Scared Stiff

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Rule Sheet version 2.2
Written by:
Bob McCann
Dan Wilson
With Assistance From:
Martijn Van Aken
Keith Johnson

New to this version:
- A few minor changes

I. Introduction

Scared Stiff is the recent release in the Bally line of pins. It is sort of a follow up to the game 'Elvira & the Party Monsters' that came out a few years ago. There are many similarities between the two games, but there are also many differences. Here is the list of people who brought Scared Stiff to life:

  • Design: Dennis Nordman, Mark Weyna
  • Artwork/Design: Greg Freres
  • Software/Design: Mike Boon, Cameron Silver
  • Mechanical Engineering: Win Schilling, Bob Brown, Joe Loveday
  • Sound and Music: Paul Heitsch, Dr. Dave Zabriskie
  • Dot Matrix Animation: Adam Rhine, Brian Morris

This game also brings the end of an era, as this is Dennis Nordman's last game for Williams/Bally. Recent slumps in the pinball market caused Williams to downsize, thus resulting in the layoff of several designers including Dennis. At least his last game will be remembered as a good one!

II. Playfield Layout

Here is the layout of the playfield, starting just above the left outlane and going around clockwise:

Cast a spell
Ball saver at left drain. Unlit at start of game on our machine.
3 Targets
Hit all 3 targets x number of times to light the spell. (first time you must hit the bank 2 times).
Left Loop
Can either loop ball up to Deadheads, around to the Laboratory, or lock ball toward Stiff in the Coffin M-ball.
Leaper Target 1
Hit all 3 leaper targets to collect Night of the Leapers tale.
Left Ramp
Lights lock & Eye of the Boney Beast tale.
Leaper Target 2
Hit all 3 leaper targets to collect Night of the Leapers tale.
Secret Passage
Weak shot up the left loop falls in here. Spots a tale.
Skill Shot hole
Plunge ball in here for skill shot. Scores 250k more each time it is collected.
Deadhead Lanes
Light all 3 for Return of the Deadheads tale.
Crate
Used for Terror From the Crate tale, and can be a jackpot shot in certain Multiballs.
Middle Loop
Extra ball shot and loops ball to Deadhead Lanes.
Jet Bumpers
20 hits awards Monsters Lab tale.
Leaper Target 3
Hit all 3 leaper targets to collect Night of the Leapers tale.
Right Ramp
Lights spin spider and collects Webvalue (50k times # of web items collected). Also gives awards at certain numbers of ramp shots (hold bonus, light extra ball, points, etc.)
Spin Spider Scoop
ght ramp lights the right scoop to enable Spin the Spider, which is played in the backbox.
Right Loop
This shot either travels up to the Crate or falls into the Skill Shot Hole.
Telepathetic Power
1 target, lights and unlites right outlane every time it is hit. Random award when collected.

III. Six Tales of Terror

The 6 tales are the main goal of the game. Some of them are major point getters, some aren't.

1) Stiff in the Coffin multiball (3 ball panic unleashed)
-This is the 'regular' multiball of the game. The left ramp lights lock in the left loop. Lock 3 balls to start multiball. When multiball starts, both ramps are lit for jackpot. Either one can be hit at first for a jackpot (500,000 points), and then jackpots must be alternated (If you hit the left jackpot, then only the right one will be lit, then hit the right one and only the left will be lit). However, hitting an unlit ramp raises the jackpot by 10k. Multiball ends when you have less than two balls left in play.

2) Night of the Leapers (You'll jump out of your skin)
-There are 3 leaper targets (2 on either side of the left ramp, 1 on the left side of the right ramp). Once you hit each one once, the tale is collected. However, hitting any leaper enough times starts Leaper Mania, in which you have to hit a certain number of leapers (starts at 5) within the time limit to light an Extra Ball (or 250K if you have already gotten the extra ball from this). Each leaper squished scores 100k.

3) Return of the Deadheads (See the Family Horrors)
-The deadheads are located in the rollover lanes at the top. Light the three lanes and the tale will be awarded. Each dead head also scores points, starting at 25k and increasing by 25k each time one is collected.

4) Terror From the Crate (Chilling 2-ball Multiball)
-Hit the crate enough times to light this (Starts at 4 the first time, increases by 4 for subsequent times). The last hit will send the ball into the crate and start 2-ball. During 2-ball play just keep entering the crate for jackpots (250,000 points).

