The DWmegawad Club plays: Community Chest

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 14: Substation by Sam "Plagbolist" Woodman

Music: "Gerbert" by Mark Klem from Memento Mori

Played continuously with the JPCP class from Final Doomer

 

Probably a necessary palette cleanser after two large maps. I didn't like this map very much. The layout is certainly serviceable, I sort of like the resemblance of the main building to a substation in the abstract sense and the green texturing shows some Plutonia influence with a vanilla texture, but the combat arguably bears far more resemblance to Plutonia 2 than Hell Revealed II. Starting with the presence of Too Many Barons(cue Loony Tunes music).^TM Granted, their total count isn't too excessive, but what's more, the incredibly linear progression through cramped corridors isn't something I can really extract much fun from. I did like how 2 Arch-viles spawn in when you grab the key, especially when you get back to the starting corridor and you have to fight off at least some resurrected enemies along with the Arch-vile, but too much of the map before was just far too constrictive

 

Map 15: Internal Reaches by Samuel "Kaiser" Villareal

Music: "Plummeting" by Buclet from Plutonia Midi Pack

Played pistol start with the Vendetta class from Final Doomer

 

Now this is more like it! Some of the more claustrophobic and tense fights still take heavy cues at the least from Doom 64, but the ultra-generic tan-brick texturing with tasteful bits of metal has far more of a trad-Doom appearance. What isn't is the layout. It could probably be a touch more interesting, but the organization, progression and detailing are all just about as great as could be with what's used (there was one big problem but we'll get there!)

 

Kaiser had basically zero interesting fights in his last entry, but this one really steps up where it counts. For instance, there's one particular caged room toward the east end of the map You'll only see Hell Knights and shotgunners at first but by the time you reach the center of the room, you'll have awakened some pinkies, along with a Caco retinue bringing up the rear that can trap you and make a meal of you very quickly. The anteroom by the exit containing shotgunners, hell knights, Imps and a Pain Elemental on either side clearly showcased the Doom 64 influence, since delinquents in that game were VERY nasty ("In the Void" anyone?).

 

Elsewhere in the map, ambushes feel incredibly on-point with enemies such as chaingunners and Revenants placed in such positions that you'll probably want to be on alert after picking up a key or otherwise performing some other critical task. Other than that caged room near the beginning that contains Imps at first until you teleport in later and you have to contend with hitscanners in a series of fights that feels more pointless than anything in this map.

 

But this map's biggest flaw is the progression required for the secret exit. I had to look it up and I honestly have no clue how you're supposed to discover the trigger beforehand by anything other than blind luck when there's no guarantee you're going to head across the slime pit with the Revenant ambush and the red key at a certain point. You can't exactly hear the teleport closet open when you pass over its trigger. Not to mention the sequence itself probably lasts far longer than it had any right to be.

 

So it really says something when I say this is my favorite map so far. Like @Dusty_Rhodes says, this is just a part of a string of some entirely satisfying maps (I still need to play Map 20, but I somehow doubt that's going to break the streak when I'm fairly cool with Use3D maps here).

 

Map 31: Mt. Chaos by Simon "VolteFace" Broadbent

Music: "Cry of Desperation" by Tristan Clark from Plutonia Midi Pack

Played pistol-start with Doomguy class from Final Doomer 

 

Not really too much to say here. A map you can punch through I guess but I didnt find the berserk pack. It's ok though because you can largely infight your way to victory if you have to. I really liked the concept of an open hell map and it is pretty cool to wander around. Alas, I may have rushed through here a little quickly because I didn't actually take notes since I was in a poor mood that day. The keepaway yellow key was certainly rude though. I think it's definitely better than much of the dreck this month though

 

(I didn't play Citadel because it sounded entirely disposable from what I know of it(

[Yumheart]

Map15 "Internal Reaches" by Kaiser

Another map for the whatever pile. The visuals here don't hold up to Kaiser's previous outing, featuring rather boring and generic texture choices and less visual complexity overall. Combat is a lot of undemanding / annoying door fighting, but there are some okay-ish traps, the three that stuck in my head were the Pinky sandwich with sniping HKs & Shotgunners, the RK room ambush, which made good use of it's relative verticality, and the cage / teleporter fight with a lot of hitscanners, which I thought was done pretty creatively. Having Berserk from the start also made things more fun, ig that's an easy way of sprucing up your mediocre combat.

I can't say that much about this map, it's not the worst, but also nothing memorable.


Map31 "Mt. Chaos" by VolteFace

A fun and breezy little break map that seems inspired by Mt Erebus or Suburbs, in that it's a heated, open sandbox, though a bit flimsier on the combat front and more linear in it's progression. The two parts I liked most were the Archvile ambush and the BK platforming, the later of which earned me a stupid death, haha. I kinda wish there were more zany little challenges like that one, might help in distinguishing the map from it's original inspirations.
Again, not that much to talk about, solid and enjoyable.


Map32 "The Citadel" by Gene Bird

This one is strange, I don't really know what to make of it. The combat consists of SSGing seemingly random "formations" of demons, placed in front of you or around corners or, worst case, very, very slowly teleporting in before you, quite a slog if I'm being honest.
I found the map to look bland and ugly, there's not a lot of coherency to the texturing and the rooms are boxy and underdetailed. There was also the occasional outdoor section, which sadly suffered from the same problems as the indoor environments.
I assume this is one of Gene's earlier maps, as we have already seen he can do much better.
 

[kalaeth]

another day, another map. But first, replay the final part of the MAP13 and all of MAP14 (in 2 minutes*!) to keep the stats at 100% and let's go! 

*this means times will change a little bit.

 

MAP 15 - Internal Reaches:

