Galaer on 15/8/2021 at 09:41
AWAY 1: AIR POCKET (TDM)
INTRODUCTION
Like name suggests this mission is about swimming underwater. In underwater you will be forced to find small keys and find chests that really blend into walls. Sword has been stolen by member of the crew from sea trunk and hint displays that it's taken to deck, but deck is underwater. Looking for sword would be troublesome. That's why I didn't completed this optional objective. You may also have some problems mantling on crates on the surface of water. Sometimes mantling keep failing and you must try to mantle from other side or keep forward while mantling. In Captain's safe is gold bar. If you take it, you will fail objective of not taking any heavy objects. Luckily it doesn't count as loot.
MOVING CRATES WHILE IN WATER FEELS REALLY BAD
In this mission you will be forced to move crates while in water, but this game wasn't built around that. When you try to bring crate above water, first there will be explosion of water and crate will fall down. Then after grabbing it again you may success or you may fail in 3 different ways. So after touching surface crate can: 1) drop down into water; 2) nothing will happen, crate will stay in place; 3) another explosion of water will happen plus crate will catapult into air and fall somewhere else. It's really frustrating. At least there is nobody nearby to hear what we are doing.
LOOT
There are 4 purses to collect in this mission. For guy in boat you must sneak very close to him, because frob range is very short. Don't lean towards him, just sneak very close to him. Speaking of leaning, I noticed that you can lean while underwater. For pirate walking on rocks I just went to crate he's sitting on and sneaked to him to grab arrow and purse. Arrow for some reason doesn't count as pickpocket. For guy walking in water I just swim to him while crouching. Guy in boat with Emily also has purse, but I couldn't reach it from water. I could mantle on boat, but there is no way to quietly fall in water. To finish the mission you must get on boat attached to the pirate ship. To do that I mantled on fish swimming nearby and from it jumped on boat.
STATS:
Time: 0:49:13; Loot: 280/330
Damage Dealt: 21 (?); Received: 0; Health Restored: 0
Pockets Picked: 3
AI Killed: 0; AI KOed: 0; Bodies Found by AI: 0
Stealth Score: 0 (Alert 1 = 11; Alert 2 = 0; Alert 3 = 0; Alert 4 = 0; Alert 5 = 0)
GHOST: SUCCESS
PERFECT GHOST: IMPOSSIBLE?. I couldn't reach purse on guy on boat with Emily from water.
FINAL NOTE
So again I get Damage Dealt stat higher than 0. This time it's high number - 21. It's in mission where you can't use weapons, because when you find them, they are too slippery to use. And I didn't throw any objects to them. I actually have a suspicion that it may have something to do with corpses loading at the beginning of mission. In Tears of St Lucia there was 1 dead spider. In Accountant 2 there was 1 dead spider and corpse of guard in freezer. There were also dead skeletons, but maybe in editor it's possible to put skeletons as objects and not as AI to be automatically killed at the beginning of mission. In this mission is dead crew of our ship. I didn't count 21 corpses, but I didn't check the whole sea, so maybe they are there.
Galaer on 15/8/2021 at 09:43
UNHOLY VIVID INNOCENCE
Complicated puzzle mission with undead. First of all, there are 3 undead guardians in this mission and they all block important passages. You can't nudge them, because based on what author said in one of his posts, they act as tables in DROMED. You can't look at them, because they hurt you. To destroy them you must throw at them flashbomb, but you can't throw it near them. Also haunts will only 1st alert to noise of falling bones after killing them. There is no objective specifically telling you to kill them, but one of objectives suggests that ("Find a way to destroy undead guardians"). It's completed very early, but since it mentions undead guardians destruction and the way of killing them feels more like a puzzle, then I'm gonna excuse their kill.
Another important note is that you can't use holy water, because haunts will 2nd alert to sound it's making even if they are far away. This means it's impossible to complete optional objectives about grabbing 5 golden bones (golden skull requires shooting holy water arrow into fountain) and Scepter of Silent Sorrow (you need to shoot holy water arrow into lying skeleton at the starting point).
In Newdark it's possible to jump and mantle into hole in wall near bridge. Intended route requires slow fall potion or using body as a cushion. By mantling into hole I can get drill (another optional objective) more easily. There is room above stairs near Hypostyle of Perdition. To descend on stairs safely just drop on trap door while it opens.
Avoiding haunts isn't very difficult especially after killing undead guardians, but sometimes they can get stuck. It happened to me once, so make saves often and in different slots.
STATS:
Time: 0:43:52; Loot: 11870/13870
Pockets Picked: 1/1; Locks Picked: 0
Back Stabs: 0; Knock Outs: 0
Damage Dealt: 29; Damage Taken: 0; Healing Taken: 0
Innocents killed: 0; Others killed: 3
Iron Beasts Destroyed: 0; Disabled: 0
Secrets: 0/0
GHOST: SUCCESS
PERFECT GHOST: POSSIBLE
Galaer on 15/8/2021 at 09:43
THE UNSEEN
The only problem is fast and invisible spider. Due to how sound is heard through walls you never know when he will appear. Plus he has random patrol route. It also has no sound alert, so the only indication that it didn't hear me is sound of footsteps not changing. Other enemies are on the other hand easy to dodge.
