"Brimstone Outpost" - Heretic single map (GZ) - on /idgames

[Thelokk]

 

Brimstone Outpost is a single, short map for Heretic, formerly part of a larger project that I have decided is simply not worth the time invested. As fond as my memories of the game are, as was my desire to see a full episode replacement for it come to light, no effort of mine over the past 2-3 months could overcome the OG game's dismal palette, its largely nonsensical roster / arsenal and general cartoonish feel. I have come to the conclusion that mapping for Heretic is simply not fun, but at least this one map I feel is salvageable, and could provide a few minutes of fun for fans of the game.  

 

Title: "Brimstone Outpost"

Slot: E1M1

Format. UDMF (flats are used as textures and vice versa, so probably won't work in all ports)

Tested in: GZDoom

Difficulties: yes

Coop / Dm: only starts for completeness' sake

Sky / Music are the original from E1M1, I feel they fit well. UMAPINFO gives the map name but nothing more

Textures: stock + Baker's Legacy Textures

 

The map is fairly short and compact, a bit punishing on Smite-Meister and above but nothing crazy. 

 

 

 

Edited October 3, 2022 by Thelokk

[Walter confetti]

Looks pretty good, maybe too dark thematically?

[Thelokk]

12 minutes ago, Walter confetti said:

Looks pretty good, maybe too dark thematically?

 

Definitely. One of my aims for the project was a 'dark' take on Heretic, hence why it failed miserably. The assets themselves simply won't allow for the kind of mood I felt would redeem the game's shortcomings. 

[Kan3]

Wait a minute! So you were plotting a Heretic map! Will give it a try, I'm curious

[Kan3]

I (wrongly) tested it in Black Plague.

 

The first area is painful x) especially for a weak "parkourer" like me and cause of that I didn't kill everyone.

The start is avoidable just by walking on the lava a bit, I found out that I lose less health by walking more on the lave than trying to pass the mummies wall (dunno if it was intentional).

At first I thought that it was really a hard map, then I realized I was playing it in the wrong difficulty x)

This was an overall challenging and fun map, with some sneaky encounter (like the ghost knife-thrower of which I ignore the real name behind the rock wall) that will keep you alerted.

 

I didn't quite understood the exit though: why are the pillars moving that slow? The fight is not that tough to have to keep the player from escaping it

 

IT's a shame that you abandoned the project, but I definitely get it, I also have a hard time playing Heretic too much cause it looks all very low quality x)

[Thelokk]

2 hours ago, Kan3 said:

I (wrongly) tested it in Black Plague.

 

The first area is painful x) especially for a weak "parkourer" like me and cause of that I didn't kill everyone.

The start is avoidable just by walking on the lava a bit, I found out that I lose less health by walking more on the lave than trying to pass the mummies wall (dunno if it was intentional).

At first I thought that it was really a hard map, then I realized I was playing it in the wrong difficulty x)

This was an overall challenging and fun map, with some sneaky encounter (like the ghost knife-thrower of which I ignore the real name behind the rock wall) that will keep you alerted.

 

I didn't quite understood the exit though: why are the pillars moving that slow? The fight is not that tough to have to keep the player from escaping it

 

IT's a shame that you abandoned the project, but I definitely get it, I also have a hard time playing Heretic too much cause it looks all very low quality x)

 

Thanks for playing! 

Yeah, the 'run around the golem' thing at the beginning is intentional, in the sense that by doing that you trade an easier time against them for some hefty floor damage - still on the fence whether to 'fix' it or not.

The bars are a tad slow, will lower them a bit for the /idgames version. Just enough so the player can't simply book for the exit. 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Thelokk

[LadyMistDragon]

Cool map! Yes, trying to make an innovative Heretic map using the vanilla/textures weapons isn't really possible, which is probably why SoldSoul and things like that added weapons. One could probably make some DECORATE adjustments to the monsters' appearance, but there is still the problem of the limited pallette.

[Walter confetti]

Is a pretty cool map with a cool lava\canyon\dark theme, kind of linear but the platforming was a nice touch and as @Kan3 said, i found the first room way too harsh, add maybe few more little islands in the lava pit? And the monsters near the lift are too hard for my tastes. Here's a video of my second attempt in spoilers (what a rarity!):

Spoiler

Watch me savescumming and dying a lot for 11 minutes.

