: Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt (FUD) is part one of the end-game in the Pfhor
: Plank. The Spoiler Guide tells us that the Rubicon Team had originally
: intended for the terminals to present messages from Tycho, hence the name
: of the level. It’s interesting to me that they changed their plans.
: Although it makes sense on one level to write Tycho out of the script once
: he escapes from the Pfhor network, I see no reason why an AI as cleaver as
: Tycho couldn’t have continued to communicate with the marine by
: transmitting through the Pfhor network. He certainly has some experience
: with this from before, starting with the original Marathon. Personally, I
: would bet that Tycho isn’t finished with the Marine – he wouldn’t let him
: go any more than Durandal would. I really would have liked to have seen
: those Tycho terms here.
Me too. But then again if there were only Tycho terms we'd want some Durandal ones so I guess the Rubicon guys did what the felt most people would like and would progress the story.
: You really ought to check out my Rubicon Secrets Guide for this level –
: there are a lot of secrets here that you may wish to explore. The good
: news is that there are 2 3X shield regenerators on this level. The bad
: news is that one of them is at the very end of the level (but still useful
: on this level once you reach it), and the other is in a secret room,
: guarded by enforcers, that permanently closes off the moment you attempt
: to enter the first save/recharge room on the level. Sorry if this is a
: spoiler, but I’d hate to see you miss this one if you have the capability
: to get it.
I always stuff up that grenade jump to get into the enforcer room :) I've only gotten in there once. Normally I just skip it, but it is very good to use a 3x recharger after the wade through the tar.
: We start the level on a platform, facing a terminal, but we quickly get
: wacked by a projectile fighter from behind. Most of us get killed the
: first time we start this level, so we quickly learn to deal with the
: fighter first. Once we do log onto the terminal, Durandal tells us:
:
: Yes, that brownish purple goop is disgusting. Yes, it smells strange. Yes,
: its a part of the pfhor biology. No, I'm not telling you what it is. I'd
: never get you to leave your current location if I did. Hold your nose and
: jump in . . .
:
: So what in the world is this disgusting brown goop that the Rubicon Team
: calls “tar”? We first encountered it in the level Cow Pushing , and now
: we’re playing in it, soon we’ll be wading in it and later we’ll be
: drinking it. Let’s stop a moment to think of the possibilities. Now we’ve
: been swimming in sewage since M2, so why would we find this stuff to be
: disgusting? Obviously, this could be excrement, but why would the Pfhor
: surround the high Pfhor Citadel with the stuff. Yes, I know that some
: animals use their excrement to mark their territory, so I cannot rule this
: out, but it seems to me that the S’pht citadel had a much more effective
: moat – lava. So what else could be related to Pfhor biology that would be
: disgusting. I can think of a couple of possibilities that cover opposite
: ends of the Pfhor life-cycle. In one case, this could be a Pfhor spawning
: pool. The tar might actually contain the Pfhor equivalent of sperm, or
: perhaps even live Pfhor larvae – a cheery thought! That would certainly
: make me not want to dive in. The other possibility is that this is what
: the Pfhor do with their dead, in which case the tar is the decaying
: remains of Pfhor dead – an equally cheery thought. Aren’t you ready to
: dive in! When you do jump in, you’ll quickly discover if you didn’t in
: Cow Pushing that the stuff gradually depletes your shields. It won’t kill
: you, but it will leave you very, very vulnerable. It’s therefore essential
: that you get out of it as quickly as you can – meaning you’ll probably get
: killed the first few times until you find the correct route to safety.
You make the first part of the level more and more appealing Steve. I always assumed it was sewage but you're right, why would the Pfhor surround thier High Citadel in it? Oh well.
: This level is monstrously difficult with a profusion of wasps and lookers
: that have a way of ruining your day just when you thought you were making
: progress. You’ll be doing a lot of pillar hopping and ledge jumping here,
: so be careful not to fall down into the tar below. Eventually you’ll want
: to, as you can pick up some nice ammo this way, but this can be left for
: much, much later. When you do get to one of those terminals that was
: originally supposed to contain a message from Tycho, you’ll instead read:
:
: All units of command rank or below are to congregate in accordance with
: Disarray Plan as discussed in stamp: emergency procedures. Rogue
: conditioned unit continues to make advances deep into the Pfhor High
: Citadel, and should be stopped at all costs. Disobedience of this order
: will result in the maximum societal and physical punishments.
:
: This sounds pretty serious. I mean, death is a minor punishment for the
: Pfhor. The Pfhor seem to use execution as a punishment for minor crimes
: and insubordination. We know from some of the terminals in M2 that the
: Pfhor have used torture in the past, so I would not be surprised if they
: are talking about torture – both physical and “societal” (perhaps
: torturing family members as well).
I always assumed that the meaning of societal punichment was isolation from everyone else. It doesn't really matter, the point is that the Pfhor are pissed off and want you dead (for a change).
I like this level a lot. It makes for a good change in map design, adding elevation as an obstacle as well. The only bad point I can find on this level is that it's fairly linear, but if you don't follow the path there is a lot of extra stuff to find in the tar.
: The sole purpose of this level, however, is to reach the end room, which
: will serve as the jumping off point to the final real regular level in the
: plank. When we finally reach it, Durandal tells us:
: This is it, you're about to see what few Pfhor, let alone humans, have
: ever witnessed. The high Pfhor citadel has stood here as the pinnacle of
: the empire for centuries, unscarred by battle. We stand here, in the split
: moments before singlehandedly felling an entire empire.
: After you’ve collected whatever goodies you can find in the level, log on
: and be taken to Wading in Vitriol.
