Groping The Map: Life Of The Party, Part 7.

“To serve the nobility is the highest privilege in life of course but slavery is just so… distasteful.”

Annotated Walkthrough, 6:

Without the option to read the books sitting upon the shelves there is little to determine if the library of Angelwatch was created to serve a functional purpose or whether it exists merely as ornamentation for visitors. At least one Mechanist appears interested in reading the collected works, he might just be easily distracted but the Mechanists have already shown themselves to be more professional than the household guards regularly encountered throughout the City.

Regardless of his motivations the single Mechanist on this floor is easily avoided. Entering the library from the third floor the more obviously safe route lies to the west keeping to the shadows against the wall and away from the Mechanist. Staying in darkness and moving pass the bookcases in the southwestern corner of the Library will lead you to the foot of the stairs and your means of access to the fourth floor. Despite the shadows it is sensible to move slowly through this part of the library as a Worker Bot can frequently be encountered amongst the shelves at the bottom of the stairs. Detectable by the mutterings it makes to itself the Worker Bot is a smaller companion to the Combat Bot. Unarmed and blind until they have heard a noise Worker Bots will immediately flee to sound the alarm upon confirmation of a threat. Fortunately there is not always enough space for the Bot to maneuver through this part of the Library and it can frequently be found stuck on the geometry, and is thus easily avoided. When it is not getting stuck the Bot walks a patrol that in general takes it through the third floor, down the stairs to the second floor and back again. When and where its patrol crosses paths with that of other wandering NPCs will determine where it is likely to get stuck on walls and steps. The jostling two NPCs partake in when attempting to move through the same narrow space can often be enough to nudge the Worker Bot into a position from which it cannot free itself. Unfortunately when it is stuck in such a way it cannot be deactivated with a Water Arrow to the boiler, it will also still react to noise and if it detects anything the change of AI state has the effect of breaking its paralysis and it will merrily stomp away to raise the alarm.

Carved from stone, and partially illuminated, the stairs to the second floor of the library, (the fourth floor of Angelwatch) don’t immediately present the most inviting route, thankfully there are other options. As with any hard surface, Moss Arrows or moving slowing will enable you to reach the floor above undetected, though looking up presents additional possibilities. Paneled in wood the library ceiling is a perfect target for a Vine Arrow, or two, bringing the walls of the upper level within reach.

The next gramophone recording can be found on a table against the west wall, along with yet another portrait of Karras. By this stage you’d be forgiven for sensing a degree of narcissism from the head of the Mechanists. It’s possible, and likely, those portraits were hung exclusively for the night’s festivities yet they do seem to have been given just as much prominence as any of the many religious icons on display inside Angelwatch. It doesn’t seem like happenstance that there is a portrait of Karras hanging in the Mechanist Chapel, the Library and as the first thing visitors will seen upon entering the main concourse. Karras’ elevation of himself to a position of equality with the Master Builder is a theme that will become more noticeable in subsequent levels as the Mechanists take on the role of primary antagonist over the now deceased Sherrif Truart.

The bookcase adjacent to the gramophone table will allow you to initiate the recording while remaining hidden from the noblewoman and her strange companion; and as with the other recordings neither of them react to it starting again apparently of its own accord. The fourth recording you will have heard, this is actually the second recording of six and will shed some light on the “Servants” Karras mentioned in the recording found in the Chapel on the second floor. While describing the various tasks the Servants are suited for there is a noteworthy pause before the final task “gardening”, at this stage it is meaningless and may well go unnoticed. Only in the final few levels of the game will the relevance of his pause become significant. It is also not the only time the Servants ability to serve as gardeners will be referenced during your visit to Angelwatch.

Scant feet from where you are standing the noblewoman’s strange companion is one of the very Servants Karras is referring to, Servants he has provided as a gift to his guests the very richest citizens in the City.

