X-Men

"We need to know more about your mutant powers."

- Charles Xavier

X-Men
Date available	December 13, 2011
Category	Marvel
Based on	X-Men created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Designed by	Thomas Crofts
Plunger mechanism	Diagonal
Skill shot type	Plunger strength
Number of return lanes	4
Number of flippers	4
Outlane protection	1 teleporting diverter kickback and 1 high-power spring-loaded kickback
Number of main missions	4 (each mission has multiple sub-missions), 14 - 20 (total; including sub-missions, depending on player choice)
Wizard mode type	Score reward
Number of side modes	0
Number of multiball modes	5 (all mandatory)

X-Men is one of the four Marvel pinball tables released as part of the Vengeance and Virtue pack, and is the fourth and final table in that pack to be released in late 2011, available for Zen Pinball 2, Pinball FX 2 and Pinball FX 3.

This is the first pinball adaptation of the X-Men comics series; Stern would release a physical table based on the series the following year.

Table overview

The upper half of the table

The back wall of the table is evocative of the Danger Room, a special training chamber for mutants to train to master their powers. There is a small circular platform that connects to the left half of the back table wall, where balls locked for a particular mission are stowed and released back into play. Next to the door just above where the platform connects to the back table wall are a series of lamps indicating sub-missions needed to lock balls there. The main area of the Danger Room occupies much of the back right corner of the table.

Two ramps run underneath the abovementioned ball locking platform. One of them is the right turn of the Unite ramp, and the other is the left turn of Cyclops' crossramp. The entrance of the former is further down the table, lodged between two lanes: a left orbit dedicated to Wolverine and a miniloop dedicated to Phoenix/Jean Grey. The latter runs underneath the rising entrance of the Unite ramp and merges back into the former. A diverter gate within the former can divert the ball into a sinkhole behind the right side of the latter to lock balls onto the platform above. The Unite ramp's overall path forms a huge, crude question-mark, ending at a circular platform that spins the ball to drop it into the left inlane.

The Wolverine left orbit is half of an asymmetrical table orbit that wraps around the entrances of most table lanes, but not all. The other side of this main orbit is a crosslane dedicated to Storm. To the right of the Phoenix miniloop is a target bank dedicated to Magneto, a rogue mutant who believes mutants are superior and is a common enemy of the X-Men. This target bank can collapse to expose a sinkhole. The center target spells his name. A figure of him stands right behind it. Magnets are also installed in front of Magneto's target bank. Behind Magneto's figure is the entrance of the abovementioned Cyclops crossramp, traveling left to curve around the back left corner of the table to drop the ball down Wolverine's orbit.

The entrance of Cyclops' ramp is perpendicular to that of another miniloop dedicated to Nightcrawler. It curves right to merge with Storm's orbit. Between the entrances of Nightcrawler's miniloop and the Storm's orbit is the entrance of another ramp dedicated to Iceman. As it rises, it takes a right hairpin turn towards the front of the table and snakes to a track switch that can take the ball to one of two destinations: a normal, longer snaking path that is blue and laden with ice, leading to the right inlane and past its rollover, or a shorter dropdown path leading back to the plunger shaft. A small mini-flipper is placed near the entrance of Storm's orbit, used to access Cyclops' crossramp. A side-facing sinkhole is also right beside it.

In front of the Wolverine orbit, closer to the left table wall, is a mini-flipper used to hit Storm's orbit, as well as the abovementioned sinkhole. Behind this flipper is a hidden pathway that merges into a lane balls use to enter the left plunger. On the other side of the table is a bumper area gating the entrance to a third ramp dedicated to Colossus. It curves left twice to go along the back table wall to lead to an exit habitrail that shares the same destination as the Unite ramp. The leftmost bumper has one of three X-Men symbol targets, which Magneto can remove to expose a sinkhole. This bumper is also behind the abovementioned side sinkhole, which leads to the left plunger under certain conditions.

The lower half of the table

In front of the left mini-flipper is another one of the three X-Men targets. The abovementioned left plunger entry lane begins from a pop-out sinkhole that balls shot into the side sinkhole exit out of and travels for a short distance down into the entrance of the left plunger, representing bio-scans of mutants. Across that sinkhole are the other two bumpers in the bumper area. The frontmost bumper has the last X-Men target. There is a small crude miniloop around this particular bumper that is part of the plunger trajectory, which travels behind the front and left bumpers.

