Shock Troopers Mathematics 101

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If you don't give a rat's ass about Shock Troopers or my war with it, ignore the rest of this message. :)

Why am I posting this stuff? I guess to prove just how obsessed I am with this game. A while back I was taking down my scores after each level was over, because by doing that I could chart my performance on each level and get an idea of the kind of score I could expect to get assuming I could maintain that peak level of play for all levels. So I took down some data from my last three .inps.

Game #1
Stage 1 - 06303000 (6303000)
Stage 2 - 09671000 (3368000)
Stage 3 - 15704800 (6033800)
Stage 4 - 17534300 (1829500)
Stage 5 - 23613800 (6079500)
Stage 6 - 27943800 (4330000)
Stage 7 - 32245800 (4302000)

Game #2
Stage 1 - 06294000 (6294000)
Stage 2 - 09593000 (3299000)
Stage 3 - 15107300 (5514300)
Stage 4 - 17013800 (1906500)
Stage 5 - 23541300 (6527500)
Stage 6 - 28231800 (4690500)
Stage 7 - 32562300 (4330500)

Game #3
Stage 1 - 06419000 (6419000)
Stage 2 - 09656000 (3237000)
Stage 3 - 15442800 (5786800)
Stage 4 - 17427800 (1985000)
Stage 5 - 24077800 (6650000)
Stage 6 - 29002800 (4925000)
Stage 7 - 33084300 (4081500)

So... taking these scores into account, the best performances for each level can be found. The best score on Stage 1 was from the Game #3, while Stages 2 and 3 both were highest on Game #1, which is the lowest overall score here. After that, Stages 4, 5, and 6 were the best on Game #3 again... the only high point of #2 was the last stage.

6419000 + 3368000 + 6033800 + 1985000 + 6650000 + 4925000 + 4330500 =

33,711,300.

So for right now, that's the current limit. Until I can improve upon scores in each individual level, of course. :) I always pay such close attention to the first level, and it still seems like I could squeeze another 100k out of that... hmm.... maybe 34 million is possible after all with perfect play.

If all this has bored you, hey, I told you not to read it.


-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), November 28, 2001

Answers

data from the latest recording: Stage 1 - 06553500 (6553500)
Stage 2 - 10136500 (3583000)
Stage 3 - 15739800 (5603300)
Stage 4 - 17645300 (1905500)
Stage 5 - 24476300 (6831000)
Stage 6 - 29230800 (4754500)
Stage 7 - 33483800 (4253000)

6553500 + 3583000 + 6033800 + 1985000 + 6831000 + 4925000 + 4330500 = 34,241,800. Looks like 34 million is very possible with near-perfect play. -BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), November 29, 2001.


I just majorly screwed up the end, which would have resulted in a 33,68x,x00 score... I'm so pissed at myself right now but I know I can better that... unfortunately I wasn't taking down all the scores, especially since I got 7.4 mil on Stage 1! I don't remember the exact score but it was about 7.43 mil. So rounding it off and adding up the totals again...

7430000 + 3583000 + 6033800 + 1985000 + 6831000 + 4925000 + 4330500 = 35,118,300

Oh shit! 35 million!

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 10, 2001.


notable things from the last couple recordings...

stage 3 - 6,184,800
stage 4 - 2,047,000
stage 5 - 6,934,500
stage 6 - 4,964,500

7430000 + 3583000 + 6184800 + 2047000 + 6934500 + 4964500 + 4330500 = 35,474,300

Of course, it's funny to think that I've already passed the previous two "limits" I posted :)

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 13, 2001.

Well, I don't know anything about Shock Troopers, but looking at the inps there seem to be a lot of instances where you shoot guys without them dropping anything... so maybe 40 million is possible? the "maximum" for level 1 did rise by 1.1 million, after all. :)

Any interest in going after 30 million in Shock Troopers 2?

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 13, 2001.


Enemies only drop items when you kill them with a close range attack.

-- Barry Rodewald (bsr@hnpl.net), December 13, 2001.


Right, so in the "perfect" game you would shoot all such enemies at close range.

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 13, 2001.

Well, you get the most points from shooting them and then moving in for the close range attack. Depending on the enemy, you get between 500 and around 5000 per hit from bullets, and a close range attack is double that (but only one hit). So, shooting an enemy worth 3000 points, say 8 times (24k), then a close range attack (6k), and the item (most likely to be the 30k blue diamond). There's 60k there, instead of 36k for just a close range attack.

