Announcement: To see an overview of all the holds in this forum, see this page. You cannot directly add your hold by attaching it here - you must get your hold approved by Hold Administrators. Check this thread for details.


Caravel Forum : DROD Boards : Holds : Choose Your Adventure. (A smorgasboard of 6 non-linear differently themed levels)
New Topic New Poll Post Reply
Your Rating
Average User Rating
Difficulty:
Overall:


8.2/10 (12 votes)
σ 2.30
Author Name:Jacob
Submitted By:Jacob
Hold Name:Choose Your Adventure.
Theme:A smorgasboard of 6 non-linear differently themed levels
Author's Difficulty:
Number of Levels:7
Number of Rooms:74
Number of Monsters:636
Version:DROD: The City Beneath (3.2)
High Scores:View High Scores
Hold Karma:2 (+2 / -0)
Poster Message
admin
Level: Legendary Smitemaster
Rank Points: 8
IP: Logged

File: Choose Your Adventure.hold (25.9 KB)
Downloaded 1421 times.
License: Other
From: Unspecified
icon Choose Your Adventure.  
This hold contains 6 differently themed levels, which can be played in any order. Largely, rooms within each level can also be played in any order.

These are (in ascending order of difficulty):

"Grid" - kind of like Cube; a maze of identical rooms containing deadly traps.

"Stalwarts and Guards", "Aumtlich" and "Briars" - you can probably guess the themes of these levels.

"Brains" - puzzles revolving around brain pathmaps and the differences between gel/tar/mud baby behaviours.

"Shape Shifting" - the piece de resistance of the hold. Liked "Figure or Ground"? You'll probably like this. You might also like it, even if you didn't. It's a complex multi-room puzzle with the added complexity of changing player roles.
If you don't play any of the other levels in this hold - play this one.

Thanks to CuriousShyRabbit, Blondbeard, Larrymurk and Talund.

Addendum: Thanks also to TFMurphy, whose rooms inspired most of the Brain puzzles. (Forgot to mention that before)
08-21-2008 at 03:01 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
CuriousShyRabbit
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3170
Registered: 10-14-2006
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
I like this hold a lot, or rather, I like these 6 mini-holds a lot. Some highlights for me:

Shapeshifting - It's great to see player role changes used as a puzzle element rather than story or decoration. I had fun figuring out which player role could solve each room, and how to get that player role to the room in the first place.

Stalwarts and Guards - This is the level where I learned the most. Each simple-looking but really rather tricky puzzle relies on a different aspect of stalwart or guard behavior. In particular, I hadn't really thought before about which way these guys rotate when they turn around.

Brains - This is the first level I tried when I started the hold, and the last level I finished. I thought it was going to be too hard for the Rabbit, but it turns out I just wasn't thinking enough. Each room has a logical solution to do with brained vs unbrained movement. Fun to figure out.

9 fun and 7 brains :)
08-21-2008 at 06:45 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
deftriver
Level: Delver
Avatar
Rank Points: 77
Registered: 07-11-2007
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
I'm not even sure I've solved two rooms yet, I know I solved one, I just find it so difficult, yet I really like it. I have a feeling that the H&S board will be full of hint requests for this hold, I'm not sure how many I'll be starting. Great job!
08-22-2008 at 04:52 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 3413
Registered: 09-10-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
admin wrote:

"Shape Shifting" - the piece de resistance of the hold. Liked "Figure or Ground"? You'll probably like this. You might also like it, even if you didn't. It's a complex multi-room puzzle with the added complexity of changing player roles.
If you don't play any of the other levels in this hold - play this one.
Yes. Play this one. This is probably the most original level that I've seen since Val Unrich, and I'm hard pressed to remember the last time I had this much fun with a hold.



____________________________
Click here to view the secret text

08-26-2008 at 05:35 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
Blondbeard
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 1486
Registered: 03-31-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
Awesome hold! Everybody ought to try out at least shapeshifting :)
08-26-2008 at 04:18 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 3413
Registered: 09-10-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
And mastered, letting me give more detailed feedback.

Brains: This has some very neat uses of brain pathmapping, mostly turning it on and off and setting up paths to follow, with some neat constant room template variations. I'm still not sure how exactly I solved a couple of the rooms; these pathmaps can be tricky to the point of losing a little fun appeal.
Aumtlich: Very creative use of aumtlichs, with interesting combinations of elements. Nicely lynchpin-based: many of the rooms were completely opaque until I realized what needed to be done, at which point it all fell into place.
Stalwarts and Guards: I never truly appreciated just how dumb Stalwarts were until I played this level. Otherwise, see comments for Aumtlich.
Briars: Some neat maze-style rooms, but I don't feel as though this level breaks as much ground as the others. Nonetheless, fun.
Shape Shifting: See above. This level rawks! A number of rooms have multiple possible solutions, but I'd class this as added value via challenges rather than a flaw of architecture.
Grid: A very neat idea using a swordless Beethro, albeit more as a demonstation of architecture skill than as a maze per se. Be forewarned that you'll miss the satisfaction of clearing the rooms after navigating them, but it's still fun.

