Hexen II Mission Pack: Demoness Game Guide for Portal of Praevus

©Alex Fung, August 1999.
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General

Background

This is a simplified walkthrough. After playing the five Hexen II hubs, you would find Portal of Praevus rather easy. Its two hubs are rather linear and the goals are straight forward. Therefore, summaries are only added to the levels where the details-gap between objectives and details section are too big.

The first hub is the normal Blackmarsh castles and caves while the second hub is Tibet. The second hub is big: you can as well say that the second hub consists of three unrelated hubs, two of which without hub bosses. However, Raven considered the second hub as a single hub. Besides the lack of hub bosses, the second hub has a uniform culture, which is unique for each hub.

PoP use the same game engine (v1.12a instead of v1.11: remember to get the latest patch). Some new features are added: rain, snow, dust, and these created the atmosphere required in the story.

In my opinion, the most important additon is objectives. Press o and you see your current objectives. It is updated as soon as you make any progress (like having located a puzzle item).

Read the Chronicle of the Deeds II. It is a modified version of the original one, and included the new monsters.

PoP has a nightmare level, where monsters respawn like in Quake nightmare. Once inside, you can switch to the Hexen II hubs and play nightmare level there as well.

Story Background

Months after the death of Eidelon, an eternal winter comes to Thyrion. Demoness, the unfinished creation of Eidelon (that explains why you didn’t meet her in Hexen II) explored the Eidelon’s Lair and discovered a big hole. She jumped inside, followed by the other four heroes, starting their journey of discovery.

The Wizard Praevus had imprisonned Soul Spheres of the three Serpent Riders to harness their power for his own ends. While the other four character classes go to battle against Praevus to protect Thyrion, the Demoness will not tolerate such a fate to befall her late master and vows to destroy Praevus.

New Enemies

Gyagk. It charges at you like a bull. Reminds me of the Maulotaurs of Heretic, and are more tough. They also use magicaly weapons like the Medusas to freeze you into ice. It is call Yakman inside the game.

Pentacle. Like the blob of Quake. When in caves and tunnels, listen carefully for the noise of Pentacles. Because of their camouflage, it is difficult to make out where they are. Once they started jumping around it is even more difficult to aim at them.

Snow Leopard. Just as deadly fast as the Were-Panthers of Mazaera. Because of their high speed, it is not easy to shoot them unless it is very close to you.

Demoness

Since Demoness is a new character class, so there is no reason why you shouldn’t play her. Also, once you started the addon, you can even use console commands to switch to play normal Hexen2 maps using Demoness.

Weapons:

  • Blood Fire, her weapon #1 is long ranged. Therefore, she can avoid close combats and start the game easier than the other classes.
  • Acid Ruin, not unlike the weapon #2 of other classes, is useful but not very powerful. It usually takes three hits to kill an Archer.
  • Fire Storm is interesting. Besides bursting into a fireball, it keeps burning for a while. Therefore, do not hurry to repeat shooting. Shoot once and hide, and wait for the fire to do its effect. This way, a single hit is usually sufficient to finish an Archer.
  • Her weapon #4, the Tempest’s Staff, is made by Eidelon himself and is powerful and spectacular at the same time. Tomed, the Tempest’s Staff gives a continuous stream of lightning to multiple targets, making it the most powerful weapon of the five classes. Of course, it has to come in two pieces separately.

Her most interesting skill is of course the Demon Glide. At experience level 3, she can glide with her wings: just keep pressing the jump key and she would descend very slowly. At Experience Level 6, she acquires Masochistic Mana, gaining Mana when being hurt: not really useful.

For Demoness, the Glyph of the Ancients would emit a poisonous gas to which only she herself is immune. It operates like when the Cleric uses a Flechette in Hexen. It is a very powerful weapon because it can do continuous damage if the enemy cannot run away from the smoke. However it is short ranged and have little effect on fast moving monsters. One good place to use the Glyph is at doors with monsters behind them: open a door, throw out a Glyph, step back and close the door, listen and repeat if necessary.

Where to buy it

I don’t think you can buy Portal of Praevus from anywhere else now. Contact me to obtain a copy.

Portal of Praevus Useful links

Developer: Raven Software

Publisher: Activision

Game review available at Adrenaline Vault also.

Home page on Raven Software and Raven Software. Remember to get the latest patch (v1.12) before starting to play the game.

Demo version available at Raven Software.

FAQ at Raven Games

Cheat available at Adrenaline Vault

My Heretic games page available at My Home. Choose My Favorite Things and look for My Favorite Games, or go directly to this URL.

Blackmarsh

Objectives

Traverse Eidelon’s underground castle to the Village of Turnabel.

