CP_Blu Mesa

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
CP_Blu Mesa

Lastest update: 2/18/08
+Progress percentage update.

The Basics:
Dustbowl style with 2 rounds only. 2 Capture Points per round.
Red will be the attacking team. Blu defends.

Theme:
Red has been digging in preparation for creating a new hidden underground base only to discover that Blu already has a presence in the area. Red attacks, determined to put an end to the Blu menace in this region and claim the zone for themselves. Little does Red realize that the nearby generic concrete bunker and high-tech milk processing plant only serve as a smokescreen for a fully operational Blu facility primed to rain destruction upon the Reds and their operation. Will the underdog Reds capture the Blu facility and achieve victory? Or will they be thoroughly squashed by the entrenched Blus?

Goals:
+ To create a highly enjoyable map worthy to see rotation alongside Valve maps. (Lofty, I know.)
+ Plenty of action and minimum downtime during play
+ Opportunities for each class to be useful
+ Minimize areas in which a single class may dominate (ie. sniper whores and demo spam)
+ Eliminate or minimize the possibility of spawn killing
+ Visually stimulating environment worthy of the TF2 style

Progress (Approximate):
First Red Spawn ........................ 95%
First Battle Area ........................ 90%
First CP .................................... 95%
Second Battle Area .................... 50%
Second CP ................................ 0%
First Blue/Second Red Spawn ..... 0%
Third Battle Area ....................... 0%
Third CP .................................... 0%
Fourth Battle Area ...................... 0%
Fourth CP .................................. 0%
Second Blue Spawn ................... 0%

Overall ..................................... 30%

WIP Screenshots:

2/9/08
cp_blumesa_a60000.jpg


cp_blumesa_a60002.jpg


cp_blumesa_a60004.jpg


cp_blumesa_a60006.jpg


1/29/08
CP_BluMesa 5 - First Battle Area
CP_BluMesa 6 - First Battle Area
CP_BluMesa 7 - First Battle Area
CP_BluMesa 8 - First Battle Area

1/19/08
CP_BluMesa 1 - Red Spawn
CP_BluMesa 2 - Red Spawn
CP_BluMesa 3 - Red Spawn
CP_BluMesa 4 - Red Spawn

Comments and constructive criticism are always welcome. Check back for semi-regular updates!
 
Last edited:

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
That looks like a massive spawn room. sounds like a good idea for a map as well.
Those screens look very impressive, if the rest of the map is of the same quility it will be excelent no doubt.
Look forwards to more!
 

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
Thanks! It may look massive, but it feels just about right in-game. The actual spawn room itself is the immediate area containing the supply cabinet and the maintenance shed, the corridors leading away are Red's tunnels to the main battle area. They aren't part of the spawn, but only Red will have access to them.
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
Ah, that sounds about right then. cp_blumesa? running with the hl1 thing then?
If you are calling it mesa because of the environment rather than because of half life can I direct you here.
 

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
As far as TF2 is concerned it's named Blu Mesa simply because of the environment the Blu facility happens to be in. And for anyone who knows anything about HL it's a fun reference, nothing more.
 
H

Haas

Please don't use that rock texture its awfull!
I also used it to manu on my map and after i changed it it was much much better!
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
rockwall001 is just a teeny bit too repeptative, its a good texture, but works best from a reasonable distance and scaled to 0.8-0.3
rockwall002 is good for all sorts of walls and doesn't repeat too much at all good scales are anything from 0.25 to 0.8.
rockwall004-7 are the best, they barely repeat at all and are scaleaboy up to 1.5 without too much loss of quality being apparent. The only problem with those ones is they don't tile vertially so if you have a very tall cliff then you have to scale them up loads.
cliff_terrain03 sucks. Its a really naff texture and repeats loads, looks bad at all scales although using it at anything less than 0.5 is pure insanity. I see this texture in so many costom maps at 0.25 scale and to be perfectly honest it makes the map look crap. Even if everything else is really nice this texture used on cliffs too much makes it look horrid.

