Star Wars

Stern Pinball, 2017 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Open Star Wars in the Pinball Genie app →

Design: Steve Ritchie (code lead Dwight Sullivan). Editions: Pro / Premium / LE — Premium and LE share a playfield. Core rules are identical across editions; only the Hyperspace hyperloop wireform, exploding Death Star, sculpted Millennium Falcon, and the physical Escape ball-save gate are Premium/LE-only (tagged premium-le).

The ~9 shots the rules reference: Left Orbit, Left Ramp, Left mini-loop, Right mini-loop, Right Ramp, Right Orbit, Right Scoop, the 5-target FORCE drop bank, and the center 3-bank standups. Planets map to shots: Death Star = left mini-loop, Endor = left ramp, Hoth = right mini-loop, Tatooine = right scoop.

Character select (ball start): Luke (doubles Lightsaber Duel), Leia (+3x on final planet modes), Han (doubles Escape from Boba Fett; fast to multiballs), R2-D2 (easier/wider multipliers with 7x/14x thresholds — the tournament pick).

Shot Multiplier (scoring engine): starts 2x, +1x per 3-bank standup hit up to 20x base; the 4th FORCE award Double Multipliers lifts the cap to 40x. It decays if you stop feeding the 3-bank. The action/lockbar button toggles the lit "X" green (locked) / red (movable) — flip the X onto your money shot, collect value × multiplier. Spread shrinks as it climbs (3 shots <5x, 2 shots 5–9x, 1 shot 10x+).

FORCE ladder (complete the 5-drop bank): Mystery → Escape (ball save) → Video Mode → Double Multipliers → Lightsaber Duel.

Multiballs: TIE Fighter MB (destroy TIEs at the 3-bank, hurry-up at the TIE target, 35 to start), Hyperspace MB (cycle inlanes → hurry-up at Left Orbit collected at the Death Star mini-loop), and per-planet Victory Multiballs (finish a planet's missions → final mode → Victory MB; Death Star yields a 6-ball). Victory MBs bank bronze/silver/gold medals paid out before the wizard.

Wizard path — Jedi Multiball: requires (1) Jedi Master via Jedi Training, (2) Lightsaber Duel, (3) Escape from Boba Fett, (4) 100 TIE Fighters destroyed, (5) all four planet final multiballs. Then it lights at the Left Ramp — a 2-ball, 4-phase duel with the Emperor.

Skill shots: primary = flashing center 3-bank (Bonus X), secondary = roving lit FORCE drop (spots next FORCE award); ricochet the 3-bank into the roving FORCE light for a double.

Goals in Star Wars

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

• Bonus X Skill Shot skillshot · Easy

  Soft-plunge and hit the flashing center 3-bank to advance the end-of-ball Bonus multiplier.

  Reward: Bonus multiplier advance

• Roving FORCE / Double Skill Shot skillshot · Hard

  Pick off the roving lit FORCE drop to spot the next FORCE award, or ricochet the 3-bank into it for both awards at once.

  Reward: Spot FORCE award (+ Bonus X on the double)

• Escape from Boba Fett (Qualify) combo · Hard

  Chain lit combo shots so the ending shot lights white, then bank four white-arrow shots (last two in non-mode play).

  Reward: Lights Escape from Boba Fett

• Escape from Boba Fett (5-Shot Hurry-Up) combo · Hard

  Fixed-order hurry-up chain; park the shot multiplier across it for a big finish (Han doubles it).

  Reward: Big hurry-up score; Boba Fett complete (Jedi requirement)

• Han Solo Planet Stack (Tatooine → Hoth → Endor) combo · Hard

  Han's consistent multi-billion shot-by-shot line: start a planet mode solo right before its multiball so you exit with multipliers already built.

  Reward: Consistent multi-billion planet stack

• R2-D2 Death Star + Endor Stack combo · Hard

  The game-breaker: build the multiplier, stack Death Star I with Endor III, farm add-a-balls in Endor MB, then run Death Star MB and park 40x on the last shot.

  Reward: 1B+ ceiling

• Ramp Loop Flow Combo combo · Medium

  Alternate the ramps, which feed back cleanly to a flipper, to extend the cyan combo chain toward Boba Fett white arrows.

