CP hothouse

Xerol

L1: Registered
Feb 7, 2011
9
3
This is my second major mapping attempt after the ill-fated cp_greenhouse, which was mostly "I really want to see a hedge maze in a map" and basically a disaster overall. But, lessons were learned, drinks were had, and I've taken some of the general ideas and moved them forward from a 5cp symmetrical to a 3cp A/D map.

General Design Theory
This map started out as a single greenhouse, exactly the same size as the four in this version, which would've been way too small for a 4v4 let alone a full server. Rather than just scaling up the whole map by a factor, I decided to make it into a series of greenhouses, connected by bridges, tunnels, and vents.

I've tried to keep in mind the general idea of "why are we here" in putting things together, although basic TF2 gameplay mechanics also take precedence at times. Rather than the greenhouses being built and then filled up with stuff, it's implied that they were built on top of existing structures. This is why there's sheds and other large structures indoors.

There's also an outdoor area, which I haven't worked on much to this point, but probably will in future versions, depending on how the current layout plays (I have yet to test it with more than 2-4 players).

In the general layout, it's designed to play somewhat like gravelpit - Blue has several paths to A and B; there's an extra connection between A and B that either team can use depending on the current advantage; and both A and B connect to C in a couple ways.

As far as visuals go, I'm basically going with Blu's spawn house as a completely blue-themed area, point C as completely red. A and B will probably be more neutral but with B having more of red's themes and A having more of blue's.

The Layout
The current layout consists of four somewhat large greenhouses, three of which contain control points and the fourth which contains BLU's setup area. They are separated by an open area in the middle and connected via bridges, tunnels, and vents.

BLU Spawn Area
This is probably the least interesting part of the map to date, with about half of the area not really used. In focusing on providing gameplay around the control points this area really got neglected and I'd like to take a good look at what I can do with it before beta.

BLU's spawn is in the corner of the house nearest the center of the map, and has an upper and lower exit to a larger room. This larger room has two exits to the general greenhouse area; the upper one drops down onto the bridge to A, while the lower one provides somewhat equal access to A and B. BLU can get to A via a stacked bridge/tunnel which provides two distinct paths, while access to B is provided by either a bridge across the center or directly walking across the outdoors area by taking a door.

Point A - "The Rec Room"
I will admit I may have had a bit too much fun with this area. The point is located in a shed-type structure with access from three directions - a doorway facing the swimming pool (yes, swimming pool), the front of the shed which is open, and a hole in the roof. Another shed in front of the point provides roof access for all classes.

To the side (left if coming from BLU spawn) there's a swimming pool, pump house (completely enclosed), and related props/structures. The pool is covered with a flat roof at a very high height, which can be reached by scouts, soldiers, and demos under normal circumstances, and probably by pyros and engineers under special circumstances. The engineer path involves teleporters, standing on dispensers, a lot of intentional building destruction, and even a suicide, and takes almost the entire map length (assuming blu doesn't capture any points) just to get a sentry on the pool roof, so it's 99% of the time not worth the trouble.

You may have noticed in the screenshots that the roof on A seems lower than on the other points, but the floor is actually higher. This is partly because of the swimming pool, and partly to provide space for the tunnel system beneath the point. This is blue's alternate route to the point, coming up near the one vent to C, very close to the A capture shed.

In the opposite corner there is also a vent to B with easy access from both sides, allowing either team to attack or defend via it.

Point B - "Botanical Research"
Ok, so I still wanted a hedge maze. This is a lot less maze-y than the one in cp_greenhouse, but basically serves to provide cover for both teams depending on the routes taken, and to funnel some players in certain directions.

The point sits on a raised platform on the right side of the room (from BLU's perspective), accessed via ramp from the front, stairs from the side, and the large building in the rear. Only the second floor of this building is accessible. A shed in the back left, a walkway along the back wall, and stairs to the A-B vent complete this area.

Point C/RED Spawn - "Main Administration"
This is the point that's seen the most major changes I've made to the map since the basic blocking I did a couple of weeks ago. RED's spawn is in one corner, nearest the map center, while the actual C point is in the opposite corner, on a raised platform above a "computer room" (inaccessible). RED has two spawn exits; one is higher up and exits near the B bridge, and one is lower and exits near the A bridge. Stairs inside the spawn room connect the two levels, allowing red players a safe path between sides. I've recently (version a5) added more protection for these spawn exits as they were very exposed from the perspective of someone standing on C.

In the one corner nearest A, there is a wooden structure on stilts that provides a semi-protected path for blue players attacking from A, while a bridge serves as a less protected but more direct route. There is only a single path from B, across a bridge, although I may extend a vent or provide an exterior route if this proves to be insufficient.

A catwalk high on the rear walls provides a good place for red to defend the C point, and a defensive route to the wood shed that is somewhat long.

Future/Wishlist/To-Do
These are in no particular order and will probably be added to and changed after some testing gets done.

-Provide an extra drop-down from BLU setup area down to the lower A-tunnel.
-Add more exterior doors to the center area. Must be careful not to provide too direct a route that may be exploited.
-Add stuff to exterior area (displacement ground, more plants etc)
-More signage, direction arrows
-May give red a third spawn exit, possibly to the exterior areas.
-Replace rest of dev textures, general texturing/detailing (things like door trims)
-More props, visual funneling
-Player clipping on sticky corners

I'm working on a5 today (putting in a lot of those things above) and may have it done and ready for mass testing by tomorrow.

Edit: a5 uploaded, see changelog.
 
Last edited:
Sep 1, 2009
573
323
I really do enjoy the ideas and base of this map however, I kinda find it hard to tell the walls from the floor, you should swap textures on the wall to maybe a medium grey, as there are plenty of choice under 'dev' in the texture filter
 

Xerol

L1: Registered
Feb 7, 2011
9
3
Posted a5. Added a number of extra exterior doors, so the middle area should play a bit now. One of them has the wrong speed set on its func_door (the one that goes into the tunnels under A) but it's such a minor issue that recompiling/reuploading isn't worth it to change one number.

I'll be away for about a week starting Tuesday so it'll be a while before I even start working on the next version, which is probably good for me since I tend to just want to make changes without having any feedback to work from.
 

Xerol

L1: Registered
Feb 7, 2011
9
3
Bumping this to say I'm back and will be working on it again soon. I would like to get some feedback before I do, though, especially with a5.