Overview
This guide is a detailed overview of the item system in Madrun.
Item Intro
Items are the core of the game–they’re the source of the chaos and luck that defines the game. They make the game intense and fun for those who’re looking for a giggle with friends, but for those who’re more interested in winning, understanding the items is the key and easily takes priority over technical platforming. In this guide, I’ll go over the exact item distribution system and some common strategies you can employ to be the first to reach the flag.
Before anything else, let’s quickly address what the items are and what they do
-Bomb: stays still for 6 seconds before it disappears, hits any racer upon contact
-Blue Missile: flies straight across the level, hits any racer upon contact
-Red Missile: tracks down the racer directly in front of you and delivers a hit
-Nuclear Bomb: tracks down the racer in 1st place and delivers a hit with a strong throwback
-Explosive Bomb: creates a huge explosion 1 second after thrown or upon contact
-Spike Ball: spins around you for 10 seconds and hits any racer upon contact
-Boost: gives you a short speed boost
-Shield: protects you against all items for 10 seconds, can also deliver hits to other racers
-Blue Missile Launcher: shoots 8 blue missiles in every direction around you
-Red Missile Launcher: shoots 10 red missiles that target random racers in front of you
-Lightning: delivers an immediate hit to every racer and makes them lose their items
-UFO: automatically proceeds forward for you, protects you from all items
Item Distribution
The item you receive is decided at random based on your position. In other words, each position has a pool of items that can be given to the player, and which item in that pool is decided by RNG. Most players come to understand this fairly quickly, but there’s a more “hidden” aspect of the item system that I like to call distance-based items. If you fall behind the player in 1st place far enough, your item distribution changes to favor more powerful items. The distance at which this activates depends on what position you’re in. Two items–the shield and the spike ball–are restricted items, which means you cannot receive that item while it’s active on you. You will receive a boost instead if you already have a shield active, and you’ll receive a red missile instead if you already have a spike ball active.
Non-distance Based Items
1 Player / Time Attack
1st
-Boost: 100%
2 Players
1st
-Bomb: 61.3%
-Blue Missile: 32.3%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.4%
2nd
-Blue Missile: 10.3%
-Red Missile: 16.5%
-Boost: 12.4%
-Shield: 6.2%
-Lightning: 6.2%
-UFO: 6.2%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.4%
-Explosive Bomb: 10.3%
-Red Missile Launcher: 5.2%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 5.2%
-Spike Ball: 5.2%
3 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd
-Blue Missile: 15.6%
-Red Missile: 15.6%
-Boost: 15.6%
-Shield: 9.4%
-Nuclear Bomb: 17.2%
-Explosive Bomb: 7.8%
-Spike Ball: 9.4%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 9.4%
3rd
-Boost: 7.6%
-Red Missile: 7.6%
-Shield: 10.2%
-Lightning: 25.3%
-UFO: 12.7%
-Nuclear Bomb: 17.7%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.3%
-Red Missile Launcher: 6.3%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 3.8%
-Spike Ball: 2.5%
4 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd
-Blue Missile: 16.4%
-Red Missile: 26.2%
-Boost: 6.6%
-Shield: 9.8%
-Nuclear Bomb: 19.7%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.6%
-Spike Ball: 6.6%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 8.1%
3rd
-Boost: 12.9%
-Red Missile: 25.8%
-Shield: 16.1%
-Lightning: 9.7%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.1%
-Explosive Bomb: 8.1%
-Spike Ball: 4.8%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 6.5%
4th
-Lightning: 52.2%
-UFO: 26.1%
-Red Missile Launcher: 13.0%
-Nuclear Bomb: 8.7%
5 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd
-Blue Missile: 19.4%
-Red Missile: 25.7%
-Boost: 9.7%
-Shield: 12.9%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.1%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.6%
-Spike Ball: 4.8%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 4.8%
3rd
-Boost: 12.9%
-Red Missile: 19.4%
-Shield: 22.5%
-Lightning: 9.7%
-Nuclear Bomb: 19.4%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.5%
-Spike Ball: 4.8%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 4.8%
4th
-Red Missile: 9.7%
-Shield: 19.4%
-Lightning: 24.2%
-UFO: 11.3%
-Nuclear Bomb: 12.9%
-Explosive Bomb: 6.4%
-Red Missile Launcher: 9.7%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 3.2%
-Spike Ball: 3.2%
5th
-Lightning: 48.8%
-UFO: 34.1%
-Red Missile Launcher: 17.1%
6 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd & 3rd
-Blue Missile: 12.7%
-Red Missile: 28.6%
-Boost: 7.9%
-Shield: 7.9%
-Nuclear Bomb: 25.4%
-Explosive Bomb: 7.9%
-Spike Ball: 4.8%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 4.8%
4th
-Boost: 13.6%
-Red Missile: 13.6%
-Shield: 30.4%
-Lightning: 10.2%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.9%
-Explosive Bomb: 5.1%
-Spike Ball: 5.1%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 5.1%
5th
-Red Missile: 10.7%
-Shield: 21.4%
-Lightning: 26.8%
-UFO: 12.5%
-Nuclear Bomb: 10.7%
-Red Missile Launcher: 8.9%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 3.6%
-Spike Ball: 5.4%
6th
-Lightning: 48.8%
-UFO: 34.1%
-Red Missile Launcher: 17.1%
7 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd & 3rd
-Blue Missile: 12.5%
-Red Missile: 28.2%
-Boost: 7.9%
-Shield: 7.9%
-Nuclear Bomb: 25.0%
-Explosive Bomb: 7.9%
-Spike Ball: 4.3%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 6.3%
