The Caduceus of St. Alban: Vertical FM Contest entry: Aug 8th, 2010

[lowenz]

Little video for this mission!

 

 

 

[Bikerdude]

LOl, very cool, I'm happy you felt inspired to do a vid, Ive added it to my Ytube channel.

 

[nbohr1more]

My votes:

 

 

Gameplay = Excellent

 

I don't feel I need to elaborate further about the AI situation. What system specs you cater to and how you do it are your own personal decision and preference. I will just say that moving the Guard to ground-level definitely improved the tension and I must thank you for that change. I regarded this mission as mostly a treasure hunt and enjoyed the process of running around the environment looking for loot. If the mission wasn't as pretty it probably would've gotten lower marks for relying on this element but I cant say I was unhappy to be given the "chore" of roaming a beautiful environment. The time you've spent on hidden nooks and crannies really shows as well.

 

Appearance = Near Perfect

 

What can I say? This is one of the best looking levels I have seen "IN GENERAL" never mind just within the realm of TDM. I know you worked hard to try and achieve that light-mapped look and your use of secondary lights and decals is nothing short of artwork. (I would call you the Monet of decal work. ) Even without all that razzle, the geometry of the tower, interiors, and cave are a sight to behold.

 

Story = Excellent

 

I understand that the TDM is supposed to be a gritty universe but something about your narrative rings true. It's almost like you are regaling a story from your real life where you had actually stolen something from some rich guy. So the humorous personal elements didn't bother me so much. I simply created a meta-story in my brain that you are funding you TDM hardware habit with real thievery and then creating allegories to those activities in your FM's ... If you left out the in-joke about Fids it would've meshed well with the universe but that's no big problem for me. If I saw an FM with a reference to Neils Bohr I would probably have objected more

 

I didn't mind the cookbook objective either. Food preparation secrets can be valuable. Just think of all the lore that surrounds the secret recipe of Kentucky Fried Chicken or Coca Cola. (Heck, I would love it if there were a mission that had a "magical" secret food recipe that was well guarded by the Builders.) If you had elaborated more about why this thief would know that the cook had a valuable recipe that would be a fine objective.

 

I think that this mission was just brimming with implied story elements. The idea that a Builder religious figure is becoming interested in Heliocentric ideas leads to all kinds of blackmail and intrigue for this fellow. It almost makes you guilty to steal from someone who is breaking rules in order to pursue the truth.

 

[Bikerdude]

Monet you say, well I am flattered

 

On the subject of the towers I wanted to make the whole thing from patches so they would be perfectly round.... but didn't have the time to learn and build at the same time

 

Had I more time I would have(with the help of my beta testers) improved the story and game play etc.. So I may or may not upgrade the mission in the future...

Edited September 6, 2010 by Bikerdude

[nbohr1more]

yeah, I'm half tempted not to finish that Strombine wiki (light baking) just to see more of your decal and grime work instead

[Bikerdude]

yeah, I'm half tempted not to finish that Strombine wiki (light baking) just to see more of your decal and grime work instead

well I'm hoping tdm 1.03 comes with more decal textures, as I could have done with a lot more even in this mission.

[raymeld]

Thank you for a smashing mission Bikerdude , loved exploring the various areas , kept wishing the mission could have been expanded on further I was enjoying it so much , but it was a Vertical FM after all ! I had two issues which were probably down to me , the first being that the mission slowed down on my machine after half an hour or so of play. Was probably leaving to many doors open in my rush to find loot ! The second was

I never did find a key to the cell that led down to the caves.Neither could I pick it. Probably left the key on a body somewhere. But I got in by noclipping so my enjoyment was undiminished.

[Bikerdude]

I never did find a key to the cell that led down to the caves

 

Its hanging up in the guard room that you passed to get the cell block

 

[raymeld]

 

Its hanging up in the guard room that you passed to get the cell block

 

 

 

Doh ! Trust me to miss that. At least I can now finish it properly. Thanks again.

[KalwinSidpen]

This must be the best FM for the DarkMod EVER !

I mean, seriously, it has the best lighting/architecture/design/story ratio I have seen up to this day.

Who are those people that DID NOT give this mission a "near perfect" rating in the poll ?!

 

again, my most sincere congratulations for your outstanding work, Bikerdude.

[Bikerdude]

LOL

 

Ah my dear chap, if more people voted as you did I would have won said contest, but alas that was not to be...

 

but I appreciate the compliments none the less

 

 

nb. wait till you see my next map - Im looking to release in the next month or so...

[nbohr1more]

I'm loosing my mind over these pending releases... Must focus on FM's I haven't yet finished...

 

Thanks for the heads-up Biker

[Maethius]

I'm definitely sleep deprived... seems many folks have had a much different experience on this FM than I have. I think I'll give it a day and try the mission again with a fresh brain. As it stands, I may have an older version... thus far:

 

 

 

Appearance/details-

Wow. The architecture feels legitimate. There are no wasted spaces, and no gigantic rooms; too many maps use huge architecture to try to make an impact and just end up feeling like they should be resized. Great work on this FM's environment. Rooms are packed with realistic items... no strings of empty storeroom shelves! Not everything was frobbable, which I liked. Though this was inconsistent sometimes as one room had every pot, bottle, and spoon moveable and others had only the item of interest moveable.

