Touhou Gameplay Help Thread #7 - Not just for spell card help after all

[Yookie]

The midboss spell switches between which projectiles get reflected after some time. It really is rather tricky. You can start below the left one (can't remember if that's benben or yatsuhashi) since her bullets don't get reflected first and with a high dmg shot type you only have you dodge about halve of her reflect phase. The thing with this spell is that their positions in spell practice are closer together, more in the middle which makes the spell much easier so you can't really practice it that way.
You can switch sides once they switch who reflects but that takes time and in the end you lose out on quite a lot of enemies after them (and as such items that give you item-boni).
You'll have to learn to read how the projectiles get reflected before they reach the edge of the screen and act accordingly.

I'm not sure how Saku's knives are aimed in Raiko's first spell. If they are aimed directly at Raiko then it should be ok. But either way you can close in on the barrel with the skull and shoot it down in no-focus, since those don't release bullets on getting destroyed but on reaching the bottom of the screen.

Her second spell is rather simple if you align yourself with the first wave that comes from the top. Stay horizontally middled and when she throws out the spirits pick one and stick follow it to the lower quarter of the screen. You'll have to see it to get it to work but there is quite a large gap and by following one of the ghosts you can align yourself with the red bullets that spawn from below.

The fourth one is partly random. The shaking is purely for show as you probably have guessed and the way the projectiles spread is not fixed. The thing is that there is enough space to pass through the waves even if they were not to spread out so position yourself accordingly and the screen shaking won't matter.

[Mero]

I've been practicing Extra on DDC lately...

For the midboss second spell, I too find easier to attack Yatsuhashi (the one on the right), but other than that it's just read and dodge. The thing really with this card is that it's actually pretty durable, the capture reward it's really nice (4 pieces plus the item bonus) but feel free to bomb it, twice even.

Raiko's first can be pretty tricky if you go all out and have bad luck, try to stop shooting and go between the barrels so they don't break.

The spirits spell, it's just dodging, keep practicing it.

The quake one it's also just dodging, the bullets go in a straight line so read ahead so that when the screen shakes you don't have to move as much, if at all.

for other shottype options you can try with Reimu (either one works) or, if you don't mind spamming them, MarisaB's bombs can get 2~ lives from Raiko's nons

[I have no name]

I'm going to agree with GMeroK on Joururi World-it's easier to attack Yatsuhashi.  I've tried both and while they're both manageable, due to the bullet spiral direction the overlaps are much kinder on the right.

[Limian]

Are you dodging her second spell (the one with the spirits) in the center? That might be your problem. While it might seem counterintuitive at first, I find it easier to dodge the third wave (the one with bullets coming from the right, bottom and left) near the bottom middle, in the lane between the two bottommost lines of bullets coming from the left. When you're there, the Vs from the bottom are still fairly small and slow, so you really have more room and time to react to them than you might think, and you can dodge all the bullets from each direction one-by-one (or V-by-V, whatever).

Also for her fourth spell (the shaking one), sometimes the waves can get really close to the bottom without dispelling which I think is the fault of Sakuya's knives, but it could happen to other shots as well. When that happens, don't be afraid to go to the sides instead because going between the bullets can be pretty nasty and stressful (and clippy). Otherwise, that spell has been covered by previous posters.

[Koog]

Any tips on losing less lives against Parsee with Marisa/Patchouli?

[ElvenRed]

Thanks for all the help!
I was wrong, at home I have up to the next spellcard unlocked, now I remember it clear as day: I saw those curvy lasers and was like "Nope" (actually, they ain't so bad after a few runs on practice). The survival I only saw on video

For the second midboss spell, this is the best I can do on a lucky day: http://replays.gensokyou.org/download.php?id=32982 (I must be dense, or there is no option to upload DDC replays on replays.gensokyo.org)
If the two red waves coming from the left are too close together (it happens sometimes), that's it, I'm done :D
I'll just mark it off as auto-bomb when I next go through the whole stage

About Raiko's first spell, I have found out what is up with the knives - they'll automatically target raiko, but if they touch a drum (either while travelling towards Raiko or while hovering behind Sakuya, which is what causes my previous issue), they seem to stick to the drum and slow it down. Luckily, unfocused shot does a pretty good job at quickly exploding the drums and turning the screen into a mess, so I'll need to learn to dose both shots if I wish to finish Raiko with SakuyaA. Can you actually go through the drums? I shall test that out (EDIT - http://replays.gensokyou.org/download.php?id=32983 holy hell it works! I'll be doing it this way from now on xD)

Someone mentioned that on practice the Tsukumo sisters are close together, and that the skull drum does not explode into bullets, is that something that was changed in a patch? I haven't been keeping up with the updates, my game is still on 1.00b, the girls are on opposite sides of the screen and the skull drum explodes into bullets wether by reaching the bottom or by being shot down

It seems I had the right idea for the spirits one, just need to have a bit more confidence in myself - I'm usually scared that while aligning myself to avoid the side waves, the red bullets from the bottom will catch up to me and say hi before I notice lol

The quake still scares me, while it is shaking it's a bit hard to see so I get scared of running into something or misjuding my position, I always try to find the place where a bullet zooms way ahead of the one to it's side so I can slip by behind it, but that is not always readily available D: The thing about positioning inbetween the bullets is worth a shot, at least until they start overlapping a bit

Any tips I should read regarding the next one, with the curvy lasers/thunder and light balls? It doesn't seem that bad, certainly not as bad as TORAMARU SHOU'S.... damn those curvy lasers...

