E1M6: Shadows of Darkness (Fava Beans)

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Fava Beans maps
This level occupies the map slot E1M6. For other maps which occupy this slot, see Category:E1M6.

E1M6: Shadows of Darkness is the sixth map of Fava Beans. It was designed by Sean Birkel.

Walkthrough[edit]

Map of Shadows of Darkness
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]

The red and blue keys are needed to access and activate a switch to raise a bridge to the exit.

Red key

Clear the enemies in the starting area and activate the switch in front of you. This lowers walls revealing two paths forward. Take the one on the left. Descend the blue stairs and open the door at the bottom. You will emerge into a small courtyard with a nukage pool. Navigate around it and open the door on the far side. Enter the passageway and turn right. Continue along the passageway, past the red key door, to the door at the far end. Open the door and drop onto the low platform around the nukage pool. Grab the radiation suit and enter the dark opening in the wall. Collect the soulsphere by interacting with the switch on the gray column. Walk past the door with the blue doorjambs and up the winding stairs. Open the door at the top to reveal a fork with three paths, the central one showing the exit door. Remember this location as you will have to backtrack to it again later.

Take the path on the right. Walk up the steps and open the door. Walk past the blue pyramid steps to a door at the back of the room. Open the door and follow the passageway. It looks like a dead end but as you approach the dead end you are lowered on a lift to a nukage chamber. Run through the nukage, past the exit door, until you are facing some steps leading to a red door. To the left is a subtle alcove with a red key. To get it walk on the brown path between the nukage and the steps to the red door. Turn left to enter and after two further sharp left turns you can grab the red key.

Blue key

Return back to the red door that you just past. Ascend the blue steps and open the red door. You are presented with two switches at the far side of the room. The one on the right is optional and only opens windows to a secret in the room. The switch on the left raises the platform in a nukage pool we passed earlier in the level and allows access to the blue key door. Flip the switch on the left. Now you need to backtrack to the fork with three paths mentioned earlier. To do this drop into the nukage below the switch platform and flip the switch to activate a lift and travel back up to the red key door. Continue backtracking through the red key door, the nukage, past the exit door, right back to the UAC lift used to enter the nukage chamber. Travel up the UAC lift, through the door and past the blue pyramid steps. Open the door and you emerge back at the fork with three paths mentioned earlier.

Continue backtracking by opening the door and descending down the blue winding staircase. At the bottom, where the stairs transitions to nukage take the door on the left (with the blue doorjambs). Open the door ascend up a new set of winding stairs. Open the door at the top and you emerge back near the starting area. Turn left and continue until you see a red key door on the left. Open the red key door, enter and turn left and descend the stairs. Collect the blue key from the small nukage pit at the bottom.

Exiting map

Backtrack up the stairs and open the red key door again. Emerge back into the passageway and turn right. Continuing walking to the door at the end. Open it and notice the platform to the blue door is now in place. Walk to the blue door and open it. Progress straight ahead to an area with a serpentine black pathway in the nukage. Proceed to the end and activate the switch. This raises a bridge to access the exit area.

Return to the fork with three paths. To do this return to the blue key door, open it and drop into the nukage. Wall into the dark opening and pass the gray column that had the soulsphere. Walk up the blue stairs and open the door. Walk through the door and continue straight (you can see the exit door in the distance). Walk towards it, cross the new bridge and open the exit door. After this proceed straight down the stairs and open the second exit door. Proceed outside and turn around to see the final switch. Flip the switch to exit the level.

Other points of interest[edit]

In Secret #7 it is possible to access the outside area directly from the area with the blue key. Having picked up the blue key, carefully line up and strafe across the nukage towards the outside area. Use a path that hits first the lowest step out of the nukage and then immediately the raised shoulder around the pit. If you hit these right then you will clear the gap and reach the outside area. If you have not triggered the door to open you can open it manually. Note: the skip to the outside can be achieved without strafe and with SR40, but is most consistent with SR50.

Secrets[edit]

