0.9.3-RC1 World Map Route

This is pretty much for all golds. I made this guide to hopefully minimize world map travel time based on what unlocks and when, when I wanted to do runs of this game for once. Here's an image:
https://puu.sh/yjtJt/b4ade8825e.png

Here is the image without the arrows and path marks in case you want to route your own way:
https://puu.sh/yhKmS/66fdadfeda.png

You can also click on the map to get to far locations such as the paths between B-I and C-D

Boosting Tips

Through some of my time racing in this game, i have found out many things about the mechanics of boosting. This is what i know so far, and i hope they can help you to be an more efficient driver!

Starting Boost:
This does not increase your top speed, but does give you some speed right off the bat.
You can activate it easily by accelerating right when the race starts. Still if you press too early, you will get a penalty!

Drift Boost:
When drifting, you can gain a speed boost if you let go depending on how long you have drifted for.
Yellow boost comes out very fast, accelerates you and raises your top speed. It is very powerful, and if you aren't in a yellow boost state, you should.
Red boost comes out much slower, but does last longer and has a higher top speed. Be sure to use it fully though, as yellow boosts will override it.

Nitro:
Nitro temporarily increases your speed cap, but it will not accelerate you faster! This means it is ineffective to use nitro if you are not already at top speed.
When using nitro, there is a minimum time it will be consumed for.
Dugglez: By pressing the nitro key slightly before you pick up the nitro you can use a small bit of it and keep 2 more charges.

Zipper:
Instantly propels you at top speed, i leave that to your creativity!

Conclusion:
The best thing about all these boosts is that they will stack on top of each-other, be sure to use each effectively and have fun!

That is my guide for now. It is very possible in the future that the boosting mechanics will be changed, as STK is not entirely complete.

General Time Saving

Here are some tricks you can do to save on time throughout the run that I've found over the years I've seen Super Tux Kart:

Starting the Race:

If you pause with escape after about a second after the map finishes loading, you can cause the race countdown to start early. My hypothesis is the game spawns the bird which is supposed to bring down the countdown light, but pausing it makes the game assume the bird is already done its animation, causing the bird descent animation to be skipped.

Drifting:

It is always good to at least have yellow drift since its free speed and with practice can be done on any straight path. I've gotten a lot of time to practice it, it's awkward at first but always a time saver. Red drift is always better than yellow drift if you can route in ways to fit it in, but bear in mind having no drift speed at all slows you down.

Item usage:

The Fly Swatter, Bubble Gum, Parachute, and Time Bomb are all mutually exclusive of one another. For example, if you have a time bomb, that will be overridden by a parachute, which can also be overridden by applying gum. The only exception is a fly swatter over a time bomb, in which case you will lose the fly swatter afterwards.

The parachute can be ended early by slowing down sufficiently enough. It basically has a force-end speed that eliminates the parachute should you ever go some speed below the speed you got the parachute at. If you've already run over a zipper with stacked boosts just before getting the parachute, you may not even need to slow down at all.

The bouncy ball (which I like to call "the Impending Slam Jam") can be stopped or avoided a couple of ways:
- You can cause the bouncy ball to collide with a wall or ceiling. The bouncy balls explode on contact with surfaces that are not floors.
- You can block it with bubble gum.
- You can throw an attack item at it. If it collides with the bouncy ball, it'll explode.
- In some rare cases, you can outrun it. Red drift + Nitro is enough to keep up with the bouncy ball when it's in rapid bounce mode. Adding a zipper with any combination of Drift and nitro can outrun a bouncy ball.
- In some even rarer cases, you can confuse the bouncy ball. An example is Candela Town's pair of paths down the long road.

World Map:

While you can teleport to other stages, track warps right next to each other (Like the four tracks off in the desert or the three in the mountain) are fairly slow when clicking the map because it's easier to just accelerate and go instead of taking the time to click.

GP Double-Skip is Possible!

https://youtu.be/V4_reAi6Pjs

You need to manipulate the standings to guarantee victory, though a little luck usually helps too. You can most certainly win the GP with 18 points as shown here.

What you want to do is, during every skip race, you want to manipulate the winning CPU into losing the race by causing that CPU to fall behind before you skip the race. The current race standings are used when you skip the race.

It is apparently not mathematically possible to triple-skip the GP on a 5-race GP.

GP Routing Guide for 0.9.2

@Kitoko & @alayan have run some great full game runs that have helped to optimise this guide

I will update this guide with 0.9.3 expert IL WRs once the list has been filled. Some strategies for SuperTux are different for Expert.

I'm not sure if it will be better to fill this list with IL WRs or GP individual level times. GP times may be more reflective of the Story Mode experience.

This routing is based on the 0.9.2 Expert IL WRs (An SSS denotes a Super Safe Strat - Check @Ubuntujackson s youtube for IL strats - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-NJCmMCFxUMsOR1ZWoFszw/search?query=stk

After the first skip, play the next track until the leader is last, then exit immediately. The rest of the GP can be ran as normal.

This routing has been tested as working on novice difficulty.

