Quest for the Five Elements (RTW level pack - 158/195 levels released, NEW: "False Prophecy")

[Amnon]

Done #102, it was not too difficult - thanks!

Just a question: why the time-wasting collection of coins needed in the very beginning?

[Tech Warrior]

That level description intrigues me... Wonder what's coming there? Guess I'll see when I finally get there.

I look forward to everyone getting to experience Crystal City; it's quite a bit more... thematic? Some of my favorite levels in the entire quest, are in this world, and are coming up.

@Amnon - Ah, that coin collecting is just for theatrics. Entering the Mirror Maze has a hefty cost beyond those of previous attractions. Also... surprised you solved it so fast! For me during testing, it took a while to realize there was a possible solution! Quick question regarding your solution: did you use the flame at the bottom to clear the way at the top?

[Amnon]

Regarding your question - No: (highlight)I used the top cannon to clear the top box. In fact I blocked the bottom cannon to avoid unnecessary cross fire.

[Amnon]

Actually most of the time I spent on #102 was on the first part - lots of labour there to clear the way.

I tried to remember how I did the last (prism) part - so here goes (the link for this video will not last long, so if you like, feel free to copy it to a more stable location): https://ln.sync.com/dl/8a41d47c0/y64kz7 ... q-yvuxxa5y

[Kamerson]

Played through Worlds 1 & 2 and the first half of World 3! So far, very fun adventure with an interesting story! Fairly easy so far, but I know it'll get tougher!

Awesome, thanks for hopping on board the quest! I'll need to tune into one of the streams some time! Glad you are enjoying it, though I know you will enjoy the later levels more so once you get past World 3 - that is my least favorite world (you've no doubt encountered some really annoying bits, such as "Water Mysteries" - oh yeah, sorry about that one!). I think it was first made about... ten years ago. Never rebuilt those levels! Too much bridge-building for me.

And wait... just watched some parts - THAT'S how you guys have done "Survival?" Now that is a very different solution from the intended solution, which is much faster. Try this out:

Immediately push the boulder above you upwards, then follow it around. It will crash into the boulder on the right. Push the top boulder down to crash into the boulder on the bottom, which will happen right before it hits Stinky. Then move to the left boulder - push that boulder right, as the remaining rolling boulder hits the conveyor. Then, you can use the boxes to get the coins, opening the exit gate. By doing this first, you can then sink the remaining boulder right into the water.

And... yeah, that fake wall was unfair on my part. Didn't have much time to watch much of the stream, but I was particularly curious about this level, because I wondered if other solutions were possible. Indeed, I didn't anticipate your solution. Nice work!!

Looking forward to the worlds past World 3, then! I'm sure I'll still enjoy World 3! I haven't gotten to Water Mysteries yet, but I haven't minded the bridge-building puzzles! For me it's interesting to figure out the best route across the water!
For Survival, I realized later that I could've pushed the boulder down, for some reason while I was streaming I didn't see that and always pushed it to the right.

[rainbowmon]

Alright, I'm on Battle At Blizzard Peak, and I've figured out most of it... But I am *COMPLETELY* clueless about what to do just after entering the Yellow Teleporter. What exactly do I need to do there? My first thought was to use the Steel Boxes to block the sides of the Mothership, but I don't see what I need to do beyond that?

[Amnon]

Alright, I'm on Battle At Blizzard Peak, and I've figured out most of it... But I am *COMPLETELY* clueless about what to do just after entering the Yellow Teleporter. What exactly do I need to do there? My first thought was to use the Steel Boxes to block the sides of the Mothership, but I don't see what I need to do beyond that?

Obviously you need to take the last coin, then things will happen fast and you need a metal box to shelter the other 3 Stinkers.

[rainbowmon]

Alright, I'm on Battle At Blizzard Peak, and I've figured out most of it... But I am *COMPLETELY* clueless about what to do just after entering the Yellow Teleporter. What exactly do I need to do there? My first thought was to use the Steel Boxes to block the sides of the Mothership, but I don't see what I need to do beyond that?

Obviously you need to take the last coin, then things will happen fast and you need a metal box to shelter the other 3 Stinkers.

Tried sheltering the other 3 Stinkers - a UFO spawned from the Mothership and went straight through the Steel Box I thought would block it, despite being as far down as I could get it while still protecting all three.

Tried getting three of the Stinkers across, and using a Steel Box to protect the last one, and that worked. But now I still have no idea what to do about the Indigo Gate...

[Amnon]

Tried sheltering the other 3 Stinkers - a UFO spawned from the Mothership and went straight through the Steel Box I thought would block it, despite being as far down as I could get it while still protecting all three.

So where was the steel box positioned? Must have been too close to the mothership...

[rainbowmon]

Two tiles below the conveyor button, though come to think of it, I suppose you could survive with it 3 tiles below - I was thinking I needed them all behind the box, or it wouldn't work.

I'll try it again tomorrow, though I'm still not sure how much of a difference it'll make with the indigo gate...

