Lost Temple Updated V1.4 WIP

[Karnage]

Here is a map I thought I lost during my hardrive crash a few years back. To my surprise I found this Wad while digging through an old folder and decided to start work on it again. This level is incomplete so ignore the fact the final room after the library is not finished and you cant beat the level yet, but what I do have should challenge you for a few minutes at least.

Unfortunately for some reason unknown to even myself I created this map using the Plutonia Wad and you will need it to play unless someone can help me to change it to doom 2 and keep the Plutonia textures. I am not so good with these things.

I also noticed that several sky boxes I designed do not seem to function correctly anymore and are creating HOMs. Please help me fix these if possible.

Jumping is required to beat this map and to collect all secrets you will be required to use crouch as well.

Anyways here it is and some screenies.

UPDATED V1.4
http://www.mediafire.com/?urgkydt5izt

Pics...

[omegamer]

Look awesome !!!

[ArmouredBlood]

Mentioning skyboxes might've warned me it wouldn't work with prboom, but I tried anyway, with predictable results. So I tried with skulltag, and ended up pistoling a lot of crap until the staircase lowering to the cramped tunnels made me decide to look for the shotgun, which I found, and consequently burned 40 hp or so on the lava and lost souls to get 8 more shells. I is smart. Then I went down the staircase to the cramped tunnels, feeling 'hey he did ok on the atmosphere' until I reach the red key. Archvile in a U turn 64-80 units wide with the parallel lines's walls lowering to form a D? not too bad. All I got is a shotty? sure. Imps that just happen to teleport behind me in the only exit and corpses right in front of the arch-vile so they can be ressed? Not with 50 health and no armor. A berserk pack would've complemented the colors of the red skull key quite nicely. And so I quit and post this. Still got my attention, but the gameplay started out rocky ... will see how it ends.

[DeathevokatioN]

Looks nice, I'll try this a bit later.

[Karnage]

Hmm, I know that room quite well for I have died there several times myself. It is quite possible to run back to the U-Shaped passage and sneak shoot him while dodging back and forth. But I agree that the room is a bit to small and I am going to enlarge it a bit. Hmmm, I hadn't considered placing a Zerk Pack in the room. Might make for an interesting fight. I sometimes forget that I know the levels like the back of my hand and am accustomed to the intense difficulty. Hence my need to playtest and gain feedback from the community.

I'll tweak the encounter a bit and rehost the Wad when I get a chance. I am also for the record using the newest version of Zdoom to play my maps. The sky boxes where not glitched out when I was editing the levels back in the day and have since ceased to function. I don't see why, as I have made many other skyboxes in the same manner and never had this happen.

[ArmouredBlood]

Dunno what's up with the skies as it seems to be working in the old version of skulltag I use (.97r or something). The arch-vile in the passage is actually pretty easy to kill if you can race over to his teleport spot then release him into the tiny alcove and kill him before imps can get through the tunnels - which is actually a design flaw, and you may want to make his teleport much faster. Yeah I know you gave the floor all that time to lower atmospherically, but it's a bit of a gameplay problem present with the revenants rising up out of the water in the sewers too - I ran right over those revs at least twice, which usually resulted in an extra punch. making the floors raise instantly, and in the case of the arch, have it's floor 25 units ABOVE the other floor and lower into the other floor so it can teleport basically instantaneously, which defeats the possibility of the player getting over the teleport thing and trivializing the engagement. Which would make me happy if you added a berserk to it ;p

Anyway, finished the rest of what's there, and it looks very good, but I don't particularly like the cramped nature. That and often detailing gets in the way of dodging. The end puzzle is rather interesting but seems broken, as one pillar wouldn't raise (think it was the one to the left of the first rising pillar). If it'd be possible to widen parts of the map, and make certain detailing points like all the random rubble a little lower (24-height rubble that takes as much space as doomguy ~= a pile of rubble 1 1/2 ft. high that's in the shape of a computer tower. Little excessive), imo it'd make the map much more playable. Of course I favor slaughtermaps and the occasional run of games like fallout 3 and halflife 2, so I'm a bit biased.

[printz]

(4)Lost Temple is a famous map from Starcraft. Do you think about referencing it with this WAD?

[Karnage]

MAIN UPLOAD HAS BEEN UPDATED v1.2

Hmm, I'll have to make the revenants raise quicker than, I am always prepared for them so I never ran over them, simply never crossed my mind someone would blaze through there, hehe.

I widened up the room with the red skull a bit although its still a bit cramped, but it is considerably easier to maneuver away from the imps. I also upped the reward for the lost soul secret instead of the measly 8 shells that where hidden there. I hope I haven't made the level to easy with this addition.

As for the last pillar puzzle it isn't completed yet, I noticed the central pillar wasn't lowering as well. Either way the problem with that room is no matter what height your at you can click the switches even if your not even at eye level with them. I may have to rethink that puzzle. Seemed great on paper.

As for the cramped style of playing, kinda what I was going for at the time. Back before I understood that tight areas are not widely enjoyed by the doom community. :P

Thanks for the advise ArmouredBlood.

@onegamer - Thank you for the compliment.

@DeathevocatioN - Hope you enjoy it and all feed back is welcome!

