[Merlijn]

The aliens are trying to steal Stonehenge! It's up to Duke to stop them, unfortunately his ride gets shot down in front of the cliffs of Dover.

Dowload link

Single player map. Started as a spiritual sequel to "Clear the Coast", but became darker and bigger during development. Now it's more in line with Shaky Grounds.
Features the famous white cliffs, dark underground sections, hostile alien terrain, green landscapes and much more.

I had a lot of fun creating it, hope you guys enjoy playing it just as much!

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[Maarten]

Woohoo it's there!
That was a lot quicker to release compared to my map haha. Good to see the fast progress you had going on!

Congrats on the release, going to play the final map this evening or very soon!

@ Everyone: get this map right now! It's a blast!

[Dr.Panico]

Congrats on the release! This map took me 40 minutes, killed all enemies and found all but two secrets.

Very lush and exciting level. The outdoor areas in particular are breathtaking, successfully capturing that typical British moodiness; all while serving as great arenas. The underground sections are great too. Not too spooky, but atmospheric enough. It kinda reminded me of the recently released Down the Upstairs level. I guess you guys were in a "dark green cave" mood for a while.

The battle around Stonehenge is nothing short of spectacular, although the ending confused me...

Spoiler

Did we...lose? From the way the scene was set, I don't know if we took down the alien structure carrying Stonehenge, or if we were taking off on an alien ship and seeing Stonehedge being destroyed for good. I wonder if there's going to be a sequel...

[ck3D]

Stellar map through and through, I have yet to play the final version later but I want to say it's interesting to hear your comparison point would be Clear The Coast with a hint of Shaky Grounds, personally to me this felt like a modern day Red map just four times the size as the JonoF limits would allow. Think I remember already saying some older screenshots had Red 5 DNA but now can totally confirm the whole level does, when you think about it it also follows a very similar progression pattern (start out stranded near water, infiltrate vertical structure, come out on top where big event occurs). It even has the house with the little garden in the backyard, or the pal 25 rock walls. As such it really felt fresh to play something like this in 2026 and feel like a kid again.

Another sign of progress this has over Red other than sheer size is better distribution of space (which walks hand in hand with JonoF limits but never is a given nonetheless), cleaner texturing and now instead of every wall of map being an experimental D3D tile patchwork art piece (which Red 4/5 and the 2000's in general really leaned into, I promise it is a trip looking back) the creativity is lent to better service of the layout and of the mood (not that the extreme colors ever clashed in Red but exacerbated the eerieness in a way a comic book artist would; whereas Shaky Grounds taught elements of stage dressing as an extension of the storytelling). The maturity this map shows also parallels its self-conscious bleakness, with all the neutral greys and cold greens standing in contrast with the boiling hot colors of past works (including Clear The Coast and SG), and interestingly it is especially when they are gone that one starts wondering what happened.

I can tell Maarten's modern terrain style since Woudrichem (but seen as early as Alien Planet X64-2) is bleeding into yours too, but the both of you are executing it differently all the while getting finer at it and so that is just basic reaction to exposure and incorporation of influence, pretty cool that a lot of it probably does stem all the way back to working together on the mission that must have been making Clear The Coast (and before that Roch Island). Now of course CoD (ha) does feel like a spiritual sequel to CtC with a touch of SG-era technique but I wouldn't compare them so much as saying this new map feels a lot like someone put absolutely all of your maps through a blender and then reorganized all of the pure extracts into a sauce that is brand new with some new flavors on top. Even the trademark 'Merlijn road' is cut short here and relegated to bits of punctuation with the occasional path but mostly swapped out for caves and open fields. And with how the story was delivered, it did feel like playing the one of a SG episode 2, which surprised me just as much as it is exciting. Maybe in part because something you started doing with SG is Duke alone vs. big threat, in lieu of how some of your earlier maps were more vibrant with NPC's ("Dear Mary/Bob") and so SG marked that tone shift and this naturally retains it.

