Dorado a14

Very large update this time around. I'll break it into 3 chunks: Gameplay, Clarity/Optimization, and Decorative.
GAMEPLAY

• Added additional crates onto the balcony path crate to block a pixel sightline.
• Pushed the main slope into lobby further out.
• Altered the size and shape of the shack choke to break up a major sightline.
• Reworked the spawn path to the tunnels: Added a wall, multiple levels of play, and a sight-blocking crate pile. This should stop hideous sightlines while adding this area as a new gameplay space.
• Added a dropdown path from the shacks to the underpass. This makes the underground route more useful to flankers while not completely bypassing the point like earlier versions.
• Moved the stage area from its original location to a corner of the lobby; this clears up the gameplay space. In its place is a barrel stack.

CLARITY/OPTIMIZATION

• Turned the planks in valley into func_details.
• Clipped the instruments on the stage.
• Turned the prop planks on the valley walls into func_detail brushwork.
• Fixed displacement seams around the map.
• Raised the height of the lobby by ~96HU to make the map feel less cramped.
• Made many walls around the map thinner for a similar reason.
• Changed the floors & ceilings in the map to a gray dev texture so it's much easier to read and digest the map.

DECORATIVE

• Made the support beams around the tunnels much thinner and added more.
• Fixed z-fighting on the balcony crate pile.
• Changed the cafe tables & chairs around BLU side to the blue variants.
• Changed the uniform locker in BLU spawn to the blue variant.
• Thinned out the pillar in lobby and made a circular table with chairs on the bottom.
• Added an additional table in the lobby.
• Added a grand piano near the stage.
• Added soundscapes around the map. Very new to these so I'm not sure if they're fully functional just yet.

A major issue of the previous versions were that all of the angles to attack from were uphill battles. This update aims to solve that issue in a variety of ways.

• Removed the prop pile in the lobby choke and replaced it with a full one-way slope. This aims to reduce sightline abuse and make starting a spawncamp much harder, requiring the camping team to either push through a tight choke or fight from low ground.
• Reworked the balcony path. A new dropdown and cubby in the staircase room aims to shake up fights and break the tiny choke. The wall has been replaced with a see-through fence so that teams know exactly what is happening on their balcony at a safe glance. The health and ammo packs have been adjusted to favor a person holding balcony less.
• Opened up the choke behind the shacks considerably. While this doesn't change the fact it is a low-ground battle, it makes it easier to see what's going on and push out more effectively. In tandem with the new lobby slope, it makes it possible to spam out people on the shack with a well-placed sniper.
• Removed the ammo pack in tunnel. While it served a purpose for flankers and spies in earlier versions, it now just makes it easier to spawncamp. Anyone attempting to spawncamp from tunnel will now find it much, much harder to stick around permanently.
• Added a wall in the valley staircase room to make it take a touch longer before any players are visible there.
• Pushed the valley door upwards by a large amount. Added an elevated platform to fight from in valley, and added a plank to the top of the valley walls. The valley should now serve as a much larger chokepoint (encompassing the entire wall & the opening on the ground.) Plus, the height of the wall makes it a much easier job to spam out and combat people on the shack roof.
• Extended the capture zone to the staircases of the prop; it should be quite a bit harder to spam out people capturing point with just one well-placed rocket or sticky.

Gameplay changes:

• Widened the choke behind shack to make it easier to push out. Props in lobby have been rearranged to accommodate for new sightlines.
• Widened the choke from lobby to valley just a touch for a similar reason.
• Reworked the choke from underpass to valley so that it's much more open and the dead space has been removed. This also serves to make it easier to push out from.
• Replaced the logs in mid with much easier to navigate bridges. They still serve the same gameplay purpose.

Visual changes:.

• Fixed a displacement seam near shack
• Removed a dysfunctional prop from the spawnrooms.
• Added more beer to the bar.
• Modified the barstools to accommodate for the concept of gravity.

Forgot to fix a quick issue with my tf_logic_koth. Still same updates as before besides that.

Gameplay changes:

• Added logs in mid that connect the shack roof to the balcony.
• Raised the half wall on balcony and adjusted props to remove a nasty headglitch angle.
• Removed a pixel sightline on the point.
• Made the stairs in mid align more with the cover on the point.

Visual/QoL changes:

• Updated the texture of the cliff.
• Fixed the health decal in underpass.
• Added some foliage into mid; be careful around the cacti!
• Fixed a few displacement seams.
• Added more props and alcohol into the spawnrooms.
• Clipped some previously awkward props.
• Added a bar just outside of the spawn for theming and to fill up empty space in lobby.

I hope that this is one of the final alphas for this map. The gameplay has become more solidified and playable, and I hope to reach the beta phase soon.

The most important goal that I had for this update is simplification. Simplifying routes to mid and clearing up the mid especially. With that in mind, here are the updates:
Major Update: Number of entrances to mid has been reduced from 6 -> 4. This mimics many popular and professional KotH maps, and helps to reduce the amount of times you just get flanked out of nowhere. To do this, here are the updates I did:

• Removed the leftmost flank leading to the enemy balcony. It caused too much chaos and allowed people to slip by undetected into the enemy spawn far too easily.
• To replace the leftmost flank, the balcony has been lowered by 64HU and the slope on the valley side has been decreased so that movement classes can access the enemy balcony from their valley. It's out in the open though, so much harder to sneak around!
• Props have been added and reorganized in balcony so that you can jump over the half-wall into the enemy valley.
• The ceiling of the balcony hall has been lowered to accommodate the new lowered balcony.
• Removed the tunnel route to mid. While I had hoped for it to be a well-utilized route allowing fighting from far more angles, it ended up just being a route for spies to get by and flankers to bully. The tunnel now just serves as an additional pathway into the valley and the connector room, as well as a retreat spot for low-HP flankers.
• The staircase from tunnel to valley has been raised to be less awkward of a path.
• The tunnel route to connector has been widened to make it feel much less cramped.

