Jump to content
The Dark Mod Forums

Fan Mission: Lord Edgar's Bathhouse by Goldwell (27.12.2014)


Goldwell

Recommended Posts

Had to fix a little hiccup in the map, posted a new link and Bikerdude has uploaded the new version to the official mirrors.

 

Also thanks to Bikerdude for pointing that bug out! :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's some beautifully opulent architecture in the bathhouse. I especially liked the lighting in the room with the

 

 

opal hidden behind a pillar

 

 

and the trip up in the lift.

 

My only substantial concern about the design is that it felt like two maps, of which one had several guards to sneak past but felt like a corridor between places of interest rather than a living place, whereas the other had interesting things to discover but relied on an elite guard to provide most of its danger.

Some things I'm repeatedly thinking about...

 

- louder scream when you're dying

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nearly finished but one glitch

The optional get all the loot - I got more than the required amount

perhaps because I found some before entering the bath house

 

One point where I am stuck

in the not hidden journal it refers to a pumpkin and in the hidden journal to blood stones. I couldn't find any of the blood stones and I assume that they are related to the hidden pumpkin which presumably teleports in

However an excellent mission which I am ghosting on the hardest difficulty which isn't easy but can be done

Edited by Oldjim
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have rarely seen such perfect use of light and shade from a game-play POV, tons of risky little paths with

the perfect amount of suspense. I'll need to get some blood-pressure meds for this one! :)

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...)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nearly finished but one glitch

The optional get all the loot - I got more than the required amount

perhaps because I found some before entering the bath house

 

One point where I am stuck

in the not hidden journal it refers to a pumpkin and in the hidden journal to blood stones. I couldn't find any of the blood stones and I assume that they are related to the hidden pumpkin which presumably teleports in

However an excellent mission which I am ghosting on the hardest difficulty which isn't easy but can be done

 

For the loot

 

On a couple of my own play throughs I found 2450 is the best balance between getting just about everything.. I know there is a little bit more in there but it's a good balance the way it is :)

 

 

 

As for the other stuff...

 

 

 

 

The hidden pumpkin is hidden somewhere on the right hand side of the bathhouse as you enter (through the glass door). Also it is there from the start so you dont need the blood stones to unlock it

 

As for the hidden gems, they're meant to be pretty hard to find so maybe try scouring around hard to see places and ontop of things etc ;)

 

I will add that there are two gems downstairs in the bathhouse and 1 up.. so maybe that helps too :)

 

 

 

 

Overall i'm glad you enjoyed it and had fun :)

Edited by Goldwell
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the hint

found the pumpkin and finished with all the loot. Now to go back to my save game and try to find the hidden gems

This fm must have taken a lot of sorting out the guard patterns and lights to allow sneaking through but it all worked.

I even managed the gems on the church door without using a water arrow

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now I know you didn't credit Stephen Russell in this but goddamn, whoever voiced the main protagonist is a dead ringer for him. The whole intro sequence made the nostalgia obsessed man-child in me very happy. Fan missions can also use more guard conversations in general, cause Jesus Christ, that was pretty damn amusing.

 

Anywho! This was really excellent in pretty much ever way. I, too, liked the upper floor sequence especially, with its bird's eye view of Bridgeport (or the City?) I would have preferred perhaps more resolution for the main plot, but maybe that story has yet to be told. Great job either way!

 

Edit: one other quibble (extremely minor;) the whole "gotta thieve to pay the rent" refrain is rapidly reaching the point of self-parody as far as protagonist motivation goes. It fits that Thief aesthetic but I mean, c'mon, there's gotta be other reasons for being a master thief out there...

Edited by Ryan101
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey Goldwell,

 

So I just finished playing, and I had a blast. Production values were top-notch, the story was interesting, and the world was believable (thanks for the cameo :P). Like some other people have mentioned, I thought the highlight was your use of AI and light/shadow. For a lot of veteran TDM players I think it becomes easy to dominate the AI, but you used some very clever placement to keep the player on edge and I never felt fully safe. My only regret is that the level wasn't longer - I was hoping to unravel Lord Edgar's scheme, but it seems like that was not to be, at least in this level. But again, really great job and I'm looking forward to playing The Accountant Part II now more than ever.

But you should walk having internal dignity. Be a wonderful person who can dance pleasantly to the rhythm of the universe.