Classic techbase start, followed by a small crate maze with a small switch hunt to open the door to outside, where some shotgun work must be made across a chasm. There are switches and a teleport on this side, another teleport reachable with a jump, plus at least 3 doors down bellow. I'll start with a switch midway.. I opens back up to the warehouse. Which is nice because it helped me figure out how to reach the secret invis. Now..The switch at the end of the right path. It's a lift down! Which means the one at the left is too? Yup. Since I'm down here, might as well kill the pinkies and explore. Two blue doors, one red door, one unmarked. Strange, automap doesn't register the teleport as such, let me check it.. Yup. So probably a destination. Maybe from the one I can jump to? Let's see! Nop, inside a cage! And then a different cage, and a different cage, one more and then yes. To the destination. This out of the way, time for the unmarked door. Ah. It's the cages where I was before, but now I'm on the outside. Enter a door, smaller room with smaller cages, a switch, a door. Ambush switch! And another switch. Opens some walls and a lift to the warehouse. Nice! Back down, now we enter the door. A nice corridor with slime on the side and obvious secret I can't open leads to another outside area, where a lift hides a caco and the switch to open the non-blue door. Or not, it opens a the corners on the upper wall! A couple of HKs come out and ask me for rockets to the face and me, being the generous kind, do not refuse. Each corner niche has a face-switch. One opens the big non-marked door back to the 4-cage room, the other.. Not sure. Well then, time for the remaining door. Specters, shotgunner and is that a knight I see down bellow? Well, yes and no. It's 4 HKs! Rocket-snipe the two farther away, SSG the closest ones. Entering the room closes the bars and releases pinkies and a chaingunner! After dealing with that, the blue key is there for grabs. Pressing a switch opens a path down (and not the bars blocking either exit) and so it's down to the wooden room for me. Specters bellow, shotguns above. Kill, lift, switch, timed lift, switch, timed lift, blue door. But not before a close encounter with a HK throws me back down. From the first lift. There. Now.. Back to the chasm? And now, I have 2 blue doors to pick from.. Hum..The one in the middle. Now.. a pool of sludge and the bridge is closed.. Let me check the other blue door first. Juts after I go back up and pick some health and armor, I let the snipping shotgunner take a few bits of me. Done, now side door. Oh, a pinkie and caco cave! Just found to chaingun wielding biologists here out to study their environment as well, a shotgunner and a HK guarding a yellow skull marked door, and imps on a switch that opens a teleport from which a rev comes jumping down into the mouth of my SSG. Teleport brings me back up. Out of curiosity I go check the 4cage room and sure enough, chaingunners there now! And shotgunners! Maybe it's time to travel inside the cages again? As expected, walls are open! And in the last one, the YSK! Back to the cave! YSK door, stairs, and something teleported away just as I arrived.. Never a good sign. Oh, I'm guessing it was the specters that got caught on the stairs. In a small room a pair of shotgunners and a PE that I kill from outside before entering. Some caged imps lure me into a room just as two shotgunners come out of the closet. One such closet has a switch, pressing it tears down a wall, that leads, stairs up and it's one of the balconies overlooking the chasm. Switch, 'port. Next balcony! Another wall comes down and now I can pick a pair of doors or another 'port... Doors. Metal stairs down, a bluesphere overlooking from the corner, and I'm on the side of the sludge pool room with 2 switches. Switch one, two, and I think I might have opened up the bridge? Also, steps to grab the RL. Now.. Teleport or jumping down? Teleport. The final blacony. Doors, door, switch, lift, a switch to bring the lift back, another switch overlooking the sludge pool finishes opening up the bridge. Symmetry rules tell me there should be another switch and hidden it was! Wall comes down, kill a specter and grab the goggles plus health. All done, back down, blue door, and we have a bridge to cross! And a door to open, but first llet's play teleporters! Two are fake, to bring me back to the bridge. Now that I've cleared that, door. Revs in cages, shotgunners on foot and I must walk the sludge? Well, it's a short run. Switch, ambush! And the red key didn't come down, so the new door it is. Pinkies, HK, shotgunners up above.And a manc too! Plus ambushy specters! Cross the bridge and a revenant on the window says hi. After all that, switch. It still didn't lower the key! But it opened another closet with another switch. This one finally lowers the red key. Red key in hand, I go grab some health after dispatching the HK, and before moving towards the red door. Kill everything in the exit room and then look at the map and say "holy f5ck, 9 secrets to go?! And 8 monsters".

 Back out, 7 monsters, and the hunt for the misaligned texture begins! Right after lunch. Current time is 41 minutes, for reference. Food has been had, let's see if I can find those secrets. Ok, had seen a line before and no indication of what it did in the red key room, found the panel it opened, 8 secrets, oh, misaligned texture, 7 secrets, 6 monsters, 5, 4. And the map! Press switch, open exit. Next, bars are now open, HK makes it 3 monsters and 6 secrets to go. 'port, sludge and nothing to do, 'port back. There's another one at start, backpack and monster 195, 2 to go, plus 5 secrets. 1 monster, with the chaingunner dead. Switch. Final monster, a specter, dead, 3 secrets to go. Ah, one in the lift, 2 secrets to go. Now.. The bluesphere.. There's a obvious teleport to it, but where?! Ok, found the secret exit (couldn't reach it, but didn't actually want to yet, since I'm missing one secret!) Now... hum. I've been secret hunting for 20 minutes now.. A short break for a smoke and reading up other people's opinions, see if I can find a clue. Ok, the one clue I got was "fake wall teleporter" so.. I guess I'm gonna run into walls? I wonder if it is at least somewhere I can guess on the map? Well, not on the automap, but IDDT showed it. Probably wouldn't have guessed it in a year. Now, RK room, and run. This is a very not good secret, there's absolutely no indication of the door opening! And now that I think about it, this isn't even the right one.

 But it's also a trigger+run secret. Let's see. Ok, I've wasted my entire supercharge and I'm no where near to getting there on time... Almostttt. This was try 8. Try 10 almost nearly and I'm gonna godmode for this, I'm down to 10% HP. AAARGH, I was there!!! The door closed on my face. FINALLY! 

 

K/I/S : 100% / 100% / 100%

time : 1:14:35 / 6:05:15

deaths : 0 / 28

 

Other than the secret exit I actually liked the map, but this is unfairly hard. I'm gonna take (another) break before attacking the secret maps.

 

MAP31 - Mt. Chaos :

I'm boxed at the start, and opening the box a lot of fireblu, lava and a megasphere. Grab, open door, corridor. Two fireblu chambers on a stone corridor to a hellish teleport surrounded by carnage. I get 'ported to a wooden room with wood panels all around, forming a deformed swastica and housing the first enemy :  a pinkie. A single door exists, leading outside where in an island on a lava lake surrounded by fireblu walls a ton of shotgunners and zombiemen and imps wait for me. I step out, chaingun all, grab a backpack and cross the lava towards the island. A couple of buildings have their entries towards this central plaza. The smallest ones only have a chaingun and health. I enter another wooden one to find a rev and a pinkie and the red key I still can't reach. Shoot one switch, press another, climb onto the ledge, and move outside until another switch. Pressing it lowers a metal block and allows entry to the other part of the building where the red key is up for grabs. Picking it up releases a pair of cacos outside. Now I try the other wood building, where a imp, a pinkie and two specters guard the plasma riffle. Now, red building. A chaingunner and a lost soul, steps to the upper level outisde where a wooden structure hides a switch. I enter it, press, releasing an AV outside and opening the door to the grey brick building with the blue key. It's a pillar puzzle! An easy one as long as you don't fall, since it seems almost no pillars go all the way down.. Done. Outside the green marble satanic square opens and a few HKs and a caco come to the party. Clear them, enter the blue building. Trying to pick up the YK teleports it to the ground nearby and a wave of enemies shows up. Killing them all lowers the bar protecting the exit. In the meantime I reenter the red building to grab a secret RL. Checking the map I notice I've never been behind the fireblu building nor seen it's back, which gives me secret number 2. Stepping on the teleport ends the level the normal way, so.. Ah. Glad to be using target spy that told me a commander keen was behind the exit. The single rocket there is no indicator. All done, exit.

