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Fan Mission: Marsh of Rahena by ERH+ (2019/4/5)


ERH+

  

29 members have voted

  1. 1. Appearance

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      1
    • Averange
      4
    • Good
      17
    • Excellent
      7
  2. 2. Gameplay

    • Unbearable
      2
    • Poor
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    • Averange
      4
    • Good
      7
    • Excellent
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  3. 3. Story

    • Unbearable
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      1
    • Averange
      8
    • Good
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i have a strange problem

TDM crashes while loading quicksaves and savegames for this mission

in version 1.0 it happend while i'm down in the cellar :wacko:

now version 1.1 crashes even in the beginning eg. new game; quicksave ;quickload = crash

i have tried other missions no issues there

 

 

I hit the same problem: original release, 64-bit TDM, Win8.1. After it started crashing on load, I tried starting the mission anew and it still crashed. I switched to 32-bit and was able to restart the mission, but I can't say for sure that's what fixed it.

 

You mean it crashes on quickload (f5) or on any load from the save/load menu?

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Yes. Switching to TheDarkModx64 made a difference, although the most recent quicksave instantly crashed the same way. I switched to a slightly older save, and things are still working after a good bit of play. Thanks for the tip.

Do you guys maybe are using saves between version 1.0 and 1.1? Because their objective structure have changed and objectives trigger different targets now. I'm not saying it in relation to quickload crashes, it may have something to do with entity limit and spawning new objects during gameplay - I will tinker with that.

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I liked the setting, but oversized scale and trial-and-error gameplay made me put this one on a shelf, unfortunately.

 

On more general note, I think we should have a separate discussion on how to be a better tester. This will help both testers and mappers, and it will ultimately result in better player experience.

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Congratulations. It's fun to play in a semi open world. though I think it would've been improved if the player

run speed was faster for this mission as you spend most of the time running. Still I loved the feel of the place.

 

Very tough to pull off a mission like this and you did a damn fine job of it.

I have an eclectic YouTube channel making videos on a variety of games. Come and have look here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/NeonsStyleHD

 

Dark Mod Missions: Briarwood Manor - available here or in game

http://forums.thedarkmod.com/topic/18980-fan-mission-briarwood-manor-by-neonsstyle-first-mission-6082017-update-16/

 

 

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Confirmed :(.

 

Version 1.0 did sometimes fail to reload a quicksave ("...no more free events...") but had no problem with regular saves. In version 1.1, however, saving is no more possible at all: both quicksaves and regular saves, when reloaded, immediately crash TDM (both 32 bit and 64 bit).

 

Let's hope you can find a quick fix for this. It's nice to get rid of the annoying beeps under the starting / closing menu - but if it comes at the expense of losing all ability to save I rather return to the earlier version :(.

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Since the compass doesn't work, is there some other way to determine which way is South East? The 0 floor map doesn't really

help, as there's no way to work out where I am on it. It all looks the same.

Edited by NeonsStyle

I have an eclectic YouTube channel making videos on a variety of games. Come and have look here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/NeonsStyleHD

 

Dark Mod Missions: Briarwood Manor - available here or in game

http://forums.thedarkmod.com/topic/18980-fan-mission-briarwood-manor-by-neonsstyle-first-mission-6082017-update-16/

 

 

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Since the compass doesn't work, is there some other way to determine which way is South East? The 0 floor map doesn't really

help, as there's no way to work out where I am on it. It all looks the same.

 

Try reverting to old-school graphics:

 

r_shadows 1

r_softShadowsQuality 0

r_useGLSL 0

 

and see if the compass goes back to normal.

Please visit TDM's IndieDB site and help promote the mod:

 

http://www.indiedb.com/mods/the-dark-mod

 

(Yeah, shameless promotion... but traffic is traffic folks...)

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New download link in the first post. Reduced number of entities, as I presume all dynamically spawned entities (like emitters) were causing the game to exceed its limits. At least I didn't had a crash during normal or quick save/loads, but maybe it can be related to the overall time the gameplay takes.

