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MOTM, Other Competitions, and more, oh my!

03 of November 2007 10:36 PM

Posted by:Nightmarjoo

Ok, big newspost coming!
To start, Map Of The Month for October!

img removed due to size, please follow link /Starparty

That screenshot was taken at 3:26 pm EST November 3rd 2007. There is a tie between (3)Paranoid Android and (2)Sound Barrier. Now, people could change their votes to any outcome, but I think the two maps would remain pretty close in vote. There were a lot of maps this motm, so I don't think it'll hurt to post 4 maps instead of 2 or 3 or whatever :)

In no particular order, flothefreak's remake of Radix's Sound Barrier, and Testbug's Paranoid Android for three players are our first place-tied maps!

Here is our own fuhrer's great execution of Radix's concept, Sound Barrier! This map is quite unique in its approach to a 2 player map. In the center of this map lies an 'S' of neutral buildings dividing the two players from one another. This 'S' is mostly made up of 2000 hp PsiDisruptors, with two power generators in the center of the 'S', and in 4 other locations a single power generator. These power generators complete the wall, but are easily removed. At a first glance, this map might look like it will play like an island map at first, just like Arkanoid. I assure you, the map is no more an island map than my mother is! The power generators will fall easily allowing for any kind of early game strategy you can think of, and the psi disruptors will fall not long after (if players choose to open them). The 'S' tightens the middle considerably, but the rest of the map is quite open, sporting strategically placed chokes as any good map might. There are expos all over the map, ensuring games lasting as long as you need. The map might seem quite macroish at a glance, but inability to scout initially can create a myriad of possibilities strategically to keep players on their toes. In addition to that, a cliff overlooking the nat also can create great harassment opportunities.
This map is definitely worth playing: with its great execution of a unique concept, the map finds itself amidst the other great maps in motw and motm!
Spam its thread here, grab the map here and its observer version here. Congratulations long-time-mapper flo for snagging another Map of The Something win!

Here we have Testbug's Paranoid Android for three players! Testbug is known throughout bwm as the (3)map-maker, he is just, good at making 3 player maps, which is no small feat. Testbug making an epic 3player map which wins motm isn't anything new now, but what is new is how he did it. Who'd have thought to take a well-known two player wcg map, Paranoid Android, and remaking it for three players?
At a first glance, it looks nothing like PA, except that it's twilight! But look closer! Testbug took PA's expo layout and redid it on a larger map for three players. The effect is great: even with the same expo layout, and several of PA's concepts such as the backdoor path from the nat through the min only, the gameplay is completely different. The backdoor should keep players trying to 100% macro their way through this seemingly macro map on their toes. Small bridges provide paths to the other players, just as in PA. Instead of a larger bridge to complement the smaller one, testbug uses a piece of land, ideal for the many battles and skirmishes the map will boast. These bridges create great strategic chokes, and can buy time to make the difference in a game. With PA's expo layout, great execution of a three player map, and testbug's magical decoration, this map is surely worth playing. You know the map must be good when it ties with a map of Flothefreak!
Spam its thread here, grab the map itself here, and add its observer version to your utility belt in this link (bet you thought I'd say "here" again!)

Here's our second place for MOTM, Flothefreak's FrostyFortress! This map at one point was in first place, so you know it's got to be good as well. What kind of map can compete with that of flo and testbug? Another map of flo's!
First time you look at this map, you might wonder, what the hell is so special about this map? It's just another macro map, only on 128x64, with short distances, a very intelligently placed expo layout, great execution and design... oh, that's what's great about it! This map has a macro-map's expo layout, and a micro-map's design all put together. The distances are so short, that you're guaranteed to have a lot of back-and-forth action. It's easy to reinforce your army, but also easy for your enemy to increase his army's size quickly at the same time. Make a mistake, retreat, or be pushed back, and the enemy is at your door step! The distances create a need to micro your army well: every unit can make the difference from winning or losing the battle, and you can't just lose a battle, go home and turtle to max again. Try turtling, and you give your enemy a lot of money. Blindly waste units, and your enemy crosses the map in five seconds to get to you. Once he's near you, your nearby production has him pushed back again. Every skirmish could gain or lose an expo. This map encourages fierce combat with its macro and micro aspect.
The map may not be perfect, but its great and exciting gameplay makes it well worth playing, and well worth the nearly prestigious second place for MOTM!
Spam its thread, download the map and the observer version.

Here is Protoss4ever's Rise of Teosomething! The map features a unique concept with great looks! Similar to the korean map, Nemesis, this map features mains which are in the corners, but not against the edge of the map, they're towards the middle a bit, and with their nats behind them, against the edge of the map where the main might normally be. These nats are much larger than in Nemesis, and have two entrances which don't lead to/from the mains, which are blocked by two neutral xel naga temples each. The expos outside of the main and nat are positioned in the compass directions (NSWE) against the edge of the map. They are between each player, so they are 'neutral' expos, not clearly owned by any one player. This makes them great to fight over, encouraging agressive gameplay instead of boring mass to max and go macro gameplay. You can't just take the expos in your corner, because the map has a neat expo layout. The map's expo layout almost reminds me of Dalhia of Jungle, but the mains are in the corners and the expos in compass directions.
This map looks great, and has a unique concept with decent execution, easily getting this MOTM's third place.
Thread Map Obs Version

And now for something completely different! MOTM is a great part of bwm, but the other competitions are nice too, for they encourage the making of maps with unique features or concepts.
Time to end Nightmarjoo's no-end competitions!