STATS:
Time: 0:12:54; Loot: 875/1050
Pockets Picked: 2/2; Locks Picked: 0
Back Stabs: 0; Knock Outs: 0
Damage Dealt: 0; Damage Taken: 0; Healing Taken: 0
Innocents killed: 0; Others killed: 0
GHOST: SUCCESS
PERFECT GHOST: POSSIBLE
Galaer on 15/8/2021 at 09:44
WORKING THE MINES
You can sneak to the right side while crouch walking under window. Turn on left generator and go down. 1st door on the right leads to gambling room with 2 guards. They are sensitive, Go to the right side of door, open it and quickly block close it, turn off light, open door and quickly enter. Here is the whole loot and 2 keys. Use them to get your equipment back. Then go to mines.
In mines you are forced to operate cart and it will destroy 3 zombies (ghost bust #1-3). Haunt in next section has Processing Room key. To get loot requirement you must create 18 diamonds from ores (each diamond increase max loot by 100). To get ores you must explode rock in walls. This is noisy and summons zombies who alert to explosions. Furthermore not every ore gives you diamond, there is no indication which one will give you diamond or maybe it's just based on luck. I don't know, but because sneaking through mine with 18+ ores is very long process and I already failed ghost, I decided to abandon this ghost run.
GHOST: IMPOSSIBLE
Galaer on 15/8/2021 at 09:46
THE GREYQUARTER HEIST
SEWER STATION
At the 2nd floor of Sewer Station is room with noble. Noble is patrolling around this room couple of times and then stops to look through window. When he does that he may stay there for short or longer time. You need to have luck to use switch behind trophy and get 3 pieces of loot from right side of room.
MEUSE MANSION
I'm going to Meuse Mansion by shooting water arrow to destroy flies swarm and then rope up to top of toilet. Guard patrolling stairs can get stuck on wall on 2nd floor stairs for couple of seconds. Also in kitchen is banner. Cutting it trigger secret and there is also chest with 30 loot behind, which I must to skip. There is also light switch, which is possible to frob.
THIEVES AREA - BASEMENT
There is secret passage leading to office near Casino where I can turn off lights and passage to stairs. I'm gonna loot it later, but right now I'm focusing on sewer part of this section. There is rogue woman with short and random patrol below who can be troublesome. You need to use flare on torch to reveal one of secrets. To complete optional objective of getting treasure and getting 299 loot you need to blow wall with 3 fire arrows. But this is damage property, which also alerts all thieves. So for ghost this must be skipped.
SPIDER SEWERS
I'm going to Spider Sewers through Mechanists Area and turn of lights. To get to explosion area you must mantle on broken pillar, fall on the other side and get on fallen door. You must to be fast or else green spider will spot you. Here is statuette. Don't open 1st door. It leads to Pagans room with bowl worth 10 loot, but if you picklock door Pagans at the entrance will wake up and look at it, so this loot can't be taken from this side. I'm gonna take it later. 2nd door leads to guard post. Don't picklock door or patrollers will 2nd alert. Further away is Hotel and Whittaker Safe key, which I'm gonna get from Hotel side. 3rd door leads to north area of sewers.
On the left is green spider room with body and diamond. To get it you must sneak into room along left wall and while in front of spider lean for diamond. Go to the end and drop into water. Here is patrolling spider and metal door. Mantle and get through it quickly for box with loot. Then return into water and go back to previous area with 2 locked metal doors. Left door leads to shop's basement, right - Alchemist's basement. I'm going to shop, to 2nd floor and through Keeper's place to street. From there I'm visiting wrecked house and then 3rd section of sewers.
THIRD SECTION OF SEWERS
Only 1 patroller. First I jump into water to get to underwater chest in Spider Sewers. Spiders will not see you. Metal door on the right requires long picklock. Wait for archer to go left, use 1st lockpick and jump into water. Wait there for patroller to again go away and quickly unlock this door.
CITY WATCH
City Watch has Boathouse, which is also exit. I prefer to enter now, because Boathouse is good hideout. Douse 2 gas torches. Here are 2 patrollers. Archer is visiting all floors and guard visits prison. Go behind him and leave 2 doors open, also douse torch in prison. Wait for guard to leave and quickly enter and grab purse from lying woman. Wait a bit, so prisoner will not be sensitive and quickly leave. Wait for archer to visit basement and quickly go to 2nd floor for key and 3 coin stacks. Crouch on bed and wait for archer to go down. Go downstairs, but wait on stairs. Archer is outside. When he will go to basement, open 4th compartment and take loot, then go outside.
Then I returned to Keeper house and to Spider Sewers. Looting Alchemist Shop and other shops was easy, but I needed to skip another secret triggered by cutting banner in Sculptor. There is 8 statuettes impossible to get through banner worth 120 loot, which I skipped. I left opened window above Market for later. I got Alchemist's Book and returned back to Thieves Area. On my way through Spider Sewers 2 patrolling spiders stopped patrolling. They became stationary spiders for some reason. That's the end of 1st loop around city.
THIEVES AREA - CASINO
First I'm going through door near secret passage. There are some spots of light, so I need to be careful. I'm taking all loot behind counter, then return to stairs and go to 1st floor. Here are 2 patrollers walking on this floor and 2nd floor corridor. They can also go down couple of steps. This means that shadow on stairs on 1st floor isn't safe. Thieves have random patrol route and they turn in random direction at the end of corridors. Go to Casion through dining room and easily loot it. I'm leaving this building through 2nd floor window.
