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Azumith b1e

Everything past A didn't really play well at all, so I just ripped it all out and made everything new beyond that. New A-B connector all the way to C and Red's spawn. Hopefully things will play better this time?

Changes in this version
  • Everything lol
  • A-B and B-C connectors entirely new, walking time increased to 15 seconds between each point by Heavy.
  • All points take longer to cap now so Blu doesn't roll.
  • B and C are entirely new.
  • Altered some pickups on A.
  • Closed a door on A.
Screenshots of changes:
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Minor update as I didn't get much feedback in the previous test.

Changes in this update:
  • Cover in front of A is now completely solid - no more small slats for bullets to slide through
  • Added a little cover to break up a long sight line in the A -B connector and make it seem less open. May still need further modification.
  • Adjusted left route into B to be slightly more to the left to break up Red sniper sight line of point and to give more breathing room for setting up on the balcony.
  • Moved back entrance into B on the right side route to reduce sight lines from Red balcony.
  • Extended right side route forwards slightly to give space for Blu to set up in there if they so chose.
  • Adjusted sizes of some health and ammo pick ups.
  • Added a few ammo and health pick ups.
  • Adjusted locations of some ammo and health pick ups.
Summary of feedback and issues in a3:
I'm glad I was able to get a high player count test because it has made issues with the map are a lot more apparent and I got more feedback with more eyes on it. The map was playing relatively well with lower player counts, and that really affected how I was determining what to do with the map. I'm not going to list the minor bugs here - I'd like to talk more about more severe issues.

Blu has difficulties maintaining control of the B-C connector and the upper balcony.
I think this may relate to Red starting to use the flank route. Unfortunately, Red can really hold down this flank. Blu is at a strict height disadvantage on this flank as well. It's too easy for Red to push through any defenses Blu has approaching the point from this flank and kill any momentum towards C Blu has.
In addition, Blu essentially has three entrances into the B-C connector, but they're all concentrated in one point, creating a choke that Red can hold pretty well. The entrances need to be spread out some more - Currently the connector is far too narrow.

Red's highpoint on C is only reachable one way - over the deathpit and directly through the line of Red players leaving spawn. Spies are not able to reach sentries here as a result. I had a feeling this would be overpowered, but I was encouraged to put it here so I obliged. Clearly I need to make it more accessible. There needs to be more than one way for Blu to reach this point if it will be kept.

I've received more than a few feedbacks saying that A is confusing, but hardly any have really stipulated what they felt made it confusing. Thankfully today someone mentioned that it's difficult to see what's happening in A from the outside and I think I understand what I need to do now. I believe the reason why is because there are too many floating platforms obscuring the point. When Blu's entrances are mostly from below, they cannot properly see the point. In addition, they are also unable to see Red's defenses and identify any weak spots for exploitation. Part of the issue may also come from train cars blocking sightlines. There's a bit too much cover on A it seems.
There needs to be some sort of simplification when it comes to A. I want to avoid just remaking Well's mid though.
I think I need to reduce the number of entrances and platforms. I have some ideas of what to do here. Stay tuned in the wip channel for screenshots of possible layouts and please let me know what you think.

Despite Red being force-respawned on point caps, occasionally Blu can roll through B before Red can even reach the point. So far the two options are to increase cap time on A and to increase the length of the connector to B.

While Blu didn't have much difficulty leaving spawn in low player count tests, it's now clear that they're at too much of a disadvantage leaving spawn - especially when it comes to height. It's too easy for Red to hold down most spawn exits from the high ground just outside of A. While there does exists a great high ground area for Blu to leave spawn at, players do not seem to use it even when other players continually alert them to it. While I originally felt that the area would be interesting to fight in given the height variation, I clearly haven't made it easy enough for Blu to take the first area leading to A.
Perhaps I should reverse the height differential - Blu's spawn would be slightly higher than the train station on A with a dip between. Hopefully this will give Blu the advantage they need and prevent Red from projectile spamming Blu trying to leave spawn. In addition, this will hopefully give Blu more vision of exactly what's happening in A.

