Zandronum Pill- everything a newbie will want to know![WIP]
This is a small FAQ from an average player for a newbie, who would like to know what's going on. Those aren't things you have to know, those are just things that can help you if you are into this port and want to skip asking. Those things are not some secrets of pros, just average knowledge of an average player...Index
1. Well, I don't really have Doom...
Spoiler: (Open)2. So, how does it work?
Spoiler: (Open)3.A window opened up. OpenGL? Software? What do I chose?So. All game data are in files with WAD extensions. Files with stand-alone, whole game are called IWADs.
Most important ones are:If you feel like checking out ALL the IWADs, check here: http://zdoom.org/wiki/IWAD
- doom.wad -it's either good old Doom, or even better Ultimate Doom.
- doom1.wad- shareware Doom 1, this IWAD can't be used with any PWADs.
- doomu.wad- Ultimate Doom. Most servers use Ultimate Doom IWAD called doom.wad, some renamed it to doomu.wad to avoid confusion. You can copy your Ultimate Doom doom.wad and rename it to doomu.wad to join those servers.
- doom2.wad -Doom II. This WAD is used most often to play various map packs.
- freedoom.wad- it can have different names, often masked as doom2.wad or doom.wad... It's a freeware, open source IWAD allowing you to play mods and megawads without paying for Doom.
- heretic.wad- Fantasy-style game made on Doom engine. Commercial.
- hexen.wad- Heretic's continuation, it has some really cool applications of Doom engine, the game is awesome as well. Commercial.
- strife1.wad - most modern and complicated Doom engine game. It has RPG elements. Unfortunately, playing multiplayer is near impossible because of hacky scripts. You can buy a version with its own source port on Steam.
- tnt.wad and plutonia.wad- IWADs making Final Doom. They're played quite often, especially Plutonia. Those are commercial as well!
- megagame.wad- freeware IWAD for Megaman 8-bit Deathmatch
- chex.wad, chex2.wad, chex3.wad- Chex Quest. Chex3.wad is a complete collection, it has all previous games included. It's a game for kids, that used to be a prize in cereal (waffles?). Abandonware.
- wolf3d.wad- total convertion, mod that recreates Wolfenstein 3D in Doom engine.
- hacx.wad- HacX, stand-alone game, this one is playable in multiplayer, but not very popular. Released as commercial, but now it's free.
Wads you load with IWADs, like maps, mods, addons, are called PWADs. There are other extensions, like pk3, pk7, deh, or even good old zip. They will be also called PWADs, because. You can't load PWAD without any IWAD. Most multiplayer servers use Doom2.wad. Zandronum installer should ask you from Doom folder and copy/use IWAD/s automatically, but knowing how it works won't hurt you.
Spoiler: (Open)4. OK, so I turned Zandronum on, what do I do?OpenGL uses your graphic card, so it will be all shinier and sparklier. It can cause problems though, if you have a weak GPU, or if it's not compatible with OpenGL a lot... If you have problems, check the field "Compability mode". If you don't have problems, DON'T DO IT. Later I will explain how to fine-tune OGL.
Software looks more classic, and generally isn't causing problems. However, in some mods, some things may not be visble. 3D walls work in software mode now (they haven't in Skulltag), but it may slow your computer down a lot. You also won't be able to look down and up at extreme angles.
Oh, and about this window... I recommend not chosing to be never asked again, since you will probably be using launchers programs which don't trigger that window anyway. But if you felt like chosing this, to see the window of choice again, hold Shift during loading.
Spoiler: (Open)5. Tell about those player settings, I don't want to be an obvious newb!Well, first things I do is of course setting everything.
First, display options. You can chose most resolutions possible, and on modern computers using the high ones shouldn't lag.
Look.
Look, it's a 1993 game and it looks so damn sweet.
Feel free to pass out from extasy.
(Oh, your screen suddenly turned off or yells something about refresh rate? Try to revert to previous state and write it in console: vid_refreshrate 60, or turn off the game and find and correct this line in zandronum-yourname.ini : vid_refreshrate=60 Of course, it doesn't have to be 60. Insert whatever you think will work.)
Go to controls. It's a modern port, no one will be mad if you'll set WASD. Remember about binding "taunt", voting, "jump" and "crouch" in some convenient ways. Jumping and crouching is mostly used in modern mods. Voting is needed to change map or kick annoying people. Taunts, from the other hand, are just cool.
Annoying, sometimes, but cool.
Go to mouse options, set always mouselook to on (well, unless you don't want to) and fine-tune sensitivity to your needs.
