Xonotic map for 6+ player free-for-all featuring surf and slick mechanics. https://v.teknik.io/v/TlU0Z

design-frosthalo.txt 3.8KB

  1. ---
  2. title: 'Map Design (Xonotic): Frost Halo'
  3. subtitle: 'Home Servers: \linebreak http://stats.xonotic.org/server/13897 \linebreak http://stats.xonotic.org/server/6459 \linebreak Git Repo: \linebreak https://git.teknik.io/scuti/dm_infinity-improv2'
  4. abstract: 'Portable document > webpage; any day of the year.'
  5. header-includes: |
  6. \usepackage{xcolor}
  7. \usepackage{pagecolor}
  8. \usepackage{lipsum}
  9. \usepackage{mdframed}
  10. \pagecolor{black}
  11. \color{white}
  12. \twocolumn
  13. ---
  14. ![Shoot me!](maps/frosthalo_b4.jpg)
  15. The main idea was to create a rare experience in an arena shooter; slick and surf mechanics outside of Race or DeFrag isn't very common. (There's a very small slick patch in Quake Live's Cold War, but that's about it.)
  16. The first iteration of the map took a month to get done. It was mostly a quick process to make the individual pieces, but a lot of time was also spent on how to wrap up the map and close the loose ends.
  17. ## Weapon Balance
  18. ###No Vortex
  19. It's a wide open map designed for players to move quickly and freely. Instead, every 2 minutes, a 30 second weapon powerup will spawn which will buff the Machine Gun secondary.
  20. ###Rocket Lifetime Extended
  21. This is for the interaction with the looping warpzones.
  22. ## Structure
  23. There's a lot of attempts to break line of sight with stairs- not that there's any problem with that since players glide up stairs in Xonotic. Not broken up enough for Vortex to be fun to have around.
  24. ### Icy Long Ramp
  25. Requires roughly 1100 qu/s to reach the very top.
  26. The start can be from rest at the bevel stairs and with sufficient skill, there'd be enough acceleration to reach the very top. Those not so skilled, caught in ungenerous situations, or starting from the Mega armor can still slide up to the curved platform.
  27. ### Icy Half Pipe
  28. Requires roughly 1300 qu/s to fly to the upper shelf (at the level of the 50 health) underneath the halo.
  29. The start can be from rest at the Mega Health, jumping down onto the down-curve of the half pipe.
  30. ### Surf Curve
  31. Land on it from the area below the halo. This can be a fun route to the cliffs on the other side of the map.
  32. ### Looping Warpzones
  33. Firing a projectile straight into them will cause the projectiles to travel in a loop until their lifetime expires. One can cumulatively add rockets in the path of a spawning powerup and make dogpiling unappealing.
  34. ### Halo (Warpzones)
  35. From the floor, one can see and shoot through the top of the map.
  36. The strength powerup spawns above the blue tab, so there's potential for mischief with the Blaster.
  37. On the inner rim of the halo, there's an indicator for where the strength spawns. From personal experience, it's a little hard to bang through the floor on someone running for the strength powerup using rockets. It's not so clear if Hagar can bang through the halo either. The approach I've found myself most comfortable with is shooting electro mines through the halo, and trigger them through the floor. Knowing when to fire is a little tricky since sound doesn't propogate through warpzones, so this is one of the things that might only be possible with good team communication or intuition.
  38. ## Inspiration
  39. Enceladus from E.Y.E Divine Cybermancy.
  40. The level design and art style deviates strongly, but the idea of Enceladus and ice was in my mind as I designed the map. Initially I'd thought to create a ancient temple in the arctics covered in rime and ice, though the end result was something less ecclesiastical since I'm neither a texture artist or good at all with texturing to give a church-like look.
  41. ## Textures
  42. I took them from a deviantart gallery that hasn't been updated in 7 years, then cut it up and recolored it.
  43. https://dazzle-textures.deviantart.com/art/Icicle-65833085
  44. Essentially, her rules are to credit and link back to her. So it's hard to say, if a video game map is something to get in trouble for. For that reason, I don't include the textures in the git repo.