Medieval Madness

Williams, 1997 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Open Medieval Madness in the Pinball Genie app →

Designer: Brian Eddy (rules), Lyman Sheats (software). The CGC 2015 remake and all its trims (Standard, Royal, Special/Limited, Merlin editions) are rules- and layout-identical to the 1997 original — cosmetic/hardware only. There is no Pro/Premium/LE split, so every shot is trim = all.

Objective

Destroy 6 castles — five random King's Men castles, then the King of Payne's castle — while completing five single-ball "Madness" modes to fuel multiball, ultimately qualifying the wizard mode Battle for the Kingdom.

The Five Madness Modes (single-ball qualifiers)

• Joust Madness — 3 orbit shots (joust the orbits into each other).
• Catapult Madness (Catapult Slam) — 3 catapult slams at the castle.
• Peasant Madness (Revolting Peasants) — 4 left ramps (Rabble Rouser → Angry Mob → Ugly Riot → Peasant Revolt).
• Damsel Madness (Save the Damsels) — 4 right (dragon) ramps.
• Trolls! (Troll Madness) — ~8 troll standup hits light Trolls!, then kill each raised troll 3×.

Completing a Madness flashes its light at Merlin's saucer (arming Multiball Madness). Completing one three times (10 trolls for Trolls) lights its blue "title" dot toward the wizard mode.

Multiballs

• Multiball Madness — light as many Madnesses as possible, then start at Merlin's saucer. Ball count scales: 1 lit = 2-ball, 2-4 = 3-ball, all 5 = 4-ball. Typical values: Jackpots ≈ 100K, Super Jackpots ≈ 200K scaling to ~1M; the Lock is a Double Super Jackpot (up to 2M). Additive alternate model: Jackpots 75K +25K × lit, Super Jackpots 250K +150K × lit. Fold in castle shots — they out-value jackpots.
• Castle Multiball — lock 3 balls in the castle (6 for later ones); 3-stage ramp→Super Jackpot loop (~750K ramp jackpots → 5 light a ~1.5M Super → all shots Super → loop with +250K/+500K base).
• Barnyard Multiball — fling all five distinct catapult items (bowling ball, cow, chicken, cat, skull) into the castle; 3-ball with every switch worth 75K.

Castle Destruction (core progression)

Each castle is a 3-step kill: moat hits lower the drawbridge (hits = castle number) → gate ~3 hits to open (≈200K × castle number each) → one shot into the castle interior destroys it (≈2M × castle number). The 3rd castle lights an Extra Ball; the King of Payne's final castle is worth the most (~1M/gate + ~20M destroy).

Castle Hurry-Up

Completing a Madness after the first Multiball Madness (or via Super Skill Shot / Merlin's Magic) lights the gate for a hurry-up starting ~1M, decaying to ~250K. Stack further completions to build it "millions at a time" (1M → 3M → 5.5M → ~8M+; players hold to >50M), then cash at the castle. 10 hurry-ups light an Extra Ball (40 for a second).

Merlin's Magic

Random award at Merlin's saucer (lights when the three Merlin standups are completed): Light/Award Lock, Start Castle Multiball, Light/Start Trolls!, 3 Troll Bombs, Smack-A-Troll, +5 / Hold Bonus X, Light Extra Ball, 250K/500K/1M, Start Hurry-Up, Start any Madness, Lower Drawbridge, Destroy Gate/Castle, Video Mode.

Combos & Multipliers

• Troll Combo — ricochet off a raised troll into a scoring feature/saucer for a Troll Bomb (3 bombs off both trolls). Bombs (launch button) clear immortal trolls in the wizard mode.
• Ultra Combo — post-wizard Victory Laps; a second quick major shot doubles the lap value (up to ~4M), the highest repeatable ceiling.
• Bonus X — no lane ladder; built via Normal Skill Shots (+5 each) and Merlin's Magic. Multiplies the switch-accumulating end-of-ball bonus (players reach ~100×). Jets add bonus switches that this Bonus X multiplier then scales; there is no separate playfield/shot multiplier. No 2X playfield.

