E1M5 Nightmare Tips

It's New Year's Eve, a very important part of the year, and like most people, you're probably trying to figure out "why can't I get past that really difficult part in E1M5 on NM where I'm trying to reach that switch which opens up the path to the second part of the level? I'm fucked! There's just too many bad guys!"

Well, fret no more, young Doomers! As I now temptingly dangle the key to your success. And I will gladly hand it to you, and you don't even have to watch any advertisements involving politics, braincrushing pharmaceutical drugs, or lawyers offering their services to you under the pretense that you are being screwed to the earth's core by the IRS for tax evasion (a favored pastime of lottery winners and deceased rock stars).

E1M5 on NM is initially not too much of a big deal. Make a sound, take out the spectre charging towards you and melee with the gang of grunts who want some. Reaching the lift-raising bridge and getting the yellow key to the lift leading to the large room is an easy enough task. Once doing so, get the first secret and you will be armed with a rocket launcher, and boosted with plenty of health and armour.

Beyond this, it becomes a whole new ball game. Your way to the keyed door is sorely challenged. It is no longer a rush, but a strategic effort. He's my cue.


You should be equiped with everything if you need. Now, here's the hard part.


You need to journey across a freshly infested area, along with the demons respawning around you everywhere.


Want to rush it? Dang, there's bad guys everywhere!


Let's just open up the yellow key door and rush it... damn! A whole crowd of demons.


You can't just walk into mordor! Unless you are especially lucky and manage to simply run through the bad guys, the demons will easily kill you. And if not them, the imps will, or their respawned buddies behind you pelting you with shotguns. Yes, there are video walkthroughs where the player simply sidesteps the assault, but in reality this does not happen. So how do you even get past this part?


Going back to the beginning; where the secret was.


Blast the bad guys from your safe space. Hopefully taking out the barrel; that's an insurance risk.


Instead of going straight to the yellow key door, go back to that area with the steps.


Blast the respawned bad guys. Spectres cannot be able to travel up the steps; you will face only poorly armed zombies and some imps. Take them all out. Get the secret here, but it is not important (you would have got it already if you were playing pistol start).


Now, focus your attention on that window over there.


Aggressively attack all bad guys, preferably using the shotgun. Use the cover of the left or right wall wisely.


Turn back, to face the stairs. Kill any undesirables.


Target the guys here. It IS possible to do this from your previous sniper position, however it takes time and leaves you vulnerable from respawned imps and shotgunners, which is not recommended. I suggest doing this on the fly.


Ensure the area is secure, as much as it could, and switch to the rocket launcher. (Ignore my terrible health)


Run up to the door, and back away as fast as you ran, firing rockets.


Don't rest. Return, and drop a few on them.


On your return, you should see a lot of dead demons, which is what you want. However, there may be a few still lurking around: it is best to keep your launcher armed, for the next battle:


Two will take them out. Grab the two secrets, and the rest, well, shit, that's another story.

This particular part of E1M5 on NM stumped me. The beginning, and rest of the game (apart from the last room) is no particular challenge. Getting to the next part, the switch, is the real challenge. It's hard, but it can be made easier by using a previous room as a sniper room to reduce the vast number of enemies in the open aired area, and clear them sufficiently so you can blast rockets at the charge of enemies that explode at the locked door.

This is a small and sharp part of the map, and ir doesn't compensate for being quick-footed or knowing how to shoot. But it does provide an alternative to the straight route of simply blasting along and dying fast in front of the key door. The area is too hectic to rely on bullets or shells. Get the area safe as it could be, and blow a few rockets! And you're in the next part.