Sylvan Bus Stop - Levels 283 - 288

[aileeniweeni]

poor little bean dog has to wait at the bus stop in the rain. but he has a leaf to give him cover on top of his head. haha

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/caf51d28-64bc-4701-b245-bf48ecec9148_zps77b14204.jpg

Level 283... timed glass level with lock & chain and crates

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/6e16e2d1-45f3-4534-b2c3-d3b1fac339cd_zps89e323ec.jpg

two areas of lock & chain with counts of 45 on each lock. the colors of the locks will change from round to round. And i really had to keep repeating which colors i was supposed to focus on (repeating in my head) because the time goes by so fast!! each of the crates has glass underneath, so you need to break through those to break the glass. this round is all about moving fast fast fast!! still working on this. have gotten close a bunch of times, but i never manage to have a lot of time left by the time i unlock both regions.

[aileeniweeni]

Level 284... fire moves level with stone jewels, crates, and portals

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/007f7f9a-e14f-470c-9e00-71e636ef508c_zpsb1dad64c.jpg

30 moves to get 14 fires. this took me a couple times to pass and i didn't really focus on trying to get rid of the stone jewels. the first thing the fire will eat is one of the stone jewels, and it seemed to be the one on the left for me. i just focused on breaking the crates. also, i made sure to make sure the fire didn't spread to the very top row corners because then it will become nearly impossible to reach those fires. luckily i was able to get a horizontal blaster in the bottom row to go off and i passed. yay!

[aileeniweeni]

Level 285... timed digging level with super dirt, stone jewels, white blocks, and black jewels.

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/7f6bbc25-5bc5-43a5-87a4-7a4fcf5f7308_zps00acca05.jpg
http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/10582464-5b13-49ec-84f8-5738537d5b3d_zpsfc86fcd3.jpg
http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/27f12c7d-7838-45f3-9bf7-6278f66031a1_zpsfd490c44.jpg

this level actually starts at 2:10, but i snapped the picture a bit late. when i first played this i forgot it was timed so i was taking my time to try to make blasters to dig through the super dirt and then before i knew it time was almost up and i barely got anywhere. so my next tries i was just moving like mad! still working on this and haven't gotten really close to the bottom yet. hoping i will improve with practice :)

[Zzmottomzz]

@aileeniweeni : thanks for your screenshots and comments on each level :) it was really helpful to me !
I've just finished level 294 and I can affirm it is the last one (for the moment) !

[aileeniweeni]

@aileeniweeni : thanks for your screenshots and comments on each level :) it was really helpful to me !
I've just finished level 294 and I can affirm it is the last one (for the moment) !

Hey wow you're up there! great job! there's been a new region after level 294 now, The Phoenix's Prison! go check it out!

[aileeniweeni]

Level 286... glass moves level with portals

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/2539c017-e5ab-48f6-976c-13654529ecdf_zps14d3ed4a.jpg

this level took me several tries because of the hard to reach spaces, which are the left and right columns. i don't know what finally did the trick, but combining a diamond and blaster definitely helps. you'll tend to create the most blasters/bombs in the middle section which can get portaled to different areas of the board. Corner areas are also "harder to reach". i didn't really have many opportunities to do a bomb and blaster combo, but since the middle area doesn't have any glass, the combo is not that useful as it normally is in other levels.

[aileeniweeni]

Level 287... timed fire level with lock & chain, snakes, and restricted jewels

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/cc7ac547-0645-46be-847a-05167e931eb7_zps99093c1e.jpg

the benefit of clearing out the snakes and restricted jewels is to have a larger board area to make matches. but it's not necessary to get rid of them right away. if you happen to unlock the lock & chain before you **** the snake, the snake will prevent the fire from spreading. as soon as you release the restricted jewels or **** a snake, the exposed fire is free to spread. Each lock has a count of 45, and the colors will change from round to round. I had to keep repeating the colors in my head to remember which to focus on. The middle fire in the square box, i eliminated with a bomb + blaster. Or you'll need consecutive vertical blasters. bomb + blaster combo is also good to wipe out the other fire areas, but can be done with regular matching. Just gotta get really lucky with match-ups.

[aileeniweeni]

Level 288... digging moves level with super dirt, snakes, crates, and white blocks

http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/465052ba-e67a-4f49-a6d1-f33b2c7dd5df_zpsdfcdd920.jpg
http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/a149ff7c-8d87-4a03-b5df-8bc74000986f_zps0423a038.jpg
http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r738/aileeniweeni/b9539af5-dd1a-4ef8-9456-bb75ab0702bf_zps3c39c305.jpg

i'd try to work on the dirt on the right side first and hope to make a horizontal blaster to get the super dirt on the left side. when the screen scrolls down to the snakes, i used regular matching around the head to get rid of the snake to the left, but i usually ended up making a horizontal blaster to get rid of the snake to the right. then just worked my way down and made more blasters to get rid of the last of the super dirt. i also tried digging underneath the super dirt on the right side, to make it fall if i couldn't make any blasters or bombs.

