=========================================================================== Archive Maintainer : - Update to : - Advanced engine needed : None / Made for Vanilla Primary purpose : Single player =========================================================================== Title : URE:E2 Filename : URE-E2.WAD + URE-E2.DEH Release date : 2026-09-09 Author : Zylinderkatze Email Address : [redacted] Other Files By Author : URE2020.WAD Misc. Author Info : Still spends too much time on details xD The Long Introduction : Did anyone think I would stop after one episode? This was bound to happen, but no one expected it to take another 5+ years to get to this point. Least of all me. Back in 2010, when I had returned after 13 years, to try and bring my first episode from 1997 into the (then) modern day, I also started a new project: The more-or-less unnamed Episode 2. Unfortunately, my motivation soon died, when my PC did the same, taking all of my modernization efforts (and most of Episode 2) with it. The 1997 maps would eventually be salvaged and became URE2020; Go check it out if you haven't yet in case you're curious what happened! What was left in regards to Episode 2, though, was a single map: E2M1. My work on the final map (E2M8) was lost, because it only existed on that fatefully deceased PC. Make backups. However, another thing I had in 2010 was ideas! And when my motivation to "keep going" was very strong after finally publishing URE2020, I dove right back in with what little there was left of Episode 2, to create what now is "URE:E2"! And now YOU have it! Right here (hopefully), next to this readme file. What are you waiting for? The Short Introduction : Hey look, it's more URE! Let's go! Description : The WAD that (presumably) came with this readme contains an almost entirely new set of maps. E2M1 has an old 2010 frame and E2M8 has some parts based on what I remember from 2010. Everything else is completely new! This brings us all one step closer to a full, four-episode "extraWADganza" of URE goodness. Halfway there, only.. 10 more years to go, at the current rate? Oh boy. The Story : If you've made it to here, you must really like reading. Okay then, here's some more to read! After the events that transpired five years ago, you had vowed to steer far, far away from any job like that. Jobs that would have you go into sites with incomplete, misleading, heavily redacted briefings. Jobs that left you on the forefront of saving mankind's ass without mankind even knowing of the danger or who saved them from it. After a unceremonious debriefing and tons- quite possibly actual tons- of reports to fill out, you took your leave- and left. For your own sake, it was probably good that you were all out of scoffs when you picked up your civilian belongings alongside your reward for your "diligent service". Seriously, a commemorative belt buckle? Is that what saving every living soul on this forsaken planet got you? Maybe the punchline was lost on you. Maybe it wasn't funny to begin with. The buckle did look kind of nice though. Your new employer had made a business of hiring former military, while promising level-headed communication and honest pay for honest work. You thought they were probably full of it, but after your first few missions with them, you started to gain a semblance of trust. The jobs were varied and hardly ever dull, even the ones that could be considered "routine". Today, you were called on an investigation job concerning a research facility. Hearing the term "research facility" gave you an eerie sense of déjà-vu but they assured you it was unrelated. Just a spike on a seismic chart at a laboratory. Besides, the Translocator technology research had been outlawed five years ago. No need to worry. Mission control will update you on your tasks as you progress towards your objective. This will be a quick investigation but you grab your pistol as you approach the dropship hangar anyways. Just in case. (Read the mission descriptions at your own risk, they kind of give the "story" away a bit) E2M1: Forward Base Just a quick flyover en route to the target- but suddenly your screens light up with red alerts. Their base defense systems locked onto your very outmatched personnel carrier dropship and it was all you could do to disable the autopilot in time to escape the second hit. The first one, though, was already enough to send you spiraling towards the reactor building. Why did it always have to be reactors? If you make it through, you better find a way to get in touch with mission control. For the time being it seems they can still reach you, because your portable COMM device shows the message: DISPATCH: Uncover source of unexpected data spike E2M2: Unstable Facility Somehow, this place looks new, almost TOO new. Also, you are still more than a little unsettled by the presence of.. inhuman opposition at the last place. This all feels a little TOO much like what you've experienced five years ago. Your COMM warns you about a probability of a reactor failure but you're really just here to get access to the canal network to advance to your main goal. It seems that you have no time to lose, if the updated post is to be believed: ESCALATION: Networked sensor array confirms divergence E2M3: The Lock You arrived at a blocked path, putting an end to your little cruise for now. Your COMM says that there's an overwatch building in the ship lock area close to your location and suggests it as a first objective. After some human reasoning on your part you decide that it's as good a place as any to start, if you want to make it to the city nearby. Your