These Servants lie at the heart of Karras’ grand plan, and his apparently generous act of gifting them to the noble houses of the City is merely a means of ensuring they have access to the extensive gardens likely kept by the City’s richest. Installed within the body of each Servant is a device called The Cultivator which, when triggered by a signal from Karras, will emit a substance known variously as either Rust Gas, Necrotic Mutox or The Breath of The Builder. This substance consumes all organic matter it comes into contact with creating a rust like compound and more of itself. By seeding these Servants within the large gardens of the City Karras hopes to start a chain reaction that will produce a cloud large enough to destroy all organic life, thereby converting the City into the Builder’s Paradise.

Events witnessed by Garrett within Angelwatch foreshadow a plot reveal that will not occur for a further four levels.

Even without this foreknowledge the Servants themselves are unsettling, having already listened to the recording in the Chapel you will know that they are not entirely mechanical in nature and were once members of society, those deemed troublemakers and vagabonds but still, humans not machines and certainly not whatever they are now. When they speak the dual nature of the Servants is unmistakable, there are clearly two separate voices, two distinct identities existing under that single immobile mask. A subdued voice, often of a girl or young man can be heard begging for help, for forgiveness, this entreaty is then echoed by a second more composed, more artificial voice. Whether the first voice is meant to indicate that something of what the Servants once were remains, or whether it is simply a remnant, a ghost, is not clear though the second voice clearly belongs to the dominant identity as this is the one that takes over when the Servant becomes suspicious or alerted.

Exit from the library can be found in the northern wall, almost directly above the door on the floor below. This door opens onto a brightly lit corridor running east to west. The library side of the doorway is in shadow though not enough to entirely conceal you from the noblewoman and her companion so it may be necessary to make a decision between potentially arousing their suspicion or moving through before you are certain of the safety of such an act. Of course, there is always the option to lean into the door and listen for the footsteps of any NPCs that might be moving around this corner of Angelwatch’s fourth floor.

Having already encountered one on the floor below, and considering the party supposed to be taking place tonight, it should come as little surprise that there are more civilians on this floor, and they are move active. In fact there are more people on this floor than on any of the those you will have previously visited.

In the wall opposite a door opens onto a room containing the western fireplace. Its carpeted floor and the shadows cast by the fireplace make this a good place to pause for a moment, especially if you have timed your exit from the library badly and nearly walked into either one or both of the patrolling guards on this floor.

Opening the door will have triggered a conversation between the two nobles standing to the north of the fireplace, though the dialogue has been written as if you have interrupted them mid-conversation. What initially sounds like a conversation about the morality of creating such Servants, quickly goes awry as whatever compassion Margaret may have is quickly eroded by Christopher, and the thought that the Servants might make good gardeners.

When the conversation is concluded the woman will leave via the door to the north and proceed up the main staircase to the sixth floor. It is possible that the man will also leave, though this is a much less frequent occurrence, one I’ve been unable to recreate. This scenario is seen on several occasions throughout Thief. Once triggered two or more NPCs will engage in a scripted conversation, their discussion including some information useful to the completion of your current objectives, or simply providing some contextual grounding to events, upon conclusion one or more of them will begin moving. Keeping these NPCs in a fixed position until their conversation is triggered means that whatever they have to say is less likely to be missed by the player, this is particularly useful if they are discussing events relevant to the current level, as is often the case. Additionally it encourages patience in players who do trigger these conversations as moving away before they are completed will limited their knowledge of where the NPCs elect to go afterward. As with any scripted event foreknowledge can be used to exploit this behaviour, which is a form of player behaviour few games have attempted to compensate for.

Aligned east to west the main corridor on this floor runs the width of the building, and depending on the timing of their patrol routes can be patrolled by either one or both of the Mechanist guards on this floor.

The male mechanist patrols between the fourth floor landing and the elevator at the end of the main corridor, while his female companion walks a route that overlaps with his, taking her from the northeastern tower to the landing and back. Overlapping patrol routes are common in the more challenging areas of Thief, they have the benefit of appearing to be more secure while in fact providing an easily readable security loophole for players to exploit. Two guards patrolling through the same space creates a redundancy, they can no longer be guarding multiple places at once. When they are both in one area the rest of their patrol route will be left unprotected, and when they both leave that area they will not return until they have completed their patrol. If you think back to the main rooms on the previous two floors they were both at a point where the patrols of multiple NPCs overlapped. On the second floor the entrance to the Chapel was a point where the patrols of the Combat Bot and the Mechanist guard overlapped, while the third floor gallery marked a point on the patrol route of both Mechanist Guards on that floor. When both NPCs are in the same room, it presents a challenge but observation of their movements will allow you to find a point in time at which neither of them are in that room and it becomes all but unguarded, a perfect security loophole. This is one of the core principles of level design for stealth games the creation of spaces that appear secure but on examination prove to be terrible examples of security.