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 283: 34 glass in 1:35 (5JC.) They added 20 seconds to this since post #1, but I'm still barely able to get the L&C open most rounds. Need to go much, much faster to be able to tackle the glass. Not sure what to do, other than keep playing and getting used to the board/layout...hopefully "training" myself to be faster, lol. Played about 8, 9 times so far--still need more practice bcuz it's looking pretty pathetic! ;)

[Phaedrakiki]

I've lost track of how many times I've tried level 283, but I'm not even getting close. With all this practice, I've been able to break some glass a few times (after having opened the L&C.) But nowhere near enough--how do people to this? I wish I had quicker fingers/could think faster. Well, at least this level isn't as stressful as a timed fire/doom jewel level. But it's still SO difficult for me. Unless more time's added...I'm gonna be stuck here a long time. Or I could get lucky with the perfect round, maybe. With lots of blaster + bomb combos and diamonds galore? A couple times I got one lock & chained color open fairly early, but it seemed like the other color was nowhere to be found. I wonder if it's intentionally giving less jewels of that color? Idk, but this seems kinda hopeless. Gonna take a break from JM for a little while! :)

[aileeniweeni]

I've lost track of how many times I've tried level 283, but I'm not even getting close. With all this practice, I've been able to break some glass a few times (after having opened the L&C.) But nowhere near enough--how do people to this? I wish I had quicker fingers/could think faster. Well, at least this level isn't as stressful as a timed fire/doom jewel level. But it's still SO difficult for me. Unless more time's added...I'm gonna be stuck here a long time. Or I could get lucky with the perfect round, maybe. With lots of blaster + bomb combos and diamonds galore? A couple times I got one lock & chained color open fairly early, but it seemed like the other color was nowhere to be found. I wonder if it's intentionally giving less jewels of that color? Idk, but this seems kinda hopeless. Gonna take a break from JM for a little while! :)

hmm i noticed this too when i was playing that level. that one color seemed to always be less present on the board. and yea i remember the time was reallllly tight!! def good there are no doom jewels, that'd be too much haha. i'll take a lil JM break with you too! (good thing it's time for my energy to recharge anyways ;) ) but you'll get it soon for sure!!

[Phaedrakiki]

Thanks, Aileeniweeni! My "break" seemed to help...I came back to it and had that (practically) perfect, lucky round I was hoping for. I combined a diamond + blaster, then one of the L&C opened. Then I used a blaster + bomb, which opened the other L&C. After that, I combo'd another diamond + blaster! A few more matches, and the glass was gone! Had like 1 or 2 seconds left--barely made it. But, "Yay!!!" is all I can say, heehee! :D

[Phaedrakiki]

Then I went on to Level 284: 14 fire in 35 moves (5JC.) 5 moves added since prev post, but I was able to pass this with more than 10 moves left (took a few tries.) A diamond + blaster did the trick. This was a fun level, but you have to have the right board to get good combo opportunities & matches near the flames. Be careful, as the fire can get out of control if you let it creep up the sides too far.

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 285: Dig 12 meters in 2:30 (5JC.) They added 20 seconds to this, but I'm not getting anywhere near the finish line. The super dirt is really tripping me up; the furthest I usually get is 5 or 6 meters (barely halfway.) I got to 10 meters one time, prob bcuz I had perfect blaster + bomb combos falling into the ideal spots to wipe out the super dirt. Haven't had that luck since, unfortunately. I've been through 3 rounds of 5 energies so far, so at least I'm well practiced, lol. If I do get that lucky board, I should be ready for it. Just wish I had more time so I didn't have to stress on it, lol! ;)

[Phaedrakiki]

Well, I kept trying/practicing 285 over and over, and I got to 8 meters a couple times. But never got close to the goal line. Until my last round--I finally had the end in my sights. Time was about to run out, though...so I pressed the "more time" button. But that didn't do the trick like I thought it would, so I had to press it again. And still, I barely squeezed through the finish. I had a bunch of diamonds that helped me detonate blasters where I aimed them, and a couple blaster + bomb combos. A pretty lucky round, but I still needed help. So I have no idea how others are able to do this level in the alotted time! They must be fast, Fast, FAST!

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 286: 38 glass in 40 (5JC.) They added 10 moves to this. It really helped, bcuz I passed on my first attempt. I used a blaster + bomb in the middle of the board to clear out some of the side glass. I also had lots of nice matches on the sides (which normally would be hard to reach--I assume.) I was down to 1 glass when I combined a diamond + blaster. Lots of fun when you don't really need it, but it's good for the score, lol. This was a really fun level. Why is it the levels I enjoy take a couple tries, and the timed levels I dislike take me an entire day or more? And speaking of un-fun timed levels...

Level 287: 18 fire in 2:10 (5JC.) 25 seconds added to this one, but it feels impossible to me. I'm gonna have to do this many times because something about it feels overwhelming. I'm hoping practice will give me a better feel for it. I've played it twice so far & I'm getting nowhere with the fire. Aileeni's right, once the snakes and/or restricteds are cleared, the fire takes over fast! Whew, I'm already unhappy about this one...

[Phaedrakiki]

I passed 287, to my complete surprise! :0 I really hated that level; it was making me miserable. I was pretty much just going through the motions in hopes I'd get really lucky with a bunch of perfect combos or something. On my last round, I had pushed back the fire a bit, and some specials had fallen to the bottom (blaster on left, bomb in middle, like that.) I was down to just a few seconds when I had a blaster next to a bomb in the upper area. I swapped 'em just for fun, and the T-blast set off the blaster below, which set off the bomb, etc. It wiped out every single flame--even though the combo itself wasn't anywhere near the fire! Hallelujah...it's a miracle!!! :D

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 288: Dig 12 meters in 60 moves (5JC.) They added 10 moves to this (since orig. post,) but it's still very tight. I almost had it on my second try. Got down to 1 square, but my last move couldn't break the last dirt/brick (had lots of diamonds & blaster + bomb combos that turn.) This is a fun level though. I'll be happily working on it some more as soon as my energy recharges... ;)

[Phaedrakiki]

Passed 288, and now I'm off to Skyward Chariot (http://forums.storm8.com/showthread.php?55463-Skyward-Chariot-Levels-289-294)!

[jeweledsoul]

Needing one more star at the Sylvan Bus Stop in order to move on has become nearly impossible. I have two stars at every stop except 283. I fear I am losing my abilities. Not moving fast enough anymore? God I hope not. I love this game! But, the Sylvan Bus Stop is making me crazy!