Man's Best Mech - Levels 361 - 366 (Region 61)

[Phaedrakiki]

Didn't see this one on the TL Blog, so I borrowed this photo from the JM Regions Master thread:

Didn't find anything on the web about Man's Best Mech ('least not yet, anyway.) The "Man's Best" part of the name made me think of Bean Dog (of course, lol!) I mean, just how good a Mech is this? Looks friendly enough, I'll give him that... Ah, well...in the meantime, we don't need encouragement to have some fun on this island of Jewel Mania! Looks like a lot of digging levels, too -- fun stuff!

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Got one more level before I reach this island. But it's also good to have the thread ready in case someone already playing here cares to share some tips!

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 361: Dig 12 meters in 3:20 (4JC.) This digging level has lock and chain embedded down the center; the locks are all one color with increasing numbers on them as you dig down: 21, 60, 114, 180, & 240. There's super dirt and black jewels in the chained areas, that open up as each count is reached (plus extra black jewels at the top & bottom.) There are also vertical windows running the entire length, completely separating columns 1 & 3...and 6 & 8. The separated columns are entirely super dirt.





With only 4 colors in use, there's no shortage of special jewels and combos. The hard part is getting the right ones in the right places. Horizontal (row) blasters are def needed, to get those side s.d. columns. And vertical blasters help to clear the super dirt & black jewels in the middle. My attempts at this so far are not pretty--not getting far at all. You have to watch out for setting off combo chains that keep you from scrolling fast enough. Again, blaster + bomb's the best way to go if you can (fast and effective.) Gonna try this some more, see if I can do a better/faster job, cuz it doesn't seem like there's enough time to reach the goal!

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 362: Dig 24 meters in 50 moves (3JC.) This is fun! Four lock & chain (L&C) areas of the same color (different each round) are embedded in staggered areas as you dig down the 24 meters. The lock counts are 45, 180, 360, & 510. As you unlock each L&C, you'll find super dirt, stone jewels, and gift boosts (1 reshuffle & 1 auto-row blaster.)








The moves are very tight. I had to make choices between diamond + blaster or blaster + bomb many times (usually go for blaster + bomb if it's near super dirt cuz the blast range is a "sure thing.") I also had some diamond + diamond swaps (always fun!) With only 3 colors, you'll get tons of self- & bonus matching, too...so don't let the high numbers on the locks worry you. I didn't find the stone jewels to be much of a problem, it was pretty easy to turn them into special jewels and use them on the super dirt. I didn't use my reshuffle boost, but it could come in handy. For example, if you had some specials, but they weren't in good spots (the boost could place them better!) And don't forget you have an auto-blast boost, too. Use it if you get stuck and need some s.d. blasted (you don't wanna waste moves!) I tried to save mine 'til the end, to use once I passed the goal line. There it narrows to just a column of super dirt, so it's difficult to dig beyond the goal unless you've got special jewels ready (a vertical in the right spot would be nice!) I wanted to get beyond the single column, where it opens to full width again, but didn't quite have enough moves. I passed this on my 2nd or 3rd try, but only got 1 star. I'll definitely be playing it again. It was great fun (and of course, gotta get those stars up!)

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 363: 16 fire in 55 moves (5JC.) There are flames inside all 3 lock & chain (L&C.) Each one has a different target color (& changes each round.) The L&C at the bottom has 8 flames inside; count of 45 on the lock. The L&C's at the end of each "arm" hold only single flame; lock count is higher at 60. The board has an odd shape, with cutouts and windows, making it difficult to access/extinguish the fire.



You need special jewels and combos to unlock the L&C as well as extinguish the fire. This took me many, many attempts to finally pass--I think the level needs more moves added. The weird shape of the board makes it very hard to put out the fire w/regular matches, esp. when those single flames get unlocked. But I didn't have a lot of luck making combos, either. I seemed to get maybe 1 good one per round, either before the L&C opened (to help unlock) or after (to put out fire.) But you need at least 2, and I just couldn't seem to make that happen in the same round. I finally got a round with several diamonds, which ended up working quite well after I took out the bottom row with a blaster. I did this with one of my favorite moves...where you use a vertical blaster as one of the 4 jewels in a horizontal blaster-making move. (I particularly love using this move in digging.) The vertical blaster blasts through the dirt/fire, etc., clearing the way...then leaves the horizontal blaster at the bottom...right where you need it! Then when you activate it, the fire gets wiped right out (Yay!) Anyway, I barely scraped through on my last round, using all but one move...after the last diamond took out several flames, I got lucky with matches right where I needed them. Woo-hoo!

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 364: Dig 9 meters in 70 moves (5JC.) The entire dig is super dirt, except for the embedded restricted jewels, ice/white blocks, and lock and chain (L&C.) There's only one chained area, with 3 color locks (60 count on each.) You have to unlock all three to release the black jewels inside.