  Reward: Combo chain toward Boba Fett

• TIE Fighter Multiball multiball · Medium

  Destroy TIE Fighters at the 3-bank to light the TIE target, win the hurry-up, and start the 3-ball multiball.

  Reward: 3-ball TIE Fighter Multiball; Left Ramp Super Jackpot

• Hyperspace Multiball multiball · Hard

  Cycle the inlanes to light a Hyperspace Hurry-up at the Left Orbit, collect it at the Death Star mini-loop, and bank two to start it.

  Reward: Hyperspace Multiball

• Death Star Victory Multiball multiball · Hard

  Complete the Death Star missions, then win Destroy the Death Star for the game's 6-ball Victory Multiball.

  Reward: 6-ball Victory Multiball + medals

• Escape from Hoth Victory Multiball multiball · Hard

  Complete Hoth missions, then run the final: ion cannon at the Left Orbit, tow-cable the AT-AT at the mini-loop, ramps, then the Right Loop.

  Reward: Hoth Victory Multiball

• Rescue the Princess (Death Star) mode · Medium

  The all-character Death Star opener: complete four escalating hurry-up shots.

  Reward: Death Star mission complete

• Video Mode (Asteroid Field) mode · Easy

  Lit by the 3rd FORCE completion (or Hoth); fly the Falcon dodging asteroids, with shot multipliers applying to the score.

  Reward: Video Mode points

• Throne Room Duel (Endor) mode · Hard

  Luke's Endor mode: combo the left and right ramps three times each.

  Reward: Endor mission complete

• The Rancor (Tatooine) mode · Medium

  Luke's Tatooine mode: shoot ramps to light the 3-bank damage phase.

  Reward: Tatooine mission complete

• Shot Multiplier: Build & Move the X multiplier · Medium

  The core scoring loop: build the multiplier on the 3-bank, toggle the X movable, and flipper-walk it onto your money shot.

  Reward: value × up to 20x

• Double Multipliers (40x Ceiling) multiplier · Hard

  The 4th FORCE award doubles the shot-multiplier cap to 40x; complete the top lanes to compound the Bonus X too.

  Reward: 40x shot ceiling

• Lightsaber Duel (Mini-Wizard) wizard · Hard

  Qualified by the 5th FORCE completion: blue shots help allies escape, red shots add time, then the Right Loop wins it.

  Reward: Lightsaber Duel complete (Jedi requirement)

• Jedi Multiball (Wizard) — Qualification wizard · Hard

  Meet all five requirements; the wizard mode then lights at the Left Ramp as a 2-ball, 4-phase duel with the Emperor.

  Reward: Jedi Multiball (wizard mode)

• First-30-Seconds Opener strategy · Easy

  The character-agnostic foundation: skill shot, seat the multiplier, chip FORCE, then qualify a planet.

  Reward: Foundation set for the ball

• R2-D2 Tournament Line strategy · Hard

  The #1 tournament plan: light Endor and Death Star, play Endor MB first to build the multiplier, then run Death Star MB with add-a-balls.

  Reward: Highest repeatable ceiling

• Drain-Risk Discipline strategy · Medium

  Protect ball control: don't mash TIE fighters blindly, keep TIE Assault under ~35 as a ball save, and time out the multiplier rather than force a risky cash.

  Reward: Ball preservation

• TIE Multiball Super Jackpot multiball · Hard

  Inside TIE Fighter Multiball, collect the lit jackpot shots first, then cash the Super Jackpot at the Left Ramp.

  Reward: TIE Fighter Multiball Super Jackpot

• Endor Victory Multiball multiball · Hard

  Qualify Endor at the Left Ramp, clear its missions, then bring in the Endor victory multiball and farm its add-a-balls.

  Reward: Endor Victory Multiball (Jedi requirement)

• Tatooine Victory Multiball multiball · Hard

  Qualify Tatooine at the Right Scoop, finish its missions, then start the Tatooine victory multiball.

  Reward: Tatooine Victory Multiball (Jedi requirement)

• Jedi Training to Jedi Master mode · Hard

  Clear the blue standup banks level after level until you reach Jedi Master, one of the five wizard requirements.

  Reward: Jedi Master status (Jedi requirement)

• Jedi Multiball — Running the Phases wizard · Hard

  In the wizard mode, collect the lit jackpot shots to clear each phase of the duel with the Emperor until the mode is finished.

  Reward: Jedi Multiball completed