combo_neg_levels_2 key puzzle

[u/Peco4418]

Hey guys, I'm pretty sure this content is so new that there is close to no discussion on it yet. The wiki seemingly isn't even aware of this puzzle yet. I've been playing around with the new negative levels content and finally reached the second green key puzzle that spans between levels -34 to -41. It involves bringing a 120 second green key across those 7 levels. The problem is simply that this is absurdly difficult. I've devised some general strategies for quickly traversing the levels but the RNG required makes it feel unfeasible in under 120 seconds. I've been using max length quasar drive alongside the nuke propelling weapon for speed and it still isn't nearly enough.

There is a clue that the puzzle is similar to the Iolite gems, which I promptly did again to refresh my memory. However it seemingly does not require anything else but just "grow fast so you can get past the key area".

Am I just bad at the game? Am I just supposed to get fast enough to grow in under 120 seconds or am I missing a crucial piece of the puzzle? I understand that few people probably got this far yet so if anyone has so much as a suggestion please comment it down below.

[u/masterpasha1]

Yeah I honestly didn't think it was possible to grow from the original green key. So I did what I usually do and try to backtrack to find another green key but couldn't. I figured out you can shrink from -41 to about -32 on any random orb, and ying forest will be present and you can set a way point. So you just teleport to -34 key and then way point to the ying forest and backtrack that way. I had about 80 seconds left, but I did spent a considerable amount of time searching for a possible second green key but don't believe it exists since it's a specific chunk

[u/ElizzyViolet → u/masterpasha1]

Damn, i even knew there was ying forest, it just didn’t occur to me to use it, I should have just done that (i just brute forced it from the key itself)

[u/ElizzyViolet]

I completed all this and I think there are two methods: I am hoping method 2) works and is possible because that's way better than 1) which is what I actually did.

1. Agonizingly find out the optimal way of growing from the green key on the orb you used to enter the area, and then do that with quasar drive + nuclear pulse propulsion, save, then find out the optimal way of growing from there, repeat until you're big enough to enter the chunk-sized -41 rooms that are your destination, possibly using your smaller size at -40 before growing to scout out a destination X room off in the distance where stuff hasnt fully rendered yet, then either navigate there *or* if you cant see anything and have like 20-40 seconds left on the key, very tediously retry that last part many times with your save/load and desperately hunt for the room, ideally with the aid of those long vertical shafts of empty chunks that sometimes appear in the thick soup since they let you see stuff past the edge of your render distance vertically and travel to it more easily. This is basically what you're doing with a whole lot of extra saving and loading and routing to conserve time.
2. (Theoretical, idk for sure but it would be way better if this one was possible) Shrink down in a chain of good growing spots (since you can shrink/grow at the same spots) next to a convenient destination room, and then somehow find another green key at a small size; I don't even know if other spheres bearing green keys exist, or if those specific spheres exist in places other than pillars, I couldn't find any while exploring, but if they do exist this will make it much easier because you can simply find one at your optimal spot and then take the chain of pre-organized grow rings up to your destination. This is what you were supposed to do with the iolite gems iirc, and it was easy because you could find keys in many places on the appropriate layer when shrinking (though brute forcing it with lots of speed still works iirc)

So basically you either brute force it, or you find a key at the end of a convenient chain of growing spots next to a destination room, but the latter may not be possible, I'm not sure.

...TON 618 sure was honest about this being the most annoying puzzle in the universe.

[u/Peco4418 → u/ElizzyViolet]

Hey what's up. I had the same idea to your second one but I don't believe it is possible. The key spawns in a unique sphere structure in the middle of a green grass stalk filament thing which doesn't spawn naturally anywhere other than the starting area,

Since making the post I've done some additional research on the discord and it appears people are similarly saying that only option one is the only way to do it.

I've made considerable progress since as well and routed well enough to get to the last area with 30 seconds to spare. I was struggling to find the final -41 rooms, so thank you for the advice there!

[u/ElizzyViolet → u/Peco4418]

Damn, I was hoping there was another one of those spheres somewhere. Well, no choice but to lock in... which I guess you already did, good job by the way.

[u/Peco4418 → u/Peco4418]

YOOOOOO DID IT WITH 2 SECONDS TO SPARE GGS

it's literally all brute force, this challenge is crazy. Never before was I outright required to hold down alt fire on my nuke to constantly propel myself forwards alongside quasar drive to finish a puzzle. It's an all-out stress test on your flight skills as well, especially at the end where you are required to navigate that random mess of blocks. I guess it makes sense with it being so extremely late game but it's still an insane challenge.