PAGANS PLACE
Drop on wooden roof and moss floor under right window. Shoot rope arrow into window above locked door and jump to it, open window and mantle inside. Here is noble mage. Gem and statuette are easy to get. Open trap door to Pagans Room. They are sleeping except Pagan near bowl. Luckily he's turning, so you can grab this piece of loot. To exit rope up to noble, open window where you mossed wooden roof on the other side, jump and mantle on it. Afterwards I'm going along ledge to Hotel.
HOTEL
To get to Room #4 you need to go through Room #5, but on balcony is gas mine, so you must walk on balcony edge to the other side of balcony and disarm mine. Similar story with Room #8 - you get to it from Room #7. To Room #9 you go through front door, turn off both light switches. You can sneak to bucket with bottle while slowly going along right wall. Room #3 has vomiting thief. Wait for him to go to bathroom and then go steal his key
Basement has patroller on quite short and random path. Also rarely stairs patroller can visit here. First open door to sewers to get safe key under ladder. Then unlock Slot #2. From it you must run and picklock Slot #1 with 3 bottles. You can't do that in one go, because archer has too short patrol route. With key go to Room #1 and loot it, then go to Slot #7 and use secret passage to go to Gatehouse.
GATEHOUSE
Patroller near levers has purse. There is archer walking via stairs and top of Gatehouse. Sneak to tower to get purse from metal helmet guard, then go to Mechanists Forge. Use 2nd window from right to slowly sneak to opened window. Inside is book and key. You are in shops area. From there I decided to return to Spider Sewers, go to Keeper House and City Watch to finish mission in Boathouse.
STATS:
Time: 1:56:53; Loot: 4941/5555
Pockets Picked: 11/11; Locks Picked: 37
Back Stabs: 0; Knock Outs: 0
Damage Dealt: 0; Damage Taken: 0; Healing Taken: 0
Innocents killed: 0; Others killed: 0
Iron Beasts Destroyed: 0; Disabled: 0
Secrets: 13/16
GHOST: SUCCESS
PERFECT GHOST: IMPOSSIBLE. In Meuse Mansion in kitchen is secret chest too far behind banner worth 30 loot. Optional objective requires blowing up wall, which is damage property and alert thieves. Because of that I skip loot worth 299. There are 8 secret statuettes too far behind banner in Sculptor. They are worth 120 loot. Together I skipped 449 loot.
klatremus on 18/8/2021 at 03:44
Game:
The Dark ModFM:
Mission 2: Tears of St. LuciaGhost -
FailedPerfect Thief -
FailedSupreme Ghost -
FailedPerfect Supreme -
FailedTime - 1:07:47
Times saved - 103
Damage Dealt: 0 Damage Received: 0
Health Restored - 0
Pockets Picked - 5
Loot Acquired - 2780/2830
Killed by the Player - 0
KOed by the Player - 0
Bodies found by AI - 0
Alerts - 0 Suspicious, 0 Searches, 0 Sightings
Stealth Score - 0
Consumables - None
See the entire report with screenshots (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia.htm) here!
Loot list (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_L.htm) here!
YouTube let's play (
https://youtu.be/AO3N7db_d9Q) here!
Comments:This is definitely a much more fleshed out mission compared to A New Job, but also a lot tougher. Part city, part church mission, although the latter is where all the action takes place. The streets are mainly for show, but enjoyable enough. I especially like all the work put into the readables, making the hammerite church and its inner workings seem believable and alive. I’m realizing that The Dark Mod is in principle more challenging than Thief ever was, especially on the highest difficulties. I’m still a newbie to the mod though, and still learning as I go along, but I can definitely recommend this as a solid challenge.
I had to find a way into St. Roderic’s Church and steal the relic, supposedly kept in an ornate box, that had made the statue of St. Lucia weep. Secondly, I had to damage the statue and make it look like an accident. 1,750 worth of valuables was my loot goal, plus making my way back to the starting alley.
StreetsThe initial streets only had two issues. First, the (chamber?) pot with the padlock key couldn’t be replaced to the correct windowsill. Frobbing the pot automatically put the key into my inventory, but it also made me pick up the pot. Dropping it without moving it even an inch made it fall to the streets below. In fact, anywhere along that sill made it fall. It was almost as if the pot originally was suspended in thin air, but when picked up now needed solid surface to rest on. That sill seemed to have no clipping surface at all. Supreme only requires you to put items back in the nearest logical place if you cannot physically return it to its original location, so the adjacent sill would have to do (image below). It behaved the way a normal windowsill should.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image001.jpgThe next issue came on the enclosed floor with the dead “squatter” above the sewer entrance hatch (image below). It had four boards protecting it. I could reach them all from below and move them out of the way, but it easily triggered alerts. Remember, I use Dragofer’s Stealth Statistic tool found here. It is almost essential if wanting to reduce the amount of triggered alerts. I will use it for every mission I ghost, I can guarantee you that. The first time I moved the boards I didn’t bother to check the stealth tool even, as there are only neutral homeless people around the streets, but no guards. Then when I reached the sewers I suddenly had 10 alerts! I then realized the guy in the boarded up shelter just north of the sewer entrance building triggered these alerts. If you enter his place and he sees you, he’ll say “I don’t want any trouble”. I guess he’s not fully neutral after all. I eventually managed to both remove and replace the boards to the upper floor, as well as the debris on top of the sewer entrance, without triggering any alerts from him. It was difficult, but good practice in object manipulation.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image002.jpgSewersThe only issue underground was in a small closed-off section with a single spider (image below). It was guarding a dead end tunnel with a piece of loot. I’m not sure if all spiders are equally sensitive, but it could hear me and trigger alerts even before ascending the ladder that led to the adjacent tunnel. I could get as far as in the picture without any modification to the stealth score, but beyond this was impossible. The spider’s patrol route was completely random; it didn’t even seem to have set boundaries. It would just randomly stop at any point in its path, turn around, continue, or keep staying there. I found no way to drop to the lowest level without busting Ghost. I never got the spider to trigger only an alert 1, the minimum was a suspicious alert (called alert #2), where it stopped because it heard something. In TDM, there seems to be no way to drop silently off an edge, unless you’re landing on grass, carpet, or other soft material. Here there was only rock or wood. In Thief you can always drop a distance like this and hold crouch in order to avoid falling noise. Not in the Dark Mod. Also, there is no silent outer edge of objects to land on, which could’ve taken me quietly onto the lower level of barrels. If using a moss arrow (which you have to buy ahead of the mission), I could get to the bottom level undetected, but as soon as I crept into the tunnel out of view of the bright mushroom, the spider usually detected me and turned around. A couple of times I managed to creep into the far corner beyond the tunnel, but I would then bump into some debris on the floor and make noise. If not, I would be too close to the spider as it patrolled back and once it bumped into me, I was caught. As if this wasn’t enough, once you take this piece of loot, two more like spiders spawn in the previous area, making it absolutely impossible to return. Long story short, this piece of loot must be skipped for all modes of ghosting.