[Community Project, limit-removing/-cl3+UMAPINFO] Death By 1000 Lines - Ultimate Doom community project - RC2

[Somniac]

 

DEATH BY 1000 LINES is a full megawad replacing all 36 maps of The Ultimate Doom, designed for limit-removing source ports. A sort of spiritual successor to the previous 1000 Lines community projects that can also be considered a fashionably late birthday present for the original game - or an early birthday present for the 1995 release of The Ultimate Doom. Your choice!

 

The megawad was intially targeting Crispy Doom. This was later expanded to UMAPINFO-compatible ports at -cl3. A DEHACKED lump is included for Crispy Doom, however, be aware the UMAPINFO defines different backdrops for intertext and includes full automap names as some were too long for DEHACKED, so the UMAPINFO experience is to be considered definitive. Otherwise, there are no functional differences. A COMPLVL lump is also included to force the appropriate complevel.

 

Around 30 mappers, both veteran and newer, came together to create an eclectic set of maps, from the oldschool & traditional to the modern and at times, outright weird, including some returning mappers from the previous 1000 Line projects. We have four distinct episode themes represented, offering a twist on the familiar UD themes that in some cases, takes them to strange places. This release is RC1 and is not yet final, but everything should largely be in working order.

 

CREDITS:

 

 

Full list of maps & mappers:

Spoiler

EPISODE 1: PHOBOS NOCTURNE

E1M1: Loading Bay - Somniac

E1M2: Six Feet Underground - @somerandommarineguy

E1M3: Bestial Invasion - @DankMetal

E1M4: Deimos Tration on Another Moon - @galileo31dos01

E1M5: +1000 Degrees Celsius - @DukeOfDoom

E1M6: Curfew Quarters - @DFF

E1M7: Phobos Storehouse @aRottenKomquat

E1M8: A Fistful of Rage - @RED77

E1M9: Lunar Recon Station - @DynamiteKaitorn

 

EPISODE 2 - WITHIN THE ABYSS:

E2M1: Outbreak of Evil - @DankMetal

E2M2: Corrupted Complex - @aRottenKomquat

E2M3: Untitled - @Nikolanchik

E2M4: St. Järna Terminal - @DrPyspy

E2M5: Marching in the Darkness - @DRON12261

E2M6: Liminal Rift - @stochastic

E2M7: Beneath a Blackened Sky - @Windy

E2M8: Arcane Arena - @Blast_Brothers

E2M9: Necrolysis - @Hayden49

 

EPISODE 3 - INFERNAL ABSTRACTION:

E3M1: Dissonance - @SilverMiner

E3M2: 1X1=1000 - @Walter confetti

E3M3: Vacuum - @Track Federal

E3M4: Another Time and Place - @Blue Phoenix

E3M5: Oppressive Atmosphere - @JustAthel

E3M6: Lambda Arcturus - @Oxyde

E3M7: FIREBLU Dreams - @Scionox

E3M8: Cyb's Spice Melange Laboratory - @knifeworld

E3M9: Retro-Future-Schism - @DeetOpianSky

 

EPISODE 4 - JUDGEMENT DAY:

E4M1: Reservoir - Somniac

E4M2: Where the Cabs Don't Stop - @DeetOpianSky

E4M3: Cloak - @Lord_Z

E4M4: D.A.G.G.E.R - @Dreadopp

E4M5: Metro Mayhem - @fishy

E4M6: Corpsebloom - @Scorpius

E4M7: We All Fall Down - @dac

E4M8: Engagement Ring - @Hayden49

E4M9: Insomnia Dam - @JustAthel

 

ADDITIONAL CREDITS:

@Blast_Brothers -  graphics & widescreen adaptions
@DankMetal, @Oxyde, @Clippy, @RaRu Des2122 (and anyone else I forgot atm) - playtesting/comments during build phase
@JadingTsunami - UMAPINFO Designer, which was incredibly helpful during the assembly of this wad
@Liberation - for letting me take the idea and run with it!

E1 sky graphic from Scythe X

E4 sky graphic by Mr. Pencil

 

SCREENSHOTS:

Spoiler

 

Finally, huge thanks to all the mappers who participated and made this happen. Couldn't have done it without all of you. There are some fantastic maps in this set that definitely outshine my own, relatively modest contributions. Please double-check your maps to make sure I've not accidentally broken anything / the correct version is there if you made updates. Bug reports and feedback welcome as we move towards the final release.

