[Oh shit.]

The problem with every country in the world, from the wealthiest and most developed to the poorest and most "backwards" (least developed) is that unless the people of that country want to improve things themselves, you cannot force them to improve it.

This isn't to say no aid or advice should be offered to those countries. Quite the opposite.

In Afghanistan, aside from a minority of better educated and more willing people, most people did not care about establishing any sort of true national unity or thinking of their country as a common, mutual project. This extends to the people that were in power before the recent Taliban coup d'état. It was more of a coup, since they didn't have to do much fighting, the army and local officials surrendered themselves, they had all cut deals about it beforehand. Well, the government in power until recently was immeasurably better in terms of human rights than the Taliban, but it was also catastrophically corrupt and apparently had little to no interest in not being corrupt. This cost them the long-term trust of local and regional officials and citizens, while at the same time, those local officials and citizens also had a prejudice against trusting the central government. If you have such absurd levels of distrust between the government and citizens, and it goes both ways, the country has a real inherent problem. And its long-held tribalist mentalities don't help with that at all, especially when they're so ingrained. 

Saying "the people there deserve the Taliban" is no more correct or reasonable than saying "they deserve a corrupt and incompetent government".

They deserve neither. They deserve to have a functioning government that would avoid corruption and try to improve the country.

However, if the way of doing things in Afghanistan has almost always been various types of cronyism, loyalty to local areas, tribes and your cronies, and a general lack of care for your fellow citizens and what happens to the country as a whole, then we can't be surprised that the running of Afghanistan has been incredibly corrupt and cronyist. Even if you stopped all forms of foreign aid, the cronyism would continue.

You could pour billions into education, healthcare, economic and military aid, but all of those billions will go down the drain or end up in the wrong hands (corrupt local officials, criminals, even outright terrorists) if you put no measures in place whatsoever to discourage corruption and teach people why corruption is ultimately bad and detrimental to any society and country. However, for all our willingness to help a less developed country, we can't do this process for them. They'll have to achieve that process themselves. Is it easy ? Well, of course it isn't. But who else can do it entirely for them ? No one. We can advise, we can provide know-how, but it's them who have to put up the effort. And you can't start making an effort unless you want to take up that effort in the first place. I don't think that Afghanistan or any country is unsuited to democracy. All of them are. But the people first need to understand what it entails and that it won't fall into their laps from the sky, and that others can't bring it to them ready-made, without a domestic effort.

You don't even need to look into Afghanistan, as this is still an issue even in Europe, especially former East Block countries like mine, and my country is one of the lucky ones that have been in the EU for nearly two decades at this point. If it's so difficult to clear the judiciary, politics and economy from corrupt crooks, mafiosos and cronyists in a "civilized" and developed European country, you can imagine how hard it is in a heavily underdeveloped and impoverished country like Afghanistan. Do you think anyone swooped in from abroad to clean up the corruption issues in my country, rather than leaving it to the country's citizens ? Of course no one did. They might have provided some aid and know-how and encouraging words, but the tough work was left to the citizens of my country. At least those who were willing to reform things.

It's easy to bellow "the US is to blame, NATO is to blame, the EU is to blame, the soviets are to blame, the Taliban is to blame, all Afghanis are to blame" and play other blame games ad nauseam. Those who play blame games are usually people who are unwilling to acknowledge reality and some very real failings, and those who refuse to acknowledge that most of the agency, for good or bad, is in the hands of the people whom the whole situation concerns the most.

If most people in a country of 38 millions, like Afghanistan, couldn't put up a proper resistance to a force of at most 50 000, then I don't think Afghanis can talk much about unity or healthy patriotism. I mean, imagine Poland, or Ukraine or Argentina being taken over by a terrorist movement the size of a medium-sized town and putting up nearly no resistance to these. It would be absurd. For all those countries' flaws and past mistakes, they at least had a sense of patriotism and solidarity with their fellow citizens to defend the country from such a takeover. (Today, my country is celebrating the beginning of an armed and organized uprising against its fascist puppet regime and occupation during WWII. Those who took part in the uprising were greatly outgunned, had little material advantages of any sort, and I could go on. Don't you tell me that people in 1940s Slovakia were more capable fighters against a whole militarist wannabe-empire and its heavily subsidized puppets, than 2020s Afghanis are against what is ultimately just a bigger domestic terrorist movement.)

