Did you beat it?

Congratulations! I have only played it a few times myself (and won it at least twice for what it is worth).

It is one of those modes I am sure I could get to super regularly if I timed out every other mode, but that would be pointless on at least two fronts (no Valinor, points, or soup for you!).

Nice job! I was recently on my last mode before TABA, and I blew it. I should have just held the ball and let the mode time out, but of course I went for the points. I'm convinced that I will never see Valinor. There is just too much stuff you have to accomplish, and I'm simply not a good enough player.

It's all in the hips

Congrats!!

Congrats

240m is a fantastic score

Very nice! 7 months and I still haven't done it. Congrads

great score, but did you finish there and back again?

Wait what are you going to do with that tissue? Don't stain your game.

I have been there many times just never finished it.

TABA is one of the best modes in pinball, if not the best. Revisiting past modes and making the shot to receive the same amount of points you got for the mode previously is just genius. There are games I only try to go for TABA just to experience it again. It actually makes you want to try harder to finish modes to get higher scores enable for TABA. I've only gotten it twice, and the music is amazing (as is all LOTR music, Howard Shore is an amazing composer, and I had the pleasure of meeting him).

It kind if reminds me when you beat Mario (3 I think?) on NES, and during the credits it highlights all the boards that were played.

Mine should be here any day now. I can't wait to practice then head to gweems for some serious competition. No doubt he will kick my arse though. Gweem is a pretty good player.

Congrats! First thing I thought of when I saw your post was how much I enjoyed the music that was composed for that part of the game. Glad you like it too.

Dan

Took me over a year to finally get there. After a year and a half now, I've been there twice. It's really cool if for no other reason, the rarity in which you get to see it makes it so.

Pass the tissue? I guess you can celebrate any way you want to

Congrats!....It's a beautiful thing isn't it...As for Valinor, I'm convinced it will never happen with the glass on for me...

Lotr and SM two of the greatest pins ever...

Still waiting for my first time. Once you get there what do you have to do to beat it?

Well...I guess when Frodo's been staring longingly into your eyes for long enough...

Grats! TABA is my wife's favorite mode ever in a pin. She won't let me sell the pin ever because of that mode lol.

As for valinor; I've literally been one shot away from achieving it 6 times in my 6 year ownership! I choked each time with the ball held in the ring waiting for the final shot to earn valinor one day, I will attempt it again. Lol

200 and what million?

Was this 5 ball or 3?

This is the part where I claim that it's okay my game is on 5 ball, because it had no lane mini post rubbers and outlanes all the way open. Sheesh.

Mine didn't have the mini post rubbers on it when I first got it. It was absolutely brutal. After only two days, I couldn't take it any more and installed the rubbers. I left the outlanes all the way open, though. I thought it was a good compromise.

i'm been 80% of the way to valinor, that's about it. Finished TABA twice in the time i've owned mine (bought in 07). Getting there isn't bad, it's finishing it, that's a PIA. Luckily you dont' have to finish it to get to valinor. It's all the other stuff you have to do in addition to starting TABA that's the real bitch. LOTR is phenomenal. You can tell, that a lot of love went into making the software for this game. Love I don't think we'll ever see in a machine again. Not to the depth, and attention to little details like LOTR and TSPP has.

There and back again is a cool mode which I actually was able to complete only reaching the mode about 3 to 4 times. Never made it to Valinor before I parted ways with it but I did watch a video of it on Youtube.

i'll stay away from that video. I don't want to see it. Getting to the ending of games and viewing it for the first time, is a driving goal for me. It's like opening xmas presents xmas morning.

getting to mcdonalds is the "there"

and completing it is the "back again"

Start over and do better next time. jk very nice score and pretty hard to make it that far.

I have got to TABA quite a few times, but only managed to complete it for the first time last week.

I can never remember which are the most worthwhile shots to go for first, obviously the modes which I had finished and had been awarded a gift for. Since I fitted the uprated flipper coils, I can manage to reach this a lot more often. Great music on this BTW, a pity you still get the sound of the Snarling Orcs when you get into the pop Bumpers.

I've had LOTR since Nov 2005 (my first NIB) and I still have not been to this mode I must be a sucky player

Very nice. Good job!

Way to Go! Congratulations.

I've only gotten to Destroy the Ring so far but hope to see TABA soon.

Dang, I was happy just to beat Gollum! :0(

Congrats!

Congrats! Had my LOTR a little over a year and gotten within a mode of TABA a couple times, but never started it yet...

I don't understand how some of you get these super high scores. I can't imagine I am that bad of a player but I only peak at around 88 million.. default settings.. no extra rubber on the mini post between the in and out lane and 3 balls.

congrats to the OP.. seems like I get side drains two shots into each mode.

Which mini posts are you guys talking about?....I also leave the out lanes wide open and it can be brutal! You have to be dialed in to get to TABA....

the mini post between the inlane and outlane.. crappy picture but you can see it..

RH_sling_original.jpeg

Thanks Steve, I need to check mine then! I'll probably move the out lane posts in...game is hard enough...

Nice. I finished TTBA twice, gives you 5m, which seemed a little low IMO for such a tough thing. I find in TTBA, every time I do it, I am so honed on being able to make a shot, then the ring etc etc. I guess when you get there, you are obviously “on” so to speak.

As for Valinor, you need to get at least one super jackpot in each movie MB (essentially win it), get TTBA (not finish), get the 7 gifts (the main 6, then the 7th after, which is super ring frenzy MB, or something like that, very very fun).

