The DWmegawad Club plays: Crumpets & Stardate 20X7 & Rush

[Ancalagon]

1 hour ago, Spie812 said:

map02:

... the room with the manc/rev snipers (which probably makes UV-Max runs annoying.) ...

Please don't think this about any of the rush maps, they are a blast to max.

Edit: Apart from map06.

[NuMetalManiak]

and don't jump to conclusions so damn quickly just because you've played the wad more times than the others

 

MAP02 Chemical Imps

 

Very ordinary level here, really the only hard thing about it is all the mid-tier monsters that make up most of the monster population. Not much in highlights just run and gun. Got that central room right? I wouldn't say so, since I'm not a fan of mancubi in the first place I always shoot them down with extreme prejudice even if there was an alternate way of getting rid of them (there was, right at the exit). Arch-vile placement was fair, and there's even a new mancubus monster, not entirely as nasty as you would expect, thankfully, but I would also kill as quickly as possible. I think he has the same health too.

[Demtor]

MAP09 - “Do You Believe?”

gzDoom - HMP – pistol start/saves

 

Bring it home, baby. Wow. Talk about a finale. Shit gets crazy multiple times over when you expected things to have ended already.

 

The atmospheric environment before the jump down was haunting with it’s slick red detailing and pulsing purple walls. Cyberdemon to start things off again. Yikes. Don’t run to the left right away either!

 

Fun trick to use when you first start out is to not fire a single bullet for as long as you can. This keeps you from alerting everyone and allows you to avoid being pincered in by imps and revs right away. Makes grabbing the megasphere easier. Nice.

 

I managed to get a spider and two commandos to stunlock that cyberdemon. It was fun to watch him squirm and fail to get a rocket through. I loved the giant architectural hell maw he sits in. Looks wicked. Both from the outside and within.

 

There was a switch puzzle that threw me off involving rising and lowering timed columns. Took a long time for me to figure out and felt really halting pace wise. Some of the more quite areas are really enjoyable spaces to pause and catch your breath though.

 

Was shocked to find one of the scariest secrets I’ve come across in a long time. “Ahhh!”

 

Getting the keys seemed the main focus until the end challenges. I liked the vertical stairs to the purple key. That was a neat reward for surviving the harrowing battle in the dark. There’s also an importance given to certain health potions that was kind of neat. Not sure what the purpose was, but seemed cool. I know I had two secret health and ammo stocks appear at the beginning area somehow. Not sure how I even did that but it was welcome.

 

Getting through to the end is quite the experience. Strap on those slaughter boots on and get to BFG spamming! Then you come upon the amazing pyramid entrance but don’t forget to stock up first.

 

The final part of this map confused me a bit. There is a timer that starts counting down from 10 after you shoot a switch. The countdown resets and goes from 10 to 0 again and again until it’s red. I can only assume that the 10 count indicates the coming of the next wave until reaching the last. Very neat idea and hard as hell to get through. Anything that avoids the tired old IoS ending, is great.

 

However, what confused me was the four switches that don’t seem to do anything. They are so predominately displayed and covered by walls on three sides, you would think they are important. But all they did was disappear after the clock struck red zeroes. *Head scratch* In any case, great set up for a survival encounter as once the clock hits red zeroes, a small wall section drops open allowing you to scramble for the last switch to open up the exit.

 

The end crystal is, like most things in this wad, visually striking. Unique and awesome. Too bad it uses the same IoS sound when you shoot it instead of having it’s own thing. Ah well. Very cool none the less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAP10 - “Thanks for Playing!”

gzDoom - HMP – pistol start/saves

 

Another weird “TY” from the author. But hey, why not? No real ending per say, just a small collection of awesome maps and a hug at the finish line. \o/ No sir, thank you.

[Tristan]

From what I recall from the TNS session (my memory is hazy so this could be completely wrong), the final arena of MAP09 is something like the outer walls turn red, and the switches turn them back to white or yellow or whatever it was. When the timer hits 0 the red walls release more monsters into the area so you have to try and keep the walls from going red.

[Demtor]

52 minutes ago, Eris Falling said:

From what I recall from the TNS session (my memory is hazy so this could be completely wrong), the final arena of MAP09 is something like the outer walls turn red, and the switches turn them back to white or yellow or whatever it was. When the timer hits 0 the red walls release more monsters into the area so you have to try and keep the walls from going red.

