[MISSION IDEAS] The Black Arrow's Library

[The Black Arrow]

Good day, I am the kind of guy who will say that he is incredibly busy and the like, but my actual excuse is that I don't have much motivation to learn how to make maps.

However, I still have so many ideas that I think they might be good for "The Dark Mod", I'm sure some of you mappers might have the motivation to make maps, but no idea as to what to make or how, well this topic, hopefully, will help you greatly in making an amazing fan mission where we all have the fun we ALL deserve.

I would like to organize this by one thread, many posts, because I think it would be best to have all my ideas in one thread instead of various, else people might get sick and tired of it, part of human nature to dislike the same ol' however good or bad it may be.
So you may see some little bit of "disorganization", but rest assured I put keywords to easily find stuff. Also, there's probably gonna be "double post"...So I hope I'm exempt, at least in this here thread.

You may ask whatever you want; suggestions, questions, a revision of my own idea, how should this be done...Etc etc, right in here, no problem.

By the way, I have a feeling some of you may ask regarding trademark, ownership or credits, well...
I do not care about them at all, as long as you don't do any commercial thing about it. If you get paid for making the mission, that's okay, you are the one making it, my idea is just an idea.
For credits, I don't mind them, if you want to credit me you may go ahead, "Idea by The Black Arrow". If not, I am fine with that as well.
I only care that you make a very good mission, I'm rather strict with that myself.

PLEASE NOTE: This should be for mission-makers only, as there are a lot of spoilers

Edited June 11, 2022 by The Black Arrow

[The Black Arrow]

Derelict - A Thief's Origin.
A 5-6 part mission series.

BACKSTORY
_________

Derelict is a story about Eric, some simple boy turned into a Thief, except this time not to survive but for fun.

Eric was born a farmer, all his life a farmer, until at age 16 he escaped to The City, but returned at 17...Because the guards got him.
At age 19, he's back out, but still acting like any other young adventerous 15 year old, so he is in no way a master thief.

His first thievery was close to his 17th birthday, this is also the reason the guards got him.
He simply was trying to steal from a market stand and didn't get away with it, but luckily his family was able to save him by paying the fine.

Now, at age 19, he's out again, acting like he's the Master Thief. Let's see where he can get to.

DETAILS
________

The actual idea of "Derelict" is, as the name should suggest, Eric is not exactly a thief, nor a master thief, but he wants to be and he is very enthusiastic about it.
To add some sort of irony, and a direct reference to "Thief: The Dark Project" itself, Derelict will be all about exploring abandoned buildings, ruins and, of course, derelicts.
Also, heavily influenced by...Condemned: Criminal Origins. The name itself should be a hint, and the missions too.

FIRST MISSION
_____________

"Condemned"

The first mission will be called Condemned.
It takes place in a large abandoned building, it can be a bank, police department, library...Maybe even a combination of all, since it's in ruins and surely some parts got open, allowing you to travel there.

The mission MUST be as pretty as possible, so it's not recommended for people with low-end PCs, sorry.
How pretty? It must look as ruined as possible, so if you can add "extra" garbage, that'd be great.
Basically, you have to make it look like Condemned, specifically the first mission where the police enter a long-abandoned disgusting place.

Now, you start in the middle of the building, easily being able to reach the rooftops through the stairs. The stairs have doors, but you cannot get inside them, you can use these as shortcuts or just leave them there to give players a nifty false sense of possible progress.

The idea is for Eric to get down, way down, so he may reach what might have been a long abandoned underground tomb, but that is not the case.
The area itself should be something else, now how you want to make it, well I do have my own ideas, but I also don't want to spoiler it to you. On this one, I give you "Artistic Freedom".
But to give you a hint, let's just say that, there could have been an "old city", but not as old as you think, and for sure the place has to be a hospital, or maybe even just a huge basement. Oh also, it should have some basic undead, the good ol' zombies.

In terms of enemies, there need to be thugs. Said thugs are "Bandits", they could be organized or individual.
One idea I'd like to see, is...A group of 3 weak thugs, visibly so even, just give them that "beggar" model and it will look fine. These are the organized bandits.
But on the other end, there is a Thug, big fat guy with a mean club. He is just strolling about finding stuff to scavenge.
The weak thugs will have a conversation about how they should kill him, or leave him alone, or how they want to kill him but the other calms them down and so on, this should give the player an idea that he can send the Thug after these 3 and it is recommended because...The fat thug is very though, you have no blackjack and you don't really want to be spotted by him.

