If you want to defeat Tinker Knight (and you do), you'll first need to make your way through the treacherous Clockwork Tower. It's a short stage, but packed with goodies.
The first room acquaints you with the area's conveyor belts. Jump onto the one leading right, then ride the upper two back left and climb the ladder. In the next room, head right from the top of the ladder and defeat the rat. There are sand blocks here. Jump on them and slash the wall to reveal some gems. Then destroy the sand and drop through the opening. Head back left and take out another rat, as well as the ledge he patrols. You'll reveal more gems. Then you can head right and into the next screen.
There is a ledge that moves up and down here. You can jump from it when it reaches the top of that path, take out the rat on the sandy ledge, then fall to the platform. Hack at it to reveal a hidden opening, from which a rat will charge you. Defeat him or jump over him, then collect the gems he was guarding. As you do that, you'll likely see red gears rolling down toward you from the right. Head in that direction now, and take out the magician who was hurling them toward you.
From there, drop down to the belts below. You can head left for a pink gem if you want, or jump right to reach another belt that likes to push you left. Keep moving right and watch for the giant gear that will come at you from that direction. Jump to avoid it. You can fish the sparkling point nearby, or hop onto the ledge and continue right. The upper right wall here can be destroyed to reveal a hidden ladder.
Climb the ladder and look left to find a bed of spikes. You can jump out and bounce along the gear as it rolls left and right, toward a treasure chest positioned along a ledge at the room's left side. That chest holds more gems. Grab them, then return to the ladder and descend to the previous room. Now you're good to pass through the opening to the lower right.
In this room, there is a magician on a high ledge that will toss a series of red gears. You need to avoid those as they fall. Work your way right, taking out a flying enemy along the way. Though you can see a checkpoint, you can't actually reach it just yet. Break through some blocks to your right and drop into the lower chamber, instead.
This room contains another flying foe, on the high belt where you are positioned. Defeat it and break through blocks to the left, but watch the lower area. A gear ledge slides out from the left wall and will knock you into a pit if you're standing there. You can jump from there to similar vertical ledges that pump up and down to the right. Hop along them and to safety at the right side of the area. Then bounce from the gear, up to a ladder, and climb to reach the room overhead that you left a moment ago. Now you can work along some ladders and proceed left (while watching out for the flying enemy) to tag the checkpoint. Then climb into the next room.
There's a weak wall to your right that you can break apart for some turkey. Nearby, there are two enemies. One is on the lower level, and another is on a higher belt. They will both toss gears in circular paths, like boomerangs. Get close and take out each of them, noting that the path divides in two directions. You can either climb a ladder or head right through an opening.
Start by heading right through the guarded opening. In this room, there is a
Music Sheet. You should wait on the ledge for a flying enemy to approach, so you can easily eliminate it. Then to reach the sheet, ride the nearest ledge down and cross to the right. Watch out for the rat as you leap right and ride the gear piston up to the higher level, then let that upper ledge carry you left across the spikes as you cross back toward the room's upper left corner. Then return left to the previous room and this time, ascend the ladder near its center.
There are enemies here that look like swords but which are probably missiles. They zip across the screen from the left and right, while you need to climb without being knocked from your perch. You can use the Phase Locket ability if you wish, or just carefully avoid the swords. Note that you can also jump and slash at the wall near the room's upper right to reveal a hidden ladder. Climb it and slash at the wall to your left to uncover a hidden
Music Sheet. Then return to the previous room and this time ascend the ladder near the center. Take out the rat, then drop straight down through an opening to land on a ledge back in the room below, where you can then leap left to some ladders and climb the one positioned along the room's left side.
You're back in the room you entered just a moment ago, but this time you can climb ladders and then stab the left wall as you reach the top (it's to the left of the red knight). You'll access a new hidden room with a series of ledges. When approach the far left side, you'll find a chest and can purchase the
Mobile Gear from Chester for 3000 gold. Then return to the right.
As you arrive back in the previous room, defeat the red knight and continue along the upper ledge, through an opening to the right. You will find gear ledges that extend and retract to the right. It's possible to drop down and head left for turkey and gems, or you can just jump right to the elevator ledges ahead of you. Note that as you work through this area, more of the flying missiles will cross the screen. Avoid being knocked from your perch as you push your way right to finally reach the far side. Here, you can fish at the sparkling point. You can also hop to the higher set of ledges and from those collect a pink gem.