 

Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD (RC2)

 

Demo lumps are included, recorded fairly fast and loose by me. Happy to replace them with better/longer ones if anyone wants to throw some in (any maps you like, I just picked at random) for the final release!

Edited June 3 by Somniac
Release candidate 2

[jgs1989]

Gonna start playing this right now...I love Ultimate Doom (honestly I prefer it over Doom 2) and I thoroughly enjoy any megawad for Ultimate Doom.  Thanks to all who contributed to this!

[jgs1989]

I have a minor issue to report...in e1m2 there is floating plant hanging off the edge of a cliff.  I am pretty sure it is supposed to be on the ground next to this other one sort of marking the sides of the secret tunnel.   I have attached screenshots of this, including an automap screenshot with the decoration circled and an arrow pointing at it (yellow).  It's a very minor thing, but wanted to mention it in case you guys wanted to fix it.

[jgs1989]

Another issue to report...both exits in e1m3 take you to e1m4.  The secret exit that you have to rocket jump to does not take you to e1m9.

[Somniac]

32 minutes ago, jgs1989 said:

Another issue to report...both exits in e1m3 take you to e1m4.  The secret exit that you have to rocket jump to does not take you to e1m9.

 

My bad, I forgot to define the secret exit in the UMAPINFO. I've just uploaded a fixed version now as that's a pretty major error. I just double-checked and all the other secret exits should be working. I've noted the E1M2 floating tree, that and any other minor problems will be fixed in the near future. Thanks!

[Oxyde]

Some bug reports below;

 

E1M2;

Spoiler

 

• Good glide at the start (32px gap) but ultimately useless since the exit requires a key.

• Can grab secret (tag 3) directly from below.

• Sector 141 - Tag 12 has a missing lower texture when lowered after grabbing the key.

• Slight mis-alignments in S65 & S106.

 

 

E1M3;

Spoiler

• Sector 120 has a misaligned flat (ceiling)

 

Spoiler

Exiting E1M9 caused a crash and didn't take me to E1M4, sounds like a MAPINFO thing.

 

E1M4;

Spoiler

 

• What a huge level! Very impressive stuff given the restrictions!

• Sector 40 should be a secret in my opinion, but it's a great tool to help you beat the level.

• I missed over 100+ monsters, maybe I broke the progression somehow.

 

 

E1M5;

Spoiler

 

• Love the aesthetics in the grey corridors, contrasting with the lava filled areas.

• You can skip sector 125 (32px wide gap), but can't come back down if you do so, maybe lower S125 after the elevator so speedrunners can enjoy it also?

• Difficult to find Blue door! Some better markings would be welcome!

 

 

E1M6;

Spoiler

 

• I entered Sector 54 from Sector 56 and there is no trigger from this side - should be the same as Linedef 256 (Type 83 - Tag 2 (you can apply it to Linedef 248)).

• Exit has no marking (no EXIT sign).

 

 

E2M1;

Spoiler

 

• Love the eyes in the dark texture! Unique stuff!

• Missed 40% of monsters so I may have, again, broken something!

 

 

E2M3;

Spoiler

 

• The void/dark areas felt simple yet very trippy, loved it! I'd suggest making those areas hidden in the automap.

• Sector 99 uses an incorrect ceiling.

 

 

E2M4;

Spoiler

• The liminal space feeling until the Yellow Skull was getting on my nerves. Tense and very good!

 

E2M5;

Spoiler

• The fact the void kills you in this level was a bit curious to deal with, since there is no consistency in the rule with previous maps - a damaging floor could be a better solution maybe?

 

E2M9;

Spoiler

• You can grab the contents of Sector 152 (Tag 24) without moving it at all.

 

Spoiler

Exiting E2M9 caused a crash and didn't take me to E2M6, sounds like a MAPINFO thing!

 

-- All I have time for now, but more on the way!

[DankMetal]

8 minutes ago, Oxyde said:

Spoiler

• Sector 120 has a misaligned flat (ceiling)

 

I've been notified by other playtesters about this, i will update my map soon with some fixes including this one

[Somniac]

Thanks @Oxyde, I forgot you have to define the next map that secret maps should go to in the UMAPINFO also. Another hotfix just uploaded, and your bug reports are added to the list!