Penguin Playground:
RUN! Shifting sands - alayan has skip
SKIP! Cornfield Crossing - 2:10???
RUN!  Olivers Math Class - 1:31
SKIP!  Antediluvian Abyss - 2:00???
RUN!  Nessies Pond - SSS


Off the Beaten Track:
SKIP! Cocoa Temple - 2:06
SKIP! Northern Resort - 2:07
RUN!  Hacienda - 1:50 - Check Hatninja's video for a safe strat 
RUN!  Zen Garden - 1:26???
RUN!  Snow Peak - 1:47

To The Moon And Back:
SKIP! Gran Paradisio Island - xx
RUN!  Green Valley - SSS
RUN!  Blackhill Mansion - SSS
RUN!  STK Enterprise - SSS
SKIP! Volcan Island - xx

At Worlds End:
LOCKED!!!    Fort Magma - xx
RUN!  MiniGolf - 1:21
RUN!  XR591 - 1:48
SKIP! Old Mine - 2:13
RUN!  Around The Lighthouse - 1:19

Gran Prix with a Race Skip

How to get rid of a parachute

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsvRYTWl7A8
Just hit a wall.

How to use nitro skillfully in 0.9.3

In 0.9.3 (and in some previous versions), there is a minimum nitro spending time.

As the bonus keeps going for a time after the key press stop, and as it has a fade-out time, it's better to use it in bursts as short as possible.

But is it good to only press the key very fast ?

No !

There is a bug which does that even if nitro is consumed, it won't have any effect if the key is not pressed at the same time. The sound of nitro consumption works the same way, so if you see the graphical effect but don't hear the nitro sound, you stopped pressing the nitro key too early (but note there is a 0,1s minimum delay at the end if you go over the min time).

The optimal play is to press the key exactly as long as the min time. This is obviously impossible, but if you manage to do it +-0,1s (the exact time is 0,53s) you should go faster than before.

My WRs were done before the discovery of this bug. As on a 2 minutes IL-race, this can mean 5 seconds more with nitro active, and so one or two seconds may be won with this.

Powerups and their uses.

BubbleGum - Can be used to block one item used on you (also, makes you immune to bubblegum on the ground and if you use it when you have a bad item on e.g. bomb it will disappear.)

Cake - one of the best attacking items, because it autoaims and compensates for speed

Plunger - if shot forwards, it can latch on to a player (or wall to go faster). if shot backwards it makes you somewhat blind like in mario kart with the bloopers

Bowling ball - should be called a boomerang. if shot well then can easily take out others, if shot poorly then you should be ready to get hit

Parachute - Blatant Rubberbanding. use this to put a parachute (and slow down) any competition in front of you.

Anchor - Slows you down

Swapper - the best name you could come up with, STK team? anyway, switches bananas to boxes, boxes to bananas, nitro tanks (any) to gum and gum to big nitro tanks which is good

Basket Ball - RunStopper™

Swatter - hits enemys and also if you have a bomb it will whack it off

Preload tracks in RAM

(Note : this apply to 0.9.2 or below. For 0.9.3, it is highly recommended you instead use the timer mod available in the resources, to have the loading times not counted.)

The loading time of tracks is an issue for full-game runs. Say your computer needs 2 seconds per track. Over a full run, that's 42 seconds lost (there are 21 tracks in STK 0.9.3).

You can slash this time down significantly by preloading all the tracks into RAM by using another profile which has all the tracks unlocked. You need to enter each track once for this. You also need enough RAM so that your computer will keep it as a cache (4GB or more should be fine). Then, they will load significantly faster.

Reverse Mode and Egg Hunt Tips for STK 1.x

This guide covers tips specific to reverse time trials and egg hunts. For general routes or egg locations, take a look at the record videos.

Reverse mode tips:

Cornfield Crossing:

It is possible to "jump" over the ramp in reverse mode with just the right amount of speed. If you have too little, you will take the ramp. If you have too much, you will hit the ceiling. For heavyweights, do not get a red boost on the preceding turn. Get only yellow boosts and don't use any nitro. You should skip the ramp consistently if you use this method. If you must use a middleweight for this course, it is still possible to skip the ramp with a combination of red boosts and nitro, but it is less consistent.

Cocoa Temple:

The second ramp will cause some trouble. Go off the very left of it. Right when you go off it, start skidding right and release a yellow boost. You will need to take a quick left turn after this. It is important to tap the brakes as needed. After this, take the left route with the zippers and charge a red boost by skidding left. On the final lap, however, this route is slower, because the race ends before the boosting wears off. So instead, take the right route. On the first two laps, use your zipper a few seconds after landing from the first ramp. On the third lap, you can use your zipper at the end (since you're not already boosting).

Oliver's Math Class:

Although heavyweights are faster in the normal direction, you should use a middleweight for reverse mode.

Candela City:

The trickiest part is getting the big nitro can at the end. Get a red boost on the preceding turn, but tap on the brakes to avoid getting air. On the final lap, just get the small nitro can to the left.

Minigolf:

The turn following the golf ball obstacle can be skipped. Use the hole as a ramp to get over the fence. There is also a very minor shortcut after the tunnel. Get a red skid boost in the tunnel and use some nitro. You should have enough speed to fly over the last turn after the ramp.

Black Forest:

Take the same route you take in normal mode, for the most part. This includes the train tracks. The exception is that you shouldn’t follow the train tracks all the way through. Get off the tracks right when you can do so without hitting too much grass. It is possible to drive around the train but it is usually not necessary, unless the train is very early and you have to do so to avoid driving on a lot of grass.

