Custom Map #2691: PAC Prospector Fortress. By: Vertu

AutoPost · December 27, 2021, 12:37:21 AM

This topic is for discussion of map #2691: PAC Prospector Fortress

Author: Vertu
Size: 180x364

Vertu · December 27, 2021, 12:41:44 AM

Spending 6 and a half days making this map, adding new units, new features, refining a bunch of scripts, adding tons of code was worth it. It's my ideal Christmas week even if I had 3 failed FULL playtests where I got to the end only to fix something and restart.
Also made me wonder if I should of made a map before this to tutorialise the changes to the PAC units, but instead I just slapped them in the game's A.D.A text.

It was all worth it even if this map does poorly.

Malignantmind · December 27, 2021, 03:39:11 AM

At this point I'm just getting flashbacks to GuardianDragonlord's maps. Laggy slideshows that take ten times longer to complete than they should. Also, there was no A.D.A. message describing any of the changes/new units.

TrickyPlayer · December 27, 2021, 03:54:12 AM

Firstly, this is way too laggy for me.
Second, there's no creeper to start with? After 1 minute of playing no creeper has spawned in for me. Whether this is because of the lag or because of broken scripts, I don't know.
Thirdly, there's a lot of new units at once. Probably too much to even explain what all of them do.

If I had to rate the map I would give it a 8/10 purely for the effort. This is literally impossible to play for me though as there's no way to even start, and even if there was a way to start the lag would make me unable to keep playing because of my ADHD... "hey a squirrel, that's surely more interesting than a game moving at 8 ups!"

It's a sad thing all those issues exist, it looks like a really interesting and cool map if only I could actually play it.

Mr$Hyper$ · December 27, 2021, 10:57:26 PM

0/10 for gameplay

8/10 for map effort

andz · December 28, 2021, 09:07:09 PM

Loved it! Very fun! Can you share some advice for beating it faster? I see you have a completion time of 30 minutes :o

The middle was super difficult for me, the rest was fine. The last third of the map was a steamroll actually, it was over very quickly once I got past the middle.

How do bursts work? Sometimes they don't countdown.

The new units are super cool, love the movable base although I didn't use it much.

Vertu · December 29, 2021, 10:53:10 AM

Well for those who reach the mid early before the "mobile base" (adv.V-Lab), it has a BURST just like the BURST building but weaker, before bursting send it into the main shield (like 30 seconds to BURSTing as it's UI says "BURST IN : 00:30:00" to destroy what ever ERNed units still stand within the shield. That usually helps a lot and during my speed run, seals the deal faster. It's more of a support unit but if you use it a few times you can learn such a trick.

I had to play test this so many times and with 3 full play tests to the end, I developed an entire speed run build pattern. Glad you enjoyed it.

Also the BURSTs don't have a countdown like the V-Labs do for their SCM. Their lights simply glow red as they get closer to bursting and the mini map shows it too.

andz · December 29, 2021, 12:37:51 PM

By burst I meant the burst emitter.It has a 6 minute countdown but when I place it most of the time it doesn't count down, it's stuck at 6

Vertu · December 29, 2021, 05:01:36 PM

Quote from: andz on December 29, 2021, 12:37:51 PM
By burst I meant the burst emitter.It has a 6 minute countdown but when I place it most of the time it doesn't count down, it's stuck at 6

Oh. Well it needs to be submerged in Creeper for a good while before it activates. Super annoying when a PFLEMS laser comes down after being fired into space and ruins the Creeper that was submerging it at the time. A good strategy is to place normal Emitters around the Burst Emitter until it activates which is indicated by the white lights turning off and it starting to spin.

ButterySkank · December 31, 2021, 09:50:29 PM

Your levels are some of the hardest I've ever played, yet they're also the most satisfying to beat!!

Vertu · December 31, 2021, 10:50:51 PM

Quote from: ButterySkank on December 31, 2021, 09:50:29 PM
Your levels are some of the hardest I've ever played, yet they're also the most satisfying to beat!!

