Foo Fighters

Stern Pinball, 2023 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Open Foo Fighters in the Pinball Genie app →

Theme: The Foo Fighters road-trip across the country in the Tour Van, battling the alien Overlord and its bots, culminating in The Final Battle. Designer Jack Danger. Editions: Pro / Premium / LE (Premium & LE share rules; their key difference from Pro is an Area 51 upper mini-playfield and a physical Deadpost outlane save).

Core loops

• Van Modes (city/song modes): Spell V-A-N with three lit white-arrow shots to light the left ramp (Pat), then shoot it to hold the ball in the Tour Van and select a city. Six song modes — Seattle "This Is A Call", Roswell "Run", Los Angeles "Learn to Fly", New Orleans "I'll Stick Around", Chicago "Something From Nothing", New York "Breakout". The final shot of every mode is always the Overlord. Buff modes first via Van Mods (drop targets → Mod-ulator paddle: Engine=time, Speakers=value, Bomb=spotted shots).
• Combos / band members: Every major shot carries a Combotron insert; chaining lit shots builds combo value. Six named band-member combos (Taylor, Dave, Nate, Chris, Pat, Rami). Combos don't auto-score — you cash out at the Overlord (3× on a normal hit, 5× backhanding the back targets). Six cash-outs light the side ramp (Taylor) for Combotron Multiball.
• Multiballs: Overlord trilogy (All My Life → Monkey Wrench → The Pretender, played in order, jackpots carry across); Area 51 MB (5 right-ramp (Dave) shots to qualify); Combotron MB; plus mini-wizard multiballs FooBot and Toy Time.

Multipliers (stack multiplicatively)

• Playfield 2×/3× via the Rock-O-Meter — 3 right-orbit (Chris) shots fill it for 2× (40 s); refill while running for 3×.
• Ray Gun shot multiplier — hit a return-lane Ray Gun target → next shot 2×; opposite target → 4×.
• FooBot part multipliers — each collected part = permanent 2× at that band member's shot.
• Bonus X at the paddle target, end-of-ball.

FooBot & wizards

Collect all 6 FooBot parts (one per band member, each from a distinct feature) to light the left ramp for FooBot Multiball. The Final Battle (full wizard) requires all 14 van modes + Austin + D.C., all 3 Overlord multiballs, and FooBot MB — a 4-phase battle with ~1-minute unlimited ball saves per phase.

Tournament line

Build the Overlord early (it's the most drain-prone area — backhand the captive ball), mod the van (Engine for time), start New Orleans (all shots lit, side-flipper shots count twice), then stack 2× playfield + van mode + Overlord MB + Area 51 together for the money game. Bot Frenzy 8× spinner and Ray-Gun 4× layer onto the biggest shots.

Newer Stern code may shift exact numbers slightly; structures are stable.

Goals in Foo Fighters

Every goal below is tracked step-by-step, with shot paths drawn on the playfield map, inside the app.

• Rock-O-Meter Skill Shot skillshot · Medium

  Soft-plunge so the ball rolls the Rock-O-Meter switch while the top light blinks — the direct on-ramp to 2x/3x playfield.

  Reward: ~100k x lit level, plus meter advances (Lvl 3 = 3x value + 2 advances) toward 2x playfield

• Super Skill Shot (Combo Hi-Five) skillshot · Hard

  Plunge to the left crossover before the timer expires to start a Hi-Five combo chain — up to a 6-way Super Skill Shot.

  Reward: ~500k x chain length (up to 6 shots), +3s ball save each

• Nate Combo (Triple Side Loop) combo · Easy

  The one pure self-feeding loop — Nate = Side loop x3 — the easiest repeatable combo to farm for Combotron progress.

  Reward: Combo value 25k + 5k/combo x shot level; advances Nate / FooBot Left Arm

• Taylor Combo (Side Ramp / Spinner / Side Ramp) combo · Medium

  Scripted band-member combo feeding the FooBot Torso; flows through the center spinner between two side-ramp shots.

  Reward: Advances Taylor combo / FooBot Torso; combo value into the cash-out

• Dave Combo (Right Ramp / Left Ramp / Right Orbit) combo · Medium

  Three-shot band-member combo spanning the whole playfield; feeds the FooBot Head.

  Reward: Advances Dave combo / FooBot Head; combo value into cash-out

• Pat Combo (Left Ramp / Spinner / Side Ramp) combo · Medium

  Band-member combo feeding the FooBot Left Leg; left ramp into spinner into side ramp.

  Reward: Advances Pat combo / FooBot Left Leg

• Combo Cash-Out Loop (Light Combotron) combo · Hard

  The signature Foo Fighters twist: chain a combo, then backhand the Overlord back targets for the 5x cash-out. Six cash-outs light the side ramp for Combotron Multiball.

  Reward: 6 cash-outs light Taylor side ramp for Combotron MB; best under 2x/3x playfield

• Overlord Multiball: All My Life multiball · Easy

  The first and easiest Overlord multiball (2-ball). Light the lock at the arena, lock the ball, then pound the captive ball 3 times to start. Best used as a utility to help a van mode.

  Reward: 2-ball MB, starting jackpot ~1M; feeds FooBot Left Arm; jackpots carry to Monkey Wrench/Pretender

• Overlord Multiball: Monkey Wrench multiball · Hard

  The lucrative 2nd Overlord multiball (3-ball) — a longer qualify: Overlord 2x, side targets 2x, Overlord 2x to light lock, then captive ball 5x.