OMG, lol. Thanks! I never even came close to putting that together. Makes sense looking back as that was A LOT of enemies I save scummed my way through. Hahaha, crazy.

[Paul977]

I remember to have read that you have to press the switches before the counter reach the 0 in order to avoid arch-viles teleporting in; very ingenious trick have to say

[Demtor]

 

MAP31 - “Hopscotch”

gzDoom - HMP – pistol start/saves

 

Crazy colorful chaos with a dark quiet corner or two mixed in. That sums this one up to me. A series of sticky situations but nothing really long winded or over the top.

 

The beginning was the hardest to me though the damage floor timed event (with the stylish entrance) was rough as hell. To me, the starting ammo situation was a real quandary. I spent more time running around trying to decide who lives and who dies so that I could make it to the next area before I empty out completely and died trying to punch Revs in the face.

 

As always, I liked all of the spacey architecture. Kind of a organized mess of strobe lights, poles, lines and steps. Everything went along well with the upbeat electronic music. Stuff was kind of blinking or flashing which gives you a weird feeling if you decided to sit still anywhere.

 

The ending with the awesome looking exit and a purple suited human was funny. How the heck did he get there?!

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAP32 - “Issai Perfect”

gzDoom - HMP – pistol start/saves

 

Jeezus H… Uuuugh. Not for me. This was just silly. I mean, come onnnn man.

 

The ceiling crushing gimmick looked cool but I dunno. Who has the patience for this kind of thing? Not me.

 

I liked the end with the purple suited guys worshiping the purple crystal.

 

Glad these last two aren't a part of the proper maps. The main 9 is legit. These few secret maps where kind of meh for me.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

What can I say? This and Crumpets deserves 5 stars pretty easily to me. The presentation. The design. The music. The gameplay. etc etc. Outstanding stuff. Top notch quality even when I didn't enjoy one or two maps as much as the others. 

[rehelekretep]

map06 fda

trying to get this wad + Rush done inside the month! excuse the shit playing; despite buying a new mousepad it still feels awesome and tacky :\

 

+ general design, felt almost Quake 3 The Longest Yard, or that final arena where you fight the CPU boss

+ midi is cool!

+ YK fight, megasphere/AV/PE spawn fight, stairs fight all awesome

 

- fight before the RL - the purple railings make the arena feel bigger than it is, just annoyed me for some reason

- final arena feels anti-climactic. didnt try and see where the secret cyber-fight would lead me to. (can you go from the exit room back to the cyber fight? seems a shame if you cant). i would have liked the stair-fight lead to the exit

[Spie812]

map03:

Gzdoom - UV Pistol start - Saves

I'm actually gonna try pistol starting all of these unless it gets to the point where I have to go back to my continuous save.

This map I didn't like as much. It seemed to me that most of the encounters could be solved simply by running back through a doorway and spamming rockets. I guess I just don't really have very much to say about this map. It seems more like a filler map to me than the maps before (or after) it.

[rehelekretep]

map07 fda

beautiful! already mentioned but the Secret of Evermore music adds so much to this map; glorious midi.

i had a blast with this one; the actual hardest fight for me was probably the beginning with the AVs that become alert and rush you back to the starting arena. i guess you can probably run past them to take them away from the imp bodies but i save-scummed until i did it anyway :p

this is the most 'Crumpets' like map in the set so far; small amount of monsters, all the fights (save the stairways bumrush) have a small amount of monsters in a confined space. what with the floating, slightly odd structure, and the teleporter to the stairway in the void, plus the midi, this feels like a crazy dream/nightmare. loved it.

[rehelekretep]

map08 fda

*this fda starts after about 5 attempts in, because i decided that F10+Y had suddenly become Quicksave instead of F5 🤦 this is what you do to me Ribbiks!*

whoa nelly, after thinking that i wasnt too bad after 06 & 07, this brings me back to earth. i really like this midi and the whole ballroom design thing going on, pretty freaking cool. however the map is slightly soured for me by a few situations that feel more than a little unfair/annoying (luckily im playing with saves):

 

1. the AVs who spawn after the switch in the YK room. as you can see in my demo, if you flip the switch and then dont notice them appearing, you are potentially fucked if you have low HP. after i knew this i just flipped the switch and then blocked them in with absolutely no skill required whatsoever i take this back: i watched my demo and i couldve blocked them in put i pussied out and ran away in panic!