-Sun Myung Moon

 

My work blog: gfleisher.blogspot.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This was a really nice release for Christmas. The intro animation is as good as fanmade videos get without getting crazy, and the general voicework in the mission was top of the line. By that, I mean not just the conversation and the player comments, but also the ambient sounds through the entire mission. It made the place come alive. I felt the visuals were also very strong in the bathhouse, with lavish attention given to the pools (damn, those light effects!), the sauna and the suite on the top (which felt like a proper luxury apartment). The texture choices are top notch. The city could have done with a little variation in ground height, but really, not complaining here. Surprising how little traffic there was in the bathhouse, since the way in there was harder than the actual mission, but as long as you are ghosting, the threat level is fine.

 

It is nice to see prefabs getting use in the building process, too - makes things a lot quicker.

 

(And sorry for misplacing my vote on the poll. The third category ought to have gotten an 'Excellent'. My bad!)

Come the time of peril, did the ground gape, and did the dead rest unquiet 'gainst us. Our bands of iron and hammers of stone prevailed not, and some did doubt the Builder's plan. But the seals held strong, and the few did triumph, and the doubters were lain into the foundations of the new sanctum. -- Collected letters of the Smith-in-Exile, Civitas Approved

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wanted to pop in and compliment the trailer/briefing, which just got posted on TDM's Facebook page. I'll definitely add this to my list of missions to play once I jump back into the game (which, granted, may still be several months). Top notch job, and spookily accurate Garrett voice!

"Fancy burricks are afraid of dogs, if they encounter each other the dog barks and the burricks poop." - Thief: Deadly Shadows Game Designer

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finished this with a stealth score of 34 and 2508 loot. Excellent fun and very tight quarters but the patrol routes and lighting were near perfect in this regard.

 

 

 

I was trying to ghost it but when I initially opend the door where the two guards are they were alerted. What a hilarious conversation they were having as well.

 

 

 

Harkens back to the old Thief days.

 

The story, environments, and audio were top notch. The streets could have used a little more 'stuff' lying about but it had a really classic Thief feel to it and it was very enjoyable from the intro video which was amazing to the elaborate interiors. Really well done and an FM to aspire to.

 

 

 

I only found 2 of the opals and before I left the bathhouse I 'cheated' and tdm_show_loot'd which showed a box above the lower bath house so I went up and checked the vents again and went up to the top suite but issuing the command again showed the box out of reach from where I was so I noclipped over to it and it was out in space seemingly. I played the first version posted because I'd already had a save so that may have been patched in the fix? In any case I couldn't find the last opal. I found the one on the box top in the closet and the one on the bookcase.

 

It wasn't till my second pass looking for the manager's safe that I found it so I found that very rewarding and quite a treat.

 

Also, a pumpkin? A guest named Seymour Buts? A little emmersion breaking and cheesy but LOL. :)

 

Loved the audio clips that played when you found certain items and I wish this were a constant thing through FMs. Really makes you feel like you're playing an actual game. Superb.

 

 

 

Also I'd like to add that, as another poster mentioned, maybe not a 'dead ringer' but so f@#$%!cking close to the real thing...Eidos should hire you to voice Garrett for Thief 5. (and lets hope they give it a name instead of using a stupid number title). It didn't occur to me to mention this because from your first mission, The Accountant, praise of your audio similarities were splayed all over the place and rightfully so. :)

Edited by Lux
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finished this with a stealth score of 34 and 2508 loot. Excellent fun and very tight quarters but the patrol routes and lighting were near perfect in this regard.

 

 

 

I was trying to ghost it but when I initially opend the door where the two guards are they were alerted. What a hilarious conversation they were having as well.

 

 

 

Harkens back to the old Thief days.

 

The story, environments, and audio were top notch. The streets could have used a little more 'stuff' lying about but it had a really classic Thief feel to it and it was very enjoyable from the intro video which was amazing to the elaborate interiors. Really well done and an FM to aspire to.

 

 

 

I only found 2 of the opals and before I left the bathhouse I 'cheated' and tdm_show_loot'd which showed a box above the lower bath house so I went up and checked the vents again and went up to the top suite but issuing the command again showed the box out of reach from where I was so I noclipped over to it and it was out in space seemingly. I played the first version posted because I'd already had a save so that may have been patched in the fix? In any case I couldn't find the last opal. I found the one on the box top in the closet and the one on the bookcase.

 

It wasn't till my second pass looking for the manager's safe that I found it so I found that very rewarding and quite a treat.

 

Also, a pumpkin? A guest named Seymour Buts? A little emmersion breaking and cheesy but LOL. :)

 

Loved the audio clips that played when you found certain items and I wish this were a constant thing through FMs. Really makes you feel like you're playing an actual game. Superb.

