Gene-Tech: Before the Storm

Gene-Tech: Before the Storm is a single-level PK3 for GZDoom. It was made by Nigel Rowand (Enjay) and released in September 2014.

This mod is notable for only using 3D models and no sprites. It includes enemies and weapons from  and was designed as a prequel to the events of that game.

Plot
The player is a Global Defence Force (GDF) soldier tasked with infiltrating the Gene-Tech corporation, a company based on Mars that specializes in genetic manipulation and cybernetic integration and is believed to be working on new technology alongside an alien race. The GDF considers this work to be a security risk, so the soldier is instructed to discover the nature of Gene-Tech's work and neutralize any alien threat that exists by any means necessary.

As the soldier penetrates deeper into the facility, they come under attack from alien invaders that emerge from black hole generators. The soldier then learns that Gene-Tech have been working with the Strogg to acquire better technology than their competitors; the Strogg, meanwhile, have been studying how to combine their technology with human biology - having succeeded, they are using the Mars compound as a staging point to invade the rest of the solar system. After defeating a heavily-armored "tank boss", the soldier leaves the compound by dropship just as the invasion begins proper.

Blue key
Head forward through a lift and kill one or two magnum guards waiting round the corner then head through a door to a storage area. Cross the room, watching out for four closets that open to reveal security remotes, and open the door at the opposite end to confront a worker and more remotes. Head north past some scientists and magnum guards to a sliding door and open it to find an airlock leading to a chamber with green goo. Cross the bridge over the goo then turn right to go through another airlock to a storage room, before turning left and passing through a door to a room with a large lab device - there are scientists, magnum guards, shotgunners and a rocketeer in this room, and as you walk past the device some closets will open to reveal sentinels and remotes. Head north up the steps and open the door at the top.

Kill the shotgunner waiting behind the door then turn right and go down the steps to deal with remotes and a spider droid. Ride the lift in this area up (watch out for a machine gun guard that may ambush you from behind) then walk round the yellow reactor core and open the door behind it to enter a room with spider droids, as well as machine gun guards on medium or hard skill levels. Approach the lift at the north end of the room, which will lower to reveal a super shotgunner waiting on it, then ride it up and turn left to go through a small door. Turn right and kill one or two rocketeers waiting ahead then head straight forward through a door to a lab that contains several scientists and magnum guards. There is a fenced area at the north end of this room - walk round the fence to find a blue keycard on a plinth by the north wall.

Orange key
Backtrack to the room with the lab device, ready to destroy blue and red security droids waiting inside closets that have now opened, then open the blue door in this room and kill the guards waiting behind it. Pass through the door and cross the room, watching out for sentinels and remotes firing at you from behind grates, then lower the lift at the opposite end and kill a rocketeer waiting on it before riding the lift up to another computer room. On your right is a chamber containing super shotgunners guarding one of these weapons, and on your left is a room containing one or two cyber guards - go into the left-hand room, watching out for spider droids that are released behind you, then head straight forward (south) through another door to a room with storage tanks guarded by machine gunners, super shotgunners and scientists.

There is a button under the computer terminal by the south wall - press it to open a door in the previous room and reveal a mech guarding a lift. Destroy the mech then go through the door you just opened and press the switch next to the lift to lower it, kill a waiting super shotgunner then step into the lift and press the switches on your left to ride the lift up to the room above, which contains an orange door as well as workers and shotgunners. Press the switch on the south wall to open the door next to it and step through to a room with a crane; climb up the crates near the crane to find a hyperblaster then head south through a wide door to reach a circular blue corridor. Head to the west side of the corridor, killing any machine gunners and super shotgunners that get in your way, then head through the door here to get outside.

Kill the rottweilers and magnum guard in front of you then head south to a large building with two more rottweilers in front of it, as well as rocketeers on medium and hard skill levels. Open any of the doors to confront one or two mechs as well as a number of soldiers - use the door frames as cover from their attacks. After clearing the building, enter it and collect the ammo in the corners then press the button under the computer terminal in the middle of the room, which will lower the bars on the west side of the room and reveal a second terminal; press the button under the second terminal to lower the bars on the east side of the room and reveal a third terminal, then press the button under this third terminal to raise a set of stairs leading up to a walkway. Climb the stairs then turn right and follow the walkway round to the orange keycard.

When you take the keycard, the building entrance will lock and a number of Strogg soldiers armed with blasters will teleport in from the portal at the south end of the room; once most of them have been killed, several gunners and iron maidens will follow. Use the invulnerability powerup under the stairs to help you clear them out, and stand under the walkways to give yourself some cover. Once all the Strogg are killed, the doors will unlock.