 

It was frustrating when I finally found the hidden shaft in the servant's quarters (I assumed the gate upward was an alternate exit?) but how disappointing to see that eerie green glow downward and think, "now this is starting to feel creepy!" only to have it end in an dead end. It was just a green glowing box for the sake of it? How odd.

 

AI-

I'm playing on expert... no challenge; sorry. I found the high priest dead in the main tower ten minutes after I robbed his key. NO IDEA what killed him!

 

Game Play-

Rope arrows would have made for some fun climbs. Nice that you used the water pipe and some other alternatives, but I love roping around. It's very late now, but I've become bored looking for anything interesting. Can't seem to find the objective or get passed the door in the stairwell... I have 5 keys, but not that one, I guess.

 

Story-

Honestly, at this point, I can't find one. Seems I've ghosted the tower and read all readables, but can't find a drop of intrigue, danger, or plot. Not that a mission really needs one; you can just break into a place to loot it for the rent (why are master thieves always broke?) The astronomy aspect was a nice glimpse into the world, but has thus far had no impact on story. The pagan aspect seemed to hold a glimmer of scandal, but had no real purpose... no diabolical twist or peace threatening value.

 

As I said, I think I'll start over fresh with a clean download... maybe mine is a beta or something. For now, it's a gorgeous map with incredible features... I just can't get into it.

 

 

[Bikerdude]

 

 

Story-

Honestly, at this point, I can't find one. Seems I've ghosted the tower and read all readables, but can't find a drop of intrigue, danger, or plot. Not that a mission really needs one; you can just break into a place to loot it for the rent (why are master thieves always broke?) The astronomy aspect was a nice glimpse into the world, but has thus far had no impact on story. The pagan aspect seemed to hold a glimmer of scandal, but had no real purpose... no diabolical twist or peace threatening value.

 

 

Unfortunately, that's the nature of the beast with so little time to knock out a mission. But thats the nature of contests etc. But potentially good news, I have asked some one who is awesome at story & plot to redo that part of the mission, so watch this space.. I may even fix a few of the map issues while Im at it.

 

[LEGION]

Glad to hear that! Even more AI´s on the highest (High-End)-difficulty, maybe?

[Maethius]

Unfortunately, that's the nature of the beast with so little time to knock out a mission. But thats the nature of contests etc. But potentially good news, I have asked some one who is awesome at story & plot to redo that part of the mission, so watch this space.. I may even fix a few of the map issues while Im at it.

 

 

Sounds great! I know that it's hard to ask someone to be a graphic artist, an architect, a dialogue writer, an adventure author, and a scripting pro, all while keeping the experience interactive. Again, you have your environments absolutely down pat! I could only imagine you as part of a team building a multi-map story!

[ungoliant]

Sounds great! I know that it's hard to ask someone to be a graphic artist, an architect, a dialogue writer, an adventure author, and a scripting pro, all while keeping the experience interactive. Again, you have your environments absolutely down pat! I could only imagine you as part of a team building a multi-map story!

 

you're in for a pleasant surprise very soon

[Zaratul]

I`m playing this mission today and i`m stuck.I have metal chest key but where can i use this? And where can i find blackjack? I`m playing on expert.

[Bikerdude]

I`m playing this mission today and i`m stuck.I have metal chest key but where can i use this? And where can i find blackjack? I`m playing on expert.

 

think treasure, and its guarded.

[Zaratul]

Thx mate.I found this chest and completed the mission.

[Bikerdude]

Awesome.

[LEGION]

LOL. I guess Biker wanted to hear how you liked it... (but I see you voted in a way Biker will like)

Edited December 29, 2010 by LEGION

[Bikerdude]

hey, I only want people to vote as they see fit.

[TheUnbeholden]

Very nice mission from a beauty standpoint, like the solar system, telescope and sky, Definitely better than most of the ones I've played in terms of size, and while I liked the premise of the storyline, sort of expected more from it. Like the pagan book I found skipped the Pagan lore which I felt was sort of a stupid joke. Let us decide if its gibberish... There was a interesting use of humor in some readables and the briefing and so I guess thats your trademark.

While I liked the cramped stairs, and a general sense of claustrophobic design where rooms are only as big as they have to be for their function, but the priests room you would expect to be bigger...

The secrets where nicely placed indeed.

 

also the gameplay, while fun exploring and looting the place the AI where at a loss to stop me due to how few of them. It may have been part of the storyline but that was a limitation none the less.

I'll have to disagree with nbohr1more.

Thats gonna mark you down because dealing with the AI is the difficulty of a mission hence why the player take/finds all that equipment.

Even a map and compass is to a lesser extent only necessary when theres a AI presence because if they're patrolling about you don't want to have to be going back and forth trying to find a alternate way into the locked rooms or to get up into the upper rooms. So a map is there to save time and lessen difficulty.

For these reasons a map should be designed around to accommodate AI, not as a after thought. While I understand that if you don't put much focus on one aspect of a game, it allows you to put more focus on other aspects like visual design/exploration... But I like to have my cake and eat.it .. not just look at it and pick the cherries off it.

Edited April 25, 2012 by TheUnbeholden

[TheUnbeholden]

Nice work by the way.

Edited August 16, 2012 by TheUnbeholden