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image003.jpgSt. Roderic’s ChurchI emerged in the lavatory. Reverend Brenard was the only one who visited this room. He could spot me through the toilet lid, I assume via the tiny slit on the side. He had a rather lengthy, though random patrol route around the premises, but he often visited both the restroom and his private chambers. I could quite easily take his key from the outside hallway. Even though he unlocked the door to his room, you can’t block doors in TDM like you can in Thief. Enemies will turn around and wait until the door is fully closed before continuing. If you frob the door at any time before it fully shuts, they will start the door-closing process all over again, and usually give a verbal remark in the process. Although the ghost rules for the dark mod still is a work in progress, the current rules does not allow scripted alerts to open doors, even if they don’t show up in the stats. Thus, taking his key was 100% necessary, as his chambers contained a mandatory objective and the door was not pickable. I knew from Galaer’s report that there was a loot item in there that he would detect missing and alert to, so although I had his key, I didn’t enter his room yet. Alerts to missing loot are currently deemed allowed for all ghost modes, as long as you are not seen or heard in the process. We have reasoned that loot is such an integral element to gameplay that ghosting shouldn’t discourage taking it, unless enemies see or hear you in the process. These alerts do not count towards the stat score. Such items would therefore be beneficial to take as late as possible.
I also stole a guard’s key patrolling in this area, and looted his quarters. Nobody else went in there. Cleaned the southwest area of this floor easily. The meeting hall was just a matter of waiting for it to be empty. I think the reverend and two guards came through here at some point. Hilariously, on top of the table was the best place to hide. The gems in the portrait were tough to find. Tougher still was the scriptorum further south. A lone scribe was sitting in there, facing away from the entrance (image below). Two loot items were on shelves along the western wall. The key to snatching both items was using the variability in the vision of stationary enemies. All of them turn their heads either direction from time to time. At first I thought this was just idle movement, and it is, but it actually changes their viewing angle. This can be frustrating if you get caught when you don’t expect it, but it can also be exploited in order to access areas that would otherwise be covered. The rightmost shelf wasn’t too difficult to approach. Here, as long as the scribe didn’t turn north, I could lean in for the steal. The left shelf was tougher. If I snuck up next to him, he had to look south like in the picture for me to steal it successfully. I got all the loot in this room with perfect stealth score intact.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image004.jpgCryptThe crypt was extremely tough. I could have doused a few of the torches/candles, but I wanted to try to fully Supreme Ghost it. There were two entrances, the elevator shaft to the east being the best approach by far. The door was frequently used by one of the two patrollers, and enemies very easily detect doors being open in TDM. The crypt had a central foyer and three side halls with caskets; all of these locations had loot, and plenty of it. The patroller who utilized the door also went down the western and southern halls. The second patroller went back and forth between the eastern and western halls, but he could also stop in the foyer, facing south. The latter patroller had an eye patch and thus couldn’t see to his left. This was very helpful.
I took the loot in the east hall easily, since it was dark and this was where the lift dropped me off. TDM keeps you on alert even in perfect shadows (if there even is such a term in this mod), as all enemies will catch you if they bump into you. This was a point of contention by many players in Thief, so I’m happy this has been corrected. As the eye patch guy headed west and the other guard left through the door, I followed, grabbed the loot on the pedestal in the foyer, and headed down the south hall. This was a very risky place to be, as both guards could see me from the foyer, and as mentioned, one of the guards occasionally came down here. I could hide behind the broken casket, but I couldn’t hide here if the guard came by. Then I completely by accident found a weird “glitch”. If you crouch in the southwest corner of this hall, lean right and move your mouse slightly west, the light gem suddenly goes a lot darker (image above). This trick did work in other areas around the map too, but nowhere was its effect as apparent as here. I think that when you are leaning, if you move the mouse, you are actually tilting your head sideways, almost like putting your ear to the ground. If the game this way detects that you are even lower to the ground, then you might take on the light properties of the floor, where it might be considerably darker. I don’t see any other reason why this would affect your light gem this tremendously. I went from being spotted all the way from the foyer, to not even getting an alert 1 if the patrolling guard came down this hall. If this is a universal trick in TDM, it could be a crucial find for the ghosting community.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image005.jpgFrom this corner, I could time both patrollers and head back to the foyer. There wasn’t enough time to go down either of the other hallways from here, so I quickly mantled the top shelf in the southwest corner (image below). Here I was safe from anyone passing. With one out the door and the other close to the elevator, I dropped and looted the western hall. It was pitch black all across, so no worries there. Then I could quietly follow the eye patch guard back to the lift and dodge him as he patrolled back. Still perfect stealth stats!