Okay, I think I've rambled on enough there... :)

-- Barry Rodewald (bsr@hnpl.net), December 13, 2001.


I see... so there are definitely a lot more points out there, but it's too much for mortal man to get too close.

(Waits for BBH to take umbrage)

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 13, 2001.


grrr, you two ruining my thread! ;) jk

Okay. The key to high scores lately is the multiple shot-into-close range attack combo kill. Like Barry noted, you get a certain amount of points per shot. You can unload approximately a dozen shots into them before they fall down, so a close-range attack must be done before then. A close-range attack is worth double the "base" value of whatever the soldier is.

Purple soldiers have a base value of 5000, and thus it's always worth going for multi-shot kills on them. Even if you make them drop, you can still earn 60k from them alone. Getting in 10 shots and a close-range kill would also give 60k, and a chance at a 30k diamond... so that's 90k from one enemy alone.

White soldiers have a base value of 3000. Almost always worth trying to get multi-shot kills on them too.

Green soldiers vary a lot. A few examples... the ones that walk towards you, but then back away and fire, those pussies only have a base value of 1000. So it's best to just roll through their shot and stab them. Most green soldiers that come out from "stalling" are only worth a base value of 500, even worse. The ones that "jump down" from the top of the screen, or the ones sliding down the hills on Jungle 1 and Jungle 2, are worth 3000. Soldiers that "get distracted" (such as the two that are "talking" at the beginning of Jungle 1, along with the one repairing the vehicle) are worth 5000. Their AI is unpredictable, as sometimes they'll freak out and run away, sometimes they'll try to stab you, sometimes they'll just shoot like mad. The last major type of green soldier are the ones located behind barrels... for instance there's two sets of them early on in Jungle 1. They're worth more than any other, 7000 points per shot!!! But it's tough to get multiple shots on them for some reason, I can't seem to figure out a reliable way (your shots make them fly up the screen for some reason)

oh, and there's the rocket launcher guys, I think they're worth 3000.

Anyways, the reason some of them don't drop items is because I probably fired too many shots at them before getting in range for the close attack... or I accidentally shot them before I planned to (this happens a lot when you pick up a special weapon, a few shots will go off automatically if you just did a close-range attack). Or, not every enemy in the game actually drops an item. 98% of them do, but some of them will never drop an item even if you do a close-range attack on them. There are quite a few in the last level that never drop items, so once you figure out which ones they are it's better to just unload shots into them until they drop.

I really don't believe 40 million to be possible... my patterns are pretty tight (although Barry chastised me on IRC for not leeching enough on Jungle 3, hahaha), although I still make a lot of screwups. I don't think there's too much left to squeeze out, I'm already going for as many combination kills as I can. I already thought 35 million would be tough to do, but it's obviously very possible now. 36 million? I doubt that, but who knows what I'll be thinking in a couple weeks. That's the great thing about this game, every time I think I've hit the wall, I find something out to increase points even more. I don't know how much longer I can keep that up, but if I know higher scores are possible, I'll definitely keep playing. Speaking of which, that's a good idea, I'm tired of typing and feel like playing. :)

oh, and 30 million on 2nd Squad... ummmmm... there must be something I'm missing there O_o

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 13, 2001.


Stage 1 - 07235000 (7235000)
Stage 2 - 11187500 (3952500)
Stage 3 - 17226800 (6039300)
Stage 4 - 19054800 (1828000)
Stage 5 - 26219300 (7164500)
Stage 6 - 31141300 (4922000)
Stage 7 - 35689800 (4548500)

Stages 2, 5, and 7 were new highs.

7430000 + 3952500 + 6184800 + 2047000 + 7164500 + 4964500 + 4548500 = 36,291,800

So I was only 600k off that score... nice. Yes, 36 million is now possible with perfect play.

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 15, 2001.


Heh... just 100k shy of the 36-million mark. Not as big an improvement although there were some new level records -

Stage 1 - 7499000 (old high: 743XXXX, unrecorded)
Stage 4 - 2144500 (old high: 2047000)
Stage 6 - 5188500 (old high: 4964500)
7499000 + 3952500 + 6184800 + 2144500 + 7164500 + 5188500 + 4548500 = 36,682,300

It seems like it would be pointless to keep updating like this when I keep raising the limit, but it's nice to know how many points are possible at the current time... gives me something to shoot for. God I love this game!