For the first Nightmarjoo's Random Map Competition, Flothefreak's SnowShock takes the win. To refresh your memories and enlighten those who didn't see the competition, the idea for this competition was to make the most natural-looking map possible. You should be able to open up the map, look around, and think to yourself "gee, I can imagine a planet looking like this!". The competition also was looking for good gameplay in addition, figuring that anyone can make a really pretty map. SnowShock has both great gameplay and a great, natural appearance. This map is an example of why flo is considered such a good mapper here. SnowShock features a gasless nat, and a backdoor gas-only expo. This delays your gas if you take the nat first, or delays your minerals if you take the 2nd gas first. The nat has an overlooking cliff, and the middle gas expos have a path behind them as well, encouraging harass. The expo layout outside of the nat is fairly compatible with all mus, and the two gas expos are not clearly owned by either player, encouraging players to pick their battlefield and fight eachother. Neutral crystal formations block a path which terrain normally can't because of how ice terrain works. The gasless nat and backdoor gas help combat the map's limited space, ensuring the map is by no means too tight. Great execution of a unique concept is what it takes to win a competition, and flo is known for great execution of unique concepts :)
Thread Map Obs

For this competition, the map I liked the second most was Nureru's (3)Venus Illegitima. The map was not as well decorated as flo's, but flo is a much more experienced mapper so I wouldn't expect it to be the same. The map lacked a little execution imo, but I liked the concept, and that it came from a fairly new mapper (at the time). The map features a double gas main, backdoor expo with gas, and a gasless nat. This is unique because double gas mains aren't that common, and the main is lowground with the expos on highground, and usually it's the other way around. A highground nat with lowground main can sometimes make it difficult to get up to the nat, but the backdoor expo or the double gas main gets rid of that potential problem. The middle is nice and open, ensuring that the gas-rich nature of the map doesn't hurt gameplay. Outside of the nat though, the expo layout is not as nicely done. The highgruond middle expos are somewhat neutral, and somewhat not, and the two lowground corner expos are kind of poorly done; there's a general lack of positional balance with the rest of the expo layout. This map could use some improvement, and imo is worth the time. I think this is a great idea of a map, but it just wasn't made with top-tier execution.

Testbug's Endless Fields is the winner of the second competition. The map is a great map, it's even a motm. The idea behind this competition was for mappers to create a world which looked like colonized natural world. That is, that the map would look like it was a natural world worthy of the first competition, and then it was settled/colonized/terraformed by people. This was a harder to-do competition, and I think I explained it poorly initially. Flo gave a try at this one, but I wasn't convinced by his map visually, and didn't really like map itself. When I opened Endless Fields in starcraft, it was like, wow. Testbug's use of terrain hit the natural look very well, he always does that. The map looks just as if the protoss or whoever showed up on this natural world and erected their temples all over the world, walling-in the precious resources. This is pretty much just what I wanted for this competition. The map has competition-winning-worthy aesthetics and layout, and motm-winning-worthy concept and gameplay. What more can you ask of a map?
I'm tired of writing Thread and Map, and wonder where the Obs Version is.

Holy Crap More Stuff!
A front page reminder and note: For those of you who want your maps tested, and/or want to play on other bwm maps, op bwmn in europe has a bot running in it and stuff to encourage use. Tell all your friends about it, op bwmn on europe! There are several threads in the forum about bwm mappers' msn/aim/bnet screennames, so you have no excuse to not test your maps!

The Awesome Panschk has opened up a starcraft 2 forum, it's below "off topic" and above "search forum", and about directly across from the two tabs for Broodwar.de and sc.gosugamers.net on the left side. Feel free to talk about sc2 here. Discuss what you want to happen with bwm once sc2 comes out, what ideas you want for the new sc2 mapping site which will ensue sc2 coming out.

Congratulations to all the above-mentioned mappers, in no particular order: Nureru, Flothefreak, Testbug, Protoss4ever, and Radix!
And kudos for Nightmarjoo for typing all of this up, and to Panshck for being amazing as always!

Comments:

Nightmarjoo
I strongly reccomend reading this in parts, and not like, all at once lol.
panschk[FP]
Well, if people can read a whole harry potter book, then they can read that newspost too;P Great post. Maybe you should just split it in 2 or 3 seperate newsposts next time, it doesnt matter if you post them in 2 minute interval. btw, did you write it at once or did you prepare it in an Editor or something? I could imagine some frustration if a post like that gets lost because of some problem with the page :D
ptar
!!! Congratulations to all winners !!! And thx to Joel for writing this text :)
spinesheath
Wow, you sure got lots of free time Oo
Nightmarjoo
I actually wrote it all in the newspost box. Knowing before-hand how long it would be, I probably should have written it in notepad or something lol. You've seen my many really long posts, and not a few of them are retypes where I accidently clicked a link, or hit back, or something stupid^^ lol spines, my life for bwm!
Testbug
lol you were very nice, the way you wrote it, you should be a comunicator, it's quite fun to read you nightmarjoo. this is what i'm talking about: -"Rise of Teosomething" -"Testbug making an epic 3player map which wins motm isn't anything new now, but what is new is how he did it" -"...and add its observer version to your utility belt in this link (bet you thought I'd say "here" again!)" best commenting ever!
Nightmarjoo
lol :) Read some of my older motw posts, they usually all have funny lines like that :)
Nureru
Rise of Teosomething was great. Also, I would not envy having to re-type all that.
flothefreak
great newspost, excellent work! i really appreciate what effort you put into it! nightmarjoo ftw :)
ProTosS4EveR
Marjoo won't never learn how to write teotihuacan... ='(
Nightmarjoo
Thanks guys :) lol <3 P4ver: teotihuacan, there I said it! :D
Testbug
nooh, you copy/pasted it :->
ProTosS4EveR
rofl, for sure you copy/pasted it! xD

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