Wyrmwood: Episode I

[meapineapple]

The WYRMWOOD PROJECT welcomes you to explore its RESIDENTIAL CAMPUS. If you're on your BEST BEHAVIOR, then you may even be so PRIVILEGED as to have a one-on-one meeting with THE BOSS!

 

Wade through eleven maps of blood and guts! Wyrmwood should be played continuously; don't try to pistol start these bad boys. The maps start out very easy, but you can expect the later parts of Wyrmwood to pose a serious challenge on UV difficulty. A full playthrough normally takes roughly one hour.

 

Wyrmwood uses Doom 2 resources, is Boom-compatible, and has been tested fully with Zandronum and PrBoom+. For the very best experience, I recommend playing with a ZDoom port such as Zandronum.

 

Download the latest version:

wyrmwood.18.10.17.zip / Mirror: https://www.pineapplemachine.com/files/doomwads/wyrmwood.18.10.17.zip

 

Download an older version:

wyrmwood.18.10.13.zip / Mirror: https://www.pineapplemachine.com/files/doomwads/wyrmwood.18.10.13.zip

 

Screenshots

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

Videos

Spoiler

 

 

 

The full readme

Spoiler

===========================================================================
Advanced engine needed  : Boom
Primary purpose         : Single play
===========================================================================
Title                   : Wyrmwood
Filename                : wyrmwood.wad
Release date            : 13 October 2018
Author                  : Sophie Kirschner
Email Address           : meapineapple@gmail.com

Description             : Eleven maps of blood and guts.
                          Intended for continuous play.

===========================================================================
* What is included *

New levels              : 11
Sounds                  : No
Music                   : Yes
Graphics                : Yes
Dehacked/BEX Patch      : Yes
Demos                   : Yes
Other                   : No

* Play Information *

Game                    : DOOM2
Single Player           : Designed for
Cooperative 2-4 Player  : Player starts only
Deathmatch 2-4 Player   : Some maps
Other game styles       : None
Difficulty Settings     : Yes

* Construction *

Base                    : New from scratch
Editor(s) used          : GZDoom Builder, SLADE3, Gimp
Tested With             : Zandronum v2.1.2, PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4

* Copyright / Permissions *

Authors MAY use the contents of this file as a base for
modification or reuse.

You MAY distribute this file, provided you include this text file, with
no modifications.  You may distribute this file in any electronic
format (BBS, Diskette, CD, etc) as long as you include this file 
intact.

* Where to get the file that this text file describes *

The Usual: ftp://archives.3dgamers.com/pub/idgames/ and mirrors

===========================================================================
* Map Information *

Par times are for collecting all non-secret items and killing all
non-secret monsters; they are not the fastest possible times.

These maps are made in Boom format and have been fully tested with
PrBoom+. However, for the very best experience, I recommend playing
Wyrmwood with your favorite ZDoom port.

Map 01 "Hell World"
Music: Pegasus (Dragon Quest 9)
Par time: 2:15
WELCOME to the WYRMWOOD PROJECT. PLEASE do not mind the RED LIQUIDS.
It is PLAUSIBLE that the liquids originated from LIVING BODIES.
HOWEVER, the WYRMWOOD PROJECT requests that you not make ASSUMPTIONS.

Map 02 "Glare"
Music: Repose of Souls (Castlevania: Circle of the Moon)
Par time: 2:30
BE MINDFUL of the GLARE of the SUNLIGHT when you step outside the
WYRMWOOD PROJECT COMPOUND. PLEASE remember to take extra CAUTION.
DO NOT unnecessarily disturb WYRMWOOD PROJECT employees.

Map 03 "Toxin"
Music: Big Boss (The Adventures of Batman & Robin)
Par time: 4:00
EXCUSE US while a portion of the WYRMWOOD PROJECT residentail area
is flooded with TOXINS. Employees of the WYRMWOOD PROJECT all sign
agreements acknowledging the RISKS associated with employment.
REMEMBER that the WYRMWOOD PROJECT is for the greater good.

