Fan Mission: Penny Dreadful 3 by Melan and Bikerdude (2016/07/10)

[Melan 1801]

Would it be possible to move this technical discussion to a separate thread?

[Bikerdude 3738]

Done, thread moved to -

 

- http://forums.thedarkmod.com/topic/18440-crashing-when-playing-pd3/

[Pete70 4]

Thank you for this amazing mission. I have a question regarding Armond's or Armand's key. I found a door that it will open but the door seems blocked, maybe by a body?

It will open very slowly and I can see a little bit of the room. At the bottom of the door there is maybe a small part of a red cape. I have been to this area before I had the key and don't remember if I did something to cause this. Is it important that I get into this room or do I have to start over? Another way in maybe? I could watch the videos of gameplay but I really hate doing that.

[Melan 1801]

Pete70: You can get into the room another way.

 

The key is a red herring. Go out into the street, and enter through the small shop to the north.

 

If you can't figure out how,

 

frob the piece of paper under the door.

 

 

 

[Pete70 4]

Melan: Thank you for quick reply. Aaagh, you got me. At least you will know that your efforts are not wasted. I should have stuck with my hunch about another way in. Just did not look hard enough. Makes for great

play though, thank you again. Pete

[kingsal 454]

I've played through this mission a couple times, including the beta test. I loved it each time and for different reasons which is a credit to its replay value. It achieves that illusive magic trick of making me want to know what is around each corner, who is who, and what my role is in all of it. Its big, full of nuances, and rich in content. By the end of it I feel exhausted, but in the good kind of exhausted way.

 

I'm excited to see what you have in store next, Melan.

Edited December 1, 2016 by kingsal

[Melan 1801]

Thanks, kingsal! It was precisely that elusive quality of plot threads connecting then disappearing into the distance which I wanted to capture, so if you got that, I have achieved something.

 

Right now, I am going through a burnout phase, and turned my attention to my other hobby, tabletop RPGs. I am working on Xyntillan, a large, classical dungeon adventure inspired by an ancient 1970s classic, and on the translation of Helvéczia, my picaresque fantasy RPG. And of course, running games.

 

I will be back to TDM in time, although before PD4, I would like to help finish Shadowhide's fantastic city mission.

[esme 135]

Is there a way to defeat the

beastie in the red room

? or does it just have to be avoided ?

[Bikerdude 3738]

Avoided..

[esme 135]

That's what I did

...eventually

...after dying a lot

 

 

[Peanut 3]

Very impressive, one of the very best city missions.

I also had a lot of trouble with the half open door and not seeing the note under the front door. I'm not sure if this is anything to do with screen resolution since I'm playing on a laptop with integrated Intel graphics (@1360x768).

The readables in this mission were excellent. There was a very definite sense of independent characters living in the city, which was perhaps only slightly subdued by some areas feeling a little empty of civilians, apart from the beggars (ok it's night, let's say most of them are in bed or down the pub :-).

I got stuck with the mechanism to get into the red room. It was easy enough finding the secret itself, but working out that the dual grille opening was a zero-sum game was tricky. Mostly because this isn't used much in other missions, I wasn't even sure if it was a 'thing' in the engine. I think by far the biggest issue here is that the red room entrance grille doesn't highlight in some way - it just looks like an immovable part of the architecture. Maybe there was a hint in a readable that I missed though, which could be a good solution.

One other slight annoyance - the clues in the Book of Enigmas were pretty abstruse. Like some other posters, I was left wondering for a while what to do with the mouth of the lion, shooting various arrows in to it & stacking up crates to feed it little lion snacks etc. But at the same time, it wouldn't be pleasant if it was too easy...

Having said all that, jumping around the rooftops and over the high-lines was very enjoyable, + making the place jam packed with secret nooks & crannies helps maintain interest in exploring, and the mission itself is very coherent as a whole package.

 

Edited December 2, 2016 by Peanut

[Deadlove 260]

This mission is like an entire episode to a game. It's ridiculous.

[Melan 1801]

Thanks, all, and especially Peanut's detailed comments!

 

Some responses (probably no need to spoil them):

 

 

The readables in this mission were excellent. There was a very definite sense of independent characters living in the city, which was perhaps only slightly subdued by some areas feeling a little empty of civilians, apart from the beggars (ok it's night, let's say most of them are in bed or down the pub :-).

