The DWIronman League dies to: Scythe

[Bashe]

I became too interested in rushing and got owned on map11. I really should have spent time clearing that room out beforehand.

 

Category 2

[Crusader No Regret]

Type 1: Never played the set before despite all the reverence heaped upon the .wad.  What got me to attempt this is actually the death exits.  I was all set to record separate sessions if I happened to reach one and let the judges decide if it warrants a disqualification, only counting the first demo, or some other result.

 

    This proved to be an unused step as I couldn't get a handle on the spiders in map 7 and had an ordinary death there.  At least it was over quick, mostly blowing through maps in under 5 minutes apiece.

dwiron_scythe_cnr.zip

[Spectre01]

39 minutes ago, Crusader No Regret said:

This proved to be an unused step as I couldn't get a handle on the spiders in map 7 and had an ordinary death there.

Looks like Deadly is living up to its name during this Ironman. ;)

[Forli]

I finally got over my laziness and learned how to record demos on prboom, I hope I did this right.

 

http://www.mediafire.com/file/twxx2nlqg0zqshv/forli_im_scythe.zip/file

 

I played this some time ago but I remember nothing now, I guess that's cat 2.

I died on map 32, I did not want to do the secret maps, I got there by accident... .

[Horus]

6 minutes ago, Forli said:

I died on map 32

 

That's precisely why I did the secret level but not the super secret level, I had a feeling I would die on map 32 if I got there

[Havoc Crow]

https://www.mediafire.com/file/qvm0x2b3d5t705m/DWIronman_scythe_JudgeDeadd-1.lmp/file

 

Died on MAP06. I noticed some wall textures scrolling strangely and I stopped to look. Turned out, that was a crusher.

Category 1.

[Vince Vega]

Oh Scythe... So much love, so much time spent together.

The first time I played and pistol-start UV-Maxed it was Summer'14, 5.5 years ago. Since then, I UV-Maxed it, UV-Speeded it, played it, recorded crappy MAP30 UV-Max TAS run for it (which was beaten later by @Ancalagon non-TAS lol), etc. etc...

 

When I saw "The DWIronman League dies to: Scythe" title and the post from @Alfonzo that he will no longer host this series, I was sure: this deserves the Perfect Shining Prepared Survival.

And oh well, I just ran out of time (mainly in preparation for my big "new year" European tour). So I've recorded the first and the only attempt last night. 

 

I also wanted to mention (for no reason lol) that not only Scythe happened to me 5.5 years ago. There also was my first big true love (I mean girl lol). These two created their own unique and beautiful memory cell in my mind.

So, I was barely fighting with the overwhelming feral nostalgia during the entire run. When I've heard the Starport midi, I thought I would die from a heart attack.

 

I'd name it a rather decent one to show (most of) my love. Several rocket-to-the-face moments: check. A fuckload of luck: check. 3% health near an Arch-Vile: check.

The demo ends up at 1:26:24 on the intermission screen between MAP23 and MAP24. I knew that MAP24 would likely kill me, so I ended it on a major note.

BTW, I've Arch-jumped the entire MAP23 like a pro-pussy. You can not consider it as completed if you wish lol.

 

Category "Love You to Death".

 

dwiscyth.zip

 

@Alfonzo, thank you so much for all. I'm sure @NaZa will keep our Steel Legion strong.

 

Edited December 29, 2019 by Vince Vega

[antares031]

Category 3. I beat this wad a long ago, and I watched the whole UV-Max demo playlist of the wad, to recall the memories about useful tips and secrets, before I start the attempt. Scythe is packed with small, but really fun actions throughout the wad. And its difficulty suddenly pops up, once you enter the last hell episode. That being said, the first 20 levels were focused on UV-Max style gameplay, while the levels from the last episode were focused on survival from the lack of resources and tricky encounters.

 

Died on MAP24 : ironman_anta_scythe.zip

[Steve D]

I think I played Map01 sometime a few years ago, but I'm calling this a blind run since it wasn't really familiar to me, and I didn't recognize any of the other maps, apart from the very end of Map07 when I popped into Suitepee's stream. But if it's really a Cat 2, so be it. No time for a prepared run, alas, so this is my only submission this month.

 

Pure keyboarding all the way, as usual, in what amounts to scaredy-cat mode. ;)

 

My pelt was harvested by a bunch of mean spiders on Map07. What a doofus death. If I had been ready with the RL and fired off a few rockets right away, I bet I'd have survived. Here is the proof of my abject failure; Steve Dies To Scythe

 

I'm pissed off enough about that Map07 death to want another run at it, so I'll try finding some time in the next few months for the attempt, Ironman style. No recording, I'll play on GZDoom for its superior keyboard response.

