E1M4: The Guard Tower (Heretic)

From DoomWiki.org

Heretic maps
Hell's Maw

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

The Dome of D'Sparil

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

The Ossuary

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

The Stagnant Demesne

M1 M2 M3 M4 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9

Fate's Path (deathmatch only levels)

M1 M2 M3

This level occupies the map slot E1M4. For other maps which occupy this slot, see Category:E1M4.

E1M4: The Guard Tower is the fourth level in the City of the Damned episode of Heretic. It uses the music track "Elf" by Kevin Schilder.

Walkthrough[edit]

Map of The Guard Tower
Letters in italics refer to marked spots on the map. Sector, thing, and linedef numbers in boldface are secrets which count toward the end-of-level tally.

Essentials[edit]

From the starting point, turn left and go outside, then turn right and follow the platform to collect the Gauntlets of the Necromancer. Turn around and go through the passage on your right, then west until you find yourself between the yellow door and a building containing barrels. Go into the building and pull the switch there, then go straight from the northern exit. Collect the dragon claw and clear the yellow key platform of monsters. Quickly run across the bridges to collect the yellow key, triggering a crushing ceiling. At this point, you may wish to explore the other buildings in the area to collect supplies. Notably, you will find an ethereal crossbow on the upper floor of the northwestern building. When you are ready, return to the yellow door and pass through. Immediately turn right and head straight up the stairs until you are blocked by a wooden wall. Drop down to the ground on your left and head south to a short, darkened passage. Go through and collect the green key in the barrel-strewn area beyond. Backtrack and go up the stairs, then make a U-turn to the right. Pass through the green door and climb the stairs to the exit. When you open the exit door, you will see, by the first time, a disciple of D'Sparil.

Secrets[edit]

Official[edit]

  1. From the starting area, turn left and head towards where the Gauntlets of the Necromancer are. Before you reach them, you will see a wall with a falcon insignia to your left. Press it and it will lower. Drop down into the space that is opened and walk through the teleport to reach a secret area. (sector 42)

Non-official[edit]

  • Immediately behind you from the starting point, there is a secret door marked with a falcon insignia. Open it to find a Tome of Power. Collecting it triggers an ambush.

Bugs[edit]

  • Linedefs 368 and 474 have their upper textures on the wrong side. This produces a HOM over the top walls of the linedefs. The height difference of the neighboring sectors is eight map units.
  • Sidedefs 711, 736, 1,021, 1,284, 1,288, 1,290 and 1,753 all lack lower textures. The problems occur on linedefs that are shared by sectors of which floor level difference is eight units.

Areas / screenshots[edit]

Speedrunning[edit]

Routes and tricks[edit]

Current records[edit]

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

Run Time Player Date File Notes
SM speed 0:37.57 Ks4 2024-07-22 h1s4-3757.zip
SM max 3:11.54 Insomnia 2023-01-15 h1m4-311.zip
BP speed 0:38.97 Ks4 2022-03-26 h1-4b-3897.zip
BP max 3:01.94 Bainshie-Doom 2024-02-18 h1f4-301.zip
NM speed 0:41.86 Insomnia 2023-04-23 h1n4-041.zip
NM 100S 0:53.77 Insomnia 2023-02-11 h1x4-053.zip
Tyson 5:22.57 Karim El-Sheikh (Kimo Xvirus) 2010-05-18 h1t4-522.zip
Pacifist 1:56.46 Jim Leonard (Xit Vono) 2008-01-31 h1p4-156.zip
NoMo 0:30.29 Ks4 2023-05-04 h1o43029.zip
NoMo 100S 0:52.94 El Tom 2023-03-20 o1s4-052.zip

The data was last verified in its entirety on August 13, 2024.

Deathmatch[edit]

Player spawns[edit]

This level contains four spawn points:

  1. facing south-west. (thing 44)
  2. facing north. (thing 45)
  3. facing north. (thing 46)
  4. facing north-east. (thing 47)

Statistics[edit]

Map data[edit]

Things 358
Vertices 1673*
Linedefs 1875
Sidedefs 2500
Sectors 298
* The vertex count without the effect of node building is 1471.

Things[edit]

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

External links[edit]