends.
The most repeatable shot in the game, and comes with good value.
When the white arrow is lit, the left orbit gives a Theatre letter. This is available pretty much any time except for when a Theatre hurry-up is running or during multiball.
When the purple arrow is lit, the left orbit locks a ball for Vanish and awards 40,000,000 points.
When the red arrow is lit, extra ball is awarded.
If a shot to the left orbit is hit very fast (such as from an on the fly shot), it will go up a small ramp in the back of the game and come down to the right in lane on the squiggly gold habitrail. If the ball does not go up the ramp, it is instead fed into the top lanes and pop bumpers. This is vastly preferred, since it's far easier to trap the ball on a flipper from a pop bumper feed than the with-speed in lane return that the habitrail gives you.
During Multiball or the Strait Jacket mode, a post diverter will force the ball to take a top lane instead of going all the way around.
Easier to hit than many other captive balls in pinball due to its design. Hitting it enough times lights the Vanish lock in the left orbit; the first Vanish requires 3 hits, whereas all future ones require 6. Lighting Vanish for the third time in a game also lights an extra ball.
During Tiger Saw Illusion, each captive ball hit is worth 15,000,000.
During Tiger Saw Multiball, the first captive ball hit is worth 30,000,000, and each subsequent hit is worth 10,000,000 more than the last, up to a maximum of 70,000,000. If you're good at controlling a 2-ball multiball, this can be one of the most valuable modes in the game.
Can be shot in either direction; the left entrance is between the captive ball and trunk, while the right entrance is between the two ramps and has a spinner. This loop serves as the main scoring shot for both Safe Escape and Spirit Cards.
When Magic has been spelled from the ramps, the first two balls are locked at the center loop. A diverter will push the balls into a hole behind the trunk.
If the ball goes around the center loop slowly, it may fall into the hole behind the trunk on its own, even if Magic is not complete and the diverter is not set. Once per game, this can serve as a Secret Ball Lock, which instantly finishes Magic, locks ball 1, and lights the lock for ball 2. If a Secret Lock occurs after a Multiball whose locks were enabled by Secret Lock has already been played, this just scores 10,000,000 points and the ball will kickout at the trapdoor.
If the ball falls into this hole when trunk hole is exposed (such as for Start Illusion, Hat Magic, or Jackpot), the award will be given with no additional fanfare.
If the ball falls into this hole after 2 balls are locked, the normal first/second lock animation will play but with Ball 3 Locked displayed, which is not normally possible; then, Multiball will start as normal.
When Grand Finale is lit, it is started at the left entrance of the center loop only.
The center ramp is best hit from the left flipper, and also feeds the left flipper.
This ramp is lit for Spell Magic, but only for the first two multiballs. This ramp is also the main scoring shot in Levitating Woman mode. You can select your first Illusion with the flippers, and start it directly with a trunk skill shot; if you choose Levitating Woman, you can get decent points while building up your first Multiball qualify, which is a pretty strong way to start a game.
For the 3rd multiball and on, Magic letters are not awarded at the center ramp, so it becomes pretty useless outside of the Levitating Woman mode.
There are small standup targets on either side of this ramp. Hit either target a total of 4 times to light Open Trap Door. From there, shoot up the center ramp to actually open the trap door, and one-time the ball into the trap door in front of the right ramp to earn 15,000,000 points and its mystery.
When lit and shot as described in the paragraph immediately before this one, the Trapdoor gives 15,000,000 points and one of the following awards at random:
In competition play, the basement mystery is disabled altogether. Shooting into the trapdoor awards the 15,000,000 and then immediately kicks the ball back out, in this case.
Much harder to hit than the center ramp, and can only be hit from the left flipper. A shot that doesn't make it all the way up the center ramp will fall out of a small hole just below the spinner.
The right ramp is always lit for Spell Magic, and is the only way to earn Magic letters starting with the 3rd multiball.
If Spirit Ring is not already lit, the right ramp shot will return to the right flipper, and Spirit Ring will light.
If Spirit Ring is lit, the right ramp will award 10, 20, or 30 million (in sequence), and will feed the left flipper. Spirit Ring unlights itself after the 30,000,000 is collected, or after some time passes without being hit.
Right ramp is the main scoring shot in the Metamorphosis illusion mode.
The right orbit is a very late shot from the left flipper. Unlike the left orbit, this shot pretty much always comes around and down the left side; the ball won't fall into the pops from a right orbit shot unless it's forced to during Multiball or Strait Jacket mode.
The right orbit pretty much always advances the clock by 1 hour.
When the clock hits 6:00, an extra ball is lit on the left orbit (or 40,000,000 is awarded if said extra ball is turned off or has already been collected). When the clock hits midnight, Midnight Madness starts immediately.
After the Vanish lock has been made, the right orbit is the intended way to start Tiger Saw Multiball (although it can sometimes happen by accident by shooting the left orbit if the ball goes down the left top lane).
Only two top lanes this time. They can be hit from any left orbit shot that doesn't make its way up to the habitrail, but a ball hit in this direction will be forced into the lanes during regular Multiball (but not Tiger Saw Multiball) or during Strait Jacket.
Completing the lanes, which depict comedy and tragedy masks, advances bonus multiplier (to 2, 4, 6, or 8X) or gives 5,000,000 points if the bonus is already at 8X.
