Download Map Classic Slayer gametype - in other words, no loadouts and map only powerups Warning - this map takes some jet pack skills Welcome to the Hornets Nest, home of The Halo, Hammer Bay, the Mario Super Jump Power Up, and Skywalker Platform. Feel free to view these locations and more in the photo's above. Hornets Nest's recklessness is reminiscent of the old school Quake maps, in that the map throws you around and could care less if you live or die. You are merely a victim waiting to happen. Grab a jetpack because the best weapons are all located on the small floating ledges. If you don't have one don't worry, there are many ways to get around the map, some of which may test your fortitude. Bide your time, kill at will and grab that quickly respawning jetpack. My favorite quote from players is, "Crap! Thought I had the jet pack." as they fall to their death. The upper platform and lower level hold the jet packs to allow for better map coverage. The two platforms at the ends hold additional weapons and a number of Banshee's. I had originally envisioned a massive teleporter banshee air battle but unfortunately it hadn't come together the way I had planned. That's ok as the Banshee's are still a nice addition to the gameplay. If you find that they are distracting or being abused, feel free to Forge them out of existence. You can reach the majority of this map via jump pad so you will not be entirely out of luck if you find yourself without the jetpack. Hornets Nest is a Slayer map that came about from me wanting to build a map inside and around a hornets nest with people flying around with jet packs on. It was the first time I had actually doodled a map design. Unfortunately for me I was finding it to be far to time consuming and the pieces just weren't coming together. That's when I got the idea to put a ring around a smaller hornets nest and well I didn't like the look of that either but it did start me in the right direction. The finished product you will find below. Still with a bit of the hive concept but a far simpler layout. As usual this map has my heavy weapon loadout and has undergone extensive weapons balancing. The Jet Pack, Jump Pad, Banshee aerial warfare that is the Hornets Nest. One of four small platforms carrying treasure that hover outside the Hornets Nest. Two jet packs up top The other two jet packs are located on the lowest level. The turret is more visual than it is a real threat. The Mario Super Jump Power Up Make the massive jetpack jump, armor up and squash your prey. Skywalker Platform Get the sword - If you can. If you like fast paced slayer action, you need to download this map.
First thought: Banshees massively OP when others are just floating in the air. It also looks like it would be difficult for new players to get the hang of this map
True, but then the key word is Banshees, and though destructive, Banshees beget Banshees. It's pretty easy to pick up and play but if you have zero jet pack skills then you will be limited to the other 90% of the map. If players have trouble walking a strait line then yes they will have trouble.
Hornets Nest Hornet's Nest offers a competitive experience that differs greatly from what most Halo players are used to. One could say that its relaxed competitive play borders on the casual when it comes to the strategic experience that most have come to expect from Halo. There is a very thematic style of gameplay that comes from Hornet's Nest and it comes in the two words: Aerial Combat. All of the structures on the map are disconnected thereby forcing players to resort to either the Jetpack Armor Ability or the Banshee to get around the map which ends with a very stale form of gameplay that most players avoid. Despite the fast paced nature of the map While games on Hornet's Nest open with fast paced action, they games on Hornet's Nest become dreadfully slow as players venture out to the farthest reaches of the map to obtain weapons powers. Activity levels take a dive when there are no Banshees available to fly and players decide to camp on the island they reside on. Hornet's Nest is a map that focuses heavily on Banshee play, allowing the Banshees to function to the fullest of their overpowered havoc wreaking potential. They are way too strong and difficult to kill. A player that manages to commandeer one of these airborne weapons of mass destruction can easily dominate. The players on the islands hardly have a chance against the Banshee since there is nowhere to go. Even small weapons fire has little effect against the eight banshees placed on the map. There are areas that are impossible to get to without a Banshee. This is highly unfair for players on the ground. Having platforms only accessible via the air is an extremely unfair map-making tactic, leaving players without a Banshee at an extraordinary disadvantage. Spawning on Hornets Nest is poorly done. Many of the spawn points face towards the ends of platforms, and since there is no railing, some suicides occur upon spawning. Even when the player gains his bearings and doesn't fall off, there is very little cover and they often get killed by the ever dominant Banshees. Despite the clear spawning issues, escape in Hornet's Nest is not possible. Even with clever use of banshee, no cheating or escaping can be done. A safe barrier encompasses the map, effectively eliminating any chance of leaving the designated playing area. Although, the inclusion of a clear barrier to limit where Banshees could traverse would have been a nice addition. Hornets Nest does not have the visual appeal that it should. The platforms do not look natural at all. Random floating structures do not look good, and due to this, the map loses much of its aestheticism. There is not any special care put into the platforms or floating buildings, they look poor. With the vast simplicity that Hornet's Nest encompasses one cannot help but wonder why more effort was not taken to make the floating structures more compatible for sufficient play. Hornets Nest does not have an overall theme or feel emanating from it. Objects lack cohesion to one another, causing much of the theme to be lost. Though there is a little effort put into some of the main platforms as the floating structure with rocks looks better than most. Some objects are not used in the traditional methods one might expect. This still sadly does not make up for the fact that Hornets Nest does not look well made. If there is one thing that Hornet's Nest can boast is that it possesses a whole different style of gameplay. The old-style deathmatch feel of the game ends with a style of Halo where the Competitive map should meet the Casual map. As for the actual structure of the map, there is nothing particularly innovating or grand that draws players to it which leads to saying that over originality is not always a great thing. Nonetheless, with the style that the Author has brought to the table and a few more trial and error games here and there, a stylistic approach to a new game that actually plays well too may just be around the corner. Rating Multipliers [floatleft]Enjoyment: Balance: Durability: Aesthetic : Originality:[/floatleft]4 x 3.0 = 12 out of 30 3 x 3.0 = 9 out of 30 5 x 1.5 = 7.5 out of 15 3 x 1.5 = 4.5 out of 15 7 x 1.0 = 7 out of 10 Final Score Understanding the Review Hub's Ratings Have a question about your review? Review Hub Community Feedback