Was cool to see you adopt and experiment a little with techniques such as fogpals and sloped sprites too, I think you would have a lot of fun with TROR if you ever bothered learning just simple applications of it, with your style that I know isn't so sector-over-sector based but closer to circuit board type vehicling from pole to pole it wouldn't come down to anything complex (really would only need to learn Ctrl E and Ctrl J) and so in just two minutes you could unlock a new dimension of possibilities in your structures.

Will post an actual review later. Congrats on release and thanks for sharing.

[NNC]

Very fun level, I think the theme of Dover cliffs and the Stonehenge is brilliant, I always enjoyed when people experimenting real life locations (despite not being a fan of overdetailing and overscaling), and Duke assets are clearly there to replicate these two. Another good thing is that somehow the flow was better this time, than in most user levels, didn't have to search for keys and buttons too long. The fogged area also looked very good. Also found the reveal of secrets at the end pretty clever.

For criticism, I'm not sure but I feel these "RED3" fake voices and the mandatory "thriller" elements in these maps somehow got old to me (especially since they have their limitations). I'm not sure if all the maps are in need for that. At one point it becomes predictable. The other thing is the typical issue in most usermaps is the button-respawn-button-respawn nature of the levels. They play fun at the start, but at the end, all the monsters are going all-in, which is a bit tedious. It's so predictable in most levels, when the next wave appears (at keycard places or multiswitch areas). I would love to see a more adventurous way to use the monsters, and less switch hunting would help too.

This last ciriticism is not necessarily aimed at this level, I think there are much bigger prones of this button-respawn-button-respawn issue, just a general advice. I think William Gee somehow adopted a more adventurous style in his later maps like Knee Deep or Lady Killer, so that might be good for reference. The waves around the two cannons were very good though.

[Merlijn]

Thanks for the comments! The theme is what motivated me to finish this map, I've been to Dover years ago so it's mostly based on memory. But I also used some pictures of Dover, Stonehenge and the English countryside as reference points.This resulted in an environment that's quite different from your typical DN3D map. Including Stonehenge was inspired by World Tour, believe it or not The devs mentioned somewhere that they had an "aliens are after our monuments" plot in mind and that inspired me to let the aliens "abduct" Stonehenge. Also, it's just a cool location to use as a stage.

Dr.Panico, on 12 February 2026 - 01:34 PM, said:

Congrats on the release! This map took me 40 minutes, killed all enemies and found all but two secrets.

Very lush and exciting level. The outdoor areas in particular are breathtaking, successfully capturing that typical British moodiness; all while serving as great arenas. The underground sections are great too. Not too spooky, but atmospheric enough. It kinda reminded me of the recently released Down the Upstairs level. I guess you guys were in a "dark green cave" mood for a while.

The battle around Stonehenge is nothing short of spectacular, although the ending confused me...

Spoiler

Did we...lose? From the way the scene was set, I don't know if we took down the alien structure carrying Stonehenge, or if we were taking off on an alien ship and seeing Stonehedge being destroyed for good. I wonder if there's going to be a sequel...

Spoiler

It's intentionally ambigious. We blew up the alien carriers that lifted Stonehenge into space and disrupted the process, as a result Stonehenge itself is also destroyed and plummets back to Earth. The Overseer warns us about "unforeseen consequences" and if you look closely you'll see that the beam in the middle changed color when the alien vessels are destroyed. So this leaves room for a potential sequel. I say "potential" because right now I only have a couple of loose ideas. But it will surely go into a more bizarre/strange direction if I ever make one. So to answer the question: no we didn't lose. We managed to stop the alien plot. But it may have opened a whole new can of wormholes

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I can tell Maarten's modern terrain style since Woudrichem (but seen as early as Alien Planet X64-2) is bleeding into yours too

We definitely influence each other's work, we often share early versions of our work with each other. Maartens Down the Upstairs had an influence on certain sections for sure (and I believe it's also the other way around).

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And with how the story was delivered, it did feel like playing the one of a SG episode 2, which surprised me just as much as it is exciting. Maybe in part because something you started doing with SG is Duke alone vs. big threat, in lieu of how some of your earlier maps were more vibrant with NPC's ("Dear Mary/Bob") and so SG marked that tone shift and this naturally retains it.