STK Enterprise:

Use the zipper as you are skidding on the last turn of each lap. You will have to use the last one a little earlier, though, in the split path area. Don’t worry about collecting the last nitro can on the final lap.

XR591:

Don’t take the upward loop too tight, or you will get some air. Take the turn just tight enough to get the nitro can. Go right when you get to the split paths.

Egg hunts:

Most egg hunts make use of a Thunderbird exploit (thanks to Theodore for working out how to use this effectively). If you cross the finish line at the very beginning, but then immediately start driving in the backward direction, Thunderbird will not update your location. In other words, if you respawn, you will go back to the finish line. Observe how the records use this exploit to take faster routes. Use lightweights for every egg hunt except Cocoa Temple, where you should use a middleweight.

Cocoa Temple:

With enough speed you can get the first egg and gracefully drive over the elevated area to the left route, where the second egg is. Approach the first egg by skidding at a wide angle and release a yellow boost.

Minigolf:

This is by far the most difficult egg hunt. The first trick (using the hole as a ramp) is very inconsistent and will likely take several resets. There is an alternative route that is a few seconds slower. Watch Theodore’s first run if you choose to take it. There are different ways to get from fifth egg to the area with the sixth egg. You can either drive slow into the fifth egg or you can drive faster into the wall behind the fifth egg and then back up slightly to realign. Either way, follow it with a precisely angled skid to the right of the bridge. Practice getting the last egg, as it is very easy to underestimate how far to the right it is.

Speedrunning Guide for STK 1.x

Here you will find tips and techniques that will help you improve your time trials, speedrun story mode, or just become a faster racer. The general driving tips are useful for all modes, the item/racing tips are useful for any mode with opponents, and the story mode tips are useful for story mode of course. ;)

General driving tips:

Skidding is crucial. You should be boosting at least from yellow skids nearly all the time. Do a yellow skid as quickly as possible to get to full speed faster (like at the start of a race or after getting hit). Red skids are more powerful, so try to get them when possible. Unlike in 0.9.3, yellow boosts no longer cancel out the effect of red boosts, so you don't have to wait before skidding again after a red boost. Skid boosts are more powerful in combination with a zipper—have a skid boost prepared before using a zipper and then release the skid boost right after using the zipper.

Unlike in 0.9.3, there is not a specific amount of time you should hold down the nitro button. Tap the nitro button for each use (try not to hold it down). Nitro has a greater effect if used as another boost is wearing off. Because of this, a small amount of overlap is actually beneficial. In general, however, nitro use should be spread out. Nitro is also more effective right before skid boosting. You will need to use nitro more frequently in nitro-heavy courses like Ravenbridge Mansion and STK Enterprise.

Start accelerating when the screen says "Set." Do not press the acceleration button any time during or before the countdown. You will not be able to get a boost start (if you accelerate before the countdown, you won’t get penalty time, but it will still be impossible to get a boost start).

Heavier characters are faster but have poor acceleration. For time trials, use heavyweights except on Minigolf (use a lightweight), XR591 (use a middleweight), and any other course where a heavyweight might cause you trouble (try middleweights for Oliver’s Math Class or Zen Garden). When racing with AI or other players, acceleration is important in order to break away at the beginning and to recover quickly from getting hit. This makes middleweights very good for online play. Though if you are playing a relatively simple course with few people, heavyweights could be best. Aside from Minigolf, lightweights are useful for egg hunts (and non-speedrun modes like soccer and battle).

For normal races in story mode, use heavyweights when possible (except on Minigolf), but you can use middleweights on courses where you are struggling to quickly break away from the AI (e.g. likely Around the Lighthouse and/or Old Mine). Use a heavyweight for the XR591 nitro challenge if you can (since not being able to use nitro gives heavyweights an advantage).

The only difference between characters in the same weight class is their hitboxes. Although the difference is very minor, you may want to choose characters with smaller hitboxes to avoid items more easily and take slightly sharper turns (Sara the Racer for lightweights, Sara the Wizard/Gavroche for middleweights, and Pidgin for heavyweights). It will be slightly more difficult to collect nitro, however.

There are no major skips or checkline glitches in 1.0, although there are still a few shortcuts. You can find track-specific tips and routes in my Track-By-Track Guide (https://www.speedrun.com/stk/guide/kpu9t). It will also help to looking at the time trial records (in the speedrun.com Level Leaderboard) or story mode speedruns. Some alternate paths are balanced enough that you may want to test them for yourself, like the split paths in STK Enterprise and Fort Magma.

Item/racing tips:

The start of a race is very important. You might get stuck behind the AI for a while and lose a lot of time (and possibly have to restart the course). Practice getting ahead of them early. Getting an early drift boost is important here. Try to draft them without colliding with them too much.

There are many item mechanics you should be aware of. Gum can protect you from any other item. Swatters can get rid of dynamite or parachutes. Shooting a bowling ball or cake at a basketball can destroy it before it ruins your race. Slowing down a sufficient amount gets rid of parachutes. Use swappers to turn gum into big nitro cans. Like nitro, zippers have a greater effect if they are used when another boost (perhaps another zipper) is ending.

