Half-Life 2: Ravenholm (SPOILERS)

Post by **godhugh** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 1:37 pm

I finally got through the Ravenholm area last night and I have to ask...Has anyone else ever played a level as scary as that one?

Everything about the place is just plain creepy. From the burning zombie monument, to the electrified body hanging on the fence, to the super fast werewolf-like headcrab guys. It's fantastic.

I got to one point where I was totally out of ammo except for my shotgun. I had about 5 zombies slowly coming at me. It was just me, my shotgun, and lots of bloody death.

Of course, I eventually ran out of shells so it was just me, my gravity gun, flammable barrely, and lots of firey death

.

Oh, and Father Gregory is the coolest character I've ever seen in a game!

RashG · Post by **RashG** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 2:25 pm

I had to take breaks because I was scared shitless. The sound those fast zombies make is the creepiest I have ever heard. And then they come close to you and beat you with their arms like maniacs. Pure genious.

Doom 3 was nothing compared to this.

Chesspieceface · Post by **Chesspieceface** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 4:59 pm

The fast zombies were freaking insane. The 'lumberjack' zombies who have the backfull of the poison headcrabs and keep chucking them, also INSANE.

My favorite physics thing on the level so far is to carry around a rusty buzzsaw blade in the Physics Gun and use it as a projectile. It cuts zombies in HALF!!!!

This game is so sweet.

bluefugue · Post by **bluefugue** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 5:27 pm

I dunno, I was a lot more scared by the Bonehoard back in Thief 1. Not sure why that is, maybe their groans just creeped me out more -- or the knowledge that, since it was a Thief game, I had no hope of actually fighting them.

But yeah, the fast zombies are creepy and very well animated.

Also it's the level that has the most replay potential so far, because there are a lot of different traps and physics objects you can use to deal with the zombies. I like how the low ammo forces you to be creative.

bluefugue · Post by **bluefugue** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 5:30 pm

BTW, anyone know how that "blood toxin" effect works? It takes me down to one hitpoint and then gradually my hitpoints go up by 10s. But I still seem able to survive damage even in my 1-hp state. Strange, I don't really understand the underlying mechanic.

GungHo · Post by **GungHo** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 6:38 pm

bluefugue wrote:BTW, anyone know how that "blood toxin" effect works? It takes me down to one hitpoint and then gradually my hitpoints go up by 10s. But I still seem able to survive damage even in my 1-hp state. Strange, I don't really understand the underlying mechanic.

You're probably just getting hit by those same mobs again. I dont think they actually do any damage(other than the neurotoxin thing, which is just fine by itself, thanks); but they rely on other mobs to knock that one HP off. PLus if you'll notice your suit recovers you pretty quickly. Next time you get hit, note where you started at HPs-wise, and where you come back to and you'll know if something else got you while you were poisoned, or if it was just the poison thingys.

Great level though. I too ran outta ammo and was resorting to firing off cans of paint(love how the zombies get covered in paint when you do that; nice touch), saw blades(reminded me of that ending scene in Twister: "Who lives here?!?!"

), and whatever else I could scrounge.

DIdnt touch AvP2 as far as scary goes...for me at least. But then Ive always held a special place in my diapers for ALiens. Saw the first one when I was like 8 or 9, and I spent the next 3 months sleeping on my parent's floor. Hard to overcome childhood trauma.

It's definitely my favorite level so far in the game, though.

Post by **godhugh** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 6:47 pm

I loved the graveyard at the end. You have a ton of shotgun ammo and a ton of slow moving zombies. If there's a heaven in video games, that's it

.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 7:03 pm

That level is fantastic. It's totally got that gothic horror vibe to it. This game is an instant classic from that level alone, but it managed to get even better later in my opinion. I'm totally digging it. And I've still got Vampire: Bloodlines ready to go too. It's a very good week for PC gaming.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 7:31 pm

Forgot to mention one really neat thing that happened to me. Those fast monsters were chasing me and I closed a door behind me. I was thinking....finally some time to breathe and then the whole lot of them came crashing in through the skylight. I almost jumped out of my skin....wow.

DocDarm · Post by **DocDarm** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 10:43 pm

malchior wrote:Forgot to mention one really neat thing that happened to me. Those fast monsters were chasing me and I closed a door behind me. I was thinking....finally some time to breathe and then the whole lot of them came crashing in through the skylight. I almost jumped out of my skin....wow.

Heh..I did that EXACT same thing.

Best game out in quite a while, I think. People that won't buy it because of Steam are, well, wierd.

DocDarm
New York City

Kagath · Post by **Kagath** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 11:05 pm

I was forced to make liberal use of the crowbar on that level. Those dang poisonous crabs scared me the first time. Yeah I'm not afraid to admit it...

