Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
Map download, please see the map for yourself in game before giving any feedback!

Screenshots

Aight, four days in the making and I did it. This is my first mapping project, hopefully I did everything correct :blush:.

World Changes
- Many decals removed/added/moved
- Skybox changed to TF2 skybox (used to be a CSS skybox)
- Ramps near hale's spawn have been filled, there is no space underneath (was used for hiding/camping)
- Added player clips on ALL stairs (no more bumpy stairs + you don't get caught underneath them)!
- Minor adjustments to prevent players getting caught on areas of map
- Added black/yellow strip to denote control point trigger area
- Smoothed out some areas of the map
- Props changed (and some added) that fit better with the military aesthetic
- Added more props to skybox
- Added more lights

Spawn changes (red)
- Retexured
- Walls thickened to 8hu
- Added more spawn rooms (16 before, now 24)
- Fixed spawn rotation

Central Tower
- Removed playerclip on top of tower
- Central tower is completely reworked!
- Slightly larger
- Made roof with a flat design, engineers can build up here now
- Windows on tower have been significantly enlarged
- Walls now 8hu

Water Tower
- Removed playerclip on top of tower
- Added collisions (no more banned spot)

Backend changes
- Optimized visleafs for compiler

"Secret Room"
- Added an ammo shelf
- Moved around some props and brushes
- Map credits are here now instead of outside spawn

There are some other changes that I probably forgot to list here, I would recommend checking out the screenshots and loading up the map yourself.
 
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Percilius

Totally Ordinary Human
Contributor
FF2 Balancer
Map looks great but I seem to stop going up the ladder to the tower in the middle of the map. Other than that everything is perfect.
+1 to it as soon as that little problem gets fixed.
 

TheMiningAlex

Positively Inhumane Poster
Agree with slippery that place is the known hiding spot for people who want to wait to rps at the end of the round and people who are the hale's friends.
I stay there with a sentry and shoot Hale with frontier justice. Most people go there to shoot Hale from behind a sentry in my experience. It's not a huge loss though

EDIT: +0.5 since I haven't looked at the map yet. Seems good from the pics so far.
 

Luke

Legendary Skial King
Contributor
- Removed playerclip on top of tower
Could you add these back in? Not sure I like the balance of people being able to get onto the towers.

- Added collisions (no more banned spot)
Could you expand the collisions to include the square rim around the water tower?

Would you be able to fix the lighting in these areas?
Would you be able to improve the clipping on this spot?

Not sure how I feel about the health/ammo shelf in the room under the stairs.
This spot was already used enough before - don't think more should be encouraged.

...also am I right in thinking you added this? Wasn't in the previous map version I had.
If so, I think there might be too much health/ammo in the map now.
 

Fragancia

Sufficiently Lethal Scout
Contributor
Mapper
Hello Slippery Nipple, it's nice you took the time to fix this map and I generally like the changes you have made.
For a first mapping project, I think you did fine!
Hopefully your next mapping project could be making a new map for VSH!

I took a look around the map and got some problems to point out and suggestions to go with that listed below.

As @Luke pointed out, the lighting on these props are pitch black
Hz1RyL2.jpg

c5dmxd5.jpg

It looks like the origin of these props are inside something solid and it's preventing the prop from receiving proper lighting.

But it could be also that those props uses Phong like the upgrade station prop, in that case you can decompile those models, change their vmts so phong is removed or use different props that don't have phong enabled.
Or don't bother with it, it only affects people who turn off mat_phong.

There's 2 things you can do if the problem is the prop origin:
  1. Move the props so their origin is not inside anything solid.
  2. Use a info_lighting to change where the props receive their lighting from.
Regarding the pitch black upgrade station, this prop is different as in the valve material type files the prop uses, Phong is enabled for enhanced lighting.

If you're using an fps config or manually turned off Phong using mat_phong 0 cvar, this prop will become pitch black and there's not much the mapper can do about it unless they decompile the model, change the mvm_upgrade_center_01.vmt and mvm_upgrade_center_02.vmt to remove phong, compile it and pack the changed model into their map.

But players can override these vmts using the tf/custom folder, all you have to do is make a few folders inside the custom folder structured like this: no_phong_upgrade_station/materials/models/props_mvm
And within the props_mvm folder you create 2 new text files named mvm_upgrade_center01 and mvm_upgrade_center02 and add what's below to the text files

Code:
//Add this to mvm_upgrade_center01.vmt
"VertexlitGeneric"
{
    "$baseTexture"    "models/props_mvm/mvm_upgrade_center_01"
}

//Add this to mvm_upgrade_center02.vmt
"VertexlitGeneric"
{
    "$baseTexture"    "models/props_mvm/mvm_upgrade_center_02"
}
Save the text files as .vmt

I've uploaded a vpk that overrides these vmts for those who don't want to go with the trouble of doing it themselves available here: no_phong_upgrade_station.vpk <-- Click that link

All you have to do is put it inside your tf/custom folder.

Okay, continuing on.
About the water tower player clips, could you change it to block bullets texture instead?
So soldiers can rocket jump off the water tower if they are top of it and not have projectiles awkwardly pass through something that should be solid.

Can you also raise all health and ammo packs off the ground by 16-24 hammer units?
So engineer teleporters don't block players from accessing the packs.
Also make sure the player spawns are also off the ground by the units I mentioned or the spawn points will not function properly.

Where did the door frames go at the entrance of that small room?
EvSTBot.jpg

Could you add the door frames back?
The entrance looks a bit worse than before.