I'll keep on practicing these until I'm confident to play through again and unlock a few others (some of those nons are pretty crazy, though, wish they were on spell practice too)
I dislike ReimuA, that stupid broom thing of hers keeps on falling off of the enemies and doing negligible damage, and sometimes getting it back on is just not an option for me. There was once that I was particularly lucky on that blasted midboss spell, that the pattern actually changed twice (and, of course, I died just before finishing it)

I want to clear this extra but I can't even do UFO on Normal lols

[Karisa]

It seems replays.gensokyo.org was never updated to include DDC compatibility. At least it still sort of works since DDC replays seem to use the same format as TD replays.

Also, I think the two most prominent DDC spell practice inconsistencies (Tsukumo midboss placement and Shinmyoumaru's missing bowl) were fixed in the v1.00b patch. TD's were never fixed though: Miko is still much lower in her final spell in full runs/stage practice than in spell practice.

As for Raiko's curvy lightning, ARF says it's static in her 8th spell, but I'm not sure whether that also applies to her 5th (I never played the stage enough to test for myself).

[Yookie]

Yeah, the positioning of the Sisters in spellpractice had been fixed with the 1.00b update. I was just doing this stage before this patch and was still remembering it with the pre-patch state.
And yes, the skull drum does not not explode into bullets when you shoot it. (I was playing MarisaB and just didn't care about the drums at all, shot them all and just dodged whatever they spat out so maybe that is why I was thinking that.) So sorry for the misinformation.

[cactu]

Does anyone have the cheat engine address for timestop in EoSD?

/edit nvm found it, it's 00412DD1 shown as hexadecimal, changing the value from EB to 75

[Koog]

I really need help for Parsee with Marisa/Patchouli. Plz help!!

[Mero]

I really need help for Parsee with Marisa/Patchouli. Plz help!!

For Parsee's nons, try not to move too much (the rings are slightly aimed).
For the 1st spell, you can make use of the formations to circle around Parsee.
For the 2nd stay on Fire formation, and be careful if you stop shooting and unfocus to switch sides, you might switch formations by accident when shooting again and attack the fake Parsee with the Water formation (everything is aimed so don't move too much).
On her last you can also circle around Parsee, but it might be better to just stay at the bottom and misdirect the waves (pay attention to the "charge" sounds).

Also remember the bomb deals a lot of damage if used point-blank.

[LunarWingCloud]

I would like help with something: Fujiwara no Mokou. I can get to her with a good stock of lives, but I have some trouble with a few of her spellcards.

Namely being ALL of them from Honest Man's Death onward. Well, almost all of them.

Forgiveness "Honest Man's Death": I DON'T have a problem with the laser. Actually, my issue is the lines of bullets going downward. I keep getting hit on those when trying to cross over the laser.
Hollow Giant "Woo": I try to go up over Mokou to help make it easier to avoid the attack, but by the time I go back down she's turned the bottom of the screen into a clusterfuck.
Everlasting "Phoenix's Tail": No problems here, no help needed. ^^
Hourai "South Wind, Clear Sky -Fujiyama Volcano": Holy shit I don't even know where to begin with this one. Let's just chalk up 'everything'.
"Possessed by Phoenix": Also have no idea how to dodge this one either.

That's as far as I've gotten was her survival card. I'm using Reimu/Yukari.

[I have no name]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuH8o4s1jQQ
This is a pacifist run of Mokou I did a while back-all the spells you mentioned having trouble with are timed out flawlessly here.

Honest Man's Death, the trick is to move towards the direction the laser will next come from-this way you aren't looking for a gap at the same time the laser is coming.
Woo...I guess drop down slower to direct more bullets offscreen?
Fujiyama Volcano is kind of hard to explain, so I'd just reference the video for this one.
Possessed by Phoenix, well, it's self-explanatory XD

[LunarWingCloud]

I'll take a look at that, thanks. I'm hoping to beat Mokou soon so I'll have all the EX Bosses from 6-8 and 10 beaten. Then I can try Raiko since she's the next one I have decent progress on.