Make use of Thunderbird if there is about to be an unavoidable disaster (e.g. basketball approaching, dynamite about to explode, falling off the track).

Story mode tips:

SuperTux mode can be unlocked early. Simply meet the SuperTux challenge requirements in Expert mode for five courses (including nitro requirements for nitro challenges). SuperTux mode should be played from then on, as it is the fastest mode. You'll want to unlock it as early as possible, so start out with the five shortest unlocked courses: Shifting Sands, Nessie's Pond, Hacienda, Snow Peak, and either Antediluvian Abyss or Ravenbridge Mansion. You may want to choose Ravenbridge Mansion instead of Antediluvian Abyss to get it out of the way, but they are practically the same length. For the "All Challenges SuperTux" category, you'll have to redo those five challenges later to get the SuperTux trophies.

You'll want to minimize the number of times you change characters. At some point, switch to a middleweight and do every track you use a middleweight on, and do the same for lightweights. Then you'll need to switch back to heavyweights since they are optimal for the final challenge.

Other than these factors, the order that you complete challenges is up to you. So do the ones that can ruin your run early.

Skipping the results screen of challenges will cause you to restart the challenge. Just quickly exit the race after this happens. You won't see the "Challenge Completed" scene but you'll get the trophy. This is faster than returning to the overworld normally. But do NOT let the game restart the Fort Magma challenge! Otherwise the speedrun timer won't stop (your run will still be accepted but with penalty time). Instead, press the "go back" key after finishing the challenge (probably ESC if you are using a keyboard), to cause the "You completed a challenge!" button to appear. Then you can go ahead and continue.

Be careful with results screens in GPs (grand prix). If you skip ahead before the game shows the point tally, the game will not register the points until the end of the next race. So if you haven't given the game a chance to tally points by the final race, you might not get credit for the GP.

This glitch can actually be abused. Play either the first or second race and get first, whichever is shorter. Let the game show the point tally screen. Skip every other race (by giving up). As long as you skip the point tally screen in the last three races, you should nearly always end up with at least enough points for a bronze trophy (credit to Fouks for improving this exploit). This saves a significant amount of time. The second track is  shorter for Off the Beaten Track. For To the Moon and Back and At World's End, play the first track. For Penguin's Playground the first two races are about the same length, so see what works for you. For the "All Challenges SuperTux" category, always play the first track. Otherwise, you won't get enough points for a SuperTux trophy.

Fouks's gate skip has been fixed in 1.x. You'll have to complete every challenge.

Other notes:

Take a look at the General Rules forum post if you are new:
https://www.speedrun.com/stk/thread/39mav

The on-screen timer is highly recommended, as it accounts for loading time. To turn it on, create a new profile, go to the Interface options in the in-game settings and enable the speedrun timer.

Story Mode and individual level runs for 1.1 are in the same category as 1.0. Gameplay is mostly the same, but there are a few differences: certain checklines are easier to miss in Old Mine and XR591, and the timer is not included in the main game, so you will need to get Alayan's modified version.
Linux: https://github.com/psypherium/SpeedrunnerSuperTuxKart/releases/download/1.0/Linux-STK-1.0-Speedrunner.7z
Windows: https://github.com/psypherium/SpeedrunnerSuperTuxKart/releases/download/1.0/Windows-STK-1.0-Speedrunner.7z

Always make sure that the timer is running AND that you are recording before continuing with the run!

And good luck! :)

(Credit goes to Fouks for some of the boost strategies; check out his "Top Speed and Advanced Boosting Techniques" guide for more info.)

Top Speeds and Advanced Boost Techniques (1.0)

The Top Speeds of the karts depend on their category (Lightweight, Middleweight, or Heavyweight). Internally, they are computed in m/s, but we will speak about them in km/h. You can also find in the resources or in my Stk fork mods to have a numeric speedometer.

Here are the Top Speeds in SuperTux:

Lightweights: 85.5 km/h
Middleweight: 90.0 km/h
Heavyweight: 94.5 km/h

You can see why Heavyweights perform better in Speedruns in general. Their poor acceleration is largely compensated by their massive 5% speed advantage over Middleweights.

The Skid Bonus invariably adds 16.2 km/h for the yellow, and 23.4 km/h for the red.

The Nitro adds:

Lightweights: +16.2 km/h
Middleweight: +18.0 km/h
Heavyweight: +19.8 km/h

However, one nitro press consumes more Nitro for Heavyweights (and less for Lightweights)

These bonuses don't increase instantly your speed, but rather increase it gradually until it reaches for example +19.8 km/h. Nitro and Skidding stack up so if both are used and at their maximum, your speed is boosted by 23.4 (red) + 19.8 = +43.2 km/h.
So Pidgin with Red Skid Bonus and Nitro has a top speed of 137.7 km/h. For Kiki, it would only be 117.9 km/h.

Zipper mechanic is harder to study, this will be completed later.

========

The Boost mechanics are pretty weird in general. This guide will present 2 exploits of it.

1. Getting the Skidding Bonus during a Zipper Boost instantly increases your speed.

This trick is what allowed the first Sub 1' in Oliver's Math Class.

