HellMutation v0.4 - The monsters are mutating! (Doom gameplay mod)

[Klaxxon]

HellMutation is a gameplay mod which makes Doom monsters mutate!

At the beginning of each level monsters receive four new mutations. You can try to find DNA samples which you then spend to remove some of those mutations (there are generally 2-3 DNA samples per level). If you don’t do so by the end of the level, the mutations become permanent and will apply for the rest of the episode. As the levels progress, more and more mutations will inevitably pile up.

Spoiler

 

There are 85 different mutations implemented, as of now (enough for 15-20 levels of an episode).

This mod significantly increases the challenge, I strongly advise not to play your first run on Ultra-Violence (I generally playtest Hurt Me Plenty)! Think well about which monsters you allow to accumulate mutations (pro tip: do not allow hitscanners to mutate too much).

 

 

Requires GZDoom 4.10 or newer. Any of the official Doom/Doom2 IWADs are supported, as well as any map PWADs which do not add or modify monsters, items or the player (Doom 1 has reduced number of applicable mutations though).

Downloads

Mutation overview

Source code

Credits

 

 

Version History

Version 0.4

Spoiler

24 new mutations, for a total of 85.

 

These mutations are focused on the high end monsters of Doom. Rarer encounters allow me to give them much more powerful effects, hopefully making for some very memorable fights.

 

New mutations:

1. Aetheric Ritual (Arch-Viles do not require to be able to see a corpse to resurrect it.)
2. Affinity (Pain Elementals have much more health, but take damage along with their Lost Souls.)
3. Argent Hydraulics (Arachnotrons and Spider Masterminds walk much faster.)
4. Boreal Gaze (Arch-Viles progressively slow down their target with their flame attack.)
5. Craterhoof (Cyberdemon hoof stomps damage and debilitate everything in a moderate area.)
6. Dependence (Pain Elementals spawn Lost Souls much faster, but they all die when it dies.)
7. Dominance (Cyberdemons can attack while walking.)
8. Doppelgangers (A dead copy of each monster is spawned somewhere in the level.)
9. Gorgon Protocol (Laying gaze on a Spider Mastermind rapidly immobilizes the player. Their speed and especially strafing become greatly reduced.)
10. Lords of Chaos (Hell Knight and Baron of Hell projectile speed is chaotically randomized.)
11. Obsession (Pain Elementals spawn a Lost Soul whenever they flinch with pain.)
12. Odious Ritual (Arch-Viles resurrect monsters continuously, without interruption.)
13. Phylactery (Arch-Viles cannot die as long as the last monster they resurrected is alive.)
14. Regality (Cyberdemons deal devastating damage to other monsters and take very little damage from other monsters.)
15. Regret (Pain Elementals failing to spawn a Lost Soul cause an explosion.)
16. Rhythm of War (Whenever a Cyberdemon attacks, all other monsters fire as well.)
17. Rushed Ritual (Arch-Viles resurrect monsters faster, but with less health.)
18. Scorching Gaze (Arch-Vile flames deal moderate damage.)
19. Sovereignty (Cyberdemons have a chance to shoot a Hell Cube instead of a rocket.)
20. Torrent Cannons (Chaingunners and Spider Masterminds fire explosive rounds.)
21. Triumvirate (Cyberdemons spawn as a trio, sharing a single health pool.)
22. Tyranny (Cyberdemons get increasingly angry as their target evades them.)
23. Vile Incursion (An additional Arch-Vile spawns somewhere in each level.)
24. Zeal (Whenever a Pain Elemental spawns a Lost Soul, all the Lost Souls spawned by it immediately charge.)
 

Additionally also contains bug fixes and mutation renames. Arch-Imps were adjusted to be less overwhelming.

Version 0.3

Spoiler

16 new mutations, for a total of 61:

 

