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Created a new CTF map.
This is the first beta release for testing general gameplay.
http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise_b1.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise_b1.pk3) (Save target as...)

Things I already know:
Textures need to be edited and fixed in the area of the blue base.
There are a few sparkles in that area as well. It seems to me GtkRadiant messes up brushes when cloning them.
Probably too many powerups included.
Foghull should work now but it's possible to remove the fog completly. I'm not sure if it adds to the mood of the map or if it is just annoying.
If you start the map with many bots already in there might be a first spawn issue (I added only one team_playerstart so everyone spawns at the same spot initially but that is not a problem because there are several team_respawns).
I'm not sure about the weapon/item placement. Suggestions are welcome.

The map misses details I will be adding when I'm satisfied how it plays.

You r right, but the map its ok. Just correct those aspects.

nah.. its ok in my opinion


Actually I like the fog in the map, it mades the game interesting. U should not remove the fog


Ok, no bots needed, there are other maps that work great without bots, but, anyway, there is still the chance to put at least 4 bots, 2 for each team.

The weapon/item placement seems to be fine to <<ME>>

I'd say you need to do some clipping, it is possible to rocket jump out of the map using the quad.

is it not possible to remove the fog by different cvars? if so i think you should remove the fog cause it'll make the gaming "unfair" for people that play with fog.

note: i'm not sure how to remove the fog but i think it's possible

haven't tried the map yet though - so i can't tell yet. will try tomorrow :)

I like the fog, q3 had a thick fog map that I liked, i'm not against the fog.

i remember that i liked the small map that had a kind of orange fog. i think it was a small 1on1 map with uriel.
you had to listen to the sound of footsteps to know where he was :)

I played with it last night, I like it.

I do agree with the complaints about clipping and on the weapons side I'd remove one of the plasma guns; the two are a little close.

Oh and the map was Q3Tourney5 (yes, I was compelled to find out; things like that bug me).

tried it out for some minutes and i do like the map.
just something that i felt when i ran around - i would prefer if the map had red and blue textures around the bases so i knew where i was and where to go. i think it helps new players and i think it also could need a little more color.

but i think it looks great so far!

Another issue that should be worked out is the texture size of ancient_bricks2, you are using the same texture throughout the map (which is fine) but on varying patch-meshes and brushes the texture is sized differently when the bricks should have a consistent size throughout the level.

Thank you guys.

I need all your hints to improve the map.

So here is the new version:
http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise_b3.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise_b3.pk3) (Save link as...)

Fixes and changes were made:
Textures -
thanks dmn_clown, I made a new texture and replaced ancient_bricks2.
I added more colors to each base and changed shaders. There shouldn't be a scaled up version of any texture right now. The alignment is done as well. (correct me if you find issues)

Items -
Quad and Regeneration is gone and there is only one Battlesuit anymore. I added a Red Armor (in place of Quad) and another Yellow Armor.
@steauengeglase, you think you can go too fast from lightning gun to plasma? I didn't encounter problems with this and lightning gun is weak in this map because of the long ranges. Btw: The area where mega health and plasma are located is not heavily frequented as I observed during online play.

The 'windows' to every base have been enlarged a little bit so it's easier to jump through. Clipping has been done to cover some pillars but NOT the sky. It's still possible to rocket-jump out of the map (but without quad it shouldn't occur that often). I will clip the sky only in final version. I need to change some of the brushes first.

There are more playerstarts ;)
And I will keep the fog in.
Bots play better now.

What's missing? More details and decals, some music and sound effects.
I would be glad if somebody is in the mood to think about sound and music. Would even better if there is anybody willing to create some.

Ah, and of course I need to add some info_location entities to name areas.

I like the weapons balance.

I did find one thing though. Near the flag, when you go up the stairs behind it and cross over the bridge there is a ledge. I tried rocket jumping up to it and fell off the map into the walls.

Okay, thanks again.

The sky is clipped now.
I release the map (GPL included):
http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise.pk3) (Save link as...)

I hope you enjoy. ;)

Where is the source for your multi-layered textures?

What do you mean with source?
The textures are included in the pk3 file. I didn't want to put them into the zip I used for the radiant map file.

Textures are done by playing with the graphics editing program of your choice. (That's why the textures are not perfect.)
I just saved them as they are (jpg) because I knew already for what I would need them. There is no better resolution available. Sorry.

I thought about going out taking the camera with me to get some high quality / photorealistic textures. Then it came to my mind OA is no realism shooter and I'm not going for the touch of it. Keeping it colourful and arcade-like. ;)

(It's so hard to find useful GPL textures. - same goes for sound effects and all other media)

We define the source of multi-layered textures as the .xcf, .psd, .psp, .px (depending on which program you use to create them) of the texture that includes the individual layers before they are merged.  If your texture creation includes multiple layers you should save it as whatever format your image editor uses for saving layered images and include that as source, though in a separate zip file to save bandwidth.


I'm not too worried about resolution, just about including source files so we can stay consistent in our definition of what source is for the textures.

You should put that definition somewhere in the wiki. I didn't know but I understand.