Changes in a4:
  • Blu's spawn has been raised up to be slightly above the train station, removing the height disadvantage blu had.
  • A has been completely changed into a much simpler layout that actually more resembles a train station.
  • A - B connector has been changed to a more interestingly shaped building.
  • A - B connector has been slightly lengthened and A has a slightly longer cap time to allow red to set up on B.
  • B has a new route to the left of the point for both Blu and Red to utilize. I expect to see a lot of fighting over this area.
  • B - C connector has been slightly changed. The staircase for Red to Blu's balcony has been removed so Blu can set up a forward hold without getting easily flanked.
  • Blu's balcony overlooking C has had its window's closed off. In addition to this, Red's overpowered highpoint has been removed.
  • C has a new flank route to the right of the point. This should allow spies and pyros to more effectively get behind enemy lines.
  • Red's forward spawn points have been moved back slightly.
  • Red's respawn times have been increased after Blu caps A and B.
  • Blu's respawn times have been reduced at the start of the round.
  • Signs across the map have been changed to show directions to the various points.
  • Item pickups across the map have been changed for balance.
  • Several cosmetic changes have been made to details.

Screenshots:
Blu's spawn and outside of A:
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A's new design:
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New A - B connector:
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New route added to B:
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New flank route on C:
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Problems in last version:
  • Soldiers on Blu could rocket jump up the wall and fire over Blu's first spawn
  • Blu's balcony on B was hard for Red to reach and defend against
  • Red's balcony on B had zero protection
  • Blu's forward spawn didn't face the direction of movement towards the next point which confused some players
  • Blu did not see and access the flank route on C, possibly due to the triple tank platform.
  • Platform on top of the triple tanks in the B - C connector provided a powerful sight line to B's point while also providing a very secure spot for teleporters for Red.
  • Red did not have a high point on C to challenge Blu's balcony

Fixes and additions in this revision
  • Clipped the exterior of Blu's first spawn so soldiers can no longer shoot over the roof
  • Blu's balcony on B has been lowered and the height of the windows have been increased. Red scouts can now double jump into the open window. Explosive jumping into the window should now be easier.
  • Small cover added on Red's balcony on B
  • Moved Blu's forward spawn from inside the train station into the building on the A - B connector. Now players leaving spawn will be facing the direction they need to go.
  • Removed the triple tank platform on the B - C connector and replaced it with a fence. This should allow Blu players to see the flank route more easily and will hopefully encourage its use.
  • Added a vantage point for Red on C to complement Blu's.
  • Added some cover for Blu on the flank route to C.
  • Added a small fence cover for Red medics to the side of C.
  • Widened out the space in front of Red's spawn doors. This should allow for some more cover and space for spies to de-cloak.

Screenshots:
Lowered windows and cover on B:
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New cover and vantage point on C:
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New fence replacing the triple tank platform in the B - C connector:
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This is a minor bug fix release.
I'm going to resubmit this for another imp since I've had conflicting feedback and the last imp died on my map.

All that's fixed in this version:
  • Red's last spawn was always disabled and players would keep teleporting in from the forward spawn, making it appear that Red's last spawn only had one spawn point. Red's last spawn points are now all enabled properly.
  • Removed weird clipping on windows that made people walk off the balcony ledge on last.
  • Added some more signs to alert players to the flank route on last since it went unused during the last imp.
Here's something I forgot to mention in the last update.
  • Due to overwhelming demand, you can now swim in the water at Blu's first spawn. You're welcome! :)
I'm considering widening out (not lengthening) B and C, so let me know what you think.
Since the a1 went so well for the micro contest, I'm going to see if I can pivot this to be an entry for the Rule of Thirds Major contest.

Issues with a1:
  • B and C were right next to each other. This is because I was running out of time and patience making a1. Sorry!
  • B was a bit of a meat grinder for Blu. Blu would essentially have to team-wipe Red in order to cap. Part of this is due to Red's spawn being so close to B. Blu didn't have much cover or routes to work with. While Blu still capped both rounds, it's less than ideal I think.
  • On B Red could park a sniper on the balcony and said sniper could come close to holding the point solo. There was a medium health pack to keep the sniper healed. Blu also has a really nice vantage point for B, but snipers used it much less than soldiers and demomen.
  • I had some fences with multiple sides rendering which looked weird. I couldn't get them to work properly in a1 so I shipped it like that. Turns out I forgot to make them func_details and that's why I couldn't get the fence to work if it was only on one side. Oops!

Changes with a2:
  • New connector added between B and C. Hopefully this will be a fun space to fight in and make B a bit easier for Blu to cap since Red will actually have to walk for a while to get to B. This also removes a nasty sight line from Red's back spawn to B which was useful for crossbow medics.
  • Said connector from B to C also has a new flank route to the side of C.
  • Added some cover to Blu's balcony on C. This should provide more of a location to stage attacks.
  • Removed the med pack and ammo pack up on top of the balcony on Red's side of B to make that sniper spot a little less overpowered.
  • Added a new side route into B to give Blu another option and a bit more cover.
  • Made it so Red is force respawned whenever Blu caps a point.