Long story short, as much as we can help the various Afghanis, it is their country and they have the main agency to change it for better... or for worse. The onus and the blame is primarily on them, whether we like it or not. I'm no more at fault that many men in Afghanistan are mindless women-haters and women-beaters, any more than a peaceful-minded Afghan bloke is to blame that the Taliban exists. We shouldn't officially accept the Taliban takeover (much like how we didn't accept the USSR taking over Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in WWII or Russia attempt to conquer Ukraine a few years ago), but at the same time, we shouldn't deceive ourselves that Afghanistan needs constant rescuing. It doesn't. Even the Libyans overthrew Ghaddafi on their own, as squabbling as they are now - but that's part of a country's maturation process.

The Taliban is also shooting the entire country in the foot. By excluding women from various walks of life or giving them only token positions, they are inconveniencing the country economically. They're not even good at running the country in a cynical fashion. Sooner or later, this will breed resentment among the female population, especially the women who came of age in the last twenty years, when it was easier for them to study, get a decent education, get a job, even a more sophisticated one. The folly of all authoritarians and totalitarians is that, whether they hide nominally behind lip service to religion, or tradition, or nationalism, or any sort of triumphalist ideology, it will sooner or later come back to bite them in the arse. And it will also bite everyone who uncritically followed them and supported them, and didn't have a care in the world when it comes to such a simple thing as a human conscience. Unfortunately, many entirely innocent and decent people will still suffer. But even so, let's not pretend that the apathy of people towards tyrannical rule by extremist movements is infinite. People are sadly very good at apathy, but history is littered with milestones when people had enough and they woke up. How long that waking up in Afghanistan will take, and how long it'll take for Afghanis to relaise they can govern their country without corruption or narrow-minded tribalism and bigotry, I don't know. It might happen one day, and I won't be betting on when.

[Darkmod: Inspiration thread]

People could extrapolate the original pilgrimage chapel from this ruin and make it part of some mission witha  Builder pilgrimage chapel (one that's still standing, not a ruin).

[Fan Mission Reviews, walkthroughs]

Do we have a thread collecting lootlists for TDM missions ?

I would like to expand that and update that, if possible.

[Player Character Female Vocal Set - Let's get it done (I mean it)]

1 hour ago, Springheel said:

 

I wouldn't use any site that gives you the above sentence.  You can't just find/replace "you" with "thee".

And remember, in the TDM setting, steam-beasts would have no connection to Builders, and wouldn't use religious speech anyway.

Don't worry, I meant that as a joke. I don't think robots should speak in exaggerated pseudo-Elizabethan. I meant steam-beasts bought by Builders for guarding (though that depends on whether they'd approve of them at all), but even so, if the steam-beasts should ever be "voiced", they should speak in normal English and the sentences should be bland and short.

[Player Character Female Vocal Set - Let's get it done (I mean it)]

On 12/21/2020 at 12:39 PM, Anderson said:

On second thought your idea might be valid for some custom robots and steam beasts voiceovers in TDM FM's. I'm just sorry for bringing out the silly parts where TTS is thought to sound well with humans.

I've gone over to Lingo Jam and had some sentences rewritten to Elizabethan English. The results:

"Halt, knave ! Throweth down thy arms and surrend'r !"

"Stand ho, foul felon ! Giveth up thy thiev'ry !" (stand ho = stop)

"Thee shalt not evade the law, rotten knave !"

"Assaulting.  I shalt maketh quick worketh of thee, vile burglar !"

