Hello fellow cartographers, and welcome to my first map made using Halo: Reach's forge. Essence is a symmetrical 4v4 map constructed in the Quarry of Forge World. The map started as an idea in my head to make a center structure with a lowered center, instead of a raised center like most maps have. This was a somewhat difficult concept to build around, as it was going to be naturally prone to provide long lines of sight across the map. I used a good amount of my resources to help limit the lines of sight across the map, whether it be with the large, vertical blocks placed in key area, large columns, or even the railings used to line the center of the map. Supported Gametypes Weapons Energy Sword - x1 - 180 sec Sniper Rifle - x2 - 120 sec - 1 spare clip Plasma Pistol - x2 - 90 sec Needle Rifle - x4 - 30 sec - 2 spare clips Grenade Launcher - x1 - 105 sec - 3 spare clips DMR - x2 - 30 sec - 2 spare clips Rocket Launcher - x1 - 90 sec - 0 spare clips Frag Grenade - x2 - 15 sec Plasma Grenade - x6 - 45 sec Map Images Many thanks are sent out to MultiLockOn for beautifully photoshopping the thread and to all of my testers who played the map many, many times. Also, thanks to Vyctoriouz who kept complaining about the framerate lag across the center of the map. That convinced me to keep trying to fix it.
Yet another amazing map without replies. Ace, you know how much I love this map, so I'll just go ahead and spell out my love for the rest of the community. I ****ING LOVE THIS MAP. Good luck in forgetacular, I'd love to see more maps like this get into matchmaking.
Seriously Ace, this map was finished so early in Reach's release and it baffles me. I don't know how you managed to but it played fantastic the very first testing session that you placed this in our lobby. Congrats on another amazing map bro.
Forum policy. If we allow users to edit them, some people will go overboard and make the forum crowded with obnoxious flashy editing, instead of a neat and uniform look. Your map should do the talking for itself.
Glad to see this finally got released. I love the lines of sight on this map, they allow for each weapon to have areas of optimum range, but none are too powerful. At the same time the cover of the map seems to allow players to easily back down or drop down when under heavy fire, forcing careful tactical moves for bold offensive players. My only complaint is a nagging one: there is some slight z-fighting in a few places, including the blocks right in front of the red initial spawn points. Also at the sword spawn I'm sure you wanted to keep the blocks at an even height but i think it would look better if you slightly lowered the two that make a v-shape over the other blocks so it looks more clean. Just an opinion though. Nice map, in both design and execution.
I rather enjoyed testing this map when it was submitted to the guild, and I was looking forward to it's release. As I remember, there wasn't a lot to address in terms of fixing the map back then... but I don't doubt for a second you just let the testing get sloppy. I look forward to playing this map again
Hey Ace, its nice to see you finaly post a map my buddy diffently inv me next time your on. Also inv me to check out some of you other maps
Haha thanks man and thanks for your support throughout testing. Ah, remember the first testing game where you went rampant with the sword that I had forgotten to change off of a 30 second respawn? Good times. Thanks for all the advice and stuff. Thanks dude. I'll see what I can do with the Z-fighting... I seemed to have passed that up. I'd rather have a smooth, gameplay optimal surface than one that looks pretty. The flooring doesn't look too bad anyway. Thanks for the initial review from the TG man, it really helped. I very much took into consideration the advice that you gave and that really helped make the weapon placement what it is today. Haha, yeah man, I've been procrastinating on posting maps for a while. I need to play Reach with you dude, especially since you need to play Dream On II with me.
Played some customs in this a few nights ago. Map played very well, was fairly easy to navigate and felt balanced to me. Over all it was an enjoyable experience and I wouldn't mind playing on it again.
played some 4v4 with mlg settings on this last night. personally i would have like it more with regular settings because im not used to mlg at all but that is besides the point. i thought this map was really great. the LOS kick ass, and even in only the one game we played, multiple strategies for flag capturing came to light. overall, it was a great and well-balanced map. i saved it immediately and will be enjoying more games on it in the future. great job man. its also awesome that this was your first reach map (as i was told) which makes it all the more impressive to me.
This looks like a terrific map. Everything looks neatly forged. I don't see many aesthetics from the pictures, which tells me this map is probably best for gameplay. Although, it wouldn't hurt to have SOME aesthetics. Overall, this map looks beautiful and the name is cool as well. Good work.