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 15, 2001.

THIRTY-SEVEN MILLION.

-- dissolute city (mdenham@coinet.com), December 17, 2001.

UNLIKELY.

done quite a bit of playing the last two nights and the best score I've managed was 35.5 million. Attaining peak levels of play on each level is tough, and sometimes things you just can't control happen... such as a red gem fucking you over.

The limit may finally be reached.

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 17, 2001.


Minor updates from a score that was a mere 8200 points shy of my current shocktrj recording...

Stage 1 - 7515500 (old high: 7499000)
Stage 3 - 6273600 (old high: 6184800)

The funny (or is it sad?) thing about the Stage 3 score is that I screwed up the close-range kill on one of the clawed dudes. Which explains why the hundreds digit is a 6 instead of a 3 or an 8. That score could've been 75200 points higher.

7515000 + 3952500 + 6273600 + 2144500 + 7164500 + 5188500 + 4548500 = 36,787,600

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 17, 2001.

36,787,600 + that 75,200 you mentioned = 36,862,800...

I'm still going to say that 37,000,000 is possible, but just barely. :-)

-- dissolute city (mdenham@coinet.com), December 18, 2001.



I dunno... I suspect his highs will keep on improving.

To get true upper bound, I think you have to assume a maximum score for each enemy. So, let's say the best you can do is to shoot a guy 12 times will moving towards him, then do a close range kill and pick up a 30k bonus. The total score will be 14*base + 30,000. So, if in the "perfect game" you can meet 1000 guys with an average base of 2500, the average per guy will be 14*2500 + 30,000 = 65,000, and the total score will be 65 million plus whatever you get for end bosses and stuff. Not saying the max score IS 65 million, just throwing numbers out there. :)

I think Shock Troopers is just a very difficult game to get anywhere near the max score on. You have to shoot every guy the maximum number of times and enter close range at exactly the right time. Say instead of getting 12 hits, you get 8 hits, and then the close range kill andd the 30k bonus. You'd pretty much feel like you handled the guy perfectly, but you've just lost 12k or 20k points! And on the 1000 point guys, BBH says its best to just close range kill them - and he's probably right from a practical standpoint, but you're still falling 12k more behind the "perfect" game.

Maybe I'll look at the .inps to see how the consistent the scoring is.

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 18, 2001.


OK, just looked at the first 15 guys on the 35.9 million inp.

4 3k guys drop. Gets in 5 shots before close killing the first two guys, drops two life bonuses. 1 shot, close kill 3rd guy, 30k bonus. 10 hits, ck + 30k on 4th guy. Score: 137,000

Two 500 guys show up. Two close kills + 30k, score 199,500.

3 5k guys, gets 102k for the first two, 80k for the third,and 6k for the tank. Two 3k guys, 9k for the first, 39k for the second.

3 500 guys and a 3k guy. close kills the first three, gets various items, no gems. 3 hits + 30k on 3k guy. Total score 521,500.

Maximum score, assuming 12 hits possible:

7 * 72 + 3 * 100 + 5 * 37 + 6 = 995k

Assuming 10 hits:

7 * 66 + 3 * 90 + 5 * 36 + 6 = 918k.

So I would say there are still a lot of points to be had.

Of course, getting the maximum hits takes time, but not a lot, and BBH pauses at various times to wait for an opportunity. So it's not immediate the maximum score would take longer.

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 18, 2001.


Technically, the maximum you can get on an enemy is 11 shots plus a close-range kill. The 12th shot will drop them no matter what, so the close-range kill has to be done on the 11th. I think. I haven't done extensive testing/counting analyzing this, but that's what it seemed like to me.

Another factor to consider is that unfortunately, luck plays a part in the score... because you are not guaranteed a 30,000 point gem for every close-range kill. They do appear approximately... I wanna say 3 out of 4 times but that seems too high. Maybe 2 out of 3 instead. I've often wondered what kind of score would be possible if EVERY enemy dropped a 30,000 point gem, but I was unable to find a cheat that will guarantee a free 30,000 points every time. It'd be interesting to play through just to see what the score would be (although the game would be tougher without any life-ups being dropped). It's also tough to get an exact figure on the amount of enemies in the game, since stalling in certain areas can cause different amounts of enemies to come out... sometimes I try different things (especially on Stage 3), causing different amounts of enemies to come out. Although a ballpark figure shouldn't be hard to come up with. But since they're all worth varying amounts of points, it's tough to find an average too...

