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Exclusions, Testing Tool and More!

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Exclusions, Testing Tool and More!

Postby thenobodies80 on Wed Nov 06, 2013 6:25 am

Hello everyone,

as some of you may have noticed, bigWham has announced some new tools that will help a lot during the map development. :)

I want to spend a few more words to give you all the details you need to know about them:


Exclusions


Exclusions are not only a nice new opportunity for us all to create better maps, but it means also start to think in a totally different way.
For each map we have made, we have always followed this simple guideline:

gameplay guidelines wrote:Game type flexibility - The map should support various game types and not be designed with specific/limited game settings in mind (standard, assassin, fog of war, 2 players, etc.). Maps designed for fewer than 8-players should be discouraged, and will only be approved if the map is really something special.


  • With the introduction of Exclusions the above statement is NO longer valid.
  • In the same way 1vs1 maps are now "free" and no longer need an approval to proceed through the Foundry.
  • The only maps that need an approval are the battle royale ones.

Said that, How Exclusions work?
Simple, any mapmaker can develop a map with specific settings in mind. So, for example, you can decide to draw map that will be played only terminator, or assassins.
However, common sense must prevail, so the settings should be used to have a better map and not just for the sake of it.
If you notice they are called Exclusions, this because the main point of having them is to no longer have the problem to balance a map for any game type or settings we have. And now we have so many! 8-[
In addition, they are a very creative feature, I'm really confident that it will push mapmakers to draw more particular and unique maps, that is only a good thing with a map rooster of 200+ maps.

CAs encourage the mapmakers to use them, but "cum grano salis".....don't forget that maps has to be played. ;)

The only thing we ask to mapmakers is to list the exclusions in the first post of the map topic, this to ensure that all exclusions are set in the proper way when the map is uploaded.
Apart for that, enjoy it! :D


Test Mode & Map Management

Now we're able to test map files. This is definitively a good thing... Nothing is a better test than play a game on the map! :D
bigWham and the Cartographers want to change a bit the way we do things.
Now the testing phase is limited to the end of the map production, if the map doesn't work we need to find a fix, so go back and then try again, this untill it works...

Instead, our vision of the maps production in the next future is a system where everyone is able to test the files and to find out what is the best choice to take without have to wait to have the final files. We want that the testing function becomes a whole with the map process.
This is the target, maybe we can't reach that level for now, but at least, this tool is a very good first step in the right direction. 8-)

Now, right now I'm in touch with Icepack, we are working toghter to find out a way to allow to the mapmakers to test the maps safely, without any risk.
As soon as we find out the best system, I'll start to make possible for mapmakers to test their maps when is needed.
Actually I ask to everyone a bit of time to reorganize a couple of things and finalize the stuff with Icepack.
My objective is to allow to mapmakers to test the maps after that they have received at least the draft stamp. As you can imagine, it means a lot of work to update the files and give permissions.
For this reason i want to introduce this in 3 steps:

    1. Only CAs can use the tool. The tool is used only to test files before to update them or to test a map before it is released officially into teh beta live status. This is where we are now.
    2. Mapmakers can test the map under suggestion of CAs and/or when the map is ready for the Beta Live (i.e. the mapmakers will be an active tester of the final files)
    3. Mapmakers can test the map as soon as the project has received at least the draft stamp. Testing becomes a part of the whole map production instead of just be the end.

All maps will be tested only on the beta site,no map will be made available on Conquer Club before it receives all the required stamps.
I'll write some easy guidelines about the map testing, nothing special it will be more a "know how" , for the rest, again common sense prevails! ;)


Gameplay Guidelines Change

Due the introduction of games with 9+ players, we have to change a bit our guidelines to ensure to minimize the risk of a first round elimination.

show: OLD GUIDELINES


The new gameplay guideline about map size is:

Map Sizes:

From a gameplay perspective, the map size refers to the total number of territories on a map, rather than the size of the canvas. At extreme ends of the spectrum, the very smallest and very largest maps are likely to give an advantage to whoever goes first. There are no defined limits for map sizes, although maps should have more than 24 territories in order to minimize the risk of first-round eliminations in 8-player games. Maps for 9 players must have at least 36 territories, maps for 10 players must have 40 territories, maps for 11 players need 44 regions and maps for 12 players must have 48 territories. There is no upper size limit, although the constraints of legibility and clarity need to be considered.



That's all for now,
More info and news soon! ;)
thenobodies80
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Re: Exclusions, Testing Tool and More!

Postby thenobodies80 on Wed Nov 06, 2013 7:50 am

Btw If you have any questions, please post them in this thread.
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Re: Exclusions, Testing Tool and More!

Postby generalhead on Wed Nov 06, 2013 8:57 am

=D> =D> =D> =D>
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Re: Exclusions, Testing Tool and More!

Postby cairnswk on Wed Nov 06, 2013 2:59 pm

Very nice news....best i've seen for a long time. =D> =D> :)
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