 

 

[Thelokk]

26 minutes ago, Walter confetti said:

Is a pretty cool map with a cool lava\canyon\dark theme, kind of linear but the platforming was a nice touch and as @Kan3 said, i found the first room way too harsh, add maybe few more little islands in the lava pit? And the monsters near the lift are too hard for my tastes. Here's a video of my second attempt in spoilers (what a rarity!):

  Hide contents

Watch me savescumming and dying a lot for 11 minutes.

 

 

 

Should probably be glad the episode will never come to be then, as this map was supposed to be the easiest XD

 

Did you play with Wayfarer? I completely forgot to mention I did my testing with it, and it def makes it easier to blitz enemies. Otherwise yeah, the weres in particular are really spongy and give the other enemies many chances to toast you.

 

Who knows, I might come back to this project if I ever figure a decent palette swap for it (def after Darkzone and my Supercharge miniset).

 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Thelokk

[eharper256]

Here's a video in Walpurgis:

As you can tell, I suck at platforming, especially if I play when I've just got up in the morning, and couldn't immediately spot a way out of that flaming pit, so the impromptu use of Fly was down to that. Might want to make that a bit more obvious if there is one. Finally, at the end, I don't think an ambush happened that should have happened since I was waiting a while for the exit to go down and nothing happened. I will agree with the sentiment of difficulty, since I was playing Difficulty 2 as I often do in a first test but it felt like lowkey Difficulty 4 from vanilla. Overall, an interesting experiment, seeing a Heretic level with a darker, Hexen look. Ideal for my mod though!

[Thelokk]

1 hour ago, eharper256 said:

Here's a video in Walpurgis:

As you can tell, I suck at platforming, especially if I play when I've just got up in the morning, and couldn't immediately spot a way out of that flaming pit, so the impromptu use of Fly was down to that. Might want to make that a bit more obvious if there is one. Finally, at the end, I don't think an ambush happened that should have happened since I was waiting a while for the exit to go down and nothing happened. I will agree with the sentiment of difficulty, since I was playing Difficulty 2 as I often do in a first test but it felt like lowkey Difficulty 4 from vanilla. Overall, an interesting experiment, seeing a Heretic level with a darker, Hexen look. Ideal for my mod though!

 

Nice gameplay! The ambush actually did happen, flaming hands just kinda ripped through it XD 

[Thelokk]

Obligatory /idgames bump. Sorry Heretic mapping, I barely knew ya.

[Shanoa]

It's unfortunate that you didn't seem to have fun mapping for Heretic but it's understandable, especially if a palette makes it hard to achieve what you want. That said, I think it was a super fun map! Kicked my ass a couple times on Skill 5 but nothing felt unfair. Looked great visually too! If it was a one-and-done for Heretic at least it ended up being a good one.

 

Thank you for the map! c:

Edited October 3, 2022 by Shanoa

[Custom Longplay]

Heretic - [Shadow of the Serpent Riders] - Map: #0007 - Brimstone Outpost - [4K60ᶠᵖˢ] - [100% Secrets]

 

I have posted an impression of the map below my video in the comments section!

 

 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Custom Longplay

[TheHambourgeois]

Finally got around to this. Kicked my ass a little bit, not in the least of all because I was trying to start on Black Plague and that opening ambush is nasty on skill 5. Good stuff.

[Thelokk]

2 hours ago, Custom Longplay said:

I have posted an impression of the map below my video in the comments section!

 

1 hour ago, TheHambourgeois said:

Finally got around to this. Kicked my ass a little bit, not in the least of all because I was trying to start on Black Plague and that opening ambush is nasty on skill 5. Good stuff.

 

Thanks for the feedback! 

 

I also completed another map since then and started a new one, so... that whole episode might happen after all. Yeah. Typical me -_-

[TheHambourgeois]

Lets go, Heretic clap clap clapclapclap

[Custom Longplay]

Yes then... Go on, whip out the 2 card... :)