playing CNQ there was my favorite, my computer just hated having to reload the map after 2 rounds of it to go to whatever the next game setting was. i don't suppose your gonna maybe make it a 24/7 something? or have it 24/7 CNQ one day then change it 24/7 the next?

During testing it's important that we play as many gametypes as possible. So we'll be running multiple gametype rotations throughout the testing phase. Part of my README for the server admins will be suggestions on what settings seem to work well for various gametypes on this map.

Maybe during beta testing I'll run a more limited map set.

BEL - is already mostly tweaked. But it's a blast to play and gives testers excuses to dive into all the nooks and crannies on the map. BEL also serves double-duty as testing for TDM (although I don't recommend that folks play TDM on a map of this size... but some folks might).

HQ - We'll have to see how this plays out over the next few days. I've eliminated the tanks and shortened the max-hold time by 2/3s. And I changed the spawn points to be in the middle half of the map (not on the ends). It should be a vastly better experience now.

CNQ - Still needs tweaked, mostly spawn point locations and jeep/tank locations. I'm curious whether folks think the 25 minute rounds are too long or too short. The server is setup with a 25 minute round limit and a 40 minute overall limit, best of 3 rounds format. (Unless the first two rounds run over 40 minutes, in which case CNQ will end in a tie.)

Personally, I find that back-to-back 25 minute rounds are about right. CNQ tends to be very brutal and intense fighting. Less then 25 minutes and you won't have time to push the objective back and forth more then twice.

If I can get the bonus objectives working, I think I'll set it so that the round ends if the bonus objective gets touched twice. (Making it worth 150 points or so with a 400 point limit.) The thing with the bonus objective is:

- The bonus objective does not appear on the player's compass. Meaning they have to search around a bit while looking for something that they're not sure what they're looking for.

- The bonus objective is an instant-click switch. So a suicidal attacker can run in and click the switch and get the bonus points. However, once clicked it can't be clicked again for another 5 minutes.

I'm tempted not to put in bonus objectives at all.... except that they offer a way to end the round early because one team or the other got pushed all the way back to their spawn.

A 24/7 CNQ server is probably a bit much. I think it will need to be split as CNQ/BAS to give players a more relaxing game inbetween the intense CNQ fighting.

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I still haven't a clue where to put CTF flags. Anyone have ideas? One idea is at the German #2 and the Russian #2.

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Other notes for upcoming releases:

- Added an ammo box up on Glacier Pass at the mortar.

- Added a small trench in the South Forest, with anti-tank ammo (30 sec respawn).

- Added a kar98k spawn in the german spawn area. This allows players who want to use the portable MG to pickup a backup weapon rather then having to scrounge for one.

- Added a mosin spawn in the russian spawn area. Same theory, give the portable MG folks a chance to pickup a rifle before they leave the spawn.

- Added lamps inside most bunkers.

- Added some portable MG brushes on top of the wooden defensive walls. There are still a lot of walls that need these brushes added (so that you can setup portable MGs on them).

- More rocks and bushes in various spots.

- All ruined tanks / vehicles should now have smoke effects (plumes of smoke rising from the wrecks).

- Moved trees and rocks around in the South Forest again. I'm trying to get "clumps" of trees / rocks with more open areas in between.

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Specific Feedback Requests

a. What do you all think of the current CNQ points? Do they make sense? Are they too close/too far? Which ones are easy / hard to attack / defend?

b. Where do we need better landmarks? What spots are you constantly getting lost in?

c. Are the HQ radio positions in good or bad spots? Which ones are tough / easy?

d. Where have you been where you were stuck without a vehicle or felt like you spawned in the boonies?

e. Where do we need more soft (bushes / trees) and hard cover (rocks / walls)? Where do we have too much cover?

More upcoming changes (v074):

- Fixed the bonus objectives in CNQ. The instruction (hint text) on the bonus objectives should be a bit clearer.

- Added the 3 ammo dump shelters (2 in the german spawn, 1 in the russian spawn) to serve as objectives for CNQ. I still have to dress it up a bit, but the majority of the decorations are in place for the german ammo dump.

- Loosened up the capture radius on a few of the CNQ objectives

v074 is up on the server

HQ definitely plays better without tanks. Nowhere near as brutal. Mortars become extremely useful in an infantry-only map (as our opponents found out as I shelled them from a hidden nook). A jeep's MG becomes a key weapon for guarding the radio on a bridge (or the Halftrack).

We didn't really test CNQ tonight, other then running around and making abundant use of the ground cover. There's a new trench south of the South Forest Bunker which is a decent place to hole up and defending the South Forest Bunker objective in CNQ.

v075 is up on the server. This is a final lighting compile (so the trees and models will cast shadows). As a result, the ambiance should be very different from what you normally see (forested areas will have more shadows).

The big part of v075 is that the ruined bases are now solid and you can get down into the basements. I'm still working on making the shelves below solid (the horizontal pieces are solid by default, but the vertical pieces allow bullets/grenades through). I'm going to make the vertical pieces solid as well, but leave the very bottom (where the four poles are) as non-solid to weapon fire.