 

K/I/S : 100% / 100% / 100%

time : 14:43 / 6:19:58

deaths : 0 / 28

 

MAP32 - the citadel :

 Oh, we start with a puzzle?  The one different torch opens the way. Ooh, now there's switch back there. Teleport brings me back to the starting side, I see. Switch reveals a health potion on a another 'port and now I'm outside, red key up for grabs, imps shooting at me from across a sludge river with no obivus passage except maybe this corner here.. Nop. Death it is.

 Life 2. Ah, hidden switch raises bridge, another switch another bridge and a door inside. imps, door, corridor, mostly imps but also a caco and a rev. At the end, a room with 4 identical grey brick buildings. Pick one at chance, shotgunner megasphere. Chaingunner RL ; pinkie rockets ; zombie, health, opens another niche, more enemies and nothing particularly needed. Outside the buildings, plasma! Forward, big door to the side, switch, outside. First. back, secret, megasphere! back outside, door one : nothing of particular interest, door 2 : another megasphere. Back inside the way forward is open, secret stimpack, YK on a pedestal. Grab it, kill the 2 shotgunners and 2 imps, move back to the newly open door, big arena, move forward and exit waaay too soon. Non marked exits are my bane. I'll have to play again later since I have a meeting now. 

 Replaying. The secret with the imps has a medikit and a ammo box instead. Found the third secret but stil unsure how to get it.. Oh, that easy. 5 enemies to go? Ah, the ones in a small niche in one of the 4 grey buildings. Done! Off to the exit.

 

 

K/I/S : 100% / 100% / 100%

time : 11:48 / 6:31:43

deaths : 1 / 29

 

A very easy level, even if I died once to a inescapable pit that has medikits on it.. The second half begins tomorrow!

[finnks13]

MAP15 - Internal Reaches by Kaiser:
I thought this map was a large improvement over Kaiser's other map. The map is another very long, non-linear romp through a nicely detailed, well lit area (this one being a more brown wood and metal focused than the techbase of Kaiser's previous map) the combat here is much more compelling due to the comparative lack of high HP enemies. The majority of the enemies here are zombies, imps and demons which make the map feel much less like SSGing hell knights in corridors for 30 minutes and keep the pace up. I don't think there were any fights that were great, but I'll take "not a slog" any day over some of the maps here.

 

I wish the plasma gun and rocket launcher were placed earlier on in the level, they're not really needed for the opposition, but their inclusion would certainly have allowed for more interesting scenarios than being stuck with the SSG can allow. The main thing I didn't like about this map was the secret exit, which is absurdly hard to find as it requires going through a chain of 4 secrets, with the first one being the hardest to find since a random door opens when you go up the left stairs in the plasma gun room, and I had to look this first part up. This map was an alright way to spend 30 minutes I guess, I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it.

 

MAP31 - Mt. Chaos by Volte Face:
The first secret map begins with you emerging from a metal pod into what can only be described as "The FIREBLU dimension", and as the name might imply the following map is heavily inspired by Mt. Erebus from Doom. It's a good map to take inspiration from, and while I think that somehow this map manages to be uglier than Mt. Erebus and a bit more linear, I had a good time here. The progression is refreshingly simple, the fights are punchy and most importantly it's a good secret map. The finale fight against 50 monsters is intense due to the high amount of hitscanners present, though this does tend to start a ridiculous infight between all of them, which I chose to interrupt only to kill the Pain Elemental before it filled the map with lost souls. The secret exit is, again, very odd. I liked this one, felt very secret map-y if that makes sense.

 

MAP32 - The Citadel by Gene Bird:
Having played Community Chest 2 before Community Chest, this map is far more of what I was expecting from Gene Bird's maps than "The Boardwalk". The map title is taken straight out of Doom 2 (and not even a good Doom 2 map at that :P), you get a super shotgun almost immediately, and the following map is a series of thematically distinct rooms that contain pretty large groups of monsters. While Gene Bird's maps aren't outstanding for the most part, I've only played one by him that I actively dislike (that being The Pit from Community Chest 2), they're generally just a fairly mundane SSG-fest and after I press the exit switch I'm normally surprised by how long they are. Overall, it's fine I guess.

 

Rankings:

  Reveal hidden contents

Really Liked: MAP02, MAP07
Liked: MAP04, MAP09, MAP13, MAP14
The Boring Zone: MAP03, MAP11, MAP15, MAP32
Didn't Like: MAP01, MAP05, MAP08, MAP12
Really Didn't Like: MAP06, MAP10

 

[Poncho1]

Map15: Internal Reaches

Author: Sam Villarreal (Kaiser)

 

I actually found this to be much more fun and engaging than Kaiser's previous contribution. For one thing, the secrets weren't nearly as obtuse and difficult to find, bar a wall that you need to cross a linedef for and run through a door before it shuts. I hear that Kaiser's a master of techbase, which this map clearly isn't, going for more of a temple-meets-bits-of-UAC feel, so while the detailing's fine, the amount of brown gets tiring on the eyes after a while. The combat, once again, isn't threatening in the slightest, though I did get whittled down to very low HP for a moment at the area where you need to lower two blocks on a bridge to proceed. I can only remember one fight, and it involves four corners occupied by Hell Knights and Shotgunners, and if you decide to waltz into the room, you get ambushed by Pinkies. Coming in with ammo from the previous levels, I made mince-meat of this be chilling at the doorway, killing all the Knights and zombies with ease, *then* unleashed the Pinkies. The gameplay suffers from a near total lack of urgency, and so it becomes boring. The progression is a lot better than Termination Center [sic, lol] though, and I found the secret exit without too much hassle after finding the aforementioned linedef secret. Visually appealing, but otherwise lacking.

 

Map31: Mt. Chaos

Author: Simon Broadhead (VolteFace)

 

Even with carried-over ammo, it's more fun to simply let the monsters that slowly populate the area infight. Taking its cue from Mt. Erebus - perhaps my favourite map from Ultimate DOOM, this small Hellish town is a massive distinction from what we've seen before, which I only bring up because plenty of early megawads had secret levels that never deserved those special slots. This amounts to obtaining the keys and overcoming the smaller challenges as the enemies outside slash each other to death; whether it be shooting a switch while avoiding a pair of Revenants to scale a ledge to another switch that reveals the Red Key, an annoying section with constantly moving pillars for the Blue Key, or an Arch-vile and a gang of Hell Knights and Barons waiting for you after getting the Yellow Key. A short map, though much like Substation, a somewhat memorable one.