I'm always working with many layers and I'm discarding them often (nature of playing around). It gets pretty nasty when I would keep everything. If you would do the same with you sourcecode (as far as I think about my own coding projects) most of the code would be commented out. Usually you delete old code when you wrote it in a better way. Same goes for textures.

I created 'ancient_bricks2' you already mentioned before with different tools. I used a vector drawing program to get about 10 shapes, copied them into my painting program (with every 'stone' being a seperate layer), added about 5 - 7 filters per stone, rotated and moved them into position and did some fine tuning. Then I had to do the texture seamless which was impossible if everything stayed as layer. I had to merge down the whole thing, adding more shapes, doing everything all over again and again.

I don't know when I should have saved everything as a multilayered source file.
For the rest of the textures it's just a vectordrawing covered by some randomness and an alpha channel. I wouldn't recommend to keep 'source' files of everything especially when it's so easy to recreate.

Before all of the layers were merged to make the texture seamless or just before your final merging.  Most of our source-textures were saved just before being made seamless and may have had a few effects added after being merged like changing contrast, hue, etc. which isn't a big deal.
 

Single layer images act as their own source.

Alright. I keep that in mind.

btw - where is the map file for this?  It doesn't seem to be included in the pk3.

no, map file and other sources are hosted in a seperate file. I don't think source should be zipped in pk3.
http://oa.spaceboyz.net/ (http://oa.spaceboyz.net/)

Ahh, you should add a line to your readme's that explains where the source can be found.

cosmo is my hero :)

Yessa yessa map looks like very much fun to be had with the fragging and the capturing and the fogginess... Mine are looking more dated.
BTW I used Radiant for mine, haven't mapped for 4 years. Might have to get back into it.

Anyone ever play Pete Parisi's Meatpacks in Q3?
Someone should contact Q3Mappers to release their maps for OA. I have a huge collection but obviously won't alter anyone else's work.

Would very much doubt that Pete would release his maps under a GPL since they textures he uses are embedded in commercial games, he is a professional game-designer after all. Just to remind you, that if you alter work that someone else has released, make sure that the license allows for alteration, pay attention to if it's GPL, or not.

You can always ask around on old Quake 3 forums, send e-mails to designers e.t.c and simply hope for the best. Chances are that you will waste much of your time though.
Or you can look in to start your mapping again and create something inspired from multiple sources, that way you will have no problem releasing your working under GPL licenses considering you obey the license.

I never was good with liberation of old maps. Willow STILL hasn't replied to my mail about Coral ctf, even when sending in japanese  :(

[update] release of ctf_compromise V2 beta 1
(http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/ctf_compromise.jpg)
download: http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b1.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b1.pk3) (Save link as...)

changelog:
    * ground patch meshes replaced by phong shaded brushes.
    * renderperformance increased slightly but I am not satisfied yet
    * many patchmeshes replaced by brushes
    * nailgun replaces grenadelauncher
    * additional way to every base added
    * fog less dense now
    * foghull removed (bad performance impact) *ouch*
    * skybox added but it looks silly -> removed again. check  old screenshots (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_v2tIK95AdxU/Sk3NWzCUp4I/AAAAAAAAAKE/oMpDakV903s/s1600-h/ctf_compromise.jpg)
    * VIS Portal amount reduced from 18k to 13k
    * clipping added to new passage
    * hint brush and portal visibility fixes
    * domination points
    * additional player spawns for dom and dd
    * less patch meshes
    * additional plasmagun
    * additional armor shards
    * one flag placed in center for One Flag CTF
    * sky bug fixed. No exiting the map anymore. ;)

feel free to give me hints.
performance not increased but foghull removed... worth all the work? at least you can see further now.

wow! I'm really liking the atmosphere now

Found two Z-axis fighting issued, both near the center tower in the center area:

(http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/2446/shot0000rmx.th.jpg) (http://img8.imageshack.us/i/shot0000rmx.jpg/) (http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/6453/shot0001mzi.th.jpg) (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/shot0001mzi.jpg/)

Overall the map runs good. But I'm hearing all the players complaining about the fog again. :D

I'm not seeing much difference with the fog - it is not as thin as what cosmo's new screenshots are showing. See attached screenshot.

I like the fog though. It makes the map unique. By the way, the new route between bases is great!

Thanks for your replies so far. I appreciate it.

@Neon_Knight: z-fighting will be fixed. I stumbled across that bug earlier and altered brushes accordingly so I thought I solved the problem but did not check again. My fault.

@chaoticsoldier: Please make sure if you do not have any other beta related map of mine (oa_koth2, ctf_gate1, ctf_inyard, ...) in your baseoa for testing. I hope it is just a shader related thing which gets overwritten by other pk3 files. If not I have to figure that because it is a serious problem then.

I had none of your other maps in my baseoa :(.

I just tested this map again after removing all foreign pk3s from both baseoa folders. Unfortunately, I encountered the same issue.

Please have a 2nd look into your home .openarna folder or where ever your OA downloads stuff via autodownload.
If that does not work I will rename the fog shader in next release to be sure everybody can see from one end of the main court to the other.

