Has anyone else been unable to clear a Master Level on Ultra-Nightmare?

[Man of Doom]

Back when the Super Gore Nest Master Level came out, it was obviously really challenging but felt very doable; the only legitimate challenges there were the second outdoor section involving tons of Mancubi/Pain Elementals/Revenants/an Arch-Vile as well as the dual Marauder fight in the slime hallway and the escape sequence.

I mean, I remember it took me around a dozen tries to get that done but it didn’t feel that hard.

 

Come the Taras Nabad Master Level, and I cannot for the life of me, seem to crack it on Ultra-Nightmare no matter what I try.

It didn’t seem that difficult when I tried the regular version, Extra Lives, and even the Classic Mode.

 

But over the course of several months (from being on and off to trying over and over again in one sitting), I end up:

 

Spoiler

 

-getting smacked in the back of the head by a Gargoyle/Soldier/Whiplash/Imp and that ends up being the killing blow

 

-getting stuck on a piece of scenery and all the demons just unload on me right then and there to just flat-out instagib me (to the point where I end up dying right as I get into glory kill range of a staggered monster to recoup my health)

 

-facing an early end at the hands of two Pain Elementals at the beginning (if not the Pinkies)

 

-bombarded by the Prowlers in the Marauder/Tyrant tower

 

-getting straight-up softlocked at the area prior to the Divinity Machine, even after I killed everything there

 

-hitting a brick wall face-first in the vault room as I panic and just get swarmed by Hell Knights and Prowlers (and on UNM, I’ve never gotten past the vault room); I’ve never even gotten past the buff totem phase

 

 

With all of this, I feel that a mental block has formed due to all the failed attempts.

And no matter how much I try to calm my nerves and get into the same mindset that got me to beat TAG2 on UNM on the first go, I still get screwed over in one way or another. 
 

I mean, I haven’t even gotten to the Arch-Vile torture chamber or the chamber fight prior to that.

 

 

To this day, I haven’t gotten to either the Mars Core or World Spear Master Levels, and I don’t plan to until I somehow manage to beat TNML.

But to tell you the truth, I don’t think that’s ever going to happen (or at least not anytime soon).

 

With all that out of the way:

 

Have you been just completely been unable to clear a Master Level on Ultra-Nightmare no matter how hard you try?

(And if you eventually do, what strategies have worked for you?)

Edited January 26, 2022 by Man of Doom

[AtimZarr1]

If you've done the SGN ML on UN, then you can definitely do the newer ones on UN as well. Here are some tips:

 

- Watch gameplay from people who have completed it on UN. You get to see what are some proficient or effective techniques for certain sections you might be struggling with. You can also compare what you'd do in a situation versus what they are doing.

 

- Record your own gameplay to see exactly what is leading to your cause of death. Sometimes, it's a series of decisions that's the cause. You can make a list of things that killed you and which locations they were in - and you'll have a visual example to refer back to and keep in mind for your next run. I watch the last 30 seconds right before I die and see what decisions I made that led me to lose all my health - and possibly also consider what other decisions could've been made to avoid that.

 

- Practice some more on Nightmare and Extra-Life Nightmare to boost familiarity. It's good to beat the map several times to develop a confidence when going through it on UN. Plus, you might find that only specific arenas across the level are the ones with the most deaths at, which you can prepare for accordingly for UN.

 

- Make sure your heath and ammo are topped off almost all the time. That means Flame Belching and Meathooking almost constantly. If you lose some armor, try to immediately get some back. If you lose some health, try to also immediately get some back (glory kills, ice bomb kills, etc.). Make generous use of the Chaingun's Energy Shield too since it negates all damage, get in the habit of pulling it out at any remotely dangerous situation (like getting stuck on geometry or a Gargoyle rapidly slashing you out of nowhere), especially since the Energy Shield has a cooldown of only 4 seconds.

 

- Make sure you're doing quick-swapping and Lock-On Bursts as effectively as possible. Most demons should die as soon as you confront them, with the exception of Superheavy Demons that might require more effort. For example, two Lock-On Bursts can kill a Pain Elemental, so just make sure to save your Rockets for the two that spawn in the beginning of the map and that'll deal with them in a few seconds. Use Sticky Bombs often at any range to deal with groups of fodder demons that might swarm you (like Imps).

[Chezza]

I've never completed a master level in ultra nightmare. It's beyond my skillset and patience to do it. The best I've done is extra life mode on nightmare within super gore nest.

 

The fact that one mistake or a glitch can ruin your entire run is too much for me to bother. The levels are takes a lot of energy.