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image006.jpgStatue of St. LuciaNext up was the chapel. The altar was mostly dark, yet the only piece of loot there, a chalice next to the pulpit, was noticed by either passing patroller. They literally raised havoc once noticing its absence and scoped me out quite quickly. I skipped it and would look for a way to get it later. Instead I followed both patrollers (who were not far apart) down the carpeted aisle to the east end. Here I grabbed the vestibule key from one of them and hid in the back room.
The vestibule was the second highly challenging area, rivaling the crypt in difficulty. I entered via the southern door. Two guards; one stationed in the north, pivoting west-southeast, and a patroller with three random stops. All the loot in the northern end of the room could be noticed by at least one guard. Instead I started by grabbing the items in the south. There was a very tough to find ruby on a shelf by the large statue here (image below). It was the last piece of loot I found during playtesting. The vase in the arms of the statue in the southeast corner was tough to get. Both enemies in this room had to be facing away and I still had to creep-crouch around the corner of the scaffolding not to trigger any first alerts. You can instead drop from atop the huge statue if you want, but you still have to sneak back along the ground.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image007.jpgGetting the loot in the north involved proper planning and some luck. Missing loot isn’t always noticed by enemies on the first passthrough, and that can give you precious time to get out before they start searching. After having searched and given up, in TDM enemies walk around with their weapon drawn, indicating that they are a lot more aware of their surroundings than normal. Another reason why taking this loot last was smart. If the stationary guard was facing west, I could sneak around on the back of the large crate and grab all the loot unseen. I also took the walkway key from the table here. The patrolling guard also carried a copy of it, and although the verbal remarks enemies give to missing keys are allowed for Supreme, I wanted to avoid it if I could. None of the keys were returnable in this mission anyway. With a bit of luck, I could now sneak over and leave through the southern door (the same one I used to enter) before anyone noticed the loot being gone. The sentry also had to be facing east not to notice the door being open.
The final piece of loot was a plate on a table with a candle directly in front of St. Lucia’s statue. This one I had to take coming through the northern door, and again the guard here had to be facing east (image below). I did this move about five times and only once did he not alert to the loot missing. Most often, he would comment instantly and start searching, quickly encouraging the other guard to join in. Checking my stealth score, however, it still said zero across the board. The last time he didn’t alert right away and I was able to get back out to the chapel unseen. I could then hear both guards starting to search through the door.
Inline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_TearsOfStLucia_files/image008.jpgThe only thing left to do was destroying the statue. I went in through the western walkway door this time, accessible from a ladder northeast in the chapel. The idea was to drop the large stone hammer onto the statue from above by pushing it. I got up there by mantling from the walkway railing. At first I tried from the crate, but it dropped a few inches once my weight got on it and that alerted both guards downstairs. After completing the objective, all the guards from the courtyard and the chapel entered the vestibule, fully alerted. There were six guards searching in total. I’m not sure if this is a scripted response or from them hearing the drop. Either way, it didn’t count towards the stat score. I still considered this a bust, as it was a direct consequence of my doing. Destroying the statue didn’t count as property damage though, since it was explicitly directed in the objective.
While the guards were searching, I could easily go back to the chapel and grab the gold chalice. I also headed back to the reverend’s room to steal all the gold and the relic behind the secret panel. From there, the way out was next door. Headed all the way back to the initial entrance, where I replaced the debris as best I could. Ended the mission in the starting streets.
Notes:- Skipped a gold plate worth 50 in the sewer tunnels. The patrolling spider was impossible to fool for any ghost mode.
- While damaging the statue of St. Lucia isn’t a bust, as it is explicitly stated in the objectives, the guards got alerted in the process. Although these alerts didn’t count towards the stealth score, I still counted them as busts.
klatremus on 21/8/2021 at 00:17
Game:
Thief 1FM:
The Sound of a Burrick In a Room [TDP20AC]Ghost -
SuccessPerfect Thief -
SuccessSupreme Ghost -
SuccessPerfect Supreme -
SuccessTime - 2:09:16
Loot - 4553/4553
Pockets Picked - 6/11
Locks Picked - 14
Backstabs - 0, Knockouts - 0
Damage dealt - 0, Damage taken - 0
Healing taken - 0, Other Kills - 0, Bodies Discovered - 0
Consumables - None
See the entire report with screenshots (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick.htm) here!
Loot list (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_L.htm) here!
YouTube let's play (
https://youtu.be/-5mFBjWVhl0) here!
Comments:This is one of the best designed missions ever for Thief 1. Although perhaps not as universally loved as Skacky’s 2014 masterpiece ‘Endless Rain’, I claim the city’s layout is more accommodating to the player. I especially like the canal and how many places you can safely emerge, making the map almost overwhelmingly non-linear. Lore-wise it’s also a very important step in the path towards The Black Parade, with several important references to prior noteworthy fan missions.
