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Pinball Rule Sheets

A repository of rulesheets for pinball machines

Game Information & Overview:

Total Nuclear Annihilation

Rules Overview:

Layout:

Upper Playfield area

Lower Playfield Lower playfield is your classic Italian flipper setup with 2 standard flippers, two triangle slingshots, and one inlane and one outlane per side.

Rules

Total Nuclear Annihilation (TNA) is a perfect example of “Simple to learn, difficult to master”. The game play is deceptively simple, but is loaded with behaviors aimed to press the competitiveness of the game in a head-to-head scenario. Timing, pressure, and reaction are the recurring themes in TNA.

Skill Shot

Hands-Free Skillshot At the start of a ball, one of the CORE rollovers will be lit. The lit letter can be moved with the flippers PRIOR to plunging the ball; once the shooter lane switch opens, the selected letter is locked in. Landing the plunged ball into the lit CORE rollover will score the ‘Hands-Free’ Skill Shot. If you move the selected lane with the flippers AFTER the ball is plunged, you will be downgraded to the regular skillshot.

Making a Hands-Free skill shot will complete the Reactor grid, spot a full lane ball-save level, and award 100,000 points. If the reactor is already running, the player will get a Reactor Jackpot.

Regular Skillshot Using the flippers AFTER the plunge will move the lit rollover and change its color to yellow. Doing so will disqualify the Hands-Free Shot, and making the lit rollover will score a regular Skill Shot.

Making a regular skill shot will spot a whole lane ball-save level and award 50,000 points.

Secret Skill Shot With less than 2 balls locked, full-plunge the ball passed the rollovers then flip the ball into the lock lane. 100,000 are awarded and the ball is locked.

Competitive Notes: The controlled gates will both be OPEN on a skill shot making it more difficult to drop into the rollovers. If you short plunge and the ball returns to the plunger, the game will QUICKLY plunge the ball and mock you. Using a short plunge to the right orbit and right flipper can be useful if you intend to hit the Lock lane.

End of Ball Bonus

End of ball bonus is reflected by the grid of inserts above the flippers. Bonus is increased by

Different colors in the bonus insert grid simply indicate that you’re over 10k. At 11k bonus, the 10k insert will light white and the 1k insert will light in a different color. At 20k, the 1s digits will light a new color (etc.).

Bonus Multiplier - Completing the CORE rollovers will increase the end-of-ball bonus multiplier. Multiplier will be reflected by the 2x, 3x,4x inserts below the grid.

Mystery Award

Mystery Award is qualified by completing the RAD Targets. Mystery is awarded by shooting the scoop. Mystery awards include:

Special note: if you are out of tilt warnings, the mystery will always award +1 Tilt Warning.

Spinner

Spinner advances Reactor Bonus. The spinner will have its inserts lit and cycling when the Reactor is started, and will advance the Reactor’s critical state. Super Spinner can also be started (Unknown impact and qualification)

Ball Save

There is a segment display below the flippers that will count down a ball save timer. Ball save is active at ball start. Ball save can also be collected and activated via the rollovers in the inlanes and outlanes. The ball passing over an unlit lane will light it red. Both flippers can be used to cycle the lit lanes. Lighting three S, A, V, E letters qualifies a ball save, and the 4th lane will start flashing. Having the ball trigger a lane with the flashing insert will activate a 10 second ball save timer. If the ball hits the trough during this 10 seconds, a new ball is plunged into play and the timer is shut off.

Additional ball save levels can be stacked. Stacking is indicated by color in this order: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple. There is a bonus of 10K per un-used ball save at the end of the ball.

Reactors

The main feature and objective during the game is to destroy reactors. The game has 9 reactors as indicated by the 1-9 numbered inserts in the middle of the lower playfield. The game starts at Reactor 1, and destroying it, enables Reactor 2, and so on. To destroy a reactor three phases must be completed 1 - Qualify the Reactor and Start it 2 - Advance the Reactor to Critical Status (100% on upper playfield numeric display) 3 - Destroy the reactor by hitting the randomly lit shots

Each Reactor has a starting bonus value, increasing with each reactor level. Each Reactor level is more difficult by increasing the amount the reactor must be advanced, and how many targets are needed to destroy the critical reactor.

Reactor State carries over ball to ball.

Qualifying the reactor

Qualifying the reactor The keypad grid located at the center of the playfield is used to qualify the reactor. The initial configuration of pink/blue lights is random. Hitting a target advances the pink light in that column upwards (pushing out the blue light above it). Filling the grid to all pink qualifies the Reactor Start at the scoop. Shooting the scoop will start the reactor.

