The Official Through the Fire and Flames Thread

[Fugitive]

Alright, it's about time to up my score on this song. I'm right about the 480k mark as my top score and I'm thinking with some practice and correct combo'd section that I could 5* this beast of a song. I basically have 2 questions.

1st: How do you guys combo Blackest waves. Is it just finger speed and practice? or is there some technique that I'm missing out on?

2nd: What sections do I really have to combo to 5* this song and what kind of star path should I be looking at? I've got the intro down (obviously, I have a damn guide), and can usually only mess up once or twice in post insanity type parts. I'm thinking I just need to hit those little bridge type sections between fast strumming sections so I can hold my 4x multiplier longer and know when to use my star power perfectly. I can usually get through the solo with no Star Power too, or should I learn to combo some part of the solo and SP there?

Thanks in advance for advice!

[Fugitive]

Alright, it's about time to up my score on this song. I'm right about the 480k mark as my top score and I'm thinking with some practice and correct combo'd section that I could 5* this beast of a song. I basically have 2 questions.

1st: How do you guys combo Blackest waves. Is it just finger speed and practice? or is there some technique that I'm missing out on?

2nd: What sections do I really have to combo to 5* this song and what kind of star path should I be looking at? I've got the intro down (obviously, I have a damn guide), and can usually only mess up once or twice in post insanity type parts. I'm thinking I just need to hit those little bridge type sections between fast strumming sections so I can hold my 4x multiplier longer and know when to use my star power perfectly. I can usually get through the solo with no Star Power too, or should I learn to combo some part of the solo and SP there?

Thanks in advance for advice!

[HoorayItsMike]

Here's just a somewhat short section by section guide to 5* TTFAF. I think it'll really help if you actually go into practice mode and follow along section by section. If you want to 5* this song, you have to work at it.

Intro: FC this for sure. Messing up once or MAYBE twice is ok as long as you get SP phrases.

Transition from Intro to Post Insanity: Now technically the transition starts on that down scale starting with orange. TAP THAT ORANGE. There is no reason not to and I don't know why I didn't for so long. Tap it and then your left hand is already in 1st position to continue down the scale as 4321. I can hit this part about 75% of the time now with this technique.

Post insanity I: Now at the end I always used to rush those last 2 greens and then go into the upward scales. No need to rush those greens. Take your time with them and getting SP here helps more than you realize. If you have to stop playing for a second to get the SP then do it. Activate SP once you get an 8x multiplier again. Don't whammy.

Post Insanity II: For the end I only use 3 fingers. I end with 333311 for the BBBBGG part and then continue to only play with 3 fingers for that little solo. Again don't rush those greens at the end. The first downward scale is a lot easier than a lot of people realize.

Cold Winter Morning: Defintely getting SP here will help you a LOT. Hit the chords early and try not to freak out. Staying in second position the whole time seems to be the best for me (until the green note comes obviously). You can try to practice hitting the next yellow part by only strumming non HO/POs, but it's no where near essential for 5 starring. Definitely hit the upcoming green streak of SP and then activate just before (during the chords) the second red alt strum part. Muscle memory in both of your hands plays a key role in these strumming sections. Practice is key. Practice using and not using HOPOs and see what you like best. This section will forever be annoying to nearly every player and I have never FCed it in a really run.

Fighting High!: This section isn't as difficult as it seems. Take some time to try and learn how to strum all non HOPOs. If you just can't get it then it's ok, it's not THAT essential for 5 star.

Blackest Waves: Lots of people have trouble with this section so I would definitely advise doing a 11212111212111212 fingering method. Those fingerings probably aren't exact but basically just use 2 fingers and slide back and forth accordingly. I'm not good with using freticons so you won't be seeing those, sorry. You can do the same for the next hard part but for some reason I can do that one with the 12323212323 method much easier and it also makes transitioning to the next upward triplets MUCH easier. Not a whole lot of advice for the triplets besides get faster fingers and maybe try sliding to go 123 122 123 123 234. Use different combinations of sliding to see which works best for you.

