IronEagle Competition 59: Escalation Titan

Welcome to another installment of the IronEagle competition, the ironman challenge that welcomes everyone, regardless of how experienced you are (or think you are). As long as you enjoy playing Doom, you're welcome here!

 

This also happens to be the 5th anniversary of the monthly IronEagle competition. I want to thank everyone that has been a part of this journey, whether you've been here most months or have only stopped in a few times. Thank you very much.

 

Participants will challenge themselves against Escalation Titan, a limit-removing 6-map set for Doom 2, created by Jeffrey "@GrahfMetal" Canam in 1997 in 2016 and released on idgames in 2021. This mapset is set in the Canadian UAC base, CFB Titan. The base has been overrun by the forces of Hell and you must escape. The mapset also features a soundtrack by James "@Jimmy" Paddock.

 

Participants must play these maps on complevel 2 or Doom(strict). As far as I can tell, there is one Boom-specific linedef action in the mapset, but playing on complevel 2 doesn't prevent you from completing the map.

 

Download Escalation Titan here.

 

Enslavement starts at Map 01. Survival is finishing Map 06. There are no secrets maps.

 

Enjoy!

 

Congratulations to this month's winners (further details are in the post below).

 

UV: @NaZa (Runner-up: @ginc)

HMP: @head_cannon (Runner-up: @Crusader No Regret)

HNTR: @Andromeda (Runner-up: Pegleg)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rules:

The rules are basically the same as they have been. Either demos or streams are permissible. If you are creating a demo, post the demo. If you are streaming, post a video of the stream. Even if streaming, you can still submit a demo, if you want to.

The basic rule is that you submit a demo/stream played at a particular difficulty level (HNTR, HMP, or UV) and you play without saving and reloading, ending your run when you die (or survive).

 

The following are allowed (but not required):

• Freelook
• Crosshair
• Mods that are COSMETIC ONLY

 

The following are NOT allowed:

• Crouching
• Jumping
• Mods that change ANY aspect of base gameplay, including (but not limited to) enemy behavior, enemy speed, player abilities, player speed, weapon damage, ammo, and enemy drops.

 

Further, more specific, rules are listed below:

Any port is accepted provided it will actually run the mapset. There is no preference.
 

 

Category System:

• Category 1: Blind run.
  • This explains itself. You have no knowledge of the wad and have not played/seen it before. I'm willing to be somewhat lenient with this Category.
    • For example, if you die early in Map 01, and then decide to play again for your run, you can still call it Category 1.
• Category 2: Non-blind.
  • If you have played the wad before and/or possess significant foreknowledge, your run is non-blind. Basically, anything that is not Category 1 is Category 2.

 

If you're unhappy with your blind run, feel free to record a new run, and submit that run instead. (Just don't submit your first run.) If you want to submit your first run, no matter how you perform, by all means, go ahead and do it. You shouldn't feel that you HAVE to submit a run you're dissatisfied with, just to preserve a "Category 1" status. If you want to go back and submit a second run, you're welcome to do so, but, at this time, it won't be counted.

 

 

Difficulty System:

You may submit a demo/stream for only one of HNTR, HMP, or UV. Choose only one, because subsequent submissions will be rejected (i.e., if you submit a HMP demo, the HNTR demo you then submit will be rejected). We're not using the 1CC rule set here. Your first submission is what counts.

 

Only runs from the same difficulty will be pitted against each other. Each difficulty will be graded separately.

 

 

Submission:

• When you submit your run, please the include the following information:
• The category (1 or 2)
• The difficulty
• If you survived, your time
• If you didn't survive, the map where you died
• Time of death
• Kill count upon death
• Time upon entering your map of death (if you made it past the first map)
• The port you used (if you included a demo)
• A link to the stream/video (if you did a stream)

 

You may include a commentary about the maps or details about them, if you want to. If you do include specific information about the map (e.g. "The demon trap in Map 08 is rough"), please put it in a spoiler, so that people that want a completely blind experience won't be tipped off. If you're just putting in a general comment (e.g., "Pro tip: don't get hit"), then no need for a spoiler.