There are 4 return lanes that spell HANK, the alter-ego of the Beast. There are also two rebounds, two main flippers and two kickbacks that behave differently, one for each outlane. The abovementioned circular platform that spins the ball and drops it in the left inlane is installed over the left return lanes. It represents Charles Xavier, leader of a mutant training school. The left kickback is a diverter kickback that is implemented by Nightcrawler's teleporting power; it teleports balls in the left outlane to the left inlane quickly. The right kickback is a high-power spring-loaded kickback that launches the ball back into play and is powered by Jean Grey's ability to become the Phoenix. A figure of Charles Xavier is on the left apron, while lamps for bonus multipliers are installed on the right apron.

The plungers

There are two plungers on this table. The right plunger is the primary plunger that launches the ball into play. It is also a spring-loaded mechanism powered by Cyclops' optical blast, that propels the ball up a straight shaft that drops the ball down a crude miniloop to the right of the frontmost bumper. At full strength, it will take the ball diagonally behind the left and front bumpers and towards the center of the table. The goal of the skill shot, representing Cyclops mastering his laser beam ability, is to guess the correct amount of plunger force to launch the ball up such that it immediately rolls in front of the frontmost bumper.

The left plunger is a special plunger that represents bio-scans of mutants. Its shaft is a glass tube of sorts, tinted blue with a purple chassis. A spring-loaded mechanism launches the ball up the shaft as it slightly rises. There are a series of four flap targets at the end, with each target placed behind a dropdown hole that all drop the ball down the end of the exit habitrail for Colossus' ramp.

Objective and missions

The goal of this table is to help the X-Men master their powers and vanquish their adversaries through four mini-wizard modes, requiring several smaller objectives to be qualified.

X - Unite the X-Men

There are many mutants in the Marvel universe, and Charles Xavier, a mutant with telepathic powers, plans to unite a team of mutants called the X-Men to protect the world. This mission involves collecting 7 mutants in preparation for a battle against Dark Phoenix. There are three ways to collect each of the 7 X-Men represented on the table (Wolverine, Jean Grey, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Iceman, Storm and Colossus):

• Successfully completing a Unite Hurry-Up for a mutant that has yet to be collected.
• Successfully completing a Cerebro Hurry-Up.
• Spotting a mutant from the Bioscan.

Unite Hurry-Up

The Unite Hurry-Up starts with every six shots to the left ramp, with the first five shots collecting letters in UNITE and the sixth shot starting the hurry-up. Within 30 seconds, the player must shoot any flashing lane representing a mutant that has yet to be collected.

Cerebro Hurry-Up

The Cerebro Hurry-Up starts when the player shoots the left ramp after the phrase XAVIER GIFT is spelled, with a total of 10 revolutions at the circular platform near the left flipper via shots to the side ramp or the bioscan. Within 30 seconds, the player must shoot a randomly selected flashing lane representing a mutant that has yet to be collected.

Mutant Locations & Perks

Each mutant can be collected at a certain shot, and scores one of several perks listed below from top to bottom:

• Nightcrawler - Collected at the right mini-loop. Awards 3 stacked activations of the left kickback.
• Jean Grey - Collected at the left mini-loop. Awards 3 stacked activations of the right kickback.
• Wolverine - Collected at the left orbit. Activates a 30-second ball saver.
• Colossus - Collected at the right orbit. Lights the bumpers for 25 hits, required for Control the Power.
• Cyclops - Collected at Cyclops' ramp. Qualifies the Super Blast skill shot at the right ramp, required for Control the Power.
• Iceman - Collected at the right ramp. "Freezes" the bonus multipliers, carrying them over to the next ball.
• Storm - Collected at the side ramp. Enables the spinning disk in front of the side sinkhole for 25 spins, required for Control the Power.

Dark Phoenix Multiball

Once all 7 mutants have been collected, the player must shoot the left ramp to start the Dark Phoenix Multiball, a 4-ball multiball mode depicting Jean Grey's transformation into the Dark Phoenix and the X-Men battling against her together. All lanes award a jackpot worth 1 million that increases by 100,000 for each left mini-loop shot, multiplied by the number of currently active balls in play minus one (i.e. jackpots with 4 balls in play award a triple jackpot and jackpots with 3 balls in play award a double jackpot). This multiball continues until the player drains down to a single ball; simply starting it is enough to collect the X in X-MEN.

M - Defeat Magneto

Magneto, a rogue mutant, believes mutants are superior over other humans and plots to commit villainous acts to maintain their supremacy. To defeat Magneto, the player must first complete four missions, which have their own unique start procedure, and then begin the Final Clash at the right sinkhole. A random mission can also be started by hitting all 3 standup targets and then shooting the right sinkhole. Each mission requires one more shot than before to start on subsequent attempts.

