HSDanClark/UT
My maps for UT
All six of these maps were featured in the first ever Orlando area [LanCombat] Tournament. Unfortunately for me, the tournament was the same weekend as the Game Developer's Conference in California, so I couldn't go. I talked to Thrullas, who was in charge of the event, and he said that the maps were very well recieved, and I actually got pictures of people playing them, so that's cool.
CTF-Lerxst
This is the first map I ever made for UT, and it's named after Alex "Lerxst" Lifeson from the band [Rush]. It's pretty simple as maps go, actually I got a lot of inspiration for it from the Thorns series of maps. This map took me the longest to make, as I was completely new to mapping for games – not just UT, any games! I'm quite pleased with the way it came out finally though.
CTF-Pratt
This was the second map I made, and I got quite ambitious here. I wanted to do a remake of Overdose (mpterra1), the large, S-shaped outdoor map that comes with Quake III: Team Arena. I still do. CTF-Pratt didn't quite make it, though I'm happy with the way it came out in the end. Where Overdose is a dirt-and-grass-style terrain map, Pratt is a metallic S-shaped valley, with a base at the ends of the S and a lookout post on the curves of the S. There is a weapons building for each team close to the bases, and a water pit that divides the map, like a line in a dollar sign – $. The part that I remember most about making this map was trying to get the coronas right. I didn't use any for Lerxst, and it must have taken me two or three days to figure it out. Like Lerxst, this map is named for a member of Rush, Neil "Pratt" Peart.
CTF-Dirk
I started work on Lerxst and Pratt on my own, in my own time. A while later, I saw an ad for the aforementioned LanCombat tournament, and since I live down the street from where it was taking place, I emailed Thrullas and asked if there was anything I could do to help. He asked if I knew how to make maps for UT, and I lied and said yes 
. He told me that he was looking for six maps to use in the tournament, maps that had not been in the public domain before. I told him I could handle that, as I already had 2 (mostly) done, and the tournament was still several months away. CTF-Dirk was the first map I worked on for the tournament. It's pretty standard CTF fare, with a flag base at either end of a long hallway, but there are multiple side rooms and a pretty cool second level with a glass floor that looks down onto the bottom floor. This was the first map that I put hidden rooms into as well, with redeemers and damage modifiers behind the team symbols. This map is named after the final member of Rush, Geddy "Dirk" Lee... can you tell I'm a fan?
DM-Platforms
The tournament called for 3 CTF and 3 DM maps, and this was the first DM map I worked on. I always liked the outer space maps in UT, and this map took some inspiration from CTF-Romra. The main area is a large platform (heh) with a structure in the middle. Surrounding this platform, at varying heights, are 14 smaller platforms with teleports between them. The whole level is low gravity – the only low grav map here. I got the hang of the coronas when working on Pratt, and used them pretty liberally on this map.
DM-Castle
This is probably my favorite map of the six (well... maybe Lerxst is, but this would be a very close second). I didn't start out with any pre-production on this, I just new that I wanted a gothic DM-Curse kinda feel to it. I started with a small room, then just added hallways and other rooms as I felt like it. I connected everything with various stairs and ramps, and there are several levels to the map. One of the coolest features I think is the pair of giant winding stairs. The room that houses the stairs is circular with a large radius, and several rooms break off the stairway as you go up it. This was the first map that I started playing around with the 2D Editor on. I used it for several curved passageways. My only regret is that I didn't give it a more unique name, but I was pressed for time and couldn't think of anything catchy.
DM-Massassi
If you've ever read any of the Star Wars line of novels, you might know that the great temples on Yavin 4 (where the Death Star was trying to kill the rebel base in the original movie), were built by a race of people called the Massassi. That's what this map is, it's a large area with lots of trees, a few water pits, and three giant pyramid-shaped temples. There's also a great underground tunnel system with several access points on the forest floor.
I've started and abandoned other maps, but as they say, whatever doesn't kill us makes us stronger...
Comments
I will add links for download later on.
