KotH Koth_Dirtway A5

[GrismarPicklemelt]

koth_Dirtway (Alpha 1) - A Simple, Direct, 3 Path Koth Map

This is the VERY early version of my first map, Dirtway.
It's a simple KOTH map featuring 3 paths out of the spawn building leading to the central point.

This map is in VERY early development, and will be changed radically.
Currently there are few health and ammo packs and I forgot to add spawn door blockers for the enemy team before uploading.

The reason I added this map so early in development is because after getting the main layout I realized I didn't think of what I wanted to do after that. So I decided to upload it and get suggestions on how I should go about filling my map from fellow map developers.
I have a few ideas on what else I could do, such as a little shack with ammo packs made for engies, seeing as engineers don't have any really good spots yet for anything besides trollgineering.

What I currently plan to do before my next release of this map:
-add viable health and ammo locations that don't favor only the defending team. (they currently do)
-somewhat fill large empty spaces between spawn and the CP with useful cover and battle areas.
-add lighting.

If you decide to test my new map I would love feedback, both good and bad. I won't get much better as a mapper without it.

 

[Twist.vmf]

i recommend taking in-game screen caps, they look nicer

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

Alright, I'll work on that now.

 

[Micnax]

Maps are required to have lighting before they can be playtested on the TF2Maps servers, so it's highly recommended you put some in on the next release

Other than that, the layout is good for a start. You've made sure the spawn has two exits and there's some height going on there. I'd maybe add some buildings between the spawn rooms and the point to ensure there's some cover between the two so people don't get hurt right as they exit. It'll prevent that big sightline for snipers between both spawns as well.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

Ah, well I'll put what I have right now on, It has some lighting.
I also made the skybox a bit bigger, because I realized after the upload that I made the skybox too short, so soldiers can't rocket jump while on the bridge.
And for the buildings, I'm planning on making a desert rural highway kinda deal, so I'll try to think of something for that.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

I didn't know that maps required lighting before an upload, so here you go.
Also I had more stuff on there so I left it in.

Read the rest of this update entry...

 

[Micnax]

Looks like you're moving right along! Now that it has lighting, you can put it into the TF2Maps impro testing sessions (if you feel ready for it). Then you'll get more direct feedback from people playing your map.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

Alright, I'll do that.
Just gotta figure out how.

 

[goem]

Gonna want an actual map with some walls and not map-wide sightlines before you put it up for a1 testing

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

Yeah I plan on fixing that sometime this week, may take a while due to school.
But expect that to be fixed soon!

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

I don't know how I didn't notice this big, glaring issue from minute 1.
But going down a straight path to a KOTH point with no cover makes for poor map design.

So I'm going to redesign the map layout.
It will still have the central road leading to the point, as that was what I wanted to do from the very start, but I'm going to have to move everything around to better balance the map.

This will likely take a day, but I should be able to release this fairly quickly if I work fast.

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[GrismarPicklemelt]

I'm almost done with the acceptable version of the map, just gonna run around in it for a while to test it out.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

I have changed the map's layout dramatically.
It still has its middle lane going right for the point, but now snipers are FAR less overpowered on this map, to compensate, I added a perch for snipers to get on for each team, while still allowing the enemy team to avoid instant death.

I also added a large building behind the point with health and ammo for the defending team to bunker into, I added no windows and made the doors wide and didn't give them too much cover to prevent the defending team from being able to spam out the attackers from the safety of their building.

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[GrismarPicklemelt]

So I can get this tested I renamed it, thats it.

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[GrismarPicklemelt]

Fixed the download, It was Alpha 1 this entire time XD

Sorry about that.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

I am working on a different map now.
I may or may not come back to this map, but don't count on it.

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

Welp, after 4 months and a disaster of an mvm map, I'm back with Koth_Dirtway_a4.1!

After testing with some bots, watching a few demos of my map being played, and lots of sight lines, I managed to make something I hope is playable by classes other than sniper.

With the removal of the shed and being replaced by a larger, slightly better extension of the "waypoint" as I like to call it, and the scraping of that big, useless sign in favor of a big, useless building I hoped to make snipers less OP. I also added windows to the big building by the CP, as well as changing around the positions and sizes of health/ammo packs around the map.

Keep in mind that a lot of these things are there to hold space and fix problems until I know what I'm doing, meaning that most of the buildings and other things are very much candidate for removal or revamp.

As a footnote, I also tweaked the lighting a bit to try to make the shadows a bit softer and less unnatural, and instead made it worse.

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[GrismarPicklemelt]

I didn't upload A3 because It wasn't enough of a makeover to the map for me to want to release it on tf2maps.net

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

a small look of what I've got going on

 

[GrismarPicklemelt]

This may potentially be my final update to Koth_dirt_way, It has never been a very good map and I've dumped loads of time into trying to make it a good map.
As much as I wanted it to be in a somewhat balanced state, It doesn't have the potential to reach such a place without being revamped entirely.

I did learn alot making this map though, as it is my first "serious" map I've made, my only 2 other maps were low effort silly maps I made to kill some time.

But this one I've grown quite attached, it's kind of like putting down ol' space yeller...

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