Map 04 "Dark Readings"
Music: Under Cover of Night (Halo)
Par time: 4:45
WATCH your step as you enter our small LIBRARY. You never know what
might be LURKING around the very next corner.

Map 05 "Thermic City"
Music: Field Course (Mario Golf: Advance Tour)
Par time: 4:00
I SEE that you have encountered one of the WYRMWOOD PROJECT'S
subterranean residential sectors. PLEASE be mindful of the residents
and REFRAIN from making an excess of noise.

Map 06 "Pipe Dreams"
Music: Level 4 (Incredible Hulk)
Par time: 2:30
YOU ARE, as one might say, "BEHIND THE SCENES". Back here you can
observe some of the WYRMWOOD PROJECT employees going about their work.
They surely do NOT WISH to be disturbed.

Map 07 "Scarlet Ink"
Music: Elemental Temple (The Legend of Spyro)
Par time: 5:30
I INTRODUCE YOU to the pride of the WYRMWOOD PROJECT. You are now
approaching BENJAMIN FRANKLIN LIBRARY, the largest and most prestigious
library on the entire WYRMWOOD PROJECT campus. IF YOU PLEASE, you will
not make a mess of THIS LIBRARY.

Map 08 "Countdown"
Music: The Final Countdown (Europe)
Par time: 2:30
I AM AFRAID that news of your DISRUPTION has spread to the HIGHEST
LEVELS of WYRMWOOD PROJECT management.

Map 09 "Swarm"
Music: Costal Cave (Alundra)
Par time: 3:00
YOU MUST CEASE your DISRUPTIVE ACTIVITES. By the POWER invested in me
by the WYRMWOOD PROJECT, I must DEMAND your CESSATION. You will CEASE.
You will DIE.

Map 10 "Eruption"
Music: Big Blue (F-Zero GX)
Par time: 15:00
LOOK at what your ACTIONS have CAUSED. YOU are DESPICABLE. Thousands of
WYRMWOOD PROJECT employees have been DISPLACED by LAVA FLOWS, and dozens
have been KILLED.

Map 11 "Finale"
Music: Gunstar G-9 Under Attack (Gunstar Heroes)
Par time: 5:15
THE BOSS will see you now...

===========================================================================
* Music Credit *

Title Screen - D_DM2TTL
Objection! (Pheonix Wright: Ace Attorney) Sequenced by "SonicMaster"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/9efba567f9ea9557ba87eed775fcb009.html

Intermission Screen - D_DM2INT
A Legend Forever (Sword of Mana) Sequenced by "Black_Wing"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/7d3fde79c6f1a835a53e3f4f92fa5055.html

Text Screen - D_READ_M
Title Screen (Garfield: The Search For Pooky) Sequenced by "Merit Celaire"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/814db67f5b166a3f822aca957ab4e979.html

Endgame Credits - D_EVIL
Battle of Hope (Final Fantasy Tactics Advance) Sequenced by "Xpertgmer"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/11eccf5c7adb41567db64cdda3817d12.html

Map 01 "Hell World" - D_RUNNIN
Pegasus (Dragon Quest 9) Sequenced by "cyahin"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/eaafba29556e828ddfcde207089faa0a.html

Map 02 "Glare" - D_STALKS
Repose of Souls (Castlevania: Circle of the Moon) Sequenced by "Justus Johnston"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/4d6a95e947c53c6463afd48f76d7c977.html

Map 03 "Toxin" - D_COUNTD
Big Boss (The Adventures of Batman & Robin) Sequenced by "GteL"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/19f368f68a449640c2a0ac346849ec8b.html

Map 04 "Dark Readings" - D_BETWEE
Under Cover of Night (Halo) Sequenced by "Obliterador"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/1ea82ebcd0da6ccd92a8f1891e70c5ac.html

Map 05 "Thermic City" - D_DOOM
Field Course (Mario Golf: Advance Tour) Sequenced by "King Meteor"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/fb789b4b4b9916c74d4e51d843e6f96f.html

Map 06 "Pipe Dreams" - D_THE_DA
Level 4 (Incredible Hulk) Sequenced by "Jose'"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/230ebd7447c3f1574e0add71479f1036.html