 

Map32: The Citadel

Author: Gene Bird

 

It seems that this sort of level is what Gene Bird really specialised in: extremely linear, SSG-friendly, corridor slugfests. The opening room is a complete ripoff of the opening one from DOOM II's The Catacombs; after that, the level transports the player to what I think, honestly, is the best-looking part. I honestly dig the design for the ruins, as well as the fact that it's a wide-open area in a Gene Bird map, so there's a bit of variety I guess. What I *don't* like is the easily-missable Red Key, so you must drop down carefully from the landing teleporter to get it and make life a little easier. Thankfully, the outside area has few hitscanners, for Gene is merciful. In fact, he's incredibly merciful, because the SSG, combined with the very simplistic traps that only ever seem to teleport enemies in front of you and hardly behind, make this one of the easiest maps in the megawad. Seriously, that outdoor section is far and away the most "difficult", and even then it isn't that complicated. Towards the end, there're a couple of buildings in another [smaller] outdoor area with an interesting room filled with lifts, but that's about as sophisticated as the level gets, sadly. What comes to these sorts of levels, I don't find them to be terrible; I mean, SSG-ing smaller enemies is pretty satisfying, but doing it for the 12 minutes I spent here (to 100%, might I add) soon got stale. It's a matter of being inoffensive in its mediocrity. Fun for a bit, but Bird's second contribution runs out of steam quick.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 15: Internal Reaches - Kaiser

100% kills and secrets (only found 2 before resulting to IDDT and DoomWiki)

Time: 32:05

Deaths: 4

 

Kaiser's 2nd map in the set is a pretty solid effort with some pretty obscure secrets. There's a tough ambush in the red key area. You'd think this switch will lower the red key, but instead it opens up a point blank ambush with hitscan and imps, while cacos and hell knights teleport in behind you, and more come out of a new alcove up the southern stairs. This one got me a few times, and is the only real panic moment I had during the map. The rest of the map is mostly incidental combat that isn't too bad. Layout isn't too confusing, and the main switch hunting to progress isn't as bad as some other maps in the set. But like I said, the secrets are tough. A few involve crossing a linedef and then hauling booty to the newly opened area before it closes. The secret exit is the worst for this, since it's a very tight window to get to it. I honestly don't have much more to say. This is a solid "fine". Nothing really remarkable, but nothing offensive in design. Just pure late 90s, early 00s mapping. And plus, I still like that MIDI. It's my fav in Doom 2, and I don't care how often I hear it.

 

Map 31: Mt. Chaos - Volte Face

100% kills and secrets 

Time: 8:38

 

Judging from some of the other comments on here, people were happy this was based on Mt. Erebus and not Mt. Pain. Am I and the titular YouTuber the only ones who like the latter? It's always been my fav level from TNT, so I'm always surprised to see negativity towards it. I would not have minded if this was based on that map. Thankfully, Mt. Erebus is my favorite map from E3, so I'm not complaining. This is a little less exploratory than that, with most of the map taking place in a small square setting, with a few small buildings hosting small pickups and a few progression elements. Getting the red key is kinda cute, and the yellow key spawns a frantic tiny slaughter that the plasma cuts through. I also wouldn't find the secret exit without watching the DoD ep beforehand, but hiding a secret via a Keen like that is something I always wanted to in a map. If I ever try to map again, I'm going to do something like this, but maybe make it a little less obscure. Yeah the fake wall is a different texture, but idk how'd you know to rocket it. Anyway, this is a pretty solid map. Short and sweet, with some nice action. Plus, fireblu is the best.

[NiGHTS108]

MAP15: Internal Reaches

By Kaiser

Kills: 74%

Items: 70%

Secrets: 72%

Time: 11:33

 

Kaiser's second of three demon scrubbing missions, Internal Reaches is another unthrilling grind with virtually no notable fights, I do prefer it to Termination Center, as the moment with the Pinkies and Hell Knights is Kaiser's best combat setpiece in the megawad, but the rest is yet again, very bog standard, once more I'll state it really only feels like he put it there because he had to, it appears he had more fun hiding the sometimes ridiculous secrets to be honest, which includes the extensive order of operations of tripping random linedefs to get to the secret exit! It took me like 20 minutes with the power of Doomwiki to find that... Worth noting Internal Reaches received three sequels, two of which were released as single level PWADs and the second of them appeared in Community Chest 2 MAP18

 

Grade: C

Difficulty: C+

 

 

MAP31: Mt. Chaos

By Volteface

Kills: 100%

Items: 68%

Secrets: 66%

Time: 5:11

 

Y'know you never see intended secret maps in these wads... Mt. Chaos is an absolutely hideous hunk of junk I think is one of the most enjoyable maps in the megawad, the most obvious comparison to this map is Mount Erebus from Doom I, but only in visuals and name, the action here is at a slower pace but still perfectly enjoyable, when you see the Arch-Vile I suggest disposing of him asap, he's not threatening but he limits your abilities to make the demons infight, the map isn't perfect, as stated I find its visuals puke-worthy and the blue key platforming stage is irrelevant and unnecessary, also again the secret exit is incredibly obscure, you have to find an unmarked rocket launcher secret and use it to shoot the wall behind the exit teleporter, killing a Commander Keen and opening MAP32! I don't know, Mt. Chaos is alright 

 

Grade: B-

Difficulty: B-

 

 

MAP32: The Citadel

By Gene Bird

Kills: 82%

Items: 84%

Secrets: 0%

Time: 8:05

 

Oh boy... If you guys know about Community Chest 2, this should be all too familiar... Anyone like the SSG? After "referencing" Doom II's The Catacombs, The Citadel bleeds and bleeds and bleeds into long, dull hallways perfect for holding down the SSG trigger for 10 to 15 minutes, almost all the fights take place on completely flat ground and don't deploy any remotely interesting architecture or monster placement sadly, it's also laughably ugly, shoutouts to the outdoors area, and deploys many weird decisions, such as the yellow key being exclusively used to leave the room with the yellow key, or the way every door inside the titular citadel is locked behind a red key, long story short, skip this one, Mt. Chaos' secret exit warned you, at least it's only the second worst citadel in this wad.

 

Grade: D-

Difficulty: C

 

 

14 days left.

[DavitW]

MAP31: Mt. Chaos

What we have here is basically the bootleg version of Mt. Erebus. Doesn't look as good and isn't as fun to play, but it's still not too bad. The little up and down platforming section for the blue key was completely superfluous, not serving much challenge but just wasting your time instead. The trick with the yellow key was humorous but relatively harmless considering it only teleports about ten feet away from you. When it comes to the super secret exit, there are a few rockets in front of the exit teleporter to serve as a hint and you might be able to see something strange going on in the automap, but I still feel like most players aren't going to find it without a guide.