Overheat the reactor

Overheat the reactor Once a reactor is started, the Segment display in the upper playfield will count up to 99 as the player advances the Reactor’s status. The Reactor is advanced by hitting the spinners and all switches/slingshots in the reactor area of the playfield (the upper playfield area). The kicker sides of the reactor advance the status quicker than the other sides. Advancing the reactor status will also advance the Reactor Value. Once the Reactor status surpasses 99, the Reactor is at critical and is ready to be destroyed.

Max reactor value depends on the reactor level. Reactor 1 maxes at 75,000, reactor 2 at 112,500, reactor 3 at 150,000 etc. The Reactor Value can be increased at any time before destroying it. The fastest way to increase the value is hitting the 1,2,3 targets (in order) in the reactor area, but other switches in the area will increase the value as well. Once the lit 3 target is hit, the value is maxed and cannot be increased further.

For the first two reactors, both orbits will be lit pink, indicating that they will both feed the lanes into the reactor area. For subsequent reactors, only one orbit will be lit. This toggles with sling and pop bumper hits.

Destroy the Reactor

Destroy the Reactor Once critical, one or more targets on the lower playfield will have their inserts lit white and flashing. To destroy reactor 1, only one target is lit, higher reactors require hitting more targets. The targets to hit will be randomly picked from the RAD, Destroy, and Pop Bumper. (the Pop Bumper can represent two targets). Hitting all the flashing targets will collect the current Reactor Bonus and reset the Grid for the next reactor.

Reactor Jackpot

Reactor Jackpot Once a reactor has been started, the Grid resets and can be completed the same as qualifying the reactor. But instead of green, hits will fill the grid with red. Completing the grid will collect a Reactor Jackpot which awards a point value 25% of the current Reactor Value.

Multiball

Multiball is qualified by locking two balls and then releasing the balls by hitting the Lock Target after two balls are locked. Multiball is a 3 ball multiball. Progress towards qualifying, completing, and collecting reactors is possible during multiball.

Ball Lock

Ball Lock Ball locks are collected in the in-line Lock lane. Lock will be lit at the start of each ball and the lock arrows will be lit green. Two balls can be locked by shooting the in-line target lane, and the drop targets will reset to trap a ball behind the first two targets. Hitting the Lock target after two balls are locked will start multiball.

Lock Re-Light After a multiball completes, the drop targets will maintain their current up/down states. Lock inserts will be blue, and you must work your way back to the scoop behind them to relight the standard lock sequence.

Competitive Note: Ball Lock stealing is possible and encouraged. Players get credit for whatever balls are already in the lock when they start their turn. Backhanding the lock lane is possible, but gets more dangerous the deeper the drop targets are down.

Jackpots

Jackpots At the start of multiball, all three Lock Targets will be up. Jackpots are hitting the Lock Drop Targets. 1st Target = 1x Jackpot, 2nd Target = 2x Jackpot, 3rd Target = 3x Jackpot, scoop = Super Jackpot (5x Jackpot). The drop targets will cascade back on you every 5 seconds if you do not achieve the next jackpot. Example: You’ve made the 2x jackpot, but do not collect the 3x in time, the targets will reset so only the 1x jackpot is ready.

Competitive Notes: It is possible to score a quick Super Jackpot when multiball starts by shooting the lock scoop before the targets reset.

Multiball Multiplier

Multiball Multiplier During multiball, playfield values will be multiplied by the number of balls in play. The multiplier inserts will change color and reflect the playfield multiplier during multiball (2x or 3x).

Add-a-ball

Add-a-ball During multiball, put the ball in the scoop behind the drop targets for an add-a-ball. This can raise the playfield multiplier to 4x if you still have all other balls in play. Add-a-ball will be awarded if you hit that scoop immediately when the multiball starts, before the drops have been reset to the up position.

Jackpot values

Jackpot values Formula: [seed value] x [reactor scaler] x [multiball multiplier] x [jackpot multiplier]

Initial jackpot seed is 5,000 (boosts?) Reactor Scaler is multiplier that changes based on which reactor is active (values? Ex: second reactor is 1.5) Multiball Multiplier = Number of balls in play Jackpot Multiplier = 1x, 2x, 3x, or 5x

Competitive Notes: The reactor grid is very dangerous to shoot, so being able to qualify the grid with multiball chaos is very attractive. The playfield multiplier is also very attractive to have active before destroying a reactor as the reactor values are the biggest points in the game.

Wizard Mode

Destroy all 9 reactors. Destroying all reactors completes the game and game will terminate. Similar to ‘beating’ a video/arcade game. If there are balls remaining, message on screen says, “Flippers and slings disabled” and when ball drains, player will be credited with Total Nuclear Annihilation Bonus again.