Dragon Fogel
Level: Smitemaster
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File: Roaches and Walls.hold (3.2 KB)
Downloaded 41 times.
License: Public Domain

This is a hold in progress where I'm playing around what I can do with just roaches and walls as puzzle elements. I use green and blue doors too, but that's it, and all they do is open once roaches are dead (or, in the case of the blue doors, make the room possible once the rest of the level is clear) so they don't have an effect on the puzzles.

I only have a few rooms so far. Probably won't have too many more but I'm a little tapped out on ideas right now. (I could do a big move-order dependent roach flood but that wouldn't be much fun to play.)

So for the moment I'm posting what I have. Feel free to share any thoughts.

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[Last edited by Dragon Fogel at 09-20-2017 08:19 PM]

Nuntar
Level: Smitemaster

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Short and simple, with some neat linchpins. Took me 2:40 to finish. 1S1E could do with a checkpoint somewhere in the 9,16 to 10,19 rectangle.

Although these were neat rooms, there doesn't seem to be very much you can do with such limited elements, so for the second level, perhaps choose one additional element (and so on...)?

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50th Skywatcher

Dragon Fogel
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Yeah, originally I was thinking this could be a Level 1 of a hold that gradually gets more complex. But it could also work as a short and simple one-level hold.

I think I want to play around a bit with just roaches and walls some more before I decide which one I'm going for. There's still a few ideas I can explore, though the main one is getting a roach behind you.

Insoluble
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File: Roaches and Walls.demo (14.8 KB)
Downloaded 42 times.
License: Public Domain

Totally your decision obviously, but as I mentioned in chat I'd take a shorter hold with a focused theme that actually gets published over longer hold that gets forgotten forever in architecture.

This is very nice so far. I don't suppose you need it but here's a set of demos anyway. I tried to break stuff but everything seemed to be working fine. 1S1E felt a little bit underdeveloped, the roaches in the south didn't seem to serve a purpose. Not sure if there was something else you had in mind for this room.

Looking forward to seeing what else you put in here. You probably have a ton of ideas, but in case you wanted more, here are some:

* a room in which you are pressured with having a roach on your tale for most of the room (similar to 1N1E but more extended. A Quiet Place had a bunch of rooms like this and they can be fun in small quantities)

* a room in which you need to space roaches 1 apart to back-swipe

* a room in which you need to manipulate a few roaches into the right movement order so that they approach you all at once (not spaced apart) when you move into position. For example, you could have to go to the end of a long corridor to get them out and a roach approaching from the opposite direction forces you to have them clumped so that you can kill them fast enough.

* I know its overdone, but a monster maze could be doable with these elements, especially if you put a creative twist on it.

* Are you letting yourself use sister green doors in addition to normal green doors? If so that opens up lots of possibilities for needing to keep a roach alive. Probably not necessary though as there's plenty you can do with just roaches and walls.

Anyway, this is super cool so far.

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Dragon Fogel
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Updated the first post with a slightly new version. There's a fix to 1S1E and a new room in 2E.

I feel like 1S1E could use more of a "finish", but at least it enforces what I want it to enforce now. On the plus side, the fix feels like something I could make use of in other ways, so maybe if I reflect on that I'll get some new room ideas.

I think if I continue this beyond the one level, I'll do it by making additional levels "roaches, walls, and one other thing". But before I worry about that, I'll try to get a few more rooms on this level done.

Resert On
Level: Delver
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File: Roaches and Walls RO.demo (1.9 KB)
Downloaded 40 times.
License: Public Domain

Interesting hold! I like you made mechanism only with roaches. And here the comments :



And I attached the demos too if you want.

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Stuffs:

Dragon Fogel
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Made nine rooms total now. Some of them are more exciting than others.

Dragon Fogel
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Combined 1N2E with 1S1E, since I wasn't so fond of either room. Still railroady, but I think combining them makes the whole experience more interesting.

The new 1S1E is a combat room. A bit trial and error, but at least it has its own identity.

I'll probably submit this if there are no trivializing solutions. It's turning out as something of a one-level primer on basic roach tactics.

Nuntar
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File: Roaches and Walls.demo (7.7 KB)
Downloaded 36 times.
License: Public Domain

Demo pack attached. Combining the rooms has introduced an unintended solution; I'm also not sure that the new room 1S1E is as intended.

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50th Skywatcher

Dragon Fogel
Level: Smitemaster
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The "break" in 1S1E wasn't that big a deal, since the main point was restricting movement to the west, but I've fixed it anyways by just filling in walls.

Fixed 1N2E by moving the first part of the room upward (and adjusting the entrance in 1N1E accordingly) so there are no available tiles south of the trap. The top section is a little more cramped, but that doesn't really change anything.

I'll update the first post momentarily.

edit: Whoops, 1S2E has a break too. It probably can't be easily fixed, but I'll see what I can do about it.

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[Last edited by Dragon Fogel at 09-20-2017 05:16 AM]

Dragon Fogel
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Fixed the break in 1S2E. In the process, I worked how to make an actual one-way mechanism. (Sort of.)

Also the hold has ending text now.

Insoluble
Level: Smitemaster

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File: Roaches and Walls.demo (16.7 KB)
Downloaded 39 times.
License: Public Domain

More demos attached in case you want 'em. New rooms are fun. This is a really nice bite sized hold. Great stuff!

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