 

MAP32: The Citadel

From a technical standpoint this might just be the worst map we've seen so far, almost everything comes across as lazily and ineptly designed. I can stand an ugly map so long as it plays good, but this is an incredibly tedious corridor shooter split up by a few open areas that look completely out of place. There's some sort of wild west town with bodies hanging from the gallows I guess? Then there's some sort of church combined with a cafeteria that has what looks to be dead humans on a grill, which is admittedly pretty funny and the best part of the map.

 

Can't forget the ruined palace area at the beginning of the map either. It's the type of big, open area that just does not work when you have this little detailing in your map. The bridges over the acid don't even align properly either, it's just a rectangle that's raised in the middle of the two sides and barely connects. That's what I'm talking about when I mean lazy. Same goes for the locked doors in this map, I'm pretty sure not a single one of them was even marked with the key you need. One of them might have had a pair of torches by them that were supposed to signify something but that's it. And going off of that past a certain point in this map basically every door is locked by the red key. It has practically no effect on the gameplay but it's just one of those little things that tell you this map isn't put together particularly well.

 

Final thing I have to mention is the name. There's already a map called The Citadel in the original Doom II. You just can't do that. You're telling me nobody could think up a name like 'The Castle' or 'The Dungeon' instead? Some parts of this map look straight out of Wolfenstein 3D so it's a perfect fit.

cc31.zip

cc32.zip

[RHhe82]

MAP16: Methods of Fear. DSDA v0.24, HMP-PS, 165/165 kills, 2/2 secrets. Completion time 11:28.

 

Ah, a short, relatively quality map that's not overly challenging, but is not a pushover either. Coming after The Citadel, this feels like a simple, mostly linear romp done right. Layout and texturing has been done with the care as far as I can see. It's an enjoyable ride, where you put down enemy hordes in a short amount of time with super shotgun and a rocket launcher for which there are plenty of ammo.

 

I don't know, I may be traumatized by the longer maps, when I automatically tend to like these compact maps. Be that as it may, I find very little wrong with Methods of Fear.

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP15: "Internal Reaches" by Kaiser

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 10/11 secrets (all found with either IDDT or, later, wiki assistance)

 

Kaiser's second map takes us back to the brown zone of some earlier maps in the set. It's not too bad looking, not as much to my tastes as their previous map in the set but it looks fine. The layout is improved though, you'll still have to use your brain a bit to navigate through this one but it's not nearly as annoying as MAP10. The secret exit is a doozy though, a chain of 4 secrets with the first secret being quite difficult to find without foreknowledge, and the last one requiring a test of speed where you have to run from one area to the exit door, partially through nukage and with an invuln to help you avoid damage. I was luckily able to make this one, but not before the invuln ran out so I did have to take some damage. The other secrets in the map aren't too bad to find, mostly misaligned texture stuff. I'm not sure why I failed to notice them until using IDDT, heh.

 

I called the combat in Kaiser's previous map a bit pedestrian, and it kind of holds true here as well although it has some more teeth to it. You get greeted with big hitscanner clumps at a few points in this map and they are the primary source of danger (especially considering the limited health the map provides). The most annoying was probably when the room with the imps in corner cages re-populated with hitscanners. I had a run where I reached this point without ammo due to berserk underusage and it was not easy to deal with. Coming in prepared you are still likely to take some chip damage. Apart from these moments, combat is fine, and there are a few ambushes that I did find exciting.

 

Definitely better than the mapper's previous offering. I'm still not overly fond of it, but it's an alright map.

 

MAP31: "Mt. Chaos" by Volte Face

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 3/3 secrets

 

Is MtChaos31 the Dean of Doom in an alternate universe? This secret map goes the route of the simple odd one out. Walls of FIREBLU and rivers of hellslime make this map's influence of Mt. Erebus perfectly clear, and I've always enjoyed the boldness of this aesthetic. The map is simple as it gets, having you hunt down keys in this open hell-town, with monsters occasionally coming out to slow you down. I had to look up the secret exit again for this one, which requires you to fire rockets behind the exit teleporter to take down a Commander Keen. A bit weird, but at least it's easier to pull off than the previous secret exit.

 

Combat in this one is quite trivial for the most part, with you being well stocked and having to face pretty minimal threats throughout. The map does culminate in a very busy teleport ambush though, which was a fun way to top things off. This map obviously doesn't set out to blow minds, opting to use the secret slot to provide a cute little tribute and short diversion from things, but I'd say it's a slot well used. I liked this one.

[Book Lord]

MAP 16 – Methods of Fear by Andy Leaver @Aleaver

PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4, UV, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

We are about to experience a double feature by Andy Leaver, destined to become a pillar of the Community Chest series in the following decade. Methods of Fear was the first in line, a small but densely populated tech-base, firstly explored from the inside, then fully conquered on the outside. It was rather breezy on continuous play, but weapons and ammo were plentiful and properly distributed, making sure that pistol start was feasible and interesting.

  Reveal hidden contents

The first room was a bit confusing with its four teleporters and a secret that will probably go unnoticed. No teleport puzzle was in programme: it was only a “choose your destiny” approach that sent the player to four possible locations inside the base, corresponding to easy or tricky spots. The white teleporter was not the best option for pistol starters, because it led to the core room with four Mancubi and no weapons to kill them, unless a dash for the skull switch was made. The same SSG was readily available by entering the red pentacle pad, and there was no need of better weapons to exterminate all the invaders inside the tech-base. The other gates led to the eastern or western wing, where the chaingun, the shotgun and the rocket launcher could be gained along with good ammo supplies. The RSK was soon collected, and I used it to raise the bars that blocked the teleporter to the outside.

  Reveal hidden contents

A considerable number of Imps, Demons, and Hell Knights filled the perimeter around the building. The ammo distribution encouraged the use of rockets to disperse the crowd, creating one of the most entertaining moments in the megaWAD so far. I registered some weird editing practices by Leaver: the red skull bars that opened individually and not as one; a lonely hidden switch, that was not immediately visible but must be pressed to leave the map; and the odd teleport arrangement that repopulated the zone around said switch. If the switch was approached and left from the sides and not frontally, the teleport would not take place at all. Strange ideas, though they did not affect the gameplay in a negative way. Methods of Fear was a solid map with a light-hearted attitude towards combat.

