Hammer Down [Invasion]

This is something I've been working on for roughly the past month and a half and I finally feel like it's in a presentable enough state for a preview. Before I jump right into this, there's a few things you might want to take note of beforehand:

• This will end up being my first Invasion map once finished
• It is, currently, only set up for Objective Invasion and not Slayer or Skirmish
• Spartans are on offense and Elites are on defense
• This map, and its associated gametype do not feature any Human weapons
• As far as I know, this map has the largest Territories Objective of any Invasion map

I plan on breaking down the last two points in time, but to start off I want point out my two primary goals for this map: An Invasion experience that doesn't feel like the standard fare, and a Covenant only theme. Obviously, there are some problems that become apparent when you set out to create a map and gametype based around one races weapon and vehicle set. How will this make sense from a backstory standpoint? How will the loadouts be diverse for each side and the gameplay varied?

The first problem I had was thinking up a decent storyline to go along with the gameplay. I don't intend for it to be anything other than an excuse plot but all that really matters is the basic framework for an explanation as to why you are here and doing what you're doing. Keep in mind that some imagination is required, as it is with a lot of other Invasion maps, so try to keep an open mind and not nitpick too much when it comes to the story bits. As for weapon diversity, Spartans get access to the Spiker, Hammer, and Concussion Rifle while Elites get to spawn with the Needler, Energy Sword, and Plasma Launcher (Hey, we all need to take risks at some point...) The Elites don't get to use the Needler till the second Phase and the Sword and Plasma Launcher are limited to Phase 3. On the other hand, Spartans get access to the Spiker and Hammer from the get go, but the Concussion Rifle isn't on the map until the last phase. I'm fairly certain I have all the current loadouts balanced well from a theoretical standpoint. However, I still haven't tested them map so all this might be subject to change. Anyway, let's move on to the backstory.

The story goes a little something like this...

Spoiler

A group of Spartans were on a super-classified mission, I'm talking some black operations level **** here, when things went sour. They ended up being captured by Covenant forces and were forced into slave labor at a mining compound on an unknown planet. Now, there's only two things Spartans hate more than the Covenant, slave labor and rocks, so naturally they were all pretty peeved about the situation, but since the cards weren't being played in their favor, they decided to comply until they could form a plan.

The Spartans didn't know what it was they were digging for but they weren't too keen on finding out. The Elites had the compound locked up tight and to prevent any attempts at escape, the Covenant rigged their armor to explode internally if they leave the designated areas. What jerks! After a long time spent digging, the Spartans hit a hard spot in the rocks that could only be removed via high explosives. The Elites constructed a bomb at a nearby work station and just before it could be taken to the mineshaft and used to remove the issue at hand, one of the Spartans went berserk and started killing a lot of the guards. Obviously, he was killed, but his actions caused the remaining Elites to retreat and grab weapons much more suitable for the situation and set up some turrets.

By some magical twist of luck, however, the Elites forgot to grab the bomb leaving the Spartans a perfect opportunity to formulate a quick plan to get the **** outta there. Phase One is to make a rush for it and blow up the generator powering the gate that separates the quarry and the rest of the compound. Destroying this generator will also extend the range of where they can go without the explosives in their suits detonating to the radius of the entire compound.

Phase Two is to steal the energy core powering the servers in the Covenants Command Center and bring it to the generator on the other side of the gate that powers the long range supply teleporter in the center of the compound. If the Spartans teleport far enough away from the planet, the explosives in their suit will not activate. The reason why is a very long explanation filled with a lot of scientific stuff, but in the end, it all boils down to nanomachines.

Phase Three is bound to be the toughest for them. Keep the Elites out of the teleporter and wait for it to activate. Not only do the Spartans not want the Elites to teleport with them to their destination, they made it physically impossible for the Elites to use the teleporter at all. When the Spartans put the core into the generator and power it on, it will overload it and will not only keep the Elites from using the teleporter, but it also makes the teleporters countdown stall out if any Elites are inside of it while it's powering up. The reasons as to why this all happened has to do with some totally complex scientific ****. Like, DNA signatures, body mass, stuff like that.

