Taras Nabad

Taras Nabad is the ninth level of Doom Eternal. After learning of the Khan Maykr's plan to resurrect the Icon of Sin and unleash it on Earth, the Doom Slayer travels to Taras Nabad to retrieve the Slayer's Crucible, the only weapon capable of killing a Titan.

Taras Nabad is home to the divinity machine, which was used by Samur Maykr to empower the Slayer during an attack by Hell's forces; following this empowerment, the Slayer took up the Crucible and used it to fell a Titan that was leading the attack. After locating the Titan's body, the Slayer breaks off the hilt of the Crucible but leaves the blade embedded in the Titan to avoid resurrecting it; he then travels to a fortified structure known as "the vault" to acquire the components needed to forge a new blade.

The arch-vile is introduced in this level.

"With the death of her Priests, the Blood Ritual has been broken. The Khan Maykr, desperate for a way to consume Earth, is attempting to resurrect the Icon of Sin under her command. Only the Slayer's Crucible blade can stop the Icon. To retrieve it you must journey back into your past, to the city of Taras Nabad - where your legend began."

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Lore
Described as the crown jewel of Argent D'Nur, Taras Nabad was home to the royal family as well as being the center of Argent political power. Monuments to gods and kings were present on every avenue, and rural Argenta would often come to Taras Nabad on pilgrimage to the Maykr temples. The city was the location for the first demonic attack on Argent D'Nur, during which the Doom Slayer was empowered by the Divinity Machine and subsequently slew the Titan that led the attack, marking the beginning of his legend.

Master Level
A Master Level version of this mission was released with Update 6 on, which makes a number of changes to significantly increase the level's difficulty:
 * The number and variety of monsters is greatly increased, including many more super heavy demons such as tyrants, arch-viles, marauders and Doom hunters.
 * Collectibles, challenges, secret encounters and the Demonic Corruption meter are removed, along with the automap station and the Slayer Key.
 * Elements from The Ancient Gods, Part One, including whiplash spectres and heavy fog, are used at certain points in the level.
 * Several arenas have additional hazards including electrified floors and laser beams.
 * The Slayer Gate is removed, and the gore nest behind it is replaced with spirit armor. After taking this item the player will have to battle two Doom hunters - success is rewarded with an extra life.
 * Most of the Crucible charges are removed from the final arena. The final battle sees the player being teleported to previously-visited areas to battle more monsters.
 * Ten challenges are introduced which require the player to complete the level at different difficulties, including Ultra-Nightmare. The "Classic Mode" introduced with the Super Gore Nest is retained here, where the player starts with an unmodified combat shotgun (plus all auxiliary weapons) and must collect more weapons and modifications as they progress. Each individual challenge has its own cosmetic item unlock, and completing all ten challenges unlocks a teal skin for the heavy cannon.

Trivia
The ambient music for this level (which plays when not in combat) includes notes from "Sign of Evil", used in Doom's E1M8: Phobos Anomaly.