E1M6: The Cathedral (Heretic)

E1M6: The Cathedral is the sixth level in the City of the Damned episode of Heretic. This level contains a secret exit leading to E1M9: The Graveyard.

Essentials
You start out facing a set of pews, with the yellow key immediately behind you but above your reach. Turn right and follow the curving stairs to the window above the starting point. This will lower the yellow key and open an ambush. Grab the key and head down the aisle, passing around the grey stone wall when you reach it. Head up the stairs and pass through the yellow door to enter the central area of the level. Turn right and press the switch, then turn around and run over to the platform that lowers. Ride it up and follow the passage to collect the Ethereal Crossbow. Now go to the easternmost grey structure in the central room. Pull the switch to lower it, then ride up and pass through the door into a room with many stained glass windows. An ambush triggers as you enter this room. Collect the Dragon Claw and head through the door opposite the one you came in from. You will find yourself in a room containing barrels and an altar. This appears to be a dead end, but if you search the southeastern wall, you will see a section that is out of alignment. Open this hidden door and head up the stairs to run over the altar. A section of the floor will lower temporarily. Go through the passage that is revealed and follow it to a graveyard with a large tomb in the center. Enter the tomb and locate a corner with a flashing light. Open the west wall of this corner and make a U-turn to the right as you pass through to find a switch. Pull the switch to raise the stairs near the green door, then go through the teleport to find yourself on top of the coffin. As you walk away from the coffin, a section of the roof will fall in, revealing monsters and the green key. Take the key and exit the building the way you came in, going straight ahead through the demon face door to find yourself in the central room again. Head straight across and up the stairs to the green door and pass through. Make a wide U-turn to the right to find a corridor with grey stone walls and wooden supports. Head down the corridor to find a switch next to a platform overlooking the central room. Pull the switch and cross to the northeast corner of the room, where you will find that the previously blocked switch has been made accessible. Pull it to open the central structure in the room, revealing the exit.

Secrets

 * 1) At the start of the level, turn around and press the left-hand carving of a robed man to reveal a chamber containing the  Gauntlets of the Necromancer. The other carving will raise when you take them, releasing a monster. (sector 214)
 * 2) Enter the second chamber that opens when you get the above secret for another credit. (sector 193)
 * 3) In the room with many stained glass windows, one of the windows to the north is a fake wall. The sides of it are marked by hanging skulls. Pass through it to collect a Tome of Power. This chamber is also accessible via a teleport found through the door straight ahead from the green door. (sector 258)
 * 4) In the room with many stained glass windows, one of the windows to the south is a secret door. The sides of it are also marked by hanging skulls. Pass through to reach an area with Timebombs of the Ancients. (sector 2)
 * 5) In the northwest corner of the room with many stained glass windows, there is a secret door concealing a Map Scroll. (sector 282)
 * 6) In the graveyard area, you will find a black demon face door to the northwest. Open it and pass through the teleport to collect a Morph Ovum hidden near the starting point. (sector 187)
 * 7) Outside the building in the graveyard area, locate a wall on the west side that is unaligned from the rest. This secret door conceals a Shadowsphere. (sector 248)
 * 8) Secret Exit: Open the exit portal, but do not exit. Go through the green door and head to the grey stone corridor. A passage will have opened in the side wall. Pass through and head to the south of the area to find a switch. Pull it to open the sealed door nearby and pass through to find the secret exit. (sector 47)

Bugs
The hidden stairs behind the altar room lack upper textures. The numbers of the erroneous sidedefs are 732, 734, 736, 738 and 740.

Due to an anomaly in the level's REJECT table, if the player is standing in sector 95 (the sector touching the western edge of the yellow door), monsters in the large room on the other side of the door will be unable to see them. This is most noticeable immediately after opening the yellow door, as several monsters in plain view of and facing the player will not wake up until the player either moves through the door frame, or steps backward into sector 94, or makes a sound. Additionally, the two Undead Warriors on the central platform cannot use ranged attacks against the player.

Current records
The records for the map at the Doom Speed Demo Archive are:

The data was last verified in its entirety on February 23, 2023.

Player spawns
This level contains four spawn points:
 * 1) facing south. (thing 155)
 * 2) facing east. (thing 156)
 * 3) facing south. (thing 157)
 * 4) facing east. (thing 158)

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