Cirqus
Voltaire

Objective

Complete nine marvels, the circus achievements in the diamond grid above the flippers. Then enter Join the Cirqus, a sequence of challenges ending in Party Multiball. Rows and columns light the six CIRQUS letters; the letters are not six additional tasks.

Start with the Ringmaster, the rising green head, and Highwire Multiball, the three-ball round earned at Highwire ramp. You can make progress toward both together.

Shots

These are the actual cabinet table and its shot entrances. Tap the playfield to enlarge the map. Suggested attempts are starting points; cabinet feeds have not been playtested.

Juggler orbit

The far-left lane runs behind the ramps. It advances Juggler, collects a lit Side Show or extra ball, and starts the finale.

Try: Try a right-flipper forehand from a settled ball. A short shot can rebound from the entrance.

Side Show targets

The two yellow Ballyhoo targets flank the Ringmaster. Hit them until Side Show lights at Juggler orbit. The targets sit immediately to the left and right of the green head.

Try: Use controlled shots from either flipper toward the yellow targets. Watch rebounds toward the middle.

Highwire ramp

The broad ramp left of the Ringmaster has LIGHT and LOCK targets at its entrance. Targets make a lock available; the ramp collects it.

Try: Use a firm right-flipper forehand. A weak climb can roll back toward the middle.

Menagerie ball

The captive silver ball beneath the lower-left wire cage advances Menagerie when struck. The adjacent white wall target also counts.

Try: Use a right-flipper forehand from a settled ball. This is a short rebound shot; recover before firing again.

Ringmaster

The green head rises above the WOW bank. Hit the head or side targets to light its collar, then shoot beneath the raised head.

Try: Either flipper can reach the face. Start from a controlled ball; a square hit can rebound straight down.

Ringmaster loop

The little loop curves around the head. Its left entrance is beside Highwire ramp; its right entrance passes the spinner and SPIN lamps.

Try: Use a right-flipper forehand for the left entrance. From the left flipper, aim through the right entrance; an inaccurate shot can hit WOW.

Acrobat orbit

The far-right rising lane passes outside the Ringmaster loop. It advances Acrobats and collects several multiball awards.

Try: Use a firm left-flipper forehand. Follow the complete ramp return before trying another shot; a short attempt can roll back.

Jets and Boom

The lower-right bumpers include a hidden bumper that rises for Boom. The red bumper shown is part of the area, not the hidden bumper itself.

Try: Use Juggler orbit or the left entrance of Ringmaster loop to feed the bumper area. A post blocks a direct flipper shot at Boom.

SPIN lamps

The vertical blue letters beside the right Ringmaster-loop entrance show Spin progress. Repeat the loop promptly to finish the word.

Try: Use the Ringmaster loop, not the adjacent Acrobat orbit. Wait for control if a return is heading toward a drain.

Launch

Soft-plunge toward the red skill-shot target across the table. Too short: add a little strength next launch. Too far: reduce it. There is no calibrated cabinet percentage.

Home 2.0 can offer a reward menu: choose with the flippers before plunging. Prefer progress toward the multiball you are closest to starting. Simple-skill-shot or tournament settings replace that menu with points. A successful shot during a finale can advance its current phase.

A successful skill shot displays its award. If it misses, continue normal play.

First game

1. Hit WOW beneath Ringmaster until the head rises.
2. Hit the face or Side Show targets until the collar lights, normally five hits. Shoot beneath the head to defeat it.
3. Hit both LIGHT and LOCK targets at Highwire ramp, then shoot the ramp for a lock. Repeat until three locks start Highwire Multiball.
4. During multiball, take the flashing jackpot arrows. With one ball left, resume missing marvels. If a shot keeps rebounding dangerously, change to a shot you can control.

Ringmaster

The first defeat normally scores points. Later defeats start Frenzie, Razz, then Special, the three Ringmaster multiball rounds. A setting can skip the first head.

• Frenzie: shoot beneath Ringmaster for jackpots. Rapid consecutive collections pay more. With two balls alone, it ends at one.
• Razz: shoot beneath Ringmaster promptly to stop the falling value. Shoot again. Watch for the extra-ball lamp.
• Special: before the first jackpot, Ringmaster loop spinner hits and head hits build its value. Five head hits open the hole; shoot beneath Ringmaster to freeze and collect. This supplies Defeat All Ringmasters.

If a Ringmaster timer is displayed, SPIN adds time; multiball pauses the timer. A timeout requires raising the head again. Completed marvels survive a normal drain; unfinished head-hit retention is unverified.

Nine marvels

The grid records these nine achievements. After Frenzie, Special or Highwire Multiball, check the grid when the round ends.

• Frenzie: play Ringmaster Frenzie.
• Defeat All Ringmasters: reach and play Ringmaster Special.
• Highwire: start Highwire Multiball with three locks.
• Juggler: advance Juggler orbit until its multiball starts, normally six credited shots. Watch the lock count.
• Side Show: collect an award at lit Juggler orbit. You need not win the awarded challenge.
• Acrobats: make four credited Acrobat orbit shots. This enables higher-value spinner scoring for the ball. Hard settings require complete ramp shots.
• Menagerie: hit Menagerie ball repeatedly, normally five credits.
• Boom: complete the red VOLT rollovers to raise the hidden bumper, then hit it before it retracts. Ordinary Jets and Boom activity builds its value.
• Spin: promptly repeat Ringmaster loop until all SPIN letters light.

Spot Marvel awards a missing achievement at Highwire ramp when its lamp is lit. Menagerie and Side Show can light it; a right-inlane pass can provide a brief chance. Finish easy achievements first so the award can save harder work. It does not necessarily start the associated multiball.

