pro map as usual! nice details and atmosphere and of course gameplay :)
not sure if the demo will play properly for you, sock. it hanged at loading when entering the map after skill change for me.
http://vondur.net/files/vivory.7z 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/103186490/ivory_scamp.zip

I really wanted the rocket launcher I saw, but the map deemed me unworthy. I'll have to play again and find more secrets and kill more dudes! 

Great map, thank you!
Played about 35 minutes and didn't get how to approach RL and where the hell is LG.
Final fight was somewhat expected after gold key door and vores got me there :/ 

@Barnak, thanks for the compliment, why not try the map on easy skill? Why start with all weapons and god mode on?

@nitin, Unfortunately I ran out of time for creating a brand new final arena so I reused elements from my previous maps. It is not exactly the same, I tried to minimize the amount of monsters spawning in and the central columns are removed so that the player needs to rely on the crushers for cover.

@Drew, yeah this map is a different direction from Backstein, it is non-linear, secrets are valuable and there are a lot more variety of spaces to fight in.

@skacky, wow that is awesome, first nightmare demo run! :D I think lots of people are going to get confused and lost because it is not linear but it is a small price to pay for the chance to discover new routes from multiple sessions.

@nullability, someone new I have not seen at Func before, welcome! Yeah this map does not play well with DP, I only recommend Fitz or QS. The getting lost thing is because the flow is not linear, I wanted people to have fun playing the map several times and finding new routes. 

Nice looking map and a great fun sunday morning.

If you watch my demo you will see I lack a sense of direction totally - visiting every room multiple times, passing through them in all directions and having no idea how stuff connects. I get lost in even the most linear of maps so it has nothing to do with this one in particular.

I got the RL by using a nearby slope, at about 15 minutes into the second demo.

Recorded with DirectQ. Missed 1 monster, and 5-6 secrets. I've finally understood the demon face=secret hint since it was discussed in another thread, but it doesn't always help. Easy skill is the skill I play unless otherwise motivated by SDA tables. I restarted the recording once because I accidentally chose normal skill the first time (getting lost in the start map...). And I started a new recording after the level reload for maximum compatibility.

http://quaketastic.com/files/demos/ivory_mandel.7z 

One thing I was a bit disappointed with is the fact that once you reach the final arena there is no way to go back to the rest of the map. I wanted to grab the RL and the red armor (you'll see that in the demo as I try to get back), but the elevator is activated too soon and you can't get back. 

If you see me completely stop dead it's because I'm using a wireless keyboard and either the battery is low or it doesn't enjoy multiple key presses. I recorded the demo in DirectQ as this is the only engine that works on my surface pro.

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

I will collect my thoughts and give more feedback later. 

@stevenaaus, In previous maps I auto-magically (trigger brushes) opened shortcuts for players so if they fell down they can get back. This time I decided to let players open the shortcuts themselves so they can understand where the shortcut is, but you ignored the buttons, why?

@SleepwalkR, yeah the final arena is easy if you use the secrets. All the heavy weapons SNG/GL/RL/LG are locked away in secrets or on ledges that need puzzle thinking. The final arena is balanced for SG/SSG/NG only. 

I thought I was playing on hard, I was on normal... 

Sock, I think the final arena is easy even with only the weapons you mention though, except for the vores. Those could be tough. But otherwise, you just run in a circle and hit the buttons; most of the enemies get squished sooner or later. 

My three year old daughter just walked into the room while I was replaying this map. She points to the screen and says: "Daddy, what are you doing in the study; is that a tunnel?!"

She really likes tunnels. 

@distrans, you are the only person so far that has got the RL the 'easy' way :P I like your ending, nice touch. :)

@Vondur, I thought you would like to play on Hard skill? your demo is normal skill. Looks like you had fun! :D

@Scampie, getting the RL is one of those of the 'oh that is how you get it' moments. You should really play it again, you do realize the SK is completely optional!?! :P

@AAS, someone I have not seen post on func, welcome! Yeah the map is non-linear, getting lost is the price to pay for multiple route maps. Luckily the map is so small it should feel familiar after a while. 

@Mandel, wow that is an impressive way to get the RL but there is a much easier way. There is a clue with the second altar in the chapel next to the GK which you got. I did not get the impression you were lost as much as you said, but were frustrated with the lack of space to move about in.