The village is sealed by a magic barrier. You need to enchant a Ballista to break the magic barrier.

Leaving the village, you continue your journey underground. Bring the Mask of King Lazarus at the Hall of the Dead, and the king would open the way to Tulku for you.

Before you start

The Intro relates the addon back to Hexen II, where the four character classes killed Eidelon. If you find the actors in a mess when viewing the Intro, stop using openGL and view the Intro with software rendering. The rest of the game doesn't have such problems.

Eidolon, the last of the Serpent Riders, is defeated by four unlikely companions: The Paladin, The Assassin, The Crusader, The Necromancer. Months have passed, and a strange winter besets the land. Eidolon’s minion, the Demoness, is troubled by this strange magic and comes out of hiding. The heroes, also troubled by the unexpected winter, return to Blackmarsh to investigate. They decide to return to Eidolon’s lair. Meanwhile, the Demoness finds Eidolon's body missing and goes into his castle in search of the one who is responsible. The heroes catch a fleeting image of the Demoness disappearing through the hole in the earth. Gritting their teeth, they follow her into the darkness.

Decide which level of difficulty you want to play PoP. And the entry to the nightmare level is very difficult to access when play difficulty level 4, because you cannot use cheat codes to fly up there.

Eidelon’s Lair

Objectives

Place the Sphere of Order to the Thaumaturgical Conveyance.

Ride the wind tubes to leave the underground castle to proceed to the Village of Turnabel to find Razumen.

Details

Offical objectives:

  1. Find the spring that leads to the village well
  2. Get the Sphere of Order from Eidolon's Throne Room

Turn around and enter the mountain cave to collect a Sphere of Invisibility and Acid Rune (weapon #2, not placed here if playing difficulty levels 3 and 4). When you reach a large hall and see a big column with spiral stairs around it, kill the Archers there and go back to the starting area. We would arrive there later anyway.

Before entering the castle, look up. You can see a tower with a door on the right. After finishing the level, you would find that you never get there. Why? That is the entrance to the nightmare level. If you wish to have a visit, impulse 39 to fly up there and enter the door. If you are playing difficulty levels 1 and 2, the door would not open: use noclip to pass through it. However, I would suggest you to wait a while. I would explain that later.

For mortals who wish to stay alive, enter the castle. Read the book at the entrance. At the T-junction take the right side. On your way, you can see two wind tubes opening on your right. At the end of the path, activate the switch to open one of the wind tubes. Go back to the T-junction to follow the other side to the Throne Room.

Grab the Sphere of Order and follow the doorway on the opposite side of where you entered. Your second objective changed to read: Take the Sphere of Order to the Thaumaturgical Conveyance. The exit facing the throne goes to the wind tubes. We would get there later via an wind tube. Continue to a room with three bookcase and a grate on the floor.

Break the bookcases. One of them is hiding a Quartz Flask. You need the Tien’s Key to open the grate on the floor. And normally you do not have that key. And normally you do not open the grate. Below the grate is a Ring of Flight: level 4 players who want to enter the nightmare level need to fly up to the entry.

Go forward to a pedestal and place the Sphere of Order there. This activates some machinery and opens a staircase. You are now standing on top of the big column with spiral stairs I talked about early in the beginning. Descend the stairs to collect any remaining goodies.

Backtrack until you reach that staircase just opened and descend from there. Jump into the wind tube and ride to the end.

Before you continue into the second wind tube, look carefully at the walls. There is a crack on one of the walls. Walk carefully on the thin ledge along the wall to get there. Break inside for Glyphs. Walk even more carefully when leaving the hole. For the curious or the careless, there is a teleporter under water that brings you up.

Ride the other tube to a big room. During the trip, there is a crack on the tube, and Tien’s Key is inside the crack. If you do not need the Ring of Flight, forget about it because you will have to ride the tube very many times to get it.

In the room you arrive at, the big teleporter will only take you back to the other end of the wind tube: so ignore it.

Here is also the room you would drop into if you enter the nightmare level door. If you are playing the nightmare level but you have not yet placed the Sphere of Order, take the teleporter back to the ledge with two wind tubes and fight your way back here. Instead, I suggest nightmare level players to play the normal level until here, and go back out to enter the nightmare level.

From here, press the button upstairs to open the door below. Leave through door and dive into water to proceed.

Village of Turnabel

Objectives

Find the Mage’s Key to get the Jar of Dragon Tongue for making a potion in the next level.

Details

Official objectives: Go to the Duke's Keep; Find Razumen's House. He should be there

Kill the sheep. Who is Paramor? We would soon see. Follow the only way to a book on the floor. Leave the room via the other door and follow to a switch, openning a door at the start area.