"Thee daw ! Thee cannot escape !" (daw = fool)

"I am stout, and thieves like thee gallow easily." (strong, scare easily)

Imagine the robots barking this out, in either Builder voices (as above) or in some commoner and thief cant.

[Player Character Female Vocal Set - Let's get it done (I mean it)]

17 hours ago, JackFarmer said:

@Petike the Taffer

...any updates on the subject?

I think what Shadow Creepr would really appreciate would be some voice direction. The female voice set is effectivelly non-spoken, it's all vocals rather than words and sentences, but even that sort of performance requires at least a bit of direction, so it could fit with what we'd want to hear during gameplay (in missions using the female voice set for the player character).

People have commented before that the recording quality wasn't bad, even if some had to be occassionally fixed a bit in post, but that something was lacking on a voice-performance level. It's fair enough to say Shadow Creepr should feel free to do her performance, rather than do a female imitation/impression of the male voice set, I agree with that. However, I think it's unhelpful to say "I didn't find this vocal convincing" without providing more in-depth feedback and some voice direction on what the voice actor should be going for.

If we don't provide any voice direction, we shouldn't be surprised if some recordings might not sound adequate to us, at least in the sense we'd make them a part of the core game.

I don't know what experience you have with providing voice direction for the people doing voice acting for your missions, but if you and at least one dev from the core team would like to provide some feedback to Shadow Creepr - just so we avoid people grumbling "that didn't sound convincing", "that was off in this way..." - I'd welcome that.

[Player Character Female Vocal Set - Let's get it done (I mean it)]

4 hours ago, Shadow Creepr said:

I'm still around but full on with my other work too. I will redo the original 20+ recordings due to the issues with faulty equipment and record all 80+ lines needed. Do you have a point of contact that has enough free time to work with me? I realise that you've been busy too. @Petike the Taffer

Hello. Thank you for getting in touch ! I was meaning to finally write to you again this week and ask whether you're not too busy, but you beat me to it.

If you'd like to do the recordings, feel free to do it at your own pace. There's no rush. Quality is all that matters, really. Since there have been a few updates to the player vocalisations in the more recent versions of the core game, you could ask some of the dev team members for the new audio files and the titles of those new recordings. Just so you could do all the recordings if you want to, and not have to add new ones later.

All in all, you really don't need to hurry. Put your own needs and your own work first, record in your free time when you really feel like it. If you need to contact me, you can message me here or at TTLG.com (I have the same username on both sites). I think you might still have my e-mail adress too.

If you do any recordings, leave about 2 or 3 seconds of silence at the start. Just so we could potentially reduce any subtler noise and hum in post-production, if we manage to find any (I mean the near-silent ones, any louder hum should obviously be avoided as much as possible).

[TDM Fan Mission Lists: Released and Upcoming]

10 minutes ago, jediwomble said:

One question. Perhaps I'm counting wrong, but these two lists: https://thief.fandom.com/wiki/FM:TDM_List and https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Fan_Missions_for_The_Dark_Mod show 150 FMs. This list: https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Fan_Missions_for_The_Dark_Mod shows 144 FMs and this list: https://www.thedarkmod.com/missions/ shows 148 FMs. Which is correct?

The TDM wiki differentiates between FMs and OMs. The three base pack missions are OMs, all the rest are FMs. The Thief Wiki treats all TDM missions as FMs.

The TDM wiki and Thief wiki also count the release of Vengeance for a Thief campaign as a single article, because the final version of the mission is a campaign, collecting all three missions of the VfaT (including the first two published previously, as separate missions). I have no say in what goes on the official website list, so if the dev team decides to include the first two VfaT missions separately, and then the whole compilation of them and a final added mission separately as well, that's up for the team to decide.

There are also some discrepancies between the Thief Wiki and TDM wiki lists, because one lists a mission by date of first release, and the other used to occassionally move it up by date of re-release. I plan to get rid of this issue and make both lists based on first release (with a note on latest release in the TDM list).