Map 07 "Scarlet Ink" - D_SHAWN
Elemental Temple (The Legend of Spyro) Sequenced by "Rexy"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/69e0245a7407c664e4fc9f4771aa44c4.html

Map 08 "Countdown" - D_DDTBLU
The Final Countdown (Europe)
http://miditune.com/midi-72976-download-europe-the-final-countdown.html

Map 09 "Swarm" - DI_IN_CIT
Costal Cave (Alundra) Sequenced by "CronosGeo"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/75497c8722895fd475520d2d84d096b8.html

Map 10 "Eruption" - D_DEAD
Big Blue (F-Zero GX) Sequenced by "Dave Phaneuf"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/f468e53590c34eb0d29396758dd9ab1c.html

Map 11 "Finale" - D_STLKS2
Gunstar G-9 Under Attack (Gunstar Heroes) Sequenced by "MaliceX"
https://www.vgmusic.com/file/f65be265e978aea9933dce60e1270c80.html

===========================================================================
* Graphics Credit *

PANBOOKS is a manual edit of the DOOM 2 texture named PANBOOK.
LFALL0 through LFALL3 are recolors of the DOOM 2 BFALL textures.
WFALL0 through WFALL3 are also recolors of the DOOM 2 BFALL textures.
SW3S0 and SW3S1 are copies of the same-named DOOM 2 switch textures.

TITLEPIC and INTERPIC are based on Peter Paul Rubens's "The Fall of the Damned".
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peter_Paul_Rubens_-_The_Fall_of_the_Damned_-_WGA20236.jpg

RSKY1 is a substantial edit of a photograph by Teddy Kelly.
https://unsplash.com/photos/_MNnowJVClg

TRE2A0 was taken from Freedoom (Graphic renamed from SMITA0).
https://freedoom.github.io/download.html

All other new graphics were extracted from Deus Ex (2000) game data files.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deus_Ex_(video_game)

A more complete collection of ripped Deus Ex textures exists here:
https://www.doomworld.com/forum/topic/74285-deus-doom-the-illuminati-did-it/

 

 

Edited October 19, 2018 by meapineapple : Add new version (18.10.17)

[ketmar]

nice mapset. i made it to MAP09 so far, and i like it. fights are hard Just Enough to keep me slightly frightened, but not impossible. architecture is nice, and doesn't interfere with gameplay. i found some secrects, but not all (not that i tried to do 100% run anyway), so i have something to do on replays. ;-)

 

overall, it is good mapset that fits to my tastes, and totally worth every minute i spent playing it. thank you!

[bioshockfan90]

gave a quick skim through these this morning, layouts look good but your thing placement looks super sparse and not that interesting. i feel like the layouts could server a much better purpose had enemy variety been taken more into account and a greater focus on challenge was placed, otherwise i can just blaze through these without any incentive to kill anything because it's just.... meat in the way

 

anyway this has potential, i just feel like a revamping of encounters would make this way better

[Memfis]

I found this mapset really interesting. It's quite unique with its custom textures and funky music choices, but if I had to compare I would say it reminds me of "Revolution!". The gameplay is similarly relaxing (at least in the early levels), the maps are again short but memorable due to the use of semi-realistic structures, and there is a loose narrative you can feel as you progress. Nice stuff!

[SP_FACE1]

Played this trough on HMP. I liked the short Scythe-like level sizes. Difficulty was fair on HMP, enjoyable fights that got harder on the later levels. Didn't get lost, not even in the dark areas that didn't show up in the map. Overall nice levels with good flow. I managed to relieve some stress with this WAD by killing as many Wyrmwood folks as I could.

[meapineapple]

@ketmar Thank you for playing! I hope that you enjoy the last few maps, too.

 

@Memfis Thank you for playing, and especially for helping test Wyrmwood before release. The released WAD is unquestionably better thanks to your feedback and demo.

 

@SP_FACE1 That is hecking awesome to hear. That is exactly the kind of experience I was hoping that players would have. I had a lot of fun designing those dark areas! I'm glad that you were able to find your way around them.

