Digi

Well, this was completed at an opportune time. My professional life just got turned upside-down. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean I won't have time for personal projects for the foreseeable future. Which is a shame, because I wanted to poke around in DR to make sure I didn't get "rusty" so to speak, even if I wasn't devoting a ton of time to a particular map. I'll just have more rust to shake off when I do manage to get back to mapping, whenever that is. Hopefully not too long, but I can't yet predict when my life will settle down enough again. Fingers crossed... But thanks, Tr00per, glad you enjoyed it. I actually did consider some debris around teh hole, but it went into the "more detailed than I'm intending this first mission to be" category. I just assume TDM's faux-Garrett (does he have a name?) found the time to remove any incriminating debris during his weeks-long investigative period.

It wasn't just you. But I love a challenge, so that was a great area for me. Then get to mapping! :-p

So, an unseen audience but no definite download numbers? That's encouraging to hear, but my curiosity would be fully sated with specifics. Oh well. @Lux: Either way, not a huge deal, but kudos on the find, and thanks for the comments. My next mission is going to be indoors. The insane vaulting in TDM is awesome as a player... Less so as a mapper.

Do remember my newness though, please. While I can't argue against or justify any of the items you found, and I'm glad to be made aware of them, I'm not sure they affect the overall playability of the level. Because, I'll be honest, given what was caught and fixed in beta testing, and knowing that something would be imperfect in the released level, that these are the biggest complaints is a huge relief to me. ... On an unrelated note, is there any way to see how many times each level has been downloaded? I'd be curious not just for my own level, but to see total plays for TDM. Basically what I'm asking is, are we making these levels just for ourselves as we chat about them in the forums (here and/or TTLG, presumably), or is there a larger unseen audience that is only playing them?

I had massive problems with that building disappearing. It was tested numerous times, and everything was snapped to the grid at least once. Sorry you had trouble. I'm not sure what you mean about the fence though. I wanted them to be separate stakes. That was an aesthetic decision. Limited time to talk... I'll look through the rest soon. But thanks for the feedback and discussion. All food for thought.

Thanks Abus. Some good comments, both good and bad. The only one that is a Catch-22 is the guard. Some have loved the challenge of it, which was intentional. It's one of those things where you just can't please every play style. But with such a small mission, I had to get creative in amping the difficulty a couple places. Also, the generator isn't useless, though it's not needed for ghosting. ;-)

Thanks all!

Was just curious about a place for bouncing around ideas that didn't actually have DR files to accompany them. I'm not going to be prolific enough to make a thread devoted to just my own ideas, though, so I'll probably let it slide. I have about three ideas on my "wish list," but probably don't want to start talking them up too much until I can actually work on them.

Was all this visportal talked spawned from something I asked?! I'm tickled...though the conversation seems to have left its humble beginnings. Anyway, question: do we have a thread for people to just share their mapping ideas. Not a "what are you working on" but a general "what would you like to make" thread? I'd be interested in reading the input and goals of others.

Interesting, I didn't know that. If we try to match it to real-world history, the steampunk elements do suggest a somewhat later century. The Renaissance started to develop much of this tech, but for example, the first (commercial) steam-powered engine wasn't employed until 1712. And it didn't become common until several decades later. The licensed Thief games certainly draw comparison to the Industrial Revolution, though I realize we're separate from them lore-wise. But we're working with a fictional universe, of course, so I'm not critiquing here. As I edited into my last post, depending on the FM creator, the "feel" of a mission could be anything from 1300-1900. A few, like "A Night to Remember," with it's heavy use of modern-looking architecture, and mentions of airships and such, actually "feels" like the early 20th century. Variance like that is good, though. For a licensed game with 10-12 levels, strict coherence to a set idiom, time period, "feel", etc. is a must. But for dozens, and eventually hundreds, of FMs, a more fluid interpretation is often needed.

I always placed the Thief games (and TDM by extension) in an alternate 1800s. T2: The Metal Age is rather analogous to the Industrial Revolution in Europe, which took place from roughly 1760-1840. Some of the visuals and references also seem Victorian, which takes us right up to 1900. Some dip further back into history for a more Middle Ages and/or Renaissance vibe, though, especially depending on the FM. So it's somewhat fluid.