[kalaeth]

MAP 16 - methods of fear :

Another map with a name that would give a good metal album name. So, techbase! 4 teleports and two columns going up and down for no reason I can tell. I'll start with the one different 'port, the white one. A pair of mancs ahead, a knight and a pair of pinkies on top of a lift behind me.. There's a big red-key guarded structure in the middle of the room, a metal block and a switch. I press it first, lowering the metal block to reveal the SSG. I then go to the lift, where a ton of imps start shooting at me. At the end of the walkway there's a pair of columns of blood. On the way to there there's a teleport, a lift to the upper floor, a switch and another lift. Switch first, but all it does is lower the lift I used to get up here. Up to the first room above, the red key is teased and hidden, now. Two switches and a teleport.. Neither switch does anything I can see, so I go check the other room above before deciding which teleport to enter. Ah, one of them opened a small room behind the corridor with pinkies and another switch. Again, I don't know what it did, but the next room has rockets and yet another switch. This one lowers a wall, with yet another teleport.. That's 3 'ports to choose from.. I'll go to the on in the corridor, which, as I suspected, brings back to the first room. Back into the white 'port, and now the one in the left side room. Again back to start, so white, and the final 'port. Ah, red key. Port back to the big red-key-themed bars. I open it an enter the port, going outside. I go round the building killing imps, a few HKs behind a small wall, and on a green armor pickup, a wall comes down, revealing a single imp and a switch. That switch lowers the metal wall, giving entry to a brick building. That ends the level without any warning... THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. (KIS: 87,97,0 ; time 10:19)

 Restarting because.. Really? I take a different approach, only to find that each teleporter takes me to a different place in the same corridor. Once outside I make use of the very generous offerings of rockets to clear the imps, and find secret 1, a bluesphere hidden in a recess from the architecture. Back inside to hunt for secret 2, and it's a single box of shells in the starting room. Oh well.

 

K/I/S : 100% / 95% / 100%

time : 6:56 / 6:38:40

deaths : 0 / 29

 

 

Not sure how to feel about the level, except that as stated countless times before, I hate non-marked exits. 

 

[Silhouette 03]

Map 14: Methods of fear- Andy Leaver

Another fun one.

 

Short, simple and to the point is one of my favourite map type. This is an example, and a good one at that. I'm probably in the minority here, but I love it when a map lets you let loose with the arsenal. Though that does also happens to put a dampener on difficulty, which isn't a huge problem taking in consideration the maps short length. I do like the trap with the single imp in it that once shot teleports demons in. Nice trick.

 

Hopefully Leaver's second submission is just as good or better than his first.
 

Kills: 100%

Secrets: 50%  

[finnks13]

MAP16 - Methods of Fear by Andy Leaver:
A fun little map, and the first of two by Andy Leaver. The start offers you 4 teleporters which to my surprise actually take you to 4 different places in the small techbase at the start of the map. This techbase isn't the best shootout I've ever played, but since I managed to leave the teleporter that gives you an SSG to last, it was a pretty tense battle since there isn't a huge amount of health in the complex. Picking up the red key allows you to leave the complex and venture into the canyon surrounding it. This was my favourite bit of the map, there's lots of damaging floors everywhere and the presence of higher tier foes, not much space, and the rocket launcher made this pretty fun. Having to stand in a random shadow to exit the map is a bit weird, but overall I liked this one.

 

Rankings:

  Reveal hidden contents

Really Liked: MAP02, MAP07
Liked: MAP04, MAP09, MAP13, MAP14, MAP16
The Boring Zone: MAP03, MAP11, MAP15, MAP32
Didn't Like: MAP01, MAP05, MAP08, MAP12
Really Didn't Like: MAP06, MAP10

 

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 16: Methods of Fear by Andy Leaver

Music: "Run 'Em, Gun 'Em, Kill 'Em" by Jimmy from Plutonia Midi Pack

Played from pistol start with Doomguy class from Final doomer.

 

This is a cute sort of map with simple straightforward action featuring tasteful use of  techbase textures and a long and open hallway that you'd think would just be boring but isn't due to some smart enemy placement.  Progression is fairly open-ended with the starting room containing a number of teleporters taking you to certain locations. If you want to get the SS right away, just take the red teleporter closest to the only silver one. Or not. Scrambling proves quite fun in this map. The Mancubi did kill me once just after I'd pushed a switch lowering the silver block around the Super shotgun. I'd then go to find a rocket launcher on a lift that no teleporter exists for. I was a bit lost for a while, before finding a little side passage with two revenants and a skull switch on a blue wall.

 

The final battle takes place in a cool outside courtyard surrounding the fortress which you were just in, containing many monsters but not so many that you don't have toom to move. The brick wall area with the Revenants, Hell Knights, and Barons has a barrier blocking the exit, but I would end up going on to find a 'secret' Supercharge hidden in a nook before exiting and found myself the victim of an electric burn, courtesy of a noble. I though it was really good.

 

Best maps (so far)

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Map 15

Map 13

Map 08

Map 12

Map 04

Map 31

Map 16

Map 10

Map 11

Map 03

Map 14

Map 05

Map 01

Map 06

Map 08

Map 09

 

Edited March 16, 2022 by LadyMistDragon

[sincity2100]

Well I already played all the CC Games, I mean Gene Bird's Maps are all look the same and play the same as well..

[Poncho1]

Map16: Methods of Fear

Author: Andy Leaver

 

This is the sort of map I always wanted to make back in the day: a large area with a big structure in the centre. The map begins with a battle inside a techbase, complete with several Mancubi, zombies and Hell Knights. Once the Red Key's obtained, you can take the battle to the outside: step into the shadows, reveal the switch to the exit, and duke it out with the remaining Hellspawn. Leaver gives the player the right amount of firepower - mostly Rockets, which I always love - to clear out the opposition. This level doesn't try to be any longer than it needs to be, the enemy roster isn't too tanky - nor unnecessarily numerous - and the design's pretty good for this WAD's standards. As it happens, this is my favourite map of the megawad so far.

[NiGHTS108]

MAP16: Methods Of Fear

By Andy Leaver

Kills: 100%

Items: 81%

Secrets: 0%

Time: 6:33

 

One of my favourite maps in the megawad so far, Methods Of Fear is one of the shortest maps in Community Chest, after gorging the demons indoors, hit a switch or two, use teleporters and escape the base, spill outside and you'll be thrown against an all-you-can-eat buffet of Imps, Hell Knights and Pinkies, you've got plenty of rockets to mow them down so it's my favourite part of the map! Make sure to step in the shadow outside or you won't be able to leave, break maps are always appreciated in Community Chest :)

 

Grade: B

Difficulty: C-

 

 

13 days left.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 32: The Citadel - Gene Bird

100% kills and 66% secrets 

Time: 20:33

 

Welcome to one of the most linear maps I've played in a long time. This map is basically just going through brown hallways blasting baddies with the SSG. Thankfully, I like blasting baddies with the SSG, so this isn't much of a problem. The enemy placement does seem to be "I'm a just throw whatever in empty rectangular rooms" for the most part. It definitely isn't as refined as today's current maps, but it's fun enough. Relying on just the SSG for most of it can be a challenge with the sheer amount of enemies in this map, as the reload time does add up, and revs and whatnot can advance enough to smack you in the face. The linearity does make the keys kind of worthless, as they're not really needed. In fact, I'm pretty sure you only need the yellow key to get out of the room it's in. Oh well, it was the early 00s. It's fun enough, but I wouldn't want a whole megaWAD of this.

