Fan Mission: Iris by WellingtonCrab [TDM 2.11 Required] (2022/02/13)

[Keruah]

Hi. I'm new to TDM and Thief in general. Started playing Iris a couple of days back. I love everything about the mission. There were a couple of bugs, though.

In the starter area there's a niche with a desk and some readable and a chest with bombs and arrows. The guard that goes there started walking angrily into the wall.

Second bug was in Grimkirk. There's a

Spoiler

hidden passage that is shown only through the magical glasses. The guys I  Grimkirk spotted me and ran through the door inside the hidden area. 

And anyway, great experience overall. I loved everything, including the 

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secrets of the void, the somewhat melancholic storytelling about a man that got something from the abandoned house for nostalgia's sake. 

Loved every inch of it

Edited February 6 by Keruah

[Cotillion]

Currently playing this great mission! One question I have is:

 

Spoiler

Does the snake lockpick replace both normal ones or do I still need one of them?

 

[Wellingtoncrab]

2 hours ago, Cotillion said:

Currently playing this great mission! One question I have is:

 

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Does the snake lockpick replace both normal ones or do I still need one of them?

 

Hi @Cotillion, thanks for playing!

Spoiler

Either lock pick is not required to complete the mission, but you can find both the triangle and snake pick in the mission and they both have uses.

 

[stgatilov]

The "peculiar lenses" don't work for me.
Neither the ones I bought, nor the second ones I found in some tower.

Every CInventoryItem (C++ object) stores pointer to entity in m_Item.
In my case, this pointer is dead, i.e. it points to an entity which was removed some time ago.
I guess for the glasses to work, it should point to the "atdm:xray_glasses" entity.

The reason why it works for some people is either because the glasses don't die for them, or because they die but not completely and no other entity created afterwards takes its entity number.

So the main question is: who kills the glasses entity and why?

UPDATE: Just to add some more detail.
I think I'm playing clean latest version with latest TDM beta.

I got lost pretty quickly, so I completed all the objectives and explored most of the map first. Then I returned to the starting area and went to buy a sword. There I noticed the glasses, bought them and tried to use them instantly: they did not work. Then I explored some more and found second glasses in the tower + a piece of advice to use them. Now I have two items, but they don't work anyway.

[Wellingtoncrab]

3 hours ago, stgatilov said:

Every CInventoryItem (C++ object) stores pointer to entity in m_Item.
In my case, this pointer is dead, i.e. it points to an entity which was removed some time ago.
I guess for the glasses to work, it should point to the "atdm:xray_glasses" entity.

If I understand correctly it sounds like something is basically removing the actual glasses entity from game so the inventory item points at nothing?

Looking at the scripts this is the area where I see handling of the xray glasses overlapping with with other inventory items - basically it keeps the current inventory item as glasses after picking up other inventory objects so you don't have to constantly scroll through the inventory to to enable/disable them. 

Not sure if something is going haywire here:

// dirty workaround to stop the inventory from changing away from the xray glasses if the player picks up loot or items while wearing them
void playertools_xray_glasses::loot_loop()
{
    string frobHighlighted;
    string selectedCurrent;
    string selectedPrevious;

    while( wearing_xray_glasses )
    {
        selectedCurrent = $player1.getCurInvItemEntity().getKey("classname");
        if( $player1.getFrobbed() )    frobHighlighted = $player1.getFrobbed().getKey("classname");

        // has the inventory switched away from the xray glasses?
        if ( selectedCurrent != selectedPrevious && selectedPrevious == getKey("classname") )
        {
            // has it switched because the player has frobbed an item or some loot?
            if( selectedCurrent == frobHighlighted
            ||  selectedCurrent == "atdm:inv_loot_info_item" )
            {
                sys.wait(0.65);
                
                // if the player still has that item selected, switch back to the xray glasses
                if( selectedCurrent == $player1.getCurInvItemEntity().getKey("classname") && wearing_xray_glasses )
                {
                    $player1.setCurInvItem( getKey("inv_name") );    //switch back to the xray glasses
                }
            }
        }

        selectedPrevious = selectedCurrent;

        sys.waitFrame();
    }
}    

[stgatilov]

I don't see anything here that could kill an entity.

By the way, I also remembered that this mission does not allow to customize FOV.
I accidentally had 95 degrees and noticed that my view is glitching when I grab some item.
It turned out that my FOV is hardlocked to 90 degrees, but when I grab some items it temporarily returns to player setting.

 

[AluminumHaste]

That bug has been around for over a decade though.

In some missions, changing FOV in console would only work when frobbing an item.

I always assumed it was a bug in the game, but it's possible it's a bug in certain missions due to scripting. But I've definitely encountered it a LONNNNNNNG time ago.

[Wellingtoncrab]

5 minutes ago, stgatilov said:

By the way, I also remembered that this mission does not allow to customize FOV.

I know of no reason why it wouldn't - the xray glasses are really the only thing that does any kind of screen effect. There is no FOV slider in the game so it was not tested admittedly.

7 minutes ago, stgatilov said:

I don't see anything here that could kill an entity.

