================================================================ Title : SERENITY v2.0 A full replacement for the third episode of Doom (which means there are 8 levels - sorry, no bonus level in this one, but you won't miss it...). In this re-release we have refined some of the alligning a bit, corrected one minor mistake in level 6, where the elevator that lead you to the yellow key wouldn't go down again. In this way, you could get trapped if you took this elevator when you hadn't found the yellow key. Also, a few graphics-patches have been added. IMPORTANT : Do NOT move this level to another episode, since you can't finish our last level if it isn't played as being E3M8! Filename : SERENITY.WAD (previously: NATHRATH.WAD) Authors : Bjorn Hermans and Holger Nathrath Email Address Hermans : B.T.Hermans@kub.nl, or s879614@kub.nl Misc. Author Info : Two guys with too much spare time... Description : This set of 8 levels has been made with the word quality in mind. It's Mind here, not Muscles! Many days and weeks have gone into testing, designing and fine-tuning. Although this isn't a hack&kill kind of level, you will get your share of bloody action (especially when playing "Ultraviolent"). Some of the levels may be a breeze, others may be a real pain in the *ss. But remember one thing: YOU DON'T HAVE TO USE THE CHEATS!!! There are a few very though places, but they can be done. When it seems you can't get around them without using the cheats, you may be doing it the wrong way and/or you may have missed one or more (valuable!) hidden rooms (which contain power-ups, weapons and/or ammo). Hidden rooms, by the way, can always be recognized in some way (different texture, different light-level, etc.). To give you a rough estimation of how long it will take you to finish this level: it took us more than half an hour to finish SERENITY on "Hurt Me Plenty". But then again: we know them inch by inch... Additional Credits to : DEU (5.2GCC and 5.21), BSP (1.2x) and their many contributors; Id (no comment); all those people who have been so kind to send us remarks and feed-back about our previous wad-file (NATHRATH); every WADmaker whose WAD has been a source of inspiration for the rooms in SERENITY; And all those many others we have forgotten. ================================================================ * Play Information * Episode and Level # : E3M1 through E3M8, see below for descriptions Single Player : Yes Cooperative 2-4 Player : Yes (although untested) Deathmatch 2-4 Player : Yes (although untested) Difficulty Settings : Yes, there are three. The "Ultraviolent" setting may be a bit to easy for the real die-hards. On the other hand (and with a lot of practice), someone who normally plays "Hurt Me Plenty" might be able to finish SERENITY in "Ultraviolent" too. New Sounds : No (See "Other Releases"!) New Graphics : Yes, although most Wad-managers won't spot them. We are especially very pleased with the graphic-patches in the last level (you'll see why). All patches work just fine in both 1.2 and 1.666. New Music : Yes (a different song for each level) Demos Replaced : None * Descriptions * Level 1 Description : "A Warm Welcome" This first level is a warm welcome into the mysterious world of Serenity. It gives you a idea of what you might encounter in the following levels. Level 2 Description : "Doom - The Movie" This level includes some nice, spiffy looking structures like a big archway, a plaza, and a movie theater ("Aliens" seems to score big-time at the Doom Box Office). Level 3 Description : "R You Lonesome?" Hell isn't supposed to be fun, is it? Level 4 Description : "All The Marbles" Here you will go through an underground section that has more in it than meets the eye... There is a maze also, but it has been kept simple (?) enough to keep it from getting boring. Level 5 Description : "Dungeons Of The Dark" A level of considerable size. It's dark. It scares. It puzzles. Level 6 Description : "I'm Here. I'm There. Stairs Are Everywhere" If you hate lots of stairs & switches, this level sure is Hell for you! You can finish this one in lots of ways. Be smart: take but one way, and that is the RIGHT way! This level, just to reassure you, is the only one that makes this heavy use of switches, stairs and lifts. We just wanted one level that had it, and this is it. Level 7 Description : "Big Time" The name says it all! Level 8 Description : "Church of The Poisened Minds" Bring enlightment to all those lost souls & sinners that you encounter here. Stand firm, and you will ultimately find there is a Heaven in Hell... **Spoiler** The barrel-puzzle you will probably encounter, may seem like it can only be solved by using a cheat. This is however not necessary. You will have to play around to get it (or perhaps we're just overestimating this one, YOU tell us!). * Construction * Base : 4 new levels from scratch, levels 2, 4, 5, and 7 have been releases previously under the name of "Nathrath's Fab Four". These last four levels have been re-edited and re-vamped with the help of the comments that we received about it. Level two is the one that has undergone the most changes. How long it took us?? Two months is probably the most rough estimation we can make on that one... We don't know that for sure, but than again: we don't care 8-)) (it's fun!!) Editor(s) used : DEU 5.21 and 5.22GCC, plus BSP 1.2x and IDBSP. Known Bugs : There is one minor HOM in level 4. It can be seen as you open the door that needs a red key. Doom 1.666 may not have this, but we are not a 100% sure of that. There is one Moire-effect when you go 'underground'. We can't do much about it. Doom 1.666 shouldn't have it, as it no longer poses the limitations on ceiling height that cause the Moire. * Philosophy * Appearance/Design : A lot of effort was put into making things look good. Especially the last level deserves to be given a second look after having killed all the monsters (except that FINAL one...). Not everything has a purpose. Some things are just there for artistic or architectural interest. We think that is one of the things that made the original DOOM levels so good. Traps : All levels have been designed in a way that they do not contain places where you can get trapped (at least not without providing you with some kind of 'emergency exit'). Yet, should there be a place where you do get stuck, and cannot get out except by using 'IDSPISPOPD', then let us know! Secret Areas : You do not have to get into the secret areas to complete a level. Keys or switches to open doors or areas are never located in secret areas. All secret areas/doors are marked in some way (for instance by giving it another light level, or a slightly different texture). Monsters : We prefer quality over quantity, but on the other hand we also want a WAD that offers lots of action. We have tried to find a good balance between quality and quantity. We did make an exception though for "Ultraviolence". Here there are an awfully lot of monsters, and it should give those who like a lot of fragging & fighting the challenge and action you want (so we hope...). * Copyright / Permissions * Authors may use this level as a source of inspiration to build new levels. Please don't copy parts of this WAD, and leave us unmentioned in your description file... You MAY distribute this WAD, provided you include this file, with no modifications. You may distribute this file in any electronic format (BBS, Diskette, CD-ROM, etc) as long as you include this file intact (free copies of a CD-ROM that contains this WAD are warmly welcomed by the authors 8-) * Where to get this WAD * This WAD will be uploaded to infant2, so you will find it there, and on the mirror-sites of infant2. We will also upload it to wuarchive and a few other sites as soon as possible. * Other Releases * Besides this WAD, we have another complete new episode to play. It is called SERENITY II: ETERNITY. It is a full replacement of Doom's second episode. If you like SERENITY, you will most definitely like ETERNITY. We have also release a sound-WAD with the complete collection of our favourite Doom sounds. You should be able to get SERSOUND.WAD at the same place/site as where you got this file (the same goes for ETERNITY). ================================================================ Enjoy! Bjorn Hermans & Holger Nathrath.