This is an interesting point that I haven't even considered, but indeed there's almost no human presence in this map, except for abanoned structures. The only viewscreen messages are from the aliens. The BBC broadcast is the only proof that there are other people out there who are still alive (and a brief moment of levity).

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For criticism, I'm not sure but I feel these "RED3" fake voices and the mandatory "thriller" elements in these maps somehow got old to me (especially since they have their limitations). I'm not sure if all the maps are in need for that. At one point it becomes predictable. The other thing is the typical issue in most usermaps is the button-respawn-button-respawn nature of the levels. They play fun at the start, but at the end, all the monsters are going all-in, which is a bit tedious. It's so predictable in most levels, when the next wave appears (at keycard places or multiswitch areas). I would love to see a more adventurous way to use the monsters, and less switch hunting would help too.

Both fair points. The ominous alien stuff is just something that happens organically, Aleks and me even joked about it. So it will probably always be around in some capacity (also, "lore-wise" Red, SG and this map are connected to each other, so it makes sense from that point of view). As for the button/respawn thing, this is something I will keep in mind. I already tried to have not too many buttons in this map and had to restrain myself at some points. For example: it was very tempting to add respawns when the player picks up the yellow key, but I'm glad I didn't. My personal favorite fight in this map is actually the one in the lava cave, which relies on item management rather than respawns. Glad you enjoyed the map!

[ck3D]

Lava room indeed is fun, reminds me of a DooM type design (and of the SG finale map), it is a bit similar to Maarten's suspended train tracks fight in AA3 except the limit isn't spatial restriction but instead environmental damage, I like it when maps set up encounters around specific, prominent features of the rooms like that (which in turn gives a practical purpose to the design of a room). What is cool is in both cases, it is player movement that is being restricted to a certain way, but now since it is Build you could design similar moments where the level itself has moving parts, were you to ever feel like carving in one further dimension of dynamics into the experience (e.g.. most simple example there is, but your lava room setup or similar could work well with pistons).

Mind you, maybe that is actually a step this map deliberately chooses to take back (until the ending that is), as a lot of its eerieness comes down to how a lot of the environment is static, maybe unusually so for a Duke map. That is in full opposition with how Red and SG relied on dynamic environments and elements so much but shows it actually can be rather wise to hold back until the last battle like this if the intent is mostly tension over action. In retrospect, that also really worked in some maps like Decay (but it is five minutes long and does not really climax) which tackles the same theme as, but completely differently from, the dynamic and just as iconic Warzone.

I think my favorite fight in this map has to be the village (starting with the exploding cliff), only because the village itself is quite a large new chunk of map with lots of terrain variety at once that you don't ever really get to see coming at all and so all of the reaction to the enemies has to be spontaneous.

[NNC]

The Lava Room felt like Sigil to me, especially with the music, which was close to Buckethead's softer tunes.

Also, I have to say, these slowly pulsating rooms, once seen in Maarten's Another Attack 3 (in that very scary place with the two switches) and now here are very impressive and actually works for good puzzles.

[stillTodd]

For anyone who cares, Cliffs of Dover played absolultely awesome in DukePlus. Lots of open spaces to use the advanced weaponry.

Stonehenge! Where a man's a man...

[Aleks]

I've had the privilege of beta-testing this map and now played the final version last night. Needless to say, I think it's awesome and a heir apparent to Shaky Grounds. In general, it feels very modern in terms of layout - the main progression is very linear and full of shortcuts and interconnections, which gives the map great pacing, but at the same time, there's the impression of tackling something much bigger and more complex all the time - from the very beginning, when we see the imposing cliffs in front of us. The world is very open and all the boundaries seem very natural. The mood, Merlijn's trademark, is a highlight as usual - it's been discussed numerous times already, but I think the strong contrast shadows are some of the best in any Duke map yet with how pronounced they are and I keep noticing more and more details with each replay - yesterday spent more time at the final area and noticed how nicely the Stonehenge is shaded!