Not an easy starting point, but a good mission. If you successfully navigated Requiem, though, I'm sure you're up to the challenge. Also, if you like a particular kind of mission, the wiki list can be a big help in finding others you may enjoy: http://wiki.thedarkm...or_The_Dark_Mod

Thanks guys; glad you enjoyed it! Good point about the sound. Once I sealed the house, I noticed the lack of ambient music, but didn't think to add something new. I'll keep it in mind for future reference. The briefing did say Peasant was out for the night, so I'd be a bit worried if there were someone sleeping in the bed. But thanks for the comments, both in praise and critique. My next won't be for a while, unfortunately. I have some other projects, both personal and professional, that will take me away from TDM for several months. But I don't plan on this being my only mission, and I'm slowly trying to form cohesive ideas to turn into future levels.

Hilarious; that's probably my favorite mission in the bunch. Most of the complicated "make this" routines are optional, and the sheer size of the level makes it a challenge. I had dumped all of my weaponry and items in the first half of the level, thinking that there was nothing else after it, and the 2nd half was one of the more harrowing, intense experiences of my thieving career. Subsequent playthroughs were not as exciting, but I'll always remember my first trip through it. But to each their own!

Awesome, thank you for putting it in the in-game options so quickly.

Doors, schmoors. :-p And the sign was actually one of the first things I made, with the expectation that the building itself (built from scratch) was going to look like an abomination and/or an affront against sanity. It was a hedge against my (lack of) architectural skills in DR at the time. The fact that the building looks functional actually ruins the joke a bit, though I left it in as a tribute to Fidcal.

I don't need the .zip file, do I? I edited it out and just left the PK4. High praise, coming from you. Thanks!

Description: Fleece the mansion of a former colleague that betrayed you. This is a relatively small, straightforward thieving mission set in an upper-class neighborhood. Version: 1.0 File: The mission is now available via the in-game downloader. If you need to download it separately, the link is below: PK4: https://drive.google...dit?usp=sharing Beta Testers: Airship Ballet RJFerret Thanks: First, to my excellent beta testers, who were prompt with responses and thorough with their testing. Several small but important gameplay tweaks came about as a result of beta testing, and the mission is better off for them. Second, to Fidcal, who I've not had the pleasure of "meeting" on the forums. His incredible tutorial made this mission possible. Third, to everyone who helped me out in small ways on the forums. Grayman graciously fixed a couple problems for me via PM, and several of you answered my questions in the Newbie thread. Notes: This is my first FM for any Thief game, and incorporates many of the techniques learned in Fidcal's A-Z tutorial (as well as a couple others I picked up along the way or during beta testing). It was intended as equal parts playable, fun mission, and as a way for me to learn how to make a functional level using DR. I'm happy with the result, and I hope you are too! As a secondary note, from installing Dark Radiant to typing this sentence, it couldn't have been than two months. My hobby-level skills as a graphic designer and programmer undoubtedly helped some, but honestly most of it was just slogging through Fidcal's tutorial in my free time. Anyone can learn this quickly and create working, fun levels. Preview Shots: {note, some of these locations will look slightly different in the final version, as these were taken before beta testing} http://imgur.com/a/AuxWJ

The answer you're going to get eventually is that there are only about 70 missions created so far, so it's very possible to play them all. So there's suggestion #1. When I first started (not long ago) I went on a similar search. Tears of St. Lucia (included with the download), Glenham Tower, A Score to Settle, Alberic's Curse, Return to the City, were all good missions I found quickly and greatly enjoyed. I haven't really played a dud yet, though, so you're going to have an easy time finding more.

Ooooh! Is it too late for me to use it in my FM? *evil smile*

That's awesome Moonbo; some cross-promotional stuff going on here, bringing attention to both your writing and TDM.

Hey, this is a heartfelt shoutout to everyone who's answered questions for me here in this thread. It's been a great help. We're down to the nit-pickiest of stuff in beta testing for my FM, so it should be out any day now. And while I'm not planning at stopping at only one FM, it will likely be several months before I jump back in on another project, so it'll be a while before coming back here for aid. :-)

Lol, indeed. I'm reading this thread thinking "well, I guess it's just a matter of which camp I want to annoy" with many items. A few seem reasonable enough to everyone, but most, it seems, are meeting with some resistance. I think a few proposed by Spring have the best chance of catching on.

Oh, I'm sure there's a lot I'd enjoy from them. My issue is time. So it's a hope, but probably won't be feasible for a while.

Sounds like most of this boils down to "consider the context." As long as it works in a mission, I'm not sure rules for it are necessarily needed. But that's me. Non-frozen time is awesome. Heightens tension occasionally, while making the world seem more real. You're more than welcome to disagree, but I think that's one of the coolest small tweaks to TDM over other Thief games. As for immobile readables, it does reduce inventory clutter, and most missions probably shouldn't be balanced specifically for ghosting. I enjoy both types of readable in the right setting.