Our main task was to obtain a prayer book via the burrick caves below Blexham Manor. Second, we were commissioned to steal Lord Reynesford’s statuette collection. Third, we had to locate and procure an antique scepter, though its whereabouts were unknown. In addition, 2,000 worth of valuables were required, before making our way back to the starting point.
After playing this mission not long after its release, I watched about 10 minutes of marbleman’s YouTube let’s play. I didn’t want to watch more, as I hadn’t ghosted it yet, but during those 10 minutes I learned something very important. If you avoid triggering Sutter’s cue outside the Overlord’s Fancy at the start of the mission, none of the thieves around the city will spawn, greatly easing our passage through the city. The streets were still packed with regular guards, but this made travel go a lot smoother.
To BlexhamIt was difficult to figure out the most efficient way around town at first. I knew I needed the gear from the blacksmith in the north before heading to the southern part of town, so that was my starting plan. Cleaned out the grocer’s in the northwest and most of Lydecker Avenue first. The streets here had patrollers, but no area was without hiding spots. The blacksmith had a vent access to the fishmonger’s (image below), but I went back and left from the blacksmith’s afterwards, to avoid picking open the extra door. Didn’t move further east from this, as the plaza here was quite exposed. Instead I headed back west and ascended a rope arrow to some hidden loot far above the canal. There was an attic with a very well hidden silver nugget up there. Dropped directly into the start of the canal and mantled up once a guard here had left. Then accessed the stonecutter’s via a ledge and a panel close to Lydecker bridge ((
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image002.jpg) see image).
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image001.jpgI’m not sure what direction is the easiest to approach the stonecutter, but arriving from the fireplace vent was quite the challenge (left image below). He had a very short patrol route, stopping at either table, facing south or west. The first problem was sneaking out of the vent grate without making noise. Due to limitations in the engine, Garrett always makes a clunk sneaking off a ledge after a crawlspace mantle, so I tried to land on the edge of the boxes and quickly sneak east into the dark corner. It was possible to do without alerts, but it was annoyingly unpredictable. From here, I had to jump into the window of the appraiser’s next door (image below). The only time to go was when the stonecutter stood by the western table. I had to wait several cycles for the timing to be convenient, as a guard in the appraiser’s courtyard would occasionally see me make the leap. Other times the stonecutter would start patrolling again too quickly and would spot me in the appraiser’s windowsill before I could get into hiding. Mantling the table and the first windowsill also had to be done silently and slowly, otherwise he’d make a settling remark after resuming his patrol. This scenario was more frustrating than enjoyable.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image003.jpgThe appraiser’s building itself wasn’t difficult. The sir patrolled both floors, but he had gotten stuck in the ceiling (!) downstairs. Luckily, he didn’t see me do anything so I could roam about freely. Used the front entrance in order to leave. Lockblocked the door so I could return the key to the top floor. Worked my way southeast from the courtyard without issues. Passed through the magistrate’s place and arrived on a balcony north of Blexham Manor. There was a necklace on a statue high on the wall here. I could get it and the rope arrow by dropping onto the edge below. If landing on an incline, no damage is taken. Approached the main manor through a tower just to the south ((
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image004.jpg) see image).
Although a difficult task, I could cross the pipe east and enter a building closer to the hammerite church. From there, it was possible to continue traversing the map southeast. However, that area could easily be climbed from the streets later on, and right now I wanted to aim at reaching the burrick tunnels.
Surprisingly, I have nothing to report from Blexham manor. Patrols were tight and I had to visit most of the rooms to get all the loot, but many of the hallways were stone and patrol routes fairly long. There were also plenty of open windows and climbable railings that gave me extra options for moving around. The biggest problem was comprehending the manor’s layout. I counted three totally separate winding staircases, and some of the floors were weirdly layered, almost abstractly so. Regardless, I found my way to the basement where I waited for the servant to leave. I had to frob the back wall three times in order to access the burrick tunnels (image below). This has been agreed upon before in the ghost discussion thread as not being considered property damage and thus no Ghost bust. Since you are not using equipment and no visible damage is shown on the piece of wall removed, this event functions more like opening a door that cannot be reclosed. Readables elsewhere already talked about the wall’s integrity being compromised due to the burricks. Frobbing it indicated all Garrett was doing was pushing on the wall, much like a hidden panel. If the wall had split up into individual bricks, it would probably have been a rule violation.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image005.jpgCaves and BeyondThe burrick caves posed no issues. I ascended the steep climb to the butcher shop first. Had to grab his key in order to relock the picked door from the meat locker, but I dropped it back and went down the tunnels again once I’d gotten the loot there. The other part of the caves led to the tomb below the hammerite church. It had a bunch of loot and the prayer book, none of which was difficult to get. The circling haunt in the inner chamber was tricky, but there were shadows from where I could lean in to steal the items. The problem was getting out. I wanted to climb the ladder up to the chapel, but getting onto the altar framework proved more difficult than first anticipated. The best place I found to wait was southeast of the casket (image below). Here I could stay concealed of all light sources and watch both haunts patrol. As the circling haunt turned west, I crept over to the casket’s east side and mantled up. By now, the haunt was walking south. Before it turned east I had to mantle the upper railing, but I had to back up to the very edge of the casket in order to do this. Otherwise I’d just bounce back to the floor. Once I found the method, it was easily repeatable. Luckily, the chapel entrance could be closed as I mantled up the ladder.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image006.jpgJust like Blexham Manor, the church overall wasn’t that difficult. Although there were quite a few patrollers, they all visited multiple rooms and there were hiding spots in most locations. I jumped from the walkway on the top floor to father Quentyn’s courtyard (first image below). That way I didn’t have to pick the door to his chambers. Found two of the hidden magpie treasures on the church roofs. Dropped into the canal to the east and ascended the staircase on Bulwark Street (second image below). The current was strong, but I could just manage to avoid its pull.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image007.jpgInline Image:
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image008.jpgReynesford & ChanceyThe Bulwark and Lydecker crossroads was definitely the most trafficated spot in the mission. I counted 6-7 patrollers that ventured through or in view of this area. I managed to grab both purses from the swordsmen here, but not without applying some patience. I used the top floor balcony to enter Reynesford’s. Both lower floors had access doors but they were unnecessary to pick open. A conversation triggered two patrolling guards. One headed downstairs and activated a servant who had spawned in the foyer. The guard ended up patrolling the entire mansion vertically, while the servant went up to clean up the bodies and making loops on this floor. At this point I got the loot downstairs and headed all the way up to Reynesford’s chamber.