Another think I really liked was the distribution of secrets and how each of them is kind of like its own minigame - usually having to spot something or remember something rather than just blindly go around wall-hugging. The devastator one (which made this playthrough a lot easier at the beginning for me...) and the shrinker one are my favourites, I was only missing one after the first playthrough and this time it also felt more like a "spot it" game to find it rather than searching around without any clue. Also, managed to spot all the Overseer appearances this time (I think!).

The final is great and I had more fun with this fight than the last time (don't think anything has changed, it's just how this can play in various ways), sentry drones and pig tanks in the environment of these columns was a very interesting combination and of course, the final wave was neatly arranged to encourage some "infighting". The two battlelords at the top of the cliffs fell down to the beach this time around (thank god for the quick elevator). The lava room(s) are particularly cool and I agree with NNC about the slow-cycling light being a cool feature (this time with a fogpal twist).

[Merlijn]

One thing I really like about the slowly pulsating room is how the fog effect reacts to it. It's like the fog is constantly being pumped in and out of the room, making it feel like the place is alive and breathing. I was just experimenting with the effect, so seeing this for the first time was a very nice surprise. Also a nice coincidence: the room is shaped like a heart.

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Another think I really liked was the distribution of secrets and how each of them is kind of like its own minigame - usually having to spot something or remember something rather than just blindly go around wall-hugging.

Congrats on finding all secrets! I like secrets that can be spotted by observant players - then it becomes a matter of figuring out how to get to them. Most of the secrets in this map follow this logic. I think most of them are not that hard to find, but this will of course depend on the player and their play style.

[NNC]

Random wall secrets should die in agony. It should never be part of the game and not fun at all. Secrets are at their best, when you can look at them from somewhere else (ie the shrinker room in Dover), and when they can be found from not obvious or dark pathways.

With that said, this map should only have 6. I don't think that platform with the rocket ammo is secret place material (but at least it's easy to find).

[Maarten]

Just played the final version on CGS! I noticed the small changes since the beta..but the beta version was already pretty clean anyway
Still took me a sweet 54 minutes (including getting the last secret place I somehow forgot to get which I already knew - btw, I just got all secrets this time around!).

Again, congrats on the map!
The red foggy caves feels refreshing - both gameplay and design wise. It somehow reminded me of Unreal, which is in my eyes a big compliment. Funny to see Doom got mentioned too here!
My favorite parts: the whole climb up to the mountain & the "farm part". Especially the farm part really feels new somehow. I don't think anyone did make something in this way. Smart move on the "maskwall plants" too. Feels somewhat like Redneck Rampage in the cold mountains

The very very last climax really made me WOW since the beta (no spoilers), and it still does. Didn't expect a editor like this could still be so impressive the way it's done here!
I also really like the way you'll encounter all the DN3D monsters & weapons. And I loved to play around with the Stonehenge part + using weapons likes tripbombs.

The map is well done & it's there on top with your better maps. It seems like a combination of CTC/Red5/Shaky Grounds

Oh btw, for a moment I thought this was a secret, you can even reach it without cheats..nothing band, just thought it was fun to share:

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[ck3D]

Hate to be that guy especially to you guys, but as much as I love the pulsating light rooms myself (and light-based puzzles in general), and how well they are executed in both AA3 and CoD, it is a bit short-sighted to call them anything new. Underused for sure but mappers have been using dynamic lights and fogpals for quite a bit, just in maps and projects you may have not played. It is something I want to see more of in user maps in general personally, but it's been around and combined with lightswitches switching up palettes/changing colors, cyclers turning on/off/reversing course, open door room lights up and all kinds of shenanigans. Again as far as I am concerned I tend to prefer the most bold takes like in those two maps, they are the most exemplary ones and so of course catch attention but whilst the execution in both cases is unique I hardly would call it new when cyclers are from 1996, fogpals have been around for fifteen years and a lot of us just gravitated around levels that did not use them. This is just for historical accuracy and not to be a downer, the value of those rooms is intact and maybe all the more so that this means they shine through direction/execution/style and not necessarily the core concept itself which is tried and true but only apparent when done this textbook.