[TDM Fan Mission Lists: Released and Upcoming]

Well, I can honestly say I've climbed the Mount Everest of fan mission database writing... or updating. Or if not the Mount Everest, then at least the Mont Blanc.

Which is my long-winded way of saying... I have updated The Dark Mod FM databases both on our wiki and on the Thief Wiki. With the possible exception of the not yet re-released Winter Harvest, every single TDM mission ever made can now be found and read about on both wikis. Every single one of them has its own dedicated article. Behold ! And here, of course.

I will still be updating a few minor formatting details and the like, but the hard work is finally done. (Granted, I will be adding new missions to the databases as they come out, this year and in the years to come.)

On a sidenote, are there any screenshots anywhere of the current, latest version of the Training Mission, the A New Job mission and The Tears of Saint Lucia mission ? We're still lacking those in the official databases and I'd love to upload at least a few of them to both of the wikis.

 

[I would like to carefully place this here.]

5 hours ago, Filizitas said:

Ok here you go, the game also had a name change due to legal reasons i want to avoid.

https://twitter.com/yrdenwatch/status/1382278107231567873?s=20

https://filly-the-owl.itch.io/delight-stealth

Thank you. I've noticed the name change. The promo screenshots have been uploaded to the wiki and the article, but only the latest screenshots, with the already altered name. (Sorry to hear you had to change it due to legal issues, but hey, you're inventive, and that's what counts. I like it.)

I suppose it's time I change the name in all the other instances as well. I doubt you'll be going back to the first iteration of the name, so I'll edit the stuff and add a note that Delight was merely a working title.

[I would like to carefully place this here.]

7 hours ago, Filizitas said:

Oh that looks sick!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you!

My pleasure. Always good to give indie projects like this a bit of exposure.

[I would like to carefully place this here.]

On 4/12/2021 at 6:15 PM, Filizitas said:

I will update this game in the 14th of april, it would be great if you could use that highly enhanced superior version!

Can you link the wiki?

All right, I'll wait until the 14th and see what you cook up.

The article is here. Aside from the three videos, it's largelly just headings, text and a few links, since I have not yet added the screenshots.

Good luck with the upcoming update.

[I would like to carefully place this here.]

@Filizitas

I've made a basic article about your Delight project over at the Thief Wiki (under the category of Thief-inspired freeware indie games).

As part of the promotion, I've been thinking of uploading the screenshots you have of the demo to the wiki and including them in the article. But I wanted to ask about it first. Would you be all right with sharing those demo screenshots on the wiki, or rather not ?

Thanks.

[Can the guards turn on the extinguished light sources?]

I remember that in Thomas Porter: The Phrase Book, guards would also occassionaly relight open light sources.

[The Complete Vengeance for a Thief Campaign]

Not to necro this again, but I've noticed that the final release of this campaign still lists it erroneously as a single mission:

https://www.thedarkmod.com/missiondetails/?id=98

It should be listed as a campaign, to avoid confusion. Yes, it includes the separately released missions from before, and the new prequel mission as the first one, but all in all, it's technically organised as a campaign. Three missions in a single pack, the entire three-mission campaign. Even the synopsis clearly states it includes multiple missions.

[Fan Mission: The Hare in the Snare, Part 1]

Congratulations to the release, gentlemen ! It looks interesting.

[Fan Mission: A Night Of Loot: One Man's Treasure (2020/06/13)]

19 hours ago, OGDA said:

Thank you!

My pleasure.

[Fan Mission: A Night Of Loot: One Man's Treasure (2020/06/13)]

Added to the TDM wiki's FM database: https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=A_Night_of_Loot:_One_Man's_Treasure_(FM)

I'll add that I've also included this mission in our wiki article on recommended missions for beginner players:
https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Mission_recommendation_discussions

I think this is a textbook example of a small and relatively short mission in a not too intimidating environment that can help TDM newbies learn the chops of the game.