In terms of difficulty, Eric is an amateur. He has no blackjack, at least not here, he doesn't even have a sword but he may acquire one. If so, make that sword a secret.
On the hardest difficulty, add "Ghosting" BUT make sure it's optional. Also, add more "random" weak bandits and a big fat Thug or two.

MISSION 1: BRIEFING
_________

Dear diary, the only reason I write this is because I'm bored.
I'm just, as everybody tells me, "young fool" and I suppose I am, but I am sick of it. Everytime, I need to pretend I'm like any other "young fool" who takes any insult for granted.
Well enough of that.

Pa and ma, if I die and you ever get this stupid diary...I miss you, even if I hate how pa gets all sad about my..."Upbringing", it's not your fault, old man! But you always make yourself look guilty!
I want to do something other than plowing all day long, even sometimes at night! And for that, I will.

My first Conquest shall not be, for once, a lady or even two, but this place I've heard that is haunted, some kind of derelict place.
I heard many rumours; it's a bank, it's a police department, a library...Could be all at once, even, who knows!
But what I know for sure, is that, there has to be a grave down there full of wonderful richies, just another rich dead idiot begging to be robbed...Although you can't be robbed when dead, so you know...
Well, let's get to it...

SECOND MISSION
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"A City of Beggears"

In the second mission, Eric visits the same place where that "Abandoned Building" was at, but this time to visit The Hammerite Church of the Beggars.

This one will be "special" since, we go from a short-medium sized mission to a large one, that can be fast or slow.
Acting as a "Hub", the church itself will be Eric's place, it also has many neutral beggars. Two will be patrolling outside with basic clubs, three are inside, a "Heretical Priest" will be there as well and one "Former Guard" with rusty armour. There may or may not be interactivity, up to the mapper on that.
Also, the church itself is the third biggest building, it has part of the roof broken so you can see the sky, but you can't see the outside or hear what's out there.

If you want direct reference, in Condemned, this is the School and the City Streets after the Mall, in Thief, it's the good ol' Quarantined City.

The idea is, you start on this Church, that has quite the visual appeal due to the "Urban Decay" effect that it has.
You will then go outside and visit various little places, such as...
* A small manor that used to belong to some high-class, said to be haunted.
* Stores, at least 3, up to 6 or even 9. Most are small, one or two are "medium-sized". A store hides a terrible secret regarding it's meat, you can easily guess how that goes!
* A bath house, this one had the roof completely destroyed but one part of the house seems to be intact. (Since this one is "open", you can avoid adding too much "garbage for appeal" inside)
* A warehouse of produces, specifically meat, the mystery here is that the freezer works despite the rest of this abandoned quarter not having much electricity going on.
* Finally, the second huge place, it is either a School or a University. The "Former Guard" told you a story about a misfortune that happened here and your curiosity just begs for it. You will find incriminating evidence that will make you a bit wary, keep your paranoia in check.

In terms of enemies, I'd say...The classic bugs will always go well, but don't make it boring and abundant, some little bit of hostile organized bandits and lonesome thugs here and there would be fun too. Undead is okay, just make it shabby.

The main objective here is for Eric to get more cash after his "success" in the first one, so he just has to explore this long-abandoned place until others do.

MISSION 2: BRIEFING
_________

Dear diary, I have found what I wanted and I am getting the hang of writing on you.
That was some real fun! I mean, I had some issues and the smell is horrid, but I'm fine with that, I've smelled worse, honest.
Now, there is one problem; it wasn't much, I am also somewhat liking the place, I got a feeling this will be a problem.

I found me a nice Church here, it even had people, this time not taffy like those taffin' taffers, goddamn!
One of them is a priest, I thought "former" but he talks about how he's a "Bad man with Good ambitions", whatever that means. We're all the same in the eyes of The Builder, says I.
And then there's this guard, he says he used to be a captain, of this quarter even. He stayed, people thought he died, he tells me the story of how a great thing called "Magic Bane" happened, which caused something he likes to call "The Mage Wars".
Heh! Cool story, gramps, good luck making anyone believe it, I know I don't.