 

Attempting to max the maps is not necessary to win.
 

Ranking for this mapset will be determined by:

1. Survival
2. Time for survival
3. Map of death (in descending order: Map 06, Map 05, Map 04, Map 03, Map 02, Map 01)
4. Time it took to reach the map of death
5. Kill count in the map of death

 

If you die, please wait a few seconds before quitting.

 

 

Breaks:

Everyone gets tired. Sometimes people survive longer than they expected. Nature calls. Every now and then, there are family emergencies. Needing to take a break shouldn't necessarily end a promising run. While you should try to complete the run in a single setting, this isn't always possible. If you have to take a break, try to make it quick.

 

 

Happy Dooming!

 

 

 

Previous IronEagle Competitions

Edited November 4, 2023 by Pegleg : EDIT 1: Added winners to IronEagle 58. Corrected date from 1997. Added music credit. EDIT 2: Added winners and runners up.

Cat 1, UV, made it to map 4 and died at roughly 149/155 kills about an hour in.

 

Two words: GJ ANIMA!  That is all.

DWIroneagle_UV_ETitan_AnimaZero.zip

Category: 1

Difficulty: HNTR

Dead on: MAP03

Kills: 45/97

Time on MAP02 exit: 17:33

 

When I noticed the ceiling lowering it was already too late :')

 

ie_andromeda_etitan.zip

Cat 2

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: MAP03

Kills: 58/142

Time on Map02 exit: 25:59

 

When I noticed the ceiling lowering it was already too late :')

 

horus_ironeagle_2023_10.zip

Edited October 2, 2023 by Horus

Category 1

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: MAP03

Kills: 124/142
Exited MAP02 at: 17:35

 

DWIE_23-10_etitan_SCF.zip

 

I was having a good time, but I spent so long getting lost that I tried to rush through the end of the map. A cunning revenant was waiting in ambush around a corner to block my escape.

https://youtu.be/nQ2z99hQd1A

 

Category 1 run on UV, starts at around 2:09:30.

 

Survived in 1:43:24. The Jimmy midis really helped to carry this wad. Did this wad come out in 1997 or 2021? (text file says 2021, but it could have been something that got revived decades later and given modern midi tracks)

Category: 1

- Dead Map 03

- Monsters Killed: 78/142

 

*Pressing play on the video will start the run

 

 

On 10/3/2023 at 12:58 AM, Suitepee said:

Did this wad come out in 1997 or 2021?

 

These are the joys of copying and pasting sometimes. Enslavement was made in 1997, and I copied the post from last month to speed up this month's post. I thought I had caught everything, but I missed the date.

 

I corrected the record, although I simplified it a bit. My understanding is that Escalation Titan was originally finished in 2016 but was rejected from idgames several times (for a variety of reasons). It was posted on Doomworld in 2020 and was tweaked a bit, before getting an idgames release in 2021.

Category: 1

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: MAP03

Kills: 90/142

Time of death: 50:53

Time on Map02 exit: 35:19 (all 100% btw)

Port: DSDA-Doom 0.26.2

 

 

DSDA-Doom_etitan_.zip

Cat 1

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: MAP03

Kills: 75/142
Time of death: 35:32

Time on entering MAP03: 26:54

 

When I noticed the ceiling lowering it was already too late :')
 

 

Difficulty HMP:

Dead at 28:27 on Map 03

 

lmd_ironscalation.zip

Category 1

 

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: MAP03
Time of death: 32:16

Time on entering MAP03: 23:09

Port: Gzdoom 4.10

 

 

 

 

Ill be sure to join in next month too :)

Dead: Map06

Difficulty: UV

Category: 1 (Blind)

Time of Arrival: 1:09:31

Kills: 57/75

Time of Death: 1:14:00

Demo: noisy_ETITAN_ironman.zip

 

Cause of Death:

Difficulty: HNTR

Category: 2

Dead on: Map 03

Time of death: 42:33

Time of arrival to Map 03: 25:29

Kills: 62/97

 

ie_pegleg_etitan.zip

 

Remember everyone, health is important. Don't ignore it when you need it.