 

@bioshockfan90 I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy it more. Which maps did you play? The first two or three maps can certainly be blazed through without regard for the monsters, but it's hard to see this being viable with almost any of the maps after Map 3. The maps start out very easy, which is intentional, but the pressure ramps up as you go on. If you felt this way about encounters after Map 3, can you tell me some specific places where you felt the monster placement needed more work?

[baja blast rd.]

Played UV continuous. 

 

I found maps 01-03 more dangerous than than 04-09. Health pickups are sparse, hitscanners are abundant, and being blindsided by a shotgunner can take away a lot of the healing available. Never quite got into a truly perilous situation, but I felt I at least had to concentrate.

 

After that opening stretch, continuous play allows resources to snowball, and I became a marching death machine with lots of ammo, often taking >100 HP and full green armor into the next level, despite usually finding only around half of the secrets. 08 was the easiest of the bunch, 25 monsters that are little match for a continuous load out. (In retrospect, the map title and music, along with this presentation, feels very tongue in cheek.) In 09, I immediately got suspicious and 

 

Spoiler

chose to never fire a shot if I could help it, so never summoned the titular 'swarm'. Probably need a mandatory shoot switch, or failing that, a monster parked in your way, if you want to enforce that. 

 

Despite that, I still enjoyed that middle stretch of maps, by focusing on exploration. It's just that the balance felt . . . unintentionally lenient in light of 01-03. Thinking about exactly why, the backpack secret in 02 (amazing music here btw) is a substantial part of it. Backpacks are quite powerful in continuous play, and this one is both early and easy to spot.

 

10 felt like a return to the expected difficulty curve, particularly due to the use of archviles, and 11 was a fitting closer.

 

In another thread, you mentioned that a mix of obvious and less-obvious secrets was intended, but a small handful are too obvious imo. The degree of obviousness I'm referring to is best captured by 05's secret green armor, the one a short run from the red skull key -- it's honestly harder to miss than the key. :P 

 

On the visual front, this was nice to see, a mix of an oldschool vibe and ethos coupled with a modern polish and well flowing layouts. Authorial voice is evident. 

Edited October 17, 2018 by rdwpa

[ketmar]

1 hour ago, meapineapple said:

Thank you for playing! I hope that you enjoy the last few maps, too.

got distracted by k8VaVoom developing, and broke savegames in the process, lol. now i have a reason to replay it.

[gaspe]

Played the wad on UV continuous. It seems doable on pistol start, only the weapons pick ups would be missing. Maybe I would remove some of the non-secret ammo from the mid levels since there are already many secrets. I liked a lot the levels and their style, with some realistic touches and details like the various inaccessible areas. The music was cool. The levels also have their mood and like memfis I could feel a narrative as I progressed. MAP09 has an interesting concept, and there I also found this secret with nothing in it:

Spoiler

 

@rdwpa about MAP09:

Spoiler

the only monsters you will encounter are the ones placed in the playable area, the others will get crushed when you reach the exit room. Didn't check in the editor but that's what I understood.

 

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Map 01 - Hell World (NM-Speed)

 

 

Map 02 - Glare (NM-Speed)

 

Map 03 - Toxin (NM-Speed)

 

Edited October 17, 2018 by MAN_WITH_GUN

[meapineapple]

Thank you everyone for playing, and for your feedback!

 

I've just updated the original post with a new version of Wyrmwood. Unless there are any glaring issues revealed, this will be the final release of Wyrmwood: Episode I. Perhaps one day there will be an Episode II...

 

This update:

 

+ Fixes a few minor visual issues, such as texture alignment problems.

+ Adds a little more detail to some areas I felt were lacking.

+ Tweaks the health and ammo balance. Most notably, UV gets one more stimpack on an early map and gets just a little bit less ammo on several later ones.

+ Adds a couple new secrets and tweaks some existing ones. Mostly this means making some secrets less generous on UV difficulty, such that players will wait longer and work harder for particularly valuable items.