If you release skidding and get the bonus just after using a Zipper, your (max) speed is instantly increased by about 8 km/h. That means that it is be better to release the skidding the earliest possible during the Zipper boost (or alternatively, delay smartly Zipper uses), to profit from a higher max speed longer. And if you are quick enough, you can repeat this with another Skid Bonus to increase further the max speed. You really get a better boost, and not just a staggered bonus.

2. Using Nitro when Zipper or Skid Boost is wearing off is beneficial.

If you use Nitro alone, the speed increases slowly until a certain point, like said before. But if you use it during a Zipper wear off, the speed increase will not start from the "beginning", but from your current speed.

Concretely, let's say we are using Pidgin. If we use nitro while not having any other bonus in effect (at 94.5 km/h), the speed will increase very slowly from 94.5 km/h to 114.3 km/h.
Now, if we have a Zipper wearing off, let's say we are now at 110 km/h and the speed is decreasing. We use Nitro: the speed will stop decreasing and increase starting from (a bit less than) 110 km/h, so we reach the top speed 114.3 km/h much faster and profit from it much longer (without Zipper, we are at 114.3 km/h only during a very short instant).
If the effects were simply stacking up, the speed should decrease from 110 km/h (the wearing off being much faster than the nitro speed increase), reach a bit more than 94.5 km/h (due to the Nitro boost effect that just started), and then increase back to 114.3 km/h. But it is not what happens for some reason.

That also applies for using Nitro when a Skid Bonus is wearing off and probably other Boost combinations.
When Zipper or Skid Bonus are in contrary increasing the speed, it looks like that using Nitro just stacks up the boost without side effects.

Track-by-Track Guide for STK 1.x

This guide covers track-specific tips and routes. See my “Speedrunning Guide for STK 1.x” for more general tips. It will also help to watch the record videos (time trials or full speedruns) for a visual reference.

(Credit goes to Theodore for helping optimize the routes and techniques on each track for version 1.x and credit goes to other speedrunners for optimizing the tracks in general.)

Shifting Sands:

Take the bridge after the lake area. Heavyweights struggle entering the pyramid, as they will not stick to the road and instead be shot into the wall on the right. To avoid losing your speed, start a left skid just as you are leaving the bridge and continue the skid as you hit the wall. Using some nitro helps. As you hit the wall widen your skid as much as possible and try to collect the nitro while still skidding. This way you can charge a red boost.

Nessie’s Pond:

There is a somewhat difficult trick on this course. On the curve right before the tunnel there is a wall with a low slope. It is possible to ride the wall and take a slightly sharper turn. Head toward the left part of the road right before the curve. Then begin a skid and approach the wall. You should be able to skid on the wall without slowing down. Continue your skid as you leave the wall and try to charge a red boost. It will take some practice to get the angle. If you take too sharp a turn, you will hit the banana as you get off the wall. Outside of time trials, this trick is likely not worth the risk. It is also more difficult for middleweights and lightweights, as they will likely skid too sharply.

Antediluvian Abyss:

Try to collect all the nitro here. You may need to take a break from skidding/nitro before the big nitro can to collect it more safely, although it is possible to collect it right after a skid boost.

Volcan Island:

At the beginning, start by taking the right path and then switch over to the left. You should get red skids from this route. Though you can take a different route to avoid other players. Try to get two right skid boosts in the process. Go for nearly all red skids. Ideally you should only perform yellow skids on this track to accelerate (including the beginning of the race). Use nitro before the ramp to speed up your landing. Try to start a skid just before going off the ramp and charge a red boost after you land. There is also an advanced shortcut that is only viable for time trials. Head left on the straightaway with bananas before passing the volcano and use the stone on the left as a ramp. Drive in the air across part of the volcano and land on the road below. Do not cut off too much or you will miss a checkline.

Hacienda:

This course is easy unless you choose to take the ramp near the beginning. This is not much faster and should only be done on time trials. Also, because this area is the optimal place to use a zipper in the 2nd and 3rd lap, this trick is really only useful on the first lap. As you may know, going straight up the ramp will shoot you into the ceiling. Instead, approach the middle of the ramp and aim for the right corner as you go off it. Have a skid boost charged as you are landing. It will take some luck to not crash into the ceiling. Maintaining speed is also a problem. Get the big nitro can when you approach the end of the lap.

Cornfield Crossing:

Try to charge a red boost during every major turn. You can charge a red boost going into the final straightaway if you are using a heavyweight (or if you are boosting with a middleweight). Heavyweights won’t naturally stick to the steep slope after the ramp. This can be resolved by either drifting at an angle or slightly tap on the brakes right before the slope to avoid this problem. Using the brakes is more consistent.

Snow Peak:

Again, try to get as many red skids as possible (but don’t sacrifice good trajectories for a red skid). Don’t cut corners during the section before the last bridge. It will be slower (and you may even miss a checkline).

Ravenbridge Mansion:

There is a lot of nitro on this course; do not worry about collecting every single can. In fact, on the final lap if you have a lot of nitro stored, skip nitro that is on the outside of the turns. You might also want to avoid the big nitro can in between the bananas if you find it too risky. The shortcut on this course doesn’t save too much time, so feel free not to take it if you have not mastered it. If you choose to take it, the fastest method is to release a yellow skid as you land on the rocks. Then hop to angle yourself inward as you go off the ramp to take a sharp turn afterward. If you angle yourself too much inward, you will hit the grass. There are easier strategies: you can also be skidding the entire time you take the shortcut or not skid at all until the ramp. But since the shortcut already isn’t much faster, you may want to avoid taking it at all as opposed to using a slightly safer method. Be skidding as you land after the shortcut.