His quarter was the most difficult place in the building, but his patrol was predictable and there were safe spots. The doorway was dark enough to conceal me from both him and the guard who came all the way up here. I snuck into his bedroom behind his back (image below). Here I could pick open the chest and get one of the documents. Went back out to the dark doorway as he was staring at his safe. The next time he went to the bedroom, I could pick it open and grab the contents. Nothing to it. Dropped back to the street level by the main entrance once the archer there had wandered off.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image009.jpgMoved south and cleaned the sommelier’s place with no trouble. Dropped into the canal next so I could enter Chancey & Co. via the grate above the beams. I anticipated the warehouse to be quite difficult, but it didn’t prove to be. Only two patrollers, and the worker spent some time out of view in the office. I left the old gear on the floor below the machinery. If it hadn’t been a junk item I would’ve brought it along. Perhaps I should’ve dropped it in the canal or something. Nobody alerted to the vault remaining wide open, which definitely broke immersion some. No matter.
Going HomeSnuck west on Church Way next. Didn’t pick open Jeremy’s door as there was a different way in. I instead climbed up a planter box atop the hill (image below). This took me to some ledges that led to Jeremy’s chimney. Outside his window I found the third and last magpie treasure ((
https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image011.jpg) see image). Returned up the chimney and all the way to Duke Leonard’s balcony. Crazy scene up there. Luckily the drunks didn’t react to me.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image010.jpgFurther north I made an insane jump northeast across the canal, mantling up the church bridge (image below). That was just to avoid backtracking and dodging all the patrollers in the streets. I had to drop the two documents in the donation box for the extra objective. I still had to sneak back across the bridge, but at least this was just one way.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDP20AC/TDP20AC_SoundOfABurrick_files/image012.jpgAfter this, all I had to do was loot Rowe Street, including the bailiff’s estate and surrounding buildings. I didn’t take the bailiff’s key from the patrolling guard’s belt, as there was another copy inside. Remembered to take the coins in the Rowe Street underpass as well. From there I snuck back to the beginning and ended the mission.
klatremus on 28/8/2021 at 00:30
Game:
The Dark ModFM:
Talbot 2: Return to the CityGhost -
SuccessPerfect Thief -
SuccessSupreme Ghost -
SuccessPerfect Supreme -
SuccessTime - 1:20:52
Times saved - 122
Damage Dealt: 0 Damage Received: 0
Health Restored - 0
Pockets Picked - 0
Loot Acquired - 2580/2580
Killed by the Player - 0
KOed by the Player - 0
Bodies found by AI - 0
Alerts - 0 Suspicious, 0 Searches, 0 Sightings
Stealth Score - 0
Consumables - None
See the entire report with screenshots (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity.htm) here!
Loot list (
https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_L.htm) here!
YouTube let's play (
https://youtu.be/wkWwbkcgkKM) here!
Comments:This is my first Melan mission for TDM. It’s a sequel to the first mission in the Talbot series, Prowler of the Dark for Thief 1, which I have yet to play as of writing this report. No worries, you don’t need to have played the other missions to understand each one individually. Although it’s a different engine, you recognize Melan’s style immediately. Lots of detail crammed in small spaces, hidden stuff around every corner, and vertical exploration en masse. I tell you what, it’s a certain way to fall in love with The Dark Mod.
I had to break into a hammerite storehouse and retrieve some inert explosives. Then I had to grab 1,500 worth of loot and find my way out of the district, seemingly not the same way I entered. A bonus objective was to divert the hammerites’ attention. This last one meant it was optional from a gameplay standpoint, which for Supreme is still a required task.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image001.jpgStreetsThe streets didn’t have many very tough spots. It was harder finding all the loot on my first playthrough. Headed clockwise around the map first. Entered Sykes’ basement this way. I didn’t want to pick the lock on the door to the upper floor from here, so I headed back out and would enter a different way later. Found a well-hidden candlestick on a roof ledge not far from here (image above). It wasn’t until I was going back down I realized the vines along the wall were climbable. I had used a rope and some elaborate jumps to get up there before. I do remember Melan has used vines this way in previous missions. More hidden loot when I circled back around to the market. Some diamonds in a gargoyle statue on the chantry roof (image below), which was actually referenced in readables later on. I could mantle the first two roofs, but needed a rope arrow to get all the way up there. I was checking the stealth statistics quite frequently, but not as often as before. I’m starting to get a good feel for what guards will react to and not.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image002.jpgSykes’Entered his bedroom through the open window. Couldn’t drop straight to the floor, but instead snuck onto the small table and finally dropped onto the carpet. This room and the guard in the foyer outside were no issue. Just creep-crouched and the stealth score remained at zero. You can tap the run key while creep-crouching to get small speed boosts, but if you hold it for more than just a tap you make noise and usually trigger an alert 1.
