Hi recently I have been searching around maps and I've noticed many maps on this forum have bad weapon or vehicle layouts so i decided to post a tutorial for anybody who is new to forge or is just generally confused about weapons. OK with that out of the way lets get on with this tutorial. Weapons Weapons in general In any form of competitive map weapons need to have good placements to prevent teams having advantages or people camping the weapon spawns on your map. To make this tutorial less complex i am providing a key to what classes as a power weapon: Power-Weapons: Rocket launcher, shotgun, sniper rifle, gravity hammer, energy sword, and any other weapon which can kill a person in one shot. Semi-Power-Weapons: any weapon slightly more powerful than the default Spartan and/or Elite weapons(Plasma rifle, pistol, assault rifle etc.) these weapons include the DMR, the needle rifle, the needler, focus rifle, the plasma repeater, concussion rifle and even the plasma pistol due to its high EMP damage. Default Weapons: Weapons which you tend to spawn with like the assault rifle, the pistol, the plasma rifle etc. As a general rule power-weapons should not be situated at there vantage points (you should not place weapons like the shotgun in enclosed tunnel areas or the sniper up high). This is because players will camp the vantage points if they don't have to work to get there. You do not want a player to pick up the sniper at a snipers nest as they do not have to fight to get there, if a player has to travel to reach the vantage points they can be stopped by other players rather than being an unstoppable force at the top of their sniper nest or in their small enclosed rooms and tunnels. Never have too many power weapons. Keep spare clips at two or below. Weapons on symmetrical team based maps On symmetrical team based maps you are going to want fair play for all players so try to not put initial spawns too close to any power weapons (Rocket launcher, Sniper, Shotgun, Pro-pipe/grenade launcher/noob tube etc.). Try to make all weapons included in one base included in the same spots as the ones at the other base. This therefore means there should be the same weapons in each base. Doing all of this will provide fair game play for every player. Power weapons which you may want to have in the centre must be in the exact centre otherwise one team will have the advantage. Weapons on asymmetrical team based maps On asymmetrical team based maps you still want to provide fair play the same way as above however to centre weapons you must run from the closest spawn at either base to the weapon, time how long it takes you going from either bases closest spawn. If the time is the same from either base keep the weapon in the same place, if one side gets there faster you should move the weapon to a place where it is perfectly centred. or should you have a weapon at one side of a map make sure it is well balanced with the other side e.g. plasma rifle-assault rifle, needler/needle rifle-DMR (<-- seems like a weird counterpart for the needler but don't worry it plays well) if you want any more weapon counterparts tell me the weapon in a comment and why you need a counterpart for it. in your comment also give some constructive criticism of the article. Weapons on FFA maps On FFA maps you need a variety of different weapons but you have to be careful not to place too many power weapons include at most four power weapons put them on high respawn times and refrain from putting all the power weapons in one area. On FFA the spare clips should be low as the last thing you want is a guy spamming the rocket launcher or a sniper on a killing frenzy. Vehicles Vehicles in general With vehicles you should balance them as though they are power weapons and put them in select areas and give them high respawn times. Do not place too many vehicles on a map and think, `Do you actually need a _____ there`. if your map is aimed at aerial combat incorporate maybe a falcon or a banshee at either side. always place vehicles which suit the maps play style e.g. include a easy to manoeuvre vehicle if the map is full of obstacles; If the map is open include vehicles like the mongoose, the warthog and other vehicles alike. Vehicles on team-based maps On team-based maps always include balanced vehicles if it is symmetrical have the same vehicles at either side in the same placements and with the same respawn times. on asymmetrical maps balance it like halo 3's last resort and balance some vehicles with power weapons. That's all i know about weapons and vehicles i hope i've helped and i look forward to see maps which have used this theory in the future. Please leave constructive criticism below. Wrek P.S. Sorry for the wall of text. However don't refrain to read the article.
I would go through and add everything that you left out, fix all of the small mistakes, and make it all look pretty myself but i simply don't have the time to sit here writing for 30 some-odd hours. So i'll just comment on this, which i feel needs a lot of help. While it is true that you should never put a weapon in its most power/useful location, you should also never put it somewhere that nullifies its use. When you add a weapon it can do several things for your map; 1) add weight to a specific area, 2) create a point of interest, and 3) modify the overall flow of the map slightly. That is movement. It can also have effects on gameplay that may or may not be beneficial, like giving one team an advantage for an extended period of time. If you place a weapon that you feel is underused then there are some things you could do to fix it. First you could make the area its located more pretty, and focalize the weapon causing it to be more noticeable subconsciously. Second, you could move it into a more heavily trafficed area. Thirdly, you could put it somewhere that it is more useful. Putting a weapon far away from its prime location is good that it keeps the weapon from being overpowered, but unfortunately it causes the weapon to become underpowered. You always want to put a weapon near its prime location. Not in, near. A wonderful example is the sniper in guardian (yes, halo three reference because honestly the placement in reach is **** so far.) It is kept at the BOTTOM of the snipe tower, a short distance away from the most useful location of the weapon. The sniper isn't OP or anything, its actually brilliantly located and brilliantly balanced You also made no mention of other things that can have a huge effect on the weapon, like where other weapons are located or how HUGE of an effect the advanced settings such as ammo and respawn time can have. This guide may be for Halo: 3, but most of it does translate really well over to Reach. You should take a look and make sure you get all of the topics covered, because it all relates together. This is really good, it just needs a little beef. I think you know what i mean
thanks for the tip yo yo ill consider posting a later more updated article but i dont think i really need to if there is already an article around. oh well ill just keep trying and if i find anything new ill do what you say and add more beef! EDIT: i'm also making a new map at the moment so ill use your tips and that guide to help me; ill see how it turns out eh?
What she said. ^ Basically, your post is filled with rules that need not always apply. Sometimes, a bit of unbalancing for both teams can actually go a long way towards giving your map a unique form of balancing. Another thing I just thought of is the "Power weapons should be an equal time away from both teams" thing. Sometimes, you can actually have one team get to a power weapon faster if the other team has a long line of sight on said weapon, or if the other team can easily get to a position that nullifies the power weapon in the same amount of time and with the same ease it takes the first team to get to the weapon. An example of this would be Blue Team spawning slightly farther away from the Sword, but having the sword be accessible to them through a field full of cover. Red team could have the Sword be more quickly accessible to them, but through a route that invlolves little or no cover. If both teams also get a fairly high vantage point from their base, this will give Blue team a chance to work together, communicate, and snatch the Sword way easier than Red team ever could have. Assuming Blue team is defending, this will be an improvement, as they can only Sword-camp their base if they show the amount of skill and dedication required to nab the Sword in the first place. If you abide by cookie-cutter rules, you'll make good maps. If you experiment with your own rules that make sense to you, you can creat great maps. Cheers, HarisSales.
What also should be considered is not just initial spawns in terms of weapon placement, but respawns as well. Since respawns may be a lot closer to weapons in the map than initial spawns, they take on a whole different set of advisory rules. Sure, it differs from map to map, but respawns have a HUGE effect on how a game feels, and their placement in correlation to weapons can make or break a map as well.