Jump down and go to the Raven’s Nest (a favorite bar of guys at Raven Software). If you did not turn left to enter Raven’s Nest but followed the path directly ahead, you would arrive at the end of this level but without the Jar you needed. Read the message on the bar table. Jump over the bar table to climb down a ladder to the cellar to get the Mage’s Key. You get a new objective: Take the Mage’s Key to Razumen’s Lab

Leave the bar via the other exit. Up the ramp. Run back the thin ledge and jump to the Mystic Urn. Enter the castle, drop down to the entrance and enter Razumen’s Home.

Break the skull to enter the wardrobe. Open the inner door to get the Jar of Dragon Tongue. There is an exit at the end of a corridor going down a ramp: ignore it. Go back to the bedroom to break the window and leave.

Go down stairs to visit every Spider nest for treasures (don’t overlook the cracked wall). The corridor in Razumen’s home comes down here, but it is easier to fight Archers above if you leave via the bedroom. Go back upstairs (not into the Razumen’s corridor) and go through a path with lots of Archers shooting down at you. Enter the double doors ahead that brings you to the next level.

Duke’s Keep

Objectives

To leave the village, you need to enchant a Controllable Ballista to blast your way out.

The Scroll of Enchantment is sealed and you need to make a Seal Breaking potion using Dragon Tongue.

Details

Official objectives: Gain entrance to the Catacombs and Take Dragon’s Tongue to Razumen’s Castle Quarters.

You start with a pillar surrounded by three arches. First get your Fire Storm from the Throne Room on the opposite side of the pillar. Then go through the arch on the left (ie turn right when you are leaving the Throne Room).

On top of the zigzag ramp, look back at the chandelier. Do a running jump/glide to it to get the Quartz Flask on it.

Continue till a Spider ambush. If the Spiders decided to sit still, break the glass windows yourself and look for goodies behind the windows.

Keep going, ignoring the downgoing ramp on your right, until you can enter an doorway on your left. Examine the sealed cabinet, and now Get the Duke’s Seal by completing the potion in the next room. Ravensoft staff are getting confused with the objectives here: you need to get the potion from next door to break the seal here, not to get the seal from next door. Break the cracked wall to reveal a passage inside. Follow the passage around to another crack and break inside the room there.

Walk up to the kettle to make a Seal Breaking Potion from the Dragon Tongue: Take the Duke's Seal to the locked cabinet. Go back out to break the seal and open the cabinet. Collect the Scroll of Enchantment inside: Take the Scroll of Enchantment to the Ballista near the magic field.

Leave the room and turn left to the doorway at the end. Read the note on the table in the bedroom. Now you know why there is so much trouble in getting the Scroll of Enchantment. Go outdoors and find a body. Proceed to the barn to find a Helmet at the upper level.

Find your way to the Controllable Ballista through a hole in the wall. Enchant and fire it to break the magic barrier and the door behind. Before leaving via that door, first go pass the Ballista to a large room with a fireplace.

Jump pass the table (or break it) to get a Quartz Flask behind. Shoot the windows, and jump on the table pointing towards the windows. The table will break and become a ramp. Run up the table/ramp and jump to the window, collecting the Tome of Power behind.

There is another door in this room. It leads back to the starting area, via the right arch that we have not explored. Explore the corridor if you want to shoot a few more Archers for the extra experience points.

Go back to the door you blasted open with the Ballista. Save your game and enter and meet the Pentacles: they keep bouncing around and explode when you get too close. Next time, listen carefully to their characteristic noise so you can locate them and shoot them down before they can approach you.

Catacombs

Objectives

Bring the Chalice of St. Eric to the Altar of the church.

Get the Burial Mask of King Lazarus and bring it to him at the next level.

Details

Find the Hall of the Dead

There are two paths ahead. The left one goes up to an Amulet at a dead end. Depending on your current armour level, you may leave this for collection later. Go back down and follow the other. Pass the grate on your left that doesn’t open. Go outside and the second grate will close behind you when you step on the floor plate. Walk along the edge of the cliff and crouch into a tunnel, arriving at the other side of the grate-that-would-not-open.

You are at the main corridor of the upper catacombs. Remember to break any sarcophagus in the Catacombs. Explore everywhere. Before dropping down to the level below, read the message on the wall: Find the Chalice of St. Eric. The ledge on the opposite side is a dead end but may hold a Stone of Summoning. Jump across and then drop down to the lower catacombs.

Find the vacant grave and press the red button to get the Chalice of St. Eric inside: Take the Chalice of St. Eric to the Altar of the Four Kings.