 

Map 16: Methods of Fear - Andy Leaver

100% kills and secrets 

Time: 7:25

Deaths: 1

 

The monster count at first will make it seem like this will be a medium-sized level, but it's actually pretty short. You infiltrate a techbase inside a boxed canyon, and then you escape into it. The techbase parts look really good, especially compared to a lot of this WAD so far. Nice detailing. Getting the red key has you flipping a few switches all around, but nothing too crazy. Grabbing it will teleport you to the red teleporter, but there's 4 mancubi there, and one of them wasted no time in roasting me. Thankfully, I still had most of my soul sphere from the end of the last map. Once in the canyon, it's all about taking care of imps, pinkies, and hell knights. There's a lot of rockets down here, so get your distance from the horde and let loose. Thanks to the DoD ep, I knew how to progress down here by walking into the shadow. I did not know about the teleporter ambush tho. RIP. On second try, I waited until everything else on the ground was dead, then initiated the ambush in a spot where I wouldn't get sandwiched. Overall, this was a pretty fun blast!

[Yumheart]

Map16 "Methods of Fear" by Andy Leaver

Another fun and snappy map, this time with a bit more tempo, regarding it's combat. The uncoventional beginning where you get to pick your starting point is interesting for sure, though there isn't really any depth to it, it's just "take one of the teleporters to the right side to get the SSG immediately". I think the concept can be expanded upon, though I haven't really seen it done elsewhere so far.

Progression is a bit non-intuitive at first, the first ten minutes had me running around like an idiot because I missed a switch behind a wall that suddenly opened. It's nothing dealbreaking though. The second part of the map, which takes place outdoors, is just an entertaining, open fight with good ammo balance, not super-tight, but not overly generous either. Visuals are also nice, if a bit jagged and uneven, with it's blinking lights and crispy lighting.

I liked this one a lot, definitely one of the better offerings so far, and much bolder than most other submissions.

Edited March 16, 2022 by Yumheart

[DJVCardMaster]

I may keep playing this under the spotlight, my mental health is not good right know, sadly, I won't be part of the CChest month until the end as I'd like to. Good look to all the club at succeeding not to throw away their computers at this megaWAD, just as I'd like to.

[DavitW]

MAP16: Methods of Fear

A good looking map that plays strong for the most part. The starting room presents you with 4 teleporters you can take. One of them leads to a Super Shotgun but puts you in a room with 4 Mancubi and Hell Knights sniping at you from above. Another teleporter takes you to a shotgun and a relatively safer defensive position to hold out against a group of Imps, but you still have to run out for more munitions sooner or later. Once you retrieve the red key you can teleport outside where the whole building is surrounded by Imps, Demons, and Hell Knights placed in a seemingly random fashion with no rhyme or reason to it. I found this part to be a bit tedious, but in the maps defense I wasn't using the rocket launcher as much as I should have.

 

After clearing the area out I reached a point where I was completely stuck and had no idea where to go next, even after wondering around the entire map for a solid ten minutes and noticing a strange, tiny pillar against the wall outside that seemed to have served no purpose and was likely just a mapping glitch instead. After consulting the wiki it turns out you have to stand in a shadow outside which causes the cliff wall to lower. Now how the hell was I supposed to know that? I have a very simple solution to that problem. Just move the items that are already there about five feet or so over into the shadow and boom, players are all but guaranteed to step into the shadow now. Still definitely one of the better maps we've played so far.

cc16.zip

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP32: "The Citadel" by Gene Bird

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 2/3 secrets

 

Gene Bird's second map in the set is quite a bit clunkier than his first. At first it looks like the super secret map will be another tribute map, beginning with a very similar starting room to Doom II's Catacombs, but the rest of the map is its own beast starting with the wide open, bright, grassy area that you teleport out into afterwards. For whatever reason the red skull key is right next to you as soon as you teleport in, and if you don't notice it you won't be able to open doors later on which are marked quite haphazardly as red key doors. Visually, this map is somewhat ugly and basic looking, but I do like the look of some parts like the lead-up to the final building and some cute decorations on one of the red key gated paths.

 

I am a fan of mowing down hordes with the SSG, but man you have to REALLY like it for this one. A chunk of the level is spent in a straight wooden corridor area where you just blast things that come at you with your SSG for several minutes, and there's plenty of shotgunners on the way so you should never be in danger of running low on ammo. The outdoor area at the beginning is quite annoying, as it's way too wide open and the switch to get yourself across the nukage is somewhat hidden (although not overly so). Surviving is mostly just avoiding too much chip damage from the map's many hitscanners. The gameplay isn't offensively bad or anything, the decisions made are just a little strange and don't work very well.

 

Unfortunately not nearly as good as Gene's previous effort, this one is kind of a miss.

 

MAP16: "Methods of Fear" by Andy Leaver

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 1/2 secrets

 

A somewhat spacious techbase in the center of a valley outdoor area. This one starts with a small switch-hunt until it teleports you into the surrounding outdoor area, which you'll make your way around until the level suddenly ends. And I do mean suddenly, no switch or teleporter, the level will just end once you hit the door so make sure you've done everything you want to do here. Visually this one is pretty good, the architecture in the techbase's interior isn't too bad, and the valleys look ok albeit a little bright for my subjective tastes.

 

I found this level to be the easiest in quite a while. The population is relatively dense for the area of the level, but this is one of the few maps in the set that doesn't skimp on the ammo at all, leaving you with plenty of shells and rockets to defend yourself with (bullets too, but the others play a larger part here). It's to the point where the level felt a bit non-threatening in my opinion. The last teleport ambush is also a little weird because, when you open up the monsters' hearing, it's possible you've already killed everything else in the level so you might not know to trigger them with a gunshot like the level expects.

 

This one was alright, felt like a bit of a breather.

[PeceMan]

Oh dear, I appear to have fallen behind by quite a bit. Allow me to catch up:
 

Level 13,  Another Dead Hero

    The map was pretty good. I had fun. I wouldn't mind playing through it again.

 

    It's a bit mazelike at first, but when you figure out how the layout works, it becomes rather clear. Somehow, for such a long maze-like

    map, I only got lost like 3 times. 
    
    Mind you, 3 times is still 3 more than appropriate. But other maps with a similar layout (like map 12) are way worse at directing the player

    than this one.

 

    I wouldn't have minded some extra health pickups. That, and the level kinda overstayed its welcome. It was way longer than I was

    expecting.

  

    In my opinion, this was one of the better maps in the wad.

 

 

 

Level 14, Substation
    I enjoyed that very much. Short and sweet, and very slaughtery.

 

    The last map took me 40 minutes, this one took me 5. I enjoyed both of them, and I'm sure "Another dead hero" must've taken longer to   

    make than Substation, but I liked Substation a bit better, precisely because it's shorter.

