I think I'll have to go with Maxsvard on this one.
Looks like something straight out of Bastion, but pretty awesome in SC2. With a larger area and a more colorful backdrop it could turn into something spectacular.
Would be cool to see a full melee map done in that style.
To avoid confusion, I'd rather not change all of this up again now. However, this is good food for a new WTE - perhaps something along the lines of expanding one of the contest submissions, making an all-round larger and more complete terrain, or another joint-terraining exercise.
A new JTE to expand and develop the winning map could be pretty awesome. We haven't had one of those in a while.
I want a a whole cliff level higher than it usually should be. Is this possible with map options?
Possible, but it's a major undertaking and a serious pain in the ass. Also requires 3d modeling abilities. (Or just a lot of time and doodads, see below.)
If you just change the cliff height in the data editor, the ground at the top won't line up with the cliff mesh - so you need to find a way to close the hole. The best-looking and best-performing option is also the most difficult: you'd need to recreate/modify the models for the entire cliff set to line up with your new desired height.
Alternately, you can use doodads to cover the gap for every inch of that cliff height on your map. Naturally, this is slow, tedious and can cause serious performance issues depending on the map. But it doesn't require 3rd party tools or 3d modeling.
I'll expand on this with a trick I use for adding variety to larger areas:
Rather than manually tinting the doodads, you can use lighting regions with a low-intensity brush and a dose of the Blur tool to create large, sweeping gradients and patterns in the colors of your doodads. It works particularly well for forests and large areas of heavy vegetation, and can be used in moderation to add some more variety to your ground textures.
You just have to be careful not to overdo it - especially in places where units can move through the different lighting colors.
I'll have to agree with Mozared that the shape of your shoreline doesn't look particularly aquadynamic. But it still looks really nice - and the interior too.
I particularly like the big curving control console - simple, but it just works perfectly. Though I notice that all of the large Zerus trees are facing and leaning the exact same direction.
I just did some googling and poking around in the editor, and I can't find a way to do it.
The data method you already tried (I had the same results). There's also a texture called "ui_ingame_blackmask" ...unfortunately, it seems to be used for the background overlay when you open the menu, not the actual black mask for the fog of war.
Yeah, copy/paste could work, depending on what you were trying to accomplish.
The editor also has tools built in to automatically create up to 8-way symmetry if your map could make use of that. (Go to Map -> Map Symmetry. Symmetry also affects doodad and unit placement.)
With a lighting setup that heavily stylized, it might look better to manually create the water out of HotS' frozen wave doodads. A bit more form and definition than a water plane, and you can change the size for more dramatic effect.
And guaranteed to melt your computer 150% more effectively.
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I think I'll have to go with Maxsvard on this one.
Looks like something straight out of Bastion, but pretty awesome in SC2. With a larger area and a more colorful backdrop it could turn into something spectacular.
Would be cool to see a full melee map done in that style.
A new JTE to expand and develop the winning map could be pretty awesome. We haven't had one of those in a while.
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Possible, but it's a major undertaking and a serious pain in the ass. Also requires 3d modeling abilities. (Or just a lot of time and doodads, see below.)
If you just change the cliff height in the data editor, the ground at the top won't line up with the cliff mesh - so you need to find a way to close the hole. The best-looking and best-performing option is also the most difficult: you'd need to recreate/modify the models for the entire cliff set to line up with your new desired height.
Alternately, you can use doodads to cover the gap for every inch of that cliff height on your map. Naturally, this is slow, tedious and can cause serious performance issues depending on the map. But it doesn't require 3rd party tools or 3d modeling.
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@Mozared: Go
Hmm... Challenge accepted.
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I'll expand on this with a trick I use for adding variety to larger areas:
Rather than manually tinting the doodads, you can use lighting regions with a low-intensity brush and a dose of the Blur tool to create large, sweeping gradients and patterns in the colors of your doodads. It works particularly well for forests and large areas of heavy vegetation, and can be used in moderation to add some more variety to your ground textures.
You just have to be careful not to overdo it - especially in places where units can move through the different lighting colors.
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@ScrinKing: Go
http://www.sc2mapster.com/forums/general/off-topic/64945-apparently-the-mozared-thread/
I would join the fun, but I can't think of a good way to incorporate him into my standard avatar.
@Scbroodsc2: Go
I'll have to agree with Mozared that the shape of your shoreline doesn't look particularly aquadynamic. But it still looks really nice - and the interior too.
I particularly like the big curving control console - simple, but it just works perfectly. Though I notice that all of the large Zerus trees are facing and leaning the exact same direction.
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@Scbroodsc2: Go
Unfortunately, the way I made him depends on a very specific camera angle.
If I move it even slightly he'll turn into a clump of random shapes floating in the air.
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Taking a vacation on Zerus.
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I just did some googling and poking around in the editor, and I can't find a way to do it.
The data method you already tried (I had the same results). There's also a texture called "ui_ingame_blackmask" ...unfortunately, it seems to be used for the background overlay when you open the menu, not the actual black mask for the fog of war.
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@penguinwars: Go
Yeah, copy/paste could work, depending on what you were trying to accomplish.
The editor also has tools built in to automatically create up to 8-way symmetry if your map could make use of that. (Go to Map -> Map Symmetry. Symmetry also affects doodad and unit placement.)
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Unfortunately, no.
I keep hoping they'll patch in a line-draw tool at some point, but it hasn't happened yet.
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@Terhonator: Go
If you're making a playable map, you can use No Fly Zones to prevent air from clipping through tall objects.
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@joecab: Go
With a lighting setup that heavily stylized, it might look better to manually create the water out of HotS' frozen wave doodads. A bit more form and definition than a water plane, and you can change the size for more dramatic effect.
And guaranteed to melt your computer 150% more effectively.
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@Detective221: Go
I've never seen a checkbox for it (I just went and looked to be sure). It should just work.
Unfortunately, I've never seen it work the way you describe, so I can't offer any suggestions.
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@Mereelvion: Go
Did you by chance create the texture at half size, then copy/paste the other 3 corners?
Looks like you missed the alpha channel for the copy/paste.
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Much better. :)