Find a grave with a cracked wall. Break inside and up the ramps to a church. Place the Chalice on the Altar of Four Kings, and boulders will rush through the center of the church.

Explore the slope where the boulders come from. It goes to the initial blocked passage (it was the boulders that blocked the passage) with the Amulet. Collect the Amulet if you have not yet done so. The boulders crash open a passage for you in the church, so enter.

Activate the machinery to open the two iron doors. The left one leads to a dead end. Take the right iron door, and turn left at the T-junction. Leads you back to the main corridor of the upper catacombs, and you can also unblock the passage beyond the left iron door. Anyway forget about them and follow the other side of the T-junction leading to a big empty room. Found nothing there? Look for buttons behind the statues. Press both (either jump on top of the statues or break them) to get the Burial Mask of King Lazarus.

Once you walk into the room with the Mask, a new staircase will appear. Descend.

The Hall of the Dead

Objectives

Find the Cross Key to open to door to the throne.

Place the Mask of King Lazarus over his face.

Details

Investigate the King’s Tomb.

The starting area is a three-way branch. The room on the right has a cross symbol next to it. You need the Cross Key to enter there. Before we climb the stairs of the left branch, enter the front branch ahead and have a look at the bridge, Archers, goodies and treasures above. Also look at the floor: a big hole would one day appear. Leave.

On the left branch, you would notice a grate on your left with the second part of your Tempest’s Staff behind. The grate would open later, from the other side. For now, continue upstairs.

Press a button to lower the bridge outside. Jump to the ledges on both sides of the bridge (haven’t you seen them from below?) to collect a Krater of Might and piece 1 of your Tempest’s Staff.

Past the bridge to two opened caskets and a Fallen Angel. Examine the caskets, break the cracked bottom and jump down through it. Up a ramp to a big room with a sunken middle part and another Fallen Angel.

Before leaving via the door on your left, walk to the Altar and break the crypt there to get two Glyphs. Leave via the other door to a chasm with nail shooters on the wall, and Archers on the opposite side. Yes you can jump across the chasm, just do not try to jump to the nail shooters as an intermediate stop. Proceed to a room with a small pool and an Archer above a pillar. Dive into the pool and resurface on the other side.

Locate the lowest ledge and run (not jump) on to it. Jump from ledge to ledge until you reach where the Archer above the pillar was. Get the Tome of Power and drop back into water. Climb from water and jump to the first ledge above water. Turn left into the Warrior’s Tomb. Proceed until a grave on your right opens. Go through the grave to a big room with two towers and a bridge over water. The Cross Key is on the other side of the bridge.

Cross the bridge and learn that it is an illusion. Underwater, it isn’t water, or the Spiders would have drown. Find the teleporter-like wind tunnel that blows you upwards, carrying you to the upper level of the first tower. Press the button to lower another bridge joining the upper level of the towers.

Before you cross the bridge, break the windows to find a wooden support beam leading to a crack on the wall. Get the Tome of Power inside the crack and cross the upper bridge. This time, the bridge is real.

Drop through the hole in the second tower to collect a Ring of Regeneration and also the Cross Key outside the tower: Take the Cross Key to the Cross Lock. Jump into the water and ride again to the first tower. Glide down and go back to the grave you entered.

From the grave, turn right and continue the waterway to some stairs leading to the second part of your Tempest’s Staff and a grate. Walk against the grate to open it. Turn right to descend back to the starting area.

Use the Cross Key to open the door (the right branch) and enter a throne room. Walk up to the skeleton of the King Lazarus and place the burial mask over his face. The big hole in the front branch is now opened.

Go back to the starting area and find the big hole in the room ahead. Glide down (falling sometimes hurts) and save your game. Enter an iron door to meet the hub boss with your new toy (Tempest’s Staff) tomed. When you killed the Yakman, the exit teleporter will open. Take it to Tulku.

Tibet

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Outline

Click the bold text to expand/collapse the details. When your mouse is over them, the text color will change to red, and the mouse pointer will change to a hand. When the details are expanded, you may also double-click the detail lines to collapse them (so you don’t need to scroll back to title line to collapse the details).

Tooltips

Some other bold text has tool tips instead of collapsible details. Station your mouse pointer over it. The text would not turn red, but the tips will pop up next to the mouse.

If you click the bold text, the tips become sticky (stays there even after you move the mouse pointer away). Click the text again to close the tips. Or doubleclick the tips to close it.

On a touch device, mouseover cannot be easily done. Clicking (tapping) becomes the only practical method to show the tip; and double tapping the tips the only practical way to close it. Unfortunately, double click zooms IE on a touch device. To cater for this, I added yet another method: pressing the escape button will also close the tooltip.


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