But anyway, I have nowhere to go but my old home, I don't want to, so I will stay here for a bit.
I am thinking of taking a night stroll, if you know what I mean, my dear diary.
Well, let's get to it...

THIRD MISSION
_____________

"Apples & Scroundrels"

Eric goes farming! Although not exactly like in his old days, this time he farms for loot, in a recently (and yet looks like it's been long ago) abandoned manor-sized farmhouse.

The story continues from Mission 2, where Eric finally has enough cash to, well, retire. Instead of having using it all for himself, he decides to be nice and help out his family, so he goes back to his home.
However, more than two months have passed and his home was on the brink of collapse, so he returns to a place that has been hastily abandoned. Due to the humidity, and something...Strange going on, every house feels and looks incredibly old and derelict now.

Eric decides to take shelter in his old house, still having his room intact, but he feels something strange. Either way, he is convinced to explore one place of interest; The Jameson's Farmhouse, which is pretty much a manor-sized farmhouse of a well-off family, well-off compared to the rest, so the neighbourhood had some hidden jealousy about it.

However, things don't go as planned because, after Eric explores the basement or the attic and finds out a secret, that the Jameson's were Pagans and of the more dangerous type, the house gets invaded by thugs and bandits, some might fight eachother but all of them are on high-alert, this means that it's impossible to blackjack any of them, so Jack has to do Ghosting which by itself it will be very hard or fight his way back.
(A "third option" is to figure out who is who and see who will fight who, this should reduce the number of thugs & bandits, hence making Ghosting or finishing them off easier)

The many ways to get out, though, will be barricaded with wooden planks by the thugs, meanwhile the doors are locked, so Eric has to either find a crowbar, which means going back to the Basement, or the key to the doors, which is in the Attic. Going back to those places, both areas change to an even more eerie Pagan-type of, but if one goes to the other, the other is optional.

The idea here is somewhat simple; heavily influenced by Condemned's "Apple Orchard" farm level, the whole place is virtually a hidden claustrophobic trap, since Eric is inside a very old, decrepit manor-sized farm, with the interior being very tightened especially thanks to all the new garbage litter and the like. By the way, important info, the level should take place during the day, or at least "dawn".
The farm itself is not too much, just decrepit, but the basement and especially the attic are very eerie and somewhat creepy, mostly because this is where the light doesn't go through much.

MISSION 3: STORY
_________

Dear diary, I return home to find myself much richer than before and yet I am empty.
My home is gone! My family has left, the farms are all abandoned and decrepit, what's weird is that I'm very sure it's only been some months and yet everything looks older than before?
I got back to my own home, my room is still there, but it feels like nothing has changed, I even expected a note from my parents but there is nothing.

I don't know what happened, but I miss my parents...But I don't think doing that is gonna bring them back.
I'll try to find them out, I just don't know the lead, so I will go and try The Jameson's house.

The Jameson's were a bunch of rich snobs, the residents here respect them but I think it was all false emotions, everyone is just jealous.
Can't blame them, the Jameson's always had the best fruits and vegetables, even during Winter!
So no doubt they have something worth to sell, which knowing even they are out, I bet they don't mind if I "borrow" some.

I dunno why but my hungry gut is telling me that I shouldn't go there while also that I should go there, the whereabouts of my family is in that house...
They say curiosity killed the cat, but then they always forget to mention that, satisfaction brought it back!
I am sure that's what will happen, so...Let's get to it!

Edited June 18, 2022 by The Black Arrow

[ChronA]

12 hours ago, The Black Arrow said:

I'm sure some of you mappers might have the motivation to make maps, but no idea as to what to make

I think that is (unfortunately?) extremely unlikely. I'd wager that for every mission that gets released for TDM the author has a ideas for another 5 packed away in their brain-closet that will never see the light of day (usually because they are too ambitious or run up against some practical limitation, like needing to recruit a voice actor).
Realistically there are only two ways to midwife an idea like this into actuality: 1. you must first complete about 2/3rds of the work yourself, and then people will come together to help you across the finish line, or 2. substantial amounts of money must be involved. Otherwise prepare to be ignored.

