12/01/2015 - "Cellars of E'Nara" by Lightning Hunter, Naveed and Hellscrag

[Jigoku]

Map Title: Cellars of E'Nara
Author: Lightning Hunter, Naveed and Hellscrag
From: Déjà Vu - Gryphon Revisited v2.01
Filename: USP-Naveed-LH.unr
Music Files: digsh.umx newmca7.umx null.umx




Video Playthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0qS-pHxSfE

Synopsis: The player goes through a Nali cellar.

Discuss!

[Semfry]

A level with relatively simple architecture and general design that manages to be one of the most memorable maps in Deja Vu due to the use of scripted sequences, some unique challenges (like the boss fights) and the story implementation. The final version expanded on the very short DV 1.0 version well and added a lot to the theme. The fights in between the set-pieces ones aren't especially challenging, but that also fits the style and it is only the third map in the set.

[Hellscrag]

LH took a very basic, unfinished map by Naveed and made it all kinds of awesome.

[Sat42]

I would honestly be interested to know a general description of the main additions made to this level by Lightning Hunter... mostly, it concerns all the scripted sequences, correct? I already know that the last stretch in the (beautiful) cave was an addition by Hellscrag to achieve a smooth transition with the next map...

Anyway, this map is really memorable thanks to its gameplay (what a surprise, everyone says the same!) and yes, story implementation. In the first main area, you can come across some interesting messages related to the dawn of the Krall rebellion; I actually laughed at the irony contained in the fact that the Skaarj Captain had been reading about how to stay alert to prevent revolts and still managed to get killed in his sleep! Talk about being on your guard!
Then the crazy succession of scripted sequences begins! That got me tense - and on my first playthrough, I felt this was the first quite hard level of the pack - and it was scary! Especially that passage in the foggy cave where flies start to swarm you and then, just as you try to escape, a horrible cry bellows and WTF a blue Slith miniboss!! I didn't have to reload, but it was close
After something like that, and the constant quakes and pieces of geometry falling apart (lol at the Krall falling through the ground to his death!), I could never feel confident within these cellars - especially as more was clearly to come. The Krall boss, Captain Maldrin, was the icing on the cake - he got close to killing me (I was down to something like 20-25 of health or so, but eventually managed to have him stay more or less put round some pillar, allowing me to make the best choice regarding how to finish the fight), but I still made it in one go. After that and getting out of the cellars into that atmospheric cave, I was finally able to relax!
Cellars of E'Nara is of course a great map - they all are in this campaign - and specifically it is the pack's first climax, which makes it stand out, but I wouldn't call it the best level of Déjà Vu - Gryphon Revisited v2.01 - that would be Location Z-14, IMHO (which is awesome, considering the latter is the last level).

[Semfry]

I would honestly be interested to know a general description of the main additions made to this level by Lightning Hunter... mostly, it concerns all the scripted sequences, correct? I already know that the last stretch in the (beautiful) cave was an addition by Hellscrag to achieve a smooth transition with the next map...

Literally all there was of the map in 1.0 was the starting areas, Captain's room (although I'm not sure if it had that story at the time) and that cubic tunnel network you visit at the end, and not even 100% if all of the latter was present.

[SteadZ]

Fun-fact: LH made the Cave slith sounds by recording his brother making throaty noises and heavily editing them

Never played the original, but this map sure had its moments.

Awesome skin by UArchitect too.

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SZ
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[Sat42]

Literally all there was of the map in 1.0 was the starting areas, Captain's room (although I'm not sure if it had that story at the time) and that cubic tunnel network you visit at the end, and not even 100% if all of the latter was present.

Thanks for the reply, Mman! sounds like it was no more than a transition map at first!

Fun-fact: LH made the Cave slith sounds by recording his brother making throaty noises and heavily editing them

Never played the original, but this map sure had its moments.

Awesome skin by UArchitect too.

You always know a lot of fun facts, SteadZ! and I'm beginning to understand that UArchitect is one hell of a good skinner for Unreal! (you had mentioned him already when talking about the Archdemon in EXU2)

[Lightning Hunter]

I'm glad I checked MOTW!

I would honestly be interested to know a general description of the main additions made to this level by Lightning Hunter... mostly, it concerns all the scripted sequences, correct? I already know that the last stretch in the (beautiful) cave was an addition by Hellscrag to achieve a smooth transition with the next map...

Pretty much what MMAN said is true. The original map was the starting areas (although less detailed), the Captain's room with the dead Skaarj Captain, the tunnels with the beams near the end (without fog), and a few very simple translator messages suggesting that the captain was killed by the Krall. Pretty much everything after the shootable boards was created by me from scratch, and of course the bomb sequence was added to Naveed's old section. The cave at the very end was Hellscrag. Uarchy created the barrel skin and the Maldrin skin. I simply recolored the Slith to blue to get the Cave Slith.

I uploaded the original map by Naveed here, if you want to see it:
http://filebeam.com/9129087d1c00c29252243a91748b6ac9

I really did have a lot of fun with this map back in the day, although the BSP was a nightmare to build! An HOM appeared somewhere every time I rebuilt the map. I believe there are even a few patches covering up HOMs around the map (you wouldn't know they were there unless I told you).

Fun-fact: LH made the Cave slith sounds by recording his brother making throaty noises and heavily editing them

That is true, but how did you know that?

[Sat42]

I'm glad I checked MOTW!

So am I! thanks for the reply and the download link for the 1.0 version of the map, which I just played through in little over 5 minutes
So yeah, Naveed's map was clearly unfinished: the starting corridor had no door behind you, the ending tunnel had no door in front of you, the lighting was less moody, the scenery was less detailed (mind you there is fog in the tunnels, the only part of the original map that has some decent atmosphere), less sounds, less translator messages, no scripted sequence... and of course a good three quarters of the final version of the map is simply missing!
The story of the Krall rebellion was told in a merely passive way (some translator messages and some dead bodies to convey the point).
Simply put: it was unfinished, a placeholder at best.
Glad it didn't stay that way!

[SteadZ]

Fun-fact: LH made the Cave slith sounds by recording his brother making throaty noises and heavily editing them

That is true, but how did you know that?

You said so here, I just remembered from reading that

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SZ
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[Lightning Hunter]

Fun-fact: LH made the Cave slith sounds by recording his brother making throaty noises and heavily editing them

That is true, but how did you know that?

You said so here, I just remembered from reading that

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SZ
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Well, good memory! I didn't even remember posting that.

[SteadZ]

I do seem to have a knack for remembering stuff (especially at the most random times...)

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SZ
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