Yellow key
Head back outside, ready to kill more Strogg approaching from the north-west, then return to the orange door and head through it. Kill the rottweilers and machine gunners waiting behind the door then open the next door to the north, where you will confront a mech as well as (depending on skill level) remotes or security droids. Head north into a corridor, then follow it past one or two cyber guards and open the door at the far end to face one or two spider droids. Turn left and open the door in front of you to reveal another corridor, then head west past one or two rocketeers and open the door at the end. Go down the steps and kill two or three shotgunners, then step off the lift in front of you and turn left to kill a cyber guard. Head to where it was standing and turn left again, where the passage ahead is blocked by a ceiling droid as well as one or two more cyber guards on medium or hard skill levels.

Head through the striped door in front of you and follow the brown passage past some remotes, spider droids and a machine gunner/cyber guard until you reach a large area with computer terminals. Kill the various workers, scientists and guards in this area then head down either set of stairs to the floor below where one or more cyber guards are waiting. Press the switch on the west wall between the computer terminals, then head back up the stairs - some bars have opened at the top of both staircases allowing you to use the lifts behind them. Follow the ledge round to a silver bridge and collect the yellow keycard next to it.

Green key
Go back down the stairs and approach the yellow doors in the north-west corner of the room; you can open the doors by pressing the switch between them, revealing a room guarded by a red security droid as well as shotgunners. Enter the room and press the switch in the north wall, which will open two more doors to the south but also cause more Strogg soldiers, gunners and iron maidens to teleport in. Kill them all then head through the doors behind them to enter a room with silver generators, which is guarded by some spider droids. Head to the south-west corner and approach the door here, which will open to reveal a tank; ignore it for now and focus on the Strogg which have teleported in behind you.

Once everything is dead, go through the door that the tank was hiding behind to a square blue hallway - on easy skill levels there will only be one remote, but on medium and hard you will also encounter Strogg machine gunners and blue security droids. Head round the hallway and go through the door at the west end to face one to three Strogg shotgunners who are guarding a corridor ending with a green door. As you approach the door you will see scientists being killed by Strogg machine gunners through a window - the green keycard is in that room. Open either of the north doors and kill one to three Strogg machine gunners waiting behind them, then ride the lift in this room down to a tunnel containing a tank. Kill the tank then follow the tunnel until you reach a slope.

Climb the slope slowly as a number of Strogg blaster soldiers and gunners are waiting in the room at the top. After entering the room, turn right and climb up some steps (a partial Strogg will wake up here but it cannot harm you) then turn left and open the door ahead. Ready a weapon with plenty of ammo before going round the corner, as a number of gunners and Strogg shotgunners are waiting around the corner - once they are dead, head east into another passage and go round the corner to face one or two iron maidens (gunners will also be waiting in the room on medium and hard skill levels). Turn right as soon as you enter the room and enter a passage with another door, which leads to the room containing the green keycard. Kill the Strogg machine gunners you saw earlier and take the green key, which is on the computer terminal next to a dead worker.

Finale
Leave the room by the green door in the north-west corner then turn left and open the green door you saw earlier, which has a tank waiting behind it on hard skill levels. Take the backpack and stim rush in this room then head west to confront another tank, then go down the steps and open the large door ahead to reveal a large room. The final battle will start once you enter and the door will seal behind you, so you should backtrack now to collect any missed items. Before the battle proper starts, you will need to kill three to five tanks that appear in alcoves on the north, west and south sides of the room - when they have all been killed, a platform will rise in the middle of the room to reveal the tank boss.

The boss has 6,000 health and is armed with a hyperblaster, missile launcher and rapid-fire railgun - the first two weapons can be avoided, but if the boss uses the railgun you should hide behind something to block the shots. The boss only takes one-quarter damage from the BFG9500, so using it against him is probably not worth the ammo. When the boss drops below 3,000 health a number of tank commanders will be released into the room - these behave like normal tanks but have slightly more health and faster attacks. When the boss drops below 1,000 health he will be visibly damaged, but will start firing BFG shots at you; if the boss pauses and kneels, get to cover as it means a BFG shot is incoming. There are ammo pickups in the corners of the room and the tank commanders' alcoves, as well as large ammo boxes by the exit door; there will also be an advanced armor in the north alcove on easy skill level, and an invulnerability pickup on easy and medium.

Once the boss and his commanders have been destroyed, the west exit door will be usable. Go through it and follow the road south to a dropship - approach the ship to finish the level.

Other points of interest
In the storage area near the start, head through a door in the south-west corner then follow the passage past a worker to find a rocket launcher.

From the storage area, head east through two doors to get to an outdoor area with crates and forklifts. This area has a number of enemies but also holds a backpack and shotgun.

