Welcome to the Devil in a Blue Dress FAQ! Here you'll find answers to general questions and some spoilers (it's not really a spoiler guide, but there are a few spoiler-type questions that have flustered enough people to warrant the inclusion of their solutions) for the Marathon 1 add-on scenario from the Marathon Map Makers' Guild. Any more detailed questions can be directed to Thomas Ytterberg , the author of this FAQ, or Claude Errera, janitor, html-izer, and basic nuisance.
This is the first release version, 1.0, dated March 18, 1996.
You can download a text version (with pictures) here.
Q: I often get dumped to the Finder by Marathon. It complains about low memory settings. How much memory do I need to allocate for Marathon?
A: DiaBD, because of its large and complicated maps, put more strain on the game engine then Bungie's original scenario. If Marathons memory partition is too small, you'll experience sudden quits or even freezes (especially when trying to access terminals). Most people get away with a 5000 - 6000 kb partition. Sometimes even more.
A: The amount of memory an application has reserved for its use. Too much usually has no added benefits, too little causes crashes, unexpected quits and general instability. To change it, select the Marathon application icon, choose 'Show info' (Cmd - 'I') from Finders 'File' menu. In the bottom of that little window that appears you can change the amount of memory allocated for its use. Change the preferred size to something higher (5000 or more in this case).
A: To reduce system overhead: With system 7.5.x you can use the control panel 'Extensions Manager' to make a profile with only the necessery extensions and control panels. Those you want to keep are QuickTime, QuickTime PowerPlug and Sound Manager 3.x (if you're on a PowerPC equipped Mac, version 3.1 is the way to go).
If you use earlier systems, you have to manually remove the files from your extension and control panels folder and reboot your mac. Or you might want to try the Now Utilities Demo (available on all info-mac archives all over the world). This package provides you with a better replacement for sys 7.5's Extension Manager as well as other nifty utilities. Remember that it is memory hungry by itself so don't install everything, just the StartUp Manager part.
You might also want to lower the amount of RAM cache using the 'Memory' control panel. As a last resort, Virtual Memory might be turned on. But just add enough to run Marathon without any fuzzes. VM has a tendency to slow things down. RAMDoubler works as well and is often better than VM.
If done right, the system takes away only 1 or 2 Mb. A PowerMac, especially PCI-macs might take some more, 2 - 3 Mb.
Tuning some of Marathon's preferences helps to lower the memory requirements. Skip the background music, switch to 8-bit colour, lower resolution, turn off sound channels and so on.
A: The idea was, (almost) everyone playing Devil will have already gone through the original Bungie levels. We didn't want to make this a map you could breeze through in a day (although I'm certain there are people who can do it, and probably people who have).
A: Did you waste the bob? He's the only guy who can open that door for you...
A: Go back to the term in the bob's cell. It'll have further instructions for you, if you really finished everything else. And I'm telling you, you really shouldn't have let him die...
A: You really, really shouldn't have let the Bob die... ;-)
A: The terminal at the beginning gave you some hint how to deal with it. You actually don't have to fire a single grenade at it.
A: Sorry! We missed that. You've managed to hit one of the switches twice in rapid succession, which lead to a permanently stuck door... You'll have to go back to a previously saved game. This is fixed with the DiaBD release 1.5.
A: No. Generally, the ammo in DiaBD is not put in front of your feet, but rather stacked away for the exploring players. If you're having troubles with lack of ammo on *this* level, look carefully around near the first comm terminal...
A: Many of the essential switches on this level are later revealed at places you've already been to. Backtrack and look for changes.
A: In the spiral staircase right after you go up the wave-like stairs, there is an alcove. A secret door will be opened there after you walked a certain distance down the appending corridor. In that secret room, you'll find the switch.
A: Either you'll have to practice how to step off and move back quickly enough to catch the elevator on the way up - or shoot an overloaded fusionbolt with high precision at the switch down the corridor.