[galileo31dos01]

29 minutes ago, Oxyde said:

• What a huge level! Very impressive stuff given the restrictions!

• Sector 40 should be a secret in my opinion, but it's a great tool to help you beat the level.

• I missed over 100+ monsters, maybe I broke the progression somehow.

 

Thanks! 

 

The sector you mentioned isn't flagged secret on purpose. I like some hidden stuff to be not required for a max. The monsters you missed I assume are those in a particular secret area.

[RaRu Des2122]

@Somniac and his big team, congrats with the release! Thank you for mentioning me as one of the assistants, it was unexpected.

The E2M3 and E2M8 require names (although I'm not sure about E2M3 because in the original Doom the soundtrack from the E2M9 and E3M1 is called the same way and it's okay ;)) and there is no music on the E4M9. Given that it visually combines the themes of the first and second episodes of the original Doom, I would suggest putting a track from the E2M4 of Hell's Bane megawad. I think it would be quite suitable...

 

19 minutes ago, Somniac said:

Thanks @Oxyde, I forgot you have to define the next map that secret maps should go to in the UMAPINFO also. Another hotfix just uploaded, and your bug reports are added to the list!

 

Funny thing: in GZDoom secret exits work as they should even without writing them in UMAPINFO.

[Hayden49]

I'm proud of the maps I made(E2M9, E4M8) for this project. Also, I'd recommend adding the map names in your list of mappers in the post.

[Brett the slayer]

I have played the 1st 5 levels of the 1st episode on HNTR and is loving the wad so far. However, I had to edit E1M2 in my copy of the wad as for some reason, the red key for that level was only implemented for HMP, UV and Nightmare!, making it impossible to beat the level on HNTR & ITYTD without using IDKFA. Sorry to tell you about the Phantom red key issue I was having in that level.

[Somniac]

15 hours ago, Hayden49 said:

I'd recommend adding the map names in your list of mappers in the post.

 

Just added these!

 

12 hours ago, Brett the slayer said:

I have played the 1st 5 levels of the 1st episode on HNTR and is loving the wad so far. However, I had to edit E1M2 in my copy of the wad as for some reason, the red key for that level was only implemented for HMP, UV and Nightmare!, making it impossible to beat the level on HNTR & ITYTD without using IDKFA. Sorry to tell you about the Phantom red key issue I was having in that level.

 

Thanks, I've made a note of this! Will be corrected.

 

@Oxyde, does your map have a name yet? I don't remember if you chose one yet. Also @Walter confetti, sorry I totally forgot to put your map in the UMAPINFO - this will be corrected for the next upload. Apologies.

[Blast_Brothers]

Congrats on the release! There are a bunch of awesome maps in this set.

Perhaps Mr. Pencil and a note about the Scythe X sky could be added to the post?

 

 

[DRON12261]

Played through the first episode now on the latest Nugget Doom along with my VanillaPSX. This promises to be one of the most interesting megawads for first doom.

But let's move on to the bugs of the first episode:
 

E1M2 - the scenery hangs a bit oddly in the air

Spoiler

 

E1M6 - HOM and another monster didn't teleport out of the monster closet

Spoiler

 

E1M9 - sorry, but this is one of the worst secrets I've seen in doom, no labeled walkable action to open a secret door in the middle of nowhere literally a couple of millimeters before the walkable action to exit the level.

[DRON12261]

E2M3 - should add doortrak and lower unpegged in secret, red pillars open without red key (wrong action), also the level has no name on the automap.
 

Spoiler

 

[DFF]

Must have forgotten to upload the version with the 2nd trigger for sector 54, that or the WAD was compiled with an outdated version of the map, either way here's the latest link for E1M6.

Not a big deal, but there is an EXIT sign in place, its on the ceiling in the middle of the sector (linedef995) so i can see how some may miss it. Lowering it would compromise the visuals in that area, but i found a spare linedef that I apropriated to add another sector to increase lighting. Hopefully is a bit clearer

6 hours ago, Oxyde said:

E1M6;

  Hide contents

 

• I entered Sector 54 from Sector 56 and there is no trigger from this side - should be the same as Linedef 256 (Type 83 - Tag 2 (you can apply it to Linedef 248)).

• Exit has no marking (no EXIT sign).