However, even if you have no way of bringing your idea into reality, it is still commendable to share it. 
You might give someone else the inspiration they need to develop a project of their own, or overcome some hurdle that is holding their work back. Just be reconciled that the fruit of your labors are unlikely to be recognizable as a derivative work. Alternatively you may realize that your own project is not so impossible for you to follow-through-on as you thought, in which case any critique your preview attracts may save you a great deal of time and frustration. 

In that spirit, here's a bit of feedback from me about what you have shared so far:

Spoiler

First, I like the setting you have conjured for these missions. The derelict-post-urban aesthetic is so evocative and powerful, with is connotations about civil decay and ethics of survival. I wish more TDM FMs dabbled in it. (In Remembrance of Him is an old TDM FM I recently discovered and thoroughly enjoyed, despite many serious flaws, largely on the strength of its derelict Romanesque architecture.)
I also love the idea of needing to persistently delve down through a decaying modern layer into ancient crypts below. That organically produces an arc of rising tension that will benefit the level pacing. The only trick is to not make climbing back out more frustrating than getting in, which would produce a dragging falling action and a mission that overstays its welcome.

Another concept here that I like is needing to steal some of your most important equipment from off the person of a boss enemy. That is a neat twist on the resource gathering gameplay loop that I don't recall seeing in TDM before. Even more interesting if it would be possible to lure the boss into conflict with other enemies in the environment in order to dispatch both.

One thing that is not working for me yet is your thief's backstory as set against the thematic content of the missions described so far. Yes, this quixotic farm boy is more interesting than another generic career cat-burglar, and he fits in better with the idea of needing to find gear and preferring tomb raiding over targeted crime. But I do not see how we are supposed to feel about him and how he is supposed to evolve over your story.

FPS games are not generally a super efficient vehicle for narrative storytelling. Elements that do not support the larger themes at play are best discarded to not confuse or distract the player. Why should we care about Eric? He sounds naïve and in over his depth, but that is not reflected in the level summaries so far. Everything seems to work out for him just like it would for any real master thief.

Compare to some examples where backstories work to the advantage of the in-game narrative. William Steele is not a thief but a former soldier; his FMs are all about never backing down and going into danger to settling score against enemies of his friends and family. Bolen from Requiem is an honest laborer, a longshoreman, who only resorts to burglary when money becomes tight. That shows he is a naturally lawful man who embraces extreme acts of defiance against the depraved forces in society only when backed into a cornered. (Guess what his mission is all about.) Garret is a renegade apprentice Keeper, and the plot across all 3 of his games revolves around the tension between circumstance and destiny--how being too invested in a mundane past can keep one from acknowledging their full potential.

Maybe your character's backstory better reflects later missions in your campaign, but I suggest such things should be foreshadowed early. 

 

Edited June 11, 2022 by ChronA

[The Black Arrow]

10 hours ago, ChronA said:

One thing that is not working for me yet is your thief's backstory as set against the thematic content of the missions described so far. Yes, this quixotic farm boy is more interesting than another generic career cat-burglar, and he fits in better with the idea of needing to find gear and preferring tomb raiding over targeted crime. But I do not see how we are supposed to feel about him and how he is supposed to evolve over your story.

FPS games are not generally a super efficient vehicle for narrative storytelling. Elements that do not support the larger themes at play are best discarded to not confuse or distract the player. Why should we care about Eric? He sounds naïve and in over his depth, but that is not reflected in the level summaries so far. Everything seems to work out for him just like it would for any real master thief.

Hey, thanks for your feedback, in regards to giving you better detail about this "Eric", it's actually very simple:
He is based on a real life friend of mine, who has a similar but sadly much more boring story, he was a farm boy that hated his farm boy life, he decided to go to the city and he realized he hated it, but strangely he enjoyed the "decadence" around it, more so than whatever the farm could offer, so he was into stuff like, good ol' Punk Music, Urban Decay, graffiti and so on, so on.

He was also into rebellious things, almost tried drugs, the only "heavy" drug he ever tried is LSD, never ever tried cocaine or heroin.
He was one of those you'd call "Good Boys" despite being a lazy rebellious edgy bum or so, I think he was simply smart despite being internally angry, either leftovers of his farmboy life or I dunno, just wanting to be more than that and he knows he can't be.

