__________________________________________________________________________ =============== Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic =================== -------------------------- for Microsoft Xbox ---------------------------- .................... Swoop Bike Racing FAQ ver 1.0 ....................... . . . . . . . . . . . by Kevin "savior" Walter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kevin@sheoul.com . . . . . . . . . . __________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================== Table of Contents _____________________________________________ \____________________________ -- Legal Information -- Introduction -- Frequently Asked Questions -- Basic Racing Strategies -- Taris Map -- Taris Strategy -- Tatooine Map -- Tatooine Strategy -- Manaan Map -- Manaan Strategy __________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================== Legal Information _____________________________________________ \____________________________ This document is the sole property of me, Kevin Walter. Currently, the only websites with permission to host this FAQ are: http://www.gamefaqs.com http://www.sheoul.com If you are interested in publishing this FAQ in any way, shape or form, you may contact me at the above email address. __________________________________________________________________________ ============================================================= Introduction _____________________________________________ \____________________________ The first portion of this FAQ is answers to the most common questions that are being asked on the message boards. The basic job of this section is to quell rumors of Swoop Bike upgrades and racing on Korriban. The next portion of the FAQ is a basic racing strategy section. Some of the info from the first section will overlap here, but if you're just looking for simple strategies and not an exact "walkthrough" for each racing track, this is where to look. Finally, there is also a section for each of the three racing tracks. This section includes a map of each track with the best line that I've found for getting a good time, as well as a specific strategy for racing on that track. There may be a better line, but if you use the one I've provided, you will get through it no problem. __________________________________________________________________________ =============================================== Frequently Asked Questions _____________________________________________ \____________________________ QUESTION: Where can I get upgrades for my Swoop Bike? ANSWER: Nowhere. You cannot get any upgrade parts for your Swoop Bike. o----------------o QUESTION: Should I just tap the A button through the entire race? ANSWER: No. I have run races on a perfect line while tapping the A button the entire race and gotten significantly lower times, every time. It would appear that every time you press the A button, your bike is slowed slightly. So if you're tapping it for the entire race, it will add up and you will get a much slower time. o----------------o QUESTION: Where is the best place to sell Motta the Hutt's racing bonds? ANSWER: You can sell them wherever you want. Everyone gives the same price for them, as far as I know. NOTE: If anyone has found a place that gives more, please email me to let me know) o----------------o QUESTION: Is there Swoop Bike racing on Korriban? ANSWER: No, there is not. o----------------o QUESTION: How do I complete the Nico Senvi mission without Dark points? ANSWER: Speak to Motta the Hutt about Nico and get all the relative info. Then complete all of the 3 racing tiers on Tatooine. After doing this, Nico will discuss the contract with you, but if you tell him to take the deal with Motta, you will get Dark Side points. Instead, tell him that you'll try to talk Motta into giving him a better deal. Then speak to Motta about Nico and tell him that you think he should give Nico a better deal. Next, use the [Persuade] option. Then tell him that you'll bury him (or something like that) if he won't co-operate. That should open up a [Force Persuade] option, which you should choose. He'll agree to a better deal, and then all you have to do is tell Nico about it. __________________________________________________________________________ ================================================== Basic Racing Strategies _____________________________________________ \____________________________ o--- Avoid Obstacles This may seem like a no-brainer, but it's worth mentioning anyway. When going for the fastest time possible, you should never hit even one obstacle. o--- Don't Tap The (A) Button I have seen differences as great as half a second between identical runs where I tapped (A) through the entire run and when I pressed it only when necessary (start of race and when shift meter is full). Tapping (A) when it is not necessary does slow you down. o--- Keep A Fluid Line In the beginning of the race (on all