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Completed Let's play Dark Heart of Uukrul! -- Dead and done!

Crooked Bee

(no longer) a wide-wandering bee
Patron
Joined
Jan 27, 2010
Messages
15,048
Location
In quarantine
Codex 2013 Codex 2014 PC RPG Website of the Year, 2015 Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire MCA Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 BattleTech Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
No no no, you got me wrong. I wasted more then 100 hours on this game, but that doesn't mean you will or should. I played it blindly, and so obsessively mapped every corner, grinded a lot, spent shitloads of time trying to solve the puzzles (yeah, A LOT of time was wasted on puzzles) as well as rearranging the equipment, experimenting with things, etc. I probably wandered around pointlessly a lot, too. Having read this LP, you can probably complete the game in 50-70 hours tops. ;) Or maybe even less if you speedrun through it, I can't really tell.

kyrub said:
You did mention there were probably too many "easy" encounters, like wolves etc., throughout the game. Is this what makes the game too long?

Dunno, really. In the second part of the game, you can recite MORPETH to reduce the random encounter rate. In the first part, yes, that rate can be quite high. It's an RPG, duh; it has a lot of combat. Still, this game is definitely NOT as encounter-heavy as, say, Wizardry 8 (iirc). Puzzles, not combat, are its main time-wasters. Plus overall I don't feel like the combat part was tedious; on the contrary, many fights were definitely tough, fun, and memorable. And the system of spells and prayers is definitely one of the game's highest points, being varied, fun to learn, and rewarding to master.

Blackadder said:
Indeed. You certainly rank up there with other 'Lets Play!' veterans here, and seem to be on track to surpassing them.

Thanks! :P I'm flattered. Still, I have a long way to go until I reach the top, and I'll never be able to reach the quality of, say, Black Cat's LPs. Also, I fully expect my real life to prevent me from LPing this much pretty soon. I've just been lucky enough to have enough free time in the past few months to become active here on the Playground.

Blackadder said:
It is the complete package; other games can outdo it in each element, yet it is greater than the sum of its parts.

Indeed, it's an extremely well-balanced package overall. Hear that, kyrub? ;)

dextermorgan said:
Also: bump!

Thanks. :love:
 

kyrub

Augur
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
347
Crooked Bee said:
Puzzles, not combat, are its main time-wasters.
Puzzles never waste my time.

Having read this LP, you can probably complete the game in 50-70 hours tops. ;) Or maybe even less if you speedrun through it, I can't really tell.
I always avoided reading the exact solutions in your LP, so hopefully no boring speedrun.

Indeed, it's an extremely well-balanced package overall. Hear that, kyrub? ;)
What? Hey! Do you have some particular project of mine in mind? Or just forcing me away from DHoU? :lol:
 

Crooked Bee

(no longer) a wide-wandering bee
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Codex 2013 Codex 2014 PC RPG Website of the Year, 2015 Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire MCA Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 BattleTech Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
Also, Firefox doesn't display some imgur images from the last updates for some reason, at least for me. Chrome works fine, though. :?
 

Crooked Bee

(no longer) a wide-wandering bee
Patron
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In quarantine
Codex 2013 Codex 2014 PC RPG Website of the Year, 2015 Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire MCA Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 BattleTech Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
DISCLAIMER: If Firefox isn't displaying the images for some reason, try reading this update with Chrome or Opera.

30: Chaos: Dead and Done

In which we explore the Chaos, free Mara, and detonate the beacon.

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, the time has finally come. I bring you the saddest ending update ever. I'm sad the game ends, yeah, but not only that.

And so our task is set:

knerf.jpg


Exploring the Chaos, freeing Mara, and then firing the beacon. Got it.

FBqVz.jpg


We teleport to the Chaos first.

mSZIz.jpg


Nothing seems quite as it should be indeed.

JXrdR.jpg


The Chaos is an extremely weird area, probably the best one I can recall from any RPG I've played.

1l0OC.jpg


Mara seems to be lying, frozen, behind the bars.

In the Chaos, you can't really be sure of any step you take. Literally. With every step, you can expect the surroundings to change drastically. All the walls in this area seem to be one-sided, incomplete, fluid and fleeting. A lot of spinners in here, too. And the area is, of course, unmappable -- well, there is an automap, but it won't help you much. The correct path through the Chaos is quite rigidly predefined: it is a puzzle, after all, and only the correct sequence of steps can bring Mara her freedom. Overall, the area is infuriating, as you always end up in places you didn't expect to end up in, and at first it all may seem completely random. There is a logic to this Chaos, though. Still, even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to draw a map of this area for you, as I've no idea how one should depict the weird shit that happens in here.
One good thing about this area is that it is an exclusively puzzle one: no random encounters in here. One bad thing is, I haven't been able to find the way to exit the Chaos and go back to the sanctuary: I got out once by pure chance, which means there is an exit route, but I couldn't do it again no matter how I tried. So I wasted a couple of Medals of Escape here. Meh, no big deal.

fjTsr.jpg


There are a lot of inscriptions around, which all must be translated by applying NGOSLAZAR a few times.

