Mighty No. 9 (Xbox 360)

Mighty No. 9 (Xbox 360)

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Brave the Gauntlet achievement in Mighty No. 9 (Xbox 360)

Brave the Gauntlet

Complete all themes in single-player Challenge Mode.

Brave the Gauntlet0
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How to unlock the Brave the Gauntlet achievement

  • DarkB1ade XDarkB1ade X
    21 Aug 2018 21 Aug 2018 09 Sep 2018
    Since this seems to be one of the harder ones for a lot of people and there isn't a guide on it, I will try my best to cover the no-death runs that the latter challenges consist of. Most of the challenges can be done with trial and error or even video guides, but Challenge 36 is the troublesome one preventing many people from gaining this achievement.

    Before I get started, here are some general tips:

    - Learn the areas you aren't too confident in and practice until you can do it with no problems. For me, that was the death maze in the Robot Factory and my first death in my initial run.

    - Most of the time, your mistakes will come from trying to go too fast through a level and messing up a platforming section. Take it slow until you know the area and how to navigate it well enough. Even if you are confident, be wary of tricky areas like the end of Cryo's level with the slippery surfaces.

    - If you aren't 100% sure you can make a jump/descent, then use Avi's ability to gain extra height and slow your descent. This can also be used to skip sections of some levels, like the beginning of Pyro's and the middle of Cryo's levels by hovering and dashing simultaneously.

    - Learn where the health pick-ups are on each level, some levels have a lot while others have very few healing items to find. Every healing item will help at some point, so learn where they are for when you need them.

    - Always ensure you build up a health tank and know if you can build up another one in the level before the boss if you have to use it before that point. Sounds hard, but you will be playing all of the levels quite a bit, so you will get a pretty good idea of where you can use one and still have enough time to build up another one before the boss. The only levels you can't do this on are the Mine and Prison levels.

    - If there is an enemy on the other side of a pitfall or instant death trap, take them down and don't worry about absorbing them. All it takes is one stray bullet to knock you into the death pit or trap, so take precautions for this. This can also apply to enemies you can't absorb well due to the surroundings, like the billboards in the Highway level.



    Now on to the individual level tips based on my experience with this challenge:



    City

    Should be rather self-explanatory, you will be playing this one the most, so just run through it as you normally would. Generally takes around 2 minutes to complete if you speed through the majority of it.



    Oil Platform

    There are quite a few blue enemies and health pick-ups here, so health management isn't too bad here. For hidden health pick-ups, there is one under the crates with 2 barrels mixed in around when the speed robot comes from the right, and another small health pick-up under the stacked crates before you enter Pyro's boss room.

    You can skip most of the beginning area, from the first Fire-spitting Furnace enemy to the area where Pyro first shows up, if you jump over that enemy and hover/dash with Avi's ability. Might not seem like much, but it does let you bypass a lot of the enemies early in the level.

    The main killer here is the collapsing towers, which is extra lethal combined with the raining fireballs that will knock you into them. I have found the best way to navigate this area is to use Avi's hover ability throughout the second section where the ramped platforms start appearing, just stop at every flat area, and wait for the tower to collapse. If you hover and use small dashes in the air, then the propeller blades will protect you from being hit by the fireballs. Long dashes will still leave you vulnerable, so keep them short so you have more coverage.

    The main thing to watch out for with Pyro is his instant death grab, better to just stay away once he starts moving, or at the very least, in the air so he can't OHKO you. Aside from that, let Avi's weapon do the damage to make quick work of him.



    Water Works Bureau

    Most of this level is pretty straightforward, with many blue enemies and health items to collect. The middle section can mostly be skipped by using Avi's ability to hover over everything with jumps and air dashes.

    The last area is the most troublesome, with many opportunities to accidentally slip off or miss a jump and fall into the death pit. I'd recommend just using Avi's ability whenever you are in this room and need to jump in the air. I ended up using Battalion's weapon to weaken most of the enemies from a distance, then switch to Avi's hover to help navigate the air while dashing through the enemies. The last 2 enemies, the hovering gunship and the screw enemy, are risky to absorb, so I'd just say skip the gunship by jumping over it, and kill the screw so it doesn't pop out and shoot you mid-air or hit you while you are passing under it.

    Cryo is pretty straightforward, though I used Battalion's gun to knock the stack down and the Mighty Buster or Pyro's weapon to do damage to her. Do avoid getting frozen if you can since that can very easily result in an instant death with no time to heal.



    Power Plant

    Again, a pretty simple level in my opinion. Though this is a great level to navigate with Avi's ability for the early sections. Even helps to get a health pick-up under one of the Electric Cube enemies early in the level.

    One section to look out for is the area where 2 red robots are hanging over the purple generator blades, since they can shoot you down and cause you to fall into instant death, I'd recommend just killing both with Battalion's weapon so you don't mess up the jump like I did twice.