three tracks) you will slalom to hit all of the boost pads that come by. In the middle section, you will want to avoid going too far out of your way to hit a single boost pad. In the end section, when you are moving at a high speed, it is much more important to keep a somewhat straight line to the finish, even if it means missing several peripheral boost pads. o--- Save Before You Race You can end up spending a lot of credits paying for entry fees to race before you've mastered a track. As long as you save your game before you start racing, you can always load up that save after losing 5 races in a row (and 500 credits from your wallet). __________________________________________________________________________ ================================================================ Taris Map _____________________________________________ \____________________________ o-------------------o | MAP KEY | | | | Boost Pad = [01] | | Obstable = [X] | | | o-------------------o Use this map to plot a line through the track. The boost pads are numbered in the order that you should hit them. A boost pad numbered 00 is one that you should avoid trying to hit. FINISH __________________ ------------------ [X] [00] [00] [19] [X] [X] [00] [00] [18] [X] [17] [X] [X] [16] [15] [X] [X] [00] [14] [X] [00] [13] [X] [12] [X] [11] [10] [X] [X] [X] [09] [00][X] [X] [08] [X] [07][X] [X] [06] [X] [05] [X] [04] [03] [02][X] [X] [01] __________________ ------------------ START __________________________________________________________________________ =========================================================== Taris Strategy _____________________________________________ \____________________________ 1st Time To Beat .......... 0:38:43 This may not make sense, but you actually want to do poorly in your first heat. You want to get a time around 0:37:00. The reason for this is because whatever time you post is going to be beat right after your heat, but the new time posted will always be just slightly better than what you just posted. If you run a great heat, you'll have to run an even better one to clear this mission. But if you run a terrible heat that just barely beats the 0:38:43 mark you need to pass, you'll be able to clear this mission with an easy run of around 0:35:00. So like I said, you want to run a heat of about 0:37:00. I will now tell you how exactly to do that. Allow the race to begin and DO NOT PRESS (A) RIGHT AWAY. Instead, wait until the timer hits 0:06:00 and then press (A) to start moving. Now, it is very important that you do not move your Swoop Bike at all left or right. Allow your shift meter to fill and press (A) when it does. Allow it to fill again and press (A) again when it does. You should hit a boost pad after this, and then hit an obstacle right after... this is supposed to happen. Your shift meter should start filling again, and just after hitting another boost pad it should be full. Press (A) to shift when this happens. That's it, don't move your Swoop Bike, don't press the (A) button, just leave the controls alone. You should run across several more boost pads and cross the finish line right around the 0:37:00 mark. If you come in a little quicker, that's okay. If you come in a little later, that should still be okay, as long as you're still below the 0:38:43 mark that you need to beat. If you're beyond that mark, re-read the above strategy because you're doing something wrong. After this time is posted you will be congratulated and told that someone just beat your time. Go back to the registration table and you should find that the new time to beat is right around 0:36:75. 2nd Time To Beat .......... (approximately) 0:36:75 (Redros) That's barely faster than your previous time, and if you remember, we waited 6 seconds before starting the race. All you have to do for the second heat is press (A) to start the race right away rather than waiting, and then employ the same strategy as above. Or you could run the race normally, trying to hit as many boost pads as you can, and unless you're the worst Swoop Bike racer in the galaxy, you're going to post a time better than 37 seconds. If you actually want to try for a good time, use the line I've set out in the above map. __________________________________________________________________________ ============================================================= Tatooine Map _____________________________________________ \____________________________ o-------------------o | MAP KEY | | | | Boost Pad = [01] | | Obstable = [X] | | | o-------------------o Use this map to plot a line through the track. The boost pads are numbered in the order that you should hit them. A boost pad numbered 00 is one that you should avoid trying to hit. The general area where you should be when shifting is marked on the map, as well. FINISH __________________ ------------------ [24] [X] [23] [X][00] [X] [22] [21] [00] [20] [X][19] [X] [18] [X] [17] [X] [16] [00] [X] [15] [14] [X] [X] [13] [X] [12] [00] [X] <--------PRESS (A) [X] [11] [X] [10] [X] [X] [09] [08] [X] [07] <--------PRESS (A) [X] [06] [X] [05] [X] [04] [03] <--------PRESS (A) [02] [X] [X] [01] <--------PRESS (A) __________________<--------PRESS (A) ------------------ START __________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================== Tatooine Strategy _____________________________________________ \____________________________ 1st Tier Time To Beat .......... 