With nothing but the mining equipment (Hammers and Spikers) given to them, which, ironically, can be very potent weapons in the right hands, and any weapons they can salvage from the Covenant, the odds are against them. Failing to complete the mission will lead to their deaths at the hands of the enemy, but anything is better than being stuck digging for the rest of your life.

Phew, what a read. Anyways, let's move right on to the good stuff. The screenshots.

Here's an overview of the first phase area: The Quarry. I used a grid as the gate for economical purposes. If you're not a fan of grids, don't worry. I'm not a fan either but we all need to make sacrifices some times.


This is the Spartans spawn area: The Mineshaft. There are two ways out of it. One is through the shield door that leads right into the canyon area and the other is a lift that takes you up to Alaska. More on that later.


This is the bomb spawn: The Workbench. I decided to put the bomb in the midfield position in exchange for it being impossible to disarm. As of this writing, it takes 30 seconds to arm the bomb, followed by a 10 second countdown before it explodes and the next phase starts.


An overhead shot of the two ways out of the Mineshaft. The lift takes you straight up to Alaska and the story element tied to it is that it's used to remove large rocks from the mines quickly without having to sacrifice manpower. The lift is not flawless, however, and doesn't consistently launch you the same height every time. You may take fall damage when landing and you may not. You're also very vulnerable and much more noticeable when airborne.


Here's a Spartan arming the bomb. You don't have a lot of leg room inside the radius, but the Elites will need to physically leave their platform to kill you if you're on this side of the generator. The bombs melee isn't an instant-kill, so you'll need to rely on your team to protect you.


This is what happens once the bomb is armed and detonated, obviously. The explosion won't kill you, so stand as close as you'd like. You know, in case you wanted to look like a badass or something.


An overhead shot of the second and third phase area: The Compound. The big circle structure in the center is the Long Range Supply Teleporter. To the right of it is its generator, which is connected to it via pipes (don't want loose wires running around!) The generator is also connected to the gate, which was powered down last phase. The structure in the upper left of the picture is the Command Center.


The interior of the Command Center. This is where the core spawns. It's connected to some servers and keeps them powered on. **** servers, though. Using the core for the Teleporter is much more important.


This is where you take the core, a module that absorbs its power to turn on the generator connected to the Teleporter. It absorbs the cores power and makes it disappear because of nanomachines or something.


Green means go! The Teleporter is online. Now you just need to get in there and keep the Elites out of it.


A view of the final objective. It's pretty big, but to help you defend it is a Wraith that spawns at the final phase. Keep the Elites out for 30 seconds and you're home free. Currently, the float time is set to 15 seconds, so the Elites can push you back to half way if you don't have your **** together.


Oh yeah, and the Wraith can't leave the territory. Also, any Spartans in the Wraith that are the only ones inside the territory won't trigger the countdown, nor will any Elites in a vehicle inside the territory stall it out.


Man, what a write up. Any comments, questions, concerns, or feedback whether it's negative or positive is appreciated. I don't know when I'll start testing this or when it will be ready for posting but I'm sure it'll be totally awesome when it's finished.

Thanks for reading.

 

Not like it'll survive long enough to begin with considering how Elites have a class with a Plasma Launcher on the same phase. I tried to compensate for this by giving said class no grenades and making the Wraith spawn incredibly fast (45 seconds.)

Also, the height of the rim in the dish goes up to I believe chest height. A Revenant and Ghost can get out with a little bit of tweaking.

 

I'm on pretty much 24/7 considering I don't work or go to school.

Ironically, I can't get on right now, but I just showed the map and gametype to Ace and if you REALLY want to see it right this moment, you can try and ask him to show it to you.

Oh, and I'll probably begin testing this mother either mid-week or the weekend. I'm not 100% sure on the exact date though I might throw it up in the Testers Guild despite not expecting anything out of it. I really want to take as much feedback as I can get from a variety of different people to make absolutely sure there's something for everyone to enjoy on this.

 

Sounds good to me. I just bought a 3-month so go ahead and add the gamertag over to the left there. I just need a good time frame for it and would like to at least get a group of people together that wouldn't mind playing the same map a few times (though not in a row) and stick around for a while so I can make changes on the fly if necessary.