Can you also make the lights showing the pictures emit softer light?
It looks rather bad as it is now.
imNYllg.jpg

KT3L1Cl.jpg


These hazard tapes could be aligned better, you can do it by selecting a face and using alt + Right Click on another face to align the texture to the selected face.
srcIkW2.jpg


So this is what poking around the map for a few minutes got me, I'll let you know if I find more problems.
 
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Luke

Legendary Skial King
Contributor
These hazard tapes could be aligned better, you can do it by selecting a face and using alt + Right Click on another face to align the texture to the selected face.
Oh god, why did you point this out - I never noticed that the direction was wrong.

I think some of the things you mentioned are things that he didn't do, but were in the previous version.
When running through the map and looking at things in detail I had initially noted a few of the same things.
 

Chance

Australian Skial God
Contributor
Snap crackle pop my man military area lookin' playable? This is great for your first mapping project
already better than Cream Tea
+1
 

Fragancia

Sufficiently Lethal Scout
Contributor
Mapper
I think some of the things you mentioned are things that he didn't do, but were in the previous version.
When running through the map and looking at things in detail I had initially noted a few of the same things.

Which things are you talking about?
Pretty much most of the things I mentioned are new to this version.
Except the health/ammo packs(not the new ones) are as I see it untouched.
 

Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
Would you be able to improve the clipping on this spot?
I will fix this.

1. Could you expand the collisions to include the square rim around the water tower?

2. Not sure how I feel about the health/ammo shelf in the room under the stairs.

3. ...also am I right in thinking you added this? Wasn't in the previous map version I had.
If so, I think there might be too much health/ammo in the map now.

Code:
- Removed playerclip on top of tower
4. Could you add these back in? Not sure I like the balance of people being able to get onto the towers.
1. I feel that the collisions should represent the shape of the prop. Making it square would throw off players.
2. I think the room is fine, would you like me to simply remove one health and ammo pack from that room?
3. Yes, I changed the prop. I'll change the health pack in there to an ammo pack.
4. I removed the player clips simply because players get frustrated when they get blocked by invisible walls. I feel that if an area of a map looks accessible in the first place, it should not be denied to players. As for balance, I'm not afraid that being on top of either tower is overpowered. Hales would be able to easily super-jump and get anything on top of the towers. Due to the strange angle, sentries won't be able to lock onto hale in time and hales would be able to take out nests, let alone it's hard to get there as engineer in the first place.

I will get to Fragancia's suggestions very soon (thanks for the help and advice:grinning:!).
 
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Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
1. It looks like the origin of these props are inside something solid and it's preventing the prop from receiving proper lighting.
2. About the water tower player clips, could you change it to block bullets texture instead?
3. Can you also raise all health and ammo packs off the ground by 16-24 hammer units?
4. Also make sure the player spawns are also off the ground by the units I mentioned or the spawn points will not function properly.
5. Where did the door frames go at the entrance of that small room?
6. Can you also make the lights showing the pictures emit softer light?
It looks rather bad as it is now.
7. These hazard tapes could be aligned better, you can do it by selecting a face and using alt + Right Click on another face to align the texture to the selected face.
1. Prop origins are fine. If I understood correctly, the players themselves would have to put in the vpk? Is there anything I can do?
2. Will do
3. I'll check and see, if they aren't, i'll fix it.
4. Already done
5. I removed the door frames as players got caught on them frequently. I wasn't sure what the replace it with.
6. Ok, I'll change the lights from pure white to a soft yellow
7. Will do, thanks for the tip!

BRB, I'll do these changes.
 

Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
I've made the changes. I've updated the download link on the first post (you can also use the link on post #4).

Changes
  • Fixed clipping on weapon cart props
  • Changed health to ammo in shipping container
  • Water tower collisions changed from player clips to block bullets
  • Raised all health and ammo packs off the ground by 16 hammer units
  • Outside lights are now softer in color
  • Hazard tapes aligned
  • Fixed ammo shelf brush in small room

Screenshots are still before these changes.
 

Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
More changes!
  • Aligned many brushes
  • Added back small room metal trim (added playerclip and made taller)
  • Changed prop collisions from playerclips to blockbullets2
Download links have been updated again, check post #1 or #4 for download link!
Screenshots of fixes (disregard left side of screenshot, messed up when saving screenshots in paint :P)

Unless anyone spots any errors or things that need to be fixed with this map, I am pretty much done. The map will not change from this point on (unless I absolutely need to).
 

Fragancia

Sufficiently Lethal Scout
Contributor
Mapper
1. Prop origins are fine. If I understood correctly, the players themselves would have to put in the vpk? Is there anything I can do?
5. I removed the door frames as players got caught on them frequently. I wasn't sure what the replace it with.
BRB, I'll do these changes.

I did some work for you and removed the phong from the upgrade station.
Click here to download the new prop

About the door frames, do you mean in between the frames?
You could just clip that with playerclip.


EDIT: By the way, you didn't change the intensity of the lights, they're still too bright

EDIT2:
The door frame edges aren't clipped, players can get caught on them
2AzUMdA.jpg

WLoQbdS.jpg
 
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Slip

Spectacularly Lethal Soldier
Mapper
Extract everything except the prefab into tf/custom and restart hammer.
Keep the folder structure intact as it is in the rar file.

I packed the model into the bsp but the model doesn't show in-game.
To clarify, it shows on my pc but not on another test pc I used. Not sure what exactly I did wrong with the map packing...
Here is what I did
 
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