Endless mode as its name implies is a never-ending game where the only objective is to get the highest score (like a classic arcade game). However, depending on which modes you used to get CDs, there are 2 that can be unlocked in this mode; the last of which will require you to survive for at least 4 and a half minutes. This guide will not assume you have all 7 CDs and will make no mention of the Ultimate power. I was able to survive the first 4 minutes without it. Just know if you have it, combined with the advice in this guide things will be infinitely easier.

This guide is more oriented towards those of you new to the game and/or struggling with the 5 or 10 minute achievement and it also serves as a way for me to test and verify what I've learned thus far about the game.

Endless takes place in the elevator shaft of the tower (second part of story mode), and as such all enemies up till this point of the story are fair game. Apparently these little buggers have names so I’ll list them here with their picture and a description of their behavior. This is both for new players and for those of you who've cut loose on these guys without knowing their names:

Fodder

These are the most basic unit of enemy in the game and are basically 95% of what you encounter in the game. In endless mode they initially spawn in clusters or groups of 3. The number of Fodder per cluster increases as endless mode goes on with the maximum being 10 per group (I believe). Most of your time will be spent trying to kill these things as soon as you see them spawn. You'll hear a pinging noise when they're ready to attack (if you kept alerts on).

Golden Fodder

If you've collected CDs you know what these are. I think there are only 8 in endless mode, based on the two CDs which you can obtain here. Keep in mind that when you grab a CD part you gain invulnerability for a second in addition to boosting your super meter. This is a great way to catch a breather if you find yourself in a tight spot. Remember not to abuse it though!

Blueblader (spinning blueberry of doom)

These spawn one at a time starting from the top right and alternating to the other side of the screen. Unlike Fodder make sure when you aim at these you hit them multiple times. They're actually 4 enemies in 1! If you don't and forget about it, one of the blades will come swinging at you from above.


Ironcoptor

These spawn more irriadically than the blueblader. They initially spawn in groups of 3, on either the left or right of the screen. Like the Fodder the numbers per group increase as you get further into Endless mode. Taking these out once they spawn isn't as big a priority as it is with the Fodder and Blueblader and the great thing is that they're usually in the path of Fodder, meaning you'll likely take them out without trying. But don't forget about them completely, you've only got about 7 seconds before they inch their way to the nearest platform and become a pain.

Wyrm

The "boss" of endless mode. These spawn after the completion of a set of enemies. The goal with these is to fire multiple fully charged shots at them to knock them back as you continue dealing with Fodder. As you get further along as many as 10 Wyrm can spawn on screen at a given time.


Note: I don’t know If these are the official names. I know for Fodder and Wyrm are, but the rest of the names I got from Soul Cake’s guide.


Now that we know the names of enemies I'll be referring to, here's a list of terms I'll be using as well.


Cluster: Refers to a grouping of enemies. Usually enemies of the same type spawn together in groups of a certain number. The pictures of Fodder and Ironcopter above show a cluster of 3, which is the smallest group size you'll encounter.

Wave: Refers to a full spawn cycle in which major enemy types have appeared at least once. (Note: I’m not formally including Wyrms to make this easier).

Set: The number of Waves between Wyrm appearances. Usually Wyrm appear after 3 waves, so I'm referring to 3 waves as a set.

While it appears that endless mode is just an onslaught ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ there’s a logic to how enemies spawn, at least for the initial 5-10 minutes.

A single wave will consist of a cycle of:

• Fodder
  
• Bluebladers
  
• and occasionally Ironcoptors in that order.

The reason I say occasionally is because, from what I can tell, Ironcoptors appear at the cusp of waves, you can either group them as the last spawn of the old wave or the first spawns of the new wave. I just found it easier to do the former and say they appear in odd numbered waves (the first, third, etc.) After you destroy a Blueblader just be on the lookout for them.

The first Wrym will appear towards the end of the third wave (making this the first "set" as indicated in the last section). Wryms will then typically appear at the end of every 3 waves.

By the end of two sets (or 2 Wyrm encoutners) the durability and number of Fodder and Ironcoptors per cluster increase. You'll know this has happened because the color of the next set of Fodder and Wyrm have changed. For those of you with maxed ultimate power however this shouldn’t matter. If you lose the max overdrive though you may not be able to one shot the higher level enemies.

Here's a general list of spawn times:

• Fodder clusters spawn roughly every 2 seconds
  
  
• Bluebladers spawn after every 5 clusters of Fodder (sometimes spawning with the 5th cluster). This roughly turns out to be about every 10-12 seconds depending on how quickly you take out Fodder.
  
  
• Ironcopter clusters spawn times seem to vary the most (they’re the hardest to keep track of!) but they seem to appear within 3 seconds of taking out Bludbladers
  
  
• Wrym usually appear by the 4th wave. I’m not sure if the appearance is time based or if there’s a specific minute mark. I noticed that across the gameplay footage I’ve viewed, and among my own playtime they appear every 30-40 seconds. Assuming you take out every enemy the second they spawn, this roughly does correspond to 3-4 waves.

Keep in mind that these times are just a rough guideline. Actual observed spawn times depend on several factors, including how quickly you kill enemies.

Here is an example of a single wave. Count the number of Fodder clusters that appear and notice how the first spawn doesn't appear until about the 2 second mark. Also note that, given the rate I'm clearing enemies, the Blueblader arrives around 10.5 seconds:



The key difference to note in later waves is the number of enemies per group or cluster, but the spawn rate is roughly the same from what I can tell; assuming you can clear clusters at the same rate as before.

So what does this all mean for you? As alluded to in the title of the last section these are just rules of thumb. Not only do enemy clusters have spawn variance, but it’s highly impractical to count each and every wave and set you go through. However, for those of you having trouble with Endless initially it might help to count: 1-2-3-4 and time that count to the spawning of Fodder so that you can get in the rhythm of anticipating what is coming.

In general, using these spawn rates as a rule of thumb means keeping in mind to check for bluebladers when the timer is near a round number. For example in a lot my runs Bluebladers appeared around every 11 seconds. So I would briefly glance at the top right or left when the timer hit 22 seconds, 33 seconds, etc.

This can be especially helpful if there’s a certain type of enemy who always gets a hit or two in on you. It can also allow you to better time and mentally prepare for the next Wyrm onslaught; a quick glance at timer may help you anticipate roughly when the next set is coming.

In general your attack strategy will be to use the flick. If you have the second disk, Savant's initial wave splits off into 5 beams which is extremely effective at one-shotting entire clusters of enemies, especially early on in endless.

If you're playing with the mouse + Keyboard setup I believe moving the cursor out allows you to see more of the stage. Flicking would be a matter of rapid clicks. Be sure to extend your cursor to what feels like the center of an enemy cluster; there's nothing worse than leaving one Fodder or Ironcoptor alive and having to spend another second dealing with an enemy that could have been taken out earlier.

For those of you on the gamepad (like me). I find that flicking is easiest while moving around. The moment an enemy spawns I move Savant in that direction. If you're already holding the firing pad, movement cancels out Savant's previous firing stream and begins a new one. I find that's the fastest way to deal with enemies on the gamepad.

Last but not least, remember that Savant's One Collective (6th CD) is a grab that grants temporary invulnerability. If you don't have that, grabbing CD fragments works just as well. But remember there's only a limited number of CD fragments (plus it doesn't take out enemies when you grab CDs). If you find yourself disoriented during a Wyrm encounter you have the option of doing this to orient yourself.

Thanks for reading this brief guide, if you have any feedback or any suggestions/corrections feel free to notify me. And above all have fun and I'll see at the top of the leaderboards sometime. Good luck!