Well, I'm sitting around at work, waiting for stuff to happen, so I may as well take the time to respond to those who critiqued my map. I figure it would be easier to address the things I decided not to change, which were suggested; as it was the smaller number. Most of the suggestions actually resulted in some action, and I must say the map is better for it.
- Reno's suggestion to incorporate trap into green-gas room:
Thought about it from the start. I actually built that room with this in mind. I decided against it, when I got the idea for the wall-hole-explosion setup. I was hesitant to do 2 traps. I am actually hesitant to do 1 trap, but the explosion seemed simple enough and not very easy to spam. You are right, the hurtie-gas would have been cool, but not as cool as an explosion IMO (unless they are locked in the room and choke to death, which is too extreme).
- Orpheus suggestion to move the RPG from swamp area:
I definately understand where you're coming from, and most of the time would agree with the blanket statement that powerful weapons shouldn't be so easily accessible. There are exceptions to the rule, however, and I honestly feel that this is one (feedback from dedicated, experienced, players who tested the map with crowds, online have reaffirmed my thinking). The thing is, a powerful weapon is like a magnet, and when placed properly, can really draw people to the areas of a map that otherwise offer no real reason to traverse. Such was the case with this swamp area. I felt it was such a cool spot, but also out of the 'flow' of the map.
The rpg focuses and draws the gameplay into this area, now making it very valuable. It also has distinct disadvantages: very open, explosive barrels, hard to escape, no ammo to back up the initial rpg stock. It's a very hard area to hold also, and you get picked apart fairly quickly if trying to camp it. It also gives new players a very distinct goal that is fairly easy to find and recognize.
Also, there is a distinct flip-side to placing a powerful weapon in a difficult place to acquire. The experienced player is going to have no trouble reaching it, whereas it will be twice as hard for the noobs, and twice as easy for the experienced player to camp/control.
- Orpheus suggestion to fill in the small 'gap' in the wall.
You are so right about that - there is no way it would exist in reality; it has no real functionality. But...mmm, I so love it. I tried to dress it up a little with beams and pipes, to make it seem more functional. I just couldn't resist leaving it (for now at least), as it offers such a nice sneak attack on players using that health charger. It's also a good spot to hide little items. I don't know why I am so attached to this crack. I think it's because just a few extra layers of almost meaningless connectivity, is just the kind of thing that reward people who learn the maps. It's a 'hehe, that was cool' moment that can be little gems when playing. When I weigh this against 'reality', reality loses.
Allow me this crack, that's all I ask.
- Keved suggestion to add some stairs to the recessed area by shield charger, and clip stairs for smoother traversal.
Well, I agree that you sort of get cornered in that little area and stairs would make tha a non-issue. I honestly left if as-is, just for that reason. Being a hardcore DM player, the duck-jump has become totally second nature. It's one of those little skills that you have to master. To me there is real satisfaction and reward for out maneuvering another player, and although I don't want to 'force' players to use it for normal traversal of the map/route. I do like to incorporate it, when it feels appropriate. To me, that little spot offers a min-risk/reward scenario. It's a somewhat tight spot, and going down there for the shield charger makes you just a tad more vulnerable. The reward just a little sweeter when you are good enough to quickly pop right out and whoop some ass.
As for clipping the stairs, I will try it to see how it feels, but I wonder if 'not' having any jarring when using stairs is going to feel stranger than actually having it. You also get the weird 'standing on air' when looking at other player standing on clip brushes. Like I said, though, maybe this is actually a good idea - I will certainly see how it feels.
I think that's about it. Just about everything else mentioned has been used to make this map better. I sincerely appreciate the help.