[Tech Warrior]

Two tiles below the conveyor button, though come to think of it, I suppose you could survive with it 3 tiles below - I was thinking I needed them all behind the box, or it wouldn't work.

I'll try it again tomorrow, though I'm still not sure how much of a difference it'll make with the indigo gate...

Well, you did the last part fine - I actually just use the steel boxes to help one stinker across to the coin, grab the coin, then race the other three across (you should have time for that). And regarding the indigo gate, well, without giving much away (highlight): the level is not yet over once you enter the last teleporter, and some scrolling should give you an idea how it will open.

Also AMNON, you blew my intended solution for Mirror Maze out of the water - somehow, I did not see that you could (highlight): get to the top section from the bottom, as they are supposed to be separate. I will look into this... and may choose to update the level with this change. Even with the sections separated, there are still several ways to clear the boxes, but without your solution, it requires more thoughtful sokoban, which makes it tougher to solve.

[Tech Warrior]

OKAY, I went ahead and updated "Mirror Maze," which prevents your solution, given my notes above. Now, you should find it much more challenging to beat the maze.

For some reason, the forums are not allowing me to re-upload and replace the original file on the post, so, I will just update it here. Of course, this updated version will also be in the final collection once the world is concluded. So, if anyone is waiting to download all the Crystal City levels together, this will include the updated version of this level. I also reduced the coins at the beginning, to cut down on pointless labor.

[rainbowmon]

World 6 is officially clear!

Notable levels:

Snowy Shafts - UGH. FAKE WALLS. HOW I HATE THEM. ...I, uh... Suffice it to say I took a while figuring out how in the universe to get to the final two Bonus Coins. Not a fan...

Freezy Fever - I was *HORENDOUSLY* stumped on this one. So much so, I was in the middle of writing a forum post asking what I was missing... And then the solution came and smacked me in the face as I was writing it. I, uh... Completely forgot you could push a box with a box using a conveyor. Talk about embarrassing...

Location of the Enemy - If I've seen this mechanic before, I don't remember it. Interesting...

Secret Corners - I don't think I've seen a first-person level requiring such fancy movement before. This one was fun to both figure out and execute though!

Break Through! - WHOA, is this level long. None of the individual challenges are too tough, but having to do them all in a row - especially with what I'm calling the Clock Section near the end, which was the toughest individually - made it harder.

Battle At Blizzard Peak - I got stuck near the end of this one yesterday, and asked for help. ...Honestly, if I had waited until today, I probably would've figured it out on my own. I had seen the indigo button mechanism yesterday, but I didn't understand how it worked until today. I think I got lucky on my first try at activating it today, if I'm being honest. As for the steel boxes, I just used the ol' trick where you put one on a stopped conveyor, put the Stinker on a parallel conveyor, and release. Worked like a charm; just took me way longer than it should've to think to try it - the fact there were two boxes confused me, since I thought I needed both.

EDIT: Just went back to look for the Blitzkrieg clue, and couldn't find it. I don't want to be looking through the files for it - will there be hints to its location later on?

[Amnon]

OK, I did the revised level-102.

[rainbowmon]

World 7 done - nothing much to say, other than that this was my favorite world so far!

[Tech Warrior]

World 7 done - nothing much to say, other than that this was my favorite world so far!

Awesome! HAHA, as I watched some of the stream, I said to myself: "oh, rainbowmon is going to hate Snowy Shafts." Glad I wasn't off about that one. Otherwise, I am glad you enjoyed Secret Corners - the concept there was very experimental, and I wasn't sure if it would be well received. There are only a few 3D levels in the quest, but, I do aim to utilize and exercise some new skills with them. So thanks for the feedback!

Regarding the Blitzlrieg Clues, yes, subtle clues will begin showing up around the levels in which they are featured, and I will not give you any further hints as to where they are. That's because there is, in fact, one specific level, which tells you exactly where they are, and how many they are. At that point, you will need to go back to those locations. If that becomes too difficult or annoying, just let me know! They are intentionally very well hidden.

Enjoy World 8 - you will need to enter a new headspace, as there is lots to learn in the library. You'll notice the difficulty increase exponentially afterwards.

[rainbowmon]

World 8 done! *WOW*, The Library took me a while. Mostly 'cause I kept messing up the first Gate Code, but I digress...

On a related note, 2 things:

1. Looking at the setup for the second Gate Code using the Control-Alt-X trick, it uses a gold Chomper - how are players meant to know they need to have Loof in the lower area? I initially had all the Stinkers in the area near the goal for convenience, and when the code didn't work, had to restart (I didn't see the Chomper before then, so either it was killed or I just missed it).

2. The one thing I still don't understand about how this level works - something destroyed the ice cube on the Yellow Teleporter, but what? How did you get that to happen when you've done everything else you need to?

[Tech Warrior]

World 8 done! *WOW*, The Library took me a while. Mostly 'cause I kept messing up the first Gate Code, but I digress...

