SILVERWAKEReading attacks
Everything that hurts you warns you first. Bosses never show where their own body will move, but they do show every attack. Learning those warnings is the game.
What can hit you
Only a small area at your chest takes damage. Bullets that clip your helmet, arms or blaster do nothing, so you have more room than it looks. This hit area is the same in every armour.
You start with 6 hull plates, and each hit costs one. After a hit you have 2 seconds of safety, shown by the ship blinking. Touching a boss's body counts as a hit, so fight from a distance and dash through only when you must.
The kinds of attack
| You see | What to do |
|---|---|
| A fan of shots | It is aimed at you when it fires. Slip between two shots, or move across the fan rather than away from it. |
| A ring with an opening | Fly through the gap. Running away only delays it, because the ring keeps growing. |
| Seeking shots | They curve after you for a moment and then fizzle. Fly in one wide arc until they run out. |
| A glowing mark on the floor | It bursts when it fills. Step out in time. A Parry does not help here. |
| A marked line | A beam or lash will follow that line. Leave it before the strike. Beams go through a Parry too. |
| Walls of sound or bullets | Look for the gap. If there is none, dash through. |
Your escape tools, weakest danger first
- Moving. It costs nothing, so make it your first answer.
- Dash. Untouchable for a moment. The recharge is short, but a dash into a bad spot still hurts.
- Parry (4 s recharge). Cuts every bullet within 34 px, big ones included, sends them back at the nearest enemy and knocks enemies away. Beams and floor marks still hurt.
- Slow-mo. Every enemy and enemy bullet crawls for 2.5 seconds while you keep full speed. You carry few charges, so save it for the moment you are boxed in.
- Ward, Bubble or Halo. A short time of safety. See Items and abilities for what each one blocks.
- Bomb. Clears the bullets around you and hurts what is near. Bombs are scarce.
Graze for rewards
Let shots pass close without touching you and a meter by your hull fills. A full meter gives a slow-mo charge, or a few seconds of keen shots if your charges are already full. Taking a hit empties it. You will not need this early on, but it turns good dodging into extra slow-mo later.
Learning a boss
- When you fall, the death screen names what destroyed you. Look that attack up on the Bosses page.
- Survive an attack once and its card opens in the game.
- Bosses change in stages as they lose health, with new attacks at each stage.
- You can fight any boss you have beaten again in Practice, with no risk to your run.