    The first locked room has enough small blue enemies to get another health tank, so you can use it here if you need to heal and get it back. The second one does not, with only 7 blue enemies, but you can use it at the section with 3 blue robots and one hanging red robot and still have enough to get another tank before Dyna if you need to.

    Dyna isn't very difficult with Brand's weapon, nothing really to note here since it was a pretty easy fight.



    Mine

    Now this is a tricky stage at first until you get the hang of it. Unlike the other stages, this one has no blue enemies and very few health items, all of which are of the smallest variety. So you will have to learn where the enemies are to minimize the damage you take so you have more health to work with when you get to Seismic. Health locations are:

    - Crouch dashing on the moving platform, where you get the Amazing. Though you risk death with those items, so only go for if you are certain you can get them and not die.

    - Once you get to the area with the digging machines, as soon as you drop to the second level, go right and in the hole under where the machine stops and switches directions is health item # 2

    - The final one will be visible in the chase sequence on a platform before you have to grab the edge to progress.

    As per the usual tips, I used Avi's hover to deal with some of the tight spaces early on instead of relying on edge grabbing so I'd have more control and not have to worry about hitting the death wall in the beginning descent.

    At the final run from the machine, many of the boxes you open will have the small spider-like enemies in the boxes, be aware of where they are and jump over them so you don't take excess damage.

    Seismic is pretty much the same, just use Battalion's gun and he will be down in no time.



    Military Base

    Most of the enemies here are of the blue variety, so you will be able to build up tanks quite easily here. There are a few health pick-ups, most in plain sight, but here are a few of the late level ones to take note of:

    - In the "Amazing" area behind the crate.

    - Once you see the stack of barrels, shoot them and proceed right instead of dropping down. You'll see 3 blue robots and some mines, destroy them all, and the large health is behind all of that.

    Early in the level, you will see two sets of two screw enemies near death pits. You will need to kill them completely to make a safe cross in this area. You can absorb them, but I'd rather not risk it since the second set can still shoot bullets and hit you into the death pit.

    Battalion can be dealt with pretty quickly with Cryo's weapon



    Radio Tower

    This level is rather easy and has minimal risk to your no-death run. The only thing that managed to kill me here was after the "Amazing" section. Once you cross the area with the 4 red robots hanging, you will see a hoop you need to grab on. Instead, shoot Battalion's gun across the way a few times so the boxes and the shield robot both get destroyed, unless you want to end up like I did and fall to death in that area.

    Most of the health items are plainly visible, but one hidden health pick-up can be found on the left of the last indoor area before you ascend outside behind one of the shield robots. Lots of blue enemies, so you can get a few health tanks if you end up needing to use one on this level.

    Avi doesn't have much to note, just use Countershade's weapon (and Cryo's when he is doing his vertical fly by shots if you want some extra damage) and it will be over quickly. You should have a health tank when you enter in case you need it, but I only ended up using mine once when I got to the red of my health in one of my runs.



    Highway

    This one was one of the more dangerous levels for me, not because of the boss or anything, but because of the conditions around the level.

    First, while there are many blue enemies, they are also your greatest hazard as the billboards will fly over you when you are trying to make an important jump and hit you into the road, killing you.

    Second, there are no healing items here (that I could find) so that makes health tank management all the more important so you can get at least one heal in before you get to the end of the level. You will more than likely take a lot of damage from the billboards or wheels if you are in an area with limited mobility, like on top of a small car, but you will just have to take the hits unless you want to risk falling off.

    Now, this is an important one, DO NOT DASH TO TAKE OUT AN ENEMY IF YOU ARE ON A SMALL CAR! This will undoubtedly end with your death, even if you are using Avi's hover for better control, there's a good chance you won't be able to reach the platform before you hit the road.

    Overall, the main things to take away from this are:

    - Use Avi's hover ability whenever you aren't sure you can make a jump, but don't overuse so you don't run out at a pivotal moment. I used it in some parts in the middle and more toward the end when you are doing the small car jumps, as those are harder to make with just a dash. You can also have Avi's power equipped in the mid-level fight if you want to recharge its energy.

    - You will get one chance to heal in the level, I tend to heal in the middle of the first section to ensure that I can get another tank before the fight. If you heal later than that, it will be more of a risk to have to absorb the flying billboards and will likely end with a careless death.

    - Always destroy any flying enemies and don't risk absorbing them, like the mine droppers and billboards, they will be your biggest threats and will drop you into the road.

    Brandish is pretty easy compared to the rest of the level, as long as you managed your health and health tank properly. You can beat him with Seismic's ability pretty quickly if you want, or just use the Mighty Buster if you prefer.



    Capitol Building

    This is another relatively simple level to complete. There are plenty of blue enemies to build up a health tank and a lot of health pick-ups on many of the chandeliers in the level so you can keep your health in good shape throughout the level.