Flying Free: Comboing this section except for the ending triplets is DEFINTELY essential for 5 star. When going from the Orange to the GRY chord and strums I would hit the orange a little early to give you time to go all the way back down. You get 2 SP phrases out of here and you should activate just before 2 beats into the GRY chord once you get 2 SP phrases. At the end, be sure that you only hold down the blue fret and then transition. Don't hold down green like you would in Post Insanity.

So Far Away I: Use SP on next note and really try to hit this part if you can. I find just tapping that lone orange note makes this section a lot easier. It's not complex tapping and there's no awkward stretching.

Bridge I: Get the SPs. Combo what you can. Don't fail.

Red Dawn: Combo beginning. I rarely hit the zigzag, don't worry about it.

Red Dawn II: Try to get the SP if you can, it can help you out but not a WHOLE lot to be honest. This section is very similar to Cold Winter Morning. Practice is key if you want to hit it. It's not essential for 5 star, though.

Dreams of Freedom: Very similar to Blackest Waves. On the second transition to the descending scales be SURE you keep the yellow held down after you hit the blue before you continue down the descending scales. It's actually harder than you would think and many people break combo here and can't figure out why.

Wings of a Dream: Easy to combo. Remember to hit that Orange a little early before the GRY fast strums. If you have hit 4 SP phrases I would activate Right on the GRY chord or in the middle of the strums. If you have 3 then activate on the GRY sustain after the GRY into G fast strums. (that's in the next section, just so you know)

Lost Inside, Lost Within: Like I said a second ago, if you have 3 SP phrases hit then activate on the GRY sustain at the beginning of this section. The rest make sure you combo until the ending awkward trills.

So Far Away II: All of this should be easy to combo except the middle intro-type notes. I tap those but you don't have to. Just make sure you hit SP afterwards and whammy. Combo the rest.

Bridge II: Hit what you can. Not a big deal.

Synth Death: Alright...now comes decision time. If you can hit Synth Death pretty all the way through, then I would use your SP here. Use it about 1 second into the Held GRY note before the difficult part. If you can't hit it then save it for awhile. If you can't one hand the end trills then there is NO reason not to practice tapping. You have time to prepare yourself beforehand and it's fairly simple tapping. Count how many times you have to tap each note and it'll be very easy. I always start tapping with an elbow strum, but that's just me. Remember, if you see 5 more red notes to tap, that means you only tap 4 of them, because when you move up to the next trill, your regular fretting hand will take care of the 5th one. I always overtapped and messed up and could NEVER understand why.

Grinding Scales I: Uhh. Hit this. Should be fairly easy.

Solo Fill I: The main key here is to get the SP. Hit what you can but focus on getting the SP. Practice can definitely help in this section.

Grinding Scales II: If you didn't use SP during Synth Death then DEFINITELY use it now. If you did use it in Synth Death and you got both SP phrases then again, use it now. If you only have one (or no) SP phrases then focus in the coming sections.

Solo Fill II: Hit what you can, not a whole lot is easy in here though. Stop playing at the end so you can prepare to hit the upcoming SP phrase. You won't hit the ending anyways.

Climatic Build-Up: Favorite part of the song. Hit both phrases here. You can do it if you really try. The first strumming part seems semi off beat so really focus when playing that part. The second one just ignore the OYGYOYG part before it and hit the descending chords. Activate immediately.

Herman's Solo: Hit as much of the solo as you can and then be sure to get the easy phrase in here. Don't worry about the whammy.

Sam's solo: You can try to practice tapping this part but it's fairly complex. Not worth it just for a 5 star and definitely not essential. No SP to worry about.

Herman's Solo II: You should combo all of this until the end and especially the SP. Not only for points but to keep your rock meter up as much as possible.

What The..!?: Yea....try to hit the end and try not to crash your rock meter. Flail with strategy.

Twin Solo: Practice the beginning of this part. You need to keep your rock meter up because you said you can get through the solo without SP. Hit the SP and then just stay alive. You should have 3 SPs at this point. If you missed one it's really ok because we have 2 more to get before we activate.

Here We Stand: Practicing getting this SP if you don't already hit it consistently.

