The Sanctum: Mod for powerful wizards

A forum for discussing all things regarding modding of Eschalon: Book III
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SpottedShroom
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The Sanctum: Mod for powerful wizards

Post by SpottedShroom »

The Sanctum by SpottedShroom
Version 1.2
A mod for Eschalon Book III from Basilisk Games

DESCRIPTION

This mod contains a very difficult, puzzle-heavy dungeon with an alternate ending for the series. It is intended for experienced players of the Eschalon series with high-level wizard characters. Completing the mod requires multiple third-tier spells from both Elemental and Divination.

Note that not all character builds will be able to complete the dungeon! Unlike official Basilisk Games content, there is usually only one (intended) way through each challenge. If you don't know the right spell/skill or have the right item you may not be able to continue. You may need to leave the dungeon to level your character by camping for XP, or pick up your character at an earlier level and adjust your advancement strategy.

For a (spoiler!) list of the spells, skills, and items you'll need to complete this mod, see the bottom of this file.

INSTALLATION

Unpack the distribution zip file, and copy the "mods" directory into the same folder that holds your Eschalon Book III executable and datapak file. If you already have a mods directory, copy the .map and .ent files into that directory.

Because this is not a "savegame" mod, it can be installed at any time and is compatible with any previous save files.

DO NOT COPY THESE FILES INTO YOUR SAVEGAME "slotX" directory! The game will crash if you do that!

UPDATING

If you have a previous version of the mod installed, existing games that have visited any of the new maps will not see the updated version. You should either load a game from before visiting the mod, "reset" the mod's maps in your saved game, or start a new game.

You can reset maps in your saved game by as follows:

1. Save your game on a map other than one you're going to reset

2. Find your saved game slot folder. Click on the version of Eschalon Book III at the bottom of the screen in the main menu to find the main saved game location. Inside that location are files named "slotX" where X is a number between 1 and 20. "slot1" is the quicksave slot, "slot2" is the next saved game in the list, etc.

3. Make a copy of your saved game. For instance, if your game is in slot3, make a copy of that folder called "slot3.backup" or similar.

4. Delete any of the following files that appear in your save slot folder: 5046.map, 5046.ent, 5046.opq, craft.map, craft.ent, craft.opq, sanctum.map, sanctum.ent, sanctum.opq, sanctum2.map, sanctum2.ent, sanctum2.opq

ACCESSING NEW CONTENT

This mod begins at the pass into Fandugan, the north exit from Alundar's Realm.

KNOWN BUGS

At the alternate ending, a short clip of sound plays over and over in an annoying fashion. You may want to turn down your speakers.

FEEDBACK

To post bugs, make suggestions, or give other feedback, please post in the Book III Mods forum at Basilisk Games' Drunken Lizard Pub:

http://www.basiliskgames.com/forums/vie ... =34&t=9333

COMPATIBILITY WITH OTHER MODS

This mod uses quest numbers 150-157. It provides map 5046 (north of Alundar's Domain) which itself has an exit to the unimplemented map 5045.

CHANGELOG

Version 1.2, June 27, 2014
* Moved quest numbering from 200-207 to 150-157, which should avoid lots of
bugs
* If you fail "Defeat simultaneously," the teleporter activates, preventing
you from being trapped
* Redesigned "Burn precisely" to let you leave without solving it, but
(I hope!) still require the same solution
* "Look carefully" changed to teleport you back to the beginning once you
touch the monument
* Renamed "Look remotely" to "View remotely" since we were already using
"look" for "Look carefully"
* Spelling corrections: Talushorn and Wylderan
* Add some torches to "Attack indirectly"
* Remove excess floor tiles on the outside of rooms
* Add missing sconce descriptions in "Flip cautiously"

Version 1.1, June 2, 2014
* Rooms can now be accessed in any order, hopefully reducing frustration if
people get stuck on one particular puzzle
* Each room has a label, providing a description of the puzzle and/or a
hint as to its solution
* Some rooms had unintended solutions using powder kegs through a wall.
These should no longer be possible.
* "Look carefully" pointless trap/lock removed, and room difficulty reduced
* Messages in the finale were changed to try to guide people toward an
ending
* The lever in "Defeat simultaneously" was moved to a location where it
it easier to see
* Changed the look of "Step wisely"

