[Custom dungeon] Dark Reign [RTC] [Saumun]

[Saumun]

Version: 0.4 for RTC V0.49
Platform: RTC
Author: Saumun
Date published: 2009, April 16
Date last updated: 2009, April 21

Story:
A dungeon with some great puzzles and traps.

Aim:
Destroy Lord Chaos

Notes:
Not even sure if i'm posting in the right place, but.... here goes.

I downloaded RTC a couple of months ago after a friend reminded me of the fun we had playing DM (on the Atari ST as teenagers). I was one of the unfortunates that never got to play CSB but i replayed DM with gusto and looked forward to playing CSB with a passion when i was distracted by the RTC editor.

To cut a long story not quite as short as it ought to be, i started creating my own dungeon. And as par for the course i lifted many things from said editor as part of my learning curve.

Anyway, here is the link to my first user dungeon. Needless to say that for experienced DM players (99% of all purveyors of this site) it will be a breeze, but i fully hope to create further dungeons to perplex and bamboozle you all. Well..... possibly.

Oh..... Perhaps i should mention, i foolishly did not take heed of GG's advice in copying DM triggers and as a consequence, all switches in this game must be operated by open hand (annoying i know). You may also feel free to curse my lack of originality on the final level..

Download:
Download this dungeon from this Shared OneDrive (in the 'Custom Dungeons' folder)

[Sophia]

No, it should have gone in "Custom Dungeons". I've moved it, though.

[ian_scho]

We need a name, a smattering of a plot maybe
If you can't think of one, I'll make one up for you...
DRKRGN.RTC -> Dark Reign - Venture through the dark lords domain to put an end to his evil reign.

[beowuuf]

*heavy metal intrumental*

Lol, there we go - great name, great rhyme. I've put it up in the dungeon list, will have a play around with it soon

[Saumun]

Apologies for posting in the wrong place.

Yes, i suppose the most obvious thing i didn't mention was the name. lol.
It's called Dark Reign.

[Trantor]

I've actually tried this one tonight. Impressions: Mosnters are more of a nuisance, there are large spaces and a tad too many buttons for my taste. I found one potential dead-end (a BIG nono for any designer!) and suppose I even found a second one.
The one I am sure about is

Spoiler

a pit that leads down two levels. You usually survive that fall, but there are only more pits and no other exit. If you fall down the first pit and then save, you are stuck. If you want to include a deadly pit, kill the player right then and there, don't give him the chance to save again.

The other potential dead-end is at

Spoiler

the "Feed me"-puzzle. What happens if you are out of the particular food? I suppose you don't have a place where these items respawn...

I'm also stuck.

Spoiler

I came to a level that says "three is the magic number" at the very beginning. I found a teleporter at a "prison" that takes me back to the entrance. I thought I was supposed to use that teleporter three times, but nothing happened. I do not have any keys to open the cells in the prison. I also found a room with two Wizard Eyes, but the button in that room only opened a niche with a Choker. Did I miss something?

[Saumun]

I must admit having played it through a couple of times that i have overdone the switches, but i started on a new dungeon rather than change it.

Good point on the 'Feed Me' puzzle. I originally had a small room with the four pieces of food in opened by a switch (again), but ended up just dotting numerous pieces of food around the level in the hope players wouldnt eat all of them and added the message 'Gluttony is a deadly sin' close by. On reflection this is a bit hazy. Maybe i'll put the room back in.

The bit about the pit on level 4. They do eventually lead to a dungeon. It is not necessary to complete the game, but has various weapons and armour dotted about. Unfortunately it is down at level 17 so it's a bit of a monotonous fall. I may be wrong but i don't think you fall more than two levels at a time (maybe three at one point). At the end of this, there is a teleport back to level 4.

The Prison on the 'three is the magic number level'. I meant the room with the teleport to be a kind of holding cell. You just need to wait and a moveable wall with deactivate to reveal a lever which opens the first cell. The teleport is just there to throw you off. Bit boring just waiting i know, but i was just getting to grips with relays and such at the time. The 'three is the magic number' message refers to something else later on that level.

[beowuuf]

Played it a little bit yesterday, got so far as the 'seeing stars' room and couldn't figure out what to do next s left it. Was the invisible wall on one of the pits deliberate? IS there a tiny switch somewhere on t I missed?

I think for hardened players the combat and general stuff it might be easy, but you have a nice mix of layout, puzzles and combat, and it's the combat level would be fine for newer layers. After all, skeletons and trolins are tough for starting characters!

The buttons that open walls back to te start of the dungeon - is that a quick way to get back for some reason at the end, or a 'haha' trick? If the former, you might want to put a 'short cut bacl' message beside them, as it's not clear unless you are mapping that you have gone back on yourself gong through them.

[Saumun]

Cheers...

