StarCraft

Brood War mapmaking tricks

starcraft 2 - Brood War mapmaking tricks

Starcraft: Brood War mapmakers gave up on Blizzard's StarEdit map editor a long time ago. They started adapting the assets to create a lot of map features that weren't originally available. Currently ScmDraft 2 is the most popular map editor for Brood War and Remastered. Here are some neat concepts that you may have seen in modern ladder and esports maps:

Wide and north-facing ramps: Originally ramps were a set size and could only go down from north to south. This made it impossible for maps to be close to symmetrical. Tiles were patched together to create ramps that went down from south to north. These patched together ramps also allowed for ramps to be as wide as the mapmaker wanted. One of the big features patched into Starcraft Remastered after release was to add ramp assets that made for much better looking wide and north-facing ramps.

Neutral buildings: Mapmakers started adding neutral buildings to serve as barriers much like rocks and debris in Starcraft II. They could block a path or the ideal position for an expansion forcing players to wait to make use of those spots until they had enough firepower to destroy the structures. Most mapmakers preferred to use campaign-only structures like Cerebrates, Psi-Disruptors, or Stasis Cells so the neutral structures were easily distinguished from player structures. But sometimes a standard structure would be used, most infamously a Command Center that could be infested by a Queen. Structures like neutral Creep Colonies and Hatcheries could also be used to start the map out with Creep meaning that Zerg structures could be buld on those spots but other races would have to destroy the structure and then wait for the Creep to vanish before building there.

Stacked assets: Multiple of the same asset could be stacked into the same spot. You could have several of the same type of neutral structure blocking a path so you'd have to destroy all of the before moving a land unit through(splash attacks from units like Siege Tanks and Lurkers could help damage all the structures at once). Mineral patches could also be stacked for "Fastest Map Ever" maps so multiple workers could mine from the same spot.

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Invincible neutral structures and critters: Units and structures can have their health removed so they cannot be targeted or damaged. So you can have a structure that will always block a spot as well as critters that cannot be damaged or targeted by spells like Parasite.

Mineral Walking spots: This is possible in the original editor but it's important that you can make some areas blocked to most ground units but not workers by putting a mineral patch on both sides of certain types of barriers. By harvesting the patch the worker will mineral-walk over.

Neutral Lurker Eggs: Lurker Eggs can be used to block spots on the map until they are destroyed. Unlike structures, a worker can choose a Mineral patch and mineral-walk over the egg while other ground units can't. Lurker Eggs are small and also have very high armor which can make it take much longer for units with fast but weak attacks to eliminate them.

Permanent Dark Swarms and Disruption Webs: Mapmakers can place permanent Dark Swarms to create an area where all ground units under it can't be damaged by ranged attacks(although they still suffer splash damage). Areas with permanent Disruption Webs prevent all ground units under them from being able to attack.

Tricks with Vespene Geysers: This stuff probably was doable in the original editor but it's worth noting that mapmakers have learned to take advantage of the fact that Vespene Geysers, Assimilators, Refineries, and Extractors aren't all the same size. Assimilators count as being smaller than geysers so for instance two neutral Assimilators can create a small path between them that counts as being smaller if one is destroyed so only small units can go between them and the path is completely blocked if both are destroyed. Extractors count as being bigger than a geyser so you can have a geyser that is mostly covered by an indestructable neutral structure like Khaydarin Crystals and since an Extractor counts as poking out a tiny bit Zerg are the only race that can mine from the geyser.

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Sight Blockers: Mapmakers can add a type of tile that blocks ground units from seeing past it.

Floor Trap: This is one I haven't seen before the current season of ASL. One of the floor turret traps from the installation missions can be used to make a tiny spot unbuildable. The trap is burrowed and doesn't pop up to attack so to destroy it you need detection.

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