[Custom dungeon] Dark Portal [RTC] [Sophia]
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- Sophia
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[Custom dungeon] Dark Portal [RTC] [Sophia]
Version: 1 for RTC V0.43
Platform: RTC
Author: Sophia
Date published: 2006, July 26
Date last updated: 2006, July 26
Here it is, Dark Portal, an RTC dungeon for version 0.43:
A quest to save the land from an evil warlock-- what else is new! However, be warned.
Story:
Every 1000 years, the planets align such that a gateway to another plane can be opened. This gateway is the Dark Portal. Beyond it lie forces of chaos and evil that had best not even be imagined. This year, in revenge for his expulsion from the Council of Mages for necromancy and other perverse experiments, the Warlock Lord seeks to open the portal. As he is of such immense power, he can manipulate the portal with his own innate magical ability, and he is making great strides in opening it. The dark clouds and lightning lingering in the sky almost constantly these days tell as much.
Still, there is hope for the land. Legends tell of a great relic called the Staff of Ages, that can boost the magical abilities of its user to levels even greater than the Warlock Lord's. This is, truly, the only hope for closing the portal and standing against this evil force. As the legends go, only one with the royal blood can use the staff, so the last king of the land sets out to ensure he still has a land to rule...
Aim:
This is not a typical DM Dungeon. Though it does still possess the core mechanics of wandering around, avoiding pits, pushing on wall triggers, casting spells, using items, and so on, the actual gameplay is very different. It is 100% puzzle-based. These puzzles may be based on logic, button-pushing, items, spotting small details, speed, or, often, combinations of the above, using mechanics both familiar and not familar to DM players.Even combat is puzzle-based, in that the proper item or spell used on the monster will instantly defeat it, and other attacks will have no effect at all.
This means that training is rather worthless. Just as in DM, though, not every monster can or needs to be killed.
It is rather inspired by the "Shadowgate" game on the NES and PC, though many of the puzzles have been expanded and altered to fit the DM
mythos. The name is a pun on "Shadowgate," to be truthful.
Notes:
Hints and comments:
http://www.dungeon-master.com/forum/vie ... hp?t=25804
Download:
Download this dungeon from this Shared OneDrive (in the 'Custom Dungeons' folder)
Platform: RTC
Author: Sophia
Date published: 2006, July 26
Date last updated: 2006, July 26
Here it is, Dark Portal, an RTC dungeon for version 0.43:
A quest to save the land from an evil warlock-- what else is new! However, be warned.
Story:
Every 1000 years, the planets align such that a gateway to another plane can be opened. This gateway is the Dark Portal. Beyond it lie forces of chaos and evil that had best not even be imagined. This year, in revenge for his expulsion from the Council of Mages for necromancy and other perverse experiments, the Warlock Lord seeks to open the portal. As he is of such immense power, he can manipulate the portal with his own innate magical ability, and he is making great strides in opening it. The dark clouds and lightning lingering in the sky almost constantly these days tell as much.
Still, there is hope for the land. Legends tell of a great relic called the Staff of Ages, that can boost the magical abilities of its user to levels even greater than the Warlock Lord's. This is, truly, the only hope for closing the portal and standing against this evil force. As the legends go, only one with the royal blood can use the staff, so the last king of the land sets out to ensure he still has a land to rule...
Aim:
This is not a typical DM Dungeon. Though it does still possess the core mechanics of wandering around, avoiding pits, pushing on wall triggers, casting spells, using items, and so on, the actual gameplay is very different. It is 100% puzzle-based. These puzzles may be based on logic, button-pushing, items, spotting small details, speed, or, often, combinations of the above, using mechanics both familiar and not familar to DM players.Even combat is puzzle-based, in that the proper item or spell used on the monster will instantly defeat it, and other attacks will have no effect at all.
This means that training is rather worthless. Just as in DM, though, not every monster can or needs to be killed.
It is rather inspired by the "Shadowgate" game on the NES and PC, though many of the puzzles have been expanded and altered to fit the DM
mythos. The name is a pun on "Shadowgate," to be truthful.
Notes:
Hints and comments:
http://www.dungeon-master.com/forum/vie ... hp?t=25804
Download:
Download this dungeon from this Shared OneDrive (in the 'Custom Dungeons' folder)
Last edited by Sophia on Tue Sep 05, 2006 12:17 am, edited 3 times in total.
- George Gilbert
- Dungeon Master
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I wholly agree with that.beowuuf wrote:Just try everything, try DM-like thigns and then completely un-DM like things, and most importantly don't assume something won't be implimented/doable!
Don't think of the dungeon as being a DM dungeon. Just treat each puzzle as a puzzle you'd find in real life (or at least some perversion of it!), and then come up with a solution. Only then, try and work out how you'd go about doing it in the game.
Also the game is infact designed (RTC bugs not included, *cough*) to not leave you in a no win position - or in other words, while there are some instant death endings, so saving good, you won't then curse fate you saved and now cannot complete the game. With shadowgate it seemed mandatory to save all the time in staggered saves and be prepared to restart at the very start anyway :(
Just played shadowgate recently after DP, and must admit to prefering DP :)
Just played shadowgate recently after DP, and must admit to prefering DP :)
- Sophia
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Oh, really?Gambit37 wrote:one of these puzzle-fests seems easier and quicker
DP actually was a pretty good bit of work for me, adapting all of the Shadowgate puzzles to DM mechanics, and adding a few of my own, to boot... not to mention replacing so many of the DM mechanics with stuff that fit the DP dungeon.
It may have been slightly quicker, but I wouldn't be too sure, especially if you want to add new wallsets, which always take time. (Not nearly as much thanks to WHACK though, if I may engage in a bit of shameless self-promotion)
Re: Dark Portal (RTC)
Since I'm still busy gathering version information and backupping files -
Sophia, can you confirm that Dark Portal is all V0.43 and no update to any later RTC version exists?
I know you're not much into RTC anymore since there is DSB - still, since you did some marvellous things with dungeon mechanics that should be preserved, would you maybe allow me to add your source files to the backup collection? Of course as usual you'd still be in charge about what get's released and what isn't (though having your source files released could probably provide a couple of good examples for more complicated mechanics).
Sophia, can you confirm that Dark Portal is all V0.43 and no update to any later RTC version exists?
I know you're not much into RTC anymore since there is DSB - still, since you did some marvellous things with dungeon mechanics that should be preserved, would you maybe allow me to add your source files to the backup collection? Of course as usual you'd still be in charge about what get's released and what isn't (though having your source files released could probably provide a couple of good examples for more complicated mechanics).
Parting is all we know from Heaven, and all we need of hell.
- Sophia
- Concise and Honest
- Posts: 4240
- Joined: Thu Sep 12, 2002 9:50 pm
- Location: Nowhere in particular
- Contact:
Re: Dark Portal (RTC)
Yes, 0.43 is the latest version. Pretty much all of my notes about Surgical Strike also apply to Dark Portal-- I don't think its educational value is that good, and I'd rather get people using DSB anyway.
Re: Dark Portal (RTC)
Yep, I wouldn't dream of questioning the vast superiority of DSB
Still, after all those years of RTC and CSBWin and others it'd be great to gather all their dungeon data together - so if you could send me the source files (text files and possibly additional media if such have been used), that'd be wonderful. My name here at gmail dot com.
Please also specify what is for public release and what isn't.
Still, after all those years of RTC and CSBWin and others it'd be great to gather all their dungeon data together - so if you could send me the source files (text files and possibly additional media if such have been used), that'd be wonderful. My name here at gmail dot com.
Please also specify what is for public release and what isn't.
Parting is all we know from Heaven, and all we need of hell.