Yes. We know it ain't easy. But that never was the point either. :-)
A: No. It's a memory problem. This is a big and complicated level. You might need to up Marathon's memory partition.
A: Nah. It was left by mistake. To get there you'll have to make a good grenade jump, but because of another leftover it might well be worth it... Since it's nothing supposed to be there in the first place, we've removed it all in DiaBD 1.5.
A: Near the entrance of that room, you'll find a not-so-secret door that will provide access to the teleporters.
A: No. Just use your skill to kill them before they kill you. My favourite tactic is to head for the stair at once, before the aliens walk down. While you're there it's easy to pick them of one by one since they practically are lined up. Once you cleared the stairs you can walk up to the 3x recharger and deal with the ones that are left over. (A second tactic is to quickly take out the compilers, then hide under the stairs until all the aliens have killed each other. This will leave you with one hunter to deal with.)
A: Opens a door to a secret term... Now you just have to find it.
A: They're just there to show you the superior flexibility of Windows95!
A: Bobs are set to regenerate (slowly though) just because of this possible situation. So a few will return sooner or later. Here's a strategy for this level:
A: Look at helphelp.gif (you might want to open it in a separate window):
It shows you all 9 elevators, each with its own number. Several of these are activated by various triggers, shown with the number (in smaller caps) of the platform it activates. Those that has no triggers associated with them (6 & 7) are activated by stepping onto them. Elevator 2 also has a switch that activates it. There are also 3 teleporters, all leading to elevator 1 (which is only activated once and only by Bobs). Elevators 3 and 9 are not really elevators at all and will not move.
Elevator 8 is the one you want to take a ride down with to reach the last terminal. Here's a way to accomplish this:
Big numbers are octagon numbers. Small numbers correspond to the octagon affected by the trigger/teleporter/switch in question. (So the bottom right octagon is octagon 9, and a platform trigger that affects octagon 5.)
A: Yes. This level has been troublesome but hopefully, we fixed them all but one with DiaBD 1.5. (That last one is only present on 68K machines, and can be circumvented with the small program called Ignore Zero Divides, available at Marathon sites everywhere, or included with the DiaBD 1.5 release package.)
A: Remember 'the Tardis'? This is a very complicated area containing 5D-space. If you explore this enough you'll find the switch.
BTW, if you've got trouble finding your way out of 'the Tardis', just follow the paper trail. But you knew that already because you read it in the terminal, didn't you?
A: Sorry! It's another miss with the switches. You've managed to hit one of them twice in rapid succession, which leads to a permanently stuck door... You'll have to go back to a previously saved game. This is fixed with the DiaBD release 1.5.
A: It opens a door that is very near that switch, but to get there you must backtrack to the dead end in the upper part of the maze.
A: Read the first term carefully. It'll give you instructions as well as the location of other terminals with further information.
A: Basically, running around looking for switches to flip. But things are a bit more complicated than just that.
If you're really lost, check out sensorihelp.gif. (You might want to open it in a separate window.)
A: You havn't found its enabler yet. Whenever a switch is darkened it's not enabled yet.
A: By intelligent use of the drop shaft b.
A: You can't! ;-)
A: There are several linked switches that need to be flipped, i.e. flip one and another one will be revealed, which in turn should be flipped to reveal another switch, etc. When all are flipped, an opening with the exit terminal in it should appear.
A: Just take a look at the back of the chair. You'll find something that's begging to be hit by a grenade or fusion bolt...
A: Check carefully for discolored panels in the hallway which you entered when you left the damage hallway. There's a secret door there... might just get you through to the other half of the level.
A: In the 'southeast' area right after the door that opens from one side but not from the other (yours), there are two doors in the corners of the eastern wall. These doors lead to two rooms, one of which has a secret door that leads to an unexplored part and then back to previous areas.
A: No. It's a feature!
(Really, there is nothing behind them)
A: Yes! Look out the sequel to Devil in a Blue Dress, called 'Excalibur - Morgana's Revenge', due late this spring!