COMM would commend your analytical prowess, if it had a sarcasm module installed. Instead it simply updates the message from HQ: MALFUNCTIONS: Diagnostic systems on site remain unresponsive E2M4: The City There we go, the city complex. This place is a bit big for your liking. It may take some time to get through here but you can't stop now. Maybe you'll find some civilians on the way- or maybe a clue as to why there aren't any. Speaking of clues, you begin to wonder where HQ are getting theirs from. They seem a little too cryptic, a little too vague. And the latest one a little too ominous, to boot: OVERLOAD: Outer ring of survey nodes destroyed by pulse burst E2M5: The Depot This whole area feels like one big conglomerated mess. Potentially, there is a way to get back to the canal network from here. At least your COMM says so: "The blockage you encountered at [The Lock] can be released from here". Then below it adds: "Unauthorized Submarine Hub detected". Submarine? Here? You're almost tempted to go look for it. The newest message from Mission Control leaves you none the wiser; Should you hurry on through or look for the "Sub Hub"? NO NEW DATA: Inconclusive Information. Stand by for instructions E2M6: Abandoned Reactor Seriously, what's with all these reactors? You'd complain but you have no one to complain to. Besides, you have much more pressing matters to attend to. Like finding a new way to continue, now that your ship is.. non-operational. Supposedly there's a train leaving from here, but it might be a challenge to get to it. Because it seems that one side effect of this place being abandoned is that it has just about no power. Maybe you can find a way to restart the reactor. And preferably quickly, since your COMM confirms that the tremors that caused the demise of your ship seem to reach farther than you thought: INSTABILITY: Nationwide major quakes doubtlessly unrelated E2M7: Transport Hub "Unrelated" my ass. No, this is not good at all. This rings much too familiar to what you saw and heard and read on your way to the Retcon Research Laboratories, five years ago. You wonder why you never questioned where all the intel is coming from that those update messages are based on. Well, it's no use wondering now- this place has an demonic vibe to it. Something's in the air. "Mostly bullets, once I start pushing through", you tell yourself. Heh. Good one. Time to get going. It's not just bullets; There's a familiar, unsettling hum in the air.. and you wonder whether you're actually hearing it, or whether it's all in your head. There has to be a gate here. Of course. Great. The last message on your COMM reads thus: CONTACT LOST: Ground crew presumed MIA. Investigation inconclusive E2M8: QuinTerminal So this is what's on the other side, huh. Looks like those are more gates. Five of them. Let's see what's behind those. You made it this far, might as well see it through to the end. Wait, wasn't there a hulking abomination of a demon, an amalgamation of flesh and metal, guarding the gate, the last time? It's eerily quiet. E2M9: Under Water Hazard So.. in order to stay undetected, they moved part of their research into a deep sea underwater lab? What kind of financial padding DO they have? Even more so, what kind of research do they do, that needs to be hidden this deep below? Looks like if you want to get out of here, you will have to find out. Good luck! [End of Episode 2] This WAD replaces: E2M1 - E2M9 SKY1 A few graphics (Map Names, etc. but no textures) Map names & Episode 2 Outro Text (Dehacked file) Victory Screen graphic. Additional Credits to : The members of the Doomworld forum that gave me the added boost needed to keep going <3 Honorable Mentions : adamastor (for jumping right in with cautious (in order of appearance) anticipation when the project started) Tam (for showing appreciation in her own way) ketmar (for being optimistic about how long the development might take.. and then sticking around for a lot of it anyways <3) wallabra (for being excited about URE's future and bringing positive vibes in general) P41R47 (for sharing wisdom about custom sprites as well as inspiration from a writer's angle, on ideas that aren't as novel as they seemed) Omniarch (for their own view on inspiration and "making ideas one's own", even if someone else already had them- and many other things, like writing the beautiful summary for the Cacoward synopsis of URE2020! I'm honored) Dragonfly (for dropping by and suggesting to make my own custom composite textures to save some Vanilla resources.. which I'll likely do at some point but also likely not in URE :D) Soulless (for sharing their item placement ideas, motivation- and letting me know that URE2020 won the runner-up Cacoward 2021) "JL" was too short [former name redacted] (for watching and waiting in the shadows and generally being a cheer leader, all along the way to URE:E2's completion! And for playtesting and being the reason for a very CUBIC secret in E2M4 and a liquid one in E2M7 <3) Bucket (for coming on in, early on, not knowing just how long it would take for me to get done. And for all the music!) Lutz (for dropping in and commenting about the idea-stealing-controversy of "Phobos: Anomaly Reborn" :D) NightFright (for praising me for my Doom-mapping- dream "problem" and other goodness) zokum (for dropping in with sage engine wisdom, more than once. Always a welcome boon!) Rencoret (for some insight into Segs and Verts!) Gez (for adding their knowledge to Rencoret's) Andromeda (for Berzerk insight!) mammothForger (for a vote "pro detail"!) brick (for a vote of confidence on URE