The switches that open ways back to the start are just hahas, and on the 'seeing stars' part there is a throwing star behind a portcullis nearby. It is revealed after a C shaped room with four small switches. This itself revealed by a tiny switch.

As mentioned in a previous post, i feel i have overdone the switches. Hopefully i won't overload my next attempt.

[vexirk356]

The above link for this game is not working. So just where is the game???

[beowuuf]

You can't right-click to download the game, you need to left-click on the link and download through media-fire. Nothing too harmful, if anyone wants we can host it on dm.com for a clean download.

[Trantor]

I'm stuck again. I entered the passage with "The price is fixed at five" and searched the whole place several times. I pressed three switches in the "labyrinth" with the Skeletons, entered all five teleporters and found a total of 4 Sar Coins. I cannot proceed past the Deathfield. I suppose I should find a fifth Sar Coin and then may be able to move on somewhere, but I really cannot find it there. Back in the entrance part of the level are two closed doors, one looks like it needs an Iron Key. Any clues?

[vexirk356]

I have tried left clicking to download the game and it just takes me to a link where it says "page not found". When I am on this page it gives the option of connecting to the URL with the file, that doesn't work either. So, yes could it be hosted on dm.com for a clean download as I am dying to try this new game.

[beowuuf]

Here we go:

http://dmweb.free.fr/Stuff/files/dungeon/DRKRGN.RTC

[vexirk356]

Thanks beowuff - much appreciated

[Saumun]

There is a fifth Sar coin but i can't remember where it is off the top of my head.

I will have a look and get back.

[Jan]

but i can't remember where it is off the top of my head.

Reminds me myself getting lost in my own custom dungeon... but I haven't finished it yet... fortunately, maybe...

[Trantor]

You tell me Jan! I started building on my own dungeon again today after a long absence, and I was really surprised to see several passages and puzzles I had totally forgotten. I wonder how Zyx must feel when he plays Conflux...

[vexirk356]

Been playing this all afternoon non stop. The grubs not bad, plenty of it and a good variety. I feel like Cinderella though as I keep on having to look for buttons!!!!!!

[beowuuf]

;D

Yeah, as I play it more, I see why there was an apology for buttons!

[Saumun]

Thanks for the coments guys...

This is all good stuff and will help me take a more balanced approach to my next dungeon.

Trantor... The fifth Sar coin is after the deathfield and some repeating teleports (the last one is very fast but iv'e tested it a few times and got through). I'm thinking i may have made the fireballs in the deathfield too strong for that level. When i played it through, i beefed up my party somewhat in the screamer room on the previous level. I may have to change this. There is no 'off' switch. It's a case of take the fireball and rest like on the rat level on DM.

[Trantor]

Urgh. That's tough. With full HP and several fireshields, my characters are still all dead in one hit. I'll see what I can do...

[vexirk356]

Deathfield is ni on impossible. (well it is impossible unless you are superman). The fireballs are to powerful even after I have used all 3 shield spells at the same time. This has really spoilt what seemed to be a very good game. It would have been better to have the fireballs going off at intervals so that you had a chance to dodge them. But to get from corner to corner without being hit - well I wsill leave others to decide. For now though I am abandoning the game until Saumun comes up with a change.

[Saumun]

This is obviously a problem. I'll get on it and re post it later.

[vexirk356]

Thanks Sauman that would be great. I think you should either decrease the power of the fireballs or make the interval between them a bit longer. Greatful if you could pm me when you put up the amended version and could you get beowuff to put it on the DM.com files.

[Saumun]

Have halved the fireball strength in the deathfield and changed it so the pads are deactivated after standing on them once.

You can download this updated version from this link.

http://www.zshare.net/download/58979281add71398/

[beowuuf]

http://dmweb.free.fr/Stuff/files/dun ... NV0.03.RTC


I'm just away to start looking for the five sar coins... we shall see

[beowuuf]

Hmm, I stacked man fireshields from the staff of manar, they must be pretty powerful. I lost my low HP mage, but my two fighters and slightly better fighters/priests survived, with only a couple more fireshields to boost

I can probably make it back only taking a single hit, but that is a direct shot and will hurt more without the staff of manar, perhaps terminally. Also, thanks to RTC's throwing model, I can't actually get my wizard back unless my party really can sustain the damage themselves from one far hit

So yeah, instead of restart, if you have @100health on each character you can at least make it one way!

[beowuuf]

Hmm, the last teleporter is insanely fast, I couldn't get passed it!

Oh, i noticed you mentioned the rat level puzzle - the fireball triggers accept anything on them, so you bypass them by placing objects on them first, and either running backwards or sideway to avoid the fireball. That way, you get a clear path!

[vexirk356]

I have just downloaded the new version but it doesn't recognise my save games so although I got to the Deathfield it looks like I have to start from the beginning - aaaaaaaaaahhh