Miasmata Nighttime Challenge

[DarkStarSword]

This is for anyone who thinks they know the island pretty well and desperately wants more Miasmata! This is something I've been planning to do for a while now and finally got around to doing tonight.

The idea is simple - just play through the game at night instead of day! When Dawn comes immediately find your way to the nearest camp and sleep until the next night. Avoid using maps and see how well you really know the island!

Rules:
- Rule Number 1: The rules are really more like guidelines - these are the rules I established for myself, but really the point is just to enjoy yourself, so if you want to bend these a little that's up to you :)

Nighttime rules:
- If you find yourself at a lab during the day, you are permitted to drink from water jugs, gather ingredients from the IMMEDIATE vicinity and synthesize medicine before going to sleep (I don't see doing this in the dark as being a challenge). This includes synthesizing basic & extra strength medicine at Draco at the start of the game:
- Upon starting the game proceed to Draco and sleep until the night at the end of the third day - that's right, there's no safe days from the Creature in this challenge!
- Proceed only at night - when dawn starts to lighten everything up you should find your way to the nearest shelter that you know of (or first one you stumble across) and sleep until the next night!
- You are permitted to admire the sunrise - I'm hardly going to deny you that pleasure ;-)
- If the nearest shelter is not the one you were aiming for, too bad - you will have to leave that until the next night!
- If Robert just extinguished his lighter and you can't see anything at all just wait a moment - you should find that the ambient light level rises pretty quickly and you should be able to see clearly in less than a minute (who knows why he extinguishes his lighter when he does) - I just hope the creature doesn't pick that moment to appear :-/
- If you have already reached the immediate vicinity of a plant just before Dawn, you are permitted to pick it up after Dawn.
- If you come across a plant after Dawn on your way to the nearest camp you may only pick it up if it is a minor plant (e.g. basic/extra strength medicine), but not if it is a major plant associated with any of the game's objectives.
- Once you are cured you may allow the sun to rise as you swim to the finish line (no need to go back and sleep if you are about to win ;-)

Equipment Rules:
- Torches and sticks are permitted (and recommended, however I'm considering trying this again without them :-O)
- Do not use the map!
- Do not pick up any notes!
- Researching plants is permitted (I didn't need to, but it seems fair to allow this).
- Do not keep "spare" medicine plants in storage (you can store plants for a single dose of any drug you do not currently possess).

Objective Rules:
- Synthesize and take the three components to the cure as soon as you are able to - purposefully delaying this is considered cheating since the creature's aggression is affected by it.
- Complete all three secondary objectives as well as the primary objectives!
- Obtain the Algae from the location the notes point to, not the secret location (the idea being to maximise the amount of the island that needs to be traversed).
- Do not cheat to obtain the Rainbow Orchid or Plant-X without a strength boost (I decided to use the muscle emphasis drug, but I think a Herculean Tonic is also acceptable)
- The ingredients for the muscle emphasis drug may be obtained from the secret locations if desired (my feeling is that the secret locations are of similar difficulty to navigate at night as the official locations, and neither adds significantly more land to navigate).

If you want to compare times, be sure to save at the candle on the table just before finishing the game and note any deviations you made from the rules. I completed this challenge at 6AM on day 11 with 0 deaths (as above, keeping in mind that I slept until night at the end of day 3 before setting out).

[DarkStarSword]

Here's some screenshots and some highlights from my run (potential minor spoilers ahead):

After sleeping until the third night in Draco, I decided to take a path up the hill rather than the one I was more familiar with. After walking in circles for a while eventually I found my first ingredient:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288404969

This was my first sunrise after setting out - I admired it for a while, but from my own rules this meant I now had to make a beeline for the nearest camp:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288405211

Slightly amusing - since I was not picking up any notes I had not found the bloody memo about the cure so my objectives page was a bit bare... As you can see I didn't want to be caught out unawares and the brain emphasis drug was my second priority after Agent Z:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288405641

I was beginning to wonder where the creature was - I'd been quite lucky in that he hadn't shown up at all while I was getting Agent Z, but sure enough on my way to Polaris my heart started beating:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288405765

He had taken me by surprise unfortunately - I had no place to hide and nowhere to run. We circled each other for what felt like hours - he would swipe his claws and I would wave my burning sticks... I was desperately aware that my sticks were going to burn out at any moment and had been backpedaling to where I hoped to find more, yet when I did, the creature stood on top of them as if to mock me since I could not reach them.

At that moment my sticks finally burned out! Out of options I grabbed the charred remains, threw them square in the Creature's face and ran. The coastline I was on offered no shelter and I knew the creature would catch me if I tried to outrun it so I turned back to face it, now weaponless.

I kept backing up, trying to crouch down and grab a rock, but it was too close and took a swipe at me, knocking me backwards. That gave me enough breathing room to find some more sticks, but I had no time to take any medicine! I kept backing up, coughing and spluttering and eventually found some more sticks. I took the chance to hurl the burning sticks in the creature's face, distracting it just long enough to take some medicine and grab another bunch of sticks for myself.