The best example of the solid shelf vertical bits is the Russian #2 base.

This is different then mp_foy or mp_uo_barbarossa. On those maps, the vertical sides of the shelves are non-solid and allow gunfire. This (to me) is counter-intuitive and should be fixed. If I can't see the stairs, you shouldn't be able to bounce a grenade off my chest or shoot me in the head. (Now you'll have to shoot my feet, or come around the side of the shelf.)

I've used a metal weapon clip texture for the sides of the shelves. The sparks from bullets will make it very obvious that you're hitting the sides of the shelves instead of the player hiding behind.

Current map rotation:



hq_large.cfg



cnq_large.cfg



bel_large.cfg



The gametype-specific config files are useful for changing tank spawn values, artillery intervals, etc. As you can see, points-per-rank changes according to gameype.

im not so sure to add all the smoke to the ruined tanks and stuff... the wrecks made it look old... like a past war, like they fought there once and its been awhile...

the cnq trail is good enough... it basic to follow... the only freaky part is the first bridge that you killed me and feezy at for a long time using the compus to navigate it gets a little weird but after a few rounds people will get the drift

are all the shelves in the bottom bullet proof? the middle shelf is normal but what about pulling all the shelves out and putting in an ammo crate?

I have yet to find a spawn that is really "out there" maybe one or 2 on the german side by the base and the Y shaped trail were the trees are floating???

my 2 cents on tanks and stuff...
the russian truck SUCKS... it sucks on barb, and every map out there! I know there is nothing that compares to the German Half track but maybe change them to a faster kv1 or su... personally I would love to see the truck armored with an anti aircraft gun on back, you dont have the time to do it.... maybe some reading this could??? or can tell me how to on a mac???

the rain ROX!
did you change the lighting to red or blue?
red is used at night... blue shines to far and is the brightest light...

I still feel empty at the village w/o the guns. I think BAS will be gun arena.

have you given any thought on mass arty?

also I was telling you about the sound from a certian MOD that rox, can that be added to the map? with out adding another pk file?

Pity that the (Russian?) BA10 doesn't work or I'd use that in place of the milk trucks.

(Personally, I like the milk trucks. They're definitely unexpected when they show up and a great way to get multiple allies to the front lines in a hurry. You just need to bail early.)

I vaguely remember you talking about sounds... but refresh my memory.

I like the idea of using red colored lights in the major bunkers instead of the kerosene lamps. Would kerosene lamps have been retrofitted with red filtered glass?

I may experiment with mass arty... and mass smoke... I think both could be server-side mods that are separate files (like the HQFix that lets us tweak HQ gameplay). Mass arty is probably as simple as changing the number of rounds dropped. I'll probably make it a CVar. I won't muck around with marching arty or arty that zeros in (it will still be random).

At the farm area:

- The two mortar positions are working very well. I wish the one on the Russian side of the river was closer, but there's no better place to put it.

- The tank scrape on the German side serves as a replacement for the pak gun that was there. I think it *mostly* meets that purpose. Not sure where else I could steal a vehicle / pak gun from to replace the pak gun that was there. That german tank scrape is very powerful (as Silver used it to great effect the other night).

- Russians are a bit screwed with the removal of their pak gun on the east side of the river. I'm not sure what I'm going to add in order to counter the german tank scrape.

One idea is to add a pine tree at the river crossing, allowing Russian tanks to come up the middle road into the east part of the farm fields without being target practice for a tank at the german's west farm tank scrape.

Another idea is to change things around at the North Bridge (east side) so that Russians can get a tank down into the east farm fields.

Or I could attempt to add a tank scrape on the Russian side of the farm area... somewhere...

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I suspect that Russian armor will tend to run the flanks (north road or south road). Attempting to cross the farm area is going to be deadly (and would be even worse if I had left those two pak guns in).

rail roads used colored lamps and i dont see why they wouldnt have in war...

maybe the truck could be tweaked like up armored (higher defensive points or w/e) just to wasy to kill

there is a tank explosion sound that actually sounds real with the steel ripping apart. just alot better sound, makes killing tanks fun, i can send you the mod if you want

Tank explosions are a server-admin function. Similar to the non-stock sounds on the MOB's Base Assault server.

Trying to get the red cagelights working inside the bases. The model keeps going yellow on me, even though my light is pure red.

Base Assault *might* be working in v076. I seem to have figured out most issues regarding the bases. Only took 8 hours...

Germans will be at a disadvantage due to not being able to get to their G3 pak gun and the german tanks not being in the proper spots yet.


For the first week or so I plan on running bases at half-strength (compared to stock) so they'll go down a lot quicker then normal. Mostly I want to know whether bases are being destroyed properly, whether bombs work, whether rubble shows up in the right spots.

We'll experiment with a 2 minute bomb timer... see if that breaks the server (grin).