Ryleh 1 : Ryleh Rising Readme

Title | : Ryleh Rising
File Name | : Ryleh 1.fsm
Version | : 1.4 - 12/01/98
Designer | : Michael Diedrich (Zarathud)
Email Address | : diedrich@megsinet.net
Homepage | : www.megsinet.net/~diedrich/
| : descent.gamestats.com/
Other levels by author | : Ryleh 2 (Hounds of Tindalos)
| : Ryleh 3 (Lurker at the Threshold)
| : Ryleh 4 (Thing on the Doorstep)
Additional credits to | : Volition, Inc. for Descent: Freespace
| : Interplay Productions, for some excellent recent releases

* Mission Description *

Player must patrol Ryleh Station shortly after the announcement of the Terran-Vasudan alliance. The Hammer of Light vows to show their displeasure. Scan the convoys and defend the Station from all enemy fighters.

* Mission Ratings *

Ryleh Rising has bounced back and forth on and off Xanadu's Top 10 list for what seems like ages. It has been very well-received by the FreeSpace community at large and is often on the "short list" of the best missions (along with its sister mission Ryleh 2). The DC Review rated Ryleh 1 version 1.0 a 4.0 star mission. I'm not going to argue with that, since I happen to also do reviews over there. And I know of other flaws that the ElusiveOne didn't quite notice. But I admit that it's a darn fine mission and this version should fine-tune those previous mistakes. Its reviews by players have consistenly hovered around 80%. But enough of the advertising, go play it and see for yourself.

* Play Information *

Single Player | : yes
Multi Player | : no
Training Only | : no
Difficulty Settings | : yes, bonuses
Campaign | : yes
New grapics | : no
New sounds | : yes
Known Bugs | : All Fixed, I think!

* Installation *

Unzip the zip file into the proper drive. The mission should automatically be transferred to the mission folder, and any sounds to the appropriate voice folder.

* Author's Comments *

This mission should be completed at long last. If you have ANY problems, please tell me about them so I can try to fix them. No promises, but I'll do my best. Tell me about any inaccuracies (weapons out too soon, etc.), imbalances (too hard or too easy?), performance issues (tested on a P200MMX with 64MB RAM and Diamond Monster 3D), or outright errors. Your feedback is important to me.

There aren't many capital ships (probably the coolest part of Freespace) in this mission, because everyone else seems to be using them. My goal here is to give the player a good dogfight with a purpose (protect the transports) and a suprise or two. Let me know how the suprise went, since that part of the mission was a real pain in the ass.

If you played an earlier version, let me know how this revision compares. I had a few complaints about the timing being too drawn out, so that should be fixed. Is it too hard now? Just right? Let me know.

You must visit the Descent Chronicles site at http://descent.gamestats.com/, which contains the FRED FAQ at http://descent.gamestats.com/freespace/fred/index.shtml, Xanadu's Mission Archive at http://descent.gamestats.com/xanadu/, and the FreeSpace Review at http://descent.gamestats.com/review/.

Special Thanks to:

Everyone who provided feedback on the earlier missions, especially Pastel. Thanks also go out to my wife Bkwyrm, my old friend Jason Lazar, H.P. Lovecraft for the inspiration of Cthulhu and the other Elder Gods, Volition Inc. for creating such an incredible game, the Freespace Developer's League and Peter Drake for getting me started on FRED design. And, finally, I thank YOU for playing this mission.

* Legal Stuff *

You may distribute this mission for free, as long as you include this text file and give the author credit. If you want to distribute this mission on a CD or in a Collection you MUST contact the author first and obtain approval. Any distribution of this mission shall act as an acknowledgement of the author's moral rights granted under applicable laws.

You may edit this mission, but cannot redistribute the edited mission without the permission of the author.

Certain rights to this mission are retained by Volition, Inc. and Interplay Productions. Use of this mission by any third party must conform to the copyrights and license terms of its creation.

* Sound Files Supported *

voices/special/

> r1_auth1.wav

> r1_calib.wav

> r1_cnvy1.wav

> r1_dmg1.wav

> r1_dmg2.wav

> r1_dock1.wav

> r1_error.wav

> r1_HOL1.wav

> r1_HOL2.wav

> r1_HOLno.wav

> r1_lose1.wav

> r1_lose2.wav

> r1_prot1.wav

> r1_prot2.wav

> r1_prot3.wav

> r1_return.wav

> r1_scand.wav

> r1_sciok.wav

> r1_verfy.wav

> r1_warhd.wav

> r1_whats.wav

> voices/briefing/

> r1_mb1.wav

> r1_mb10.wav

> r1_mb2.wav

> r1_mb3.wav

> r1_mb4.wav

> r1_mb5.wav

> r1_mb6.wav

> r1_mb7.wav

> r1_mb8.wav

> r1_mb9.wav

* Release Notes *

v 1.0 Released 6/27/98

v 1.1 Released 6/28/98

> Fixed Convoy event to correctly require both convoys to dock before validating.

> Changed nebula to amber and re-oriented (this looks much cooler now)

> Fixed incorrect ship type shown in mission briefing subicons.

> Minor tweaks to shields and targeting orders on enemy ships.

> Minor tweaks to initial ship facings and initial convoy locations.

v 1.2 Released 7/8/98

> Added .ani files in Command Briefing

> Added .wav sounds for messages and briefing

> Fixed textual errors in all briefings and messages

> Modified map viewpoints in Mission Briefing (this looks much better)

> Adjusted bomber wing for consistency and balance

> Adjusted fighter wing for balance

> Adjusted weapon loadouts for consistency and balance

> Adjusted command briefing for consistency

> Bound all waypoints to F9 key for easier navigation

> Bound convoys to F10 and F11 for easier navigation

> Changed escort list to show cargo, not ships

> Upgraded all passenger tickets to first class (Elysium instead of Poseidons)

> Eliminated redundant sexps

> Added delta wing for reinforcements

> Adjusted timing for sound events

v 1.3 Released 7/19/98

> Fixed misspelling of prophecy.

> Fixed wing that doesn't show up until too late

> Fixed long gap before final convoy arrives

> Eliminated inconsistencies with Great War campaign (fighter and missiles)

> Added appropriate colors to mission briefing titles

> Add station distress call

> Fixed bomber uncloaking event

> Resampled .wav files to reduce file size or increase volume if neccessary

> Fixed reverse recycling of waypoints linked to (F9)

> Added super-"win" to debriefing for overachievers who replay and anticipate suprises

> Reoriented incoming Elysium Transports, so they don't flip 180 degrees while warping in (suprised no one noticed, but it was pretty neat though!)

v 1.4 Released 12/01/98

Minor adjustments to briefing text and images

Consistency adjustments to command briefing for campaign

Fix jump node name from "Z" to "Jump Node"

Created difficulty bonus for Medium and Hard difficulty levels

Fixed error in sabotage convoy detected event

Fixed repeat error in Bomber Hello and Bombers on Scope events

Other event fixes, including campaign tracking events

Slightly improved weaponry of friendly wings

Slight readjustment of point bonuses

Added more directives, fixed the directives so they work correctly

Buy the retail version of Descent: Freespace. This game is awesome.

Now stop reading and start flying!