Is the preacher supposed to die in the graveyard at the end? I ran through the gate and then had to shoot some of the barrels. The guy disappeared and I don't know where he went.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 11:09 pm

DocDarm wrote:
malchior wrote:Forgot to mention one really neat thing that happened to me. Those fast monsters were chasing me and I closed a door behind me. I was thinking....finally some time to breathe and then the whole lot of them came crashing in through the skylight. I almost jumped out of my skin....wow.
Heh..I did that EXACT same thing.

Best game out in quite a while, I think. People that won't buy it because of Steam are, well, wierd.

DocDarm
New York City

Got me too. It's good to see that a designer can impart fear and tension without making the maps pitch black. Ravenholm is damn amazing.

Ronin · Post by **Ronin** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 2:33 am

The poison head crabs suck. The only thing worse than that is the bastards the TOSS those bastards at you. A few hairy moments, didn't find it as tension filled as AvP2's Marine campaign, mostly because I've done a good job of anticipating when I'll get attacked thus far. I tell you what though, this game fills me with a bloodlust to give a little payback to every bastard that gives me grief at some point. From the Combine to the fast moving zombies.

It gave me great pleasure when waiting for the trolley to get to the cemetary, to see which pipe they were climbing up, running to the edge and giving them a face full of shotgun before they could get on the roof.

bluefugue · Post by **bluefugue** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 6:27 am

Yeah, you see the pipe rattling, get your shotgun ready, and BLAM! in the face. Very satisfying...

Napoleon · Post by **Napoleon** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 6:54 am

Ronin wrote: I tell you what though, this game fills me with a bloodlust to give a little payback to every bastard that gives me grief at some point. From the Combine to the fast moving zombies.

No shit. I'm constantly cursing while playing this game. Every time one of those bastards startles me, it's the trusty old shotgun and me shouting "DIE DIE DIE BITCH" and other words I won't repeat here

Anyway, I'm now in the buggy level, so I've finished Ravenholm, and I have to say: AWESOME level. I especially liked tossing bricks, saws and everything else I could get my hands on at the oncoming zombies with the gravgun in the cemetary.

warning · Post by **warning** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 10:20 am

I found it tense but not very scary. It was like a great big playground. I loved using the gravity gun on everything. I think I only used the shotgun 3-4 times and nothing else. My main grav gun weapon was The Radiator of Death!!!

One of the best levels ever in any game. I want to play it again. And Father Grigory rocks!

dangerballs · Post by **dangerballs** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 5:28 pm

GungHo wrote:
bluefugue wrote:BTW, anyone know how that "blood toxin" effect works? It takes me down to one hitpoint and then gradually my hitpoints go up by 10s. But I still seem able to survive damage even in my 1-hp state. Strange, I don't really understand the underlying mechanic.
You're probably just getting hit by those same mobs again. I dont think they actually do any damage(other than the neurotoxin thing, which is just fine by itself, thanks); but they rely on other mobs to knock that one HP off. PLus if you'll notice your suit recovers you pretty quickly. Next time you get hit, note where you started at HPs-wise, and where you come back to and you'll know if something else got you while you were poisoned, or if it was just the poison thingys.

If you get hit enough, you start not being able to move either. Eventually, all you can do is shoot at things.

I didn't think the level was that scary. Especially since I made sure I kept the sawblade and the fanblade handy. Just line up 3 or 4 zombies and blast them all in half. With the fan-blade that falls off the machine by the gondola, you can take out 5 or 6 at a time.

farley2k · Post by **farley2k** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 1:20 am

I liked it but I have to admit I thought it was a bit ...forced....there were just all these points where luckily there were either saw blades, flamable barrels, or those air take things right before enemies!

I felt like they came up with the gravity gun and then built a level to show it off.

bluefugue · Post by **bluefugue** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 7:40 am

That's pretty much exactly what they did, but I didn't mind.

jonsauce · Post by **jonsauce** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 10:34 am

I liked it but I have to admit I thought it was a bit ...forced....there were just all these points where luckily there were either saw blades, flamable barrels, or those air take things right before enemies!

Farther Grigory left all sorts of traps around town, and probably other objects to keep him safe. Granted those also were very useful by the gravity gun

Repentant · Post by **Repentant** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 2:57 pm

How does one get beyond the electrified fence just after seeing Gregory for the first time?

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 3:04 pm

Repentant wrote:How does one get beyond the electrified fence just after seeing Gregory for the first time?