 

    The map can be harsh if you're pistol starting, but there's enough ressources around to get by.

 

    I don't have any complaints about the aesthetics. They looked perfectly fine.

 

 

 

Level 15, Internal Reaches

    What a weird name.

 

    Just like with map 13, this map is very well made and fun to play, but a bit longer than I would've liked.

    Also, I would've liked to have some more health here as well.

 

    Progression is never confusing, but the teleporters and the secrets are a bit weird.

 

 

 

Level 16, Methods of fear

    What a strange map. Aesthetics are different than I was used to, but they're generally alright. The same goes for the gameplay. 

 

    Progression is a bit weird at times. It's not usually clear what every switch does.

 

    Combat is kinda slaughtery, but it never really feels ULTRA CHALLENGING, so to speak. There's plenty of space to maneuver, plenty of

    health and ammo, and the level never really sends that many enemies at once.

 

 

 

Level 17, Infliction of Hate

  Reveal hidden contents

    Another map that is very short, but very intense. The start of the level really doesn't take any prisoners. However, after a while and

    once I was properly equipped, the rest of the level was pretty chilled.

 

    Aesthetics are acceptable, but I don't really care for the door textures not being set to unpegged.

 

    My main issue with the level is the intensity curve. As said, the level starts on the extreme, but once you've cleared the first room, the

    rest of the level really wouldn't feel out of place as the level number 3 or 4 on the wad.

 

Edited March 17, 2022 by PeceMan
Formating

[RHhe82]

MAP17: Infliction of Hate. DSDA v0.24, HMP-PS, 93/93 kills, 1/1 secrets. Completion time 8:32 (<3)

 

Here's another good one, short and sweet. It reminds me of MAP14 (and Scythe). I cheesed the starting area, which is arguably the hardest part of the level, by fetching the shotgun and shells from behind the corner and retreated to the start room where monsters can't follow you. There's actually another cheesable location, in the tall red hall with barons and demons and whatnot: you can retreat into the narrow corridor, and the monsters can't follow you because I think there is a monster-blocking linedef.

 

The red rock lava cavern looks very good, although ironically that's the place where I also spotted clear texture alignment errors. Pity, but on the other hand very small and insignificant blemish so I won't hold it against the map. I enjoyed this one very much.

 

Also, a very cool map title!

[DavitW]

MAP17: Infliction of Hate

It's not bad, but it didn't do anything to leave a lasting impression on me either. In hindsight camping the starting room and letting the enemies infight probably isn't the most exciting thing to watch, but that's just how this level goes. Really could have benefited from a rocket launcher or plasma rifle to cut down on some of the excessive SSGing of Barons and Hell Knights, preferably a plasma rifle considering the close quarters nature of the map. There's a megasphere available near the end, likely past the point you've already killed everything in the map. Can't say I understand that one, but I guess some things weren't meant for me to understand.

cc17.zipFetching info...

Edited March 17, 2022 by DavitW

[Book Lord]

MAP 17 – Infliction of Hate by Andy Leaver @Aleaver

PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4, UV, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

The second entry by Leaver was even smaller than the first but had on its side a better visual detail, lively combat, and a compelling progression, for how short it might be. Once again, pistol starting seemed to be a priority for this author more than for the others; he placed the necessary armaments close to the start, properly guarded by hidden monsters. There were only basic weapons to put your hands on, plus an encouraging Soul Sphere and a security armour right off the bat. The first area exhibited an intriguing array of enemies with medium to high hit points, setting off rip-roaring hostility. Unfortunately, the map did not maintain the same pressure from then on.

  Reveal hidden contents

The warehouse at the left stored both the chaingun, the SSG, and the BSK, but beware of the Revenants! The locked door opened on a large, harmless blood pool, where Mancubi and Hell Knights were more eager to infight among themselves than to care about Doomguy. I used only the SSG to handle that group of monsters, but I resorted to the rocket launcher to quickly dispatch the Baron trio (sadly, pistol starters cannot do so). I continued eastwards through a lava cavern and its meandering recesses, killing the opposition, and recovering a lost combat armour from the Imp lair, deep inside the scorching floor. A Radiation Suit was offered for the job, and it was as generous as the Megasphere that could be picked up after acquiring the RSK. Infliction of Hate could have been one of the best short maps of Community Chest, if the author had kept the same intensity of the beginning also in the last areas. They were lukewarm instead, despite the red-hot environment. A very good map, nonetheless.

  Reveal hidden contents

 

[Crusader No Regret]

map 15 - Played this more than most of the other maps in the set.  Using the MM2 music wad may have had something to do with it.  Somehow this map feels approachable even without saves.  After so long, all I remember is that the first armor is the only armor around for a long time unless there's more in one of the secrets I missed.  The secrets are the other thing I remember from long ago, or rather how I only found a few of them.  So attrition will be more of an obstacle  in finishing the map than individual encounters.  Which I don't remember at all by now.  Never did find the secret exit but I IDCLEVed around to see the various maps so a non-factor for me.

[Yumheart]

Map17 "Infliction of Hate" by Andy Leaver

A short and charming series of setpieces with enjoyable fights, and one of my favorite maps so far, thanks to playing with MIDTWID2.
This One's for Daisy is a much better fit for this map than The Healer Stalks.
The aesthetics are kinda strage at first and seem to deviate quite a bit from Leaver's previous map, but personally, I really like this "messy" kind of style and the individual visual themes were always pleasing to look at. The opening battle is by far my favorite, an enjoyable, if easy, crowd-control / infighting-heavy encounter. The other fights kinda blend together and feel more so like incidental combat.

I think this map is missing some kind of big fight at the end, considering how the hardest fight comes so early, the rest of the encounters seem like they are leading up to something. For a map this well-paced to go out with nothing is a bit disappointing. But it's fun anyways.

Edited March 17, 2022 by Yumheart

[NiGHTS108]

MAP17: Infliction Of Hate

By Andy Leaver

Kills: 100%

Items: 75%

Secrets: 100%

Time: 4:56

 

Not only do I appreciate Andy Leaver feeding us two maps in a row that take less than 10 minutes to complete, he also made two maps that are some of the best in the set! This one gets a great assistance from STILES' MIDI, "This One's For Daisy", it sells the map so much more than The Healer Stalks, you HAVE to use it, anyway my favourite part of the map is the opening, a tight shotgun-fest in Scythe I land, interweaving through heavies to get them distracted as you chew at fodder, it's brilliant! Don't think you can flee right away though, as the chain bros in the next room shall cut you down to size, even though this opener is great, Infliction Of Hate never loses its great pacing even with the SSG by your side, grab the megasphere at the end of the map and leave with max health and armour!

 

Grade: B+

Difficulty: C+

 

 

12 days left.