2. the run through the HKs/barons to get to the BFG room: this is a shame because that fight itself is amazing! but i dont think there's anyway to avoid damage if one of the enemies decides to throw a fireball into your face at point blank. i think the distance between them and you could have been increased, or even the platform theyre on raised slightly so they tower over you but they cant actually just wreck you with one shot

3. after i picked up the black key i had no idea where to go. writing this up 5 minutes after playing i still cant remember where i ended up to flick the BK switch. awkward

 

the ending fight is just bonkers in a good way, the weird floating floor in there is amazing. id prefer if the 'halls' were slightly larger to make it more grandiose (in keeping with the ballroom or palace theme - almost like the Dwarf halls in the LOTR films) but then there would probably have to be more AVs and cybers to fill that space and the balance might go out the window, whatever.

 

cool map!

Edited September 23, 2017 by rehelekretep

[NuMetalManiak]

MAP03 Frozen Tech

 

Best map yet, the kind of slaughter I enjoy, full-preparedness for enemies coming pouring in. Though, there does exist the quandary on whether or not a BFG is more suitable for most of the battles here. Before the red key, it is mitigated a bit by a secret invulnerability I found, but since that always is quick to wear off, I would have to rely on rockets. Since there's nothing too bulky, it's fine though. The BFG is far more necessary for the end fights, specifically when the baron horde warps in and the exit room, though one has to watch the two arch-viles teleporting in since they are usually around the corpses.

[Spie812]

map04 white fields

Gzdoom - UV Pistol Start - Saves

 

This level is a huge step over the last one. Given the open space, infighting can now occur on a large scale, which is almost necessary given the amount of ammo around. I mean- It's not scarce, but certainly not enough to kill everything on your own. The fights are pretty fun, I liked in particular the cyberdemon with its pillared mancubus pals. However, some of the fights last quite a while (also the manc/cyberdemon fight), although I guess I personally didn't mind that much. The layout of the level definitely has more thought placed into it than the previous level, and has good balance whichever path you choose first.

[NuMetalManiak]

MAP04 White Fields

 

Oh my god, it's white! The word that signifies all offensive groups!

 

That is more sad than funny, really. Anyways, another Arctic blast of setpiece slaughter, mostly small fry, the kind of slaughter I truly enjoy! Loads of fun, a bit bigger than other maps but still can be done quickly. This I'm a fan of. Mostly imps, the best kind of enemy to slaughter, mixed in with revenants which are fine. The cave area at the south part had quite some interest going for it as to how to get out, the red key battle however really stole the show. You want to concentrate on these four mancubi blocks, and Plutonia-style teleporting happens over there with them. Meanwhile, the cyberdemon has to peck away at the imp horde he is surrounded by just to get to you, which is why the mancubi are top focus. Endgame has another one with a wall of mancubi (crap) and a few other DS monsters rising in for sniping. Somehow, I missed the megaarmor secret earlier, but came back and got it soon enough. Not hard over there.

[Capellan]

It's the 25th here, so ..

 

 

+++ 99 Ways to Die, The Trooper's Playground, The Talosian Incident

 

 

And if they win I'll play them, too!

[Suitepee]

I'd like to propose an interesting idea for a future Doomworld Megawad Club monthly pick; a joint merger between the Doomworld Ironman League and the DWMC!

 

Pending that Alfonzo picks a megawad for one month, the DWMC could also play through the same thing. That way people who go through the Ironman can then continue to play it for the DWMC if they so wish after they perish, and people who play through it for the DWMC could then have a crack at doing it for the Ironman League.

 

+++ Whatever the Ironman League does next month (if it hasn't been done before on here)

[Spectre01]

I'd rather keep the Ironman and the DWMC seperate. Anyway, my vote will continue to be +++A.L.T.

[Grain of Salt]

I'm not gonna vote this time round, because I'm going to be too busy to keep up next month and I couldn't vote for something knowing I'm not going to be playing it. I might even use october to finish the wads we were meant to play in september :D

 

That said, why would you vote for alt. I mean, come on.