 

 

 

Also I'd like to add that, as another poster mentioned, maybe not a 'dead ringer' but so f@#$%!cking close to the real thing...Eidos should hire you to voice Garrett for Thief 5. (and lets hope they give it a name instead of using a stupid number title). It didn't occur to me to mention this because from your first mission, The Accountant, praise of your audio similarities were splayed all over the place and rightfully so. :)

Hey Lux glad you enjoyed yourself! And the classic Thief feel was what I was aiming for so that makes me smile that yourself (and the others too) got that feel from it! Edited by Goldwell
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's a quick summary if you're not up for a read:

 

+ Great city area

+ Great visuals inside the bathhouse

+ Good sneaking gameplay throughout

+ Perfect use of light and dark

+ Great voice acting and briefing

 

- Too easy

- Rushed storyline

- Too simple & lacking in the latter half

 

 

 

Really great fun, well-designed and efficient in terms of design. As has been said, the bathhouse itself was comparatively empty and easy to sneak through as a result, but I feel that any more guards in the bathhouse as-is would have been infuriating. I get the impression that you burned yourself out with the believable and thoroughly well-made city section, so I did find the bathhouse itself underwhelming. Of course every few meters of a city means you have to build another entire building facade, making the city all the more impressive, but my preference would be for the bathhouse to be far more fleshed out. You fit a lot of story into a small space, which resulted in it feeling rather rushed: the religious sacrificial weirdo is a trope that's a bit overdone as far as fan missions across the entire series go, and it was only really referenced in the one note.

 

Overall, everything that's there is great but I feel that there needed to be more of it. The city leaves nothing to be desired, but the latter area is really underwhelming and over in no time. Since everybody was asleep or in darkness and there was only one patrolling guard to speak of, I could simply walk around everywhere without any trouble. With more space in the bathhouse I think you'd find the story would flesh itself out as you scattered readables and story-telling props around to fill the new rooms. More space also means more guards and loot, which means more sneaking and generally more core TDM gameplay. That doesn't necessarily mean more of the enchanting set-pieces, but simply more corridors, bedrooms, reading rooms, a communal dining place, any excuse to make the good stuff that's already there last longer. As it is, the bathhouse is good-looking, beautiful in places and entirely believable, but ultimately too small. TDM is first and foremost a game, so the gameplay has to live up to the aesthetic as far as I'm concerned. You do yourself an injustice by leaving the focal area of the FM so easily surmountable.

 

Visually the briefing is wonderful and, of course, you could convince me that Stephen Russell had been brought in to voice your intro and character for you. I may be going against the grain in saying this, but I don't think that's necessarily a good thing. What I want is a new story and a new character, somebody different to play as that isn't another damn grimdark Thief in both voice and socio-economic standing. Yes, it's a wonderful impersonation and yes, it's a wonderfully accurate representation of the TTLG briefing style, but it's nothing new. There are hundreds of TDP and TMA fan missions out there that do that with varying degrees of accuracy and quality, yours being the best I've ever seen, but ultimately I've heard and seen it before. The unquestionable talent of both you and Crowind shouldn't be tied to recreating the T1 vibe: you should spread your wings and use your skills in video editing and voice acting to create a new character and a new briefing style that you can call your own.

 

Less important and more specific of an issue is the elevator. Firstly, for some reason middle-clicking with the elevator key doesn't use it on the lock: I had to right-click for it to work, whereas both mmb and rmb work when using keys to unlock anything else. Secondly, the skybox and elevator itself looks great, but I feel you were a bit too hasty in using it. The elevator went up maybe 20 meters at most, but when you get up there the city is impossibly far below you. There's also no towering bathhouse to speak of when looking towards it from street level. Fallout 3 did something very similar, only there was a loading screen halfway up that implies you've gone some distance behind the scenes. I think that if you'd faded the view to black and restored it at the top, there would be a lot more distance implied. Otherwise, the skybox needs to be less expansive because something towering that high over the city is unbelievable to begin with, despite being cool to look at.

 

So, don't mistake all of the above as being particularly damning: it was a wonderful mission and I had a lot of fun. I simply wanted more of it, and for it to have more of its own identity rather than trying to replicate somebody else's style.