So, the idea in essence is to make a "bored youngster" with a tendency to be quite the rebel.
Yes, he is naive, very much so, at least everything about it says so, but there is one thing you should know; in our youth, we're all thought to be incredibly stupid and naive, but I'd love to dare to defy that.
And, in real life, I do think my friend did that so, it's one of the reasons he's my best friend. By the way, ironically, right now he's basically his own boss in his own farm, heh!

For now, I don't want to talk much about Eric, and I think that "foreshadowing" him will actually give you (specifically, the mappers, not just you) ideas which, right now, I don't want you to. (Although honestly I already gave quite a huge hint now)
By the way, another huge hint is that, despite being a farm boy, he can apparently write and read and VERY coherently too.
And yet another hint, if you ever heard of the trope "Cowardly Lion", that is one of the personalities I want to give him.
Right now, he needs to be the most predictable type of young man you'll ever know, you are NOT supposed to care about Eric, let alone understand him, at least not yet.

 

10 hours ago, ChronA said:

1. you must first complete about 2/3rds of the work yourself, and then people will come together to help you across the finish line, or 2. substantial amounts of money must be involved. Otherwise prepare to be ignored.

 

As for this, I have already taken 2 for granted. ("prepare to be ignored")
I've actually wanted to make this YEARS ago, but I had low confidence. Besides, my first days in the TDM forums weren't too pleasant to be honest, but whatever, past is past.

I've made a "status" asking people if they'd be okay with ideas, those who answered said it was fine, including Airship Ballet, one of my top favourite FM Makers.

...But, even then, I'm quite a disgusting cynic still and I just have to say that, even I don't trust any of their words.
So, it could be more likely than not that this "Library" of mine is my own waste of time, but maybe there will be a future where I turn 80, die of a heart attack and suddenly someone finally decides to make a fan mission in honour of me or whatever.

Either way, I find it meaningless (remember I'm quite a cynic) and I also love to take risks, gambling is one of my hobbies, or vices if you are part of that moral compass.
If anyone can make a mission based on my ideas, even if it's only 25% of the ideas, I'd be honored.

After all, a good mission is a good mission, I have little care in being credited about it, I don't even care if the taffer gets donations and moneys for it, it's just a way of getting extra cash, some will say it's "scummy", I say...As long as you make a very good mission, that's all I care about.

Edited June 12, 2022 by The Black Arrow

[Nort]

There are a lot of things that people do, that I find mindblowing, and so there is a non-0% chance that somebody will make a map or three, out of your idea. It's not completely impossible.

Reading Mission 1, it would of course require modeling a fat AI model, and make him use a club, so that must be modeled too. I also don't know how the "sending" would work. Would you kite him, or ask him politely to battle the others?

I also hope that Eric is okay with you describing him as a thief publicly. We're taking your word for it that he's your best friend, and not somebody that you instead mock and call thief.

Edited June 12, 2022 by Nort

[ChronA]

1 hour ago, The Black Arrow said:

in regards to giving you better detail about this "Eric", it's actually very simple:
He is based on a real life friend of mine, who has a similar but sadly much more boring story, he was a farm boy that hated his farm boy life, he decided to go to the city and he realized he hated it, but strangely he enjoyed the "decadence" around it [...]
So, the idea in essence is to make a "bored youngster" with a tendency to be quite the rebel.
Yes, he is naive, very much so, at least everything about it says so, but there is one thing you should know; in our youth, we're all thought to be incredibly stupid and naive, but I'd love to dare to defy that.

Ok! Your intentions become clearer. That is not the direction I thought this story might take, but I still like it; better even than the more cynical or ribald interpretations I was imagining. There is an element of Stoic wisdom (in the sense of the formal philosophy of antiquity) in the character fully dedicating himself to something he know is dangerous and unproductive because it expands and gratifies his spirit. (The Big Lebowski is a popular film that explores similar territory, although maybe you intend a less cynical resolution for your protagonist than befell The Dude.)

That being the case, I think it is even more important to strongly set up that theme in the first level. As you can see, I missed some of the hints in your write up that pointed in that direction. The key to making this work is setting up a clear cycle of the protagonist's grandiose expectations, those expectations being crushed, and then the character adapting and coming out (slightly) ahead anyway. E.g. in your mission 1, Eric descends into "the underworld" only to become trapped, and then discovering the place has already been looted of anything majorly valuable, but never-the-less managing to meet his very modest loot goal off the scraps alone, before escaping. That I think should be the real core of that level's narrative, more-so than overworld capers that may proceed it.