I am not recalling anything really that interacts with the players inventory directly in the mission. Dropping the glasses with "Drop Inv. Item" and reacquiring them doesn't restore the item to the players inventory either I am guessing?

[AluminumHaste]

4 minutes ago, Wellingtoncrab said:

I know of no reason why it wouldn't - the xray glasses are really the only thing that does any kind of screen effect. There is no FOV slider in the game so it was not tested admittedly.

I am not recalling anything really that interacts with the players inventory directly in the mission. Dropping the glasses with "Drop Inv. Item" and reacquiring them doesn't restore the item to the players inventory either I am guessing?

 

What? There's been an FOV slider in the game for years now.

[Wellingtoncrab]

4 minutes ago, AluminumHaste said:

 

What? There's been an FOV slider in the game for years now.

Yep. Learn something new every day. 

I always looked for a slider and so never noticed it was right in front me as a toggle value.

[stgatilov]

8 minutes ago, Wellingtoncrab said:

I am not recalling anything really that interacts with the players inventory directly in the mission. Dropping the glasses with "Drop Inv. Item" and reacquiring them doesn't restore the item to the players inventory either I am guessing?

The previous reporter who had non-working glasses said game crashes on drop.
The same happens for me.

As you might guess, most of the code expects the entity of the inventory item to be alive.
Anyway, I don't think it is possibled to drop inventory item if it has no entity, because logically it should just put this entity back into the world. If it's dead, it can kill the inv. item, but I don't think it can resurrect the entity.

[Wellingtoncrab]

20 minutes ago, stgatilov said:

If it's dead, it can kill the inv. item, but I don't think it can resurrect the entity.

I guess I want to be sure I understand the context of entity "death" - both purchasing the glasses and picking them up adds a atdm:xray_glasses item to the players inventory. You mentioned basically the inventory slot which should be the be pointing at atdm:xray_glasses is pointing at nothing

So it probably got "killed":

-In the process of being added to inventory (in this case it was a purchase)

-Upon the first attempt at using it (it sounds like it immediately did not work)

-Or in the very small window in between

Unless the entity in an inventory slot can be "dead" prior to it ever being added?

[Grey Mauser]

This is just amazing! I'm a latecomer to TDM and have only tried out a few FMs. I didn't think anything could ever approach the immersive experience of The Painter's Wife, until now. Tip of a HUGE hat to Wellingtoncrab and their team for what must have been an enormous labor of love!

Now to a request for some help re. House Ursine:

Spoiler

I have stared at the portrait in the steward's room until I'm seeing spots, with every combination of specs, lanterns, candles, standing on chairs, leaning left and right, and every video tweak in the Settings menu. Using the specs, I can see the creature appearing over the portrait (brings to mind "From Beyond" - NICE), and I can make out a few brownish smudges that might be the bloody scrawl previously mentioned, but I'm convinced that no amount of eye crossing is going to reveal the vault combination for me. Perhaps something with my display. It would feel like a defeat for me to noclip through the door. A little help?  - Cheers!

 

[Wellingtoncrab]

@Grey Mauser thanks for taking the time to play! I am glad to hear you are enjoying it.

14 minutes ago, Grey Mauser said:

 

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I have stared at the portrait in the steward's room until I'm seeing spots, with every combination of specs, lanterns, candles, standing on chairs, leaning left and right, and every video tweak in the Settings menu. Using the specs, I can see the creature appearing over the portrait (brings to mind "From Beyond" - NICE), and I can make out a few brownish smudges that might be the bloody scrawl previously mentioned, but I'm convinced that no amount of eye crossing is going to reveal the vault combination for me. Perhaps something with my display. It would feel like a defeat for me to noclip through the door. A little help?  - Cheers!

 

Yeah at some point the glasses effect became much more subtle than it was during development and this should probably get fixed at some point. It seems near impossible for a lot of players to make out.

Spoiler

Try looking in the bottom left corner of the portrait with the lantern on and see if you can make something out.

 

[Grey Mauser]

@Wellingtoncrab - thanks for the fast response!

Spoiler

Now I see it! I'd stared at the area of the face forever (I'll be seeing that in my dreams - shudder) and had convinced myself that I knew where it was but just couldn't resolve the image, so I couldn't even see the rest of the portrait. A mind is a terrible thing . . .

Thanks again for all your hard work - I'm looking forward to driving on with this FM!

[chakkman]

5 hours ago, Grey Mauser said:

This is just amazing! I'm a latecomer to TDM and have only tried out a few FMs. I didn't think anything could ever approach the immersive experience of The Painter's Wife, until now.

Iris is one of the very best, for sure.

[Tenebrous Nova]

Hello! First off, I'd like to say fantastic work on this. Like other people here though, the peculiar lenses don't seem to work for me.

Spoiler

I've obtained two pairs of them and attempting to use them does nothing. I'm pretty sure I know which painting in Lady Ursine's place I'm supposed to be looking at (the one right above the steward's diary), but if the combination's anywhere on it, I don't see it. I've tried with the lantern on as well, just in case.

Just to be clear, is there supposed to be any kind of visual effect to confirm that the glasses are "active"?

Otherwise, I'm having a great time exploring. I do like that you don't start out with the basics.

