Eben-Emael Pre-Alpha Screenies

(MadJack) #1

Took a while but at this point I need some feedback so here are some screenies of Eben-Emael, the map I’m currently working on.

Fast description:

First Eben-Emael is a battle that happened in belgium. The map is very loosely based on what happened there though the content of the map and what really happened is somewhat remote… I tried to keep things relatively similar but considering the real location and capabilities of Q3 based engine I had to draw the line somewhere. For the Belgians in here, sorry if it doesn’t really look like the real thing.

If, by any bad luck, images didn’t show, follow This link and click on Screenshots in the left hand menu. Anyway… Here are the pics.

Screenie #1: Allied Command Post

Screenie #2: Allied Supply Room

Screenie #3: Axis Spawn

Screenie #4: Allies Bunker Door

Screenie #5: Byway to get to mountain top

Screenie #6: Inside Casemate #1

Screenie #7: Casemate #2

Screenie #8: Far view of Axis Spawn

Screenie #9: Axis Climbing Array

Screenie #10: Main Corridor

Screenie #11: Allies Power Supply

Screenie #12: Sickbay #1

Screenie #13: Sickbay #2

Screenie #14: Spawn Overview

Screenie #15: Top of Mountain

Screenie #16: Whole Map from Above

As of now, objectives are as follow (possible to change)

Allies

  • Build Command Post
  • Build Front Door Defense
  • Build Power Supply MG42
  • Build MG42 Turret
  • Defend Power Supply Console
  • Defend Long Range Gun
  • Defend Bunker Door
  • Defend Forward Spawn

Axis

  • Build Command Post
  • Build Climbing Array
  • Build Drawbridge (it’s just a bridge…)
  • Build MG42 (at spawn but likely will change)
  • Destroy Power Supply Console
  • Destroy Long Range Gun
  • Destroy Bunker Door
  • Capture Forward Spawn

As you probably all guessed, the map is an Axis offense map.

Things that arent in the map yet:

  • Long range gun
  • Lightning
  • Lots of detailing
  • Maybe some fog…
  • Other stuff

I will probably use either dotproduct or dotproduct2 and/or phong shaders for the terrain… It looks very repetitive.

EDIT: Fixed the URL and Pics are now posted on the site. I reduced the pics from 1024x768 to 640x480. Those were big pictures indeed. Added some comments too.

(Genesis) #2

Wicked! looks pretty nice…
i like the skybox!!!
but what is that hole at the back of screenie #8? looks as if u can just jump out of the map there… :S
anyway… looks like good fun…

(MadJack) #3

Thanks for the nice comments Genesis.

The hole you’re refering to is the way axis used to get there :wink: It’ll be blocked. As you can see with the last pic, there are 3 of those and no, you can’t fall off the map through them :smiley: lol

(oS!Digital) #4

Looks a little bit strange… but good map, i think it will be a good map played on all servers :blah:

(MadJack) #5

Strange? How so?

LOL I never thought about it as strange but hey :slight_smile:

(seven_dc) #6

I think you should do the light compile before releasing pictures. People like those more and
they really gives any map more depth and 3d feeling.

Those ladders hang from mid air in picture #2. Please try to simulate real ladders. Those
disturbs me. :smiley:

I love those trees. Where did you get them? and that power supply looks good.

BUY MARIJUANA SEEDS

(MadJack) #7

Those are not ladders they’re stairs but the sides and banisters are not done, I hate doing those :stuck_out_tongue: and thinking I have a stairwell of about 200 steps :eek:

I agree with the lighting … It’ll have to wait some though.

I found spruces and oaks models somewhere. I modified the tga because they were really pale and were contrasting very much with the darker/dirtier looking trees from SD. As for the Power Supply… Hard to say if it’ll stay, it’s a model that was made for Q3. It moves and can crush, it has a nice texturing but I’m wondering if it fits with the ambiance of the map in general. I think I’ll wait for feedbacks before doing anything.

If you want the tree models I can send them to you with the modified or original pics.

I think I’ve got this bad habit coming from Q3 mapping where you have to minimize the detailing. I get between 3-5K tris inside and I think I should free myself up and bring those tris to 10K or so inside. I know I said detailing is not done but there’s this nagging inside my head saying: “Player model count for a lot when playing!!! Watch those tris.”

(seven_dc) #8

I think I’ve got this bad habit coming from Q3 mapping where you have to minimize the detailing. I get between 3-5K tris inside and I think I should free myself up and bring those tris to 10K or so inside. I know I said detailing is not done but there’s this nagging inside my head saying: “Player model count for a lot when playing!!! Watch those tris.”

Yeah I know what you mean. …
I was like WTF when I saw the Tris in our map vengeances problem point:
20k!
that is a lot for some people. But I think it’s ok novadays go high as that.

