Mega Man X3 art
HonestGamers Guides

Mega Man X3 Guide > Walkthrough > Tunnel Rhino

Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

This stage is second from the bottom right on the world map. Let's get right to it. Head right and you'll run into some Ganseki Carriers. You saw one of these in the very first stage, dropping spiked balls. These ones drop rocks straight down, before dropping down themselves and firing missiles at you. Head right and down the ladder, into the tunnel. You'll see an upgraded version of a harmless enemy from the previous game.

Drill Waying



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

These guys block your path. Their heads move up and down the vertical bars. Their heads are, predictably, their weak points. Their bodies won't actually harm you. You can even wall jump from them. But don't touch the heads.

Just past this first Drill Waying is a semi-new enemy.

Iwan De Voux



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

Identical to the Ice De Voux from Blizzard Buffalo's stage, except with rocks instead of ice.

Head up and defeat another Iwan De Voux.

Heart Tank



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

From here, head right. You'll see a giant rock blocking the way to a heart tank. You'll need the arm parts and Triad Thunder to reach this. Charge the weapon to cause an earthquake and drop the stone. Grab the heart tank and head left and up.

The sand from these contraptions won't directly damage you, but they can push you into spikes if you're not careful. Keep going right and up, then left and up, then right some more, all the while dealing with Iwans De Voux, conveyer belts, sand, and spikes.

Sub Tank



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

This one's easy to reach. Dash jump or air dash over to the ledge above the path down. That's it!

Wall Cancer



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

One of two different crab themed wall crawling enemies. They shoot two bouncing energy balls at a time. If you charge your X Buster while they're around, they'll respond by charging their own attacks in kind.

Head down and through the door into the empty room that might not actually be empty if you're following this guide. See the Nightmare Police section for tips on dealing with Bit. Keep going right to meet a new enemy.

Drimole-W



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

Drimoles fire their drills as projectiles, and can fire small balls in an arc. The drills will block shots after they're fired, but won't stop damage while they're still inside the Drimole. Once a Drimole is destroyed, its drills will both fire at you at once in a final attack.

Destroy the Drill Waying and another Drimole and head up. If you fought Bit, you probably need the energy behind the Drill Waying up here. Head right to see a boulder fall into a spiked pit. Boulders will begin falling from certain points in the ceiling here. Of course, they'll damage you if they touch you. If they hit a flat surface, they'll disappear, but if they hit a slanted surface, they'll roll along it. When you have to climb up, climb up the left wall, because a boulder will fall on the right. Next is another boulder that will roll down a slope into a spiked pit. Either rush up past the boulder or retreat and wait for it to roll into the spikes. It won't reach the other side of the spikes.

Head Parts



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

Use another charged Triad Thunder up here to drop another boulder and make your way up to another of Dr. Light's capsules. This will give you the helmet upgrade. Whenever you start a Maverick stage, it will project a map of the stage above your head, which is marked with the locations of any of the collectables or upgrades you haven't found yet. It's handy when you're trying to find everything on your own.

Head right and down, letting the boulder below pass harmlessly under you. Slide down the wall. Don't drop! There's a pit down there. Head right and into the door to the miniboss' room.

Hell Crusher



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

Only the upper half of this tank enemy can be damaged, and its arms will block your shots. If it rams into the wall, you'll fall to the ground if you were clinging to the wall at the time. Of course, this means you'll fall right on top of the enemy and take damage. Clever use of the air dash will allow you to detach from the wall long enough for it to stop shaking, then grab onto it again.This boss can split into two if the upper half grapples into the ceiling and pulls himself up. He'll follow this attack by firing one of his spikey fists forward, which reaches half way across the screen. (This is a pain if he's in the middle of the screen at the time.) In this instance, his lower half will also ram the wall. Jump and use a precise air dash to go right between the top and bottom halves. You can hit him from behind with a jumping charged shot. The bottom half will dash backwards at you, so use another jump and air dash to get back in front of it before it reforms. Alternatively, you can use an upwards air dash to reach the right wall, then air dash back to the left after the boss reforms. This will cause him to back up under you, and he'll stay back there, meaning his arm attack won't reach the left wall any more. Keep attacking with charged shots to take him out. You have several options with how to deal with each of his somewhat complicated moves and combos.

A Drimole and Iwan De Voux will try and fail to keep you from reaching the ladder on the right. Head up and climb the wall behind another Iwan De Voux. Watch out for the Wall Cancers. Another Iwan De Voux and Drimole will block your way to another ladder. You can defeat the Drimole at the top of this next ladder without actually climbing up to his level if you climb high enough and use charged shots. You'll finally reach the boss door.

Tunnel Rhino



Mega Man X3 screenshot - Tunnel Rhino

Compared to Bit, this guy is nothing. Even the Hell Crusher may have proved to be more of a challenge.

The Hard Way

He's a rhino, so of course he charges at you. He'll hit the wall and knock you off it, just like the Hell Crusher, if you're not careful. You can pretty easily beat him by air dashing over him just before he hits the wall, then turning back and hitting him with a charged shot. Sometimes he'll stop just short of the wall. Be careful. This means he'll be able to quickly charge again in either direction. Once his health drops low enough, he'll start doing a faster super charge. You'll be able to tell he's using this new attack because he'll start to glow. Attack him after he's done glowing. He can also shoot flying drills that move slowly. Just jump over these while you're jumping over Tunnel Rhino.

The Easy Way

The same, except use the Acid Burst. Either hit him with it directly or shoot it in front of him so that he charges into it. It will make him flinch and interrupt his dash.

Tornado Fang

Shoot a rocket-propelled drill straight ahead. Hit the fire button twice in quick succession to shoot three at a time. Charge the weapon to have X hold a giant drill in front of him. Jump into a wall while holding the drill and you'll stick to the wall until you let go of the fire button. This weapon is useful for breaking through certain walls and objects to find upgrades and collectables. Try it whenever you see a suspicious block or cracked wall.

What's Next



Take your Tornado Fang to Blizzard Buffalo's stage to get the Heart Tank you missed. If you want, you can go to Neon Tiger's stage to get the arm parts, which you can then use to get the things you missed in Toxic Seahorse's stage. You can also go to Blast Hornet's stage to get access to the Ride Armors. We'll make it to both of those stages eventually. Head to Volt Catfish's stage when you're ready.

NEXT: Volt Catfish