    The one thing you need to be wary of is the electric wires that pop up as the level progresses, as contact with them will instantly kill you. Fortunately, they are on a timer, so you can move around them when they are off. If Countershade is behind one, I'd recommend just using Battalion's weapon to get him at a range so you don't have to risk it.

    Boss fight is no problem, just use Battalion or Dyna's weapons and it will be done in no time.



    Prison

    This level didn't give me many problems, though I knew it well by the point I did this. So learning the level will help you be aware of the potential obstacles. Some of the crates have the bombs with arms in them, so knowing where those are will help to keep you going throughout the level. If you do take damage, there is a health crate at the top of the section that is mostly vertical to the left behind the turret bot.

    Now, the last section will probably be the biggest problem for those of you unfamiliar with the level, since it is an instant death maze of sorts, though there is more room for flexibility. For one, when you are descending into the second half, you can use your shield while hovering down so you don't get shot by the turrets. It might be a good idea to get the timing of the dash down so you don't dash too early and hit the death electricity on the ceiling at the end.

    The boss really isn't an issue, it has pretty simple attack patterns and you have your shield if you get in a tough spot, though it only works for bullets. When the robot is blinded and shooting randomly, you can crouch and hide under its mouth for the duration, though you will need to dash away once it is done so you don't get hit by its mouth when it moves back into place.



    Robot Factory

    This was probably my most feared level during my run, solely because of the death maze at the beginning and how easy it is to mess it up. You can use Avi to slow your descent, but even that won't make it a sure thing given how every wall/ceiling/floor is covered in death electricity. This is something you should really practice if you don't want to end up with a death here this late in your run, it's pretty infuriating, I would know.

    Anyway, if you got past that part, most of the troublesome sections are over with. Now you just have to deal with a few mini boss rooms while navigating the rest of the level.

    First room with the terminal can be done quickly if you utilize Cryo's weapon on the terminal to do more damage on the boss of the room.

    Second room is a rehash of the City boss, though this time it is only weak to Brandish's weapon, so use that to make things go smoothly.

    Third room is another wave of robots, but the most important thing here is that there are many of the small blue robots. This means you can use your Health Tank and get it back in that room. So that will be your last chance to heal before the boss.

    Boss is the same as usual, use Cryo or Dyna on the terminal, use Dyna or Battalion on the "boss" you have to clear before you can get a shot on the terminal, use Seismic on the horizontal arms, and Avi if you want to avoid the missile barrage mid-fight.

    Though, the ideal method will have you use the Mighty Buster the first time, get two absorptions, then defeat the robot again and finish him off with Cryo's weapon. This way, he will never get to use his half health missile attack or his other phase 2 attack during the fight.



    Battle Colosseum

    Finally at the last stage, but you aren't in the clear just yet. Clear out the initial wave of enemies with whatever you want (I used Battalion) and move on forward.

    Now, the most dangerous part of this level is the early platforming sections, this is where I died on one of my runs, so take extra care that you do not do the same. Even if you think you will be fine, it won't hurt to use Avi's hover as insurance so you don't miss the ledge grab or dash too far and can't recover.

    Once you are past that, the rest of the level is pretty trivial. Though, going on the "Amazing" path will net you a big health pick-up and you will get another one on the bottom left of the elevator section, though you have to be quick or else the elevator will descend too much and you won't be able to leave the room anymore, essentially ending your run.

    You can use your health tank and get another one if you use it before the elevator, but I'd recommend against it, since it would require you to perfectly get the remaining 10, and since one of the gun drones is pretty high on its spawn, it is pretty easy to miss.

    Trinity isn't too bad if you use Battalion throughout the fight. I had about 3/4 health and a health tank and I had plenty of health to spare by the end of it, only used my health tank toward the end to ensure I wouldn't risk a needless death. It helps if you use the jump shot (RT + X) on the top of the stairs when she has her flower form up.



    And with that, my long write-up for this one challenge is done, though many of the tips can be applied to the individual time trial challenges as well. This is my first time writing a guide here, so I hope this helps someone with this achievement. It is a long process of learning, but even if you die close to the end, you are better equipped for your next runs to do better and learn more about the levels.

    For reference, I spent about 6-7 hours just playing the challenge to get the hang of it, so don't give up and keep at it!
    Showing only comment. Leave a comment.
    Shadykilla420A few things a little off imo but overall pretty nice solution. Should help some people if anyone else ever tries for it. It's been quite a while since I played this now, but I believe there are health pickups on highway. One you had to walk backwards into a fairly hidden entrance in the train cars, think there was another under the stack of crates near the end but I'm not 100%. I do feel like you kinda trivialized avis and calls stages. They're a bit sketchier than you made them out to be, but with practice easily doable. Also for highway I used to absorb like every single billboard, and the brandish fight was hit and miss without learning his attack patterns. There were times he messed me up while using seismics power, where normally you will steam roll him. There's also alot more instakill spots than you let on, but most can be learned with experience.
    Posted by Shadykilla420 On 23 Mar 19 at 21:32
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