Re: Dumac ruins upgrade

[huskobar]

...posted 2007.05.20 (YYYY.mm.dd)

Sorry, I thought I'd post a new thread so this didn't get buried on page 3.

Zalzidrax, Bob, or whoever might still be interested, I, believe it or not, just finished playing the Dumac Ruin and let me first say it is second-to-none; perhaps the best dwemer ruin in MW (thus far - I haven't finished Greater Dwemer Ruins yet, so we'll see).

Suffice it to say I'm very impressed, but there are a couple of big issues (outside of the need for an exterior entrance) and a few suggestions I'll pass on FWIW.

Biggest issue: the bad sound in the Maw. Gotta go. Gotta. ..ruins an otherwise glowing experience.

Other big issue: the name of the Hall. Dwarf-king? Hmm. ..Dwemer-king, ..Dwemer King, or maybe just Hall of the King? Your call, but I'd just wonder about lore-correctness.

If nothing else was addressed, it would be perfectly playable as is. But here are a few first impressions I'll pass along.

1. The dwemer constructs in the Maw and Warrens were swell. When I entered the Hall of the Dwarf-king, I was struck by the atmospheric emptiness of the place, driving home the catastrophe which must have befallen the dwemer. The two little constructs patrolling in front of the throne added to the loneliness - two little guards guarding nothing. In a case of less-is-more, I'd have preferred if there weren't the four other constructs behind the throne.

2. Sorry, I didn't look, but if the constructs are set to respawn, I'd make them not (and I'd say that applies to the whole game!). The race is extinct, and no one's making more - point of realism. How much scrap metal does one need anyway?

3. Maybe just one chest, the one in the Vault, should have a dwemer diving helm.

4. Back to the Hall of the King, it might be fun to hang a couple of your wonderful banners above the front entrance, one set askew by the solidified lava.

5. Also, and not to overdo things, but as one more reminder of events - perhaps a spear on the floor on either side of the throne with an ash pile at each.

6. Behind the lock-level-80 door, perhaps one more shelving unit with even more armaments (a couple of warhammers and cuirasses, etc.) for a real storeroom feel.

7. Behind the lock-level-100 door (I can't remember, is there a key?), something that just struck me and which I haven't seen in-game yet - take out a couple of containers and replace them with about 5 lined-up static constructs (not broken). These would have been machines in storage in a state of readiness waiting to be activated.

8. Just a 'fun' thing - a dismembered thief (a la Sakatosh Tomb) lying near the Prototype.

As for some of your concerns:

9. The lighting - I had light Night Eye going, but looked fantastic to me in any event. I wouldn't change a thing.

10. The test - Your idea sounds o.k., but I didn't really need it. It took me about 30-45 minutes to figure things out, but I got it and I said 'Wow, finally a real test'. I concur with Bob, I like the difficulty and I think this is about my favorite puzzle in the whole game! I want to look at your scripts, but I'm scared I might upset their elegance. Hee.

11. The Vault was hard to get around, but, to me, that was to be expected. I never really got stuck, though the Prototype did. For that, I just went to the hallway and engaged it there.

That's where I'll stop. I hope these suggestions help. I'll likely implement them in my personal project. Meantime, thank you for a great dungeon!

[huskobar]

Ach, never mind my comment about the name of the hall; I just spoke with Almalexia and I see that she refers to Dumac as the Dwarf-King.

It's just that it would be nice to distinguish between dwarf and dwemer to justify aspects introduced by a couple of other mods, but Bethesda seems to use the terms pretty much interchangeably - e.g. 'Dwarven Halberd' vs 'Spoiled Dwemer Oil'.