quality) Insaneprophet (for commending my commenting and keeping in the loop of my non-URE activities!) Not Jabba (for giving me faith that map details may indeed NOT go by unnoticed) slowfade (for cautioning me and JL about GZDoom) Arrowhead (for pushing me to get things done :D) Super Benellus (for asking about the soundtrack) Greg (for looking forward to E2 after URE2020) Spikee1975 (for looking back at URE2020 kindly and insight & feedback on the MUS-files I used, as well as positivity about the dev blog!) And, if I didn't mention you here, also you! Honorable Mentions II : URE:E2 was a little less potent in attracting (in order of appearance) fresh eyes during revision- then again, I DID go about the process in a less than ideal manner, compared to URE2020. Also: "Sophomore Slump" D: And quantity doesn't matter as much as quality, anyways. A bunch of voices on Doomworld made themselves heard and added to the progression and finalization of URE:E2! epic bird (for their criticism, albeit scathing, because it inspired some necessary changes!) lucinda (for silently following the development and offering / declaring to test the maps!) Solmyr (for pointing out some ammo- and weapon- deficiencies in E2M1) OnionTaco22 (for reminding me that there needs to be a download mirror- and for diligent testing!) zoliking (for testing even though it's not his type of PWAD-subgenre) MrFlibble (for their shameless Freedoom plug :D) LadyMistDragon (for offering- and delivering- exemplary playtesting services) Bobby :D (for coming in better late than never, with some valuable bug reports!) And everyone else who came to the sub-thread, quietly or otherwise! <3 Music in this WAD : We made it! This is the "full" version with some rather awesome music by Bucket of Doomworld fame Unlike URE2020, the music was not made for the project specifically (due to time constraints), but cleared for use by Bucket and then picked and matched to fit with URE:E2 by me. To experience Bucket's music alongside "URE:E2", simply add the "URE-E2B.WAD" file on top of the WAD containing the levels! If you go the DOS-route (see "What is included: Other", below), you'll be given the option to add the music automatically or go with the "bare" set of repurposed original DOOM1 MUS files. That is also what happens if you only load the "URE-E2.WAD" file by itself. It contains the following original DOOM1 tracks (composed by the late, great Robert "Bobby" Prince): E2M1: Dark Halls E2M2: On the Hunt E2M3: Sign of Evil E2M4: Sign of Evil E2M5: Sign of Evil E2M6: The Demons from Adrian's Pen E2M7: Suspense E2M8: Demons on the Prey E2M9: Waltz of the Demons I hope that will have something for everyone :) =========================================================================== * What is included * New levels : 9 Sounds : No Music : Repurposed, existing DOOM tracks in URE-E2.WAD + Music by Bucket in URE-E2B.WAD (HQ MIDI) Graphics : Yes (SKY2, TITLEPIC, HELP1, VICTORY2, MAP) Dehacked Patch : Yes (embedded in WAD, standalone as URE-E2.DEH) Demos : Yes (second demo, E2M2) Other : "URE-E2DS.EXE" - compressed, DOS-specific files -> URE-E2.BAT - batch file to start under DOS -> DEHACKED.EXE - for batch file convenience -> DEHACKED.INI - so the EXE doesn't complain -> URE-E2BD.WAD - Bucket music (DOS MUS format) Other files required : None besides "URE-E2.DEH" (included) * Play Information * Game : Doom (Ultimate) Map # : E2M1 - E2M8 & E2M9 Single Player : Designed for Cooperative 2-4 Player : Player starts only Deathmatch 2-4 Player : Player starts and weapons Other game styles : None Difficulty Settings : Yes (made for "HMP" but also balanced for "UV") * Construction * Base : E2M1 is the only one that harkens back to the original, initial roots of what has now become "URE-E2". The layout is very similar, but all the details and some of the progression changed. If you search Doomworld, you will likely be able to find my post that contains the original 2010 version, but I advise you to stick with what's in this WAD. It's so much nicer now! E2M2 - E2M7 as well as E2M9 are all new, but very much based on the ideas that I gathered during the years ever since I started mapping in 199X. E2M8 has about 1/5 of its legs in 2010. What I mean by that is that the lower right area (the one where you're greeted with a Shotgun pickup) is based on what I remembered from the work I had done on it in 2010. Nevertheless it's completely redone, because there was no backup of that map. Build Time : 5 years Editor(s) used : Ultimate Doom Builder, SLADE3, WhackEd4 Known Bugs : If you regularly play maps in DOS Doom (or a port that enforces the save file size limits), you're likely already aware of this: Big maps (such as these) will cause old (or "old-simulating") ports to crash when saving. So.. uh.. don't save? :D Also, as an ongoing theme, the maps barely avoid exceeding the visplane and drawseg limits in some areas. Tested with ChocolateRL, I didn't find any glaring visual bugs anymore though. If you find any problems, let me know! May Not Run With : Engines that weren't tested. Let me know. Tested With : Chocolate Doom (+RL), GZDoom, PrBoom+ * Copyright / Permissions * This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ You are free to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format; and remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. If you do so, you must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. * Where to get the file that this text file describes * The Usual: ftp://archives.gamers.org/pub/idgames/ and mirrors Web sites: https://havenport.de/files/share/URE-E2.ZIP FTP sites: -