Lionhardt's WIP Mapping Thread

[Lionhardt]

^^

I thought having an asymetrical border area might maybe not be such a good idea, after all, player ALWASY find niches in maps they can exploit. Therefore I went ahead and made a new, symmetrical sourrounding area. To not make the symmetry too obvious I kept it at a 4-way symmetry rather than 8.

[Lionhardt]

Here's an update. I adjusted the contrast and brightness, because you could not see a lot before on the closeup pictures. The area shown in the closeups is going to be the starting position for one player. It will be replicated for the other players obviosuly.

[Dragonfire]

Don't forget to test it ingame !!!
Some maps have a black pane issue if lowest and highest point differ to much ...

[Lionhardt]

Nah, those pictures are taken ingame, it's all fine. But thx for reminding me anyway!


Edit: Just had a cool idea how to pretty up those lakes - spiky rock formations:

[Lionhardt]

Okay, as I don't want to spam any more WIP threads, I will now treat this one as a general WIP thread to post map stuff I am working on atm.


The Open Conflict is currently put on ice because I had a more interesting idea for a map in terms of gameplay. I wanted to make a map where the players spawn near the center of the map and have to expand outwards rather than the other way around. This way you can have a relatively large map with still early t1 action but also late game action. This is the theory at least. There will be rather few mexes (3 start ones and one near the center for each player) in the center area, to give players incentive to expand in the outer reaches of the map, but quite some reclaim in form of wrecks to also give them incentive to actually fight early on rather than just avoid each other and build up their bases where the outer mex clusters are. I have not placed any ress on the map yet, but this is the concept. here is a preview:

Edit: The center 6-star area is around 5 km² btw.

[IceDreamer]

Doesn't work mate. Several attempts on this theory have been made already. My observation is that whenever you try it, at least 3 of the 6 players will be dead before the 5 minute mark, because ganging up (Deliberately or accidentally) will happen. Shame really. Some way of separating them from each other would be the best bet.

[Lionhardt]

I will try it anyway. I think I have a sense for guiding players behaviour through the map layout. But I'd like to know which the maps are, you are speaking of. Also players dying in the first few mins is kind of the expected consequence of early fighting in a confined space. I prerfer this over boring FFAs with 45 mins teching up without a singel shot fired.

[IceDreamer]

I think most prefer a middle ground. Not much point joining a 6 player FFA if you don't get to actually play it.

What you want is some way of making players NOT want to ACU rambo in the same spot, combined with an incentive to move to the outside and invade each other from the sides of the "Wedges", as it were. Even nicer would be something in the middle to fight over, but some way of telling people to NOT use their ACUs in that centre bit, instead using Units. Some Civ PD guarding the centre inventive, perhaps?

[Lionhardt]

Nah, I see what you mean, but after all you can always back out and retreat you ACU to some outlying mex cluster. That is another reason why I don't want to put a lot of mass spots in the middle. The players winning ground there shall not be rewarded too much for this - and thereby giving them less incentive to go for an early all out attack on a specific player. The reward is small and the cost is high -> not so attractive.

Also, placing PDs in the middle keeps units away too -> no fighting at all. Once the PDs are down, the ACUs can come to middle too. Secondly I find it bad map design to lock down a central area to artificially postpone combat action in these areas just for the sake of it (blasted rock is a differnet case, here the central area is locked down to create 2 distinct lanes around the center and thereby increasing. Locking down the center of this map of mien would not create any lanes at all, becau the players are all round the center and not just at two opposing points.). Thirdly PDs in the middle would not keep players from going after their direct neighbor, which is the actual issue.

I think most prefer a middle ground. Not much point joining a 6 player FFA if you don't get to actually play it.

I think there is not much of a point in playing an "45 min building up getting 3 Ahwassas and a Yolona dropped on your head without ever having fought anybody"-FFA

[IceDreamer]

Well, good luck! Hit me with the map when it's closer to completion.