Fine-tune your display settings. I recommend using crosshair. Don't mess with settings that look really cosmic to you, but don't be afraid to check out various HUD and automap settings.
Some mods can override default settings... If you want coop info (on-screen data about your team) and weapon names on scrolling back, write in console (openable with ~), "cl_showweapnameoncycle 1" and "cl_drawcoopinfo 1" .
Ah, quick tip, if your settings aren't saved it may mean you forgot to run installer (installer, not Zandronum) as elevated user.
And last, but not least, player settings. You don't want to make the fact that you're a newbie obvious, do you?
Spoiler: (Open)6. Come on, I'm not THAT newb... Are there some secret binds for regulars?Think of some name. And, use colors.
To add colors to your name, use \conelettercolorcode , like \cfpeepee or \cgbloody\cmdarkness\cacutiepie
Here you have color codes:
(Notice that L isn't red; it's default color of chat text)
Here's a full tutorial.
And no, people don't use colors to be smug over non-newbs. It's just the customisation. It also helps you find your nick on a long multiplayer score list, and makes it easier for others to remember you.
From the other side, remember that not everyone with a colorless "PLAYER" nick is a newbie, so don't feel bad if one kicks your ass in duel :)
Skins: Grab some skins, most regulars use them and you miss quite a lot if you don't!Important! Whatever you will put into your skin folder will auto-load every time. It doesn't have to be skins- you can also put them texture packs or music replacements. But remember! If any wad in skins folder overwrites more then some graphics or sounds, you won't be able to connect to any multiplayer servers. It's because it would cause desynchronisation between your Zandronum and the server.
- Old Skulltag skins (I recommend using new Crash skin. Old one is kinda terrible).
- Popular skins
Announcers:
Well, announcers. You can add additional announcers dropping files to Announcers folder in your Zandronum folder. You can also disable them, if they seem too "Quake" for you.
Popular announcers:
Spoiler: (Open)7. Wait, you forgot about OpenGL!What? Erm... Actually, yes.
There are two binds that help you abuse Doom's bugs:
SR-50: in Doom, you run faster when you strafe diagonally. But, did you know run even faster when you strafe while you strafe? It's not very convenient to use though, and needs some skill to have advantage from that.
Chaingun snipe (burst fire): Your first bullet has better accuracy then other bullets, when you keep pressing fire button. If you will hear someone's chaingun having a characterical "broken" rhythm, it's this.
Spoiler: (Open)8. This all is not shiny enough for me!Yes. I use software, so I wait for some readers to write this section for me :)
All I remember is, if there's too dark, change lighting mode in OpenGL settings. Enabling cache, disabling additional lightning and high-res texture resizing may enhance performance. When I use OpenGL, I am disabling filters, as I find them blurry... It is a personal choice though.
Spoiler: (Open)9. Yay! Maps! Mods! How do I get them?You can use:
- High-res textures pack: http://dhtp.freelanzer.com/
- Soundfonts for high-quality MIDI playback: http://zandronum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=1478 (Read Zalewa's post before installing anything, IMHO VirtualMIDISynth is the best option)
- HQ music: http://forum.zdoom.org/viewtopic.php?t=24423
- HQ SFX: http://www.perkristian.net/game_doom-sfx.shtml
- High-res items: http://www.skulltag.com/download/files/st_hi-res.pk3
Spoiler: (Open)10. Wait, servers? How do I go into those servers?How can I get WADs from these?To search for best, check:But best way is always looking at server's list and finding what people are playing. IDE and Doomseeker will download them for you.
- Cacoward winners
- List of megawads(wads with many maps inside, mostly they're good)
- List of total convertions (as they require a lot of work, they're also mostly good... and if they aren't, they're still interesting)
- Best Wads Doomworld page
- Doom Wiki choice
- idgames archive top
Well, many popular mods are disliked by some parts of community for not being Doom enough...
Spoiler: (Open)11. What is going on with those popular mods? Which of those servers should I join?There are two servers browsers, IDE and Doomseeker. Well, there's more, but almost everyone uses one of these.
Doomseeker is shipped with your Zandronum, and it has some basic configuration done. It is also multiplatform.
IDE has convenient filtering system (I will soon explain), and, IMHO, better single player launcher. It doesn't work on Linux though (unless you will use Wine).
Any browser you may chose, REMEMBER to check out all settings. It will spare you seeking for help.
Your browser can't find WADs well? Try adding more URLs to your DoomSeeker's/GetWAD's custom list, In IDE it's in Options-> Optional components-> Getwad-> Getwad setup. In Doomseeker, it's Options-> Configuration-> Wadseeker -> Sites.