[LunarWingCloud]

After watching your replay it helped a lot! I made it to Mokou's last mandatory spellcard (Hourai Doll), so maybe I'll be able to clear it soon. ^^ Honest Man's Death is actually a lot easier than I expected, I guess I was just moving too much. Fujiyama Volcano and Woo are still pretty tough but at least I have a good idea on how to get through it. :V

[☆ Hinalyte]

Hmm, any tips on Kanako's third and fourth spell on Normal? I usually bomb on it but I think learning how to capture it would be a nice move for my future runs...

[Karisa]

Kanako's 3rd: This spell is quite difficult for Normal in my opinion. The knives are aimed based on your position. Once the knives start moving, there's a gap at the far left/right of the knife wave. You can either go through this gap, or around the edge of the knife wave entirely. Either way, you need to quickly squeeze through the large round bullets on the way.

(I've heard of an alternate strategy involving misdirecting the knives to one side, so you don't need to go as far upward to dodge the knives, but if so you'll almost never be under Kanako, so the spell will take longer.)

Kanako's 4th: The general strategy involves streaming the rice bullets back and forth, dashing diagonally near the corners to open a large enough gap to switch direction, while dodging the red/purple arrows. There are multiple specific strategies, though. For the Normal version (note: the Easy version is different), I try to switch directions before every arrow wave, to avoid having to dodge a set of arrows in the corner while trying to change directions.

[ThunderTheRyou]

Best strategy for Luna Clock and Secret Maid Skill? I suck at those
They're spell cards on Stage 5 from EoSD

[LunarWingCloud]

Luna Clock is tough and I captured it once, the basic idea is start on one side and sweep to the other, but I messed up badly. This is a video of my run of Stage 5 on a 1cc I did, I mess up a few times but I show the gist of how to handle Marionette and Clock Corpse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRqygvlyFyA

[Szayelaporro Granz]

Best strategy for Luna Clock and Secret Maid Skill? I suck at those
They're spell cards on Stage 5 from EoSD

Luna Clock is best dealt by misdirecting it like in LunarWingCloud's video, it will take a while though unless your dodging skill is good enough to do it in normal way. As for Marionette, misdirecting won't help much especially on higher difficulties so good luck on that.

[Youmu]

I'm subhuman. I take it there's no way to fix that?

[Szayelaporro Granz]

I'm subhuman. I take it there's no way to fix that?

If you keep lamenting how suck/bad/subhuman you are, yes.

[CrimsonSumac]

And it's done. Touhou 03 1cc'd on Lunatic. Mima and Yumemi were not able to persist after a month of continous tries and tortures. Now, I finally can move on the normal Touhou games, where victor decided by the skill, not luck.

[Yookie]

Is there a special trick to Marisa's "Unsealed Magic - Open Universe" in GFW?
I've captured it once but i guess that was pure luck. At the moment I'm trying it by just freezing whenever I can to be able to move unfocused to dodge the orbs while staying in the lower third of the screen.
I guess it could be easier staying closer to Marisa since the orbs are not as fast there but I haven't had any good results with that.
It's the only thing that makes me unable to get the no-miss no-bomb (aside from the fact that I'm a little shaky on Blazing Star) and before I continue to run into a brick wall I'd like some insight on that.

[KingofBaka]

I have been doing EoSD nonstop since I unlocked it and I have a good strategy for all of the cards I can get to except for 2
Those 2 are Royal Flare and Maze of Love.
Maze of Love- I don't even know :V. This card is a runender for me right now as I have no idea what to do during it. Is it better to circle around or just stay at the bottom and dodge?

Royal Flare- I usually either bomb or lose a life on this card.I know there is a pattern to it but I don't actually know what it is. I survived the whole pattern of the card once but I haven't been able to do it again.

Please help me with these two cards because they are the main obstacles that are preventing me from getting further in the extra stage.

[I have no name]

Maze of Love, when I circle I capture it every time and when I've tried micrododging I've never captured it.  It can take a bit of getting used to the pattern of how to circle, especially when the direction shifts, but it's nowhere near as hard as it looks.

[LunarWingCloud]

I'm the opposite, I've never been able to capture it trying to circle it, but I've captured it about 3 times micrododging.

[cactu]

I have been doing EoSD nonstop since I unlocked it and I have a good strategy for all of the cards I can get to except for 2
Those 2 are Royal Flare and Maze of Love.
Maze of Love- I don't even know :V. This card is a runender for me right now as I have no idea what to do during it. Is it better to circle around or just stay at the bottom and dodge?

Royal Flare- I usually either bomb or lose a life on this card.I know there is a pattern to it but I don't actually know what it is. I survived the whole pattern of the card once but I haven't been able to do it again.

Please help me with these two cards because they are the main obstacles that are preventing me from getting further in the extra stage.

I think this is the most no-dodge method for Royal Flare. http://youtu.be/7BeNaUMYVOY?t=2m2s

[chirpy13]

I think this is the most no-dodge method for Royal Flare. http://youtu.be/7BeNaUMYVOY?t=2m2s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E94EYSaYoE

[cactu]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E94EYSaYoE

disgusting pixel precise method that only works with one shot thanks for the work  :V