@Printz - It's entirely possible that I had that ladder map in mind when I began this level years back. To be honest I do not recall now, lol. I certainly played enough Starcraft to leave a permanent impression on me, and it is one of my favorite maps.

[Gez]

Sky works as far as I'm concerned, in both latest ZDoom and latest GZDoom.

[Siggi]

This might seem like a dumb question because this is apparently for ZDoom, but should I be jumping?

[Karnage]

My apologies for not mentioning before, yes jumping is required to beat this level and one of the secrets requires that you also use crouch. I'll mention this in my main post for future referance.

As for noone else having problems with the skyboxes in the courtyard especially... great! As long as they work for you guys, must be something wrong with my computer. Whatever, enjoy!

[Siggi]

Karnage said:

My apologies for not mentioning before

No need to apologise.
I think even though this is WIP, maybe you should stick a readme in the archive.

[ArmouredBlood]

heh, it's possible to strafe-run to the yellow key, so jumping isn't exactly required. And also possible to run off some rubble into the muddy water bit in the tunnels. Took a bit of doing though.

[Karnage]

I'll write up a readme when I am back home as I don't have access to my laptop right now. I should have included one on release, hindsight is always 20/20 :P

It shall be done!

@ArmouredBlood - Interesting to know, although you still can't get up to the upper balcony without jumping. If you figure that one out let me know, lol.

[ArmouredBlood]

Wait which upper balcony? I could get up the first room's side if that's what you mean.

[Karnage]

In the first courtyard you begin in, where you must raise the pillar then scale the cliffside and jump around the corner to get to the Temple Entrance. Specifically the area in screenshot 1.

[ArmouredBlood]

Yeah the ledges on the sides of the room are enough to get over to the pillar. Don't even have to strafe run from the ledge over the water. Doesn't work with infinitely tall actors with the head on sticks, but this is a zdoom wad so it doesn't matter. Either way works, although if you allow jumping and crouching you can run under the door that closes as soon as you head left in the tunnels, or strafe run then jump up the slope in the last room.

[Karnage]

I was wondering if someone would be able to pass under the red door as it closed, I was never able to get through it myself but I guess I'll need to increase the speed it closes. As for the sloped balcony, there will be railings on it so that will be fixed in due time. Thank you ArmouredBlood for attempting to break my map, helps out alot. :P

[ArmouredBlood]

Well I meant I could get over after the pillar was raised, not before. having the sticks on heads there doesn't help cause you can just barely jump on top of them.

[DeathevokatioN]

O.K., well I played your map for a while, didn't get too far into it because my computer has sound problems with GZDoom that give me a massive headache. (It's mostly due to my shit sound card though)

From what I've seen though, your map looks great, the texture choices are perfect, the architecture is beautiful, and the atmosphere is awesome. The monster placement is also pretty cool. But when that prick Arch Vile came and started resurrecting the dead imps, there was nothing I could do though as I had run out of ammo (but then again I probably missed some ammo as I took a direct root towards the archie.) And those messages telling you what to do... seem to be pointing out the obvious, and don't really feel all that necessary. The level would probably feel more cryptic and doomish without it IMHO... but I guess that's subjective.

Anyway, I really enjoyed what I've seen so far and I'll try playing it with Skulltag tomorrow morning so I can experience it without the sound problems.

Keep up the good work!



:P

[Karnage]

Thank you DeathevocatioN! The ammo issue is noted and in the works as of now. I sometimes forget to place enough ammo to account for someone who has never played the map before. I know where all the hidden catches are obviously and so always have enough ammo as I move through the level. If others are also in agreement on the ammo issue I will try and tweak it a bit on the generous side. Also be aware that there is a great deal of extra ammo and health in the secret areas, although I have beaten it without collecting any secrets with a fair degree more difficulty. Also has anyone found the secret SShotty? I made it quite difficult to locate because the level is a lot easier once you obtain it.

I may reconsider working the text a bit as it seems a bit to fast to read anyways.

[Karnage]

I have updated to Version 1.3 and made some fairly drastic changes throughout the level. The Tunnel Archie should be a bit more manageable and should pleasantly surprise you all over again. Ammo, items, monsters and several other oddities have been moved, placed and tweaked. As well as some new scripts and reworked the text messages that popped up as I didn't much care for the current state they where in...

Just play it! :P

[ArmouredBlood]

The changes you made seem okay, but you still haven't made the revs in the tunnels raise instantly, nor does the arch-vile by the red key teleport in instantly either. Also the arch and rev in the courtyard before the sewers are stuck on the platform, rendering them mostly harmless.

[Karnage]

Hmm, guess not playtesting myself and large quantities of alcohol are not a good recipe for mapping, :P

I'll fix those real quick and repost...

UPDATED Version 1.4 should fix all those problems! Give it a try and let me know how it goes! Crap, forgot to fix the sewer revs, damn hangover...

I'll get to them in the next update.

[DeathevokatioN]

I'll download soon... just the internet on my home computer doesn't seem to be working, heh.

Before you upload onto the archives I'd like to run through it again. :)

[Karnage]

Hehe, I imagine there will be at least a couple more updates before I upload to the archives and you should have plenty of time to run through it at your leisure. After all the next update will have the map mostly completed at the least with the extra courtyard finished and another final area, which will of course require some playtesting in its own right :P

Umm ya, so anyone find all of the current secrets without cheating yet?