Karnov/Stage 7


 * This stage start out fairly easy in the beginning, and becomes incredibly difficult at the end. From the start, you will walk forward and be attacked by a pair of birds and a mob of pyramid slaves (shown right).  A second mob will appear behind the first.
 * After the second mob, you will arrive before a trio of pillar with statue heads on top that fire down at you. At the same time, a flock of six birds will appear above you.  Shoot down the pillars just as you did in, and watch out for the pair of projectiles that the heads fire.  Keep the pillars on the far right side of the screen as you attack them.
 * Beyond the pillars, you will arrive at the foot of a pyramid (shown left). From here you have the option to go through the ground level entrance, or scale the pyramid.

Taking the ground entrance

 * If you opt to take the ground entrance, shoot the door open and step inside. Pairs of swordsmen will appear on either side of you as you enter the pyramid.  When you reach the foot of a staircase, a golden robot will appear.  Fire rapidly to destroy it before it can migrate to another location.
 * After the robot is destroy, ascend the stairs. A few pyramid slaves will jump down the stairs in an effort to attack you, but they usually sail over your head.  Eventually, you will reach the top and see a green wall on the opposite side of the steps.  Drop down to the section below.

Scaling the pyramid

 * This option is actually the safer of the two, as there are fewer enemies to deal with; just a few birds that fly at you from the right. You will actually have another choice to make.  You can actually enter a mid-level door, or climb all the way up to the top.
 * If you enter mid-level, you will end up walking along a platform until you reach the top of the stairs mentioned in the section above. If you climb up to the top, you will reach an impassable wall (shown right), and you will wind up falling through a trap door that deposits you in the same location, on the platform that leads to the top of the stairs.

Pyramid Bosses

 * You're about to fight against not one, not two, but three very dangerous boss monsters. It is important to choose a strategy that will help you survive all three encounters without dying.  The flame power-up gives you 30 blasts of fire to attack with.  If you are quick and efficient with your fire, you can defeat all three bosses before you run out of flame.
 * At the top of the step, activate the flame power-up. To your right will be the first boss, a two-headed dragon (shown right).  The best strategy is to jump over the top block just enough to make the dragon appear on the right, then quickly move back to the left.  Fire the blasts of flame through the stone at the dragon, but be prepared to jump when its projectiles hit the stone and break apart into eight pieces.  You'll need to jump away while they spread out, and eventually return to your original position.  You should be able to defeat the dragon with four flame blasts before it gets a second projectile out if your quick enough.
 * After the dragon is defeated, a hole will open up in the floor. You will also notice a Red Orb and a stash of K marks above the floor.  If you use a ladder to climb up to the ledge above, it will actually extend, making it far easier to collect the marks.  However, a transforming mummy will appear on the left end of the ledge.  It becomes a tombstone whenever it gets hit, and it takes a great number of shots to destroy.  Since you should preserve your flame power-up, it's best to ignore the mummy completely.
 * When you're ready, fall down the hole in the floor and prepare to tackle the second boss, a tyrannosaurus (shown left). This will be an incredibly difficult fight, even with the flame power-up.  There is not a lot of room to maneuver and get away from the flames that the dino emits.  But there's one secret to this boss: you're actually not obligated to defeat him.  If you like, you can completely skip this boss and run away.  If you have the jump shoes tile and activate it, it will be easy to simply leap over the boss and continue running to the right.
 * There's a small pocket of K marks behind the tyrannosaurus and before the steps. Collect as many as you can, but watch out for bats that hover around the area (not to mention the boss if you leaped over him, as he will turn around to face you.)  As you begin climbing the next set of steps, a trio of boulder traps lie in wait for your arrival.  As you get close, three boulders will roll out of a chute and bounce down the stairs.  As soon as you see them, go as far to the right as you can on your present step and squat down.  You should be safe from the falling boulders.  This will happen two more times as you climb the steps.
 * When you reach the top of the steps, you can jump around on the left side to make a flame tile and a Red Orb appear. Additionally, your mask tile will blink, indicating that there are some hidden items nearby.  Unfortunately, a majority of the items are just K marks, and they will distract you from the immediate threat of the third and final boss, another two-headed dragon (shown right).  By this time, you should still have plenty of flame power-up remaining.  Jump up and blast the dragon in its faces as fast as you possibly can.  Once it is destroyed, it won't matter where its projectiles go, as they will pass harmlessly through you while you wait for the next map piece to fall.

NES Differences

 * The mobs of slaves are replaced by a slower trickle of strong men that approach you as you walk to the right. The pillars and face statues are changed to the alternate style of enemy just like  (shown right).
 * You still have your choice of three different ways to enter the pyramid. Two clappers line the opening of the top of the pyramid, but you can only collect one as you fall.
 * Instead of a two-headed dragon appearing inside the pyramid, you will see a mummy. Mummies are just as difficult to defeat in this version, but one use of a Clapper will destroy them instantly.
 * While you aren't required to defeat this mummy, in order to gain access to the room below, you must defeat the mummy that appears up above when you use a ladder to reach the ledge (shown left). Walk to the door to make some K marks appear, and walk left to extend the ledge.  Defeat the mummy that appears here, and then fall down and walk to the left to fall through the floor to the room below.
 * In the room below, you will face two mummies, as well as some bats that fly in. If you have a Clapper, it is highly recommended that you use it here to eliminate both mummies in one single shot.
 * As you climb up the steps to the final boss, the boulders will not be present, but the next best substitute will be. Gray stone throwers will appear above you to the left.  Take each one out as you climb the steps.  At the top, it's a good idea to activate a shield and collect the waiting shield tile with a ladder.
 * For the boss of the stage, you will finally encounter a two-headed dragon for the first time (shown right). In this version, they are substantially easier to fight, since the projectiles they fire will not explode.  As a result, fighting a two-headed dragon is a lot like fighting a Spider Woman with a greater amount of health and a higher frequency of fire.