Magneto Missions

The four missions required to light Final Clash are:

• Brooklyn Bridge Attack: Magneto destroys the Brooklyn Bridge, and Iceman responds by using his ice powers to build a new one. If the player shoots Cyclops' ramp four times, a mission will begin where the player must shoot the right ramp three times and then the left ramp to complete the bridge within a 60-second timer that pauses when any other lane is shot before the three right ramp shots are made. Shooting the left ramp while the bridge is not yet complete will destroy the bridge and require more shots to the right ramp to be made.
• Phoenix In Peril: Magneto kidnaps Jean Grey and the X-Men must save her. Four shots to the left mini-loop will begin this 2-ball multiball mission, where one ball will be trapped near the entrance to the left orbit via a magnet; the player must hit the magnetized ball with a new ball that plunges into play to start the multiball. During the multiball the player must alternate between shooting either the left or right ramp and the flashing Magneto targets. Once the target bank is completed with three shots to each target, the player must lock a ball into the exposed sinkhole behind it. This mission fails if either ball is lost. Locking the second ball within four seconds of finishing the mission will light an extra ball.
• Capturing Magneto: Cyclops uses his abilities to blast and subdue Magneto. Shooting the side sinkhole three times will start this mission, and send the ball into the plunger for a skill shot. Making the skill shot will charge the ball with Cyclops' energy for 30 seconds; during this timer, the player must destroy the three metal barriers Magneto places at the entrances of random lanes. If the player misses the skill shot or the ball loses its charge, they must shoot the right ramp to divert the ball to the plunger for another chance to charge the ball. Once the 3 barriers are eliminated, this mission is completed.
• Magnetic Frenzy: The X-Men must find a way to overcome Magneto's magnetic abilities. This sub-mission begins when the player completes the Magneto target bank, then locks the ball into the sinkhole behind it. This will start a 2-ball multiball that must be maintained, although a checkpoint will be activated once the first four letters in MAGNETO have been collected. The player must spell MAGNETO by alternating shots between the left or right ramp and the center Magneto target bank; after his name is spelled out, the player must lock one ball into the sinkhole behind the target bank to defeat Magneto and finish the mission. Locking the second ball within four seconds will score a super jackpot worth 15 million points.

Final Clash Multiball

The X-Men prepare for a final battle against Magneto. Once all four missions described above are completed successfully, the player will be given one chance to beat the Final Clash sub-mission, which begins with a shot to the right sinkhole. The battle, fought as a 3-ball multiball, is divided into two phases but only needs to be started to collect the M in X-MEN:

• In the first phase, the player must shoot a total of 20 lanes with the balls, although Magneto can summon metal barriers to block some of them that can be removed in one hit.
• In the second phase, the player must complete Magneto's target bank once more to open the sinkhole behind it, and then lock at least the last ball into it to defeat Magneto.

E - The Danger Room

Charles Xavier uses the Danger Room to train the X-Men to master their powers. Three missions must be started to qualify the 3 locks for Danger Room Multiball, which can be collected at the left orbit. Each unique mission must be completed to light a lock, and each has a unique starting procedure.

Danger Room Missions

The missions required to light locks for Danger Room Multiball are as follows:

• Halt the Juggernaut: The Juggernaut is an unstoppable adversary of the X-Men, but Iceman is willing to challenge him. If the player shoots the right ramp 4 times, a hurry-up depicting one of their battles will begin. The player must make a total of 3 right ramp shots in 30 seconds to defeat Juggernaut, with each shot scoring a hurry-up value starting at 5 million points and decreasing to 100,000 points.
• Sense the Traitor: Wolverine must hunt down Mystique, a mutant supervillain with the ability to shapeshift. If the player shoots the left orbit four times, the player will begin a hurry-up where the player must shoot different lanes within 60 seconds to find Mystique. The lane to shoot is random and is not marked, but shooting the left orbit will briefly light the lane where Mystique is hiding. The reward for finding her starts at 5 million and increases by 1 million for every wrong lane shot.
• Move the Blob: The Blob's gargantuan size leads to his inevitable downfall against the agile Nightcrawler. If the player shoots the Nightcrawler miniloop four times, a mission will begin depicting a fight between the two. The player must shoot the following lanes in order: Cyclops' ramp, the right ramp, the side ramp, and the left ramp. At the start of the mission, and for each correct shot except the last, Nightcrawler will teleport the ball to a certain flipper so the player can make each shot easily. Each shot during the mission scores 1 million times the ordinal number of the shot.