0:23:90 (Garm Totryl) 2nd Tier Time To Beat .......... 0:23:29 (Yuka Rill) 3rd Tier Time To Beat .......... 0:22:51 (Zoriis Bafka) Unlike Taris, the time you set on your first race will not have any effect on what times you will have to beat for the following races. Because of that, you actally want to try to get the best time possible on all of your runs. Start by tapping (A) to begin the race. Your shift meter should fill just as you are going over the boost pad [01], so tap (A) a few times while you're going over it. Swerve left to hit [02] then back to the right to hit [03], tapping (A) as you go over it (your shift meter should be filled right about then). Another left, then right, then left slalom for [04], [05] and [06]. Tap (A) a few times between [06] and [07] to shift again. Continue to the right to hit [08], cut to the left to hit [09] and [10] and then cut all the way to the right to hit [11]. You'll see a boost pad to the left that will be tempting, but avoid cutting all that way to hit it as [12] is coming up right in front of you. Just before you hit [12], however, your shift meter should be filled again, so tap (A) a few times. Cut hard left to hit [13] and then to the middle of the track to hit [14] immediately followed by [15] and set up the final stretch. At this point, if you've done everything correctly without hitting any obstacles, you will be in prime position to finish below 0:22:50 with ease. There are 10 boost pads up ahead either in the center or on the right side of the track (stay away from the left side), and if you hit more than 5 of them you should finish below 0:22:50. The path that I recommend in the map above will have you hitting 8 more boost pads, and I've finished with a time as low as 0:22:18 while only hitting 7 of them. NOTE: After shifting up the 4 times that I've noted in the above strategy, there is no need to press (A) again in the race. Your meter will fill up again, but pressing (A) will not shift you into a higher gear. __________________________________________________________________________ =============================================================== Manaan Map _____________________________________________ \____________________________ o-------------------o | MAP KEY | | | | Boost Pad = [01] | | Obstable = [X] | | | o-------------------o Use this map to plot a line through the track. The boost pads are numbered in the order that you should hit them. A boost pad numbered 00 is one that you should avoid trying to hit. The general area where you should be when shifting is marked on the map, as well. FINISH __________________ ------------------ [X] [22] [X] [00] [00] [X] [21] [X] [00] [20] [X] [19] [18] [X] [00] [X] [17] [X] [00] [16] [00] [15] [14] [x] [13] [X] [X] [00] <--------PRESS (A) [12] [X] [x] [11] [X] [10] [X] [09] [X] [08] [X] [07] <--------PRESS (A) [X] [06] [X] [05] [X] [04] [X] <--------PRESS (A) [03] [X] [02] <--------PRESS (A) [01] __________________<--------PRESS (A) ------------------ START __________________________________________________________________________ ========================================================== Manaan Strategy _____________________________________________ \____________________________ Round 1 Time To Beat .......... 0:23:82 (Queedle) Round 2 Time To Beat .......... 0:23:25 (Casandra Mateil) Round 3 Time To Beat .......... 0:22:50 (Hukta Jax) Manaan is actually a very easy track to run. The boost pads stand out against the blue water background so you can see them easily from a distance. And you don't really have to swerve much to either side of the track, as most of the boost pads you want to hit are in the middle area. Lastly, there is really only one obstacle that you will have to actively avoid, between [13] and [14]. The only other tricky part to this track is to remain in a straight line when going over pads [15] and [16]. The two boost tracks (one immediately following each) will look tempting, but don't swerve right to hit them or you'll miss both [16] and [17] and probably hit the obstacle. With the run listed on the map above I have been able to consistently have times around 0:22:26. That means that you should still be able to miss one of the boost pads in the end section and still beat Hukta Jax' time. __________________________________________________________________________ ============================ END TRANSMISSION ============================ __________________________________________________________________________