So Far Away III: Yea...spam red and a little green during the snake to help your rock meter. Don't even try to hit the higher frets.

Rampaging Dragons: If you have 4 SP phrases already then activate at the beginning of this section. If you don't then hit the one at the beginning here and wait until after the middle transition to activate.

Almost There...: Hit the chords, I never hit the weird part. Don't bother playing the last few weird parts and prepare for tapping.

You Rock!!!: Tap it. Whatever way works best you really should tap this to help out your score. Do your best to transition to the strumming and then there's the end. I just fly my strumming hand down and sometimes it works. Just do your best and hopefully you'll get the 5 star.

Good luck!
_________________

Squeezing Guide - TTFAF Section by Section 5* Guide - Trials HD Extreme Courses Guide
Proud Christian

[HoorayItsMike]

Here's just a somewhat short section by section guide to 5* TTFAF. I think it'll really help if you actually go into practice mode and follow along section by section. If you want to 5* this song, you have to work at it.

Intro: FC this for sure. Messing up once or MAYBE twice is ok as long as you get SP phrases.

Transition from Intro to Post Insanity: Now technically the transition starts on that down scale starting with orange. TAP THAT ORANGE. There is no reason not to and I don't know why I didn't for so long. Tap it and then your left hand is already in 1st position to continue down the scale as 4321. I can hit this part about 75% of the time now with this technique.

Post insanity I: Now at the end I always used to rush those last 2 greens and then go into the upward scales. No need to rush those greens. Take your time with them and getting SP here helps more than you realize. If you have to stop playing for a second to get the SP then do it. Activate SP once you get an 8x multiplier again. Don't whammy.

Post Insanity II: For the end I only use 3 fingers. I end with 333311 for the BBBBGG part and then continue to only play with 3 fingers for that little solo. Again don't rush those greens at the end. The first downward scale is a lot easier than a lot of people realize.

Cold Winter Morning: Defintely getting SP here will help you a LOT. Hit the chords early and try not to freak out. Staying in second position the whole time seems to be the best for me (until the green note comes obviously). You can try to practice hitting the next yellow part by only strumming non HO/POs, but it's no where near essential for 5 starring. Definitely hit the upcoming green streak of SP and then activate just before (during the chords) the second red alt strum part. Muscle memory in both of your hands plays a key role in these strumming sections. Practice is key. Practice using and not using HOPOs and see what you like best. This section will forever be annoying to nearly every player and I have never FCed it in a really run.

Fighting High!: This section isn't as difficult as it seems. Take some time to try and learn how to strum all non HOPOs. If you just can't get it then it's ok, it's not THAT essential for 5 star.

Blackest Waves: Lots of people have trouble with this section so I would definitely advise doing a 11212111212111212 fingering method. Those fingerings probably aren't exact but basically just use 2 fingers and slide back and forth accordingly. I'm not good with using freticons so you won't be seeing those, sorry. You can do the same for the next hard part but for some reason I can do that one with the 12323212323 method much easier and it also makes transitioning to the next upward triplets MUCH easier. Not a whole lot of advice for the triplets besides get faster fingers and maybe try sliding to go 123 122 123 123 234. Use different combinations of sliding to see which works best for you.

Flying Free: Comboing this section except for the ending triplets is DEFINTELY essential for 5 star. When going from the Orange to the GRY chord and strums I would hit the orange a little early to give you time to go all the way back down. You get 2 SP phrases out of here and you should activate just before 2 beats into the GRY chord once you get 2 SP phrases. At the end, be sure that you only hold down the blue fret and then transition. Don't hold down green like you would in Post Insanity.

So Far Away I: Use SP on next note and really try to hit this part if you can. I find just tapping that lone orange note makes this section a lot easier. It's not complex tapping and there's no awkward stretching.

Bridge I: Get the SPs. Combo what you can. Don't fail.

Red Dawn: Combo beginning. I rarely hit the zigzag, don't worry about it.

Red Dawn II: Try to get the SP if you can, it can help you out but not a WHOLE lot to be honest. This section is very similar to Cold Winter Morning. Practice is key if you want to hit it. It's not essential for 5 star, though.