 

 

 

[Hayden49]

E2M9 has a sector east of green slime that is mistakenly not damaging, whoever made that one is a real jagoff.

[DeetOpianSky]

The music changer for E3M9 is not working.

I'm not sure if it's that there are multiple MUSINFO lumps or the placement of the files in the wad.
I've usually seen MUSINFO combined into one lump, this is the Wiki article to aid with any troubleshooting.

I've done some additional testing in software for DSDA as well as Crispy and have made some additional preimtive visual tweaks.
Updates uploaded to drive.

Edited May 21 by DeetOpianSky
Corrected text.

[Oxyde]

E2M6;

Spoiler

• Impressive stuff! Crazy looks and one hell of fight for the Red skull. Easily my favorite level in Episode 2!

 

E2M7;

Spoiler

• For some reason, Linedefs 340 and 788's texture didn't flip when pressing the switch? Tested with DSDA Doom 0.27.5 -cl3)

 

E2M8;

Spoiler

• I ran into a massive HOM using DSDA's Open GL in Sector 81's area!

 

E3M1;
 

Spoiler

 

• Very neat stuff at the start with the highlighting tiles! This is a very smart hack!

• It is possible to jump to the Blue skull!

• I could not find any of the secrets without looking at the levle under UDB. Maybe I used an incorrect complevel and broke something, but more clues will be welcome.

 

 

E3M2;

Spoiler

• I'm unsure why would Sector 0 be using Effect 7 (damage floor), because there is no indication it deals damage.

 

E3M3;

Spoiler

• I felt robbed seeing the Barons in the cage have been crushed to their deaths when I shot many rockets at them. :(

• Trippy sky change!

 

E3M4;

Spoiler

• No issues but holy shit this is a trippy level. And I'm all up for it! Excellent work!

 

E3M6;

Spoiler

• This level fucking sucks. Also secret exit took me to E3M7!

 

E3M9;

Spoiler

• So the music stopped and.. nothing? I expected a switch at least.

 

E3M7;

Spoiler

• I wandered around this level unable to figure out what to do, while FIREBLU was eating my vision and brain away. More guidance would be immensely helpful to even start?

 

E3M8;

Spoiler

 

• Well that was... something. The Spidermastermind is set to Multplayer only, maybe this is intended but this makes the standard exit anticlimactic.

• I had to open the level under UDB to find a weapon (the Rocket Launcher on Sector 28 is actually a platform). The level's flow is quite bizarre overall to me.

 

 

Episode 4 soon!

 

@Somniac I haven't picked a name yet but expect another version of E3M6 some time this week; my goal is to improve difficulty and finalise some visuals!

[DeetOpianSky]

5 hours ago, DeetOpianSky said:

The music changer for E3M9 is not working.

I'm not sure if it's that there are multiple MUSINFO lumps or the placement of the files in the wad.
I've usually seen MUSINFO combined into one lump, this is the Wiki article to aid with any troubleshooting.

I've done some additional testing in software for DSDA as well as Crispy and have made some additional preimtive visual tweaks.
Updates uploaded to drive.

 

1 hour ago, Oxyde said:

E3M9;

  Hide contents

• So the music stopped and.. nothing? I expected a switch at least.

 

Thanks for giving it a try!

[DRON12261]

E3M2

Spoiler

Softlock + HOM on berserk

E3M3

Spoiler

there's no way to go back after the final battle

E3M4

Spoiler

broken key doors (opens without keys) + no way back after final arena

E3M5

Spoiler

HOM above columns

E3M9

Spoiler

A broken sector with stuck monsters that you can fall into yourself and get softlocked
Also a terribly long elevator with exit, should make it one-time use.

E3M7

Spoiler

This is an extremely painful map that I had to skip. There are few landmarks, they are hard to find, the automap is empty, there is no understanding of what to do at all. The concept is interesting at first, but it needs tweaks in terms of progression and gameplay. So far this is the only map in the whole megawad that I didn't like and was more frustrated.

 

[DeetOpianSky]

21 minutes ago, DRON12261 said:

E3M9

  Hide contents

A broken sector with stuck monsters that you can fall into yourself and get softlocked
Also a terribly long elevator with exit, should make it one-time use.

The sector issue is addressed in the update above.
I had not been able to fall into it and thought it was corrected prior to the RC but it appears to have been getting fixed and breaking intermittenly between saves <3 UDB.

