MAP15: Last Resort (Requiem)

MAP15: Last Resort is the fifteenth map of Requiem. It was designed by Matthias Worch, and uses a music track by Jeremy Doyle.

This level contains a secret exit leading to MAP31: Doorway to Quake.

Description
According to both the text file and the Requiem info pack:


 * A rather large level combining hellish and city-like architecture. Don't kill every monster in sight if you want to reach the secret levels...;)

Essentials

 * Normal exit:

Once the level begins, shoot any of the marble faces to open them all at once. After this, shoot the western switch to open the cage you are in. Go through the west door, and run to the staircase at the southwest of the courtyard. Climb the stairs, enter the central building, and press the switch at the south to open the bars at the east; be aware, however, that this will also release some enemies nearby. At the south end of the courtyard, go through the southern door, and grab the blue key. You will be shunted up to the next floor. Open the west door, jump down, and press the east switch to raise a stairway to the west. Open the door at the apex, climb the stairway, and press the switch at the southeast of the room to raise a bridge back to the east hall. Reenter the hall to find that a door has opened at the east end. Go downstairs, open the door at the foot of the stairs, and exit the building. Backtrack to the north of the courtyard, and go through either one of the blue key-locked doors. The following things must be done, but can be done in whatever order one wishes:


 * At the west of the building, open the east door to enter the monster cage. Look at the northeast of the room beyond the cage bars to see that part of the pillar has skulls with glowing eyes on it. Shoot this wall to open the bars in the northeast.
 * At the east of the building, open the west door and go inside the monster cage. Look to the northwest of the room behind the cage bars to find a wall with skulls that have glowing eyes on it. Shoot it to raise a lift in the northeast.
 * At the southwest of the building is a brown, brick room. Press the satyr face at the west to open an alcove with another switch. Press this switch to raise a staircase to the switch in the northeast of the room. Press this switch, and go to the northwest of the building to find that the set of bars at this location have been opened. Go through the next hallway, and open the door. Press the switch in the southwest of the next room to open the bars at the north, jump down, and hit the northern switch. Kill the mancubus in the alcove that opens, and hit the western switch to both raise stairways back to the upper floor, and lower the bars surrounding the red key in the eastern cavern.

Once you do these things, go to the northeast of the building and use the lift. Run through the passageway into a cavern, and head all the way east. From there, you can go to the north and south sides of the cavern in any order. At the south, look through the window of the central building to find a skull switch. Shoot it to open two of the four bars at the east; enemies will teleport to the south of the building and inside the eastern tunnel. At the north, look through the northern window of the building to find a skull switch, and shoot it to open the other two bars at the east; the walls will open around you, and enemies will teleport in. Press the western switch to open the bars that surround the room, allowing you to escape. Once the bars at the east are opened, enter the building, rush west, and grab the yellow key. A set of bars will lower around the outer edges, and Demons will begin teleporting into the building. Fend them off for 30 seconds until the cage bars open, and then jump down.

Backtrack to the northern half of the courtyard, and head through the yellow key-locked door. Go north to the lava cavern, run across the steps, and open the door. Grab the red key, and backtrack to the southern half of the courtyard. Open the red door at the west, and head west until alcoves open to the north and south, revealing mancubi. Kill the mancubi, and push the switch in the southern alcove to open the exit door. Kill the Hell Knight inside, and hit the switch.


 * Secret exit:

Once the level starts, shoot any of the marble faces to open them all simultaneously. After doing this, shoot the western switch to open the cage you are in. Go through the west door, and run to the staircase at the southwest of the courtyard. Climb the stairway, enter the central building, and press the switch at the south to open the bars at the east; be aware, however, that this will also release some enemies close by. At the south end of the courtyard, go through the southern door, and grab the blue key. You will be brought to the top floor. Open the west door, leap down, and press the east switch to raise a stairway to the west. Open the door at the apex, climb the staircase, and press the switch at the southeast of the room to raise a bridge back to the east hall. Reenter the hall to find that a door has opened at the east end. Go downstairs, open the door at the foot of the stairway, and exit the building. Backtrack to the north of the courtyard, and go through either one of the blue key-locked doors. The following things must be done, but can be done in whatever order one wishes:


 * At the west of the building, open the east door to enter the monster cage. Look at the northeast of the room beyond the cage bars to see that part of the pillar has skulls with glowing eyes on it. Shoot this wall to open the bars in the northeast.
 * At the east of the building, open the west door and go inside the monster cage. Look to the northwest of the room behind the cage bars to find a wall with skulls that have glowing eyes on it. Shoot it to raise a lift in the northeast.
 * At the southwest of the building is a brown, brick room. Press the satyr face at the west to open an alcove with another switch. Press this switch to raise a staircase to the switch in the northeast of the room. Press this switch, and go to the northwest of the building to find that the set of bars at this location have been opened. Go through the next hallway, and open the door. Press the switch in the southwest of the next room to open the bars at the north, jump down, and hit the northern switch. Kill the mancubus in the alcove that opens, and hit the western switch to both raise stairways back to the upper floor, and lower the bars surrounding the red key in the eastern cavern.