Dreams of Freedom: Very similar to Blackest Waves. On the second transition to the descending scales be SURE you keep the yellow held down after you hit the blue before you continue down the descending scales. It's actually harder than you would think and many people break combo here and can't figure out why.

Wings of a Dream: Easy to combo. Remember to hit that Orange a little early before the GRY fast strums. If you have hit 4 SP phrases I would activate Right on the GRY chord or in the middle of the strums. If you have 3 then activate on the GRY sustain after the GRY into G fast strums. (that's in the next section, just so you know)

Lost Inside, Lost Within: Like I said a second ago, if you have 3 SP phrases hit then activate on the GRY sustain at the beginning of this section. The rest make sure you combo until the ending awkward trills.

So Far Away II: All of this should be easy to combo except the middle intro-type notes. I tap those but you don't have to. Just make sure you hit SP afterwards and whammy. Combo the rest.

Bridge II: Hit what you can. Not a big deal.

Synth Death: Alright...now comes decision time. If you can hit Synth Death pretty all the way through, then I would use your SP here. Use it about 1 second into the Held GRY note before the difficult part. If you can't hit it then save it for awhile. If you can't one hand the end trills then there is NO reason not to practice tapping. You have time to prepare yourself beforehand and it's fairly simple tapping. Count how many times you have to tap each note and it'll be very easy. I always start tapping with an elbow strum, but that's just me. Remember, if you see 5 more red notes to tap, that means you only tap 4 of them, because when you move up to the next trill, your regular fretting hand will take care of the 5th one. I always overtapped and messed up and could NEVER understand why.

Grinding Scales I: Uhh. Hit this. Should be fairly easy.

Solo Fill I: The main key here is to get the SP. Hit what you can but focus on getting the SP. Practice can definitely help in this section.

Grinding Scales II: If you didn't use SP during Synth Death then DEFINITELY use it now. If you did use it in Synth Death and you got both SP phrases then again, use it now. If you only have one (or no) SP phrases then focus in the coming sections.

Solo Fill II: Hit what you can, not a whole lot is easy in here though. Stop playing at the end so you can prepare to hit the upcoming SP phrase. You won't hit the ending anyways.

Climatic Build-Up: Favorite part of the song. Hit both phrases here. You can do it if you really try. The first strumming part seems semi off beat so really focus when playing that part. The second one just ignore the OYGYOYG part before it and hit the descending chords. Activate immediately.

Herman's Solo: Hit as much of the solo as you can and then be sure to get the easy phrase in here. Don't worry about the whammy.

Sam's solo: You can try to practice tapping this part but it's fairly complex. Not worth it just for a 5 star and definitely not essential. No SP to worry about.

Herman's Solo II: You should combo all of this until the end and especially the SP. Not only for points but to keep your rock meter up as much as possible.

What The..!?: Yea....try to hit the end and try not to crash your rock meter. Flail with strategy.

Twin Solo: Practice the beginning of this part. You need to keep your rock meter up because you said you can get through the solo without SP. Hit the SP and then just stay alive. You should have 3 SPs at this point. If you missed one it's really ok because we have 2 more to get before we activate.

Here We Stand: Practicing getting this SP if you don't already hit it consistently.

So Far Away III: Yea...spam red and a little green during the snake to help your rock meter. Don't even try to hit the higher frets.

Rampaging Dragons: If you have 4 SP phrases already then activate at the beginning of this section. If you don't then hit the one at the beginning here and wait until after the middle transition to activate.

Almost There...: Hit the chords, I never hit the weird part. Don't bother playing the last few weird parts and prepare for tapping.

You Rock!!!: Tap it. Whatever way works best you really should tap this to help out your score. Do your best to transition to the strumming and then there's the end. I just fly my strumming hand down and sometimes it works. Just do your best and hopefully you'll get the 5 star.

Good luck!
_________________

Squeezing Guide - TTFAF Section by Section 5* Guide - Trials HD Extreme Courses Guide
Proud Christian

[Fugitive]

[Fugitive]

[HoorayItsMike]

[HoorayItsMike]

[thealright1]

I need some serious help!!!!!!

