Gameplay
You control a team of warriors at the bottom of the screen, ready to do battle with the Scri and other assorted beasts. To fire a shot, simply tap on one of your warriors, quickly flicking your finger in the direction you wish to shoot. Besides determining the direction of your shots, the speed of your shots is also controlled by the speed of the "flick".
To the left of each warrior, you will see a stack representing the number of available shots for that warrior. This stack is depleted as you shoot, and regenerates over time (up to a maximum of 10 shots).
Your warriors are also equipped with shields, which are activated by tapping a warrior and holding your finger there. While a warrior's shields are active, he cannot be killed by enemy fire, but he can still be killed by a Noodly Appendage (see "Enemies" below).
You lose 100 points each time one of your warriors is killed. At the start of each level, any warriors who were killed during the previous level are replaced with fresh recruits.
Scoring
Each type of enemy has a base point value. When you kill an enemy, its point value is multiplied by the current bonus multiplier, which is a value that decreases along with the level bonus counter shown at the top of the screen. The effect of this is that enemies killed early in a level increase your score more than enemies killed later on.
The initial value of the level bonus counter is determined by the numbers and kinds of enemies appearing in the level. This, in turn, determines the initial value of the bonus multiplier.
When you complete a level, the current amount shown on the level bonus counter is added to your score, along with additional points depending on the number of surviving warriors and the overall shot accuracy for the completed level.
Enemies
The enemy you will encounter most frequently is the Scri. These strange-looking things don't have a particularly potent attack, but they can be quite numerous on some levels, and appear in a variety of patterns and configurations on each level.
Another fairly common enemy is the Flinger. Flingers shoot spinning arm-stars at your warriors, tossing them out with unnerving frequency. For best results, try to take these out as soon as you see them!
Every tenth level, you will also encounter one or more Pent. These rotating behemoths have a unique form of attack; They seem calm enough until you shoot them, at which time they will shoot a spinning disk at the warrior who fired the shot. When the spinning disk nears its target, it explodes in a barrage of bullets. You'll really need to use your shields to survive these attacks!
If completing a level takes too much time, and the level bonus timer runs out, then you will receive a visit from the Noodly Appendage. This narrow tentacle descends from an unseen entity up off the top of the screen, hones in on one of your warriors, and kills him. Note that shields are useless against the Noodly Appendage! Your only defense is against it is to shoot the very tip; If you manage to do this, it will retreat for a few seconds, giving you more time to try to finish the level.
Miscellaneous
During gameplay, you can pause the game by tapping near the top of the screen (in the area where your score and the current level bonus are shown).
If a game is interrupted for any reason (you quit, answer a phone call, etc), you can restart from the beginning of the level you were playing, with the same score you had when you started the level.
Scribattle has sound effects, but no music of its own. If you want some music while playing, switch to the iPod app and start up some tunes before starting Scribattle!