Version 1.0, May 31, 2014
* Initial release

SPOILERS

Below is a list of the spells, skills, and items you'll need to complete the
dungeon, which is a pretty heavy spoiler.
[+] SPOILER
Fireball
Graven Idol
Haste spell, or Potion of Haste
Invisibility, or very high armor / healing
Mass Boil
Portal
Reveal Map
Supernova
A fused powder keg, or several regular ones
Demon oil, NOT level III
A spreadsheet and some patience
Lots of MP and/or Mana potions
Attachments
sanctum-1.2.zip
The Sanctum version 1.2 - Latest
(19.39 KiB) Downloaded 1100 times
sanctum-1.1.zip
The Sanctum version 1.1 - DO NOT USE!
(19 KiB) Downloaded 897 times
sanctum-1.0.zip
The Sanctum version 1.0 - DO NOT USE!
(16.58 KiB) Downloaded 889 times
Last edited by SpottedShroom on June 30th, 2014, 8:30 pm, edited 4 times in total.
GChrisSfish21
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by GChrisSfish21 »

Any hints on how to get past the 3rd dungeon with all the powder kegs?
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SpottedShroom
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

GChrisSfish21 wrote:Any hints on how to get past the 3rd dungeon with all the powder kegs?
[+] SPOILER
There's more than one way to destroy a fence. Not all of them are explosive.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by MyGameCompany »

Oh boy! Looking forward to playing this! Thanks!

I'm assuming it requires the experimental Windows version, or will it work with the latest official Mac release too?
Troy
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Check out my Book III mods: The Mystery of Rockhammer Mine and Expedition into West Mirkland
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SpottedShroom
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

MyGameCompany wrote:Oh boy! Looking forward to playing this! Thanks!

I'm assuming it requires the experimental Windows version, or will it work with the latest official Mac release too?
It will work with the latest cross-platform release version of Book III. It uses the mod support BW talks about here: http://www.basiliskgames.com/forums/vie ... =34&t=9243
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

Prismatic Maelstrom wrote:There are some interesting ideas in this mod but I would not recommend it to others unless you like to be frustrated rather than challenged.
I did try to give plenty of warning - very difficult, only possible for certain character builds, etc. It's mainly intended as a serious challenge for experienced Eschalon players. But certain things could probably stand to be toned down.
[+] SPOILER
I partially justify the difficulty because of the content. You're invading Malkur's inner sanctum - he's the most powerful being in Eschalon and he doesn't want to make it easy.
[+] SPOILER
The Spineback Basilisks being linked to your health was a nice touch but was it necessary to have nine of them in a room with no cover?
[+] SPOILER
...and this is probably one of them. The concept was enemies you have to evade rather than fighting. But then I didn't want to make Invisibility be an easy solution, so that limited the enemies I could use. And hey, one of them is the Spineback Basilisk! This is meant to be hard, right?

I just did a test run, though, and with Haste up, I only had to resist three gaze attacks. For a character who can cast tier-3 spells, that shouldn't require an unreasonable amount of Magick resist.
Did you finish the mod? Any feedback on the other puzzles?
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munster
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by munster »

Oh my lord. I thought I was ready for this one.

I was not ready for this one :shock:

I suppose I should have realised that when I kept getting blown up just trying to get into the dungeon. I finally figured out the optimum positioning for the fused keg while running like hell for shelter :)

Now, though, I have to scuttle back to the nearest merchant with my tail between my legs as I stock up on all the potions I arrogantly assumed I would not need :oops:

It's great, but it's killing me (literally) but it's great! :D
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lilwoofer
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by lilwoofer »

MyGameCompany wrote:I'm assuming it requires the experimental Windows version, or will it work with the latest official Mac release too?
From what i tried, my game crashed every time i tried going north. So, i assume this mod was created forPC users only... So sad.
I will stay an initiate, please,let the officers, lieutenants, etc. do the brain work, I will be the grunt! GRRRR-Unt!
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SpottedShroom
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

lilwoofer wrote:
MyGameCompany wrote:I'm assuming it requires the experimental Windows version, or will it work with the latest official Mac release too?
From what i tried, my game crashed every time i tried going north. So, i assume this mod was created forPC users only... So sad.
Every time you tried going north meaning what? Going north into Fandugan from Alandur's Domain should work, but going north again from there should give a "There is nothing more in this direction" message. The main content is accessible from the Astral Summit map.