I can do most of the song fine apart from the solo.

The intro is easy now and when I have no fail on I can get 82% but when I'm doing the solo on a proper run I fail so badly, and this is with star power.

As soon as I get to climatic buildup it all goes downhill.

I can get to What the if i use my star power early on but I can't get it back on Hermans solo 2 or anywhere else.

Can someone please give me some pointers for like the entire solo and probably the red snake afterwards.

Thanks

[thealright1]

I need some serious help!!!!!!

I can do most of the song fine apart from the solo.

The intro is easy now and when I have no fail on I can get 82% but when I'm doing the solo on a proper run I fail so badly, and this is with star power.

As soon as I get to climatic buildup it all goes downhill.

I can get to What the if i use my star power early on but I can't get it back on Hermans solo 2 or anywhere else.

Can someone please give me some pointers for like the entire solo and probably the red snake afterwards.

Thanks

[1PARTYBOY1]

[1PARTYBOY1]

[Gunslinger21]

HoorayIsMike

Thank you for you advice on TTFAF. Using what you said, I was able to go from 485k to 545k!

I hope a 5 star will come soon.

[Gunslinger21]

HoorayIsMike

Thank you for you advice on TTFAF. Using what you said, I was able to go from 485k to 545k!

I hope a 5 star will come soon.

[Master-Tesuch]

I need help hitting the reverse, CoD like tapping bit in Herman's solo. In Chris's FC vid, he taps it with two hands, then again, he taps everything, so that might not be best for me. Also, I watched one of JLC's videos (I think it was him, but a top level player, anyway) and I saw that the red fret was being held down, so he might have been tapping it, but I couldn't see his hands.
Basically, I need 750k, and I'm 16k  away right now, Herman's Solo is the next easiest part that I can't combo, and I need the points, badly. How do other people hit this part? Do you use two hands? Do you hold down red? Do you use one hand? Help me please!!
Thanx for the help that is sure to come by the way.
_________________

My Tutorials: How to Hardwire your Les Paul |Les Paul Overstrum Fix
HOW TO PRONOUNCE "TESUCH": Say Tea, like in "green tea," or a "golf tee." Then say "Sutch," like when you say "such as," it also rhymes with "Dutch." TEE-SUTCH. Say it right, plz.

<----- One of the hardest banners to earn on ScoreHero!!! The story is pretty good anyway, go ahead, give it a try!

[Master-Tesuch]

I need help hitting the reverse, CoD like tapping bit in Herman's solo. In Chris's FC vid, he taps it with two hands, then again, he taps everything, so that might not be best for me. Also, I watched one of JLC's videos (I think it was him, but a top level player, anyway) and I saw that the red fret was being held down, so he might have been tapping it, but I couldn't see his hands.
Basically, I need 750k, and I'm 16k  away right now, Herman's Solo is the next easiest part that I can't combo, and I need the points, badly. How do other people hit this part? Do you use two hands? Do you hold down red? Do you use one hand? Help me please!!
Thanx for the help that is sure to come by the way.
_________________

My Tutorials: How to Hardwire your Les Paul |Les Paul Overstrum Fix
HOW TO PRONOUNCE "TESUCH": Say Tea, like in "green tea," or a "golf tee." Then say "Sutch," like when you say "such as," it also rhymes with "Dutch." TEE-SUTCH. Say it right, plz.

<----- One of the hardest banners to earn on ScoreHero!!! The story is pretty good anyway, go ahead, give it a try!

[HoorayItsMike]

[HoorayItsMike]

[Y0urSweetShadow]

.......should i be able to 5* TTFaF??
I got Take This Life as my 6th FC, so i figured i could........
But I'm stuck at 480k
_________________

[Y0urSweetShadow]

.......should i be able to 5* TTFaF??
I got Take This Life as my 6th FC, so i figured i could........
But I'm stuck at 480k
_________________

[HoorayItsMike]

[HoorayItsMike]

[PiemanLK]

[PiemanLK]

[HoorayItsMike]

[HoorayItsMike]

[Fugitive]

[Fugitive]

[TheThirdDay]

[TheThirdDay]