Important custom sites are:
http://static.[bad site]/wads/
http://zandronum.com/snswads/
http://camoy.sdf.org/wads/files/
If you want to have a huuuge list,check out this thread.
Also, servers often have address of wads written there. Press W in IDE or rightclick -> Open URL in browser in Doomseeker to get the wad.
Spoiler: (Open)12. Eww, that all new-school mods suck! IT'S NOT DOOM ENOUGH! I want more vanilla-like multiplayer source port!Let me explain about what is going on on the servers... (Most links aren't download links. Like I said, your IDE/Doomseeker will find right files when you will try connecting to server).
Brutal Doom- blood, gore, striking effects, tweaked weapons, a lot of RIP AND TEAR... Can slow down gameplay a bit though, and if you're GPU isn't too good, it will lag, especially with a big amount of monsters.
Megaman- it's a mod by CutManMike, deathmatch with Megaman classes. It has 8-bit textures, as interesting as painful to the eyes :) Community of Megaman players and Doom players is rather not too close. That's why you rather should seek help on mod's forums: http://www.cutstuff.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=13
All Out War- similar to Command&Conquer: Renegade. You have two teams, different classes, bases to protect and upgrade, even mechas.
Ghouls vs Humans- classes team deathmatch/LMS. One team is ghouls with quite original attacks and styles of moving, another is human.
Jumpmaze- yes, there are people who enjoy platform elements in 2,5D game :) It can be fun if you have a lot of patience, and skill with jumping will help you with getting secrets and hidden weapons in more traditional Doom.
Chillax- it's actually a pretty oldschool map, the difference is... there's A LOT of monsters. Every map has at least around 1000 monsters. It is played as coop with infinite ammo/fast weapons option for relax, and as survival for maximum frustration AND bragging rights.
WormsDoom- it's Worms. In Doom. With destructible environment. It's really fun to play. Needs OpenGL, can be straining weak computers.
Who Dun It?- One player is chosen to be a killer. S/he needs to kill to fill sanity meter. The rest must find out who's a murderer before everyone's dead. Very climatic. Can lag on weaker computers.
Shotgun Frenzy- this time you protect base against monsters. There are upgrades.
Clan HQ's- mostly big wads, mostly restrained to clan members. They're similar to...
Doom Center- it's a PWAD with a city, a lot of minigames, easter eggs and other fun stuff. It can lag a lot. It's extremally silly, but well, you're gaming, it's not like you're doing serious business...
Duel32- serious business. Servers with those aren't so newschool :) It's a very classic duel, with no freelook nor many other modern features, here you can show off your true skill on one of 32 most relevant maps.
CTF- another place full of serious pro players. Most are passworded, but if you'll get known as OK person and player you'll get them easily. Check IRC part of this FAQ.
Icon of Party/Stupid LMS- those are PWADs full of fun minigames... Stupid LMS has a lot of crude humor. Well.
Wrath of Cronos- it's a mod with Hexen's fantasy-style classes, with RPG elements. You gain experience and upgrade your character.
Sectorcraft- you can build "live". It can be a bit complicated if you don't know basics of mapping. You can write "dumpmap mapname" to save your buildings.
Zombie Horde- One person is a zombie. Once infected, you join the zombie team as well... Zombies win when they infect everyone. Humans win when they kill all zombies.
Master of Puppets- in this popular multiplayer mod, you also have two teams. One team is puppet masters- you can control monsters, if you're killed, or decided so, you can change to another one. Marines win when all monsters are killed. Puppeteers win when Marines are out of lives.
Normal coop/survival servers- yes, they exist! There is a lot of servers for vanilla (unmodded) IWADs and popular megawads. Whenever I make or join one, many people join, so don't complain that...
Spoiler: (Open)13. THIS IS BULLSHIT! WHERE IS SKULLTAG?If you don't like some game mods, just filter them out...
Use IDE big "F" button on top and you'll never have to see them again:
Still not convinced? Ehh... Well, you have Zdaemon, which has no OpenGL nor support for most modern mods. It doesn't have native Linux version. It has player ranking and some additional options. There's Odamex, most open source philosophy believing of ports. It's much more oldschool. The playerbase is rather small though and very focused on competetive.