Remember when I was pointing out the newly found restraint in this map's colors in order to build up the mood, by the way and wondering where the habitual Merlijn tones went? Well they went to the caves now as if in hiding, or to the lava room where they are as foggy as distant memories. Think about it; at least I find it interesting. It has kept messing with me since the beta how this map manages being so rooted in the Merlijn style with more or less conscious nods to previous maps and yet feeling like a new extension and departure.

Re: heart-shaped room: I'm intrigued the shape was accidental, must mean you designed the room with practicality first but never really thought about automap? That is commendable (going for practicality first) but I would encourage you (or anyone) to try throw down deliberate automap designs sometimes. Deliberately make the shape of an object or whatever that you normally wouldn't use as serious room geo, then see how much potential it has as a bunch of rooms or blocks. Almost always results in an original gameplay scenario one couldn't have come up with had they tried to achieve just that.

[ck3D]

MSDN review, congrats: https://msdn.duke4.n...iffsofdover.php

[pepsodent]

ck3D, on 16 February 2026 - 12:50 PM, said:

MSDN review, congrats: https://msdn.duke4.n...iffsofdover.php

I see those 2 battlelords is all it took to lower the rating of the map by 4 points, 2 from each.
In my opinion this is one of the best duke maps EVER. Everything just done so well, the look, the shading and texturing, the layout.

[Merlijn]

That's faster than I expected, nice! And thanks for sharing

About the heart shaped room: I honestly can't remember exactly how the process went there (you could say my memory is a bit foggy ). I know I wanted a weird and organic look, so it having the shape of a heart isn't a complete accident.

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Oh btw, for a moment I thought this was a secret, you can even reach it without cheats..nothing band, just thought it was fun to share

Ah yes, missed opportunity for a secret. Pepsodent also pointed it out on discord. I simply didn't realize it was possible to make that jump.
Anyway, thanks for playing the final version and sharing your thoughts!

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It seems like a combination of CTC/Red5/Shaky Grounds

So it's like CK said; someone threw all my previous work in a blender and this is what came out XD

[ck3D]

Merlijn, on 16 February 2026 - 01:03 PM, said:

So it's like CK said; someone threw all my previous work in a blender and this is what came out XD

I was planning to save such commentary for my own review, but it does feel a lot like a wiser retake on all of your past work (so as was said, Red 5/CTC/SG but original elements such as the lava room would be something you would have put in Red 3 if possible at the time, the cannons feel very Red 4 to me for some reason, and honestly playing the village part I even got one quick flashback of Roch Island just a little). A more mature reestablishment of certain foundations, and then you throw a new dimension on top and around. It feels like the product of someone who is coming to terms with themselves in some way and reexploring their path, all the while running into new impulses (typically a thing around one's 40's; I'm feeling myself getting there). Or maybe I'm just inventing everything, but it is how I feel and could be interesting if somehow that resonated in some way (only you would know and I would not expect you to share a confirmation, that would be crossing the line between public artistry and private personality but it is so thin and also binds both together more so than it separates them).

[zykov eddy]

Wow, this must be the biggest DN3D map I've ever played! The scale is absolutely breathtaking. I'm usually not into big maps, due to amount of backtracking they can have, but this one flows very nicely. Action is never boring, and the scenery looks wonderful. The big battle at the end is a blast, and I liked the scripted events, it really adds to the feeling of something big and important happening. But the star of the show for me was the included music track, which really adds to the atmosphere.

[Jan Satcitananda]

Cool map! Massive and beautifully executed. With all that scale, creative use of fogpals, intricate layout and aesthetics very different from the classic Duke3D levels (despite using only the stock assets), Cliffs of Dover feels more like Unreal, of course also influenced by me playing it with UGHUD mod.

I believe if you are having authentic fun building something, it will inevitably turn to be a decent level. Thank you for sharing this lil masterpiece with us.

[Merlijn]

Thanks guys, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

This may not be the place to go deep into personal details and stuff like that. But as I said in Maarten's "Down the Upstairs" thread, our maps always have a personal touch to them.
Though I can only hope I'm personally aging as gracefully as my mapping skills

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I'm usually not into big maps, due to amount of backtracking they can have, but this one flows very nicely.