The mod was developed on Linux, but certainly ought to work on all three platforms.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by MyGameCompany »

lilwoofer wrote:
MyGameCompany wrote:I'm assuming it requires the experimental Windows version, or will it work with the latest official Mac release too?
From what i tried, my game crashed every time i tried going north. So, i assume this mod was created forPC users only... So sad.
Works for me. Did you copy the mods directory into the directory where the game app resides? Or did you copy the maps into a save game slot like the other Book III mods? (The latter will definitely crash the game)
Troy
Former indie game developer
Check out my Book III mods: The Mystery of Rockhammer Mine and Expedition into West Mirkland
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by Leon »

Did anyone got this to run with the steam version? I can't seem to succeed at it.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

Version 1.1 is out! This attempts to address some of the feedback I got for the initial version. Thanks in particular to Prismatic Maelstrom!

The biggest change is that the rooms are now accessible in any order you like, and (with a couple of exceptions where leaving the room without solving it would break the puzzle) you can work on one for a while, then go try a different one and come back later. There is also a label/hint for every room. I hope this will make it a less frustrating experience.

See the top post for a full change log.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

Prismatic Maelstrom wrote:
[+] SPOILER
Was I suppose to kill the General Ghorrs in a certain amount of time? Or avoid them?
The new label for that room is "Defeat simultaneously," which I hope conveys the goal. You can brute-force it, of course, but there's also a sneaker way.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by SpottedShroom »

Some spoiler-y responses to PM's feedback.
[+] SPOILER
Prismatic Maelstrom wrote: Puzzle 2# - Used Demon Oil to destroy the fence. Reminds me of Atrox Deep where you can get stuck which I don't like.
AKA "Burn precisely." No, I'm not crazy about people getting stuck there, but I don't want people just to be able to drop a fused keg and teleport out. That makes it too similar to the first puzzle, "Flip cautiously." This same issue applies to "Defeat simultaneously."
Puzzle 5# - Used Supernova in the right corner. Didn't get the plaque.
AKA "See remotely." That's the intended solution, but the plaque (and now the room title) are supposed to give a hint as to how to know that's the intended solution. Maybe it's still too obscure.
Puzzle 7# - I used a Powder Keg for the above puzzle and got a script error.
Puzzle 8# - Used two Powder Kegs to kill the Phoenix.
AKA "Cast cleverly" and "Boil indirectly." Powder kegs weren't the intended solution to these puzzles. I think I've fixed them now so that kegs won't work, and (at least for the phoenix) given a decent hint in the title.
Puzzle 9# - Took the damage from the trap. Took forever with the locked door. Took forever getting to the other side.
AKA "Look carefully." Yeah, this was just obnoxious. The trap and lock are gone, the number of basilisks is greatly reduced, and the room is full of pillars to hide behind. Of course, you now have to get through it twice - once to the goal, and once back to the teleporter.
Puzzle 10# - Was it the middle pentagram we needed to get to? It should be made more clear.
AKA "Step wisely." The middle is the goal, yes. It should be much clearer now that the goal isn't a pentagram any more.
Wylderan and Talushorn are spelt incorrectly on the Astral Summit map and one or two of the scones at the beginning of the sanctum are missing descriptions.
Whoops, looks like these will have to wait until next release.
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Re: Book III mod: The Sanctum

Post by lilwoofer »

MyGameCompany wrote: Or did you copy the maps into a save game slot like the other Book III mods? (The latter will definitely crash the game)
Ah HAH! That was what i did! Now i know the PROFESSIONAL way to load a mod, thanks and damn MGC, you are always on your game, pun kind of intended!
I will stay an initiate, please,let the officers, lieutenants, etc. do the brain work, I will be the grunt! GRRRR-Unt!
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