 

These are clever little maps which combine being easy yet mean-spirited in interesting ways. Nearly died on the chaingun map not once but twice thanks to brain-farting all that nukage. I would have laughed bitterly at myself if I had melted in a pain sector. ;D  The maps weren't as well polished as I'd expected, with numerous texture misalignments. I was also surprised by the relatively large number of Block Monster lines. But it was a fun ride while it lasted thanks to punchy, exceptionally well designed gameplay. Another surprise was the tight ammo balance that clearly showed great effort to prevent continuers from coming in armed like an infantry brigade. I had counted on building up my health and ammo from map-to-map, but so much for that idea. :D  I always felt vulnerable at the start of every level. Thus, I was thankful for the old-school placement of 1 or 2 Medikits at the end of each map. I needed the healing.

 

Last but not least, I'd like to say "Thank you" to @NaZa for his apology re: his comments on Abcess. I sort of didn't want to say anything beyond giving his comments a like, especially because I wasn't bothered by his comments. I realize my gameplay approach is not universally appealing, in fact, it's probably niche -- and just wait until you see what's in the pipeline ;) -- but I thought it was very classy of @NaZa to make that apology after he gave the maps a second go and liked them a bit better. It's a cool thing to do and I really appreciate it. :) 

 

[Spectre01]

43 minutes ago, Steve D said:

Pure keyboarding all the way, as usual, in what amounts to scaredy-cat mode. ;)

I imagine 28 would've been a struggle keyboard-only. As per the text file: "Map28 - Run from it - hard, keep running or you'll die. UV not recommended for keyboarders." ;)

 

On the topic of continuous balance, I feel it's something the Scythe series always excelled at - through appropriate use of death exits combined with moderate resources. It doesn't feel like you're overpowered for any given map, with the exception of 27 and 29 where the difference between continuous and pistol starts is most noticeable.  

[Steve D]

47 minutes ago, Spectre01 said:

I imagine 28 would've been a struggle keyboard-only. As per the text file: "Map28 - Run from it - hard, keep running or you'll die. UV not recommended for keyboarders." ;) 

 

I have no doubt I would die in Map28. I never imagined I'd survive into the Hell maps. I'd have considered 10 maps a good showing.

 

That said, there are keyboarders, and then there are keyboarders. I fall into the first category, while SAV88 falls into the latter -- the Keyboarder Doom Gods. I'm guessing he could survive Map28, and I'm sure he's familiar with it.

 

Good points on the modest resources and death exits. I'm planning to have death exits on every 5th map in one of my projects. That way I can avoid having to go for insane levels of difficulty in the final 2 episodes. I don't think I could possibly manage Erik Alm's pinpoint precision for the continuous balance, though. That's rare, and takes a lot of effort.

[NaZa]

This is basically a goodbye to an era, so I thought it'd be fitting to run through this year's Top 10 in my rankings (which will be purely "cosmetic" next year, don't worry, not fully official) and see the improvements if they were made over the years. Then I'll state my plans below.

 

10th -  @an_mutt. This could've very easily been dt_, had they even participated in Scythe, as they were only 0,030 points behind mutt. (SSGmaster was also very close). Despite not participating in the final three months, mutt had a lot of confident runs, namely those of Fomalhaut, Revolution and their own 2017 Collection, to just hold onto 10th in what could've been a Top 5 contention. Low point was the SIGIL run but other than that mutt's been very consistent, the only score out of the 70's (barring SIGIL) being their victory. 

 

9th - @ReaperAA. Truly deserved and basically an inverse mutt. Hadn't participated at all in the first three months and then went on a rampage, having an average score comparable to our Top 3. High point would be, in my opinion, their run of Abcess, where they blindly managed to score a very quick survival, beating the likes of top tier Beginner and antares031 on the way. While the death in Vanguard stopped a very promising run after a Lunatic survival, ReaperAA did everything well, hopefully showing off their full-year pace this year.

 

8th - @Anima Zero. Veteran Ironman. With only one survival the least "green" player in the Top 10, but ironically enough, said survival is one of their lower scores this year. Continues the trend of placing very well in slaughter sets, achieving their result of the year in Stardate. Results fell off after the halfway mark, although the freak accident in Monster Hunter likely stopped a well-placing run. Either way, a good year for Anima who is now the only player, along with Wilou, to finish in the Top 10 every year.

 

7th - @Vince Vega. Built up on their last year score and claimed four survivals, the big one being Base Ganymede where they would've won if Krypto was excluded from the equation. Besides those, this month's Scythe performance also warrants a mention, as it's their second highest-scoring performance of the year, or at least tied with Fomalhaut. A very solid year, I must say. Primarily because most of the runs were blind.