I think the problem is I am not a speed runner or trick jumper, I don't design maps for these types of game play. This map is cramped, story/location driven and designed for a slow/cautious pace. This map also has non-linear flow and that is a double edged sword with the flip side being, you can get lost. 

I played Ivory this morning. Got all the way through on "normal" without dying once, with 6 of 10 secrets and 83 of 84 kills. Unfortunately I forgot FitzQuake didn't record across levels, so no demo. 

Cool, like it, love the blend of standard medieval with the mines and stuff. Found it quite easy but good fun. My demo is approx 1/3 pretty fast playing, 1/3 patiently getting secrets, and 1/3 utter confusion:

http://www.quaketastic.com/files/demos/shamvory2.zip 

Pro-Brushwork as usual, texturing fits perfectly.
Got lost somewhere in the middle, died on the last shambler, could not hide in a clipped corner, which leaves me kind of upset.

You�ll see what i mean:
Demo 82/84 kills, 9/10 secrets.

Anyway, this is still awesome, thank you very much!! 

Two demos because quicksaving and reloading is technology beyond my brain capability.

Wonderful map, love every single thing about it. :) 

@Fifth, you were indeed playing on Hard skill and had an amazing start discovering the SK bypass route. (I designed it based on how people played midnight stalker) Then you got caught using the inv ring and nearly died! After that you doubled backed on yourself and ended up looping the whole level again! :(
I am not sure what control system you are using but it feels like you don't strafe but turn left/right and move forward instead?

It seems my non-linear map design is not getting the reaction I hoped for but instead producing frustration. (this is the impression I get from demo's) I recently played a lot of old Quake maps and noticed how they often were tough and open with routes. (good example) Not sure if players nowadays automatically associate being lost with frustration or actually prefer wanting to be lead more often. 

@Shambler, everything was going perfect, you went on a Quad rampage killing loads of monsters, pick up the gold key and then walk past the gold key door several times, why? The door had a gold key texture in the middle? Maybe this is why ID put gold keys on either side of their doors. 

I personally enjoy open maps like this one immensely. But I think that one problem that lead to frustration was that sometimes it felt as if I wasn't really supposed to take a particular route because that route led through a secret or put me behind sleeping enemies. I often thought, "Am I breaking the map right now?"

Maybe an idea how to fix this is to make clear to the player what the sub goals are and how each possible route advances the player to a particular subgoal? 

non-linear levels like this are more enjoyable for me.

I didnt have an issue with thinking I'm breaking the map, I figured you were a good enough mapper to have tested the level enough to avoid situations like that (especially because it wasnt like I was rocketjumping to places to take shortcuts just following a particular path). 

I often thought, "Am I breaking the map right now?"
That was by design, I love the fact if you pick the right route you can flank the enemies and then plan how you attack. Maybe it is the stealth player in me, but I love looking for ways to surprise the enemies!

I had flanking routes in Backsteingotik where you could sneak up on enemies and people seemed to like that. This map is designed to take the idea further with lots of routes to locations and even secrets. Maybe this approach is just too much and players just assume the map is broken because of custom Quake map history.

Do players really play maps more than once? Is the extra design for different routes and ways to enjoy the map wasted because people only play maps once and think that is it.

I am disappointed by the reaction because I don't exactly know why the map is producing such a negative reaction. Seeing a lot of people shaking their mouse (common way to show frustration in demo's) and not a lot of satisfaction. After seeing 5+ demo's of people getting lost and not seeing any physical/verbal reaction makes it difficult to understand the problem. 

Do players really play maps more than once?

Yes.

Is the extra design for different routes and ways to enjoy the map wasted

No, absolutely not! I'm always disappointed that modern maps have less different routes open for exploration than E1M2 from 1996.

After seeing 5+ demo's of people getting lost and not seeing any physical/verbal reaction makes it difficult to understand the problem.

I got a bit lost, but it was my fault only, not the map's. I figure the other players felt that way too. 

@Mfx, that demo was painful, I can't understand how you play Quake without a mouse and just keyboard. Sorry man I could not watch it to the end, I gave up when you were next to the gold door with the gold key and then wandered around lost ... :( 

Do players really play maps more than once? Of course, especially if the map is beautifull !

Each time I play my old maps, I try to be creative in killing monsters! (hehehee)

I try new routes, rocket-jump on interesting corners, looking for all the secrets I missed (secrets is a great thing, in Quake!). I like to explore and "taste" the strong atmosphere. When a sucker gets in my way, I nag him in any vicious ways (especially the Shambler and the Vore).