5) The Monster's Lab (Electifying Action)
-X number of hits (20 to start on ours) in the bumpers starts this. Once started the bumpers become worth 10k.

6) Eyes of the Boney Beast (Beware the Hypnotic Stare)
-Hit the left ramp to spot one eye. After 3 ramps, the game awards the tale and the left ramp becomes worth points.

Once all 6 tales have been started, "It is time to get Scared Stiff". Hit the crate to start it up. The game will go through the animations, and the the ball will be kicked out. The Stiff-O-Meter will light up in the middle of the playfield. The object is to advance the stiff-o-meter all the way to the top. There are 10 levels on the stiff-o-meter. To advance the stiff-o-meter, alternating shots must be made to either ramp, and then to the crate (First shot ramp, 2nd crate, 3rd ramp, 4th crate etc...). Each shot scores points, 250k plus 50k more for each subsequent shot. The last shot (Scared Stiff) must be made into the crate. Once this is done it starts Monster Multiball, a 4-ball Multiball in which all 3 jackpots are lit (Both ramps and the Crate) and are worth 1 million points. Plus, 5 million points are awarded just for starting Monster Multiball. Monster Multiball ends when there are less then 2 balls left.

IV. Spin Spider

The spider game is located in the backbox. When the ball is hit into the lit spin spider hole, the spider starts to spin. To stop the spider, hit a flipper button. Depending on where the spider is pointing, the game will award something. If you land on an item that has already been awarded, you receive no award. The awards are as follows, starting with the Eye at the top of the circle and moving in a clockwise fashion:

Eye
All 3 eyes lights Extra Ball.
Skull
Spots a deadhead lane.
Light Jackpot
Lights the left ramp for a 250k jackpot.
Double Trouble
For 20 seconds, every shot's value is doubled.
Eye
All 3 eyes lights Extra Ball.
Scary guy (?)
Beat the Crate mode. Hit the crate to collect the value multiplied by the number on the Stiff-O-Meter (which goes up and down during the mode).
Coffin
If coffin lock is lit this will lock a ball, if it is not lit then this lights it. Also extends Coffin Multiball (when multiball would normally end, it is restarted w/ 3 balls).
Orb
Gives a telepathetic power award.
Electric thing
Awards some bumper hits towards getting the Monsters Lab.
Orb
Gives a telepathetic power award.
Boogie Man
Starts up Boogie Man Boogie. All shots score 10k to start, the value increases by 5k whenever the ball goes into a sink hole.
Crate
Just like hitting the crate once, and extends Crate Multiball. (When multiball would normally end, it is restarted).
Eye
All 3 eyes lights Extra Ball.
Leaper
Starts Leaper Mania.
Boney Beast
Left ramp lights for a hurry up value, which starts at 200k.
Skull
Spots a deadhead lane.

If you light all of the awards, Spider Mania starts. The spider wheel spins, and starts stopping on each award. Every time it stops, it awards points and lights up everything it lands on, essentially lighting everything on the playfield. Then it starts a 4 ball multiball. Everything on the playfield is lit, including all 3 Jackpots (which are doubled due to the wheel lighting Double Trouble), Boogie Mania, Extra Ball, and everything else. This ends once you have less than two balls. There is a possiblity to score HUGE points during this mode.

V. Misc Stuff

  • There is a cow in the game. One of the deadheads is called Meat Head, and is a picture of a cow which then moo's.

  • Just like the original, Scared Stiff stars the voice of Elvira as herself.

  • The last person to collect all of the spider awards becomes the new "Spider Champion" in the high score list, recoreded with their initials and the date and time that they did it.

  • Elvira's daugter appears on the backglass. Near the bottom, there is a box that says Lil' Luna Green Cheese, Lil' Luna is actually Elvira's two year old daughter. It has also been said that the Scary Guy in the spider game bears a resemblence to Elvira's husband.

VI. End Stuff

This rulesheet is maintained by Bob McCann and shouldn't be changed without his permission. The latest version can be obtained from http://pilot.msu.edu/~mccannr1

Editor's Notes

  • HTML added by David Gersic dgersic_@_niu.edu
  • E-mail addresses have been expunged to prevent web-bot spamming, and Web links have been updated where possible.

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