1. Anger (Lost Souls get angry when they see other monsters die.)
2. Deja Vu (Monsters might ambush you more than once!)
3. Lords of Reality (Hell Knight and Baron of Hell projectiles pass through other Hell Knights and Barons of Hell.)
4. Lords of Souls (Players taking damage from Hell Knights and Barons of Hell might cause a nearby monster to resurrect.)
5. Lost Together (Lost souls never attack each other.)
6. Momentum (Cacodemons attack faster the faster they are moving.)
7. Motherhood (Spider Masterminds rapidly spawn Arachnotrons.)
8. Napalm Payload (Mancubuses spread fire with their attacks.)
9. Overwhelming Fire (Arachnotron fire rate continuously ramps up as they fire.)
10. Pomodoro Sustenance (Dying Cacodemons heal other monsters around where they crash.)
11. Pre-Pained (Pain Elementals spawn with several Lost Souls.)
12. Rage (Pinkies and Spectres are faster.)
13. Reaching Ritual (Arch-Viles can resurrect monsters from a greater distance.)
14. Reactive Camouflage (Pinkies become spectral when damaged.)
15. Tractor Spell (Arch-Vile attack pulls its target towards it.)
16. Workplace Safety (Removes all explosive barrels.)

 

Additionally also contains several bug fixes and mutation renames.

Version 0.2

Spoiler

First public release. 45 mutations.

 

Edited July 24, 2023 by Klaxxon
Released a new version.

[Bri0che]

This definitely sounds like you got inspiration from the famous Corruption Cards, am I wrong ? :)

Anywway, seems to be interesting to try, I will do !

Edited May 2, 2023 by Bri0che

[Klaxxon]

19 minutes ago, Bri0che said:

This definitely sounds like you got inspiration from the famous Corruption Cards, am I wrong ? :)

Anywway, seems to be interesting to try, I will do !

Haven't seen that that one before, it does seem like it would be a bit of a similar idea. I guess the difference is that HM puts a lot more emphasis on effects stacking and being permanent (everything is permanent unless you specifically intervene - and you can't choose everything, something will always remain and become permenent). That and HM is very early still :)

I will have to play Corruption Cards. It will be interesting to see what a more mature mod has done with a similar idea.

 

[Ningen666]

Smells like corruption cards. This sounds cool...

[RastaManGames]

I may be blind, so... I just want to know if it is compatible with custom monsters on it only supports Vanilla ones?

[Klaxxon]

9 hours ago, RastaManGames said:

I may be blind, so... I just want to know if it is compatible with custom monsters on it only supports Vanilla ones?

Only vanilla monsters are supported completely. A lot of the mutations would work even on custom monsters (those being handled in various global bits of code), but many are intertwined with the monsters' specific ZScript.

I will expand the compatibility note in the OP.

[Klaxxon]

Released version 0.3 with 16 new mutations, for a total of 61:

 

1. Anger (Lost Souls get angry when they see other monsters die.)
2. Deja Vu (Monsters might ambush you more than once!)
3. Lords of Reality (Hell Knight and Baron of Hell projectiles pass through other Hell Knights and Barons of Hell.)
4. Lords of Souls (Players taking damage from Hell Knights and Barons of Hell might cause a nearby monster to resurrect.)
5. Lost Together (Lost souls never attack each other.)
6. Momentum (Cacodemons attack faster the faster they are moving.)
7. Motherhood (Spider Masterminds rapidly spawn Arachnotrons.)
8. Napalm Payload (Mancubuses spread fire with their attacks.)
9. Overwhelming Fire (Arachnotron fire rate continuously ramps up as they fire.)
10. Pomodoro Sustenance (Dying Cacodemons heal other monsters around where they crash.)
11. Pre-Pained (Pain Elementals spawn with several Lost Souls.)
12. Rage (Pinkies and Spectres are faster.)
13. Reaching Ritual (Arch-Viles can resurrect monsters from a greater distance.)
14. Reactive Camouflage (Pinkies become spectral when damaged.)
15. Tractor Spell (Arch-Vile attack pulls its target towards it.)
16. Workplace Safety (Removes all explosive barrels.)

 

Additionally also contains several bug fixes and mutation renames.

 

There is now also a web overview of all the currently implemented mutations.

 

Download here

Edited May 8, 2023 by Klaxxon

[SharkyChip]

Hello! I've been checking this thread for a while in hopes of seeing if there are new updates. I really like the concept and I enjoyed it a lot when the mod was first released. I like being forced into 3 random mutations at the start of every level and having to try to get rid of them instead of choosing 3 mutations myself (which can be done in Corruption Cards). Anyway, I'd love to play this again with more mutations, though if there are no plans to release any more, I'm happy to play the mod as is, and that's the reason why I'm posting in the thread.

 

Love the mod! Keep it up and good luck if you are working on this still. Have a good day!