I have been making sure to create celebration stuff when you do complete them on the harder difficulty or even just normal. I have gotten aware of my above average capabilities that make it difficult for me to understand how hard I make things.
Glad you enjoyed it!

Arakiven · January 03, 2022, 11:41:07 PM

When I first started playing your maps I was not a fan. I had not idea what anything did or where half the things that were blowing me up were coming from (still don't for some things, what even is the floating particle emitter?!?). They've come to grow on me though and I enjoy how challenging they are where you can't brute force your way through most things.

One thing I especially love/hate is that you use Totems for shields quite a bit which, as far as I know, can't be disabled. On this map I would launch mobs of blobs at one of the sides and quickly plop down an advanced emitter on where the supply totem was so nothing could rebuild, but still couldn't make any headway because of the totems.

Overall, love the maps. Do you think you can release something that explains what all the custom units the AI has does? Or if that already exists, point me towards it?
Thanks!

Vertu · January 04, 2022, 02:18:26 PM

Quote from: Arakiven on January 03, 2022, 11:41:07 PM
When I first started playing your maps I was not a fan. I had not idea what anything did or where half the things that were blowing me up were coming from (still don't for some things, what even is the floating particle emitter?!?). They've come to grow on me though and I enjoy how challenging they are where you can't brute force your way through most things.

One thing I especially love/hate is that you use Totems for shields quite a bit which, as far as I know, can't be disabled. On this map I would launch mobs of blobs at one of the sides and quickly plop down an advanced emitter on where the supply totem was so nothing could rebuild, but still couldn't make any headway because of the totems.

Overall, love the maps. Do you think you can release something that explains what all the custom units the AI has does? Or if that already exists, point me towards it?
Thanks!

The VAUs (the flying units that people hate fighting against) now have a wiki link to the forum post. You can find them in the "Making units, maps, and scripts" section of the Forums here. The Rocket Launchers (from FLARE I believe, they are not 100% original to me) were mentioned in the LURE's description and I have made sure that whenever the Reactor Fighter shows up, you know the Armored LUREs are the only thing that works of them.
That is so far the main things that have information given to you. Most of the units are somewhat self-explanatory like the PFLEMs doom laser. It lands it's laser, Creeper just dies instantly. While you are using LUREs, an airstrike of missiles attack it.

In the Countermeasures part of the A.D.A, I color coded from red-blue for important-note worthy as to the many things in this place and how to counter them.

You also seemed to ignore the shield tool-tip in the A.D.A that spores overload shields upon colliding.
Glad you enjoyed the map!

4xC · January 13, 2022, 05:31:23 PM

I should have known better than to even try this map.

Now the whole game is permanently laggy and leaving the map, turning off the game, computer, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the whole game didn't fix anything.

And I recently bought a brand new cyber power desktop too. This game was working peachy keen until this map sent the whole game into lag heck.

It seems I may have to buy a whole new desktop for over 600$ to ever play this game at all again.

:'(

Vertu · January 13, 2022, 08:14:13 PM

Quote from: 4xC on January 13, 2022, 05:31:23 PM
I should have known better than to even try this map.

Now the whole game is permanently laggy and leaving the map, turning off the game, computer, and even uninstalling and reinstalling the whole game didn't fix anything.

And I recently bought a brand new cyber power desktop too. This game was working peachy keen until this map sent the whole game into lag heck.

It seems I may have to buy a whole new desktop for over 600$ to ever play this game at all again.

:'(

I would like you to understand, I am A) Not responsible for such things. B) Am not involved with such things. C) Can't access anything related to what you are saying there for I can not be held liable.
You are complaining about how the game handles things and apparently what ever your computer is could not handle how this game handles those things.

The only recommendation I have is to see if you have this map still downloaded as each map needs to be downloaded into your computer as it contains all the scripts, meshes, ect. And based on this I have to say, your computer is weaker than my 8 year old computer as I had no problem running this mission on constant 2x speed to have the sim-speed be closer to 1 second per second.