[Notes to self on things to check: whether or not an enemy can be stabbed after the 12th shot, the approximate percentage of 30k gems dropped from an average game, and the amount of enemies in the game]

That's a good point though Tenchi, if I pass up multiple shots on 1000-point enemies, it's 10k I'm missing out on. And that can really add up. The problem is, a lot of them come out in groups of two, and you can't get two multiple-shot kills when the sprites are overlapping like that. If you do fire at them, chances are you'll end up shooting one, and then they'll drop because your shots will end up hitting the other one. And then you miss out on your chance at a 30k gem if you just went for the close-range kill. But from now on, if there's just one (or if they're spaced out), I'm trying to go for those extra points.

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 18, 2001.


Wow Tenchi, now you're analyzing this just as closely as I am! Have you considered taking up playing the game yourself? The more the merrier. :D

Anyway, that definitely wasn't a good start right off the bat on that game. Obviously, I woulda gotten 52k more if those first two enemies dropped 30k gems instead of +8 life-ups (which are worth 4000 points). Note that those first two are pretty close together too, so it's not like I can get 11 shots on both of them.

The 500-point guys obviously aren't worth the effort on getting multiple shots, especially since they run away when you get close.

The 5000-point guys... they will "talk" to each other for a while, but then when they notice your character.... they will react in some way. Usually by shooting, but sometimes they'll run away. So it's another case where you have to get rid of them as quickly as possible. Usually I end up shooting one of them and push them back in the up-right direction, pushing him into the other one, and then I get the close-range kill on both at once. It's probably better to push the one that's lower at an up-left direction, then take out the other one from a right direction. The other important thing to consider is the guy fixing the tank, after a while he will stop to start firing at you too. Hence the reason I rush to take him out too. Also note that if too many stray shots get through and destroy the tank, it will kill him instantly... so that's a lot of points down the drain.

I've optimized the beginning of Stage 1 a lot from all the plays I've attempted lately, my score after taking out the rocket launcher guys around the two tanks usually ends up in the 1.9-2.0 milion range now... it used to consistently be about 1.7 mil... I think at least 7.7 million should be possible on Stage 1.

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 18, 2001.


Well, looks like I was wrong... it seems you can actually pump a soldier with THIRTEEN shots, not twelve. The best proof of this is on the first four that drop down, just start firing at one of them and you'll get 39000... (I'm experimenting with something different on them)

Only noteworthy things in the last game were raising the Stage 1 high by a whopping 1k (OH YEAH!) and raising the Stage 3 high from

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 18, 2001.


WTF, I did not click on Submit!!! Anyway, the Stage 3 high is now 6557300, formerly 6273600.

7516000 + 3952500 + 6557300 + 2144500 + 7164500 + 5188500 + 4548500 = 37,071,800... gulp

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 18, 2001.


A new high score always means some new level highs...

Stage 1 - 7720500 (old high: 7516000)
Stage 7 - 4704000 (old high: 4548500)
7720500 + 3952500 + 6557300 + 2144500 + 7164500 + 5188500 + 4704000 = 37,431,800

All I have to do is maintain peak play and avoid red gems like the plague, and I'll have 37 million. Simple. (and then everyone will start asking when I'll get 38 mil... har)

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 20, 2001.

more updates:

From the 36.6 million game I had a score of 5391500 on Stage 6

From a 36.3 million game I played last night (can't upload it, but I did save the .inp) I got new highs on Stages 1 and 5 (7817500 and 7303500 respectively)

7817500 + 3952500 + 6557300 + 2144500 + 7303500 + 5391500 + 4704000 = 37,870,800

-BBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 22, 2001.


great... now I'm expected to get 38 million. New highs on the following:

Stage 1 - 8001500
Stage 5 - 7203500
Stage 6 - 5601000

8001500 + 3952500 + 6557300 + 2144500 + 7203500 + 5601000 + 4704000 = 38,164,300

-TeamBBH

-- BBH (lordbbh@aol.com), December 23, 2001.

Matt continues to toil to prove himself wrong and me right :P

-- Tenchi (rpeng@usc.edu), December 23, 2001.

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