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American McGee's Alice Game Guide
Introduction
Chapter 1 - General Strategies
Chapter 2 - Toys
Chapter 3 - Combat and Boss Strategies
Chapter 4 - Level Walk-Throughs
Appendix - Cheat Codes
Guide Contents
Title
American McGee's Alice Game Guide
Chapter 2 - Toys

Alice can't liberate Wonderland all by herself - she needs an assortment of toys, otherwise known as weapons, to assist her. You'll find nine different toys during Alice's journey. Most of the toys possess primary and secondary attack functions. This section describes the toys you'll uncover during the trip through Wonderland and how best to implement them against the Queen of Hearts' forces.

Vorpal Blade

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Vorpal Blade
The first weapon Alice acquires is the vorpal blade, which is basically a sharp (and rather long) butcher knife. The vorpal blade features two attacks. Its primary mode is a melee attack that doesn't require any strength of will (the blue meter). The vorpal blade's secondary mode is a rough ranged attack. Pressing the secondary fire button will throw the knife at the target dot. After throwing the blade, Alice doesn't need to run over to pick it up - the vorpal blade will eventually reappear in her hand, but it takes several seconds to do so. This puts you at a distinct disadvantage if you're leaning on the blade as your main form of attack.

The melee attack requires quick footwork to be effective. You must be able to dodge quickly and employ hit-and-run tactics in order to strike with the vorpal blade but avoid the enemy's attacks. Approach the enemy, strike with the vorpal blade, and then sidestep left or right or pull Alice back and away from the enemy. Use the vorpal blade's ranged attack to strike the enemy from a distance and inflict some damage, then switch to another weapon and resume the attack - this is more effective than waiting for the blade to reappear in Alice's hands. But, if you're out of strength of will, be patient with the ranged blade, and you can take out an enemy without getting close.

Cards

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Cards
The deck of cards offers two separate ranged attacks. The primary attack launches single cards in a rapid-fire fashion. Target the enemy by facing it and activating the blue rings around it. Once the targeting ring appears, launch the cards. Be careful as you attack, though - if the enemy moves behind an obstacle or dodges quickly, the cards could either strike another object or miss entirely. The deck of cards' secondary attack launches a "burst attack" of cards; Alice tosses a handful of cards that track the enemy (though not all will likely strike the target).

The deck of cards offers a good combo attack with the jacks (described later in this section) or the ranged vorpal blade. After tossing the jacks or the blade, follow up with the cards' rapid-fire primary attack. Realize, though, that the cards aren't the best use of strength of will. They drain will quite rapidly and don't inflict the same amount of damage as the less expensive jacks. Keep that in mind as you attack. The deck of cards can be very effective at long range, much like the croquet mallet's secondary mode.

Mallet

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Mallet
Like the vorpal blade, the croquet mallet offers two forms of attack - melee and ranged. With the primary fire button, the croquet mallet operates as a billy club, providing you with a powerful close-range attack. The secondary mode offers a long-range attack - Alice tosses up a croquet ball and whacks it toward the target with the mallet. The croquet mallet offers a nice mix of attacks, but its ranged attack is quite slow and requires excellent accuracy to be consistently effective. If you start missing with croquet balls, you risk damage from the approaching foes.

Use the croquet mallet's primary attack like you use the blade's primary attack. Employ hit-and-run techniques so you aren't standing in the enemy's range for too long. Circle around your enemy and pound on the target as fast as possible with the mallet. If you think you're in a poor position, back Alice off and regroup or target the enemy with the mallet's secondary attack. The secondary attack only works well at long range when you aren't in immediate danger from a quick counterattack, as the mallet's secondary attack's rate of fire is quite slow.

 
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