From the circular blue hallway, head east through a blue door then turn left and pass through a second blue door to find a keg of health.

There are four side-rooms branching off the corridor north of the orange door:
 * A rocket launcher can be found in the womens' toilet.
 * The east room contains a cyber guard and several magnum guards, but also holds a basic armor and a heavy magnum.
 * The communications area contains a hyperblaster, energy cells and rockets as well as machine gunners and super shotgunners.
 * The north-west room full of Strogg crates contains a machine gun and backpack as well as armor bonuses.

Secrets

 * 1) As the level starts, enter the lift in front of you and press the buttons on your right to go to the upper floor. Press use on the computer terminal by the south wall, which will open a vent in the north-west corner of the room; if you crouch you can enter this vent and follow it down to a basic armor. (sector 1551)
 * 2) From the room with the green goo, head east into a storage area. There are square lights along the walls, but one of the lights on the west wall is not lit; open it to find a basic armor. (sector 137)
 * 3) From secret #2, head north-east into a large room with deep pits and lava (do not fall into the pits as this will be fatal). There is a thin silver girder at the north end of this room; carefully walk along it until you reach the wall then open it to reveal a computer terminal, which will lower a metal fence at the south end of the room with a cross-shaped shaft behind it. Enter the shaft to find an advanced armor. (sector 1060)
 * 4) Opposite secret #3 is a computer panel under a fan; interact with it to reveal a button that will lower a second fence near the silver girder you crossed earlier. Step past this fence to enter a second cross-shaped shaft then jump up some blocks to pass through a broken fan; you will find a keg of health behind it. (sector 2441)
 * 5) Leave the pit room by the north door then turn left and head up some steps to find four computer terminals. One of the terminals by the north wall has a yellow glow; press use on it then go back down the steps. A wall on your left has lowered to reveal a stim rush. (sector 1)
 * 6) Go up the lift next to secret #5 then press use on the computer terminal by the west wall. This will lower a tech panel on the east wall revealing a backpack. (sector 411)
 * 7) Go through the blue door in the room with the lab device. There is an opening in the north wall between two grates that has a wall with a blue light; press use on this wall then go to a second opening in the south wall. You can step past a wall that has lowered here to find a heavy magnum. (sector 265)
 * 8) From the lift leading to the orange door room, head due east until you pass through a door to a chamber with a laser forcefield. Press use on the computer terminal in the north-west corner (its screen will turn off) then go back through the door. A computer screen embedded in the north wall has lowered to reveal an advanced armor. (sector 4701)
 * 9) From the orange door room, head south to enter another room with a crane. Open the vent hatch in the south-east corner then follow the vent down to a health pack and a passage leading back to an earlier part of the level. (sector 4782)
 * 10) Climb up to the walkway in the portal room. In the south-east corner is a circular silver hatch; press use on the black wall between this hatch and the portal to open it, revealing a railgun and two slugs. (sector 4707)
 * 11) After clearing out the Strogg in the portal room, leave it and head north through a door leading to a circular blue corridor. In the middle of this corridor is a square structure with computer panels; look at the north side of this structure to see that a panel has opened to reveal a lift; ride the lift up to find a BFG9500 and energy cells. (sector 1208)
 * 12) South-east of the communications area (with the satellite dish outside) is a second room with a basic armor and heavy magnum. There is a square blue light on the north wall; open it to find a stim rush. (sector 4762)
 * 13) Under the bridge with the yellow key is a hole in the wall. Open the tech panel opposite this hole to find a computer area map. (sector 4699)
 * 14) Pressing the switch behind the yellow doors will open a room containing large silver generators. On the west wall is a blue computer panel; press use on it to open two more panels on either side hiding a railgun and an invulnerability. (sector 4768)
 * 15) Between the items in secret #14 is a wall with a vent grille on it; open this wall to find a computer terminal with a ' logo on it. (sector 4839''') Interacting with the terminal will reveal a blue security droid in front of you guarding a health pack and energy cells, and open two closets behind you containing slugs.
 * 16) Just before the green door hallway is a square blue room with four alcoves. Open the back wall of the west alcove (it does not have an orange stripe on it) to reveal a megasphere. (sector 2981)

Bugs
A point light (Thing 1313) has no flags set for any of the three difficulty classes, so it does not actually appear in the level.

Current records
The records for the map at the Doomed Speed Demos Archive are:

Player spawns
This level contains four spawn points:
 * 1) facing north. (thing 137)
 * 2) facing north. (thing 138)
 * 3) facing north. (thing 139)
 * 4) facing north. (thing 140)

Things
This level contains the following numbers of things per skill level: