-very- early map pics.

[o_jinx]

Hey. Although I mapped a lot for HL1, mostly Deathmatch and Action HL, I never got to make a TFC map. FF is looking promising, so I thought I'd start a TF map. I'm still learning Source, this isn't even an 'alpha'... just thought I would toss a couple screenies out, though, because getting a little encouragement helps me along. Since I'm still learning the new editor, and I haven't made a TF map before, I'm going for a small, basic, two-forts style map. I'm working mostly on basic layout and architecture right now, I'll go back and make it pretty later heh. :roll:

this is me tinkering with the courtyard area:

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap05.jpg

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap06.jpg

and this will probably be an internal room, maybe the flag room (?)
http://cryotank.net/remote/aa_jinx040002.jpg

I'm working on a lower water entry as well, though I haven't taken any pics of that yet. It will be a pretty generic little map, but that's fine for my first Source map. Hopefully by the time I get farther along there will be some TF textures to use :wink:

[o_fathom]

looks great! Keep up the good work.

[o_frenchtoast]

The arctitecture looks very nice, keep posting shots as the map progresses.

[o_sobe green]

It definately looks promising.

[o_qbaler]

i think i like the courtyard pic the best.. looks fun man.. good stuff

[o_racer]

I love the steps and how they flow into the courtyard.

[o_qbaler]

I love the steps and how they flow into the courtyard.

seems to be a style to the map.

[o_frenchtoast]

Try changing up the textures just a bit. The current ones are a bit concrete-monotonous.

[o_jinx]

the textures are just fill-in, Toast, I'm worrying about layout and whatnot now for the most part.

yes, I'm reusing those steps in a few places. they just seemed.. neat lol. I'm trying for a certain mix of circles & angles in the map to give it a unique look.

thanks for the positive replies everyone, it means a lot :D

[o_jinx]

The courtyard between the bases was feeling a little cramped, so I 'stretched' it out a bit. Does this seem a little more normal? I'm thinking about having the ramp go back up again in the middle (ie raise the long bunker that's between bases) to add a bit of variety..?

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap07.jpg

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap08.jpg

Working on the water entries a bit, too, though there's not much to show yet.

[o_frenchtoast]

Just stick with it, it's turning out awesome. If something doesn't feel right, just do what you want, in the end it'll be better.

[o_otiz]

I bet those stairs are gonna be pain if you're bhopping through there.

[o_cudweiser]

I bet those stairs are gonna be pain if you're bhopping through there.

Adds more strategy.

[o_gange]

I have to agree with everyone else, its coming along quite nicely, keep posting them pics. What maps did you design for HL1 BTW?

[o_jinx]

heh I hope so, I hate bunny-hopping. nothing more stupid than hwguy bouncing around like he's a freaking super-mario bros!

I did maps for Half-Life DM & Action Half-Life mostly. Converted a couple maps to Vampire Slayer, too. You can see pics and download them on my website:

http://www.cryotank.net/maps/

and here are a few little pics of my favs:

http://www.cryotank.net/main/levels/t_temple.jpg

http://www.cryotank.net/main/levels/t_revenant.jpg

http://www.cryotank.net/main/levels/t_gebasement.jpg

http://www.cryotank.net/main/levels/t_battleschool.jpg

[Lost]

Looks damned good. If you can make those look like that for HL, I bet they'll be better for FF.

[o_broodingdude]

dude... you like... rawk at this... 'n stuff. I am now nearly impatient for the release of Fortress Forever! :twisted:

[o_frenchtoast]

One thing I noticed, and I know you're not done with the map, but add displacements to those grassy areas.

[o_jinx]

I've been working a little more on the center bunker and whatnot, as well as planning out the routes and general layout of the map on scrap paper. Here are a couple more screenies:

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap09.jpg
Part of the re-built bunker.

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap10.jpg
Inside the bunker. The hole goes to a lower basement level, pictured below.

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap11.jpg
This is below the bunker. Still very raw. Will offer a couple different ways into the enemy base, the best of which will require a demo to get through. I'll probably put a couple ladders so you can get on that central pillar- that way soldiers etc. can rocket-jump up if they really want to.

Do you guys like seeing pics more frequently, or less frequently? Obviously mapping takes a while, and there's not always going to be any huge changes if I update frequently. I kinda like showing what I have, though.

[PHISH]

If most of the steps are too steep to walk up I think it would detract from the smooth flow of gameplay a bit. Basically, being caught on hundreds of little ledges wherever you go, having to jump up each one individually may prove annoying. That being said, I think the architecture looks great

[o_binarylife]

Very sleek looking. You have some interesting choke points set up too. I'm somewhat eager to take 'em out.

[o_elvis2049]

choke points??
you mean spammy locations??

anyhow your map looks good.
but i dont think i like 2 play it often in war becouse of the hopfactor 200% dificullity :)

[o_jinx]

If most of the steps are too steep to walk up I think it would detract from the smooth flow of gameplay a bit. Basically, being caught on hundreds of little ledges wherever you go, having to jump up each one individually may prove annoying. That being said, I think the architecture looks great

Those steps are the exact height needed to walk up/down them without having to hop or anything. So, actually, you go over those areas quite smoothly :)

TFC is all about choke points & spam. You just need to have multiple routes to the flags, so things don't get concentrated too much in one place. I'll try to post a rough outline of how I want the bases to connect soon.

[o_demasu]

Good job, good job. 8)

[o_jinx]

I've been pretty busy with RL so I haven't gotten a lot done the last couple weeks. Here are my rough plans for connectivity, though. I still haven't planned the insides of the bases in much detail, but you can see there are a few different paths available to attackers:

http://cryotank.net/remote/aboveground_access.jpg
In addition to the front doors, attackers can actually take a lift that brings them onto the enemy battlements. They will be pretty easy targets for snipers here, however, and will still need to battle their way inside. I'm hoping this will keep snipers on their toes more, since they will be more directly vulnerable than in 2fort etc. (omg I misspelled 'access')

http://cryotank.net/remote/underground_access.jpg
For the underground routes, there will be a 'just inside the door' route that is always available to attackers, as well as a more threatening entry that requires a detpack to open. The circular room pictured above connects all these routes, and is located directly below the circular bunker in the middle of the map.

I'm going to work on it a bit more the next few days (I have mon & tues off, yay!), I'll post again once I have the exterior of the map more or less done in rough form. :)

[o_koochy]

Schematic.

I like that word :>!

[o_anthraxium[wu]]

i like the looks of it :) keep it up!

[o_jinx]

Just a few updated pics. (updated a couple 5/10/05)

http://cryotank.net/remote/ramparts01.jpg
Starting to look like an actual base, no? Added a makeshift red team logo from some defaul hl2 textures I found.

http://cryotank.net/remote/ramparts02.jpg
The little room to the left has a ramp that leads onto the enemy battlements.

http://cryotank.net/remote/ramparts03.jpg
Entering the battlements from the ramp.

http://cryotank.net/remote/ramparts04.jpg
View from the tower.

After looking over the pics of the current official FF maps, I think maybe I'm still being too stingy with the polies. I'm so used to the HL1 engine that I can't help but cut corners almost instinctually lol. What do you guys think? :?

Oh, and I have a tentative title: Ramparts. Were there any major TFC maps with this title, I don't want to 'steal' the name or confuse anyone. I found one TFC map with the name, but it was in a map pack and sounded like a minor novelty map.

[o_buckshot enema[x7]]

I know what you mean when you metion you still feel like you're stuck in a HL1 mapping mentality.

The pililars and entrance in the second pick look like they have a lot of strange angles. I really like the battlements.

I like what I'm seeing. Looks very clean.

[mirvin_monkey]

It does look very angular, i'm sure a few more polygons wouldn't go amiss.



although i'm not a mapper so what would i know, so dismiss this post if required

[o_racer]

I have had several hundred TFC maps and none were named "Rampart."
To be sure visit the TFC map bible JMC's.
http://www.planetfortress.com/jmcstfmapzone/tfcindex.html

[o_jinx]

http://www.planetfortress.com/jmcstfmapzone/tfc_r.htm

I see a map called Ramparts, but it's the same one I found before. Sounds like some little novelty map, so I'm not going to worry about it. I just didn't want to accidentally give it a name people will confuse with an old TFC map, or of a map that might get remade for FF.

Oh, updated the first and last pics above.

[o_kam]

some of those stairs (undercover ones in pic 2) might be better off as ramps

[o_headz]

Taking shape nicley, Id like to see an evening yellow/orange environment light though, and some displacements, would be real nice to use some texture lighting inside the bases to make use of your brushwork.

Looking forward to see how it plays

[o_ouch_]

This is looking pretty good, I look forward to more updates and to playing it =). I agree with Headz on the lighting. I'm using a warm orange for my light_env in my map and it looks real nice...I need to get some pictures put on here. Ok, going off-topic. Keep up the good work :].

[o_beerdog]

Doesn't look very actiony. :P




Glad to see your back in it. :D

[o_jinx]

lol hey Beerdog, hope you're doing well! :)

[o_ratz]

looking nice mate :]

[o_donny]

Damn and you say you are noob with source mapping :P

Im doing a map myself. Looks bit like badlands but much cooler ^^

Many snipingspots but you cannot snipe there to everyplace :P
And no more scouts using concs to escape there fast. You'll have to walk trough enemy spawn in order to get flag out. :twisted:

[o_buckshot enema[x7]]

That sounds pretty terrible for gameplay man... How is that supposed to be fair or balanced?

[o_mooga]

It looks realy good so far.

[o_binarylife]

To be very straight forward;

That maps looks fun to play. There are a lot that look cool, or that you know wont be bad. But I can defanately think strategy, and sortof play that map in my head. And that seems fun.

I wish I had the patience to learn how to map.

[o_etzell]

Damn and you say you are noob with source mapping :P

Im doing a map myself. Looks bit like badlands but much cooler ^^

Many snipingspots but you cannot snipe there to everyplace :P
And no more scouts using concs to escape there fast. You'll have to walk trough enemy spawn in order to get flag out. :twisted:

Does that mean a medic can hang around in the middle of the flag area and infect the fuck out of the respawn? Not to mention spamming it? Sounds... not so much.

The map that the thread was created for looks good, though.

[o_jinx]

Hey guys. Pretty busy with work lately, not to mention a little brain-dead on ideas. I'm trying to come up with a layout for the inside of the base, but nothing seems quite right. Also hard deciding where to put the spawn rooms. The way my brain works, I tend to like making things very symmetrical, but I'm not sure if that will look odd or lazy..? Anyway, I have three days off work this coming week, so I'll try to get at least a rough draft of the base innards constructed...

[o_jerm]

keep things symetrical, or else one team will become more favourable over the other

[Defrag]

It needs some colour. The architecture is coming on leaps and bounds, but everything is decidely grey. You're also using floor tiles on the walls which looks a bit strange (placeholder texture?). Keep it going :)

[o_jinx]

I haven't attempted to do any real texturing yet, Defrag. Getting the initial layout done is the hardest part for me; making it pretty once that's done is my favorite part, no worries ;)

By symmetrical I didn't mean base mirroring, I meant that internally the base would be pretty symmetrical- ie going in the left entry is pretty much the same as going in the right one. I'm giving in to that preference of mine since it tends to look really nice, even if it makes the gameplay a little less varied sometimes.

Once I have a rough layout down I'll release an alpha with updated pics in a new thread. I don't usually like to do that, but this is my first TF map and I could really use a bit of input in terms of gameplay and whatnot.

I have insonmia and I've been mapping a lot tonight when I should be sleeping http://cryotank.net/forum/images/smiles/jxhammer.gif

[o_jinx]

rough start on the base innards

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap01x.jpg

http://cryotank.net/remote/ffmap02x.jpg

worst.. textures.. ever! :lol:
.

[o_donny]

From the looks of this its going to be huge 8)

(am I correct?)

[o_jinx]

yes and no. pretty big area there, but the base itself isn't going to have a lot of rooms.. in fact probably just that and the flag room :lol:

or maybe I'm just lazy bwahaha

[o_donny]

Lol back in the days of HL1 I allways wanted to make map for TFC which would be big and it would have all sofas and tv's inside it :D
Every class would have it's own spawn room and engys and hwguys would have porn there (they seem to be TFC's wankers) :lol:
Then the idea was flushed from the toilet when I noticed that I dunno how to do wad textures with wally and hammer was buggy on my computer's.

Maby after ff_baseflag eh? :D Anyone? :lol:

Well I hope you add water to that map someplace cause water makes map cool 8)

[o_jinx]

well then clearly the flag room must have lots of water! :lol:

[o_donny]

Ay wouldnt it be cool to fetch the flag from water :wink:






I'll get my coat :arrow:

[o_jinx]

actually, this gave me an interesting idea for doing the flag room, and yes it does involve water. thanks, I had no clue what I was going to make the flagroom like up until now :lol:

[o_etzell]

My idea for your flagroom: there's a water pit in the front, with this waterfall coming down that goes in front of the flag. There's platform behind the waterfall where the flag is, and where defenses can be set up.

[mervaka]

:o that could be pretty, whether the flag is in front of or behind the waterfall. maybe another waterfall could act as a doorway to another room, like a respawn or sommin

[o_thedarkone]

As far as I know, hl2's water effects don't work with waterfalls.

http://forums.fortress-forever.com/viewtopic.php?p=7708#7708

[o_jinx]

there may be ways to make a good-looking waterfall, though. not sure if that's really my plan, though, but I guess it's a possibility. damn me having to work the next two days :?

[o_jerm]

you could then have a security system that guards the flag, one in which an eletric shock is going into the water making it kill you if you touch it.

you then have to turn off the electricity that's going into the water to get to the flag first.

Also you should use more ramps rather than stairs (from an offence pov) ramp sliding is alot more fun and helpfull for the offence than trying to run up some stairs.

[o_valk]

not to mention trimping off the ramps too

[o_docwolfe]

waterfalls -> http://forum.interlopers.net/viewtopic.php?t=1799

looking good mate ;)

[o_thewetmule]

Well might just be nooby me talking but hay w/e (also lol everyone who knows me NO PMS! means u pulseth >:D) Well anyway i was more thinking along the lines of having say a water fall coming down and a roof or somthing creating a little clearing for the flag ill try my best to draw it without any piccies!
Key:

| | <--- Water falls

--- <---- Roofs
F <---- Flag!
o <--- Gaps Noting NOPE NOTHING! just air i suppose...
w <-- Water
Anyway onto the piccy!


|wwwwww|
|w|------|w|
|w|oo Fo|w|
|w|ooooo|w|


Lol pretty poo :P but yeah i hope you get the general idea if not im sure i could come up with some pretty basic pictures

Anyway Gj on making the map looks awesome :)

EDIT: Omfg so didn't work gunna hve to use somthing else for spaces ><

[o_thenuke0]

3rd pic remids me a flag room in UT....

Nice job.

[o_jinx]

just wanted to let everyone know that this map isn't dead, I've just been super busy with work and some other stuff of late. I'll try to get back to work soon, though.

[o_darknight]

coolio - I like it. :)

[o_dunc]

Lol back in the days of HL1 I allways wanted to make map for TFC which would be big and it would have all sofas and tv's inside it :D

Turkeyburgers.bsp?

[o_sizeablessonic]

The arctitecture looks really good. It is coming along very nicely. Kepp up the good work!