If you don't care about multiplayer, check out ZDoom (best mods), GZDoom (a bit older Zdoom, but with OpenGL), Chocolate Doom (this source port is so oldschool you can play original Doom demos on it!), nice looking Doomsday Engine and Vavoom, there is also... Ah, there is like 50 of (rather single player) source ports, if you don't believelook for yourself
Spoiler: (Open)14. But I could play this awesome mod on Skulltag, and I can't on Zandronum!THIS is Skulltag. The previous leader abandoned the project because he was working on his own game. Well, because of some dramas everyone else left and continued Skulltag under different name. There is no rivalry, because there is no Skulltag. If you used Skulltag, download Zandronum and use it.
Spoiler: (Open)15. But, how do I launch single player game with wads?Well, first, check if there is no newer version of your favourite mod. There isn't? Well, you will just have to launch it with some Skulltag files. Load, in this order, skulltag_actors.pk3 and skulltag_data.pk3. (Sometimes you can find newer version of Skulltag data, skulltag_data_126.pk3, and a bit lighter version of skulltag_actors, skulltag_actors_nodecal.pk3).
For more info, read this lovely post (I copypasted from): http://zandronum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=1334
- skulltag_actors.pk3 is in your Zandronum install, if you can't find it there you have an old version, update your Zandronum.
- skulltag_data.pk3 Download mirrors: http://zandronum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=417
Spoiler: (Open)16. OK, this all is so awesome... I want to make my own server!In IDE, go to Single Play tab. In Doomseeker, use "Create server" option, but use "Play offline" button once you're done with setting stuff. You can also use utilities like ZDL.
One note: some mods require WADs/DEHs/PK3s set in some order. If you get errors, you can try changing order of files.
Spoiler: (Open)17. How do I set up a server?Yay! Well, you have two options:
You can make a server on your own machine:
-more control over things
-better ping for you and local players
-you can load nuts.wad with brutal doom and cheats on, and no one will yell at you
-no limits for amount of servers
-no ability to use IRC needed
Or you can use Best Ever- free automatic server hosting
-no need to forward ports
-servers are semi-permament
-BE's machine is pretty stable, so there if you have a weak computer or bad Internet connection, it's a good option
Spoiler: (Open)18. What do you mean, port forwarding? Ah, who cares. By the way, no one can see my server!To host a server well, you need to know what flags and svars do. Read about this here: http://www.skulltag.com/stmanual/ (Most noticable difference between Skulltag and Zandronum server settings is a new flag, dmflags3 16 , which causes players not to block and telefrag each other).
For reference, you can download some good configs from best-ever. Take a look at my coop config, happycoop.cfg:
skill 3 means it's UV (it's because easiest skill is 0)
To decipher dmflags, put them to IDE's DMFLAGS option in Start Server tab, and in Doomseeker it's Create Server, and Flags tab. You can see those flags mean:
-weapons will stay
-all items will respawn
-you can't jump nor crouch
-you can use chasecam and aim BFG freely
-ammo is doubled
-players can walk through each other
Well, using some experience and thoughtfulness, you can set them to have your server work in any way you'd like. Again, read the page I linked for details...
Spoiler: (Open)19. So I made BE server instead. I've read site you linked, so I won't ask silly questions about how to register on IRC, how to do it etc. But, how can I set things now?To make your server appear on the Internet for everyone to join, you must (in most cases) forward your ports.
Mini-tutorial for lazy people:If it doesn't work for you, well, just remember it's port 10666 and protocol UDP and go read http://portforward.com/ . Don't download anything, just use what is written there.
- Press Windows-R (Windows is the key on a keyboard with Windows window thing. If you use Linux... If you use Linux, you probably won't have problems with port forwarding).
- Write "cmd" inside the window
- Write "ipconfig" inside the command window
- Now, notice two IP numbers: gateway and IPv4. Write them both down somewhere or whatever.
- Enter gateway IP into your browser, like it was a normal website address
- Login? Password? Try admin admin, admin password, (blank) admin, (blank) (blank), if none of those obvious ones work, google your router model and try to find it.
- Find port forwarding. Forward port from (your computer's IPv4, probably something like 192.168.0.x, port 10666 (you can unlock more ports if you want more servers), protocol: UDP, forward it to external port 10666, save, and that's all.
If you're sure your ports are forwarded correctly, but people still can't see your server, check if your firewall has exception for Zandronum!
Not sure if your server is visible? Write sv_showlauncherqueries true in your server console. It should start showing a lot of queries, every time anyone refreshes server.
You can't join your own server? Don't join it from server binary's "Join" command. Best solution is adding 127.0.0.1:10666 to the list of custom servers in your IDE or Doomseeker settings.
Sometimes you're behind the NAT, or using some other type of Internet connection... In this case, you can still use BE.