4th & 5th
-Boost: 13.6%
-Red Missile: 13.6%
-Shield: 30.4%
-Lightning: 10.2%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.9%
-Explosive Bomb: 5.1%
-Spike Ball: 5.1%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 5.1%
6th
-Shield: 23.1%
-Lightning: 38.5%
-UFO: 19.2%
-Nuclear Bomb: 7.7%
-Red Missile Launcher: 11.5%
7th
-Lightning: 48.8%
-UFO: 39.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 12.2%
8 Players
1st
-Bomb: 50.0%
-Blue Missile: 50.0%
2nd & 3rd
-Blue Missile: 12.5%
-Red Missile: 28.2%
-Boost: 7.9%
-Shield: 7.9%
-Nuclear Bomb: 25.0%
-Explosive Bomb: 7.9%
-Spike Ball: 4.3%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 6.3%
4th & 5th
-Boost: 13.6%
-Red Missile: 13.6%
-Shield: 30.4%
-Lightning: 10.2%
-Nuclear Bomb: 16.9%
-Explosive Bomb: 5.1%
-Spike Ball: 5.1%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 5.1%
6th
-Red Missile: 11.1%
-Shield: 22.2%
-Lightning: 27.8%
-UFO:13.0%
-Nuclear Missile: 11.1%
-Red Missile Launcher: 7.4%
-Blue Missile Launcher: 3.7%
-Spike Ball: 3.7%
7th
-Lightning: 53.7%
-UFO: 26.8%
-Red Missile Launcher: 14.6%
-Nuclear Bomb: 4.9%
8th
-Lightning: 60.0%
-UFO: 30.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 10.0%
Distance-based Items
The number next to the placement indicates the distance from first place at which distance-based items are activated (Unity Engine position units)
2 Players
2nd (80)
-Nuclear Bomb: 60.0%
-UFO: 20.0%
-Lightning: 10.0%
3 Players
2nd (70)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-UFO: 10.0%
-Lightning: 10.0%
3rd (85)
-Nuclear Bomb: 50.0%
-UFO: 30.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
4 Players
2nd (65)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 20.0%
3rd (80)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-UFO: 10.0%
-Lightning: 10.0%
4th (95)
-Nuclear Bomb: 40.0%
-UFO: 40.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
5 Players
2nd (60)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 20.0%
3rd (70)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
4th (85)
-Nuclear Bomb: 60.0%
-UFO: 20.0%
Lightning: 20.0%
5th (100)
-Nuclear Bomb: 20.0%
-UFO: 40.0%
-Lightning: 40.0%
6 Players
2nd (60)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 20.0%
3rd & 4th (70)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
5th (85)
-Nuclear Bomb: 30.0%
-UFO: 30.0%
-Lightning: 40.0%
6th (100)
-UFO: 50.0%
-Lightning: 50.0%
7 Players
2nd (60)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 20.0%
3rd & 4th (70)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
5th (80)
-Nuclear Bomb: 50.0%
-UFO: 30.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
6th (95)
-Nuclear Bomb: 20.0%
-UFO: 35.0%
-Lightning: 45.0%
7th (110)
-UFO: 50.0%
-Lightning: 50.0%
8 Players
2nd (60)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Red Missile Launcher: 20.0%
3rd & 4th (70)
-Nuclear Bomb: 80.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
5th & 6th (80)
-Nuclear Bomb: 50.0%
-UFO: 30.0%
-Lightning: 20.0%
7th (95)
-Nuclear Bomb: 20.0%
-UFO: 35.0%
-Lightning: 45.0%
8th (110)
-UFO: 50.0%
-Lightning: 50.0%
Basic Strategies
There are many ways you can use the item system to your advantage, but I’ll go over some of the general concepts. First of all, use items quickly! There are numerous places in the game where multiple item boxes are in your reach. Don’t pick one and go. Hit all of them and quickly use the item you receive from each box. The more items you use, the more damage you’ll deliver other racers, and the more likely you’ll receive the ideal item, which brings me to my second point–manipulate your position for an ideal item. Running forward might not always be the answer when bombs are flying all over the screen. Get yourself into a position where you’re most likely to receive the item you need. For example, if you need a UFO to get through a barrage of bombs, get yourself into a bottom position for a better chance at it. Finally, be aware of the items your opponents can receive. For example, if you’re trying to save a UFO for a difficult section, consider whether your opponents are in position to receive lightning since it can take away your item. Likewise, if you know your opponents cannot take away your item, you can hold a UFO until the end for a guaranteed top spot.
In addition to general concepts, there are some item-specific strategies I’d like to mention.
-Bomb: an excellent weapon to build a lead. You can drop it on top of players trying to clear a jump and send them off the cliff. You can also use it to block tight spaces where your opponents will be forced to take the hit to progress.
-Blue Missile: similar to the bomb, you can use it to knock players off the map. Since it has a lot more range, you can snipe racers on moving platforms near you.
-Red Missile: If you see a racer in front of you falling off the map, use your red missile right when you think they’re respawning. The missile will lock on to that racer and deliver a hit after respawning.
-Explosive Bomb: try not to throw it towards racers very close to you since they’ll trigger the explosion immediately and catch you in it.
-Red Missile Launcher: you cannot receive an item while it’s active. The launcher shoots 10 missiles, so count them and hit an item box as soon as the 10th missile is shot.
-Nuclear Bomb: if you’re the one being targeted, either jump off the map or find a vertical surface behind you to prevent getting thrown back. The sides of item boxes are great for the job.
-Boost: a very powerful item in the right hands. Boost, jump, and hold the direction of the boost at the same time to gain massive amounts of speed and clear huge gaps. This technique is especially useful in Level 14 due to its low gravity.