ctf_miner

[Kirko]

This is going to be my first map. So as long as I finish it within 3 years I will be happy.

I have just brain stormed a few ideas and decided to do a coal mine town type thing to go with the TF2 Theme. Red base will be an old farm looking brick/wooden mine and Blue base will be a more industrial looking concrete mine.

It will be capture the flag that way so people can go anyway to get the flag instead of just keeping their focus on control points.

The Bases will have a few floors in them with rooms and lofts and such. Not too sure how the bases will be setup just yet. They will be the same design but each base will have something a little different to it that the other doesn't exactly have so it isn't identical like 2fort.

I am making a little Mine Shaft/Shack to the right which will have windows for snipers so they have some different spots to snipe from so it not just from the windows in the base. I will put a few spots that will be good for sentry guns to protect it if someone would want to put on in there. There will also be some health and ammo in the shack. If you control the shack it will basically act as a resupply for your team and give your team an advantage so people will want to fight over it.

There is an entrance on the left of the layout for each base. It is small and you will have to duck to enter it. I will probably make it a wall that needs to be blown up. It will mainly be for spies or scouts to sneak into and out of the base easier since you will need to duck and enter slowly.

There is another entrance next to the main entrance which u will have to access by conveyor belts which is to add to the mine theme.

No idea where to put the flag room at. I might do an office room on the top floor. Still have to figure where the respawn room will be too.

Have any questions or some input so far let me know. Once I get some of the stuff done I will put some screen shots up. I just thought I would let you guys know what my plans are. I hope it goes well

 

[Gonzales]

Sounds like you've given this a bit of thought. Block it out in hammer, and give us some screens. Or, even better, sketch the layout, and post the sketch so we can have an idea of what it's going to look like.

 

[A Boojum Snark]

I should mention, before you go to far, another of the Mapper Golden Rules. One should never plan to release their first map to the world. Play it with friends, or people from here in the steam chat, but your first map will always be horribly built no matter what, and should be treated solely as a learning experience.

So if you really like an idea for a map, I'd save it for later and either just make stuff up as you go for your first map, or pick some other idea.

 

[Kirko]

Sounds like you've given this a bit of thought. Block it out in hammer, and give us some screens. Or, even better, sketch the layout, and post the sketch so we can have an idea of what it's going to look like.

haha i made a little crappy layout in paint. forgot to put it up. my bad. haha

 

[Kev_Boy]

One should never plan to release their first map to the world.

I disagree. How are you going to learn from it, if you don't release it for people to assess?

 

[A Boojum Snark]

I said "to the world"... meaning it's pointless to put it up on any mass distribution site because the kind of feedback you need at that point can be given on a smaller scale, or is self-learned feedback.

But how else would you learn? Well... back when I started mapping for HL I had no internet, just worldcraft off the CD, learned stuff by myself decent enough

 

[hacky]

I should mention, before you go to far, another of the Mapper Golden Rules. One should never plan to release their first map to the world.

I take this line with a grain of salt. I agree, there's no point in putting up your first map attempt on fpsbanana and and calling it a final version. But playtesting among the general playerbase is still essential to creating a map with polished gameplay.

I'll use my map, ctf_truss as an example. It is the first map that I will finish and release to the public, but the first version was absolutely terrible when I tested it on a public server. Since then, I took players' feedback to improve the map, and now the map gets most players' approval.

I'm still learning techinques for hammer, and there's so many things that I did wrong in creating ctf_truss that I won't repeat for my second map. But I'm proud of my first work and have no qualms putting it up for mass distribution when it's good and ready.

 

[Kirko]

hm. u never know. if i do a load of editing to it as i learn more. it could turn out great. i mean if i make it. then do another map. my 2nd one wont be any better as my first if i just edit my first one and do the stuff id do to my 2nd one. i dont plan on making it then putting it out there in a 4 months. it will be a year or two. i mean. i will only be working on it about an hr a day.

anyways.

if anyone has anymore questions or input. let me know.

 

[Kirko]

Goal is to have the basic design(walls) of the bases and textures finished here by Sunday. Then I will take some screen shots to see what you guys think before I go any further. If I get enough time I will try and make the mine shack by the end of the week. I really like how it is looking. I hope everyone thinks the same.

 

[rasnarok]

You may as well leave all final texturing until the end. I just use orange and gray textures for my brushes until I actually complete an area.

 

[Kirko]

my power supply went out on my computer. cheap crap. so i cant get any screen shots until i get a new one. sorry.

 

[Kirko]

this is the area from my main entrance/exit of the base and respawn. i need to figure out a way to block the big area without making a wall/room because it will be weird to just have a wall there for no reason or a room blocking the way becuase how it is setup it just doesnt fit well. but i dont want a huge open space.

the dispenser is going to be the spawn door.

the sentry gun is going to be the entrance to the room where the main entrance/exit is(which is to the left after the wall)

in the first photo the teleporter on the right is going to be an elevator

 

[trackhed]

maybe some support beams or an obstacle of some sort in the open space (blue barricade, machinery, small rooms)

basically just somewhere for people to reload and spies to hide

 

[Kirko]

Well. Time to get this thread up top again. I don't want anyone to forget about me

So I took some time off the map for awhile due to PSU issues then a busy schedule. I have had some free time to work on the map a little more.

I now have completed the middle structure except for the elevator I am putting in it. I have also added 3 little buildings on the outside of the main base and added to the main base some. I put support beams throughout the base along with completing the stairs and the respawn room. I still need to finish the roof of the main base. I am still working on a few more little things in the main base. For the most part the basic structure of it is done where people will be able to play but I want to add some thing for details and looks but that will be later on.

Things that need to be done before I will release the beta:
-Flip and rotate the base
-Flags with capture points need done.
-Add the Major Props
-Get my elevators working
-Skybox
-Ammo and Health packs
-Finish the Destructible walls that I have.

I am going to keep the textures orange and gray by the way. I am going to do my textures last once the map is done because I hate doing textures. It is a pain to change them all the time.

I think that is all I will need for the beta. If anyone would like to add what else I need to do before I can release a beta you're more than welcome to add. Oh it's just a beta to test the map see if I need changes. See if some people on here would like to just play it for a few minutes to see how it plays out.

Beta should be out here soon within the next couple weeks depending on much I get to work on the map.

 

[Kirko]

NEWS UPDATE:

Well. It seems to me that I don't have the best of luck at all. I was planning on getting a good beta released of my map with in the next 3 weeks sometime. I was also going to be putting a few teaser screen shots up to get some interest with my map :cool1:. I now have a change of plans though.

The power supply I had temporarily fixed to get my computer working, until I could get a new one, took a crap on me. I never ended up getting the new power supply because well I just never got around to it I guess is a good excuse for being cheap. Well now I can't even get it to turn on. Oh well. I will be ordering a new power supply Friday hopefully. I don't know how long that will take to get here either. So much for getting GTA4 this week. Hm. Well this sucks. I hope everyone is having better luck than me.

 

[Kirko]

It ended up being the motherboard this time. Would be nice if my computer parts ever lasted longer than 2 weeks.

EDIT: Screen shots of the map progress, I wanted to show last month, will be loaded today before something happens to the computer again.

 

[Juice]

Haha.