E2M7: Spawning Vats (Doom)

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Revision as of 16:35, 5 March 2015 by Quasar (talk | contribs) (Bugs: ALL versions of the map have the flag bits set, which causes problems for source ports. And not just apparently; there was never any purpose to it.)


Ultimate Doom maps
Knee-Deep in the Dead

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

Inferno

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

Thy Flesh Consumed

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

This level occupies the map slot E2M7. For other maps which occupy this slot, see Category:E2M7.

E2M7: Spawning Vats is the seventh map of The Shores of Hell in Doom. E2M7 was the first level started for Doom, and early versions appear as E1M1 of Doom 0.4 and E1M11 of Doom 0.5. It was designed by Tom Hall and Sandy Petersen and it uses the music track "Waltz of the Demons." The par time is 4:00.

As the last of the levels representing man-made complexes, Spawning Vats is in effect an amalgamation of all previous bases, including a container warehouse and a computer complex.

Strategy

Map of E2M7

Walkthrough

At least on ultra-violence and easier, if you warp in and start with the fist and pistol, avoid fighting the demons in that room where you start out. Instead, dodge them and run to the right (west) corridor, which will bring you to the room with the blue key door. There, you can dispatch a sergeant to get his shotgun, pickup a box of shotgun shells, and then take down the two demons easily. Do not continue past the blue key door room yet, as you do not have the ammo to deal with the tougher monsters yet.

Beware of the door that closes behind you when you enter the descending stairs to the crate room (warehouse). Before you step on the stairs, use a couple fist punches to alert some demons, which you can dispatch before getting trapped. Getting the berserk will allow you the dispatch the rest of the demons easily. Save the invulnerability for taking on the baron and cacodemons outside, where you can save ammo by using the berserk fist.

Be careful when you go through the yellow key door, as there are a large number of imps behind it and they will have been alerted to your presence, since that area is connected to the outside where you fought the baron and cacodemons. Also avoid the middle trench of the hallways which are illuminated by blue lights, since these will reduce your health.

Secrets

  1. In the hall connecting the warehouse and the outdoor area in the east, climb the small staircase leading to a small control room. Follow another set of stairs down to a switch. Flip it to open a secret room behind you.
  2. In the corridor lined with hemi-cylindrical "vats" in the west, there's a narrow opening between two of the vats on the west wall that leads outside.
  3. At the north end of secret 2 is a switch on the wall. Flip it to open another secret area.
  4. In the room in the southwest with several small slime pools in alcoves. In one of these alcoves is a small tunnel leading to a rocket launcher and a teleporter.
  5. After getting the red keycard, go through the teleporter in secret 4. Open the red door and flip the switch behind it.
  6. After flipping the switch in secret 5, as well as the switch behind the blue door, go all the way back to the starting room. A nook holding a soul sphere and a bulk cell will be accessible.

Bugs

  • Two "hanging leg" decorations (Things 192 and 193) and an energy cell (Thing 99) have no flags set for any of the difficulty classes, so they do not actually appear in the level.
  • In this level it is possible to trigger an example of the Tutti-frutti effect. Upon entering the crate room, a door closes behind the player. The door consists of two sectors. By blocking the second sector, it is possible for one sector to be closed while the other remains open. A short texture which does not vertically tile is used for the linedef between the sectors: as a result, the tutti-frutti effect appears.
  • All versions of this map have several linedefs with flag bits 9-15 set, which had no function.
  • In the southeast courtyard with the two small nukage pools, two corpses hang from the ceiling despite it being open sky.
  • Linedef 1286 (just in front of the south side of the yellow door), lacks a lower texture causing a small HOM effect.
  • A Reject table blindspot causes the demon behind the blue key door to not see the player in front of the door.

Areas / screenshots

Speedrunning

Routes and tricks

Current records

The Compet-N records for the map are:

Run Time Player Date File Notes
UV speed 00:15 Drew DeVore (stx-Vile) 2005-04-22 e2m7-015.zip
NM speed 00:17 Drew DeVore (stx-Vile) 2005-04-21 n2m7-017.zip
UV max 03:44 Radek Pecka 2002-09-27 e2m7-344.zip
NM100S 02:24 Radek Pecka 2002-09-26 n2s7-224.zip
UV -fast 04:12 Radek Pecka 2002-03-24 f2m7-412.zip
UV -respawn 03:36 Radek Pecka 2000-11-14 r2m7-336.zip
UV Tyson 03:51 Radek Pecka 2004-01-30 t2m7-351.zip
UV pacifist 00:19 Jonathan Rimmer 2001-11-10 p2m7-019.zip

The data was last verified in its entirety on November 17, 2012.

Statistics

Map data

Things 235
Vertices 1626*
Linedefs 1764
Sidedefs 2252
Sectors 323

* The vertex count without the effect of node building is 1451.

Things

Monsters ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Sergeants 3 4 4
Spectres 0 1 5
Imps 40 41 46
Demons 18 26 33
Barons of Hell 1 1 2
Cacodemons 2 5 5
Powerups ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Backpacks 1 1 1
Stim packs 16 16 16
Medikits 5 5 5
Soul spheres 1 1 1
Health bonuses 9 9 9
Armor bonuses 12 12 12
Green armors 1 1 1
Blue armors 1 1 1
Invulnerabilities 2 2 2
Berserks 1 1 1
Invisibilities 1 1 1
Automaps 1 1 1
Weapons ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Chainguns 1 1 1
Rocket launchers 1 1 1
Plasma guns 1 1 1
Chainsaws 1 1 1
Ammunition ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Bulk Cells 2 2 2
Ammo clips 16 16 16
Shells 6 6 6
Rockets 2 2 2
Energy cells 3 3 3
Ammo boxes 3 3 3
Shell boxes 6 6 6
Keys ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Blue cards 1 1 1
Yellow cards 1 1 1
Red cards 1 1 1
Barrels ITYTD and HNTR HMP UV and NM
Exploding barrels 1 1 1

Trivia

  • Spawning Vats is the final level for the 32X version of Doom.
  • Spawning Vats contains one of the rare instances in official Doom levels of a non-animated damaging floor, a row of blue lights in a trench.
  • Spawning Vats was originally designed to be a hangar, as the alpha versions of the map are based on the "Hangar 2" area in the Doom Bible.
  • The PlayStation and Saturn version of Spawning Vats contains a secret exit to E2M9: Fortress of Mystery .

External links