East of the library the main corridor is joined by parallel corridor leading to the fourth floor landing. A small metal machine sits quietly in the centre of a darkened alcove to the east. This is one of several areas like this on the fourth floor that several little function beyond being places in which to hide either yourself or the bodies of guards you may have killed or otherwise incapacitated. The position of this alcove makes it a superb position from which to observe the patrol routes of the Mechanists on this floor or from which to ambush the male guard as he rounds the corner on his way to the fourth floor landing.

Unlike the previous floors the main corridors here lead directly onto the landing and the wandering civilians that are a frequent hazard throughout Angelwatch’s upper stories. Fortunately the shadows cast by the lights inset into the walls extend further across the width of the corridor than the similar ones on the third floor. Not only does this allow a cautious player to traverse the length of the corridor undetected, even by a guard bare feet away, it also allows them to open the door in the western wall without revealing their presence. The reaction provoked by a door apparently opening of its own volition is inconsistent but usually the most you will need to deal with is a single reaction line from any NPCs that observe it.

The landing of the fourth floor can easily be one of the busiest areas in the whole of Angelwatch. Triggered upon reaching the third floor landing a young man walks an extended route which may take him from the second floor and the bedroom in the south centre of this floor and back again. At the same time, and triggered by reaching the fourth floor landing itself, a woman in a red dress walks between the library and the second floor  There is also the possibility that there will be a third Mechanist Guard on patrol, his route occasionally taking him between the library and the northwestern tower. It can be difficult to ascertain the exact routes these NPCs take as they are extended, include numerous pauses and might in fact change over time. The relative unpredictability of their movements means making assumptions about who will be in a particular area at a given time can prove dangerous. It’s not uncommon for these wandering NPCs to come across hastily stashed bodies, either dead or unconscious, and sound the alarm. As with most hazards in Thief the only consistent solutions are direct intervention, which often leads to an escalation of problems and might not even be viable, or excessive caution. (Note: I studied the patrol routes for these three NPCs and the Worker Bot over the course of hours and I’m was still not convinced I could say for certain what their exact patrol routes were. It was only later that I found out that there are no fixed paths for these particular NPCs they are meant to be unpredictable.)

To the east the balcony extends out over the atrium, opening as it does directly onto the landing, and with a Crossbow Mechanist standing watching on the southern balcony the acrobatic route to the other side of the atrium is less useful it may have been on the third floor.

The optimal time to traverse the main corridor is when the both Mechanists are in the corridor leading to the fourth floor landing, it’s a trivial task to wait in the alcove at the south end of the corridor until it’s time to move. If you decide not to wait there are still ways of avoiding detection. Half way down the length of the corridor an archway to the north opens onto the first of two small rooms which eventually connect to the southern balcony, where the Crossbow Mechanist will be standing with her back to you.

On the opposite side of the corridor an unlocked doorway opens into an empty carpeted room. Directly in front of you is the fireplace against the southern wall, while flanking you on either side a single beds with expensive blue chests at their feet. Both locked these chests contain a health potion and a small stack of gold coins. With the door closed behind you this is a relatively safe room, but leaving it can be a problem if you don’t take the time to find out the position of the guards in the corridor beyond; possibly either through listening at the door or by using a Scouting Orb.

Through the archway a small closet to the east serves as a good place from which to observe this stretch of the main corridor. At the same time its darkened interior, door and position off any patrol routes make it a great place to hide the bodies of dead or incapacitated NPCs.