As far as I can tell you are using rockwall001 which looks fine, perhaps you should scale it up a little to 0.3 or 0.4, but even if you leave it as it is its fine. Honestly I don't see Haas' probleb with it

Edit: The third screen, the one with the lamp behind the cart: you have your lightsource very close to the surface of the rockwall texture, you have some odd looking dark lines around the areas that should be shadowed by the normal map try moving the lightsource further away from the wall to get a better normal map shadowing
 
Last edited:

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
Thanks for the feedback regarding the rock textures. rockwall001 is alright and it is the first texture I really decided to try, but the repetition does become a little obvious at times. I'll work with it and see what I can come up with. So far I think I've broken up most of the walls using that texture well enough that it doesn't look that bad, but I may change it in the corridors (which are still incomplete - displacements and more detail work to come!)

The lighting is also certainly subject to change. I agree that the lamp is having some strange effects on that wall in the corridor. Right now the lamps are mostly to light the area enough to see. As I finish off the corridors I'll probably move the lights around anyway.

Speaking of lights, that lamp over the maintenance shed isn't exactly complete. I'd like there to be a nice bright glow from the light itself, but I'm not sure how to accomplish that effect. (I'm better with brushes than with entities currently.) So any help with that would be appreciated.
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
Ahhh, what you need is a point_spotlight
That entity makes a nice beam in the direction you want and it adds a bright glow at its source. looks good for lights.
 
G

greenridge

try painting some alpha on a floor displacement with blendrockground002/004/005
 

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
I had planned on doing that, but right now I'm having a problem with the alpha on some of the blend textures I've tried using. In-game I wind up with a strange glowing checkered pattern in the alpha regions. If anyone can give me a reason and a fix for this it would be most appreciated.
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
That is a missing normal map, its a problem with certain textures because valve decided not to use them they just left them broken. Just use another texture
 

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
I think it's about time for an update. Don't you?

The Red spawn and tunnel area is about 95% complete. The spawn doors still need to be added and some fine tuning needs to be done in other areas, but I think it's good enough to move on. What I've been working on for the past few days is the battle area leading to the first CP. It's incomplete, as you'll see, but a good chunk of the blocking in, displacements and texture work has been done. Good enough to show anyway.

In the following screenshots you'll be able to see the exits from the Red spawn/tunnels in the cliff face. The first CP is inside the (still orange) building up the ramps. Most of the water you see is deep enough to crouch in and put out fire. Combined with some health and ammo in the middle of the water area it should keep that area active despite the fact that the only routes up to the CP are the ramps on either side. Also, though the area may look somewhat large, a spy can cloak, exit the Red doorways, and make it into the CP building a few seconds before the cloak runs out. I think the distance to run is pretty comparable with the run to the first CP in dustbowl.

If you have any thoughts on the map as far as gameplay goes two of the shots should allow for some analysis of the battlefield. Any input is always appreciated. Enjoy the screens!

(EDIT: Updates will now be made to the first post. Check back there for screens and other info)
 
Last edited:
H

Haas

looks very good.
Only point will be if snipers will be overpowered if there in that window and camping at the exit of the mine.
 

Scotland Tom

L6: Sharp Member
Jan 19, 2008
332
64
I realized sniper-whores could become an issue the way I've designed the map, so I've done my best to mitigate the potential problem without completely destroying the sniper's ability to be an effective team member.

With the tower on the Blu side (that snipers shouldn't be able to get onto) combined with the rocks I've already placed, Blu sniper line of sight has already been broken, so getting a good shot is a little more challenging. Red has 2 exit doors that should remain completely out of view of most sniping locations on the Blu side. Also, I've provided an area above the main Red exit doors for Red snipers to counter-snipe.

Two of my major concerns with creating the Red spawn points are snipers and demomen. If there's one thing I don't think anyone can stand it's running out of the spawn area and getting instantly killed by stickies or snipers. At this point I think it'll just take some playtesting to find out if the measures I've taken to prevent those things will be effective.
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
6,056
Sniper whores are a real problem as a mapper but no matter, it looks like that area is well balanced.

Looks great! (do you have to swim in the deepest part of that water?)