I'll consider changes to the exit and appreciate the feedback.

 

Edited May 21 by DeetOpianSky
Corrected text.

[knifeworld]

4 hours ago, Oxyde said:

E3M8;

  Hide contents

 

• Well that was... something. The Spidermastermind is set to Multplayer only, maybe this is intended but this makes the standard exit anticlimactic.

• I had to open the level under UDB to find a weapon (the Rocket Launcher on Sector 28 is actually a platform). The level's flow is quite bizarre overall to me.

 

Thanks for playing!
I added the mastermind much later in mapping and set her to mp only because the map seemed too small to make good use of her, because of the giant hitbox + groups of spectres and other monsters swarming around that she could get trapped by.
The second reason is silly, but it's because I had the initial map file saved as E2M2 instead, because that's what I originally had in mind before going further with making the map when the project went into full swing.

I can try removing the barons at the exit and have the mastermind teleport or rise up in the same location instead and see what the map plays like.
I might want to change the map name if I use both bosses instead of just cybie, though.

I'll swap the shawn on the rocket launcher alcove for one of the support textures to make it clearer you can lower it. I personally never thought about it not being clear because I usually try to press any kind of ledge that has weapons or items on, regardless of texture.

As for the map flow, I love weird maps so that's probably why, but also I think it fits the episode name.
 

[Dreadopp]

It's a minor thing, but I noticed that there is a period missing after the R in my map's name (in the wad file and on the first post). The level name on the intermission screen (the WILV33 image) appears to be cut off slightly on the right side.

[Blast_Brothers]

3 minutes ago, Dreadopp said:

It's a minor thing, but I noticed that there is a period missing after the R in my map's name (in the wad file and on the first post). The level name on the intermission screen (the WILV33 image) appears to be cut off slightly on the right side.

 

Oh, I thought the missing period was on purpose, since it was like that in your post. Wasn't there an arcade game or something that had its title stylized like that?

[DRON12261]

E4M1

Spoiler

no way back at the end

 

E4M2

Spoiler

Kinda obscure (or rather broken) two secrets, couldn't take without cheats

E4M9

Spoiler

poorly implemented monster closet, you had to stand for a long time and wait for everyone to teleport, finally had to come back here at the end anyway

E4M5

Spoiler

a lost impassable flag on one of the grids
it might be worth adding a color matching texture for the flowing liquids on the wall
and there is no way to go back at the end

E4M6

Spoiler

easily skipable secret sector


broken sector with a secret (wtf). I looked in builder, the effect is correct, but no matter how I cross it, the secret is not counted


A slightly frustrating and grindy fight with a cyberdemon at the end

E4M7 (most buggy map in megawad)

Spoiler

I don't know, a broken sector with a zombie man down? I've seen this weird bug before on E3M9.


A TON of slime trails and incorrectly rendered textures






a weird shotgunners ambush that didn't work the first time.


the ambush with the imps didn't work, had to kill with idclip

 

[DRON12261]

@DeetOpianSky @dac

Use DeepBSP as the node builder for your maps, as it is the most stable for most cases. This will solve all your problems with dropped monsters through the sector and tons of errors in texture rendering and slime trails. (But E4M7 still needs to be checked because the map itself just seems to have missing textures, i.e. HOMs.). In principle it is relevant for all mappers.

Edited May 22 by DRON12261

[Somniac]

On 5/20/2024 at 9:08 PM, Blast_Brothers said:

Perhaps Mr. Pencil and a note about the Scythe X sky could be added to the post?

 

Added!

 

Thank you to all who have provided additional feedback so far. It is being noted. As a quick note to all mappers, with your permission, I am happy to make edits to your maps to resolve "quick fix" issues like missing items (the E1M2 red key for example), or anything like that which slipped through the cracks during my own playtesting. Naturally I will only do this if you are cool with it, otherwise I'm happy to wait for you to make changes yourselves. 

 

As this has been my first time running a community project its been a learning curve for me. We will get there though!

[DeetOpianSky]

2 hours ago, DRON12261 said:

E4M2

  Hide contents

Kinda obscure (or rather broken) two secrets, couldn't take without cheats

 

 

Spoiler

While they are somewhat obscure; They work as intended and can be collected without cheats.

 

Edited May 22 by DeetOpianSky
Corrected text.