 

6th - @WH-Wilou84. Uncharacteristic, as this is the only year Wilou failed to finish in the Top 5 as well as it being the end of a streak of participating all the way since Jenesis in July 2016. Was in primary contention for a victory until yet another freak accident in Monster Hunter, after which antares emerged as a favorite. Has not participated since. Too bad, as the already good fight for "Victory Royale" would've been much more tense, especially as I humbly expected a survival in both of these challenges.

 

5th - @NaZa. This is probably peak egoism so I won't delve into much detail about myself, just saying how hard I suck at slaughter maps and how satisfied I am with Revolution whom I've enjoyed all the times I've played it. Only two survivals, comfortably least out of the Top 5. Next.

 

4th - @leodoom85. Remember last year how I said Leo deserved a Top 5? He achieved it, but I still feel like he deserved Top 3 this year. Had the poor performances at Fomalhaut and Abcess been that one bit better, we'd likely have seen a fifth contender for the Victory Royale, alongside aforementioned Wilou and the Top 3. Won SIGIL which is a very impressive feat, also doing well at Vanguard and Hellfire: Dreams. Maybe next year I'll say Leo deserved to win if they're second, but we'll see about that. If they continue to steadily improve I wouldn't be surprised to see a new Winner.

 

3rd - @Beginner. I'm unsure how to classify this. Arguably one of the least consistent Top 10 finishers (pardon me for saying that, it sounds a bit... hypocritical), scoring sublimely well with their six survivals this year (most out of any!), however following them with minor slip-ups at Stardate, SIGIL and Monster Hunter. While those slip-ups are still good scores (around 50,000 each), when it racks up, you have about 50,000 lost points which would've been enough to challenge for the Winner spot. Still, if Beginner plays exclusively with only a keyboard, then that's a world-class result to be in the Top 3 for two years in a row with only a keyboard. Nice job!

 

2nd - @Bdubzzz. The only repeat winner after Bloodite's departure. Has five survivals. Doesn't have a score under 62,000. Has the highest average score from performances all year. So how come they're not first, I hear you ask. Well, the answer is simple - they haven't participated in January. Missed first place by only cca 16,000 points which is by far the lowest margin in Ironman so far. Playing with a gutsy and quick playstyle enables them to place fairly high even if they die without reaching the exit, such was the case with Abcess for instance, or even TVR. Nevertheless, we have yet another candidate for next year's Winner.

 

1st - @antares031. To be fair, a surprising Winner and probably nobody's pick for next winner after Bloodite's departure. Due to the great opening-year stretch, assumed the leader's position after Krypto ragequit, and despite increasing pressure from Wilou and then Bdubzzz, overcame all odds to become a Winner while having not won any monthly competition at all. When you take SIGIL and Monster Hunter (a lot of the Top 10, seemingly, have had issues with these two sets) out of the account, antares never scored less than 80,000, which is a very impressive statistic. Survived four sets this year as well. Nevertheless, surprising or not, antares is our Winner this year thanks to their consistency. Hats off!

 

Now then, for the plans.

• The thread will likely be up in the next three hours or so, not more, not less.
• The chosen set won't be anything extreme yet as I don't really want to kill everyone off in the first month.
• I'll switch to a new spreadsheet now, as it's technically a "new era" and stuff. It will have its own alltime sheet and a final full "alltime alltime" sheet, lol. Table will likely be updated as real-time as possible. Again, it won't be fully "official" per se, but it's a good guideline as you can see in which sets you've played worse, played better, how you died to practice that et cetera. I find it very useful myself as it told me I'm good at familiar ground and bad at absolutely anything slaughter. 
• Also, please don't expect my obituaries to be as funny as Alfonzo's. It's best you lower your expectations now and then you won't be underwhelmed, as I lack that kind of humor. Apologies if they won't be nice.

Anyway, hope y'all are there for the new year of Ironman. It's time to die, just a little.

[dt_]

I managed to get my run done yesterday, will not get time to post it until later (bit of a crap run mind, only got to map11) 

[Beginner]

6 hours ago, NaZa said:

if Beginner plays exclusively with only a keyboard, then that's a world-class result to be in the Top 3 for two years in a row with only a keyboard.

Just so you know, I've been submitting keyboard runs from August '18 (Plutonia) until July '19 (Vanguard/Lunatic). The rest of the runs (with the exception of Abcess) were done with keyboard&mouse.

[dt_]

I'm a year out

 

 

Cat 2, but I found myself not remembering anything at all except the first map

 

new year's resolution to be more punctual with posting runs