Structures/Buildings Advice

I reccommend placing a pre-fab structure close to what you want down; then add objects to make something similar but with your own ideas, eventually deleting the pre-fab item. It's what im doing on my lockout inspired map. I placed together the Room Triple with BR Tower; then started building something of a mix between the two.

Hope that makes sense...

 

This list always helps me choose pieces.

 

As easy as it is to make maps in Halo's Forge editor (it's probably the easiest map editor ever made for an FPS game), it still takes creativity, knowledge of all aspects of Halo 4 gameplay, FPS map creating/editing knowledge, artistic skill/talent, etc. etc. So it's really not easy to make a map that looks aesthetically great nor is it easy to make a map that plays great too. The only thing that is easy is to throw down pieces and stack blocks like you're playing with digital legos, but it's not going to come out unique.

Some tips that can help are to first practice making maps and structures. The more you use forge the better you will get. Learn each forge piece by opening a blank forge map and placing all the pieces in the air so you can view them just by moving around in monitor mode. Eventually you will know all the pieces and you won't have to go looking through the list to find a certain object you need for every piece you want to lay down. I've been doing that since Halo 3 when I start a map even though I have all the pieces memorized, I don't know the textures of each piece and all sides so you do have to look through the list still after they are memorized. You don't have to lay out every piece available but it's what I do. However, once you start building the map you're going to have to start deleting what you laid out to look at, as it does take a large portion of the budget to do that.

It's also not good to just "only use" pieces the way they were intended. For example, a building structure piece was intended to just be placed down on the ground and that's it. There are other creative ways you could use that piece, like if the bottom of it has a nice design you can flip it upside down and use it as flooring. You're only limited by your imagination, for the most part. Of course there are limitations and restrictions in Forge but over the years I have seen some really creative ways people have used forge objects and the best stuff is always using pieces like that so it looks different and unique. UNSC Building 2 (I think that's the one) on the Impact map has a nice bottom with a dark color that could be used for a unique flooring of a hallway or something. Although they are $150 each for budget... but this is just an example. Don't be afraid to flip stuff upside down and all around or push most of the object in the ground so you can just have a small portion of it being visible.

Another good thing to do is look at real structures and architecture in real life, movies, other video games, etc. and try to replicate them with forge objects. It's not easy to just think of a complex building design and freestyle it from scratch. Use inspiration from other sources.

Also, I learned the hard way to never start making a map without a foundation of the layout pre-planned. It's best to do something like draw a blueprint or make one in photoshop or something. Just so you know basically what the map is going to look like before you start. Otherwise you will end up wasting a lot of time building and deleting and rebuilding. I have spent countless hours on maps that I freestyled only to find out by the time I was almost done that they didn't play very well, just looked pretty. Gameplay and Aesthetics are both important... gameplay is probably more important because without that, the map is only for looks. I would say focus on gameplay first, then touch up with aesthetics to make it look good.

 

One thing I typically do to make structures is think about what makes a building/platform believable. Nice thick walls give a sense of visual weight and a sturdy building. If you have a bridge, how is it held up? columns may be a way to go, providing both visual stability and cover. Another method if you don't need cover is to use ramps underneath the places that the bridge touches the walls, flipped upside down. Should you come across an area where you need an LoS blocker, don't just slap a wall in the area. Make a structure. That area might be inhabited by a small platform, a tunnel, or perhaps a rock formation.

EDIT:Here are some good visual references:

Narrows: Halo 3.

Spoiler

Narrows is a very floaty map, but on each end there is a really strong sense of structure. You can tell that the bridge is held up well because of the thick braces and heavy support beams. The thick walls also give a sense of security in architecture. The bridge itself also is not thin, it's very beefy and has tons of visual weight. If the buildings on each end were small it would look dumb and disproportional, a structure who could not possibly be held up in reality.

The Hagia Sophia: Turkey (Istanbul)

Spoiler

The Hagia Sophia remains a wondrous feat of 4th century Byzantine architecture to this day. It has changed hands a few times, but it is renowned for its beauty worldwide. This may seem to be too vastly different from Halo, but think about structure. You have a heavy dome, how do you keep it from collapsing? You add pillars in the entryways, you thn the dome out so it doesnt weigh so much. How do you make those four pillars (the minarets) sturdy? You make them thick, so no wind could ever topple them. These ideas can be applied to Halo forge easily. Make a big thing, figure out how to visually make it sturdy. For the windows, there is a method and math to where they are placed, making it so no area is weak while still letting in light (In contrast, the Roman Basilica structures were made mostly of walls and let in nearly or no light. These were very sturdy, but far less beautiful).

I hope this has helped in some way. I'll answer anything if you have questions.

 

^ This is a whole lot better than what I saw before.

You already mentioned the first issue, the floor you have is not a good floor. I actually found a small invisible wall that I couldn't walk through once. Use something else.

Are the railings needed? If it's the top of a building it's likely a somewhat powerful position. I would imagine that someone looking from the grass couldn't see their attacker if they were up there. Either that, or it would take less than a second to just back up and be 100% safe. With the railings, the sandbag wall seems redundant.

The chairs in the lower floor seem like I would get tripped up on them.

The wall in the first image coming toward me looks like it should extend to meet another structure, and I really think the ramp wall is a good touch. That makes it far more interesting to look at.

This again is much better than before.

 

That isn't supposed to be done, is it? You have one structure and a boring premade disc building.

Also, it's the Hagia Sofia, and of course it's nice. it's the Hagia Sofia.

 

Practice man, practice. Most times I will just go into forge and think about a map theme and start creating random structures that could fit into the theme. i.e If you want to make an urban map just go into forge and just start working on one structure at a time with whatever comes to mind and don't worry about it being a map. Before you know it you'll have a few buildings with solid designs and more ideas start coming to your mind on how you can add to them and connect them all into a map. If not, just keep experimenting and practicing.

Edit: Also one thing to keep in mind once your designs start flowing easier is 2-3 entrances/exits to every room or area. If it is a 2v2 then rooms should be kinda small but if it's a 4v4 rooms should be rather large. It's all about fitting your entire team into any playable area on the map to where they are comfortable in that space. You don't want it to be to small or to big.

 

Already looks a lot better! I agree, the wall next to the ramp looks a little off and doesn't compliment the building next to it, I think your structure will look better without it.