[Memfis]

[old vote was here]

Edited September 25, 2017 by Memfis

[Scotty]

+++ PRCP, SkepLand

Edited September 25, 2017 by Scotty

[Jaws In Space]

+++ Demonfear

[Killer5]

+++ Bloody Rust, Bloody Rust 2, current Cereal Killer beta

[Spectre01]

1 hour ago, Grain of Salt said:

That said, why would you vote for alt. I mean, come on.

A.L.T. is an interesting wad to write about a take screenshots of while playing. Fits the club format well. That, and I actually really liked it. "Legendary wad. Never gets boring" etc.

[Capellan]

32 minutes ago, Jaws In Space said:

Demonfear

 

What do you want us to do on days 2-30? :)

[NuMetalManiak]

hmm...

 

+++ Suitcase of Gor + SlayeR

[Killer5]

20x7 Map09:

So this map is almost amazing on hntr. I think the fight in the room with bfg/4 switches is criminally nerf'd into the ground at the start.. I was expecting at least imps or something in the cages.. but there is nothing. Other than that one issue I liked everything else.

 

The 2nd to final fight plays really great on hntr. For whatever reason the HKs that lower after walking up the steps have more presence. I guess this is thanks to the removal of the insane presence of the vile horde on UV. Because of the nerf to the 2nd to last fight there is more of a progression in difficulty leading up to the final fight. On hntr the final fight feels harder to me.. in comparison to UV where both the 2nd to last fight and the final fights feel about equal in difficulty (I would probably argue that the 2nd to last fight is harder when running this map simply because of the vile horde however).

 

Also.. just another thought.. I really wish all mappers would double their lines. You can skip the line to release the viles/cyb release in the 2nd to last fight here. I chose not to do this on purpose because it kinda ruins the fight.. but if you really want to remove any sense of challenge from the viles on UV you could simply skip the line to release them. Slanted single lines don't really do much when you are running west/south (you can even skip lines at 45 degree angles). Two non-slanted lines 16 units apart instead. I find this problem a lot with teleporters too.

 

Anyways I think this map is a great example of balancing hntr in a hard wad. I'll be using it as an example for some stuff I make in the future.

 

Sick map regardless.

 

Demo:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/n2tddy51fp8n3t3/sd20x7_09_skill2_cl9.lmp?dl=0

[galileo31dos01]

+++ Memento Mori II

 

because everyone's voting something different

[NuclearPotato]

In about an hour and change from this post, I'll be celebrating my 27th birthday.  So I'd figure I'd put my votes this month in for one of my favorite WADs, and a couple different WADs that I find interesting, and tell you my reason for voting on them.

 

+++UAC Ultra, The Ultimate Torment and Torture, Equinox

 

UAC Ultra: I just love this mapset to pieces.  I just think it's very polished overall, and the rusty, grimy atmosphere that it invokes is perfect for Halloween overall.

 

TUT&T:  See my reasoning for voting on ZPack last month.  In summary, ZDoom mapsets have often been neglected by the Megawad Club, which is a shame, as even the worst of them have something interesting to talk about.  TUT&T is especially timely right now, since TerminusEst13 just released his edit of the maps, which removes the custom weapons and enemies, making the whole package gameplay mod-friendly.

 

Equinox:  I needed another 13 maps to round out the set for this month, and this absurdly large offering from Nuts.wad author BPRD seems to fit the mold nicely.  If nothing else, it's rather impressive how playable these maps are for how large the spaces inside are, and I figure it's weird enough in spots to be in the spirit of the season.

[Spie812]

map05 Vile House

Gzdoom - UV Pistol Start - Saves

 

This map lives up to it's name, with plenty of arch-viles to go around, although not so many as to be overwhelming (thankfully.) Most of the action takes place in one central room, with new enemies teleporting in pretty much whenever you complete an objective. The monsters are also more nasty in this map, giving up your imps and demons for revenants and mancubuses for the most part. Infighting is useful here, especially if you lure the cyberdemon and mastermind into a Gotcha-style fight. This is probably my favorite map so far.

 

also, I guess I should vote so +++MM2 ^{totally not changed at the last second}

Edited September 30, 2017 by Spie812

[vdgg]

+++ Hell Revealed II :)