Faint chanting or choral music can be heard through a further archway to the north, beyond two angel statues stand in alcoves flanking the doorway to the southern balcony. Bathed in light from above the sound seems to emanate from the statues themselves. Whether it is actually chanting or the noise of wind moving through myriad pipes and ducts above is difficult to make out. Directly above is the office of Karras himself where the noise is hard to make out if it is present at all, but on the level above a large fountain dominates the ballroom on the sixth floor where the sound is as strong as it is here. It’s possible ducts connect from the roof of Angelwatch to here and the sound is simply the wind moving through them, or that music is being piped in as part of some religious display, either way the sound is difficult to make out and unsettling for it.

The sound is similar to the industrial droning that can be heard throughout Thief and with no discernible source it can be difficult to ascertain why the sound exists at all. One effect it does have however subtle, is to make the statues and the area around them uncomfortable as if there’s more than simply the sound that is unexplainable.

The patrol routes of the two Mechanist guards diverge at the end of the main corridor just north of the the elevator shaft. As on most other floors the area directly ahead of it is well illuminated with electric lamps, though there are shadows at the end of the main corridor that provide enough concealment to wait out its arrival if you opt to use it.

Following the patrol route of the female Mechanist leads into the northwestern tower with its guest bedrooms, all of which are currently unoccupied. Before reaching them you need to pass the fireplace set into the eastern wall, in the shadows to the south of which is an entry point into the air ducts.

Entering or exiting the ducts on the fourth floor presents the greatest risk, the means of access is scant feet away from an area patrolled by two Mechanists and there is neither a door nor walls to obscure the sound of your footsteps on the metal plating. In an emergency, or when you have already been detected, this still provide a good means of escape from Angelwatch, though there is a more dramatic means of escape just around the corner.

Much like it does on the third floor, the corridor leading into the northeastern tower makes a pair of sharp turns, first to the west and then back to the north where a doorway leads onto the atrium balcony; best avoided if you’ve not dealt with the Mechanict Crossbow guard as the it provides little in the way of concealment. A closed door to the north opens into a modestly furnished bedroom. There’s little of interest within beyond a small coin purse that one of Karras’ guests has apparently left on the table.

Opposite the entrance to the balcony the corridor continues again to the east, before turning north when it runs alongside the external wall, doorways to the west led into a pair of bedrooms, again modestly furnished compared to the likes of Lady Louisa’s suite. The first of these rooms contains a locked blue chest holding the paltry sum of five gold coins, less even that can be obtained from the purse on the table in the other bedroom.

Where the corridor meets the eastern wall of Angelwatch a window has been opened, looking out as it does over a number of deserted buildings this window is not notable for the view; though it does offer a better look at the fate of the drunkard’s companion who you may have spotted earlier. Beyond the window a narrow a ledge runs along the side of the building to a point above the original hatch through which you entered.

Extending out from the wall, atop an angled metal platform, is the giant angel statue that you will have first seen when approaching Angelwatch. With no Slowfall Potions anywhere in the level (Likely to prevent players attempting to reach the streets of Dayport), the drop to the metal below is fatal. It isn’t be until Thief: Deadly Shadows that players have the option of creating their own means of cushioning their falls; shooting a Water Arrow into a patch of Moss causes the Moss to rapidly expand creating a soft carpet which mitigates falling damage. Fortunately there are still options, the metal side of the platform on which the angel stands is made up of a metal grating, into which Vine Arrows will gain purchase. The ability to hold fast on this surface is the single difference between Vine Arrows and the Rope Arrows you will have come across in prior levels. By shooting a Vine Arrow into the grating and taking a leap of faith from the ledge, you can jump the gap, grab onto the Vine and descent it safely to the ground. It’s even possible to perform the same action in reverse, by using the Vine Arrow to climb onto the platform before leaping across to the ledge. Doing so is difficult to and will almost certainly result in you taking damage as you land on the ledge.

It’s likely this is the first example of a grated surface you will have come across in this level so its connection to Vine Arrows might not be obvious, this and the risky acrobatics involved make it doubtful that this will be the primary means of entering Angelwatch for most players.

Back through the window it’s time to continue upwards. Instead of heading straight to the fifth floor we will instead use the main stairs to ascend to the sixth, as visiting the floors in this order provides some benefits that will make things easier when we reach Karras’ office.