  Reward: 3-ball MB (~1.75M/captive hit); double jackpots by re-shooting lit shots; qualifies FooBot Left Arm

• Area 51 Multiball multiball · Medium

  Hammer the right ramp (Dave) five times to qualify, then start it. Divert shots score jackpots; after 8, the super comes from the right ramp → captive-ball combo (Pro) or the secret-files target (Prem/LE). Stacks with Overlord MB.

  Reward: 750k jackpots; super = 1M + 1.25M/lit shot; feeds FooBot Head

• Combotron Multiball multiball · Hard

  Start and cash out 6 combos at the Overlord to light the side ramp, then shoot it to start this 3-ball MB. Score color-escalating jackpots to red to unlock the Combotron Super at the Overlord.

  Reward: 3-ball MB; Super = 20% of combined combo shot values; feeds FooBot Torso

• Van Mode: New Orleans — "I'll Stick Around" mode · Easy

  The top tournament starter. Spell V-A-N, pick New Orleans at the Tour Van, then follow the lit shots — all shots start lit and side-flipper shots count twice.

  Reward: Award starts 2M / +150-200k; side shots count double; great to stack into a multiball

• Van Mode: Los Angeles — "Learn to Fly" mode · Medium

  The fastest mode to complete — a ramp-combo mode where ramp combos multiply awards and the side ramp scores double.

  Reward: Award starts 1M / +100k; fastest completion

• Van Mode: Seattle — "This Is A Call" mode · Medium

  Two alternating lit shots move right→left→right; the side loop is the value shot (2x progress, 3x value).

  Reward: Award starts 2M / +250k; side loop 2x progress + 3x value

• Van Mode: New York — "Breakout" mode · Hard

  Rip the center spinner to build value and light a roving 2x/3x shot that cycles across the playfield every 10th spin.

  Reward: Award starts 500k / +100k per roving shot + 10k/spin (caps 5M)

• Playfield Multiplier (Rock-O-Meter 2x/3x) multiplier · Medium

  The foundation multiplier. Shoot the right orbit x3 to fill the Rock-O-Meter and start 2x playfield; refill while it runs for 3x. Everything else should be scored under it.

  Reward: 2x playfield 40s; refill → 3x + timer reset

• Ray Gun Shot Multiplier (2x / 4x) multiplier · Medium

  Aim the multiplier at your biggest shot. Hit a Ray Gun return-lane target → next shot 2x; immediately hit the opposite Ray Gun → next shot 4x. Stacks multiplicatively with playfield and FooBot multipliers.

  Reward: Next shot 2x/4x; ceiling ~120M single shot with 3x playfield stacked

• FooBot Multiball (Mini-Wizard) — Qualification Path wizard · Hard

  Assemble all 6 FooBot parts (one per band member, each earned from a distinct feature) to light the left ramp for FooBot Multiball. Each collected part also gives a 2x at that member's shot.

  Reward: 2-ball mini-wizard; jackpot base 3M, cap 10M/shot; parts give permanent 2x when upgraded

• The Final Battle (Full Wizard) — Qualification Path wizard · Hard

  The full wizard mode: requires all 14 van modes + Austin + D.C., all 3 Overlord multiballs, and FooBot MB. Four phases with ~1-minute unlimited ball saves each.

  Reward: 4-phase wizard; epilogue steps all FooBot shot multipliers +1x for the next game

• Strategy: The First Three Shots strategy · Easy

  Neutralize and use the Overlord first (it's the #1 drain risk), mod your van for time, then start New Orleans. The canonical safe, high-EV opener.

  Reward: Safe opener that builds the Overlord lock, an Engine van mod, and an easy first mode

• Strategy: The Tournament Stack strategy · Hard

  The signature money move: with 2x one shot away, first start an Overlord MB + a van mode, THEN take the final right orbit — stacking van mode + Overlord MB + 2x playfield, and layer Area 51 on top.

  Reward: Van mode + Overlord MB + 2x/3x playfield + Area 51 all scoring at once — the big-score game

• Strategy: Bot Frenzy 8x Spinner Farm strategy · Medium

  Hit all four bot standups first (steps spinner 1x→2x→4x→8x), light Bot Frenzy at the 3rd bot award, then rip the center spinner during the 40s window — ideally brought into a spinner-heavy multiball under playfield multiplier.

  Reward: 8x per spin during 40s Bot Frenzy; 25M+ upgrades a FooBot arm

• Overlord Multiball: The Pretender multiball · Hard

  The third and last Overlord multiball. The qualify cycle repeats once more and longer — Overlord hits, then the arena targets, then more Overlord hits to light the lock, then the most captive-ball hits of the three. Needed for the full wizard.

  Reward: Final Overlord multiball; largest jackpot base of the three and the last Overlord requirement for The Final Battle

• Bonus Van Destinations (Austin / Washington D.C.) wizard · Hard

  Two extra stops sit inside the van system beyond the fourteen cities. Bank groups of city modes and the van offers the bonus destination at the top of the left ramp; both are required before the full wizard will light.

  Reward: Van mini-wizard scoring, van-system progress, and a hard requirement for The Final Battle

• Supersonic Radio (Radio Dial) mode · Hard

  The two amp-cabinet stand-ups on the left advance a radio dial that hands out mystery awards on the way up and Supersonic Radio at the top. This is the feature that earns the Rami leg for the FooBot.

  Reward: Mystery awards along the dial, Supersonic Radio at the top, and the Rami FooBot part

• Every Band-Member Combo In One Game combo · Hard

  Each band member has its own scripted combo, and each one feeds a different FooBot part. Running the whole set in one game is the fastest legitimate route to a nearly complete FooBot plus a stack of cash-outs.

  Reward: All band combos credited, FooBot parts and shot multipliers, and heavy Combotron progress