Once you continue right, you'll reach a room with a checkpoint. Tag it, then note the striped ledges overhead. You can jump on those and you'll stick to them, which slows your descent. If you stick to one and keep hopping, you can ascend toward the left and jump to climb a ladder that leads into an upper room. There, you'll find a music note you can reach on the far side of the room, by riding a couple of Mobile Gear platforms across the bed of spikes to the far wall (you have to jump from the first one to the hanging ledge over the spikes, or you'll be knocked off and killed). Then you can return to the checkpoint and this time pass through an opening that leads to the right.
As you start through this room, it will start to follow along with you. Now you are riding on the low ledge as it advances right, along a bed of spikes. There are enemies along the way, including some knights that will drop down to attack from higher ledges, and one of the flying enemies. Tend to them as you continue right, until you reach the far right side of the chamber and can climb a ladder.
In the next room, head left past a rat and jump to the platform to tag a checkpoint. Now you need to work your way to the right, past two magicians who are throwing gears your way. When you eliminate them, you can then climb a ladder.
The ladder leads to an area where another enemy tosses gears at you in the circular motion. You can descend through the top of two striped ledges to reach a lower one. Jump from it and destroy the sand blocks, then jump left as the gear ledge to the left extends. Head left and collect the pink gem, then pass through the opening to arrive in a room with falling enormous gears. You can leap along the gaps just after a gear falls. Fish from the hole near the center.
Climb the ladder near the upper right side of the room to reach a new hidden room with a moving platform and a
Music Sheet. There are goons on two upper ledges here that will toss more gears at you, so mind them as you grab the loot. Then exit through a gap along the room's upper right side.
Here, you can head along the roof of a room where a golden knight is patrolling. Drop through an opening to the right, then descend through that striped ledge and pass through a gap to the right.
As you begin through this area, note that the camera perspective will rise. You have to move in a hurry here, climbing up and then jumping along a series of moving ledges and platforms to stay ahead of the scrolling perspective. Don't let the conveyor belts boss you around too much. They don't push you while you're in the air above them, so a lot of jumping makes this area easier. When you reach the top of the shaft, you can jump from a belt to a gear ledge as it extends, then from that ledge out to the right.
Head to the next screen from there to find a room with the stage's final checkpoint. You can break the wall to your right for a turkey. Then hit the gear a few times to drop the pistons and reach that checkpoint. Tag it, then venture onward to face the boss.
Tinker Knight
This fight plays out across two phases.
During the first phase, your enemy simply runs back and forth along the screen, tossing wrenches. Sometimes, he'll stop and throw a bunch of tools at you in short arcs. You can easily jump around, avoiding his tosses and hitting him on the head from above, until he collapses.
However, the fight is not over just yet. You'll drop to a lower chamber, where the Tinker Knight returns with a huge tank. As it approaches, note that its drill is made of the colorful material you can stick to and climb along, which you encountered throughout the stage. The tank will fire a series of missiles that you can bounce along, or sometimes drop bouncing grenades that you can treat in the same manner. Either way, use those objects to reach the drill.
From the drill, you can jump to the right. Here, the Tinker Knight fires gear shots to the lower sides, left, and to the diagonal upper left and upper right. You can stand on the shelf and the shots will all miss. What you want to do, though, is jump from the shelf just after the shot fires to the upper right. Use a downward strike to hit the Tinker Knight, then return to your safe point and repeat as needed. If you take damage, you'll fall and have to climb back up, but that shouldn't happen too often.
Sometimes, Tinker Knight will also charge to the left and then slowly move back right while shots rain down from above. At this point, if you managed to stay atop the tank, you can get in several shots before it reverts to the old pattern. This is an easy fight if you take advantage of all the ways there are to stay safe.
When you clear this level, if you've been following this guide, you will have defeated all of the Order of No Quarter. You'll play the mini-game where you have to rescue your falling friend, and you'll be able to open a chest for a
Meal Ticket. Then it's back to the world map, where you finally have access to the fabled Tower of Fate. For now, you can reach only the entrance, but at least it's a start.
NEXT: Tower of Fate: Entrance