Go back to where all the burning bodies were. There's a valve shut off switch (and a zombie). Turn off the valve and then enter the building behind where the bodies were burning. On the top floor there's a switch to turn off the power to the fence.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 3:38 pm

I thought Father Gregory was going end up turning on me in the end, so I was always prepared to send him packing when we were together.

I also think they could have played up the rattleing gutters a bit more too. Either have both rattling at once or have a 2nd one come at you from some other direction. At the right time I am sure it would have sacred me poop-less.

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 4:35 pm

I've just finished Ravenholm... it was definitely one of the better levels so far, though not as scary as it could have been. The nursery in Thief 3 was creepier.

- Ash

Eco-Logic · Post by **Eco-Logic** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 4:56 pm

I'm glad it wasn't any scarier. I don't do well playing really scary games (Fatal Frame, System Shock etc.) by myself at my new apartment. Ravenholm was scary enough for me

jonsauce · Post by **jonsauce** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 6:57 pm

I really liked Ravenholm. It wasn't as scary as Doom 3 (Call me a wuss but I can't play that game for more than 1 hour at a time) but it was pretty scary. I was able to keep going for a few hours straight before I made it through. I really loved it. It would have been my favorite level of the game but each level kept getting better as the game went on!

msurby · Post by **msurby** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 7:02 pm

I'm kinda stuck in Ravenholm. The shotgun guy just talked to me about his flock and I went down into an alley between two buildings where there were a ton of zombies and headcrabs. It seems like I should be down there as there was a kind of secret area that could be accessed by blowing up a barrel, but I can't find a way out. There is a car down there that I have shot all over the place trying to find someplace to climb out - is this the key? There is also a lower grated area with a fire inside - can I get in there?

I really haven't seen too many people get stuck in this part so I'm sure I'm being stupid. (This is past the car elevator - which I did figure out myself)

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 8:33 pm

msurby wrote:I'm kinda stuck in Ravenholm. The shotgun guy just talked to me about his flock and I went down into an alley between two buildings where there were a ton of zombies and headcrabs. It seems like I should be down there as there was a kind of secret area that could be accessed by blowing up a barrel, but I can't find a way out. There is a car down there that I have shot all over the place trying to find someplace to climb out - is this the key? There is also a lower grated area with a fire inside - can I get in there?

If you're where I think you are (SPOILERS), at one end of the alley (the far end from the grated fire)there's a ladder you can climb to get up onto a plank/catwalk thing... once you're up there, you're back on the level's rail, and shouldn't have a problem.

- Ash

rrmorton · Post by **rrmorton** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 9:04 pm

I was stumped there for a while too. I posted about it in the other Ravenholm thread.

(Man, you know a game is good when it's supporting two active threads about a single level within the game!)

Reprinted now, with the author's permission.

I spent a while trying to get the large saw blade propped up (with the help of a milk crate and a lamp post) so I could use it as a ramp to the ledge where I needed to be. I finally did it and as soon as I triumphantly set foot on top of the ledge, right around a corner I saw a stack of boxes that I was clearly "supposed to" use. D'oh!

The point of that story is not that I'm a moron, but rather, the game let me come up with another way!

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 10:38 pm

I just met up with Father Grigory at the church and agree it's a great level. My first stab at the initial parts of the level I burned through almost all my ammo and then realized all the ammo-free ways there are to kill things. I restarted and have barely touched my guns, except for the area right before you reach the church. You do have to be careful though. A few times I laid out oil barrels as traps, only to see a zombie pick them up and toss them at me before I could detonate them. There was also a hacksaw trap or two that would break after a few seconds...

The smaller oxygen-tank like objects are my favorite Grav-gun "ammo". Fire em at something and whoosh... up in flames! They're small enough that they don't obscure your vision too much while carrying them. I found them particularly useful against those poison crab... zombie... things? since one hit kills them.

While waiting for Father Grigory to send the lift across to me I saw the "advanced" zombies come up two different downspouts, although on a reload they only came up one. Suffice to say... it was easier when they just came up the one. The .357 magnum works just as well as the shotgun for taking their heads off as they reach the top

I simply love the voice talent for the Father too... he cracks me up!

"Of course you've already met my... congregation! Bwah hahahaha!"

If he comes to an untimely end I'll be very upset. Here's hoping an expansion pack or mod is devoted to him

jonsauce · Post by **jonsauce** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 10:57 pm

I'm kinda stuck in Ravenholm. The shotgun guy just talked to me about his flock and I went down into an alley between two buildings where there were a ton of zombies and headcrabs. It seems like I should be down there as there was a kind of secret area that could be accessed by blowing up a barrel, but I can't find a way out. There is a car down there that I have shot all over the place trying to find someplace to climb out - is this the key? There is also a lower grated area with a fire inside - can I get in there?

