Year: 2045 A.D. Location: USMC Training Facility, Sleeping Quarters.
- Damn those Stroggs! Just when you thought you had gotten rid of them, they're putting up camp
somewhere else.
These are the thoughts that run through your head as you get the wake-up call at 4:30 AM.
- Yes, what is it?
- Soldier, put on some clothes, and get down here! Right away!
It is your USMC assigned commander ordering you to get your gears on. You just know this is not going to be a very nice day after all.
- OK. I'll be there. Soon.
As you enter the briefing room, there are several higher ranking officers and other military personnel present, and you can smell the scent of "dangerous mission ahead" before one word has been directed your way.
- Ah, there you are. Good. I'll cut directly to the heart of the matter.
Your commander looks at you firmly as he tells you what on earth is going on. Or rather, what they think is going on. As usual, they don't have much actual clue.
- We have satellites over Strogg territory intercepting signals from an unknown place. There is something going on there, but we can't seem to locate the actual source. We've been able to discover a nearby structure, some kind of installation with two towers in close proximity. It is possible that this "twin tower" installation is being used as a decoy, confusing our intelligence satellites somehow or other.
- Ah-uhm. What else is new?
- Quiet! The thing is, we have no information about this place. None whatsoever. We need you to get in there and gather some for us. Then we can quickly decipher the data you give us, and confirm any transmitted information in minutes. Are you with me, private?
- Sure.
- Good. We're about ready to ship you off. We can't just drop you off in the twin tower base we've located, but we'll try to drop you off quite close to it. As I've said, we don't know much about this area at all. It seems to have grown from nothing. We're just shipping you off blindfoldly here, we have no other alternatives. However, we'll be able to scan the area just when we're leaving you, so we might be able to tell you whether you are in trouble or not. But from then on, you'll be on your own until you can transmit new information to us.
- Information. Right. But from where?
- We believe there are some sort of high security computer network in operation in this area. You need to access info computers and retrieve whatever information is stored there. Ultimately, we may be able to find what seems to be a hidden installation or base, and maybe even find out what the heck is going on there.
- All right. Now I get it. I'll have to do BOTH the info gathering, AND the killing? Just great.
- Shut up and get your blaster ready. This is a mission of uttermost importance. Failure is not an option.
- Fine. Just hand me my personal computer. I'm ready when you are, officer.
You're shipped off to a seemingly random location, thought to be close to the "twin tower" installation. Immediately after you hit the ground, your personal computer beeps a message. You turn the display on and scan what they're telling you from above.
- Put the contents of tefdbl5.zip into a directory /quake2/tefdbl5/.
- Start Quake 2 with the command:
quake2 +set game tefdbl5 +skill x +map prologue
(Use x = 0 (easy), 1 (normal), 2 (hard; recommended), or 3 (hard+))
NB! Please start with "prologue" (note the spelling) as the unit will not play properly otherwise. This is important! Also, cheating will seriously screw up the line of events in this unit. All I can say is, DON'T cheat! If things get too hard, it is better to lower the skill level.
Remember, this unit has been in production for almost 4 months. I would personally recommend playing it with at least SOME amount of devotion. With the frequency of brand new Quake 2 single player missions these days, it could take a long while before something of similar (or better) quality comes along. The point is that it would be sad to ruin the experience for yourself by cheating. So be warned.
This unit is the official sequel to "Tef Double Pack IV: Emerald Mountain Wipeout", released December 1998. Although called "Tef Double Pack V", this is in fact a "triple pack" :). I have made a "Prologue" to get the plotline going, and I hope you'll enjoy it. However, I didn't want to call it "Tef Triple Pack 1", or something similarily stupid. The Prologue is kind of short, so the term "double pack" still applies somewhat. Oh, nevermind :)
Some areas may be slightly r_speeds intensive (that is a technical term, for those who doesn't map themselves, please disregard this section. There is nothing to worry about in terms of gameplay). I have monitored the wpolys as best as I could, and I find everything to be acceptably smooth.
As with today's standards, my gaming PC is at the lower end of the scale (P2-266 with Voodoo2 and 64 megs RAM), and I have no problems with framerate whatsoever. The formal r_speeds count rises slightly above 1000 in one or two particular spots, but on the average the count is about 300 - 700 during normal gameplay. The higher count there is I have found acceptable on the grounds of worthwhile architecture and interesting combat situations. I hope you agree.
With this said, I will safely ignore any e-mails or reviews complaining about high polycounts blah blah blah. Just play it and have fun :)
I would like to note that I created the two-piece mine door from scratch (not a prefab), and that all computer terminals seen in Tef Double Pack V are my own work.
Ikbase textures converted from original .jpg to .wal format by me using Wally 1.52b.
(skip this section if you don't want any tip whatsoever. Nothing major will be revealed here, though).
- Take your time with each section. Explore thoroughly. Don't rush into areas you don't know the layout of.
- Some computer terminals have longer transcripts. These are replayable, so when the text ends, try pushing the button again if you missed something, or to review the information contained therein.
- Try to conserve ammo, you will probably need whatever you got. Do the same with health.
- Some secrets are harder to find than others. Some are also "cruel", i.e. not reachable before you have got the right "equipment", so to speak. Make your best to discover at least some secrets, they will help you!
- Some secrets are labeled as "major". If you find these, you'll be greatly rewarded either by plot or equipment enhancements.
- The monsters can teleport in. Listen carefully for a special sound whenever this happens, so you can prepare yourself better.
- Some events are timed. If you don't seem able to proceed, you may find yourself in one of these events. Stay cool and anticipate whatever happens next.
- Most of all, have really good fun, and don't give up even if things look hopeless. Be a real soldier!