Multiball

Highwire Multiball

• LIGHT and LOCK targets make locks available; Highwire ramp collects three to start three balls.
• Juggler orbit, Acrobat orbit and the left entrance of Ringmaster loop score 1M jackpots. First collect the lit set, then follow the moving arrow.

Juggler Multiball

Juggler orbit builds and collects locks. The three-ball round pays 500,000 at either outer orbit. Balls are held briefly: another orbit within roughly ten seconds pays 1M, then another pays 2M. Timeout releases balls and resets the sequence.

Strike an Arc

This two-ball round starts after enough Highwire ramp shots, normally five initially, then ten and fifteen. Locks count. Every switch charges the displayed percentage; 100% pays automatically. Ringmaster loop and Jets and Boom produce many switch hits.

These rounds normally end at one ball. Starting protection and virtual locks depend on settings. No separate add-a-ball shot or guaranteed restart has been verified; the combination below is the deliberate extension route.

Side Show

Hit Side Show targets until Juggler orbit lights, then shoot that orbit for a random award. There is no prize-selection menu.

• Neon Multiball: three balls with the table darkened. Hit WOW ten times to light an extra ball; further groups award points. Collect the extra ball at Juggler orbit. Ends at one ball.
• Roonie: a screen obstacle course. Press both flippers together to jump; finish before its timer expires.
• Cannonball Run: use the flippers to fire the backbox cannon repeatedly before time expires. Successful shots increase the next award.
• Popcorn Mania: shoot Ringmaster loop or Jets and Boom for many switch hits before time expires. Filled popcorn containers pay automatically.
• Hat Trick: shoot beneath Ringmaster three times before time expires. Home code allows Ringmaster interaction alongside this round.
• Copy Cat: repeat the growing sound/light pattern. Remember the old sequence plus its new final cue. Watch the display for inputs; exact cabinet controls and the extra-ball threshold are unverified.
• Quick Jackpot: shoot the displayed jackpot arrow. Its cabinet timer and value are unverified; act promptly.
• Other awards: immediate points, a lit Highwire lock, lit Spot Marvel, or extra play. A lit lock still needs a ramp shot.

Timed awards end on completion or timeout; take their shots while available. Their operator-adjustable timers are not assumed here.

Stacking

1. Prepare a raised Ringmaster for its final collection.
2. Start Highwire, Juggler or Strike an Arc first.
3. Shoot beneath Ringmaster last to add Frenzie, Razz or Special. The combined round can use four balls.

Starting the Ringmaster round first normally blocks those ordinary starts. Do not assume every multiball combination is available.

When a combination drops to one ball, immediately shoot Highwire ramp if Voltaire Multiple Jackpots is lit: it collects a jackpot from each former round. The opportunity is brief. Home's optional ALL M/B RESTART setting changes combination behavior; its installed value is not yet verified.

Extra balls

When EXTRA BALL lights, shoot Juggler orbit to collect the extra normal ball. Common opportunities are the Razz defeat, enough Menagerie hits, enough raised Boom hits, ten WOW hits during Neon, and winning Ringmaster Battle. Side Show and Copy Cat can also provide extra play.

Thresholds, caps and saves depend on adjustments. A multiball’s added ball is temporary; a replay normally awards credit. Neither means another normal ball. The Ring 1/2/3 lamps increase end-of-ball bonus; this does not multiply live jackpots.

Join the Cirqus

With all nine marvels complete, finish active multiballs, then shoot Juggler orbit or Acrobat orbit. The normal sequence is:

1. Spell CIRQUS: hit Menagerie ball, Juggler orbit, Highwire ramp, Ringmaster loop, WOW, and Acrobat orbit, once each in any order.
2. Unmask Voltaire: alternate Ringmaster and Highwire ramp four times, then shoot Ringmaster once more.
3. Meet the Cirqus: shoot whichever of Juggler orbit, Acrobat orbit or the left entrance of Ringmaster loop has the jackpot arrow. Each successful shot adds a ball and changes the shot. Make six collections.
4. Party Multiball: four balls with major shots lit. Keep at least two balls alive; at one ball, normal play resumes.

Completing each of the first three phases pays 10M and deliberately drains the balls before serving the next phase. During those phases, one remaining ball is still playable. Losing every ball after protection ends uses a normal ball; the next ball retries that phase.

Stay alive

Ringmaster and short target shots can rebound directly toward the gap. Take controlled attempts and recover between hits. During multiball, preserve a ball on a raised flipper when possible while using the other ball for the lit shot.

A reviewed Neon demonstration, 3:14–3:56, shows settling balls before WOW shots, then using Juggler orbit for the extra ball. It uses FX3; its physics and settings are not evidence of cabinet feeds.

Scoring

First plan: prepare Ringmaster, start the nearest ordinary multiball, then collect the prepared head. This advances marvels while protecting the dangerous bashing with multiple balls.

Battle detour: after Special, leave one marvel unfinished and end other multiballs. Defeat the next head for Ringmaster Battle. Hit Ringmaster or Side Show targets; delays and drains undo progress. Balls are replaced until victory or failure. Either result resumes the same normal ball; victory lights an extra ball. Score settings can reduce awards.

Withhold one marvel only if you want that detour. It delays Join the Cirqus. Otherwise, use Spot Marvel to finish the grid and pursue the finale's completion awards.

Playfield words

Your table

Bally, 1997. This guide follows your VPW Mod v1.1 table with Home 2.0 code, not the original arcade-only rules. Operator adjustments can change the starts, timers, saves and finale selection. No full cabinet playthrough has been performed.

The map comes from your cabinet's own playfield recording. Research combines Williams' feature instructions, Home release notes, modern rules and Magnasco's rulesheet.