Spoiler: (Open)20. I can't fins this CVAR I need! Halp plz quick!Open console (it's tilde, ~ <-this funny thing) and write send_password yourpasswordbestbotsentyou
and then start every command you want to do as a server with rcon, like
rcon changemap map01
Remember: if you will use map command (like, rcon map map01) you will have to send password again.
Spoiler: (Open)21. How do I use this IRC thing?One thing that is useful often is "cvarlist" command. If you want to change server setting, remember to put RCON before command.
The syntax is cvarlist to get all cvars, but it's too long.
Imagine you need respawn protection. Try then "rcon cvarlist *respawn*". CVAR you need is probably there. Asterisks are joker cards, just like in Windows file search. REMEMBER! You have to had put send_password recently (without map change, which restarts game) to be able to use rcon command. Otherwise, you'll get nothing.
Spoiler: (Open)22. Help! This dude is totally cheating! And this other dude is trolling! And server I am playing on just exploded!
You don't- now you can use Discord: https://discord.gg/2AmVySu
Leaving the older parts for clarity.
Well, in both IDE and Doomseeker you have small IRC clients which will connect you to Zandronum's IRC and automatically join you to main channel.
Basic commands are:
/join #channel <- joining a channel
/query nick <- private message (Do not abuse it! If you want to ask questions, ask on channel. Helping you doesn't mean a person wants to be your guardian angel forever.
/msg nick <-private message which (in most clients) is not opening a different tab
/whois nick <-checking info about person
/whowas nick <-checking info about person who has already left
To register your nick, protecting it and allowing you to use BE, write
/msg nickserv register password email
Password should be different then your other passwords... Many newbies had accidentally just written it in the middle of the channel.
Then, you will get a mail with a command you will need to paste to finish registration.
Now, every time you will connect Zandronum IRC, you should write (or paste it to your startup commands)
/msg nickserv identify password
To add alternative nick to your account, write (while logged in, with nick changed to one you want to have registered)
/msg nickserv group
To remove yourself (sometimes your "ghost" stays when you are abruptly disconnected) write
/msg nickserv ghost nickyouwanttoghost
Most important channels:
#zandronum <- main channel
#staff <- Staff, only go here if you have problem with being banned or abused
#zamapping <-here, you can get help if you will start mapping. Still, don't come here without trying to find info yourself first!
#bestever <- here you can make own servers. Don't ask questions that are answered here, on link I posted earlier or on their website, or you will get treated mercilessly.
If you want to manage your own channel, read more about IRC on the Internet. This is a FAQ for newbies, so I am just writing basic stuff.
If you want to ask for help, remember: ask it right away, without asking "can I ask" "hello, anyone here?" etc. and then wait at least half hour. People who use IRC are mostly just periodically checking what's up, not staring at screen 24/7. Being polite will also help :) People there aren't being paid, they help just to be helpful to fellow Doomer. Remember this and I bet you'll get your help!
Spoiler: (Open)Helpful links:First, read the rules.
If someone's annoying or disrupting the game, you can go to Menu-> Multiplayer=> Call vote, and call a vote for kicking them. This is usually enough...
With some more complicated problems, you can find server owner. If server is hosted on Best Ever, you can go to #bestever IRC channel, and write .owner portnumberofserver. If it's BE's server's owner who is terrible, THEN you can report it on the channel. Big server clusters usually have their own IRC channels as well: #grandvoid #iddqd-EA #armada . Finally, you have #staff channel. You can also go there if you were banned from master server yourself, for example caught in a range ban.
Cheater?
Well, frankly, most people you can accuse of using hax will not be guilty. First, no one cheats by giving themselves health. It doesn't work like this.
Second, if you're new to multiplayer Doom, you can really be amazed by skill of some players. The top tier players know their maps like their own pocket, faint sound can tell them the exact placement of the opponent, and the timing of shooting can be simply unbelievable. It may make newbies think they're cheating...
There ARE cheaters, though. You can use spy mode (F12) while spectating to see if a person behaves unnaturally while playing. People using wallhack will often follow the opponent with crosshair, even if he or she is not visible, in a completely different room. People using aimbot will have their cursor "magnetic" to the opponent.
It's hard to judge without good experience, so best way is making demos. To record demos, before joining a server press a little circle in toolbar on the bottom of IDE, or a big red circle in the toolbar on the top of Doomseeker.
http://wiki.zandronum.com
http://doomwiki.org/
http://zdoom.org/wiki/
http://www.skulltag.com/stmanual/
If you are sure your problem is a bug, and not your or your computer's error, let us know on tracker!