Updated. Release number two with hopefully fixed fog density, z-fighting issue, relocated Double Domination points is included into public testing version of oa_black.

Test server is running both of 'em plus oaxB41 with a brainworkz bot.

download: http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/oa_black_a1.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/oa_black_a1.pk3)

I can confirm the fog density issue is resolved.

I kicked the fog out of it eventually. More vertical gameplay and better performance will be in next testing release. :D
Ivan and Feidi gave me valuable hints. Here are some work in progress screenshots (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_v2tIK95AdxU/SnX9nlsVYkI/AAAAAAAAAL8/MdbuXR5vUPI/s1600-h/ctf_compromise_wip1.jpg).
(two new player skinds included)

Just returned from playing the new map v3 beta 2 on cosmo's test server, with cosmo himself present

I just want to remind him that the jumppads toward the central column with RA are really difficult and need to
be looked at. also i advise to have pmove set to 8 forced in the map itself.

I like this version, more routes to the flag makes it more interresting.

Grtz Davidd.

Thanks davidd. Easteregg will be planted.

To show more people. There is a test server running latest beta relase and here is the file for all who disabled autodownloading:
 http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b3.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b3.pk3) (Save link as...)

Screenshots:
see post above (http://openarena.ws/board/index.php?topic=1234.msg26008#msg26008).

Looks great!

So here is changelog for V2 B3: (sorry, was too late last night)

# fog removed
# blue skybox with clouds
# upper ledges made accessable
# layout of bases changed
# even less patch mesh usage, phong shaded surfaces instead
# texture and lighting improvements
# bases and ways to them are more distinguishable
# improved separation of areas to increase performance
# removed railgun teleporter
# added teleporter to upper ledge
# railgun replaces plasmagun (too close to mega health?)
# plasmagun is located in each base now
# removed small health orbs but added armor shards
# Regeneration powerup added to each base
# Haste powerup replaces Biosuit in center area
# using Neon Knights new cross textures but these should be reworked: Redundancy!
# gargoyle model exported and added as mapmodel (was missing, just textures are included in OA 0.81)
# two new playerskins added (beret/headcrash and assasssin/ghost) for FFA

Big credits to Ivan, Feidi, davidd and majorayumi (or what ever his/her name is)

Release of V2 Beta4
Download: http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b4.pk3 (http://cosmo.spaceboyz.net/openarena/zctf_compromise_v2b4.pk3)

Changelog:
# replace teleporter model
# add new teleporter model
# make sand a bit darker
# ledge sink in RL room
# further improved renderperformance
# center area jumppads reach to RA now
# minor texture fixes
# additional clipping
# removed nailgun because it does too much damage
# for missionpack kamikaze added (replaces YA in center area)
# support for domination and double domination gametypes
# support for missionpack gametypes 1flag, harvester, and overload

Included within is one part of the new teleporter model. A second is comming soon.
The missing part (the frame) of it will be comitted and included in a map where it fits.

An improved version of ctf_gate1 is included as well. Just gamebalancing went into it:
# double domination support
# domination points moved and reduced to 3
# Chaingun removed
# Nailgun replaced by Lightning Gun
# improved item balancing

I'm setting up a testserver rotating both.

Actually this map is in rotation, on ROFL Various Couscous (http://dpmaster.deathmask.net/?game=openarena&server=212.85.158.133:27981&showplayers=1) server ;)

Note: I can't administrate anymore ROFL Beta Maps with every map changes because it took me too much time to keep track of every changes made in maps, then upload the map here, and there, then edit the config, for each new coming map, so I stopped the server.

Seems there are missing textures, at least when I play:

http://download.tuxfamily.org/openarena/files/screenshots/h/01.jpg
http://download.tuxfamily.org/openarena/files/screenshots/h/02.jpg

Thanks for removing the fog, it's now playable, a bit big and a bit slow on my computer but better ;) Hope we'll get soon some real matches on your latest versions of these maps.

Ooops. Thanks for your feedback Cacatoes. This shader bug will be fixed for committing release.

Nice to see it in rotation. I did TONs of stuff to improve render performance but due it's size and desert/sand theme it is not as fast as industrial or spacemaps.

.
With current physics (OA085 one), it's impossible to get there.
With g_gravity changed to 790 (which is enough to fix most jump problems on maps), it's still quite short.
So, maybe the trajectory could be changed a bit to make it easier to jump there.
On a side note, this map is unfortunately underplayed, like many others.

Nah, just jump on the end of the jumppad. Walking on a jumppad brings you less far than jumping on it (but you're playing for ages, you should know that :P). Demo attached g_gravity 800.

Edit: maybe jumping alone doesn't result in a bigger launch, maybe it's because you're more close to the destiny. But still: jump around (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhFKkPWsLXo)!

Oh right, but I'm the kind of lazy, hehe. In fact I simply thought that area was meant to be accessible, but if a little tip is necessary to get the red armor it's fine too. :)

Edit: oh, it's rabbi jacob .. ! :D