Wizard Modes

• Royal Madness (mini-wizard) — complete all five Madnesses and play Multiball Madness, then shoot the right eject; hit all lit shots in a resetting 20s timer (250K/750K), all = Extra Ball.
• Battle for the Kingdom (grand wizard) — light all six blue dots (Joust Champion, Catapult Ace, Patron of the Peasants, Defender of Damsels, Castle Crusher, Master of Trolls), then shoot the castle. 4-ball with ~15s save: Phase 1 six ~2.5M Battle Jackpots, Phase 2 ~6-7 gate shots (~5M) clearing immortal trolls with Troll Bombs, ~50M finish, then Victory Laps/Ultra Combos.

Strategy

Castles are the scoring engine — the 60-second castle loop (moat → gate → castle, repeat) carries scores; weave in ramps/orbits to light Madnesses for a big Multiball Madness, then dump castles during it. Right drains are more common than left; the catapult is the hardest, most drain-prone shot. Battle for the Kingdom only lights in single-ball play, so guard the ball when one goal away.

Goals in Medieval Madness

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

• Normal Skill Shot skillshot · Easy

  The safe default plunge: roll the flashing top rollover lane for points plus a compounding +5 Bonus X. The consistency/beginner choice.

  Reward: 50K +10K per successive skill shot, plus +5 Bonus X

• Super Skill Shot skillshot · Medium

  Hold the LEFT flipper during the plunge to feed the ball around the left orbit to the left flipper with all major shots lit; collect one for points and an instant Castle Hurry-Up.

  Reward: 100K and starts a Castle Hurry-Up

• Castle Destruction Loop combo · Medium

  The primary tournament money farm: moat to drop the drawbridge, gate to open it, castle to destroy it, repeat. The castle out-values almost every other shot, even in multiball.

  Reward: Destroy 6 castles (~71M+ total); 3rd castle lights an Extra Ball

• Peasant Hurry-Up Stacking combo · Medium

  The go-to filler farm: keep hammering the left ramp. Four left ramps light Peasant Revolt and a Castle Hurry-Up; keep stacking Madness completions to build the hurry-up millions at a time, then cash it at the castle.

  Reward: Castle Hurry-Up cash-in (players hold to >50M); 10 hurry-ups light an Extra Ball

• Troll Combo combo · Hard

  The only standard-playfield combo: ricochet the ball off a raised Troll into a scoring feature to bank a Troll Bomb — the key tool for clearing immortal trolls in Battle for the Kingdom.

  Reward: 1 Troll Bomb (3 Troll Bombs off both trolls into the saucer)

• Ultra Combo (Victory Laps) combo · Hard

  The game's highest per-shot ceiling. After beating Battle for the Kingdom, all major shots light for Victory Laps; a second quick major shot doubles the current lap value as an Ultra Combo.

  Reward: Up to ~4M per Ultra Combo; uncapped chain until it times out

• Damsel Save (Right Ramp Farm) combo · Medium

  Mirror of the Peasant farm. Four right (dragon) ramps complete Save the Damsels and feed hurry-up stacking; the ramp geometry returns the ball to the flipper for easy repeats.

  Reward: Lights Damsel Madness; feeds Multiball Madness and Battle for the Kingdom

• Multiball Madness multiball · Medium

  The signature multiball. Light as many of the five Madness modes as possible in single-ball play, then start at Merlin's saucer — ball count and jackpots scale with Madnesses lit.

  Reward: 2-ball (1 lit), 3-ball (2-4 lit), or 4-ball (all 5 lit) with escalating jackpots

• Castle Multiball multiball · Medium

  The lock-based multiball. Lock 3 balls in the castle, then run the 3-stage ramp-jackpot loop that compounds each cycle.

