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Destruct-O-Match II- A Real Player's Guide

by jazziefox

Welcome- Let's get straight to the point: there are lots of strategy guides out there for this game, and they're all pants.

As a player of the original Destruct-O-Match, and quite a good one if I say so myself, I'll admit to being, at first, more than baffled at the best way to play this new version. Enter these "so-called guides". I mean, sure, they all tell you what the blocks do, right? Yeah, and so do the instructions that are included with the game. Where are the tips? The advice? The best thing to do in X situation?

Read on, and find the answers. I play daily, and while I don't claim to be brilliant, I'm willing to give better pointers than "Wait until you've cleared the blocks to halfway down, and than use the overkill block", as was recently published in a certain "un-official guide". In fact, it was whilst reading that particular article that I decided the Neopian public deserved better.
For this guide, I'm assuming you're playing normal mode.
First some general advice:

• Aim for a score of 400 on the first round (possible by destroying all the blocks and getting a 250 point bonus). Same for the second round.
• If you happen to score less than 300 on the first round, or have less than 600 by the end of the second round, restart your game. The higher the level, the harder it is to completely clear the blocks, so it helps to get this head start in the bag.
• Destroying all (or close to) will earn you bonus points: 250 if you destroy all the blocks; 200 for all but one; 150 for leaving three; 100 for four; and 50 for five.
• Take your time. Apart from the Countdown block, which we'll get to soon, there is no time limit for this game. Take that extra second or two to anticipate your next few moves.

You should now concentrate on each of the "special" blocks in turn. If one of them is missing from your selection, go onto the next.

The Timed Block
Effective use -
This really is the first block you should concentrate on, but rather than destroying it as soon as you can thereby giving you a 3-5 brick break at the most, notice what colour it is. You basically now have 14 seconds to attach as many blocks of the same colour to it. When the timer reaches 1 second, blast those blocks! Seriously, I have got the entire qualifying score in one hit, a few times, by doing this.

What if...-

• I miss clicking before my time is up?
  I, personally, would restart your game, if you're on the first or second level. Missing the timer will result in every block of the same colour that is attached to it morphing into an "Indestructible". If you followed the above advice, this will be a lot of X's!
• I destroy one of the other "specials" whilst trying to get this one?
  At this point, don't panic. Carry on as normal and check your score at the end of the round.
• There are no nearby blocks of the same colour?
  Basically, you have two options in this situation. The first is to simply forget about destroying it, letting it become X'd, and try to work it so that the Bomb block destroys it at the end. Or, you can work on getting the Bomb block straight to it before it morphs.

The Overkill Block
Effective use -
You more than likely already know that destroying this block will also destroy every block of this colour. But, did you know that you only get points for the blocks which are attached to it? It therefore makes sense to attach it to as many of it's colour as possible.
At this point, you should probably make a note of the colour of the Multiplier block, and try to leave as many of that colour intact.

What if...-

• There aren't many blocks that I can attach without using too many other colours?
  Destroy as many clusters as you can, and then destroy any stray blocks using the Overkill.
• I accidentally destroy the Overkill block without making sure that there are no more possible chains of that colour?
  Again, don't panic. Get to the end of the round and then check your score.
• I can't link up the Overkill?
  Go onto the next "special" block, and keep checking for possible link ups.

Multiplier Block
Effective use -
Obviously the most effective way of using this block is to get as big a linkup as you can. If you've been following my advice so far, it shouldn't be too difficult to construct a rather large cluster.

? Block
Effective use -
The best way to utilize this block is to leave it almost to the very end, when there are fewer colours left.
You see, when this block is destroyed, it not only adds another layer to your remaining blocks, but it also will only add blocks in the colours you have left. Therefore, if you only have two colours on screen, there is more chance of linking them up and destroying all of the blocks.
If there are only blocks of one colour, then only blocks of that colour will fall across the width of the screen, giving you another chance for a fairly big link up.

What if...-

• I have a lot more than one or two colours left?
  Work your way through them, until you are absolutely sure that you can't link any more up, and then destroy it. If you're lucky, the colours will fall in your favor, and allow you to destroy the rest of the blocks anyway.

Bomb Block
Effective use -
Always try to save this one for last. It's sometimes not practical, like when it is in the way of an amazing link. Remember, though, that it will destroy every block touching it (potentially, nine) so be sure you want to have those blocks destroyed. Leaving it until the end, however, will help get rid of any stragglers you may have, and therefore increase your chances of a decent bonus.

Please remember that the placement of blocks in this game is completely random, and the advice given in this guide does not guarantee a high score in every game.
Well, I do hope you enjoyed reading this guide, and that it has gone a little way towards helping your Destruct-O-Match II game.
Please neomail any questions or comments you have about this guide to jazziefox.

All related images and material are (c) 2005 Neopets , Inc. All Rights Reserved. Used with permission. 
Content was created by members of The Neopian Orphanage.
Site design (c) 2005 wtrswoopes. Site graphics (c) 2005 vegetarewlz.