Zen Garden:

Cut the patch of grass before the bridge. Use nitro to avoid losing too much speed. You will not have room for red skids until after the cave section.

Cocoa Temple:

If you have a zipper (including if you’re in time trial mode), take the right path at the beginning and use your zipper there. Otherwise, the left path is faster if done properly (you should get two red skids), unless you want to avoid other people taking that route. After the bridge, there are more split paths. Take the right path and then stay to the left of the middle houses. As you go off the ramp. an advanced strategy is to land on the rail. Otherwise, just continue normally. Charge a red skid. If you are on the rail, get off it when you see the nitro. Follow the nitro and head for the patch of sand to the left. Leave the main path and go to the hidden ramp. Hop to the right just before going off the ramp to avoid crashing. Skid as you go off the ramp and try to charge a red boost. If you struggle with the ramp and instead take the normal route, you will not have as much speed going into the indoor area, so it will be beneficial to clip the side of the mini ramp. Also, if you take the normal route, this is where you should use your zipper, not near the beginning. Finally, you can angle yourself to the right as you go off the last ramp to try to cut off a small portion of the last turn. Don’t cut off too much, or you will hit an invisible wall. It’s difficult to get the angle right, and it’s better to cut off very little or none at all than too much.

Oliver’s Math Class:

Practice the shortcut a lot, as doing well depends on it. Get two yellow skids during the shortcut, one as you are entering it and another as you are exiting it. The optimal place to use a zipper is shortly after the left turn at the beginning. However, it is especially difficult to take the shortcut at zipper speed. A less risky strategy is to use it right after entering the shortcut, although you will miss out on some skid boosts.

Gran Paradiso Island:

It is easy to mess up the shortcut here. A consistent skidding technique will help you land on the bridge. For example, get a yellow skid as you leave the beach area. Then begin another skid as you drive off the road. You can also use the gift boxes as a reference if you are not on time trial mode. Start a skid as you go off the ramp at the end of the shortcut and charge a red boost. Be prepared for the sharp turns ahead. With a zipper, you can cut off a lot more with the shortcut. Use your zipper shortly after passing the second banner in the beach area. Start skidding left. The extra speed will allow you to skip a portion of the bridge. The landing will take some luck and practice. This is generally too risky to be used outside of time trial mode.

Around the Lighthouse:

Perform mostly yellow skids. Perform a red skid on the last major right turn. Avoid skid boosting on some small turns—instead, prepare for the next turn.

Candela City:

The nitro can at the beginning is tricky to get. It is faster to perform the first skid boost as early as possible, but if you need to, wait a second until the first turn to skid. Heavyweights will get some air going down the hill, allowing them to get a red skid. Other vehicles will require two yellow skids. In the next section, you should start out on the right side. When you see a nitro can in the middle, grab it and switch to the left side. Be careful not to skid too sharply during the next turns, as the edges are unforgiving.

Northern Resort:

The sharp turns near the beginning are difficult for heavyweights. Approach the turns at a wide angle so that you can a sharp turn inward. Tap the brakes during the curves if you need to; just make sure that you collect the big nitro can on the right of the last curve in this section. Also collect the big nitro can toward the outside of the following turn.

Minigolf:

You should use a lightweight on this track for all modes (although middleweights are technically viable on time trials). Try to maintain as much speed as possible on the sharp turn after the brick bridge. Don’t take chances with the golfball. Pay attention to the last time it rolled out and slow down if you need to. On time trials, take the right path when the road splits to get the nitro. If you are in a race and someone already took the nitro, or if you just want an item, take the left path. Cut off the turn at the end by heading right after the loop. Try to enter at the red bricks, as the dirt will slow you down. Use a zipper here if you have one. There is a very advanced shortcut you can take on time trial mode. At the beginning of the lap, as you arrive at the upward slope before the tunnel, hop to the right toward the red bricks. Do more right hops/short skids as you drive off the bricks and land in the area below. Use nitro when you hit the ground. It will take some practice to get the angle right as well as some luck to maintain speed while still landing properly. On the first lap it is slower unless you do it perfectly, so it is not advised.

Black Forest:

Take the left path when the road splits. At the next turn, try to get the nitro adjacent to the banana. This is easier to do if you don’t use any nitro right before the turn (since you’ll have less speed). Grab the big nitro can at the far end of the following turn if you can, but this will also take some precision. Tap on the brakes when you get the nitro can if you need to do so to avoid hitting the wall. Don’t enter the house on the right after this turn. There is, however, a bench next to the house with some nitro under it, but again, it is not easy to get this nitro without crashing. It helps slightly to choose a vehicle with a small hitbox. After passing the house, enter the train tracks on the right if you don’t see a train that will block your path. If the train is in the way you should take the normal path and get on the tracks after the white bridge if you can. Practice getting on the tracks in this area because it is easy to crash or end up in the grass. Finally, take the right path after exiting the train route.