  Reward: ~14.25M per full 3-stage cycle; +250K jackpot / +500K super base each loop

• Barnyard Multiball multiball · Hard

  The hidden novelty multiball. Use the flipper buttons to cycle the catapult item and fling all five distinct items into the castle.

  Reward: 3-ball multiball; every switch worth 75,000

• Joust Madness (Joust Victory) mode · Easy

  Joust the two orbits into each other three times to win a Joust Victory and light Joust Madness.

  Reward: ~100K; lights Joust Madness. 3 completions light the Joust Champion blue dot.

• Catapult Madness (Catapult Slam) mode · Hard

  Load and slam items off the far-left catapult at the castle three times. The single hardest, most drain-prone shot on the game.

  Reward: ~100K; lights Catapult Madness. 3 completions light the Catapult Ace blue dot.

• Trolls! (Troll Madness) mode · Medium

  Hit the troll pop-up targets to light Trolls!, then knock down each raised troll three times. Kills count toward Master of Trolls (destroy 10).

  Reward: ~1M completion; kills feed Master of Trolls (10 trolls) for the Trolls blue dot.

• Peasant Madness (Revolting Peasants) mode · Easy

  Four left ramps cycle the Peasant awards to Peasant Revolt, lighting Peasant Madness. The safest high-percentage mode.

  Reward: 100K on the 4th; lights Peasant Madness. 3 completions light the Patron of the Peasants blue dot.

• Build Bonus X multiplier · Easy

  MM has no lane-based bonus ladder — Bonus X is built through Normal Skill Shots and Merlin's Magic. It multiplies the switch-accumulating end-of-ball bonus.

  Reward: End-of-ball Bonus × multiplier (players reach ~100×; 50-60M bonus on a long ball)

• Jets Bonus Builder multiplier · Medium

  MM has no separate playfield or shot multiplier — but during Multiball Madness you can keep the ball up top so the jets rack up bonus switches, which the end-of-ball Bonus X then scales, while you set up clean Lock shots.

  Reward: Extra bonus switches (multiplied by Bonus X at end of ball) while you work clean Lock shots

• Battle for the Kingdom wizard · Hard

  The sole grand wizard mode. Light all six blue title dots, then shoot the lit castle to start a 4-ball battle: Battle Jackpots, then storm the King of Payne's castle clearing immortal trolls with Troll Bombs.

  Reward: ~97.5M scripted (2.5M jackpots, ~5M gate shots, ~50M finish) plus Victory Laps

• Royal Madness wizard · Hard

  The mini-wizard mode. Complete all five Madness types and play Multiball Madness, then shoot the right eject to start a frantic 20-second-reset shot round.

  Reward: Extra Ball on completion (some settings pay ~15M)

• Opener A — Safe & Consistent strategy · Easy

  Beginner opening line: bank Bonus X, hit the two safe ramps to light Peasant and Damsel, grab an orbit toward Joust, and begin banking Castle #1.

  Reward: Peasant + Damsel lit, Joust progressed, first castle banked

• Opener B — Aggressive Points strategy · Medium

  Points-first opening: use the Super Skill Shot to collect a lit shot and arm a Castle Hurry-Up, then cash it immediately or grow it with left-ramp stacking.

  Reward: Fast 100K + a Castle Hurry-Up to cash or stack

• Bowen 60-Second Tournament Loop strategy · Medium

  The canonical all-game line: moat to drop the drawbridge, gate to open, castle to destroy, repeat — weaving in ramp/orbit shots to light Madnesses for a big Multiball Madness where you dump more castles.

  Reward: Highest reliable EV; the castle out-values most shots even in multiball

• Extra Ball Routes strategy · Medium

  Three reliable ways this game hands you another ball: bank your third castle, collect ten separate Castle Hurry-Ups, or finish the mini-wizard shot round.

  Reward: Extra Ball (route-dependent; some also pay a Super Jackpot extra ball on operator settings)