Custom Map #9194: chronom 2021-01-13. By: bedbug

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This topic is for discussion of map #9194: chronom 2021-01-13


Author: bedbug
Size: 99x99

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A few years ago it was worse, but it was better...

[TrickyPlayer]

You're making these levels daily? Or just submitting them late? Because if it's daily level creating, that's a lot of work you're putting in this.

[toolforger]

Liked it, thanks!
One thing: It would be nice if the multipliers would not periodically shut down even if fully supplied with energy. (They probably burn energy slightly faster than they are being resupplied.)
The intermittent behaviour makes it somewhat hard to find out where you stand - you look at emitter power and then you have to look how many multipliers were active at the time.

[Johnny Haywire]

Dude, these are great maps! Some are just all too easy, but this one was a little challenging. I mean if you don't actually look at the map and figure things out ahead of time. I love how deep the creep gets in this map - I think I had let it build up to near 1800 (?) which was very fun to whittle down to nothing.

You are truly a mapeze artist!  ;D ;D

[chaosmusic]

I definitely feel like I am missing something.  I have the two boosters in the lower right using a collector on the PZ and I have the two boosters way in the upper right using guppies but I then get stuck not able to flip any more emitters beyond the ones immediately around my base.

[Riskbreaker]

I definitely feel like I am missing something.  I have the two boosters in the lower right using a collector on the PZ and I have the two boosters way in the upper right using guppies but I then get stuck not able to flip any more emitters beyond the ones immediately around my base.

got a screenshot?

[chaosmusic]

I definitely feel like I am missing something.  I have the two boosters in the lower right using a collector on the PZ and I have the two boosters way in the upper right using guppies but I then get stuck not able to flip any more emitters beyond the ones immediately around my base.

got a screenshot?

[toolforger]

This looks like a pretty normal early situation.

Things you can do:

* Look at the places where your AC flows into regions you have no hope of defeating yet. You're just losing AC there, so you can block the outflow.
* You have blocked off some single-emitter areas with terps. Scan the border of the area you already have under control, check the strength of that area vs. the strength of your AC, tear down where you can win.
* If your height is almost enough, you can likely win without applying extra tricks: A strength-60 creep emitter will usually lose against two close-enough strength-50 AC ones, its generation rate simply can't keep up. (You'll have to experiment with this.)
* If you find you can *almost* overwhelm an emitter, you can give it a push with the Forge's singularity weapon. Target positioning is key; use the lowest setting (25%, shoot when you're near minimum power, just like the 108 that your screen shows) to experiment and see what it pulls and what's wanted and what's unwanted; vary the target, more often than not you'll find a spot that gives you results, and sometimes using more power is worth it. It's a difficult weapon to use properly, and it can be frustrating to find the sweet spot, but it can be invaluable and experimenting it will give you a better understanding. (One thing of note is that it isn't pulling creeper and AC in a straight line but in a vortex.)
* Sometimes a too-strong creeper emitter is losing most of its creep to a cloverleaf unit (e.g. the one to the right of your Command Node). I have successfully overwhelmed emitters that had double the power of my current AC emitter level (not normally); just look at the creeper level and compare with your AC level to find out whether you have a chance. You can combine with the singulariy weapon but now you have two objectives (pull the creeper to the cloverleaf and the AC to the emitter you want to overwhelm), this can be more difficult to use properly - OTOH cloverleafs tend to leave behind power towers so they can be key to progress in other areas, so they're the first thing to inspect for an opportunity.

HTH!

[chaosmusic]

This looks like a pretty normal early situation.

Things you can do:

* Look at the places where your AC flows into regions you have no hope of defeating yet. You're just losing AC there, so you can block the outflow.
* You have blocked off some single-emitter areas with terps. Scan the border of the area you already have under control, check the strength of that area vs. the strength of your AC, tear down where you can win.
* If your height is almost enough, you can likely win without applying extra tricks: A strength-60 creep emitter will usually lose against two close-enough strength-50 AC ones, its generation rate simply can't keep up. (You'll have to experiment with this.)
* If you find you can *almost* overwhelm an emitter, you can give it a push with the Forge's singularity weapon. Target positioning is key; use the lowest setting (25%, shoot when you're near minimum power, just like the 108 that your screen shows) to experiment and see what it pulls and what's wanted and what's unwanted; vary the target, more often than not you'll find a spot that gives you results, and sometimes using more power is worth it. It's a difficult weapon to use properly, and it can be frustrating to find the sweet spot, but it can be invaluable and experimenting it will give you a better understanding. (One thing of note is that it isn't pulling creeper and AC in a straight line but in a vortex.)
* Sometimes a too-strong creeper emitter is losing most of its creep to a cloverleaf unit (e.g. the one to the right of your Command Node). I have successfully overwhelmed emitters that had double the power of my current AC emitter level (not normally); just look at the creeper level and compare with your AC level to find out whether you have a chance. You can combine with the singulariy weapon but now you have two objectives (pull the creeper to the cloverleaf and the AC to the emitter you want to overwhelm), this can be more difficult to use properly - OTOH cloverleafs tend to leave behind power towers so they can be key to progress in other areas, so they're the first thing to inspect for an opportunity.

HTH!

Thanks, that worked a treat.  I love these maps but I keep forgetting about using the singularity weapon to put creeper along.

[yum-forum]

Sorry for remarks: all my CSM maps designed so that not nesessary to use Singularity weapon.

[Riskbreaker]

and i love them for that...i dont ever use singularities and only use upgrades or chips if i find it really impossible to move on without them...

i dont like to use a hammer to make two pieces of a jigsaw fit :P

[toolforger]

I use the singularity only sparingly - too long reload times after all.
I sometimes just wish to move on instead of scanning all details of the map to see where I'm supposed to progress.

If you wish to restrict the use of the singularity weapon, you can always remove the totems - actually their presence made me believe singularity is the intention.

[Riskbreaker]

totem lets you upgrade power and use terps more effectively

[Martin Gronsdal]

Forge limits. One can tick off for singularity and it won't be available in the map, totems or no totems.

[yum-forum]

Forge limits. One can tick off for singularity and it won't be available in the map, totems or no totems.

Yes. And even unlimited Forge also possible as it was made for me by RalfSaft in RVC maps.  :)