Once you do these things, go to the northeast of the building and use the lift. Run through the passageway into a cavern, and head all the way east. From there, you can go to the north and south sides of the cavern in any order. At the south, look through the window of the central building to find a skull switch. Shoot it to open two of the four bars at the east; enemies will teleport to the south of the building and inside the eastern tunnel. At the north, look through the northern window of the building to find a skull switch, and shoot it to open the other two bars at the east; the walls will open around you, and enemies will teleport in. Press the western switch to open the bars that surround the room, allowing you to escape. Once the bars at the east are opened, enter the building, rush west, and grab the yellow key. A set of bars will lower around the outer edges, and Demons will begin teleporting into the building. Fend them off for 30 seconds until the cage bars open, and then jump down.

Backtrack to the northern half of the courtyard, and head through the yellow key-locked door. Go north to the lava cavern, run across the steps, and open the door. Grab the red key, then push on the center of the marble face behind the key to reveal a switch. Press the switch, and then return to the northern half of the courtyard, but beware of the rapidly teleporting Demons at this spot. Look to the south to find that the bars blocking access to the megasphere have been opened. Grab the megasphere, and attempt to step off; you will be teleported into a room at the south of the map with an Arch-Vile and a very large gap. Behind the gap is an exit door. Let the Arch-Vile initiate his fire attack against you, and then run toward the gap just before the blast occurs. If this is done correctly, the Arch-Vile's attack will launch you across the seemingly insurmountable gap to the exit door. If you mess up and fall into the gap, enter the teleporter in the eastern passage to try again. Once you make it, open the door and hit the switch.

Secrets

 * 1) After raising the stairs in the room west of the blue key, open the door at the apex, and walk all the way into the next room to trigger a lift in the alcove at the north of the previous room.  Enter the lift before it rises to find security armor and a cell. (sector 559)
 * 2) On the north of the spiral staircase at the southwest of the map, the light given off by the lantern does not have fading at its edges, unlike the others.  Press on the lantern to open a compartment containing a berserk pack. (sector 619)
 * 3) At the switch that lowers the bars around the red key, there is a misaligned wall at the south.  Open it to find a secret passageway.  Look to where the northern switch was, which now has a different switch in its place.  Use that switch to raise a staircase in the passageway.  Climb the stairs to find security armor. (sector 511)
 * 4) At the top floor in the room east of secret #3, there is a pedestal with skulls on each side.  One of the skulls has glowing blue eyes.  Press on this side of the pedestal, and enter secret #3 to find a compartment with a switch. (sector 521) Press the switch to create an arrow north of the red key, pointing to the secret switch enabling access to the megasphere.
 * 5) At the northeast cavern east of the yellow key, part of the west wall is bordered by metal.  It can be opened to reveal two Spectres, a set of shells, and two medikits. (sector 571)
 * 6) At the north of the lava pool, behind the building the red key is stored in, you can find a radiation suit and combat armor.  Step into the space they are in to obtain this secret. (sector 529)
 * 7) The platform in front of the secret exit door counts as a secret. (sector 553)

Bugs
Because of the large number of Things in this level, attempting to save your game in vanilla Doom II on this level will cause the program to crash.

Two Lost Souls (things 211 and 212) on your way to the switch opening the red key bars are placed in sectors (474 and 475, respectively) whose sector heights are too small for them to fit in (48, whereas Lost Souls have a height of 56,) rendering them immobile and helpless. In contrast, the southernmost Lost Soul (thing 210) is in a sector (473) with a sector height of 56, and can thus move.

Because it requires the presence of an Arch-Vile, you cannot reach the secret exit in no monsters mode unless the noclip cheat is used.

Current records
The Compet-N records for the map are:

The data was last verified in its entirety on May 25, 2013.

Map data
* The vertex count without the effect of node building is 3241.