Compass not working - I don't have that issue, but

 

 

 


That is appears to be a driver issue, not all users are affected.

See: http://bugs.thedarkmod.com/view.php?id=4986
Edited by ERH+
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New download link in the first post.

 

Saves / reloads appear to be healthy now, at least for the first 7-8 trials. Thank you for the quick fix to restore this awesome mission; it's certainly large, and for the first time a few objectives did require some intuition, but I still enjoy every minute of it.

 

@nbohr1more: my compass is fine, so it's probably not an FM issue...

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Since the compass doesn't work, is there some other way to determine which way is South East? The 0 floor map doesn't really

help, as there's no way to work out where I am on it. It all looks the same.

Maps?

 

 

There are three maps of the keep: one (the least detailed) in the cargo shaft room, where you find first note next to a lantern; the map is in one of the arched alcoves. More detailed map is in the south-west room of attic, on a round table next to an armchair. The third one is to the right from the entrance in the library (accessed from the first floor, southern west corner of the keep).

 

 

I will add more detailed maps of the keep in the first post's walk-through.

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You mentioned that a "short cutscene" will play when all mission objectives are complete, but as soon as I finished it went right to the victory/stats screen. Come to think of it, I've played pretty much every Dark Mod fan mission and I remember a grand total of ONE that had any kind of ending cutscene (I don't recall which, this was years ago). The rest all went straight to the victory screen.

 

Is this... a thing that missions have? Is there just something broken with my Dark Mod and I've been missing out on dozens and dozens of cutscenes that conclude the missions this whole time?

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Do you guys maybe are using saves between version 1.0 and 1.1? Because their objective structure have changed and objectives trigger different targets now. I'm not saying it in relation to quickload crashes, it may have something to do with entity limit and spawning new objects during gameplay - I will tinker with that.

How does one determine the game version?

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Need help

 

 


I am trying to lift the floor boards with the crowbar on the floor above the sealed section. They highlight as a expected, but they don't come up. I have tried from all sides and from standing on top. No luck.

 

Edited by MVT
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You need to use the crowbar, and proceed like with lockpicking a door.

I thought that is what I did. Normally, I have very little trouble with locks. Finally got it with many multiple tries.

Edited by MVT
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readme.txt file:

Version: 1.1
BUILD TIME: about 6 months.

this info is literally one line above what you just quote.

 

Except it's not. There's nothing there at all when I open the file. It looks like this:

 

BUILD TIME: about 6 months.

 

Description: Horror themed exploration of seemingly deserted keep in the middle of swamps. Spiders, undead, darkness, gore.

 

 

CREDITS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

 

Beta-testers: Amadeus, Bienie, Boiler's_hiss, Dragofer, Filizitas, Judith, nbohr1more, s.urfer.

 

Proofreading: Amadeus.

 

That's it!

 

EDIT: I just saw there's an updated version available for download through Dark Mod. That one says it's Version 1.1 right on the notes, without even opening a text file, and immediately looks different because it has a title card (blue with horses) when installed. I'll give that a try and see if anything's different!

 

EDIT EDIT: My saves from the old version started me over from the beginning, so I used noclip to speed through again just to test it, and- sure enough, there was a little cutscene at the end! I guess it just hadn't been implemented yet in the version I originally played, which now means I've played TWO fan missions with cutscenes. I'm a little surprised so few people have done this, but at least there's nothing wrong with my installation or anything. Now that that's resolved, let me give you a little feedback- though most of it will be based off my full-length playthrough of the old version, so forgive me for that- I know you made some improvements that I saw while rushing through the second time, like adding a glow to a key and putting in a bunch more loot. This is also my first time posting a review and I have no experience making levels, so it's purely from a player's perspective.