 

 

[Summer Deep]

This is good stuff. Playing it on UV continuous and finding it challenging while not being ridiculously difficult. I've been guilty of underestimating it at times, and have rightly paid the penalty when surprises have been sprung. The sense of progression also feels about right. Just finished MAP07, which was excellent, glad I took the trouble to look for the blue key at the end and was well rewarded!

[Rathori]

Nice little WAD. The levels are quite short and easy, although you can get your butt kicked in the last two levels if you get sloppy (I played the 18.10.13 version on UV continuous). It definitely has its own unique feeling and style, and the writing is fun to read.

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Сontinue my runs on Nightmare difficulty and yeah, i like this maps so far, pretty neat:

 

Map 04 (NM-Speed)

 

Map 05 (NM-Speed) - Holly hell this map is crazy on Nightamre 0_o

 

Map 06 (NM-Speed)

 

[meapineapple]

@MAN_WITH_GUN Your speedruns are thrilling to watch! I never anticipated the maps being played this way, and it's awesome to see them bent like this. I'm very much looking forward to your runs of the remaining maps, if you dare...

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

8 minutes ago, meapineapple said:

@MAN_WITH_GUN Your speedruns are thrilling to watch! I never anticipated the maps being played this way, and it's awesome to see them bent like this. I'm very much looking forward to your runs of the remaining maps, if you dare...

Thanks, i'm glad you enjoyed this runs like i enjoyed to play in your maps :) Btw, my fav map in this wad still map 05 :D

[Lorenz0]

I hate how you forced me to use the pistol for basically the whole level. It’s the MAP01 curse.

 

MAP03 was really annoying to get through, just because of how many lost souls there were.

 

I was able to complete MAP04 in just a minute by walking on top of the pinkies, to get the yellow key. I don’t feel like coming back to play this properly, because of how tedious these maps feel thus far.

 

I enjoyed MAP05 the most up till that point, except for the last encounter, which involved a horde of cacodemons, that I had no rocket ammo to fight against, so I just skipped that fight and ran for the exit.

 

The encounter with two revenants at the beginning of MAP06 was nice. Shooting them down with a regular shotgun was an enjoyable challenge. After that the ssg trap was probably the most exciting fight so far.

 

MAP07 was also kinda fun. Navigating through bookshelves in order to get a good vantage point against the cacos was my favorite part.

 

MAP08 was great. A tough fight with numerous monsters in a pretty tight space provided me with the exact difficulty level I find the most fun to play.

 

I liked how eerie MAP09 felt at the beginning. Empty areas, combined with the music were pretty unsettling. It made me anticipate a swarm of monsters to suddenly show up, and create some intense encounters. But nothing happened. I exited the map without killing anything. Was I supposed to do something?

 

MAP10 was undoubtedly the most intense one. There was always some cover and an escape route, but you had to look for it quickly in order to survive. The map is open and extremely non-linear, so there are various ways to approach it. After grabbing the red key, things got so chaotic, that I just used resurrect in order to get by. I think that I’d have to replay the whole level in order to appreciate it fully, but it was very interesting to play nonetheless.

 

I noticed that giant hordes of cacos seem to appear pretty often in this wad. In MAP11 I thought that maybe it was one too many. It wasn’t a bad encounter, it just felt repetetive.

I liked the star-shaped area. The cyberdemon fight was interesting because of the enviroment he was in. The platforming you need to do in order to progress in that area was a good idea. It requires some focus, so you can’t really do it while you fight the cyber.

 

Overall I’d say this is a pretty well made mapset. I really dislike the first few maps, maybe just because I like to use high-tier weapons to fight high-tier monsters way more than the other way around. Tbh the first maps weren’t really that easy, I just found them annoying.

The single aspect that is constant through the whole wad is how many secrets there are, and I have to say that it really enriches the experience.

Since the first time you grab the ssg, the maps get progressively more exciting, and harder. It’s quite a drastic change, but it’s not bad.

Visually speaking, the wad is pretty good-looking. Especially in the 2nd half there is a lot of interesting use of textures, and unique enviroments.