[Klaxxon]

On 7/7/2023 at 3:35 PM, SharkyChip said:

Hello! I've been checking this thread for a while in hopes of seeing if there are new updates. I really like the concept and I enjoyed it a lot when the mod was first released. I like being forced into 3 random mutations at the start of every level and having to try to get rid of them instead of choosing 3 mutations myself (which can be done in Corruption Cards). Anyway, I'd love to play this again with more mutations, though if there are no plans to release any more, I'm happy to play the mod as is, and that's the reason why I'm posting in the thread.

 

Love the mod! Keep it up and good luck if you are working on this still. Have a good day!

Thanks for the love.

The mod is very much still in development (if you are ever unsure, check the github for activity :) ). I plan to release a new version with 24-25 new mutations in a week or two (the mutations are implemented, but as the number of moving parts increases, playtesting and balancing becomes more time consuming).

That release will focus only on new mutations. After that, I will need to address some overall balance issues with the mod which are still very much going to be present in 0.4. Right now, if you have a bunch of mutations on, a lot of levels are almost unplayable on UV - simply because there is not enough ammunition for the escalated fights. Teleporter traps also make some levels next impossible to complete with certain mutatuions (eg. Doom2's MAP23 is a nightmare to balance around). That will be addressed in 0.5.

 

Edited July 18, 2023 by Klaxxon

[Klaxxon]

Released version 0.4 with 24 new mutations, for a total of 85.

 

These mutations are focused on the high end monsters of Doom. Rarer encounters allow me to give them much more powerful effects, hopefully making for some very memorable fights.

 

New mutations:

1. Aetheric Ritual (Arch-Viles do not require to be able to see a corpse to resurrect it.)
2. Affinity (Pain Elementals have much more health, but take damage along with their Lost Souls.)
3. Argent Hydraulics (Arachnotrons and Spider Masterminds walk much faster.)
4. Boreal Gaze (Arch-Viles progressively slow down their target with their flame attack.)
5. Craterhoof (Cyberdemon hoof stomps damage and debilitate everything in a moderate area.)
6. Dependence (Pain Elementals spawn Lost Souls much faster, but they all die when it dies.)
7. Dominance (Cyberdemons can attack while walking.)
8. Doppelgangers (A dead copy of each monster is spawned somewhere in the level.)
9. Gorgon Protocol (Laying gaze on a Spider Mastermind rapidly immobilizes the player. Their speed and especially strafing become greatly reduced.)
10. Lords of Chaos (Hell Knight and Baron of Hell projectile speed is chaotically randomized.)
11. Obsession (Pain Elementals spawn a Lost Soul whenever they flinch with pain.)
12. Odious Ritual (Arch-Viles resurrect monsters continuously, without interruption.)
13. Phylactery (Arch-Viles cannot die as long as the last monster they resurrected is alive.)
14. Regality (Cyberdemons deal devastating damage to other monsters and take very little damage from other monsters.)
15. Regret (Pain Elementals failing to spawn a Lost Soul cause an explosion.)
16. Rhythm of War (Whenever a Cyberdemon attacks, all other monsters fire as well.)
17. Rushed Ritual (Arch-Viles resurrect monsters faster, but with less health.)
18. Scorching Gaze (Arch-Vile flames deal moderate damage.)
19. Sovereignty (Cyberdemons have a chance to shoot a Hell Cube instead of a rocket.)
20. Torrent Cannons (Chaingunners and Spider Masterminds fire explosive rounds.)
21. Triumvirate (Cyberdemons spawn as a trio, sharing a single health pool.)
22. Tyranny (Cyberdemons get increasingly angry as their target evades them.)
23. Vile Incursion (An additional Arch-Vile spawns somewhere in each level.)
24. Zeal (Whenever a Pain Elemental spawns a Lost Soul, all the Lost Souls spawned by it immediately charge.)
 

Additionally also contains bug fixes and mutation renames. Arch-Imps were adjusted to be less overwhelming.

 

DOWNLOAD HERE

 

The next version will be focused on helping out the player a bit. The current plan is to give the player a perk point for each 5 mutations they have "locked in" (not removed by the end of the previous level). I don't plan for these perks to hugely increase the player's firepower - the plan is for them to focus on different options for ammo and health recovery.

 

One more thing: I am having trouble designing mutations for Revenants. I generally try to maintain and reinforce the monster's role...and the role of Revenant in particular is sort of nebulous. I am open to suggestions.

Edited July 24, 2023 by Klaxxon