Of course, you need special jewels/combos for this one, to get through the super dirt, as well as clear large amounts of jewels to open the L&C. I'm wondering if you actually have to open the L&C on this (since there's no s.d. inside.) It would be much easier to unlock it, cuz the s.d. on the right side would be difficult to get to. But I'm just curious if it's possible, lol! I'm still working on this one, keep running out of moves. Probably one of those situations where you have to wait for the perfect board...that gives you the right opportunities at the appropriate time in the game... (in other words, a "lucky" board! )

[Phaedrakiki]

Btw, on 364, the colors of the L&C locks are the same each time--blue, green, purple. It took quite a few tries to pass this one. It's lots of fun and pretty easy to make lots of special jewels and combos, but you have to be careful & use your moves sparingly. I finally got a "lucky" board", and still almost ran out of moves (had just a few left.) Forgot to mention, I tried to make a match of 3 or more (esp. in one of the "target" colors) against the ice at the top (1st meter.) The color-matching instantly gives you more working board space, and if you can do it with one of the lock colors, it cuts your lock count that much faster. Enjoyed this one!

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 365: 16 fire in :45 (4JC.) The time goes by very fast on this lock & chain (L&C) fire level! There are 2 locks that require a count of 45 to unlock them. They're each a different color, and the colors change each round. The board has cutouts, which can make movements a bit tricky. There's really no time to do anything but swipe frantically here--45 seconds is insanely short!



You have to make lots of special jewels and at least one big combo (like blaster + bomb or diamond + blaster or bomb) to clear lots of jewels fast & get the side L&C open. At the same time, you have to push the fire down in the middle, so you can (hopefully) get a blaster + bomb down there (or at least some horizontal blasters.) Then, once the side flames are unlocked, you can set off the combo (or detonate blasters) and extinguish the fire. That was my goal, though I kept running out of time before I could even come close to getting the L&C open.

I played 4 or 5 times, then finally got a lucky round where the sides unlocked just as the screen started to flash. I had jewels self-matching & doing all kinds of crazy things from all my frantic swiping, and then a blaster and a bomb fell on top of each other right on the bottom in the middle. With only a couple seconds left, I swapped them (remembered to swipe up, lol!) It wiped out all the fire! I couldn't believe it...thought I'd get stuck here a long time. Lucky, lucky (oh, thank you JM Gods!)

[Phaedrakiki]

Level 366: Dig 8 meters in 60 (5JC.) Another super dirt lock & chain level, in a cool shape. You have to unlock two 45-count locks, to get to the restricted jewels chained inside. The L&C colors are the same each round--green & purple. It's a short dig, but the board's shape makes it difficult...especially going from narrow to wide. There's also a small window at the bottom, for more difficulty...





Played this several times, and I kept coming up way short. After the initial screen when you scroll down, your working area gets quite narrow & small. This makes it difficult to clear many of the target jewel colors and/or make specials & combos. So I started targeting as many green & purple jewels as I could before clearing that first meter of dirt (which makes the screen scroll,) taking advantage of the larger screen before it gets smaller.

I was still working on perfecting that strategy, when I got a very lucky break. I had just scrolled down, having made some special jewels, but couldn't get them together for a combo. Soon the screen reshuffled (common once the screen gets smaller,) putting a blaster & bomb right on top of each other at the bottom of the restricted jewel area. (I had cleared one column of the restricted jewels with a vertical blaster, but everything else including the super dirt, was intact.) I couldn't believe my luck--what a perfect place for them to land! Swiped the blaster + bomb (up) and it took out all the s.d./cleared the restricted jewels. Whew, that saved me lots of moves. The screen scrolled again, and I finally passed the level. At the goal line, I blasted into the last layers of s.d., but couldn't clear it all. But I got a horizontal blaster in the row underneath the goal line, then activated it on my last move. Yay! This level was lots of fun, but definitely challenging, too!

So, now it's off to Cliff Cabin island (where it's all moves levels--yay!)

[finnth12]

Bugs!!!






Sorry, I posted here, cos I couldn't posted it on bugs and issues, it was locked thread.
I lost 2 energy here, game still playing but the holes didn't fill up with jewels, btw, I passed this level, just got a chance to post picture.

[Phaedrakiki]

Bugs!!! (...)
Sorry, I posted here, cos I couldn't posted it on bugs and issues, it was locked thread.
I lost 2 energy here, game still playing but the holes didn't fill up with jewels, btw, I passed this level, just got a chance to post picture.

Hi finnth! Long time, no see! I was wondering if you were still playing JM, and which island I'd have to check to find you "hanging out." Regarding the Jewel Mania | Bugs and Issues section of the forum, I'm not sure which thread you were trying to post in (that you said was locked.) I saw a couple locked threads, but if you can't find an open thread with a similar problem, you can always start your own. Name it something appropriate & descriptive, so others with similar issues can find it (something about "the jewels not filling in properly" or whatever.) I've had the same issue a couple times myself. But a force-close of JM and hard-restart of my phone seem to fix the problem. In fact, I do both on a regular basis, as a preventative measure. Sounds weird, but it seems to work pretty well. I've been playing the Jewel Mania Halloween version lately. Seems to work a little smoother for some reason...

Anyway, I'm glad to see you back here (been pretty quiet--kinda lonely, lol!)