Old Mine:

Try to collect the nitro cans in the bridge area without hitting the crates. However, If you only clip the edge of them, you can hit them without significant speed loss. When you get to the final major curve (the loop), take the first part of the turn tight (skid to the left of the lamp), but then head toward the outside of the curve to try and collect all the nitro (don’t skid here, but hop as needed to assist in turning). Watch the red/green light and wait for the minecart if you need to.

STK Enterprise:

The left path is probably faster for you at the beginning, but it depends on your skidding strategy. If you are in a race and a lot of people are taking the left path, go for the right path. There is a lot of nitro on this course (though not as much as Ravenbridge Mansion) and you can afford to miss a couple of cans, especially if you are using a middleweight or lightweight. When the path splits again, start out on the right and and switch to the left when you see the big nitro can. Go off the ramp as straight as possible to avoid crashing and have a yellow skid charged for when you land.

XR591:

Do not get the nitro on the right in the beginning cave area. When the path splits, start off taking the right path, but cut off the turn instead of continuing. You’ll need to slow down to stay on the track after the shortcut. Also, if you are too far to the left, you’ll hit an invisible wall. A more advanced method is to hop to the right of the poll at the beginning of the turn and then take the shortcut. You’ll be at a better angle and will not have to slow down as much. If you don’t want to take the shortcut you should instead head left (but go right if a lot of racers are on the left path). If you do so, tap the breaks to take the turn more sharply while also collecting the nitro. When you get to the three sharp turns at the end, don’t collect the nitro on the first two turns. Instead, focus on good trajectories. On the last turn you can collect the nitro, or alternatively, you can drive on the sloped inside of the curve. This is a lot riskier, though, because you could get air or even miss the checkline (note that the checkline has been expanded for 1.1, so if you are using a recent build this may not be an issue). It is only recommended on time trials. Head toward the area to the right of the main road after this turn and perform a skid before crossing the finish line.

Fort Magma:

Don’t go for any out-of-the-way nitro cans on the narrow path at the beginning. Try to stay near the middle of the path. Watch out for the cannonball, of course. You don’t have to slow down to avoid it, but you might have to go to the side. The split path at the end is very balanced. Ultimately you should test the paths for yourself, but in general the right path is slightly faster for time trials. You may also find the right path a bit easier since you don’t have to switch your skidding direction at the end. As with other split paths, if there are a lot of racers taking a certain path, take the other path to avoid them.

Nitro guides:

Here are the routes you should take for the two nitro challenges in story mode.

Shifting Sands:

Collect the two nitro cans on the right of the road when you reach the lake. Take the bridge route. Get the two nitro cans in the path following the bridge. When the split path ends you will have to collect three cans. You can miss one can total if you follow this route.

XR591:

Collect all the nitro in the beginning cave area. Collect the can toward the outside of the first sharp turn. Take the shortcut. Collect any nitro in your main path. When you get to the final three turns, you don’t need to collect the first two cans (although you can if you are behind). Collect the can toward the outside of the second turn as well as the one at the final turn. If you miss even one can you will have to collect a backup can.

Video Tutorial: 0.9.3 Air-Control & XR591 Strategies

Short-hops/Mini-drifts can help you point your car in the right direction whist you are airborne.

This video also includes demonstrations of all 4 XR591 Skip points. (Sub 1:30 is possible if all are used perfectly.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nhj_C31AdfE

Video Tutorial: 0.9.3 Gate Skip - Reliable Method

This method gives perfect gate skips every time:

https://youtu.be/aFFAlFp1Pc0

Which kart is the fastest ? (0.9.3 and older)

If you have less skill, choosing the most efficient kart won't save you. It can help to squeeze some time, but the difference is often tiny, especially in full-game runs.

You can see kart's length by launching the game with the --kartsize-debug command. Longer length = shorter turn radius. Also, smaller width means smaller hitbox (generally good, you need to better aim for nitro/bonus boxes, but you'll more easily avoid bananas/bowling balls/gums).

[big]0.9.0 and older[/big]

These versions don't have kart characteristics : all the karts have the same speed, acceleration, etc.

The main difference in karts is the turn radius. A short turn radius allows to batter take turns, but a long turn radius allows to easier abuse skidding in more straight portions ; so the optimal value depend on tracks and strategies.

[big]0.9.1 to 0.9.3[/big]

The kart characteristics introduce some significant differences between kart classes. They don't impact turn radius, and the differences here remain linked to kart characteristics.

Heavies are basically useless, completely outclassed by mediums. Don't use them.

Medium are the reference : they perform best on most tracks, having the better acceleration/max-speed/nitro combination.

Lights are too slow to keep up with mediums on most tracks and on full-game runs (if you have enough skill to not crash a lot, of course), but their higher acceleration means they gain some time at start and can do a full-180 easier (the turn radius is independent of kart class, but high acceleration allows to switch from going backward to forward very fast). This makes them useful on some level runs exploiting game bugs by changing direction and driving backward up to a checkline. They also can be on par with mediums in very short races (1 minute or less), because their ~1s starting advantage becomes then significant (for example, it's possible to beat my current Tux time in Zen Garden with a light kart).

