Be Right Back, Uninstalling

So I decided to make a thread dedicated to my map that's in development. It was under wraps for a while, but I don't know why it was, no reason really, it can only help the process by sharing it with others, Trace and Niceguy really helped a lot, so I figured I should share it here. I hope the photos don't bog down the forums too much!
The layout of this isn't as organized as it should be (photos don't show the basic idea of the map)

Pwny Express has been a project based off a nearly one year old idea.  I was discussing making a map with one of my roommates (impedance, you may know him (Jaebol is the other roommate, don't know if you remember him either) when TF2 first came out.  We
thought a map shaped like an "H" would be pretty neat, with control points at the ends of the letter and one in the middle.  I thought of extending it a bit and adding 2 more control points and connecting a little upside down "T" at either end of the "H" (Making maps is
as easy as the ABCs);
(Red circles are control points)


So I began to draw out the idea. I don't have a scanner but it looked something like this (not really -- I promise my handwriting is better);
(Circles are the capture points). It will just be copied and flipped.


So the idea:

A 7 point control point map. 30 second setup time, cap the middle to unlock the next two points. The last home point can only be unlocked after capturing the previous 2. To balance it, the right capture point will be more open to cap, but close quartered for difficult capturing.  The left control point, more open, but harder to get to the capture point (rocket jump/alternate route). I wanted it to play like a mixture of well/gravel pit/dustbowl. It would also be set up at night. There are no good outdoor maps that feature night time-ness.

So then, CP_TEH_GREAT_H was underway!

I had a little bit of Hammer experience, so I thought I'd give it a go.
The funny thing about hammer/TF2 is the weird proportions between what you see in first person and how someone else sees a model. So my first attempt was really big, complete total fail.  I tested it with Fail, Caff, Spore and a few others. Loads of errors, terrible gameplay, just awful. Nothing played how I wanted. I would work on little things for so long that I thought would change gameplay and found that it had no change at all. It must be said I had a lot of fun with the ridiculously high skybox (As you can see in the following photos) I made just to fool around with. Launching ubered demomen with 8 stickies to the limit that Hammer allowed was a complete and total blast.

May CP_TEH_GREAT_H rest in peace;
(Home Cap Point)



(Left Point)



(Right Point)



(Middle Point)



(Rendered Middle Point)

After that last fail, I was really, really bummed, so I took a long haitus. During that time I fiddled around with cp_bessjump. I'm kind of glad I did. Fucking around with hammer like that improved my knowledge.So then I decided to give Pwny Express another go after Vandamguy <3 suggested I try something different.

Doesn't look like much, but this is what I started with before really getting into details.

I started with the basic layout using only dev blocks to give me a better idea of proportion;
(Home Point)



(Middle Point)



(Left Point)



(Right Point)


Major changes from my first fail;
-Shrunk down the map size a lot. In terms of length width; It's shorter than labor, but much wider
-Changed the vent layout/dropdown points a bit
-Changed the wall configuration on right control point
-Got rid of the middle "x" thing in between the Right and Left control point rooms
-Changed the middle almost completely;
-Added a ditch in the middle where a train will go instead of the stupid layout I had before. I think this adds a little bit of a 2 fort element to it.
-Added tunnels from the ditch to the upstairs (kinda like 2fort)
-Added side buildings just so the side entrance makes more sense

Next, I began to work with details, perhaps the most painstaking job of making maps (for me at least). Making little borders around windows and entities here and there is a real pain in the arse.
(Home Point)



(Middle Point)



(Left Point)



(Right Point)



(Right Pipe Hallway wraparound)



(Conveyor Hallway)


At this point I'm having a lot of difficulty choosing the right textures to use???
-Added the conveyor belt hallway (yes a conveyor belt -- helps move through the map faster)
-Copied Caffeine's pipes idea in the right side hallway
-Added extension from the building in the middle

And my latest edition -- I started on this version because I had played around with the map with impedance;

(Home Point)



(Middle Point)



(Left Point)



(Right Point)


Major changes;
-Widened the hallways upstairs so people could walk past eachother (especially spys)
-Caused me to widen the whole middle seperator
-Made hallway stairs no so steep
-Moar details! (buildings and such)

Still having trouble with textures to choose. More importantly, I'm having areaportal (function used to make the map less laggy) issues. I can't have more than 2 at this point and I still have yet to figure out the problem. Needs optimization. Also kind of worried about Scout steamrolling. (But don't worry, the last control point won't be granary/badlands short). I'm still worried though. Needs test .

Map Runthrough .DEM. Check it out if you wish to get a better idea of the shmarp.  (It has no lighting at all at the moment, so it doesn't look so nice. It's also a mess right now).

I'm open to any/all suggestions. Hope you enjoy this very long post.

Can't wait :o

(07-06-2008, 03:33 AM)exanimo link Wrote: [ -> ]-Added a ditch in the middle where a train will go instead of the stupid layout I had before. I think this adds a little bit of a 2 fort element to it.
-Added tunnels from the ditch to the upstairs (kinda like 2fort)

Win

Very much enjoyed thoroughly reading through the entirety of your thread, Ex. Nice to finally see the fruits of your labours. I am continually astounded by the sheer volume of time and manpower that goes into the map making process just for the love of doing it with no tangible reward. Very excited to play this.

Probably just me missing something obvious but the .dem requires the map file to read, should I have that already or is it available somewhere?

(07-06-2008, 03:33 AM)exanimo link Wrote: [ -> ]Needs test .

Let's do it.

I downloaded the demo file, but you need the map to play it  :'(
Still, I like the idea and think the night time thing looks awesome in the screen shot.
I would love to test it when you get to it.  ;D

Looking good!  Can't wait to give it a test spin.

Hmmm.... good work

It'll be nice to finally see you back on the servers. How are you supposed to contend to being my nemisis if you're never around to kill? I'm looking forward to pwning you on your own map, it's looking awesome!

I echo Budr's sentiment.  On a couple games I've tried the included map editor and I just.. didn't.. get it, so I have undying respect for map-makers .  I would definitely like to help test this as well.

Optimize the fuck out of it before you put it up for play test, last one you put up gave like everyone who didn't have a quad core less than 15 FPS

(07-06-2008, 10:42 AM)CaffeinePowered link Wrote: [ -> ]gave like everyone who didn't have a quad core less than 15 FPS

;D

Exanimo, vnd.

I love the lighting in that one picture.

Yeah, the lighting's great.

I feel so stupid for posting that .dem. I didn't even think about that "no .bsp" issue.  When I get back home in 2 weekends from now I'll make a video out of it or something and post a new update with moar photos.  When I have some work downtime I think a lot about the map and also discuss it with impedance.

We came to the conclusion that we may need to get rid of the conveyor belt hallway. I don't want to over complicate things.  As is, I feel that the 7 point layout will be rather difficult to play with small numbers of people and can be a bit complicated in terms of playing style. It's never really been done before, so we really have to test it out whenever I get the damn thing testable. 

It's looking really good! I look forward to playing on it.

Updates!
Well, upon my return to school, I have had more time to work on the map. Major changes:

-Got rid of the conveyor belt, and got rid of the old exit, to simplify the map. I also curved the hallway it was in.
-Worked on details of the home point, midpoint, and tunnels.
-Widened the middle two point building and rounded the edges of the upper level.
-Got rid of some walls on the right point to ease cluster.
-Got rid of one of the containers in the left room to also open up the room a bit.
-Moar details

Home point (P)



Right Point (N):



Left Point (W):



Middle Point (Y):

Fuck, I need to get back to my map or start on Surf's.