Essence Forgers are always on the lookout for a new recipe for success. A recipe whose finished product captures the true essence of what players are looking for in a competitive map. These days, most maps derive their core mechanics from concepts that have been exhausted, and in a feral attempt to make it their own the creator often dilutes, over complicates, or entirely loses the original vision. The exact opposite can be said about Essence. While simple in nature, it sticks to what works best in a competitive map, and despite the lack of originality Essence possesses the key fundamentals to making a map simply fun to play. There are many factors regarding specific weaponry and structure that also add an increased depth to Essence's playability. Discreet elevation changes allow the Sniper to be an exhilarating weapon of choice. Furthermore, the sub-room-based layout creates an efficient environment for the energy sword as well, so that its appetite for destruction is merely satiated, and not over-fed. Breaking from the pure Slayer experience, Essence plays objective gametypes well. Multi Flag stands out among those as a wise choice. The intertwining paths and rooms are not too easy or too difficult to transport a flag across safely, but teamwork and clever traversal of the map is necessary to be successful in the game. Other gametypes did not work quite as nicely, but FFA Oddball and KotH were other fun options. As mentioned before, a map does not have to reinvent the wheel to be fun. While it may not introduce anything with a "new car smell", but a used Maserati is still fun to drive. Weapon placement on Essence has a debatable stance when it comes to being balanced. In the case of weapon placement in comparison to map flow forms a beautiful relationship. A prime example is the Rocket spawn. A secluded, wayward area that would for no other reason be traversed is given meaning because of the Rocket Launcher. As players begin to frequent that spot they begin to realize that it can be a subtle flanking advantage if used properly. Domination of the map with the Sniper Rifle is another issue to call to question. The sniper rifle has the ability to completely dominate Top-mid if the opposite sniper becomes incapacitated. In slayer games especially, this can result in the spawn trapping of an entire team in their own base. Yet, despite its dominance, something would be missing if the sniper were removed entirely from Essence. Its presence is almost necessary. A few more discreet Line of Sight blockers would have been appropriate. However, in terms of balance, the sniper seemed to be the only smudge on a nearly spotless map. Thanks to the symmetrical nature of the map, everything regarding layout and weapon placement is balanced quite nicely. No team has an unfair advantage by taking a particular path as the other team could simply perform the same maneuver. Essence has three sides that do not even shine the light of day. The fourth side hangs over a cliff and provides no fruitful escape of the map. It is not possible to break the map under the recommended gametypes. Essence cannot sustain a full 4v4 without minor incidents occuring from time to time. Essence's spawn system is perfectly functional for anything short of a 4v4. When filled to maximum capacity, seams start to rip, and suddenly opposing team Spartans appear less than two feet out of harm's way. These issues arise mainly from the lack of spawns. Reach's spawn system functions far differently than Halo 3. It often seems that a plethora of spawns peppered around the map perform better than the sparse groups which can be found on Essence. The vast majority of the time there are no issues. Only when certain areas are pushed and probed do spawning issues ever become obvious. Essence exhibits the attributes that make for a great playing map. The unison of object placement, cleanliness and simplicity of the layout all make for a great competitive environment. The attention to creating great gameplay caused Essence to sacrifice quite a bit of visual appeal. It should be understood that a lot of what could have been done with the aesthetic appeal was not done to prevent the menace known as framerate lag that plagues overly fancy maps. As a result, many of the aesthetic structures that make up Essence are dull and uninteresting. This is not to say that Essence did not have any aesthetic prowess. The clean and sleek design of the map has its own special appeal to the eye, and the Tunnel, Short doors on the lower levels stand out as something of a definitive aesthetic piece. As late as this map came in to Reach it is strange that the futuristic tunnel doors had rarely been seen prior to this map's release. The Rocket Spawn, while not magnificent, acquires some beauty mostly because of it being the only area with an outside view. The structure around the Sword spawn possesses a unique aura in that it is not particularly astounding to look at but it somehow still catches the eye, and that is clever when it comes to spotting the plasma blade that shares its presence. Aesthetic pieces like that help the player become quickly oriented with the map. Despite having been released just before the Forgetacular contest ended, the reality is that Essence had been under construction since the beginning of Reach, and its belated release was only due to a rigorous amount of play testing. Keeping this in mind, certain object usages and other aspects can be regarded with a slightly higher respect. So many maps are built around the concept of a "Raised" center. In Essence, the opposite is true. The center of the map is a stairway enclosed by railings and ledges, which creates a much more "Open" environment throughout the map. The concept is certainly more original than many that have been seen as of late, simple as it may be. As mentioned, the layout of Essence sticks to what works. However, this is the section where sticking to what works is slightly punished. The layout is not spectacular and yields nothing groundbreaking in terms of gameplay. Additionally, the aesthetics, or lack thereof, don't help with adding any sort of "Spice" to the mix. Rating Multipliers [floatleft]Enjoyment: Balance: Durability: Aesthetic : Originality:[/floatleft]9 x 3.0 = 27 out of 30 8 x 3.0 = 24 out of 30 7 x 1.5 = 10.5 out of 15 6 x 1.5 = 9 out of 15 5 x 1.0 = 5 out of 10 While it may not break any molds or barriers, Essence is definitely a great competitive map that should circulate the custom gamer's lobby regularly. It offers a refreshing, pure experience that remembers what many serious Halo maps have forgotten. Final Score Understanding the Review Hub's Ratings