The biggest issue came in the downstairs living room. There were two candlesticks on the mantelpiece in front of a sitting noblewoman, who I assumed to be Mrs. Sykes. She never left, although she did turn her head from time to time. Another woman, a maid, occasionally entered the room from the kitchen, but she was easy to time. I could mantle up the railing and furthermore onto the mantelpiece without alerts easy enough. I could reach the farthest candlestick from here while staying dark (image below). The problem was returning. As I’ve mentioned in previous reports, you cannot drop onto a hard surface (stone, wood, metal) from more than a foot or two without making a clunk and getting caught. It also seems like if you drop or jump into a mantle from such a height, you make an equal amount of noise when you finish the mantle. That was the case if trying to mantle the railing directly from the mantelpiece. I’d have to do a crouch-run jump to make the mantle at all, but I always made enough noise to trigger an alert 1 from the lady. Marbleman reported being able to make this mantle silently, but alas I was not able to. He reported a success rate of approximately 1 in 30, though I definitely did more jumps than that. Whether marbleman’s move is reliably repeatable or not, I wanted to try to find a more consistent solution.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image003.jpgI noticed that I could from the northwest corner of the mantelpiece mantle onto the bookcase to the northeast. Again, a crouch-run jump was necessary. Since this wasn’t a drop, but instead brought me to higher elevation, it didn’t make noise. It seems this is the way the dark mod works at least. If so, I like it, as it is both logical and predictable. Alas, I couldn’t drop or mantle silently from here onto the railing either. Then I made an interesting discovery. If I fastened a rope into the archway above the railing, the woman gave quite a fearful remark. “Help, there’s an intruder!”, or something to that effect. The stealth score was unchanged however. These are similar to enemies alerting to open doors and would thus bust Supreme. Experimenting with the rope, I noticed something else also. If I fastened it anywhere above the dark part of the wood, she didn’t alert. There was a light colored crown molding above with an intricate pattern, where the rope could be attached undetected. I’m not sure if it was due to the slight difference in distance from the woman, or the arrow being darker closer to the ceiling. Nonetheless, this was a great discovery. I could now run onto the rope from the bookcase, carefully climb down onto the railing, grab the rope, and then finally drop silently onto the rug (image below). Perfect!!
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image004.jpgThe rest of this building was not a problem. I left via the bedroom window like before.
StorehouseDropped the note into the donation box and headed into the cloister courtyard. Climbed the fence to the south and entered the storehouse vault by way of the underground grotto. I could’ve entered from above as well, but this seemed sneakier. I really liked the object manipulation solution to getting the explosives (image below); Melan really used the engine’s capabilities to great effect there. Left via the grotto again, in order to avoid picking the lock to the basement hallway.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image005.jpgOut in the courtyard I climbed the vine and furthermore a preplaced rope, which took me all the way to the clocktower window (image below). Cool rooftop area this. Entered the storehouse attic and starting looting from the top down. Nothing much to report. There was a guard that alternated between the attic and a couch on the main floor, although he didn’t actually sit on the couch, but rather floated in mid-air. On my first playthrough I think he sat correctly, so this might’ve just been a fluke. The basement patrollers seemed a lot less alert than the others, plus one of them wore an eye patch. I left via the attic window, dropping to the streets below.
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https://www.klatremus.org/TDM_ReturnToTheCity_files/image006.jpg
Galaer on 29/8/2021 at 21:44
KILL FACTORY 2: ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE ROBOTS
Mission is fairly simply to ghost thanks to light switch at the beginning of mission, which turns off light in the whole base. To finish mission you need to collect 4 time machine bulbs. One of them you get by destroying 5 ships in shooting minigame (ghost bust #1-5). Luckily robots don't alert to that. Time machine bulb from auto destruction room must be done last and it's also good to use 3 time machine bulbs before that. Last bulb appear after pressing auto destruction switch. This trigger alarm, which doesn't alert anyone, but spawn more robots and you have 1 minute to get to the portal. It's not that hard to sneak past robots, but you must hide in niche near door switch, because robot can see you through it and after he will go away, quickly enter, use last bulb and escape this place.
STATS:
Time: 0:31:39; Loot: 17000/17000
Pockets Picked: 0/0; Locks Picked: 0
Back Stabs:0; Knock Outs: 0
Damage Dealt: 0; Damage Taken: 0; Healing Taken: 0
Innocents killed: 0; Others killed: 0
Iron Beasts Destroyed: 0; Disabled: 0
Secrets: 0/1
GHOST: IMPOSSIBLE
Galaer on 29/8/2021 at 21:45
THE PERDURANCE
Relatively easy and short mission on ship. There are indestructible monsters patrolling under deck and later 1 monster on top floor, but it's quite easy to avoid them.
STATS:
Time: 0:20:42; Loot: 1600/1600
Pockets Picked: 0/0; Locks Picked: 2
Back Stabs:0; Knock Outs: 0
Damage Dealt: 0; Damage Taken: 0; Healing Taken: 0
Innocents killed: 0; Others killed: 0
Iron Beasts Destroyed: 0; Disabled: 0
Secrets: 0/0
GHOST: SUCCESS
PERFECT GHOST: SUCCESS