  1. From the starting area, press the switch and take the path to your left (south). Descend the blue stairs and open the door at the bottom. You will emerge into a small courtyard with a nukage pool. Fall into the nukage. Use the lift in the northwest corner and open the door to find a rocket launcher, boxes of rockets, shells, stimpack, and health bonus. (sector 19) Press a mismatched wall texture to the east to reveal a teleporter, which will take you back to the starting area.
  2. Inside the room with two switches (west part of the map, behind the red door near the key), there is a wall you can walk through. As you walk into this room, through a red door, turn around 180 degrees. The fake part of the wall is just to the west of the door (there is no obvious sign for this wall section; you need to walk along and against the wall next to the door to find it). (sector 252) Inside, you will find a lift leading up to a soulsphere. Note: when you walk into the room, the switch to your right (west) will open optional windows in this secret room.
  3. Exit secret #2, drop into the nukage in the two switches area, and press part of the eastern wall with the poison signs on it. You will find a rocket launcher, two boxes of rockets, a health bonus, an armor bonus, and a backpack. (sector 240)
  4. Inside secret #3 is a mismatched brown wall section that can be pressed on and lowered as a lift for a shortcut back towards the starting areas of the map. (sector 266)
  5. After going down the passage where you find the red key, you will cross a silent trigger. Return to the room in the southeastermost part of the map (not through the blue door). Take the lift up, and a new opening now leads outside with a plasma gun, three energy cell packs, shotgun shells, a medikit, armor bonuses, and health bonuses. (sector 191) The teleporter takes you to the blue key room, where you automatically collect a soulsphere.
  6. Drop into the nukage at the blue door and walk into the dark opening in the wall. You will pass the soulsphere on the gray column. Take the door to the north (it has blue doorjambs). Walk up the curved staircase and notice that a wall on your left (north) is not covered in moss. Press it to find a computer area map. (sector 256)
  7. Once you collect the blue key, the door outside will open. Go to where the exit doorway is, then follow the nukage to the east and around to a switch. Pressing it allows you to enter a passage which winds its way to the open door, where you can collect a plasma gun, stimpack, shotgun shells, and health bonuses. (sector 299) See Other points of interest for an alternative route.

Bugs[edit]

If the player activates and goes through secret #2 without collecting the red key, then after teleporting they will be stuck in between two red doors and thus unable to complete the level.

Though difficult, in the southwest area with the windows leading outside, it is possible to straferun from the high ledge (sector 246) accessible via secret #4 through a window (sector 202) and become softlocked.

Demo files[edit]

Areas / screenshots[edit]

  • The start

  • Starting area nukage pit

  • The soulsphere on gray column

  • The fork with three paths

  • The red key path

  • Room with two switches

  • The blue key

  • The platform around the nukage pool

  • Teleporter to the blue key room

  • The serpentine path

  • The bridge to the exit

  • The end

  • Secret 1 - Alcove in the nukage

  • Secret 2 - Walkthrough wall

  • Secret 2 - View from secret windows

  • Secret 3 - Poison sign in two switch room

  • Secret 4 - Hidden lift in Secret 3

  • Secret 5 - Drop to the outside

  • Secret 6 - Curved stairs

  • Secret 7 - Passageway to the outside

  • Secret 7 - Plasma gun secret

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
UV speed 0:21.91 Insomnia 2023-07-31 f1b6-021.zip
NM speed 0:23.34 Pseudonaut 2024-08-10 f1b6n2334.zip
UV max 3:55.06 Kyle McAwesome 2022-07-22 f1b6m355.zip
NM 100S
UV -fast 5:04.34 Mr. LBN 2009-12-16 f1b6f504.zip
UV -respawn
UV Tyson 8:04.06 Kyle McAwesome 2023-09-29 f1b6t804.zip
UV pacifist
NoMo 0:19.74 kvothesixstring 2023-10-01 f1b6o19.zip

The data was last verified in its entirety on September 7, 2024.

Deathmatch[edit]

Player spawns[edit]

This level contains four spawn points:

  1. facing south. (thing 4)
  2. facing east. (thing 5)
  3. facing south. (thing 6)
  4. facing west. (thing 7)

Statistics[edit]

Map data[edit]

Things 322
Vertices 1434*
Linedefs 1591
Sidedefs 2173
Sectors 320
* The vertex count without the effect of node building is 1251.

Things[edit]

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

Technical information[edit]

Inspiration and development[edit]

Trivia[edit]

  • This map was the 3rd released by the author and was originally released as a standalone map named 2SHADOWS.WAD.[1] The original map was developed in approximately three months.[2]
  • Shadows of Darkness was named after a computer game released by Sierra called Quest for Glory: Shadows of Darkness.[2]
  • The original map was released in both a Doom and Doom II version, with minimal differences between them.[3] The author used DEU to convert from the initial Doom map to the Doom II version.[1]

See also[edit]

Sources[edit]

External links[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sean Birkel (23 July 1995). "WAD Text File for #1GASPRA.WAD." Retrieved 2 July 2025.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sean Birkel (18 March 1995). "WAD Text File for SHADOWS2.WAD." Retrieved 2 July 2025.
  3. ↑ Sean Birkel (1 April 1995). "WAD Text File for #1IMPALE.WAD." Retrieved 2 July 2025.
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