I appreciate you pointing this out, I always try to avoid tedious backtracking. That's why a lot of paths are looping back to a main area and new shortcuts open up once the player reaches certain points.
This does wonders for the flow.
As you probably know, this is not nearly the biggest map for DN3D. Not when there's stuff like Blast Radius and OGBB2 out there. But those maps tend to be more open world type of maps, while this one stays a bit more linear. It's all a matter of preference, I can also see some players preferring the open world style.

I also like the Unreal comparison, one of my favorite 90's games!

[ck3D]

Yeah like I said I wouldn't have the indecency to ask anything personal nor am I really trying to psychoanalyze people through their work (and whenever I do I know to relativize it), just in the case of this specific map that is how I couldn't help but read or sense it, maybe a more accurate description would be it is in part a rearrangement or restructuring of old, as though to make some order out of past mess with newly found skills but in a way that negates none of it (it just relegates the most extreme elements to wiser places of the composition instead; like clean-up on aisle four), in addition to all of the new places that thematically feel more original (but still bear some typical tropes, e.g.. that one simple lone map sign or the house designs, that has them blend in). I find it all the more poignant that history being shaken up also literally is the plot of the map (under the form of Stonehenge).

[Paul B]

https://www.dukemaps...liffs-of-dover/

[ck3D]

Paul B, on 19 February 2026 - 01:06 PM, said:

https://www.dukemaps...liffs-of-dover/

Thanks again for your devotion to the community via your website. Do you plan on writing a review for this level, if not I may be willing and able to do it and DM it to you by the end of this week, unless someone else has volunteered for the spot already.

[Paul B]

ck3D, on 19 February 2026 - 01:19 PM, said:

Thanks again for your devotion to the community via your website. Do you plan on writing a review for this level, if not I may be willing and able to do it and DM it to you by the end of this week, unless someone else has volunteered for the spot already.

Thanks! Honestly, I want to write reviews, but that means playing the maps and I have a house with 3 young girls 7, 5 & 4 plus a wife and mother-in-law staying with us helping while both my wife and I work full time. The Canadian lifestyle now days. I would really appreciate someone who would be willing to do that. I've had two other reviewers within the last year and I'm not sure if I scared them away or if they too are busy with life outside of Duke. So, feel free to reach out so I can assist with your account setup.


Thank you!

[Aleks]

 Paul B, on 19 February 2026 - 01:35 PM, said:

I've had two other reviewers within the last year and I'm not sure if I scared them away or if they too are busy with life outside of Duke.

Sorry, I still intend to write some reviews in the future (hopefully not too distant) and appreciate you keeping the site in good care, just the last half year or so has probably been the busiest time in my life so far! Aymeric has been really keen for writing a review for this one and has some cool insights, so I'm very much looking forward to reading it!

[mrserra]

I tried to play this episode and indeed it plays but many sections the rendering is not updated. I suppose that there may be certains files that I also need to download besides a copy of eduke32. Is that so ?

[Merlijn]

mrserra, on 24 February 2026 - 06:51 AM, said:

I tried to play this episode and indeed it plays but many sections the rendering is not updated. I suppose that there may be certains files that I also need to download besides a copy of eduke32. Is that so ?

I'm not sure if I understand the question, but the version of Eduke needs to be fairly recent. If it's too old, modern features like sloped sprites and rotated textures will not render properly.
And of course you also need to own a copy of the Duke Nukem 3D GRP file, but I assume you knew that

Other than that, this map doesn't use any new art so it should render fine.

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I find it all the more poignant that history being shaken up also literally is the plot of the map (under the form of Stonehenge).

Actually this is meant to satirize Hollywood relying on our nostalgia (somehow Palpatine returned!) but it can work in multiple ways.

Thanks for hosting the map, Paul! Much appreciated

[stillTodd]

No rendering issues with the eduke32 version that came with DukePlus 2.501, that I could see anyways. YMMV.

[ck3D]

TLOD's 'not your costume' stream from yesterday:



Paul B: about the review, I will get in touch sometime this coming week when I have replayed the map and more energy in general. But perhaps you will be inspired to write your own review before then (since you mentioned that), if that ever is the case that's OK - will not prevent me from writing one to post on here eventually.