Once all that is done, then after the next DTR win, its valinor. I have been f’d in the A about 5 times now in only having the RTK MB to finish. As such, I concentrate on this right from the start, and every skill shot and ball from the sword goes into the left orbit to advance that MB as quick as possible. I find it extremely hard to win the first time around.

Congrats, Dark Knight! Getting to TABA the first time is a great feeling for sure. I think the bigger thrill was the first time I destroyed the ring, but getting to TABA is harder. And you'll need a whole box of tissues if you ever make to Valinor.

Explaining how to play TABA is easy to write, but difficult to pull off -- likely more due to the psychological pressure you put on yourself, or letting down because you FINALLY made it. Here goes:

1) Shoot ring for 1M points.
2) Shoot one of the remaining lit major shots (2 ramps, 3 loops, and Gimli VUK) to collect the points you earned from one of the modes. That shot will no longer be available.
3) Repeat 5 times, so that you will have collected/unlit each of the 6 shots.
4) Shoot the ring one last time, I think for 5M... but it may have been 10 or 15M. I just recall it being a multiple of 5.

A few pieces of advice on strategy:
1) Take a deep breath and remain calm. You have 60 seconds to finish, which is adequate with controlled play, especially with the ability to add more time via Palantir award. And if you're gunning for Valinor, remember you do NOT have to complete TABA to get there, but it can be helpful to pick up another Gift from the Elves by doing so.

2) Add more time (20 seconds, I believe) to the mode by shooting a lit Palantir target. If your palantir target isn't lit to begin with, I like to save my left orbit shot (which lights the Palantir) until around the third shot. I don't like saving it until the last couple shots because the timer may be ticking down to the end, the tendency is to get stressed out and brick your shots.

3) Stay away from the POTD: the TABA timer keeps ticking while your ball fruitlessly bounces down the POTD.

4) If you're OK with making shots and maintaining controlled play during a multiball, one of the best ways to complete TABA is to start Gollum MB when TABA is cued up to start (but must be done BEFORE you start TABA). Once TABA starts, get a ball cradled on each flipper. Shoot one into the ring, and then while the ball is falling out of the ring and spending time in the lanes/pops, shoot your next shot with the remaining ball. You CANNOT "resurrect" the TABA mode by starting a Gollum MB immediately after TABA times out.

5) If you've employed the "time out all your modes" strategy to get to TABA, your TABA will not be worth very much because, as previously posted, shooting each major shot in between ring shots collects the amount of points you earned on each mode.

Hope this helps.

Great informative post on TABA snailman!

It's even better if you can start TABA with X2 scoring running!

I have a feeling we are all going to be blown away by the software on WoZ. There is a lot riding on JJP's first game, and Keith certainly has had a lot of time to think about what he wants to do.

First time I got to Valinore I had no clue what was happening. Looked at the DMD to check out some graphics and promptly had one of those once in a hundred games 4 ball drains that seems physically impossible. Lasted all of about 15 seconds all told. The second and only other time I got there I spazzed around a fair bit but was still so overwhelmed with pressure that I could have scored way more points.

Speaking if TABA - is Battle Royale in SM "winnable" or is it just a redundnt cycle and points fest until MB ends? Yesterday I was wondering if I've ever nailed 4 BR Jackpots? With 4 villains it seems like a magic # and that something should happen after the 4th jackpot.

after hitting all 4 hit lights super jackpot hit super jackpot then it relights the 4 villains at a higher value.. wash rinse repeat.

Correct. No completion aspect. I recall getting 5+ once.
Two things change: after 2nd BR SJP (I think), there is no add-a-ball(s), and Venom requires side ramp instead of the option of side ramp or right ramp.

I wish Lyman would modify the code to make it winnable, with some kind of payoff or something to feel like you really accomplished something. I usually suck at it but one time got around 150M, which is the BR record on my machine.

Whiles he's at it he should dress up the extra ball, replay and Tilt dots. I mean, he doesn't have anything else going on does he?

Cool thread, I love LOTR and Spidey.

TABA is relatively easy to make once you get honed in and efficient at making shots. Just for another piece of info that people haven't mentioned yet (it may be obvious, but probably still worth mentioning), once you have finished the first mode, the way to then get mode start lit again is the shots with the white lights, the elf rings. You have to make 3 of those shots before the next mode start will be lit, however if you make one shot then for a very short time all shots are lit white and quickly making one of those shots advances you to mode start. Getting efficient at making those shots and then the ring is essential.

Its an amazing mode, with the best music in pinball in my opinion, i cant help but do a little dance everytime i hear it even though i probably should be focusing on trying to complete it! I have managed to complete it quite a few times, as long as you take your time and make your shots its fairly attainable.

In my opinion, getting to TABA is quite a bit easier than completing the super jackpots on the multiballs, esspecially the fellowship and return of the king multiballs, god the amount of time i have spent on them!!

Put up a decent score of just over 400m, 3 balls on directors cut settings, but still no valinor, been a few shots away, but it keeps me coming back, it really is a masterpiece.

Spidey is a great, super fast game with alot of strategy and fantastic flow, I have made it to Super Hero 6 times and completed it twice, but for me it just doesn't have the epic journey feel that LOTR does that has me completely hooked.

TABA is way easier than killing the witch King. Which i've still never done. Aside from Valinor, that's the next hardest thing to do. I've gotten 3 hits on him before, and still didn't take him down.

Funny you should mention that. It was just this past week, I was playing with my son and we celebrated me FINALLY finishing the Witch King mode for the first time. Ironically, I made to Valinor (twice) before ever finishing that beast of a mode!