This is an excellent map, extremely sockesque in all the usual ways. Really enjoyed it! Loved all the ambush setpieces and the exploration :) 

A new Sock map! Holy fuck, a new Sock map with transparent waterfalls - take that, id1, haha! Wait... an egyptian AD map without scorpions?? Wait... a new Sock map!!

Thank you for this unexpected gift. Screenie looks ace. 

nice retrojam6 map
http://www.quaketastic.com/files/demos/ad_scastle.7z

i really liked that ambush with the xbow knights. instead of throwing off the monster or using monsterjumps, you used doors that open. 

https://www.twitch.tv/ionous 

Skill 2, 9/10 secrets

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ma1yz2izuu4lk41/sand_mjb.zip?dl=0

I'll let the demo explain what I thought about the map. But I'll throw a few bullets:

-Overall just lovely to look at
-Unique theme with water pouring into a sunken tomb
-Retro green sky used to great effect.
-Fun as hell secrets and exploration.
-Fantastic encounters and non-linearity.

I missed the SNG if it exists and I also would have liked a grenade launcher earlier. I now know that there is one if I took the first route...but maybe a repeat pickup somewhere down below. I don't know what else to say...nothing else to really pick at! 

Another Sock�s Masterpiece!

Here my first play through, although I�ve probably missed some parts of it:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzLgsE84gQ1WeGgxc0JyT0x1Smc 

Pretty damn cool map. Very interesting and weird layout that encourages exploration, though a few of the secrets are a bit samey. The pent secret I'm not too keen on, I got to it by chance after everything was dead and buried and the clipping around the structure underneath it is very aggressive, really hindering rocket jumping which it shouldn't do, imo. That said, great encounters, great setpieces and really good visuals and atmosphere.

Skill 3 demos: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwnUnvcoU4HFU01vVW85RjUtZTA/view?usp=sharing

@#6: I don't know why you're taking a jab at id1 for something it can, in fact, do... 

A "jab" is a bit much, it was a joke. Also, I've never seen an id1 map with transparent waterfalls and there was a recent discussion in the explore jam 2 thread about id1 being able to do alpha on func_walls but not on func_illusionaries. In other words, you can have either a transparent but solid or a non-solid but opaque waterfall. 

You don't know what you're talking about. You can put an alpha key on both func_wall or func_illusionary. I used transparent waterfalls in my jam2 map and that was id1. 

jabbing ass motherfucker 

It wasn't in the explore jam 2 thread but in the mapping help thread, though it was about Bloughsburgh's XJ2 map. See: http://www.celephais.net/board/view_thread.php?id=4&start=18002&end=18009
Especially post #18008. 

Re-reading what I've just linked, it appears that this would be a DP-specific limitation. Kinda weird that more conservative engine would make it work while a more graphically advanced engine won't. 

Thanks everyone for the demos, it was very cool to see what everyone did with the map. I was half expecting everyone to be sick to death of Egyptian maps by now! The map was designed for many different types of players (rushers, explorers, speedrunners), which is why the layout might appear strange at first.

On a side note the architecture is a mixture of chunky Egyptian style pillars, Mayan transversal corbel-vaulted ceilings and Japanese Pagoda trims for the Pyramids. I suppose the fun part of mapping is trying to blend different world styles together! 

http://www.quaketastic.com/files/demos/otp_scastle.zip 

On a side note the architecture is a mixture of chunky Egyptian style pillars, Mayan transversal corbel-vaulted ceilings and Japanese Pagoda trims for the Pyramids

I for one really appreciated the nod to various real-world architectural styles. For some reason this always resonates with me more than abstract designs in quake :} 

I was a little confused by the layout in the beginning but it turned out to be very cool. I didn't find all secrets during the first playthrough because I had to go. I saved and will return to it later.

demo:
http://www.quaketastic.com/files/ad_scastle_pulsar.zip 

I was half expecting everyone to be sick to death of Egyptian maps by now!
You kidding? Egypt theme is all too rare in custom maps and this recent surge of egyptian maps is a real blessing! Plus, there was no Sock map in that jam, so there. I'll probably play yours tonight, or I may save it for after I finish RJ6. 

it's simple as that:

another map by sock,
another quake quality time.

it's been incredible christmas so far. i've been out of gaming for a couple of months, but all the quake releases brought me back. not to mention the final release of blood crossmatching mod. who cares about new games when we can time-travel back to the childhood... :-)

back to the nyarlathoteps sand castle. i've just finished it and i had a blast. played on hard and the balance was just right for me - not too easy, not overwhelmingly difficult. even the lift trap was manageable and i've expected something really ugly and messy when the bars closed behind me and the lift started upwards.

it would be a waste of time to speak about level geometry, attention to details, textures... usual sock's standard by which i mean top-notch level. sock, i don't know what you do for a living, but if i were rich guy i would hire you to make quake maps fulltime. in the past i had something like the quake holy trinity - [kona], czg and tronyn. of course there were others - vondur, fat controller, elek, iikka ker�nen, but the three on the top were simply the three on the top. now there are four. thank you for keeping quake alive after all those years. 

I like the idea of quake demos but I think the appeal of live commentary is greater.

Or also same stream on youtubes... warning NSFW, I am a potty mouth. There's no twitch chat embedded in the vid so it may seem like I am talking crazy talk due to a lack of context.

https://www.twitch.tv/fifthelephant/v/114296652 (with chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntzwE06Ya6c (no twitch chat) 

except for the ones who not speak english fluently.. :D

also, my internet connection is shit for streaming

so, axe only demo!

axe run (except three xbow knights and one zombie), 100% secrets; easy difficulty.
http://www.quaketastic.com/files/demos/ad_scastle_topher_axe.7z 

But my upload speed is far worse than even Bal's download speed :( 

How is it possible in 2017?