I think there is a ladder for you to climb out, if the part you are in is the part I think it is. It took me a bit to find the ladder and i slapped myself for missing it afterwards.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 11:39 pm

jonsauce wrote:
I'm kinda stuck in Ravenholm. The shotgun guy just talked to me about his flock and I went down into an alley between two buildings where there were a ton of zombies and headcrabs. It seems like I should be down there as there was a kind of secret area that could be accessed by blowing up a barrel, but I can't find a way out. There is a car down there that I have shot all over the place trying to find someplace to climb out - is this the key? There is also a lower grated area with a fire inside - can I get in there?
I think there is a ladder for you to climb out, if the part you are in is the part I think it is. It took me a bit to find the ladder and i slapped myself for missing it afterwards.

Yep. Go all the way down into the dark, bottom part of the alley and look for the ladder.

Faldarian · Post by **Faldarian** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 11:43 pm

farley2k wrote:I liked it but I have to admit I thought it was a bit ...forced....there were just all these points where luckily there were either saw blades, flamable barrels, or those air take things right before enemies!

I felt like they came up with the gravity gun and then built a level to show it off.

The whole game feels that way so far to me

I'm almost through with Ravenholm, and just never got creeped out by it or anything. The game is fun when it's run and gun, but this level just hasn't done it for me at all... it doesn't do suspense well at all in my opinion.

I am enjoying the game though, even though I didn't care for HL1 at all. The game of catch was worth playing the game for by itself

msurby · Post by **msurby** » Wed Nov 24, 2004 1:10 pm

Thanks for all the help guys. I can't believe I didn't see that ladder - it was very brightly lit and obvious. Finally got the shotgun and met up with a few fast zombies. The whole mood created with their howls and the shaking gutters is just fantastic.

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Wed Nov 24, 2004 11:28 pm

msurby wrote:Finally got the shotgun and met up with a few fast zombies. The whole mood created with their howls and the shaking gutters is just fantastic.

I managed to kill one of those guys in mid-air as it was jumping across a very large open courtyard. Watching him splat-land was probably the best physics-engine moment I've had so far.

- Ash

disarm · Post by **disarm** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 1:13 am

Asharak wrote:I managed to kill one of those guys in mid-air as it was jumping across a very large open courtyard. Watching him splat-land was probably the best physics-engine moment I've had so far.

if you thought that was cool, you need to catch one in mid-air with a sawblade. i had a fast zombie jumping toward me from a high rooftop and caught it with the blade...sliced it in half and both pieces landed right at my feet. definitely one of my coolest moments in Ravenholm 8)

CSL · Post by **CSL** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 1:22 am

Asharak wrote:
msurby wrote:Finally got the shotgun and met up with a few fast zombies. The whole mood created with their howls and the shaking gutters is just fantastic.
I managed to kill one of those guys in mid-air as it was jumping across a very large open courtyard. Watching him splat-land was probably the best physics-engine moment I've had so far.

- Ash

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I thought the best physics moment so far was on the Dune Buggy Level when you reach the area with the crane you pick up your buggy with. As soon as you do several Combine troops come out of the far side. Being the shifty individual that I am I picked up the shipping crates smashed two of them off the dock into the waiting arms of some Ant Lions. The final one I smashed to death with a large steel bar.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 1:39 am

CSL wrote:
Asharak wrote:
msurby wrote:Finally got the shotgun and met up with a few fast zombies. The whole mood created with their howls and the shaking gutters is just fantastic.
I managed to kill one of those guys in mid-air as it was jumping across a very large open courtyard. Watching him splat-land was probably the best physics-engine moment I've had so far.

- Ash
SPOILERS
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I thought the best physics moment so far was on the Dune Buggy Level when you reach the area with the crane you pick up your buggy with. As soon as you do several Combine troops come out of the far side. Being the shifty individual that I am I picked up the shipping crates smashed two of them off the dock into the waiting arms of some Ant Lions. The final one I smashed to death with a large steel bar.

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That's pretty cool. I dropped the crates on top of them. Combine go squish!

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 4:07 pm

I only just started the dune buggy level, so I haven't had the chance to try that yet - but I'm sure as heck going to!

- Ash

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 9:53 pm

malchior wrote:Forgot to mention one really neat thing that happened to me. Those fast monsters were chasing me and I closed a door behind me. I was thinking....finally some time to breathe and then the whole lot of them came crashing in through the skylight. I almost jumped out of my skin....wow.

Heh. I also thought that I was being so smart closing that door thinking "Take that you freaks!" They schooled me...