Mystic

By SgtSlaphead
3v3 Strongholds
8.0

Map Description

  1. SgtSlaphead
    Mystic is a small room based all interior map inspired by the Forerunner architecture of Halo CE. The layout features a gravity lift and a teleporter receiver at either end of a horizontal cut through the map, defined by an aligned series of archways. Controlling this line becomes a focal point of game play and this focus is emphasized by the fact that the only way to travel from one end of the map to the other, without giving up top control, is to traverse the middle.

    This design has been developed from my earlier map back in Halo 4 named Cryptic however there are many tweaks and changes with some being quite significant, primarily the addition of a new room which was previously a pair of disconnected corridors.

    A Beam Rifle spawns in the blue teleporter room as a highly effective weapon for use in the longer sight lines on the map and a Plasma Caster spawns in the red lift room which is useful in denying enemy access through doorways or clearing rooms.

    As of now 4v4 requires testing however 2v2 and 3v3 Slayer flows far more dynamically than Cryptic. Strongholds is playable although being tweaked. Currently both teams spawn in either gold or green room with a stronghold and there is also a stronghold in the defensible red lift room. Blue room offers easy access to all three strongholds so locking down this room is important despite its lack of a stronghold. I have played several customs on this map now so I am confident in releasing its current version. Any help testing and feedback towards improving this map is always appreciated.

Recent Reviews

  1. SecretSchnitzel SecretSchnitzel
    8/5,
    See comments in discussion section.
    Dec 28, 2015

Discussion

  1. Xandrith

    Xandrith Promethean
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    Really clean forging and excellent aesthetics as always.

    My only problem with the map is the lack of verticality.

    Unlike CE, the map feels very flat and mostly hallway based. I think you could really spice up gameplay by creating additional height variation within the existing levels. Every window-window and door-door encounter is on the same plane, and I think that could really hurt the maps replay value.
     
    #2 Xandrith, Dec 28, 2015
  2. xRAGEx3675

    xRAGEx3675 Legendary
    Senior Member

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    Really nice looking map.
    But can't seem to find your gamer tag?
     
    #3 xRAGEx3675, Dec 28, 2015
  3. CANADIAN ECHO

    CANADIAN ECHO Promethean
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    This map is awsome!! Ive play it so many times in H4 and never was I disapointed. We should really get a game on this soon buddy!
     
    #4 CANADIAN ECHO, Dec 28, 2015
    SgtSlaphead likes this.
  4. SgtSlaphead

    SgtSlaphead Talented
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    Sgt x Slaphead
     
    #5 SgtSlaphead, Dec 28, 2015
  5. SgtSlaphead

    SgtSlaphead Talented
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    As a fan of Rat Race, I love a good hallway based fight. I will definitely play with more verticality with my other maps but the intention of this map is to provide a straight up controlled Strongholds experience similar to The Rig but without all that swiss cheese BS. I do agree with your point however and will look into new ways I can push this map over past versions.
     
    #6 SgtSlaphead, Dec 28, 2015
    Xandrith and CANADIAN ECHO like this.
  6. Goat

    Goat Rock Paper Scissors Scrap
    Forge Critic Senior Member

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    Geometry is impressive. You nailed the classic Forerunner theme well. I also like how the fog effect only really shows up in the deathpit.

    I'll have to echo Xandrith's comment though about it feeling very flat. The Carbine side is the only area that feels high, while the rest seems a bit short. The rooms also don't interact with one another well so there's a lot of chasing involved. Am not sure how you would address that without redesigning big portions of it though. With all the complex geometry present, it'd be a nightmare for me to make any changes.

    I think you can at least tweak the weapon set to be a bit more competitively viable. Worst case scenario, replace the Binary Rifle with a Power Up.
     
    #7 Goat, Dec 28, 2015
    Xandrith likes this.
  7. SecretSchnitzel

    SecretSchnitzel Donald Trump
    Forge Critic Senior Member

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    Spoken like someone that doesn't know how to play The Rig well. :p

    I like the map, just not keen on the Green Room connection, as we've already talked about. The pathing just feels off... Too winding between the Tele and Main atriums. I really can't put my finger on it yet, but it really irks me.

    That said, yeah, it's a pretty good map. I enjoy playing it. The aesthetics are crisp as usual. Not a fan or the brown, but it works fairly well. And no, you don't own the doors. :p
     
    #8 SecretSchnitzel, Dec 28, 2015
    Xandrith likes this.
  8. Anarchy Kane

    Anarchy Kane Legendary

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    If you have the budget you could probably add some more details.
     
    #9 Anarchy Kane, Dec 28, 2015
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  9. SgtSlaphead

    SgtSlaphead Talented
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    I am trying to maintain clean simple textures and geometry throughout the map but I will look into adding some more detail for sure. The main reason I stopped adding pieces was because the light map was way over 100% and I was freaking out but I recently learned it doesn't seem to matter much.
    --- Double Post Merged, Dec 29, 2015 ---
    Thanks I appreciate that but we really need KotH!
     
    #10 SgtSlaphead, Dec 29, 2015
    Xandrith and CANADIAN ECHO like this.
  10. MartianMallCop

    MartianMallCop Legendary
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    Played the map last night and had a ton of fun with strongholds on it before my internet crapped out. I love the H2 style forerunner aesthetic. Sadly haven't played it enough yet to formulate an opinion yet
     
    #11 MartianMallCop, Dec 30, 2015
  11. SgtSlaphead

    SgtSlaphead Talented
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    Thanks. I haven't tested Strongholds a ton yet but I am constantly tweaking the map. Despite it's relatively small scale I am trying to get a solid fast paced 4v4 Strongholds game working on it. I am not yet convinced the spawning is perfect but when I last played it it didn't seem that much more questionable than a dev map. If you get around to playing it again be sure to get the latest version since I seem to be making some sort of adjustment to the map every hour I am on the game.
     
    #12 SgtSlaphead, Dec 30, 2015
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