On a related note, 2 things:

1. Looking at the setup for the second Gate Code using the Control-Alt-X trick, it uses a gold Chomper - how are players meant to know they need to have Loof in the lower area? I initially had all the Stinkers in the area near the goal for convenience, and when the code didn't work, had to restart (I didn't see the Chomper before then, so either it was killed or I just missed it).

2. The one thing I still don't understand about how this level works - something destroyed the ice cube on the Yellow Teleporter, but what? How did you get that to happen when you've done everything else you need to?

1. Hmm, the only way this would be an issue is if you had Loof right at the top of the level, or on the second-to-top row - which you actually cannot do, since you need him between the pyramids to divert the UFO fire from Peegue while performing the code. This means that no matter Loof's position, even if you are between the pyramids at the very top, you are in line with the gates - so, the chomper will follow him.

2. "a bounce of blue" - I'm assuming you got lucky after the final blue button? Or did you, in fact, toggle the button on/off a few times after the code? What happened here is that: the rainbow spirit was killed in the blue gate, causing a warp gate to create more. One such spirit traversed a long fake wall passageway, which leads to the plasma cube (there is a keg hidden next to it).

[rainbowmon]

I'm guessing I got lucky, because I didn't toggle it on/off at all - honestly, I interpreted "bounce on blue" to be in reference to the way the Rainbow Spirit bounces off the Chomper to get the rainbow coin.

[Tech Warrior]

I'm guessing I got lucky, because I didn't toggle it on/off at all - honestly, I interpreted "bounce on blue" to be in reference to the way the Rainbow Spirit bounces off the Chomper to get the rainbow coin.

Thank you for clarifying - I now think that I need to update this level to alter the wording of this code. Amnon warned me that interpretation of it would not lead to the intended action. Although it's not hard to get lucky from this, I don't really want anything based on luck. Hmm, I might wait to see how Kamerson interprets it... in a few months LOL.

Maybe "3 blue bounces" or "...then keep jumping on blue."

[Tech Warrior]

The House of Games is only getting more challenging as Loof finds himself inside Minesweeper: Crystal City style - this is another one of my favorites in this world, and conceptually, it's one of my favorites in the quest. Indeed, this is likely the first time you have played Minesweeper... in Wonderland!

Lv103 - "Minesweeper" (5/10) - Welcome to Minesweeper, converted into Wonderland, with some different rules as governed by Crystal City's gaming guru. You'll need to map out your route on paper as you discover each move - but don't worry. If you pay close attention to the visual and audible warnings and map the grid correctly per the rules, you absolutely have a chance to beat it on your first go! The audience will feel pretty dumbfounded if you manage to do that... as will I.

Oh, and there's a slot machine if you get out... I'd like to know if you win the lottery...

Download Notes:

Extract the level into your "WD10 - Crystal City" directory. Extract 'crystal' to your CustomTextures directory if you haven't yet gotten it.

Enjoy!

[Amnon]

Connecting the speakers thereby waking everyone in the house is not an option, so I just marked where I have been and the number of exploded motherships on a piece of squares-paper and it didn't take more than half an hour to complete level #103. Thanks, difficulty level is no more than 5/10.

[Amnon]

(and yes, the second time I played I also won the lottery)

[Tech Warrior]

Connecting the speakers thereby waking everyone in the house is not an option, so I just marked where I have been and the number of exploded motherships on a piece of squares-paper and it didn't take more than half an hour to complete level #103. Thanks, difficulty level is no more than 5/10.

Feedback noted, thanks, I updated the level to include both visual and audible warnings. Hmm, I'll need to think about how to do this in some later levels which rely on audible signals...

[Tech Warrior]

After having too much fun in the universe's biggest gaming city, the gang is finally reuniting to discuss their discoveries, and what happens next!

Lv104 - "Playing with Marbles" (1/10, gold 6.5/10) - A conversation level which (hopefully) gets the gang back on track, as they have previously been distracted by the splendor and fun of Crystal City's attractions. It's time to stop playing games! ...or is it?? Case in point: the bonus coins!

PUZZLE UPDATED - see first post on next page.

Enjoy!

[Amnon]

In level 104, Loof stayed behind and collected the bonus coins.

[Tech Warrior]

In level 104, Loof stayed behind and collected the bonus coins.

Are you saying that you found a way to circumvent the puzzle? I have only found one solution so far... I'm interested to know your solution...

[Amnon]

Are you saying that you found a way to circumvent the puzzle?

No! I am saying that I solved this puzzle, quite easily. It is you who call it "circumvent"...

Here goes: All leave except for Loof, then he pushes:

Yellow-Up
Yellow-Up
Blue-Right
Red-Left
Green-Right
Red-Right

Collects the coins and exits.

[Amnon]

Also found a family of solutions with Stinky in the lead, but he requires some quick moves.

[Tech Warrior]

Of course, I did not see such a simple solution. I used the word 'circumvent' because your solution does indeed dodge the intended solution, which requires 3 characters to solve. OKAY, I will be looking into this to make some adjustments. Back to the editor...