[Fan Mission: Blackgrove Manor by ddaazzaa (2021/03/14)]

Added to the TDM wiki's FM database: https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Blackgrove_Manor_(FM)

[Fan Mission:Dragon's Claw by b1k3rdude (31/10/2011) updated]

On 11/1/2011 at 12:53 AM, Bikerdude said:

Hello everyone, Bikerdude's made significant updates to this mission and it's now fully playable in 2.08.  Available in the in-game downloader or Download here!

We'll update the OP to reflect this. Thanks!

“I usually welcome the shadows, a place of refuge for a master thief like me. However, there are dark places that even I fear. That place being the plague ward at the edge of town. Rumour has it that it was cursed by a pagan witch and its inhabitants died from an incurable plague..." 

Build Time:  

Update Build Time:  

• Original version - 3-4 weeks. 
•  Updated version - 2 days 

 Credits: 

• Flanders - Prebuilt maps and textures  
• Readables – SirTaffsalot. 
• FeildMedic - ghost begger (which I fixed and updated). 
• Springheel - jack-o-lantern (gotta have them) 

 Thanks:- 
Special thanks to my beta testers: Flanders, SirTaffsAlot, nbhormore, Pranqster, RPGista, Thor, Xarg, Glyph Seeker, Amadeus, Garret42 & Bluerat. 

This is old news by now, but certainly very good news.

I have taken the liberty to finally add Dragon's Claw to our wiki database, (along with some of the latest missions from the last 12 months): https://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=Dragon's_Claw_(FM)

[Looking for a voice actor for a character who lives in isolation (and therefore easily gone mad)]

On 3/2/2021 at 7:21 PM, JackFarmer said:

Hello Destined,

Sorry, I forgot to update this thread last nite; NH will take this part.

Anyways, thank you for your offer, that's really very kind of you!

Jack

Hello. Is there still any role left ?

[Silly TDM Screenshot Thread]

On 4/16/2020 at 9:38 AM, PranQster said:

Next comes a cheerful chap outside his home.

“Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?”

In all honesty, that's a rather adorable recreation.

[The Sinking City delisted on Steam etc.]

I feel sorry for Frogwares. They are a good developer and have only been improving as time has gone on.

Pity they don't have much luck with publishers.

I remember that Frictional Games ran into the same problem with their first Penumbra game back in the day. The British publisher they teamed up with nearly scammed them, so they published the rest of the series and its compilations under Paradox, and have largelly self-published since.

I get the impression many smaller indie studios tend to pick these smaller publishers because it's simply more economical, but the inherent risk is that a lot of these publishers either go out of business quickly or aren't even as minimally scrupulous as some of the bigger publishers (and I say that as someone completely unwilling to defend big game publishers, especially the triple-A malarkey of EA or Activision-Blizzard).

[Newbie DarkRadiant Questions]

I plan to build a castle courtyard or two for a mission I'd like to develop.

My layout for the courtyard is such that it has an "upper floor" on its sides, specifically, a walkway on the walls surrounding it (and accessed by stairs), some of these walls being part of the defensive system of the castle.

If I want to get the best performance possible out of the courtyard, would it be for the best if I gave it a transparent ceiling at the level of the "upper floor" and make that "upper floor" area a whole separate room or series of corridor-like rooms, with an inaccessible transparent room between them ?

The inaccessible room would be essentially the upper part of the courtyard, its top inner side equipped with a skybox animation (or static background) and the lower room of the courtyard would have its ceiling above the area where the player character can comfortably jump upward.

I don't want to make a tall courtyard room with a skybox that kills the performance anytime the player goes outside. (And yes, I am using visportals everywhere, don't worry.)

[Huge performance gains on older hardware]

27 minutes ago, stgatilov said:

You can start by copying your 2.05, and running tdm_installer on top of that.
It should install 2.09 with much less traffic and time wasted, compared to a typical "clean install".

This is what I meant by the backup attempt. Backup 2.05, then update the original to 2.09.

Whichever way it goes, if I do get better and faster performance, props to the entire main development team.

You're wonderfully resourceful guys and gals.