[Wellingtoncrab]

37 minutes ago, Tenebrous Nova said:

 

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Just to be clear, is there supposed to be any kind of visual effect to confirm that the glasses are "active"?

Yes:

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The glasses produce an overlay on screen to indicate they are equipped. It sounds like you have indeed fallen into the issue where the glasses are "killed" as stgatilov put it and they won't work. 

Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the conditions to replicate this, so I am not entirely sure how to fix it. I know that's not very good news. They are not required to complete the mission, but it would likely require a mission restart to get them to work again.

Can you tell me:

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What order did you acquire the glasses in?

Did they ever work when you had a single pair or did they stop working after the second?

Do you also experience a game crash when you attempt to drop them?

 

[Tenebrous Nova]

52 minutes ago, Wellingtoncrab said:

Yes:

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The glasses produce an overlay on screen to indicate they are equipped. It sounds like you have indeed fallen into the issue where the glasses are "killed" as stgatilov put it and they won't work. 

Unfortunately I haven't been able to find the conditions to replicate this, so I am not entirely sure how to fix it. I know that's not very good news. They are not required to complete the mission, but it would likely require a mission restart to get them to work again.

Can you tell me:

  Hide contents

What order did you acquire the glasses in?

Did they ever work when you had a single pair or did they stop working after the second?

Do you also experience a game crash when you attempt to drop them?

 

Order I got them in:

Spoiler

I bought the first pair from the merchant, then found the other in a high up room near the bridge gate.

I can drop one pair of the glasses and pick it back up, but if I try dropping both, the second pair just vanishes. They didn't work as a single pair or when I had both. No crashes, though! I'm partway through Seeking Lady Leicester right now but I'll try restarting the mission when I'm done.

Edited May 25 by Tenebrous Nova

[Wellingtoncrab]

10 minutes ago, Tenebrous Nova said:

I can drop one pair of the glasses and pick it back up, but if I try dropping both, the second pair just vanishes. They didn't work as a single pair or when I had both. No crashes, though! I'm partway through Seeking Lady Leicester right now but I'll try restarting the mission when I'm done.

Huh that is quite interesting as it doesn't sound like the issue reported above actually. When you use the "use inv. item" key on the glasses do they flash green or red?

[Tenebrous Nova]

25 minutes ago, Wellingtoncrab said:

Huh that is quite interesting as it doesn't sound like the issue reported above actually. When you use the "use inv. item" key on the glasses do they flash green or red?

Strange. Just restarted the game and loaded from my last save and... they work now! Perhaps restarting was the answer all along.

I probably should've tested that before running to the forums - sorry about that!

Edited May 25 by Tenebrous Nova

[Wellingtoncrab]

36 minutes ago, Tenebrous Nova said:

Strange. Just restarted the game and loaded from my last save and... they work now! Perhaps restarting was the answer all along.

I probably should've tested that before running to the forums - sorry about that!

I am just happy it wasn't that breaking bug! Hopefully the rest of your playthrough goes smoothly.

[Tenebrous Nova]

Well, I finished it and I have to say it was fantastic! It had the verticality of The Painter's Wife and plenty of cool secret nooks to explore, which is what I like to see.

Spoiler

The atmosphere in the quarantined area was very eerie and reminded me of the Flooded District from Dishonored. I thought the zombie in the sewers was going to be the creepiest thing there, but nope - it was the people in the vicinity of the manor where you find the painting. They don't even talk! They just run silently at you.

Additionally:

Spoiler

While I failed to locate all of the mementos, a certain guard's diary entry - especially the name Bafford - has me wondering just who our protagonist is. Let's just say I've got my suspicion.

Thanks for the excellent mission!

Edited May 27 by Tenebrous Nova

[Wellingtoncrab]

"All meat must rest to eat.... All meat must rest to drink.... So watchers and we will sees what goodsey bits they bring...."

-Kingfisher

IRIS has been updated to 1.3

Download via the link in the original post or here

**1.3 is now available in the mission downloader**

Changelog:

• Iris now makes use of script events which require TDM 2.11.
• Overhaul of the objective notification system to reduce notification spam when completing hidden objectives.
• Threads now have their own notification system and they are marked in the objective screen.
• Less weirdness when the player owns multiple pairs of glasses (though the glasses now sadly cannot be dropped). Hopefully this helps avoid them breaking.
• Huge list of other bug and polish fixes.
• New and expanded content!

Known Issues:

• At some point all volumetric lights and alpha effects behind geometry "hidden" by the xray overlay ceased to be visible when the xray overlay is on screen. This unfortunately breaks some visual effects in the mission when using a certain item, but could not be fixed at the mission level at this time. https://bugs.thedarkmod.com/view.php?id=6538
• I could not replicate the issue with soft locking the glasses, so can't consider the bug resolved, but I made as many changes as I could think to help prevent it.

Carry the light of The Builder, unto its end.

[Wellingtoncrab]

The bug with volumetric lights and certain particles not appearing in xray subviews has been fixed in dev17056-10800 (2.13), restoring several of the visual effects in the mission. For that reason the first post has been updated to recommend playing the mission with that version or later.