Elite Fortress: Playtesters needed!

Been lurking here for a bit, lots of good info and creative ideas come out of these forums. So thanks for that!

The classic Halo CE map Sidewinder has always been one of my all-time favorites. I love the huge, sprawling environment. So of course, the first thing I thought when I opened Forge World was "hurrrr, I'm gonna use the whole thing!" Which I'm sure is not an entirely original thought. To make it work and not just be a massive jog-fest, I've tried to balance teleporters, man cannons, and vehicles while still maintaining a feeling of largeness.


This is an Invasion map where the Spartans are assaulting the Elite fortress (hence name), and as such is divided into 3 sections. The first section - which is designed to be tilted slightly in favor of the Spartans - has Red exiting their base and re-taking a their sub-base on the ground below. Initial loadouts are similar for both Spartan and Elite; all loadouts feature a DMR (Or Needler Rifle for elites). There are three initial choices: DMR/Pistol/Jetpack, DMR/AR (Plasma Repeater)/Jetpack, DMR/Pistol/Sprint (Evade).


Spartan staging area from up-close...


...and on the ground.


You are now leaving the staging area.

The floating island has a sniper perch and a couple teleporters to get you (and your vehicles) down to the island. The island features a couple areas.


A Spartan camp with a variety of vehicles and weapons.


A spot where a bunch of Elites got their asses kicked, allowed Spartans limited access to Elite weaponry and vehicles.


This is the bunker itself, on the far side of the Island. Elites defend in a territories-style game.

Once the first stage is completed, both sides gain a new loadout. The Spartans gain the Grenadier class with DMR/Grenade Launcher/Drop Shield, and the Elites gain the Specter class with Needler/Pistol/Camo. In addition, Spartans are given the choice to spawn on this island or back in the staging area. Elites both in stages one and two are given the options to spawn in their home base (staging area) or their sub-base, which is now under attack.


This is the Elite sub-base, located high up on a cliff face. As such, land vehicles have limited use in this phase.


Here's a view of the elite sub-base from down below. In addition to simply flying, there are multiple foot-paths up the cliff face and the option to go through the cave and climb up the back of the mountain. It should be noted that the Elites are able to teleport from their main base to this sub-base and into the cave below with their vehicles.


The sub-base also has a small Spartan weapon cache to allow the Elites access to human weaponry if they desire.

This is another territories stage, and balance in this phase needs some good testing; I may have to play with teleporter locations and the like. Once the Elite sub-base has been taken, a bomb spawns and it's time to assault the fortress.



This is the Elite staging area. The satellite dish in the center is where the bomb must be planted.




I've added a little more cover in since these were taken. Again, there are multiple, MULTIPLE ways to approach the fortress. All the blood gulch "side routes" are left intact, as well as a few openings in the fort's front and options to assault from different levels of the surrounding terrain. Spartans are allowed to spawn in any of the two sub-bases or back at the staging area, while Elites are confined to their fortress. In preparation for the close combat, Spartans now have access to the DMR/Shotty/Lockdown Saboteur class while Elites gain the Berserker class - with a Concussion Rifle, Energy Sword and no special ability. Again, decent amount of balance testing to be done here.

I'm free pretty much whenever, and obviously this map is meant for large groups. So, if you're interested in helping me out, post some times you'd be available and we'll see if we can get a group together for this. If you'd like to take a peek at the map, both it and the Invasion game type required to play it are in my File Share.

And if you have any comments, critiques or other thoughts based on what you've seen so far, by all means! Let me know what you think.