FU42n.jpg


The inscriptions are all hints and clues, but truth be told they don't help much.

VyfFW.jpg


Some of them seem to give the direction to a puzzle-crucial item. Directions are fuzzy in the Chaos, though.

aEFKg.jpg


There is a familiar copper hoop aka teleporter in here -- we saw those in the Pyramid, as you may remember -- which means we'll need to fetch the magic cards (stored in the URZHUT sanctuary) to use it. We'll go back for the cards a bit later, after we have explored the Chaos a bit.

JbOLO.jpg


Another (sixth) magic card is hidden somewhere in the Chaos, as this inscription tells us. We'll find that card later -- by pure chance, naturally.

ZhF7J.jpg


The grates are locked, of course.

ibjAI.jpg


There are some teleporter plates around the area; without spekkio carrying the cards, they teleport us back to the starting location.

9cpGs.jpg


This automap doesn't mean shit.

f3MPp.jpg


Neither does this one. It helps you get some sense of direction, but no more than that.

To12k.jpg


This inscription refers to the latch puzzle we'll get to later.

eSvQ0.jpg


We find an altar we could use to recite TULAR in case we needed more food.

HQ4fk.jpg


The way around the Chaos is marked by strange short words such as OSA, TUS, TER, etc. I must confess I haven't fully grasped the system behind it, but I assume it makes the exploration much easier once you've mastered it. We'll be doing it the hard way, though, through trial and error. :P

eO8UK.jpg

Gn3xc.jpg


One of the few well-defined subareas in here. The wall we're walking along can in fact be passed through from the opposite side. And the automap doesn't show the doors and walls annoyingly appearing out of nowhere.

rxx1t.jpg


This inscription gives us directions to the key needed to open one of the plot-crucial grates in the area.

Ab4MD.jpg

wzMac.jpg


Along the way we find some "gateways", A to E. Together with the inscriptions they are supposed to be guiding us around.

W4xvW.jpg


Some of these walls are deceiving.

LphVM.jpg


And here's the main clue to the latch puzzle. To set Mara free, we'll need to activate all these nodes in one go, from A to Y. A rage-inducing puzzle, believe my infinite attempts.

Thqak.jpg

ytGzT.jpg


:?

l1Krn.jpg


And here are the directions to the card. Har har har.

19YxZ.jpg


Another area we can access by going through one of the walls.

RlIlj.jpg


And here's the automap of the starting area, by the way.

niS2f.jpg


Time to pick up some magic cards, so we use a Medal.

GypTu.jpg


We fetch the cards from the URZHUT sanctuary.

Qwiby.jpg


The Scrying mirror gives us an image of the beacon's future destruction. Let's hope we manage.

8Yg4o.jpg


And now we can use the copper hoop in the Chaos.

hUCfB.jpg


Previously, once we stepped on this square, we used to get teleported back to the starting place. Not now that we have the cards, though.

frpEw.jpg


Yup, there's a teleporter here. I'll skip all my hours of frustration and just show you how I finally beat this area.

t5CKf.jpg


Teleporting to 1 is pointless.

btjtP.jpg


Nothing here, so back to the teleporter we go.

WOdAK.jpg


Teleporting to 2 is crucial.

tGfN1.jpg


We find ourselves in a one-square room of four doors. It took me a couple of efforts as there's, from what I gathered, only one correct path you can take here: first north, then west.

bHXGa.jpg


A key! :incline:

8mFOV.jpg


To the west is a grate.

dtV9i.jpg


And the key fits!

u0kwG.jpg


Another grate? :? WTF?

tHCnG.jpg


Ah, a drawing depicting the only correct path through the latch puzzle! :incline:

iL0V7.jpg


Let's now teleport to 3.

iC2a3.jpg


Which brings to the sixth card of moving. :incline: spekkio picks it up.

8sXvE.jpg


With the six cards, we can now teleport to a new area. And this is the latch puzzle area. Almost totally incomprehensible. In here, you must move north first, else you'll have to return here again.

IF79Q.jpg


The problem is, you're facing south once you've been teleported to this place, so the game is trolling you. Quite frustrating, I must say.

afl2c.jpg


We turn around and are now facing north.

WHdzY.jpg


Moving north we spot the first ... shaft? hole in the ceiling? :?

u4P6H.jpg


Nope, it's Latch A. :roll: Weird. To solve this puzzle, we must now move in the way depicted in the last drawing.

pPG3l.jpg


Latch V activated.

Vj2dY.jpg


And now Latch C. Don't forget to check out the compass as there may be spinners on the way.

EUP8w.jpg


Latch L.

RQEkA.jpg


Latch R.

HJVD8.jpg


Latch E. Only one latch left.

AfQTM.jpg


Yay! :incline:
Now DON'T go back as touching any latch again will reset the puzzle! Just exit this subarea.

tGH6G.jpg


And the grate to Mara's prison is now unlocked!
:yeah:

58FBr.jpg


Hmm, let's Look at the amulet.

zHe6F.jpg


Look at her robe?

xAlvW.jpg


Touch her forehead?