As I continued to back up I noticed that the coastline was quickly disappearing and I was forced to hang precariously off a cliff, just out of reach of the creature. The cliff was too steep to climb, and as I pondered my situation the sun began to rise:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288405983

Once I could see the silhouette of the land I realised where I was, and the creature was between me and where I wanted to go, but with the sun in the sky it was now time to find the nearest camp and sleep. The cliff I was on was too steep to climb and thanks to the creature I couldn't go back, so I had to edge along the shore, almost drowning, until I could climb out. I made my way to the lab amongst the desert ruins on the other side of the cliff and slept.

I had better luck the next night and was able to make it to Polaris before the next dawn began to rise:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288407947
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288407571

I had a few more encounters with the creature on my way to Vega and beyond, though none were quite as tense as that first standoff:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288408849
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288409720

[DarkStarSword]

With all secondary objectives complete, I made my way to find the final ingredients and synthesize the cure:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288410755
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288411188

I made my way to the shore, and as I swam off the island, the sun began to rise marking the end of a wonderful run:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288411377
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288412891
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288413508
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288413913
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288414595
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288414286
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288415743

And so, I completed the Miasmata Nighttime Challenge at 6AM on the eleventh day and had somehow managed to do so without any deaths:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=288417051

[Psycho]

Wow, epic! I doubt I have the courage to do this (daytime encounters are more than enough me thanks) but I salute your courage and fortitude with your 'hardcore' mode. :)

[Andy]

I'll probably give this a go sometime. Thanks for the challenge! :)

[Andy]

Just finished the under 7 days and 3 days achievements. I think I'm ready for the nighttime challenge. Wish me luck! :)

[DarkStarSword]

Good luck - looking forward to hearing your story :)

[Andy]

*Logs from the nighttime traveller*

(spoiler alert)

NIGHT 3


As I was heading towards camp Sirius I already managed to get myself lost on the way there. Pretty foolish of me, I thought I recalled the path there well. I must've made a misstep somewhere on my path. I eventually reached it and after replenishing my water I immediately continued my way onward towards camp Riger.

Upon arrival I was quick to make my way to the Titan Plant which I had no trouble in finding, and after some more journying I found the Sponge Fungus. I rejoined the path to Riger and as I was hurrying through the boardwalks, but a small flaming branch in my hand, I encountered It, that hideous thing. I stood at the narrow boardwalk and realized I had no real way of escaping this encounter. I tried to slowly back away but the creature drew ever closer and eventually took a swipe at me.

"Curse you!"

I stumbled, the world turning to a gray haze. As I quickly raised myself back on my feet, regaining focus,I remembered it. The urn! There had to be one of them nearby! I took a blind run towards it, my fatique already getting the better of me, and lighted it as the beast roared just behind my back, about to take another swipe. This one would be a fatal one.


Blinded by the radiant light as the urn came to its fiery life, the beast immediately fled in panic to the darkness of the forest.

Having now lost my train of thought due to this encounter, I retreated too, to the top of a nearby hill and waited for the Sun to rise, grasping those newly found, vital plants in my hands... As day dawned, I could already see Riger close nearby from my vantage point.

[DarkStarSword]

Nice use of the urn to scare the creature away - it's easy to forget that they do that :)

[Andy]

Yes, it seems there was unforeseen benefits in finding and lighting every urn on the island in my first playthrough, for it was back then that I realized this useful property in them. Plus, also memorizing many of their locations quite well. Actually, for a long time I thought they were merely for decoration.

[DarkStarSword]

Hehe yeah me too - the first time I moused over one while holding some sticks I thought the fire icon was a glitch, and I was very surprised when lighting it actually worked.

[Andy]

It was a long struggle. It included circling the beast around a tree all the way upon dawn, and another case where I lit the urn, fluorescent specimen in my hand, and the beast rammed me in panic when fleeing, hurling me down a cliff. I didn't even know this could happen when making the beast panic using the urn. Anyhow, I lost my precious specimen as a result and had to make a day long trip back to Vega (because I withheld from using the storage compartment, so I would travel actually holding the specimens in my hand, instead of storing them. I also withheld from making any kinds of basic medicines or tonics and withheld from using the water cantine. Main and primary objectives not included.).

So yes, it was a struggle but I managed to beat nighttime challenge, finishing it on the morning of day 15. Later I beated it a second time, nighttime challenge again but this time without using torches and urns (completing both the primary and secondary objectives). Also, no running (made things easier actually since there was less stumbling around), no water cantine or basic drugs and my favourite, permadeath (If you die, it's game over and you have to start again). This really brought a survival horror aspect into the run and the beast felt so much more scary and threatening. Ironically I beated it sooner this time, during the fourteenth night.

I'm intending to do yet a third and final nighttime challenge (once again, no torches or urns, no running, permadeath etc.), but this time completing only the primary objectives.
Why?
Because late game is much harder without having done the secondary objectives. There's lots of coastline to cover but you don't have the muscle emphasis boost. So if the beast surprises you, you're in trouble. If you end up in water, you're also in trouble (it's interesting going to try and get the plant X in the pitch black this time around).
In my original nighttime run, I would just swim away from the beast. Risky I know, when taking account that it's pitch black, but less risky than getting killed by the beast. This time however, you're out of luck and will have to manage in some other ways.