 

Pros:

I liked how immediately and dramatically different this mission was. By this point, one typically has some idea what to expect when starting a Dark Mod mission, so getting suddenly dropped into a dark, desolate marsh instead of the usual back alley sets a very ominous tone right from the beginning. The intimidating size and difficult entry to the keep once you find it was also a departure from the norm, as was the vast scale of the rooms and building in general.

 

Seeing all that loot and being unable to take it because it belongs to your family made sense from a story standpoint and also added a bit of a strategy element- you know that you're going to be allowed to take it sooner or later, so you're already trying to make a mental map of everything you saw so you can find it again later. Being able to take loot found out in the marsh right from the beginning was also good attention to detail. Similarly, having a mercilessly pitch black level and only being able to use light sources as objects in-environment instead of just picking up a lantern and hitting the L key was an interesting choice, and I liked that there were different light sources with different properties- no way to relight the candle if it goes out, no way to switch off the red crystals, etc. Having to navigate such a vast, dark environment while avoiding guards would have been insanely time-consuming, so I also appreciate that you found other ways to add an element of danger while allowing the player to run most of the time.

 

The atmosphere was terrific- finding things like the

guillotine

looming out of the mist while exploring gave me the chills, and stuff like

the ONE set of double doors that open on their own when you approach or the room completely filled with spiders

kept things tense and spooky. Considering the very small number of readable items, the story is surprisingly frightening and compelling. The many secret passages and ventilation shafts were fun to discover and made getting around a little simpler.

 

Cons:

I had extreme difficulty finding

the entrances to the sealed-off section. I thought I'd found it when I pried up the loose floorboards with the crowbar, but this just led to an empty room, then back out a window onto the balcony above the hedge maze. I had to look up spoilers to discover the open hatch and the chimneys, the latter of which I actually knew about, but had forgotten about long ago since the level is so damn big and there are so many things to keep track of. I DID look up to see if there were more open windows I could enter through from the balcony, but the mist is so thick you actually can't see them from down there! Similarly, I never would have guessed that you need to use the crowbar on the drill, and it was very difficult to find the sharp shovel in the dark with all those plants (it was easy the second time, but I don't know if that's because you changed it in the new version or it's just that I knew what to look for.) When the level is so huge and contains so many objects, it's hard to know what is and isn't important and what might be usable later- the glowing red gems look extremely important, for example, but are just light sources. Also, with the maps, I found the first two easily enough because the attic is mostly empty, but the one in the library is unreasonably difficult- at that point it's one scroll out of dozens and dozens that you've seen throughout the building!

 

 

A lot of things that looked like loot weren't, and vice versa, and a lot of the loot was insanely well hidden. On the one hand, this is interesting because you're constantly surprised by things like a nearly-invisible jewel just lying on the floor or a book that turns out to be valuable, but it's a completionist's nightmare.

 

Some of the objectives are described as being in a certain direction from the keep, but as far as I can tell, there's no compass to be found. The marsh area was small enough that I was able to find them just by running around and looking, but it seemed odd to consistently be given useless directions.

 

As much as I liked the light mechanics, it got tedious carrying around a light source absolutely everywhere to be able to see anything at all. It would have been nice if there were a way to fix the generator late in the mission and restore light to at least some areas.

 

Thanks for this mission, and for replying to my question!

Edited by Jehauri
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A compass - you have it in your inventory from the beginning!

 

In newest version the room with breakable ceiling have entrance to the sealed level. The same goes with the second room accessible from the window.

 

I will add small lights to the second map and the shovel.

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A compass - you have it in your inventory from the beginning!

 

In most missions, it's there by default. In yours, though, I only have a spyglass. I just checked and this is true even with version 1.1. Not really a big deal, though!

 

EDIT: It appears to be some kind of bug, and not your fault! I just tested a couple other levels, and the compass is missing in all of them. Even a level that lets you select your starting equipment and gives the compass as an option doesn't actually have the compass in your inventory when you begin. I wonder if this is an issue with Dark Mod 2.07?

Edited by Jehauri
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