[big]Kart's turning characteristics (0.9.3)[/big]

Among light karts, Wilber has the shortest turning radius. Kiki is not far, but has a slightly bigger one, then Hexley. The light Sara kart has a significantly bigger one. Considering you should only use lights in track where you need to do a full-180, Wilber is probably the best unless it really matters that he can't skid as straight.

Among medium karts :
- The longer turn radius goes to Adiumy. So big that you'll probably have some trouble with it, though it's possible to compensate with skidding on numerous tracks. The AI can't handle it and get catastrophic results, but it _may_ be the best kart for some ILs.
- The shorter turn radius goes to Konqi (which also has a high width).
- The order (bigger turn radius to smaller) for the others is Emule (small width) > Sara the Wizard (very small width) > Gavroche > Gnu > Suzanne (high width) > Nolok > Tux > Xue (very high width)

Which kart is the fastest ? (1.0)

/!\	A better version is available in pdf here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kAJwZjyEThiA6zOUPlHpSnyi6VajQwnr/view?usp=sharing

Thanks to :
-Andet, for his guide on the story mode which refers in particular to the performance of karts and for his advice.
-Alayan, for the previous version of this guide (0.9.3 and older) on which this new guide for 1.0 is based.

KART CATEGORIES

There are 3 categories of karts (depending on their weight):
Light: Wilber, Hexley, Kiki, Sara the racer

Mediums: Tux, Konqi, Suzanne, Adiumy, Xue, Gavroche,
Nolok, Gnu, Emule, Sara the wizard

Heavy: Pidgin, Amanda, Beastie, Puffy

Light karts

                                                                        -                                                                            
-They are generally the best in soccer, following the leader, battles and on some tracks such as minigolf.
-The world record for Minigolf is achieved with a light kart.
-These are the karts that detach most easily from parachutes.
-They are the easiest to drive because they take turns very easily and you can tighten the trajectory well.
-They are the fastest to restart after a basketball, bowling ball, or cake for example.
-The boost start is more important than on a medium or heavy.
-They have the most efficient nitro use.
                                                                            -                                                                           
-All you need to know is that you can avoid a parachute by braking and restarting.
-They have the lowest maximum speed

→ To conclude, in general, light karts are better in alternative game modes, but can be used  in normal racing or even online if you have a lot of difficulties to detach yourself from the other karts. They can be particularly useful for novices.

Heavy karts

                                                                        -                                                                            
-They have the highest maximum speed
-They are generally the best in time trials
-Most of the world records are achieved with heavy karts
-These are the karts that are the most resistant to parachutes
                                                                            -                                                                           
-In practice, parachutes are avoided by braking and it is the heavy karts that take the longest time to restart.
-They also take the longest time to restart after a basketball, bowling ball, or cake for example.
-They are more difficult to drive because they need more space to take a turn (novices, don't use them, you need at least an expert level)
-The boost start is less important than on a medium or a ligth one
-They have the least efficient nitro use.

→ To conclude, in general, heavy karts are better in time trials, but can be used in normal or even online races if you can get away from other karts.

Medium karts

                                                                        -                                                                           
-They are generally the best online.
-They are intermediate on all the points mentioned above, they can replace a light kart in many situations.
-The world record for XR591 is achieved with a medium kart.
                                                                            -                                                                           
-They are slower than heavy karts

→ To conclude, in general, medium karts are most of the time the best compromises except in records, time trials, or speedruns.

--------------------------------------------------------------------
The video below demonstrates what is said previously
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJU6JUC7Mrs
--------------------------------------------------------------------
HITBOXES

/!\	These parameters have a minimal impact on your run.

We talk about a hitbox in relation to the width of the kart.
These hitboxes must be as small as possible (for heavy karts -> Pidgin has the smallest, for medium karts -> sara the wizard and gavroche, and for light ones -> sara the racer)
These hitboxes make it easier to take tight turns. They are useful at a high level.

As getting items and nitro doesn't depend on the hitbox, but is based on a fixed distance between the item position and the kart position, these karts have no disadvantage.

Name	Author
0.9.3-RC1 World Map Route	Kitoko 7 years ago
Boosting Tips	HatninjaGX 7 years ago
General Time Saving	Kitoko 6 years ago
GP Double-Skip is Possible!	Kitoko 6 years ago
GP Routing Guide for 0.9.2	Alistair_Findlay 6 years ago
Gran Prix with a Race Skip	Kitoko 7 years ago
How to get rid of a parachute	brmbrmcar 7 years ago
How to use nitro skillfully in 0.9.3	Alayan 7 years ago
Powerups and their uses.	Dugglez 6 years ago
Preload tracks in RAM	Alayan 6 years ago
Reverse Mode and Egg Hunt Tips for STK 1.x	Andet 4 years ago
Speedrunning Guide for STK 1.x	Andet 4 years ago
Top Speeds and Advanced Boost Techniques (1.0)	Fouks 5 years ago
Track-by-Track Guide for STK 1.x	Andet 5 years ago
Video Tutorial: 0.9.3 Air-Control & XR591 Strategies	Alistair_Findlay 6 years ago
Video Tutorial: 0.9.3 Gate Skip - Reliable Method	Alistair_Findlay 6 years ago
Which kart is the fastest ? (0.9.3 and older)	Alayan 6 years ago
Which kart is the fastest ? (1.0)	Wax-stk 5 years ago