[ketmar]

so, i lost my saves, and had to start it from map01. doing it second time was still fun (and i have memory span worse that a goldfish, so i was caught by the same traps again). map09 is my favorite, 'cause this is the map where i was VERY HAPPY to see that exit trigger, in a good sense. it is scary! smiled at signature in map10, i like it! ;-) almost forgot that i have plasma to get rid of cacos. i usually don't like cyberdemon fights (let's be honest, he is one boring boss, and usually i either have enough room to circle-strafe him, or i am dead), but here i had a choice, and enjoyed playing with him a little. i like the design style of maps, and narrative was... interesting. ;-) i will definitely play this mapset some more times, especially last map: i feel that i have to try several different approaches to it to maximize my enjoyment. ;-)

 

thank you.

 

ah, and that secret in starting room is too obvious, i think. maybe put a blood splat there, or something, to make it not so obvious as it is now. i think i understand what you tried to show with it, but i still feel it too hand-holding.

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Okay, i'm back with my own shitty runs :V

 

Map07 (NM-Speed) - I think this is bad speedrun, because i was bloked by pinki demons :'(

 

Map08 (NM-Speed) - Wow, that's map is really short, small arena with simple exit fights

 

Map09 (NM-Speed) - Um. . . No monsters at all? I don't get it ( ._.)

 

P.S: Holy shit, map10 hard as fuck 0_o

[meapineapple]

@MAN_WITH_GUN Heckin nice! I've been wondering how you'll fare with map 10. I imagine that the exit area is going to be the hardest part... Can you do it?

 

Sorry, those map 7 demons were kind of meant to get in the way and discourage players from just rushing through

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

19 minutes ago, meapineapple said:

@MAN_WITH_GUN Heckin nice! I've been wondering how you'll fare with map 10. I imagine that the exit area is going to be the hardest part... Can you do it?

 

Sorry, those map 7 demons were kind of meant to get in the way and discourage players from just rushing through

 

If I have already decided to go through all this hell, I will not retreat, even if I take many attempts on this map >:)

 

Nah, that's okay, i just died so many times in start and never even reached this place :T (Pinki demons in Library)

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Done it, final maps in this wad, enjoy my pain, lulz:

 

Map10 (NM-Speed)

 

Map11 (NM-Speed) - Holy shit this music is good, and map is epic, i enjoyed)

 

Aaaaaand full playlist with all runs in here:

 

 

[PeterMoro]

I play-tested this series a few weeks ago. I consider it a 9 / 10. 

 

Map 3 was my favourite. Really well designed with a Doom ep1 feel to it. 

[meapineapple]

Holy heckin crap @MAN_WITH_GUN you did it. You are a badass

 

And thank you @PeterMoro for playing and for your excellent feedback!

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

1 hour ago, meapineapple said:

Holy heckin crap @MAN_WITH_GUN you did it. You are a badass

 

And thank you @PeterMoro for playing and for your excellent feedback!

 

Thanks to you and your neat wad, i enjoyed this so far. I love this style)

 

[meapineapple]

Check it out, @Suitepee streamed a full playthrough of Wyrmwood ep1! (Wyrmwood starts at about 23:30)

 

 

[meapineapple]

I'm going to spend November making a megawad for NaNoWadMo, meaning that I won't be working on this project for a little while. For now here's a sneak peak of the in-development Wyrmwood Episode II, in which you will infiltrate the Wyrmwood Project's industrial sector...

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ketmar]

yay, industrial-style maps! i already love 'em!

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Welp, i did it :D

 

 

 

[meapineapple]

@MAN_WITH_GUN I'm really glad that you enjoyed the music! I put a lot of time into finding the right music for each map. I can't claim any credit for making the music, though. The midi in the WAD is Gunstar G-9 Under Attack from the game Gunstar Heroes.

 

https://www.vgmusic.com/file/f65be265e978aea9933dce60e1270c80.html

 

https://youtu.be/ViItwSkcl30

 

(The text file actually contains credits for every music track.)

 

You should check out my nanowadmo project! Now that I've finished with that I intend to take a break from mapping - 32 maps in 30 days is pretty intense - and then I plan to get back to Wyrmwood episode 2 before too long.