Ship sale

(MadJack) #9

cough40 000 triscough with no VIS in picture #14. Full VIS gives me about 26-28K… I’m thinking about moving that spawn on the far left in pic 14 though that would mean redoing the terrain and I would prefer not to do that. It was painful enough as it was :frowning:

(seven_dc) #10

But you are like seeing your whole level in that direction. So your level has about overall 40k tris… so no worry. but 26k-28k seems kind of high?!? I assume you haven’t had time to think VIS yeat. I think your level looks very painfuly to hint.

Classaction lawsuit

(Loffy) #11

Hi!
Cool map!
Ah, i remember that engine. (Screen-shot #11.) It was made originally for a “model-contest” for quake, if I’m right.
I’ve even tried that engine myself. (Can’t recall the site though, but search for “engine” and “quake” and “md3”.) Tossed it into my current map (Darji), just to try it. It’s a huge machine and it looks awesome (steam and everything). However, I removed it. It was simply too big, in terms of file size. (Lots of textures and stuff.)
// Loffy

EDIT: Found it at polycount:
http://www.planetquake.com/polycount/info/mapmodels/kfengine/kfengine.shtml

(MadJack) #12

@ seven The problem is that from that vintage point (at axis spawn) you see the front of the mountain and since it’s sloped you see the base of it all around. Only a small portion of the top is not drawn. That’s why I was saying I might have to move it elsewhere. It’s a tough choice because I can’t simply leave that area empty and whatever I put there would get barely less tris. Hinting/VIS is complete hell for the outside area. The first full VIS took almost 3 hours. It’s now down to close to 2 hours with a bit lower tris count. Not a bad thing in itself. You assume right when you say I haven’t had time to think VIS yet but the problem is, I think, a bit too late for that. Hopefully I can salvage it. I should’ve thought VIS first.

@ Loffy Thanks :slight_smile: IIRC that engine win a prize, first place winner I think. It IS big and I think I’ve succeeded in putting it where it “belongs”. The room is big and airy but as I said I don’t know if players will think it odd to find such a thing in there. In that case I’ll put something else. Everything works real fine except the sounds so I used those that come with the game and I made them fit perfectly :slight_smile:

(=DaRk=CrAzY-NuTTeR) #13

nice skybox, the terrain in some parts looks too flat

(MadJack) #14

Thx

Too bad I didn’t take more skybox pics, it really looks good. As for terrain, yeah I agree. I forgot to noise the last version I did. Oh well… too late now.

What would be nice is a little plug-in that could modify selected terrain/brushes. Give it more curvature or flatten it etc.

(Boleth) #15

Looks like it’ll be a great map but the mountainside looks (as you said) repetative, quite an eye sore compared to the rest of the map.
The tree in shot 5 looks cool, looks a little FarCry-ish. but cool!
Keep going!

(=DaRk=CrAzY-NuTTeR) #16

manually edit the terrain with vertex editing

(MadJack) #17

Actually I’m working on getting used to dotproduct2 and if the results are interesting I might convert the whole terrain to it. In fact I’d rebuild the whole thing using dotproduct2 but it mostly depends on FPS issues because I know the map will have a ton less of tris but OTOH d2 is tougher on FPS so… I don’t know. In the end I might have both.

@ nutter, vertex editing for terrain is evil :smiley:

(stix) #18

some feedback:

im not a mapper so i dont really appreciate “smart solutions” and stuff like that, i just play the game :slight_smile:

anyhow:

the second pic looks awesome, as a matter of fact most of the indoor pics look ok. maybe you should add some more boxes/stuff to hide behind/jump on so duels wont be so boring.

honestly i dont really appreciate big outdoor scenes, its boring to play on and give the crap classes (ie. covert ops) something to do (camp). I think the map will be better if you make the outdoor scenes more narrow and tight.

(MadJack) #19

Thx for the comments stix :slight_smile:

As I said almost no detailing (boxes giving cover, decorations, eye candy, etc) is done in the map. Detailing is about 20% done so that might give you an idea.

CovOps won’t be able to do much sniping, the map isn’t really made for that though I might add a spot or two but don’t worry, covops are needed and if there’s a good covop player, the map could be fast unless the defense is tight. There are several shortcuts to the power supply and if covops are only tempted in sniping it’ll be their team’s loss. I think that’s true on any map but maybe it’ll be more so on this one. Let’s hope so :slight_smile:

As for big terrain, Eben-Emael was an exterior battle that happened during WWII (of course) and it took the Axis 36 hours to destroy 4/5 objectives. For an impregnable fortress that’s pretty good. ET players will have 20 mins or so. :slight_smile: The terrain itself somehow looks like the real area where the battle happened except it’s oversized a bit. So in that thinking 2 main objectives are outside but I added the Power Supply because frankly, exterior only sucks. It’s fun fighting in close quarters. :smiley: The main corridor reflects that in the way that there’ll be lots of nooks and crannies to hide and make it forward. That corridor is wide and high. A hand grenade can’t be thrown from one end to the other. A good thrower can send it maybe 1/3 of the way. Hopefully players won’t be displeased :slight_smile:

(LaggingTom) #20

The sick bays look disgustingly clean… shove some barf in there for God’s sake!