Doom Builder 2 Monster Ambush

[ShoDemo]

Hello again guys. This time I think I have learned many things on Doom Builder and my level is over the "half way there" point developed. So, I imagined putting a keycard in a big hexagonal or octagonal room, with acid around it and once you pick up the key, monsters start appearing. And here are my questions:

 

1) Is it better to make a "monsters teleport ambush" or a "walkover-line ambush" (the second will open the wall like a closet) ? I am considering monsters that fly mostly, because the others would be stuck due to height difference and need teleportation.

2) If you answered with the teleport option, is there a way to make a second room, in which I will put the monsters (far away from the main room) and after I get the key on the main room, every enemy located on the other room would teleport in specific positions inside the main room? Or do the monsters need to see me through a small opening on the wall and walk over a teleport line?

3) Can I make the door, which I entered the room from (in this case Action 1: DR open wait close wait for monsters) close, when the monsters start appearing and start working normally again, only if I kill all the monsters? Or do I need to make it open from the start of the level, closed during the ambush and open forever afterwards? (this is more of a kill monster event I guess, which I would use for other things too, like lowering some metal bars inside the level)

 

These are my questions. Hope that you understand what I mean and it would really help me if you answered with the best suited Doom Builder 2 Actions (1,2,3,...,140,141). The questions above hinder my progress on the map somewhat, as I take it more slowly to develop for the rest of the map and I am already in a tight schedule due to being in my last year at school (two months remaining).

 

P.S.: I would put this in the "ask a miscellaneous editing question thread, but I think it is too big a post to go there.

 

 

 

[Bauul]

56 minutes ago, ShotgunDemolition said:

Hello again guys. This time I think I have learned many things on Doom Builder and my level is over the "half way there" point developed. So, I imagined putting a keycard in a big hexagonal or octagonal room, with acid around it and once you pick up the key, monsters start appearing. And here are my questions:

 

1) Is it better to make a "monsters teleport ambush" or a "walkover-line ambush" (the second will open the wall like a closet) ? I am considering monsters that fly mostly, because the others would be stuck due to height difference and need teleportation.

2) If you answered with the teleport option, is there a way to make a second room, in which I will put the monsters (far away from the main room) and after I get the key on the main room, every enemy located on the other room would teleport in specific positions inside the main room? Or do the monsters need to see me through a small opening on the wall and walk over a teleport line?

3) Can I make the door, which I entered the room from (in this case Action 1: DR open wait close wait for monsters) close, when the monsters start appearing and start working normally again, only if I kill all the monsters? Or do I need to make it open from the start of the level, closed during the ambush and open forever afterwards? (this is more of a kill monster event I guess, which I would use for other things too, like lowering some metal bars inside the level)

 

These are my questions. Hope that you understand what I mean and it would really help me if you answered with the best suited Doom Builder 2 Actions (1,2,3,...,140,141). The questions above hinder my progress on the map somewhat, as I take it more slowly to develop for the rest of the map and I am already in a tight schedule due to being in my last year at school (two months remaining).

 

P.S.: I would put this in the "ask a miscellaneous editing question thread, but I think it is too big a post to go there.

 

 

 

Mapping is an art as much as a science, so there are multiple ways to achieve the same desired effect. That said, for my two cents:

 

1) Entirely up to you! Monster closets (as in a wall lowering to reveal monsters) is less work for you, but does obviously physically require there to be space where you want the monsters to be hidden. If you want them to enter from the edge of the room, then it works great, but obviously teleportation will allow them to appear anywhere. Teleporting monsters needs to be carefully done though so it doesn't seem cheap to the player. Suddenly having a Cyberdemon teleport two feet in front of you with no warning isn't fun for anyone. Make sure you give the player space. Teleporting is also much more time consuming to set up. If you want to tightly control when the monsters warp in, you need to set up individual teleport functions for every single individual monster. Teleports only allow one monster through at a time, so if you have fewer teleports than monsters you get a queuing effect which can spoil the surprise.

 

2) Yes you can create a room off at the side. The most effective method is to use Doom's sound propegation system where all connected sectors where a player sound happens trigger enemy activity. The two options are a: create a tiny "pipe" that connects an area where you *know* the player will be making noise (I.e. shooting something) that leads from the main area to a hidden room off that the side. Use GZDoom Builders sound mode to check it's connected. Or b: the slightly more advanced, but also neater method, of merging the room off at the side with a sector the player is making noise in. Create a room off at the side, select a sector in the main map that will have noise made in it (a basic room sector, not a decoration sector), then select the new room off at the side and hit Shift-J. This merged them, so are treated as a single sector just separated by distance. Any sound that enters the main map sector will also enter the room at the side, alerting the monsters.

 

If you want a good example of how all this works, download my DW2017 map Spiralunky and crack it open in Doom Builder. It's an entire map based around teleporting in enemies, so you'll be easily able to see how to set it up.

 

3) Unfortunately no. There are only a handle of very specific situations in Doom where killing monsters effects the level itself, and are so limited as to be borderline useless for general mapping (e.g. it must be specific map numbers, with specific enemies, and specific effects). 

 

You'll have to find another way of locking in the players. General examples include putting the open-door switch inside the monster closet. Or put it at the top of a lift where the player would die if they stood around waiting for the lift to come down, so they have to kill the monsters. Or have multiple switches that all need to be clicked to open the door. Alternatively make the whole thing a timed event: make the entrance door a wall that rises when you walk in the room (quickly to position) and then when you pick up the key have it slowly lower, so the player is trapped in the room for at least 30 seconds or so.

 

Whatever your approach, remember to experiment and playtest again and again to make sure it works well. Just play around with various methods until one "feels" right for your encounter. 

 

So long story short: the "simplest" solution would be:

 

1) Make the entrance door *not* have a DR function on the inside, so once the player is in they can't open the door from the inside.

2) Build monster closets around the edge of the room.

3) Put a trigger linedef infront of the key that rapidly lowers the walls of the closets.

4) Put a switch inside one of the closets that opens the door (I'd suggest open-door-stay). Make sure it's well lit or signposted so the player knows to look for it.

 

If you're time pressured, that would be by far the quickest solution to implement.

[ShoDemo]

Thank you Bauul. You are a lifesaver!!! Going to work on it right now.

And something else. What can I put in the position of the inside not DR, so that it works with an 103 switch. Should I leave it blank or put a W1?

 

Edit: Nevermind. I got it. I used blank on the inside. That worked, so that's ok.

Edited March 25, 2017 by ShotgunDemolition