Small standups on the left side. Hitting these activates Hocus Pocus, which is an auto-magna-save on both in lanes. Nice to have, but not worth shooting for directly; the slingshots will send the ball over there often enough.
Bonus on Theatre of Magic can be absolutely massive. It is my very strong recommendation that any player shoot for nothing but left orbits until 8X Bonus is achieved from four completions of the top lanes. For the most part, bonus builds over the entire game, and can be worth hundreds of millions or even billions of points. The bonus is calculated as:
Whatever you do, don't tilt!
A simple strategy for this game for competition play involves left orbiting all day. This gets you bonus X, Theatre letters (worth 4,000,000 apiece after bonus X!), and eventually quick millions from the top lanes. If the feed out of the pops is kind enough that you can catch it on the right flipper, this is repeatable to the point of being unbalanced.
Spell Magic, lock 2 balls behind the trunk, and stick a third ball to the trunk to start Multiball. All three balls will kick out of the trapdoor, one at a time.
As soon as the first ball kicks out, a short 5 second timer begins. Shoot the trunk hole in this time for an instant 100,000,000 jackpot.
The standard Jackpot starts at 50,000,000. Every major shot in the game except for the center ramp (left orbit, center loop, right ramp, right orbit) raises the Jackpot by 5,000,000. I have seen the Jackpot go as high as 180,000,000; it may be possible to go even higher.
Jackpot is lit by shooting the trunk: the first Jackpot requires 2 hits to light, the second requires 3, the third requires 4, and any after that requires 5. When lit, shoot the trunk hole to cash in Jackpot.
There is absolutely no ball save or multiball restart in this game. You must be ready for the kickouts from the trapdoor.
Theatre Multiball can become a 4-ball multiball instead of 3. To do this, make the Vanish lock, but start Theatre Multiball before starting Tiger Saw Multiball. Starting a 4-ball round in this way will make it so that Vanish is automatically lit again upon returning to single ball play.
Pretty much nothing is available to advance during Theatre Multiball. Theatre letters, Captive balls, trunk hits toward Illusions, and the Trapdoor are closed off during multiball. If you don't want to play for Jackpots and/or the trunk shot is unsafe, go for left loops all day while keeping one or more balls as a safety net on your left flipper. A ball shot to the top of the playfield is forced to go into the pop bumpers during Theatre Multiball, so use this opportunity to get bonus multipliers and quick millions from the top lanes with some added safety.
Light Vanish from captive ball hits, lock the ball with the Vanish at the left orbit, then release it at the right orbit (or, on some machines, a left orbit shot that goes down the left top lane).
The Jackpot shot in Tiger Saw Multiball is the captive ball. The first hit is worth 30,000,000; each subsequent hit is worth 10,000,000 more than the previous, with a maximum of 70,000,000. This mode is immensely valuable if you can keep 2 balls under control.
It is even possible to hit the ball in such a way that it smacks the captive ball enough to score a Tiger Saw Jackpot, but then still goes up to the top lanes via the left orbit. This kills two birds with one stone, since Theatre letters are not locked out in Tiger Saw Multiball like they are in Theatre Multiball. As such, use this mode to get Bonus X with an added safety net of another ball if you wish.
Pretty much the only thing locked out during Tiger Saw Multiball is advancing the trunk toward Start Illusion. In fact, unless Start Illusion was lit when Tiger Saw Multiball began, any progress toward Start Illusion will be erased once Tiger Saw Multiball ends.
Immediately starts as soon as the in game clock is advanced to midnight, and lasts for about a minute of real time. The magnetic bullseye on the trunk is exposed. Hitting it is worth 24,000,000 for about five seconds; the value decreases by 2,000,000 every five seconds, before staying at 10,000,000 for about 25 seconds until the mode ends. The trunk can be hit repeatedly during this time, but not too repeatedly, as the magnet won't work for about 1.5-2 seconds after letting the ball go from a previous hit. Unlike modes titled Midnight Madness in other Bally Williams games, this mode is entirely based on in-game progress and does not start automatically when the real time clock within the game reaches 12:00 am.
Once all 4 main objectives in the game have been completed, Grand Finale wizard mode is lit at the left entrance to the center loop. It lights as soon as the final objective is completed: you do not need to wait for the Theatre hurry-up, the 8th Illusion, or Midnight Madness to end before starting Grand Finale if any of those were your last Magicianship diamond to complete. However, if Theatre Multiball was your final task, Grand Finale won't be lit until the multiball ends.
During Grand Finale, nearly every shot in the game (left orbit, center loop, trunk, both ramps, and right orbit) awards 50,000,000 points and a letter in the phrase Magic Theatre. Spelling the phrase with 12 shots to anywhere in the game within 60 seconds awards the Grand Finale completion bonus of 500,000,000 points.
Grand Finale is a single ball mode. If the ball drains during Grand Finale, the mode is lost and does not resume on the next ball; it needs to be worked for all over again.
As soon as Grand Finale starts, Special is lit on the out lanes. It does not carry over from ball to ball, so if a center drain occurs, the opportunity for a Special is lost. As far as I know, Special has no value in competition play.
All copyrighted names and terms in this document belong to their respective owners. The information provided in this document is for educational purposes only and no infringement is intended.
Back to top To game list To main page