Major Update: Mid has been modified to make fighting more dynamic and utilize a route that was criminally under-used beforehand (the prop door.) In order to do this:

• Fixed a pixel walk on point that allowed you to capture and defend from a strange angle.
• Added additional sheets of metal that now fully block the point from angles in valley. Snipers can still target each other from cliff to cliff.
• Made the displacements "more displacy" in mid. The placeholder logs that have been around for generations has been replaced with a hill for much smoother combat. A crate has been added to preserve the jump-up spot onto valley wall.
• Replaced the prop pile in front of the door with a half wall. This simplifies angles and reduces outside visibility into the enemy lobby, while also preserving safe passage into the valley.
• Readded the underpass from Alpha 7. Now that the tunnels into mid have been removed, the underpass no longer has the "get by completely undetected" issue. The full HP has been changed out for a medium AP and HP. This area should serve as a safe haven for spies to think about their next move, a quick spot for health and ammo, and a powerful location for a secretive teleporter.
• Modified the staircase into underpass to be much wider and easier to access. The geometry for that staircase has been awkward for 8 versions and I've finally ironed it out.

As for more minor updates:

• Turned the pillars in lobby into func_details. Never crossed my mind how much those would be adding to the loading time and reducing FPS.
• Added arrows in the main chokes to make it more clear that there are options for contesting.
• Added a soft yellow glow to the point.

Reworked the leftmost flank in a variety of ways:

• Removed the one way door so both teams can contest the flank.
• Made the path wind around some as to prevent long sightlines.
• Opened up a pathway from tunnel to the left flank so that all classes can get from tunnel to valley. The dropdown & double jump boxes are still there as a quicker route for movement classes. The HP has been moved slightly to accommodate the new geometry.
• Fixed a displacement seam that was leaking.

Changed the midpoint quite a bit:

• Replaced the crates with much larger metal sheets for much easier and more effective cover.
• Lowered the capture time by a significant margin. (12s -> 7s) It may be modified as time goes on.

As for other updates:

• Made the shacks in mid more shallow to make spamming from above and behind easier; they should still be deep enough to hide from spam from the point.
• Modified the so-called "Death Hall" to balcony by making the path wind around some, preventing the nasty sightlines that snipers could use easily beforehand. The AP in the hallway has been slightly adjusted to accommodate the new geometry.
• Added cover in various parts of lobby to chop up some long sightlines.
• Raised the spawnroom and parts of the lobby some to make spawncamping slightly harder. It likely will be adjusted as time goes on.
• Turned a previously slightly elevated area in lobby into a stage for theming.

• Updated the map name from koth_indoors to koth_dorado.
• Solidified the theme of the map (see the new map description for more.)
• Textured the spawnrooms to provide a taste of the indoor theming for the map (not set in stone yet.)
• Added various decorative props and elevation around the lobby to fill the space more.
• Replaced the outdoor ground with displacements and made the ground more bumpy.
• Added a pathway from the connector room to the tunnels.
• The underpass has caved in; may the miners rest in peace. Tunnels are now completely separate from one another.
• Textured the valley slope and added a crate to block a sightline.
• Added crates on the midpoint to provide more cover and height variation.
• Added a new one-way path from valley into the opposing team's balcony.
• Created new patches for health and ammo pickups.
• Added decorative roofs to the map.
• Changed func_nobuild locations around the map to fix redundancies and a nasty sentry spot.
• Added a spectator camera with various mousejumper-related easter eggs.

• Started adding textures to various sections of the map
• Many small decorative prop changes & fixes
• Removed the shutters to mid
• Changed the route from the choke to the staircase room
• Moved around and changed the size of many health & ammo packs (see below)
• Pushed the spawnroom forward to eliminate some empty space
• Replaced mid rocks with similarly shaped shacks
• Updated spectator cam locations

The theme of the map is starting to be considered. Currently the idea is a wild west style with both teams fighting for a stockpile of beer and gold. Map names are being thrown around and the name will probably be changed in the beta phase.

HP/AP changes:

• Removed the two med APs nearby spawn
• Added a med AP in the new connector
• Moved the shutter med HP to behind the barrel stack
• Added a small HP to the staircase room
• Added a small HP to the valley
• Changed the med AP in valley to a large
• Moved the dropdown HP forward a touch
• Moved the underpass med APs further into the tunnels
• Changed the small APs in mid to med
• Changed the small HPs in mid to med

After the lovely playtest, I added many of the changes given through feedback.

• Increased the length of the map to lengthen rollout times and make the map feel larger
• Added geometry around the lobby areas to break up long sightlines
• Changed the shutter doors in mid to one-way window shutter doors to give players inside the lobby a slight advantage
• Rotated the mid platform by 45 degrees to make it easier to get on the point and open up the area a bit
• Added an elevated region in valley to shake up fights and give snipers an elevated platform to shoot from
• Updated the sun angle to better fit the skybox
• Added more lights around the map to improve clarity
• Modified some existing props to make it more clear whether certain jumps are possible (i.e. dropdown)
• Various small optimizations