 

Edited by Airship Ballet
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's a quick summary if you're not up for a read:

 

+ Great city area

+ Great visuals inside the bathhouse

+ Good sneaking gameplay throughout

+ Perfect use of light and dark

+ Great voice acting and briefing

 

- Too easy

- Rushed storyline

- Too simple & lacking in the latter half

 

 

 

Really great fun, well-designed and efficient in terms of design. As has been said, the bathhouse itself was comparatively empty and easy to sneak through as a result, but I feel that any more guards in the bathhouse as-is would have been infuriating. I get the impression that you burned yourself out with the believable and thoroughly well-made city section, so I did find the bathhouse itself underwhelming. Of course every few meters of a city means you have to build another entire building facade, making the city all the more impressive, but my preference would be for the bathhouse to be far more fleshed out. You fit a lot of story into a small space, which resulted in it feeling rather rushed: the religious sacrificial weirdo is a trope that's a bit overdone as far as fan missions across the entire series go, and it was only really referenced in the one note.

 

Overall, everything that's there is great but I feel that there needed to be more of it. The city leaves nothing to be desired, but the latter area is really underwhelming and over in no time. Since everybody was asleep or in darkness and there was only one patrolling guard to speak of, I could simply walk around everywhere without any trouble. With more space in the bathhouse I think you'd find the story would flesh itself out as you scattered readables and story-telling props around to fill the new rooms. More space also means more guards and loot, which means more sneaking and generally more core TDM gameplay. That doesn't necessarily mean more of the enchanting set-pieces, but simply more corridors, bedrooms, reading rooms, a communal dining place, any excuse to make the good stuff that's already there last longer. As it is, the bathhouse is good-looking, beautiful in places and entirely believable, but ultimately too small. TDM is first and foremost a game, so the gameplay has to live up to the aesthetic as far as I'm concerned. You do yourself an injustice by leaving the focal area of the FM so easily surmountable.

 

Visually the briefing is wonderful and, of course, you could convince me that Stephen Russell had been brought in to voice your intro and character for you. I may be going against the grain in saying this, but I don't think that's necessarily a good thing. What I want is a new story and a new character, somebody different to play as that isn't another damn grimdark Thief in both voice and socio-economic standing. Yes, it's a wonderful impersonation and yes, it's a wonderfully accurate representation of the TTLG briefing style, but it's nothing new. There are hundreds of TDP and TMA fan missions out there that do that with varying degrees of accuracy and quality, yours being the best I've ever seen, but ultimately I've heard and seen it before. The unquestionable talent of both you and Crowind shouldn't be tied to recreating the T1 vibe: you should spread your wings and use your skills in video editing and voice acting to create a new character and a new briefing style that you can call your own.

 

Less important and more specific of an issue is the elevator. Firstly, for some reason middle-clicking with the elevator key doesn't use it on the lock: I had to right-click for it to work, whereas both mmb and rmb work when using keys to unlock anything else. Secondly, the skybox and elevator itself looks great, but I feel you were a bit too hasty in using it. The elevator went up maybe 20 meters at most, but when you get up there the city is impossibly far below you. There's also no towering bathhouse to speak of when looking towards it from street level. Fallout 3 did something very similar, only there was a loading screen halfway up that implies you've gone some distance behind the scenes. I think that if you'd faded the view to black and restored it at the top, there would be a lot more distance implied. Otherwise, the skybox needs to be less expansive because something towering that high over the city is unbelievable to begin with, despite being cool to look at.

 

So, don't mistake all of the above as being particularly damning: it was a wonderful mission and I had a lot of fun. I simply wanted more of it, and for it to have more of its own identity rather than trying to replicate somebody else's style.

 

 

Wow! That is a very long description and very informative thank you! If you're up for something new with a different change of pace from the usual (and a more fleshed out story) then I assume you will enjoy whats in store for the accountant 2 once that arrives ;)

 

Completed with all the loot, all 3 opals and ghosted with no knockouts and only one water arrow used

A really excellent small mission

attachicon.gifbh_2014-12-28_18.52.10.jpg

 

Wow! Not even I have done that yet, very good job :D but.. did you get the pumpkin too?!

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • Recent Status Updates

    • The Black Arrow

      Any of you heard Age of Wonders 4's OST?
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0TcoMGq4iA
      I love how after all these years, Michiel van den Bos still conserves his "Melodic" spirit.
      · 0 replies
    • nbohr1more

      Moddb article is up:  https://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/news/the-dark-mod-212-is-here
      · 3 replies
    • Petike the Taffer

      I've been gone for a while, but now I'm back, have a new desktop and I want to get back to making missions and playing missions. And doing other contributions. Waiting for my reset password for the wiki, but I'll take a look at it soon. Hello, all.
      · 4 replies
    • snatcher

      TDM Modpack 4.0 for The Dark Mod 2.12 released!
      · 1 reply
    • nbohr1more

      Congrats to all the busy Dark Mod developers! TDM 2.12 is here!
      · 4 replies
×
×
  • Create New...