#1
Yandros
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Desperately Dodgy Moderator
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Bohn Museum
Thief 2 Campaign: Death's Cold Embrace (Oct 25, 2017)
INTRODUCTION
As I sit here in my cozy office and write this, I can’t help but feel a bit of disbelief that this thing is finally released. It’s been such a significant part of my life ever since Yandros brought me on board in 2010, that it’s almost hard to let go of. It’s not something I’ve been working on constantly, but it’s always been there in the background through thick and thin- that quiet but persistent nagging in my ear- “Finish me.”In truth, Yandros did the lion’s share of the work. My main role was throwing wrenches in the story and a little mapping here and there. (Basically, the long delay is my fault. Sorry!)
[Not true. -Ed.] But hey, here we are! We did it, Russ! Well, mostly you, but I was here to listen to you vent about all the bugs and offer unhelpful advice! What would you do without me?Ah, but this is not what you’re here for. You want to play now! Well, settle down. You’ll be dusting the snow from your shoulders as you step into Fairbanks manor soon enough, young taffer!
In DCE, you’ll hear a familiar tale. It’s a story that we’ve all heard before, but will hopefully feel fresh as it’s told through the dark world of Thief. You’ll sneak through a snow covered city, burglarize cold manors, infiltrate a frigid cathedral, and even find yourself in a dark, frozen castle. You’ll unravel a tragic tale of love and loss where the end is uncertain and even death itself can be denied!
Welcome to the winter world of Death’s Cold Embrace. Bundle up, taffers. Dayport is cold this time of year.
-- Random_Taffer
IMPORTANT STUFFGAMEPLAY NOTES
- This campaign requires NewDark v1.25 or higher - things WILL BREAK if you use an older version. All necessary custom scripts are included, EXCEPT for GoG users; if you installed via GoG, please move or copy the file "squirrel.osm" from your doc folder to the root Thief2 folder. This file will be included in a future update to the campaign.
- Disable any upgrades or enhancement packs. This isn’t only because we want you to experience the missions the way they were designed; there were also numerous crashes during testing with enhancement packs (including the EP2 and NecroAge) enabled. Besides, there are very few original textures which will be replaced by an enhancement pack anyway.
--> Learn how to do this here- Before beginning, check your Audio settings and make sure Audio Channels is set to at least 12. One tester had very bad issues with certain missions with it set below 12.
- Subtitles for most voice lines are on by default, even in English. You can disable them by going into the /books folder (or /books/English or whatever your language is) and deleting or renaming all the .str files which begin with a lowercase 'c' followed by four digits, e.g. 'c1701.str'. You may want to back up these files first in case you want to restore them later.
LOOTLISTS AND SECRETS
- There are numerous in-game cutscenes which convey the story. It is best not to save and load during these scenes to avoid issues. Also, you will automatically wield equipment after some scenes, which is a side effect of the script used to disarm you during such scenes and can’t be prevented.
- Unfrobbable doors and windows generally mean you can’t get inside that building, at least not in that mission. Such doors and windows might become frobbable in a future mission, when you return to the same map. Similarly, some buildings you accessed previously can become inaccessible later when you revisit the area, and the doors or windows will become unfrobbable to indicate that.
- There are numerous side stories, most of which are told across multiple missions occurring in the same part of The City. When you revisit locations, be sure to re-read texts and watch for details that convey these ongoing side stories, to fully appreciate the campaign. Some side stories also find their way into the main story line as well.
This Google spreadsheet lists all loot in every mission, and also includes a sheet listing all secrets by mission. In addition, there is a sheet with spoilered details of all of the important items in mission 2 organized by difficulty:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...it?usp=sharingRESPONSIBLE PARTIES
Builders: Polygon, Yandros, Random_Taffer, Moghedian, R Soul
Story: Yandros, Random_Taffer, Moghedian, Peter Smith and Polygon
Texts: Yandros, Random_Taffer, Moghedian and TannarTESTERS
Tannar, Nickie, Nightwalker, Peter Smith, FreddyFox, Dafydd, R Soul, Brethren, MarblemanTRANSLATORS
Thanks to Athalle, fortuni and everyone at the Shadow Guild for coordinating the massive translation effort for this project!A NOTE FROM YANDROS
- French: Athalle, FrenchDecay, Azaran
- German: zappenduster,
- Russian: Dront, MoroseTroll, Soldi, Fernan
From the bottom of my heart, I thank all the people who helped out with this thing - from the original builders (Polygon and Moghedian), to those who helped develop a solid story (Peter Smith), to the creators of all of the custom objects and textures, to the testers (some of whom literally were with me for 8+ years), to those who kept pitching in to help as the schedule dragged on - Tannar was always willing to help and give sage advice; R Soul joined late, but consistently went way above and beyond, doing things I never dreamed to ask; and most of all, Random_Taffer. This campaign might have been released a year earlier were it not for his ideas and creativity, but I can guarantee you it wouldn't be nearly as good. I was actually ready to permanently shelve this thing when he joined in 2010, and brought new energy and ideas and renewed in me the fire to complete this some day.And so, here it is.
MIRRORS
English & Russian
Darkfate - http://download.darkfate.org/fan-mis...ace/DCE_v1.zip
Southquarter - http://www.southquarter.com/downloads/2017/DCE_v1.zip
Drive: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B-...ks0bjFURVdjMTg
Derfy: http://fms.derfy.net/DCE_v1.zip
Thiefmissions: http://thiefmissions.com/m/DeathsColdEmbrace
Taffers Paradise: http://www.taffersparadise.co.uk/thi...ion/DCE_v1.zipFrench
Darkfate - http://download.darkfate.org/fan-mis.../DCE_FR_v1.zip
Southquarter - http://www.southquarter.com/download.../DCE_FR_v1.zip
Drive: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B-...VNjZ3RoT1lIMWM
Derfy: http://fms.derfy.net/DCE_FR_v1.zip
Thiefmissions: http://thiefmissions.com/m/DeathsColdEmbraceFRGerman
Mediafire: http://www.mediafire.com/file/0iknuk.../DCE_DE_v1.zip
Taffers Paradise: http://www.taffersparadise.co.uk/thi.../DCE_DE_v1.zip
Important German patch for Mission 7: http://www25.zippyshare.com/v/PnpMwNmN/file.html
Updated link for German patch is in this post: https://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthre...=1#post2465632Please post questions and comments on specific missions in the following threads:
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 1 "Murder Most Foul"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 2 "A Formula For Success"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 3 "Rendezvous at the Harlequin"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 4 "Fate Intervenes"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 5 "Seeking Counsel With Shadows"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 6 "Cold Reception"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 7 "Waking The Dead"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 8 "The Ritual"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 9 "The Wailing Keep"
Death's Cold Embrace: Mission 10 "The Ending Is Just The Beginning"
Last edited by Yandros; 23rd Jan 2021 at 22:27.Reason: More mirrors
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#2
Yandros
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Desperately Dodgy Moderator
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Bohn Museum
I think I almost know what childbirth feels like now.
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#18
Yandros
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Desperately Dodgy Moderator
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Bohn Museum
Thanks for the mirrors!
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#20
Yandros
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Desperately Dodgy Moderator
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Bohn Museum
Thanks, Jeremy! And tell your better half thanks for lending her voice to the project!
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