G31rX.jpg


Call her name?

BfpmM.jpg


Hmm. Let's now Touch the amulet.

7GZi3.jpg


Take the amulet?

vrSw7.jpg


:incline:
We call Mara's name again.

IJi6v.jpg


Cool, the only thing left now is to activate the beacon. We use one of the two remaining Medals of escape to exit the place.

de4tM.jpg


We teleport to the Beacon:

Obhm7.jpg


Sagaris is already waiting for us.

mVxHB.jpg


As is Mara. Destroying the evil ahoy!

AAK9L.jpg


End our lives!? :decline: B-but what about all the riches, you know, the gold we've collected? :/

FZTMt.jpg


:x

qBCmU.jpg


Oh yeah, I remember the pool of testing. That was tough as we were very low-level back then.

6Hw6Q.jpg


Join the Heroes above! Bah!

ReFqD.jpg


You can find the prayer of lighting in the manual. (I got a bit frustrated here as at first it didn't occur to me to have a look in the manual for it.) It's a prayer to Fshofth called LAIRIAN:

LAIRIAN The Untranslatable Prayer

Umhir deln Fshofth, Du saq mishallfen,
Ersan su stramanlisa du saq verhallfen,
Itor ka skirian, thror qastura taras,
Wur qanar wur stilor wur kas.

fJBjp.jpg


And, in this game's final puzzle, we must input the prayer's final line. Which we do.

WgcXa.jpg


We die. :cry:

t6j9a.jpg


And we're floating high into the sky now. :P

tsbkh.jpg


Gosh, I can't believe I've beaten this game. It's been cool.

uPBaU.jpg


Shiny!

GIIOo.jpg


I still can't get over the fact we're dead, though. This game's final trolling, it seems.

86z1C.jpg


RIP Lord Rocket :salute:
RIP Bee :salute:
RIP Kalos :salute:
RIP spekkio :salute:
You are now with the gods.

btDa9.jpg


kazgar said:
That's not the only thing those letters and dashes could spell (just a guess)

You were correct, oh perceptive one. ;) Sagaris is Suraqis.

99EoW.jpg


In the past indeed.

IWkRo.jpg


We are now Heroes, to be sung of in taverns and blessed in temples!

...

:cry:

Whatever.

ZqAf6.jpg


:o Even more shiny!

xNP63.jpg


Yay!

MiAJ6.jpg


:salute: :salute: :salute:

aaXII.jpg


:yeah:

This is the end. Hope you've enjoyed the show.
 

Fowyr

Arcane
Vatnik
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
7,671
Crooked Bee said:
DISCLAIMER: If Firefox isn't displaying the images for some reason, try reading this update with Chrome or Opera.
I frequently have this.
Just click RMB - "Load image".
Crooked Bee said:
0ET5O.jpg


It was awesome journey. :love:
I'm speechless, really.
 

golgepapaz

Augur
Joined
Nov 3, 2009
Messages
381
Location
Istanbul-Ankara express
Divinity: Original Sin Wasteland 2
Epic ending. High fantasy at it's best. Cerebral and visceral,Crooked Bee
knows how to give life to a story and guides the reader with deft and
precision through labyrinthian depths of Eriosthe. Simply Brilliant!!!

***** The Codex Times
 

lightbane

Arcane
Joined
Dec 27, 2008
Messages
10,158
You've done the impossible, you completed this game (and lp) :salute: :salute: :salute:
That ending where your party dies was absolute trolling indeed. A relatively recent game, Nier, not only does this but it also deletes all of your saves, and it taunts you while doing so. Anyways, many :love: for the lp. Now, there's a pretty but very spoiled princess that needs your help, I believe :M
 

torpid

Liturgist
Joined
Aug 2, 2010
Messages
1,099
Location
Isma's Grove
Great LP, congratulations Bee!

I'm proud to have followed this adventure to its end :singlemanlytear:
 

MMXI

Arcane
Joined
Apr 28, 2011
Messages
2,196
I've just caught up with this LP and now you've finished it?

:rage:

:bravo:
 

Kz3r0

Arcane
Joined
May 28, 2008
Messages
27,013
Well is not ascension the final goal of every dungeon crawler? :M
I salute you valiant bee. :salute:
It's been fantastic. :love:

Edit:
Have some nice picture
ascension.jpg

Ascension.jpg
 
Joined
Apr 4, 2007
Messages
3,585
Location
Motherfuckerville
Another good show, as always.

I'm surprised you aren't taking a break, though. Right on to the next one...not that I'm complaining or anything; you pick interesting games, for sure.
 

ElectricOtter

Guest
Congratulations on finishing the crawl, Bee. LP related sleep-loss = totally worth it :love:
 

kazgar

Arcane
Joined
Apr 23, 2008
Messages
2,164
Location
Upside Down
Top work!

Now you've finished, did you check walkthroughs and the like to see if you missed useful things in chaos, or you just happy to have it all done and finished?
 

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