Category 1, survived in 1:26:56.

 

Seems like I do brilliantly in the Ironeagle when I do shockingly bad in Ironman...

 

ironeagle_oct23_naza.zip

 

 

@joe-ilya posted a run on the Ironman Discord. For those who have not joined the server (or are not on Discord), here are the details of the run and the demo.

 

Category: 1

Difficulty: UV

Dead on: Map 03

Time of death: 30:20

Kills: 80/142

Time entering Map 03: 18:35

Recorded with: DSDA-Doom

 

etitanIRONEAGLEjoe.zip

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ezzkxyp8mwkv5yr4g0aze/dtetitan.lmp?rlkey=fzbleqetr6r2sqqzey0t56goa&dl=1

 

Man these dropbox links seem to be getting longer

 

Cat 1 UV

 

I actually noticed the crusher, left the room, then decided to re enter for a little bit of crusher pain, and then managed to skid out of a slow crusher, which I consider to be an achievement of sorts

 

Then a map later, I was shot in the back of the ankle by a zombieman and killed

 

(dead m4, about an hour or so total runtime)

Cat 1
Difficulty: UV
Dead on: Map 03
Time of death: 32:55
Kills: 78/142
Recorded with: PRBoom+

:')

IE_darthwiader_etitan.zip

cat 1 uv (never played)
dead on map03 (got lost and found a switch that killed me)
dead at 20:39
entered map03 at 14:35
76/142 kills
dsdadoom 0.26.2

 

ironeagle-2023_10_asbadagba.zip

 

video edition:

 

Blind attempt on HMP.  DNF on map 5 due to exhaustion after a two and a half hour marathon.  Looking for all the little concealed switches was a colossal waste of time in this format.

 

Great choice of mapset for an ironman format.

eagle_etitan_cnr.zip

Category 1, UV difficulty.

Survived in 1:31:56.

 

Comments:

 

Video:

 

IEetitanHMPhc.zip

Category: 1

Difficulty: HMP

Survived in 1:49:48

 

A pretty cool mapset. The six levels did all feel of-a-piece, part of one large fortress, and the architecture had enough variation to keep the limited texture palette from making things too monotonous or disorienting. I appreciate how the detailing never caused me to get snagged on anything and that the gameplay space was kept clean & functional. Progression could sometimes be a bit convoluted, but I thought it was cool how it always seemed like there was more to uncover off the critical path. I had fun with this one. Thanks for selecting it for this month!

Thank you to all the competitors who challenged themselves against Escalation Titan this month! I'm sorry for another month with a delay in posting the results, but these things happen from time to time. Nevertheless, I hope to see everyone back for the challenge in November. And bring a few friends with you, too.

 

Without further ado, here are the final standings for IronEagle 59.

 

UV

1. NaZa (Survived)
2. ginc (Survived)
3. Suitepee (Survived)
4. NoisyVelvet (Map 06)
5. Anima Zero (Map 04)
6. dt_ (Map 04)
7. Asbadagba (Map 03)
8. SCF (Map 03)
9. joe-ilya (Map 03)
10. Darth_wiader (Map 03)
11. faad3e (Map 03)
12. Horus (Map 03)
13. Vytaan (Map 03)
14. purple_ruberoid (Map 03)
15. Austinado (Map 03)

 

HMP

1. head_cannon (Survived)
2. Crusader No Regret (Map 05)
3. LadyMistDragon (Map 03)

 

HNTR

1. Andromeda (Map 03)
2. Pegleg (Map 03)