The reason the streets are so empty is because there is a manhunt going on, and everyone who has a place to stay is trying to stay out of it. (For a counterexample, see the unfortunate incident on Dipper's Walk. )

 

WRT the Red Room and The Book, these are the hardest puzzles in the mission, the real hidden stuff. If you got them, you are real good!

[Peanut 3]

The reason the streets are so empty is because there is a manhunt going on, and everyone who has a place to stay is trying to stay out of it. (For a counterexample, see the unfortunate incident on Dipper's Walk. )

Makes sense!

WRT the Red Room and The Book, these are the hardest puzzles in the mission, the real hidden stuff. If you got them, you are real good!

...haha almost, but not quite... did have to come here for some hints. But then it all looks clear in hindsight!

Edited December 4, 2016 by Peanut

[V-Man339 164]

This mission is like an entire episode to a game. It's ridiculous.

Agreed.

This level I can safely say puts a lot of content I've paid for to shame.

 

You guys really outdid yourself.

[Bikerdude 3738]

You guys really outdid yourself.

Heh, we thank you :-)

[Deadlove 260]

10 hours. 2 main objectives done, still searching for some 100 loot. I really like how these missions are sprawling and unfamiliar and only over time spent in the landscape does it become familiar and understood. The scenery is well done enough that I remember layouts even while not playing.

[Deadlove 260]

Completed. Looking forward to getting closer to Flint's throat so Foxley can put a knife in it so he knows what it's like to be Grunt.

[manzanita-crow 1]

I can't work out the lion. So silly. Please tell me what I should do

[Melan 1801]

Hint: First, you must find the lion.

 

Then, find a way to get behind the lion.

 

 

Spoiler:

 

What you are looking for is right in the same location where you found the book mentioning the puzzle.

 

[Thiefette 52]

Congratulations on this fine mission Melan and Bikerdude! Finally got a chance to play this, I was in the mood for a climbing, exploring mission and this nailed both. Careful what you wish for lol. This took me many hours to complete but only because there was so much to explore. It was fantastic!

The map was a bit confusing at first but after traversing the many areas many times I was able to use it as a reference if a street name was mentioned to help get my bearings. I liked your readables that told the story of what was going on in the city.

 

The multiple ways in came in handy, every time I came across a locked door that I didn't have a key for, I knew to look for another way in. There were two places I had trouble with #1 - the blacksmith shop - after searching forever and trying every key, I finally noticed it hanging on the wall but had a really hard time getting it to highlight. #2 - couldn't find the switch to the vent's for the red room. I had to come here for a clue. I knew where the door was but for the life of me kept missing the switch. lol

 

Completing objective 3 was a bit tricky with having to deposit him at the gate, so had to stash him and clear a path. When I came back to get him, I made it harder on myself and grabbed the wrong poor soul. No objective checked off of course so I had to do some back tracking but finally found the right guy and completed.

 

I accomplished my personal goal of all the loot and the only thing that felt left undone was the tobacco shop. I came here to find out what to do with the lily dust and so added it to the pile on the table and nothing seemed to happen yet it remained highlighted, like there was something more to do to it. Was there something else to be added to it?

 

 

Again, thank you for your very obvious hard work! Look forward to the next PD.

 

[Melan 1801]

Thanks for your comments, Thiefette! Good to hear people are still discovering this mission.

 

I think the tobacco pile does nothing if you have already completed your main objective, but it is one way of getting it done.

 

 

I hope to start work on PD4 this Autumn - I have been out of the loop and kinda burned out, but it should pass... eventually.

[CountMorillonite 17]

GRUNT

 

I thought I handled Grunt but I guess I didn't as the objective never checked off. And now I can't remember where he is or what to do with him. Everything else is done (missing 10 loot but that's minor). The map shows where his manor is, but how do you identify him and what are the options of "dealing" with him ?

 

btw....this mission is very impressive.

 

 

"later"

 

 

I found Grunt, knocked him out and threw him into the skeleton area where he drowned. Objective checked off

 

Edited November 20, 2017 by CountMorillonite

[Bikerdude 3738]

As Melan said before, nice to see people still playing this..

Edited November 20, 2017 by Bikerdude

[CountMorillonite 17]

I'm only now beginning to feel comfortable with the controls, being used to the classic Thief games. An improvement in many respects. A little more clarity when underwater would help out a lot though.

 

A very difficult mission to play, but it trains you to "look up" a lot and explore absolutely every corner of the map. Is there a place to rate TDM missions ?

 

Penny Dreadful should never disappear from anyone's favorite mission lists.