All in all, a very creative hold, difficult but completely fair, and essential for anyone of at least moderate skill to play.

____________________________
Click here to view the secret text

08-29-2008 at 06:01 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
Rabscuttle
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 2488
Registered: 09-10-2004
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
Most of the rooms in Grid need to be marked unscorable.
09-08-2008 at 03:22 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
Kapoios
Level: Roachling
Rank Points: 13
Registered: 09-22-2008
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Beautiful!

In several occasions, it felt like my computer is laughing at me!

Several rooms have trivial solutions, though, due to a (probably) bug. For example, it is possible to conquer the hold without ever visiting Briars and Aumtlichen.

I found this while looking for a secret, so TELL ME where the bloody secret in Briars is!!! :p

Edit: Never mind... I found it! :)

[Last edited by Kapoios at 10-02-2008 06:26 PM]
10-02-2008 at 06:15 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
TFMurphy
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3118
Registered: 06-11-2007
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Kapoios wrote:
Several rooms have trivial solutions, though, due to a (probably) bug. For example, it is possible to conquer the hold without ever visiting Briars and Aumtlichen.
Shouldn't be. The only stairs that end the hold are in the hub level, and those are all either blocked by Force Arrows or with the Blue Gate.

The Aumtlich and Briar rooms in the hub level are Required (and thus must be completed to cause the Blue Gate to drop). And both rooms have critical features about them that prevent them from being completed without visiting the appropriate level.

Would you mind being more explicit on this possible bug? In secret tags, if you would.
10-02-2008 at 06:32 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
Kapoios
Level: Roachling
Rank Points: 13
Registered: 09-22-2008
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+2)  
TFMurphy wrote:

The Aumtlich and Briar rooms in the hub level are Required (and thus must be completed to cause the Blue Gate to drop). And both rooms have critical features about them that prevent them from being completed without visiting the appropriate level.

Would you mind being more explicit on this possible bug? In secret tags, if you would.

Click here to view the secret text

10-02-2008 at 06:37 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Jacob
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3749
Registered: 10-01-2004
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Indeed, the setup TFMurphy describes is what I'd intended so I'd be curious to know how you got around that.

Glad you enjoyed the hold anyway.

[Post Collision]

____________________________
New to DROD? You may want to read this.
My Holds and Levels:
Click here to view the secret text


[Last edited by Jacob at 10-02-2008 06:47 PM]
10-02-2008 at 06:37 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
TFMurphy
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3118
Registered: 06-11-2007
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Kapoios wrote:
Click here to view the secret text

Oh, I see - Jacob forgot to add a Player Role command to the Entrance of the hub room. That's too bad. In any case, well done.
10-02-2008 at 06:44 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
Jacob
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3749
Registered: 10-01-2004
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Oops. Thought I'd covered that possibility. Well spotted.
I had originally thought about leaving that in as a possibility for secret hiding but it just left open the opportunity to break too many rooms.

Will anyone allow me to correct this oversight? It effectively undoes a lot of the hold.

____________________________
New to DROD? You may want to read this.
My Holds and Levels:
Click here to view the secret text

10-02-2008 at 06:52 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
Kapoios
Level: Roachling
Rank Points: 13
Registered: 09-22-2008
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Jacob wrote:
I had originally thought about leaving that in as a possibility for secret hiding but it just left open the opportunity to break too many rooms.
Heh, that's exactly what I was looking for!

Don't worry, though, those levels have some nice puzzles. No one in their right mind would outright skip them.

By the way, I must say that this hold taught me a lot about some details of the new things. I've played DROD for years, though not for a year or so and bought TCB a couple weeks ago, so most of the elements are novel. A whole new world! I still don't understand how those damn briars choose which square ripens.

All it takes to learn the new elements is playing a couple Larrymarks and Jacobs :)


10-02-2008 at 07:12 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Jatopian
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1842
Registered: 07-31-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Jacob wrote:
Oops. Thought I'd covered that possibility. Well spotted.
I had originally thought about leaving that in as a possibility for secret hiding but it just left open the opportunity to break too many rooms.

Will anyone allow me to correct this oversight? It effectively undoes a lot of the hold.
zex20913 wrote:
So my hold just got promoted to the Holds board, and I suddenly realized that I need to change something. What do I do?

Hold admins are also in charge of approving hold updates. We try to be as reasonable as possible, but remember that by the time we see it, the hold was supposed to be finished. ... UNINTENDED SOLUTIONS ARE NOT A PLAYABILITY ISSUE. You have been warned.

____________________________
DROD has some really great music.
Make your pressure plates 3.0 style!
DROD architecture idea generator
10-02-2008 at 11:24 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
Jacob
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3749
Registered: 10-01-2004
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Yeah, I know that.
But...you know...this kinda breaks the hold and...you know...stuff.

____________________________
New to DROD? You may want to read this.
My Holds and Levels:
Click here to view the secret text

10-02-2008 at 11:30 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
Sillyman
Level: Smiter
Avatar
Rank Points: 339
Registered: 09-08-2006
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Also: I would say that this is one of the few cases where that rule becomes utterly idiotic (no offense). It's an unintended bypassing of entire levels, not an unintended solution to a puzzle.