  

2 hours ago, The Black Arrow said:

it could be more likely than not that this "Library" of mine is my own waste of time

I think my comments above reveal where my sympathies reside concerning that matter. 
Ultimately all the evidence of our works in this world will be utterly erased by the inexorable march of time, down to the very last atom. That is the nature of being alive. If there is any value for us to find during this farce, then it is in enjoying the journey. Time spent in a pursuit that gives you fulfillment is never wasted. If anything I commend you for having the courage to share the products of your imagination out here where we can all nit-pick them!

[The Black Arrow]

On 6/12/2022 at 1:27 PM, ChronA said:

-snip-

I'm curious, what happens if I didn't tell you more hints about Eric? How would you interpret the guy, perhaps back to being a "blank state" type of youngster?
One of the reasons I keep characters mostly unknown is because I like to see how the authors would turn him out to be, it's part of that "artistic freedom" that I absolutely adore.
Although, yeah, it's actually easy to make a blank state character and have anybody else write about it, but then it doesn't envision mine or let alone anybody else's...Well, hopefully the next level stories will give you better hints, I intend to make Derelict be a 6 missions campaign.

Also thanks for your comment, heh, funnily enough you sound like a "positive nihilist", but I'm sure I'm wrong about that
I always say that Time is the Grim Reaper himself, it's something we take for granted and always say we don't have much, well guess what? Grim Reaper isn't some skeleton with a big black cloak and a scythe, it's literally just "Time" itself and it always gets its ultimate goal.

 

Anyway, on topic, I have changed Derelict to add Mission 3.

[ChronA]

I think without clear character development, the player avatar defaults to almost a pure ludic abstraction. They are a sort of experienced, hyper-competent, obsessive-compulsive, entirely amoral kleptomaniac. They exist to flawlessly execute whatever plan is set out for them by the objectives, steal ever single piece of loot that has the slightest value, and to see or interact with every unique set-piece and interactable the mission maker went to the trouble of including. They have no real wants of their own besides accomplishing their objectives and not getting detected.

The real danger though for the mission-maker is that if their character writing is not interesting and self-consistent enough to overcome this bias towards ludic abstraction then players will default to just ignore the story entirely: supposing that it is meaningless set dressing. For some missions this works. E.g. In Volta and the Stone, we do not care why the thief wants to steal the stone, or how the course of his career brought him to that point. (We don't actually care about who the Voltas are either for that matter.) It is all just an excuse to explore a cool manor as a half-invisible cat-burglar-man.

For missions though where the characters and story is supposed to be one of the draws this means there are a lot of stakes for the effectiveness of the mission resting on the strength of the narrative hook. There needs to be a clear and ever-present narrative arc from moment one, to draw the player into the role playing experience and keep them in that frame of mind. Every event needs to logically connect to the next.

For your missions described so far, to do that successfully, here's how the essential flow that I see:

Mission 1: the PC is an inexperienced pretender at being a gentleman thief, (he probably has never actually stolen anything of value before,) who in his eagerness to prove himself plans a dangerous and unprofitable heist. The job goes badly wrong, and it is only by a lot of luck and a little bit of natural talent that he escapes with his life and barely enough loot to afford to make another expedition. However being a natural thrill seeker he is undeterred, and considers the adventure a great success.

Mission 2: using the lessons learned in mission 1, the PC plans a more sensible second job and takes away a tidy haul. However being sobered by success (and perhaps, being less overcome by adrenaline and having paid more attention to the somber circumstances of his surrounding this time), he decides that it's time to quit while he is ahead and return home with his fortune.

Mission 3: with home in danger, the PC must now use his skills not for his own naïve dreams of adventure but in defense of family. (He has truly grown as a person.)

and maybe Mission 4-5: the PC recognizes that he cannot return to the farming life just yet. There is other business he must handle before it will be safe to return to his old way of living... and perhaps in the process he recognizes that his skills as a sneak are more valuable to himself, and the life he imagines returning to, than is the purer calling of being a simple farm hand.

 

[JackFarmer]

@The Black Arrow

Bikerdude is currently working on a grayman legacy mission.

You are invited to join the dev team for readables and story elements via discord.

 

Edited July 14, 2022 by JackFarmer