Danger Room Multiball

The X-Men train to defeat Sentinels, robots that hunt mutants. After locking 3 balls in the Danger Room, a 3-ball multiball will start where the player must shoot all lanes once while maintaining the multiball, then defeat a Sentinel by shooting the left ramp once more for a super jackpot. Once a Sentinel is defeated, the player can shoot all the lanes once again to battle another Sentinel and defeat it with a left ramp shot, repeating the cycle over and over again until all but one ball are lost. Simply starting the multiball will collect the E in X-MEN.

N - Control the Power

The mutants must master their innate powers to protect citizens. This mission involves helping three particular mutants master their abilities: Cyclops, Storm and Colossus, with one objective dedicated to each mutant, to unlock the Omega Hurry-Up. To qualify each scoring feature, the player must collect their representative mutant by any of the three methods described in the Unite the X-Men subsection. The objectives required to start Omega Hurry-Up are:

• Cyclops: After collecting Cyclops, collect a Super Blast skill shot by shooting the right ramp when no modes are running. This skill shot scores double the normal values for each rollover.
• Storm: After collecting Storm, shoot the spinning disk in front of the side sinkhole 25 times to master her storm-controlling powers. Making 25 spins will also magnetize the ball and spot a right ramp shot.
• Colossus: After collecting Colossus, hit the bumpers 25 times to help him master his strength.

Omega Hurry-Up

Once all 3 objectives above are completed, a final hurry-up mission will start with a shot to the left ramp, where the player can shoot the left ramp once more for a hurry-up value starting at 25 million points. Simply starting the hurry-up is enough to collect the N in X-MEN.

X-MEN Bonus

Once all four letters in X-MEN are solidly lit, the flippers will deactivate and a wizard bonus will be scored - worth 50 million points, the current end-of-ball bonus, and a lit extra ball. All progress towards lighting X-MEN will then reset and a new ball will be sent to the plunger.

Perks

The following perks can be activated on the table:

• Ball Saver: At the start of each ball and multiball, a 30-second ball saver will activate. Once it expires, it can be reactivated by collecting Wolverine or executing a 5-way combo.
• Kickbacks: Kickbacks can be activated by hitting all 3 X-Men targets while a mode is running. (If no kickbacks were previously activated, this will activate one kickback at random.) 3 activations of the left kickback can also be activated by collecting Nightcrawler, while 3 activations of the right kickback can be activated by collecting Jean Grey. Kickbacks persist across balls.
• Bonus Multiplier: Hank McCoy, also known as the Beast, is a resourceful researcher. Spelling the name of his alter-ego on the return lane rollovers, which can be cycled with the flippers, will advance the bonus multiplier by +2x up to 10x. The bonus multipliers are only good for the current ball unless a multiplier freeze is earned by collecting Iceman.
• Bioscan Awards: Bioscanning can identify mutants and their powers. If the player shoots the right orbit four times, the next shot to the side sinkhole will divert the ball to the left bioscan plunger. The player must determine the correct amount of plunger force that will make the ball press down on a lit target flap and immediately fall down the hole it is directly in front of. Doing so will grant a random award, typically points (between 1 and 2 million), but sometimes collect a random mutant or light an extra ball.
• Extra Balls: Extra balls can be lit at the right sinkhole by spelling XAVIER GIFT with shots to the side ramp or Bioscan and then making a total of 25 revolutions to advance the "XAVIER EXTRA BALL" percentage to 100%, locking 2 balls at the sinkhole after finishing the Phoenix in Peril mission, earning a particular bioscan award or by spelling X-MEN.

Tips

• With many sub-missions to complete in order to achieve victory, consider this table to be very difficult. You will need a healthy amount of stamina and ball survivability aids to prevail. Look for extra balls to extend your session.
• To reach the wizard mode, you need to master upper flipper shots. Use the mini-loops to easily access the flipper you want to reach. Also, you must be skilled at quickly shooting the correct lanes to progress.
• Beware Magneto, as he can use his powers to throw the ball in dangerous directions if you shoot an already lit target. To avoid his magnetic abilities, aim carefully when you try to complete his target bank.

External links

• Official table trailer
• Table walkthrough by ShoryukenToTheChin (PDF)
• Official table soundtrack on Bandcamp (tracks 15 - 21 of Marvel Pinball: Vengeance and Virtue Soundtrack)