____________________________
Who, me?
FNORD
10-02-2008 at 11:59 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
zwetschenwasser
Level: Master Delver
Avatar
Rank Points: 200
Registered: 05-22-2007
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Whoa! This is evilishly hard! Am ploughing through Guards and Stalwarts and crying "like a newborn" (with a female citizen gossip accent). :glasses Fantasticabilious hold, though!

____________________________
Currently working on GaTEB and KDD (never finished the silly thing). :yahoo:
10-03-2008 at 11:57 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
jbluestein
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 1670
Registered: 12-23-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+2)  
Oh look...another Jacob hold.

And...wait for it...it is awesome.

Six levels very much unlike each other -- in some ways it's kind of like a collection of six individual holds. The puzzles on the hub level are also not trivial, though -- the post-briar puzzle had me scratching my head for quite a while. (Was that tunnel really necessary?)

Favorite sections were Shapeshifting and Brains. Least favorite...well, I have to say Grid, but only because of all the running away. I wanted to go back and do some smiting, but there's not much of an option for that. Even as my least favorite level of the hold, it was still extremely fun.

Interestingly, I found all the secret rooms I encountered fairly easy -- in many cases far easier than many of the required rooms (in some cases because you already knew how to solve the required rooms). Fun, though.

This is a great hold and challenging enough to keep even an experienced Smiter busy for a while.

9 for fun and 7.5 brains.

Josh

____________________________
"Rings and knots of joy and grief, all interlaced and locking." --William Buck
10-27-2009 at 02:15 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
Rheb
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 1211
Registered: 08-04-2006
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+3)  
I'm so sick of these one votes appearing in every second high quality hold!

____________________________
Voligner is my very own DROD-like game. Please check it out!
10-28-2009 at 11:39 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
slimm tom
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 1236
Registered: 10-14-2006
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
I fully agree, and I think everyone here agrees on this vote being unvalid.

Schik, can you remove this 1 vote please? I would hate seeing the rating of such a quality hold drastically lowered due to some guy who thinks he's funny or something.
10-28-2009 at 01:06 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Show all user's posts High Scores Quote Reply
jbluestein
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 1670
Registered: 12-23-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+3)  
While I'm all in favor of administratively removing clearly bogus votes, I'd note that the *real* answer is to convince more people to play and rate these holds. A single obnoxious '1' vote makes a big difference when there are only five legitimate votes. It makes a much smaller difference when there are twenty.

Josh

____________________________
"Rings and knots of joy and grief, all interlaced and locking." --William Buck
10-28-2009 at 02:52 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts This architect's holds Quote Reply
abe10
Level: Goblin
Rank Points: 18
Registered: 03-14-2014
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
How The Heck can you kill ANYTHING in Grid??? There are a few hot tiles, but otherwise You Are A Walking Duck!! What am I missing??

____________________________
My avatar is a cool gif I found on the Kongregate forums.
Click here to view the secret text

05-06-2014 at 11:47 PM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Jacob
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 3749
Registered: 10-01-2004
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Who says you need to kill anything?

____________________________
New to DROD? You may want to read this.
My Holds and Levels:
Click here to view the secret text

05-07-2014 at 12:01 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
abe10
Level: Goblin
Rank Points: 18
Registered: 03-14-2014
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Ohhh, nothing major. Just the BASIC PREMISE Of The Game is all.... the main protagonist IS a monster exterminator after all, right?

____________________________
My avatar is a cool gif I found on the Kongregate forums.
Click here to view the secret text

05-07-2014 at 01:38 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 3413
Registered: 09-10-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
Dischorran wrote: Post politely or not at all, please.

____________________________
Click here to view the secret text

05-07-2014 at 02:23 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
abe10
Level: Goblin
Rank Points: 18
Registered: 03-14-2014
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (0)  
Please pardon my tone. I am just confused by this Crazy hold. Is the point of this specific level, Grid, to get from point A to point B?

____________________________
My avatar is a cool gif I found on the Kongregate forums.
Click here to view the secret text

05-07-2014 at 03:08 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts Quote Reply
Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster
Avatar
Rank Points: 3413
Registered: 09-10-2005
IP: Logged
icon Re: Choose Your Adventure. (+1)  
abe10 wrote:
Please pardon my tone. I am just confused by this Crazy hold. Is the point of this specific level, Grid, to get from point A to point B?
Yes.

____________________________
Click here to view the secret text

05-07-2014 at 03:25 AM
View Profile Send Private Message to User Send Email to User Show all user's posts High Scores This architect's holds Quote Reply
New Topic New Poll Post Reply
Caravel Forum : DROD Boards : Holds : Choose Your Adventure. (A smorgasboard of 6 non-linear differently themed levels) Surf To:


Forum Rules:
Can I post a new topic? No
Can I reply? No
Can I read? Yes
HTML Enabled? No
UBBC Enabled? Yes
Words Filter Enable? No

Contact Us | CaravelGames.com

Powered by: tForum tForumHacks Edition b0.98.8
Originally created by Toan Huynh (Copyright © 2000)
Enhanced by the tForumHacks team and the Caravel team.