Thanks for your nice (and insightful) response, SolidSC. I appreciate what you said about exploring new ideas and map-making concepts, but you give me too much credit. I think that we should be pushing to redefine what the role a custom map can play. So yes, I will continue to work on this, though I just moved back to school so I'll be a little slow to update or post in the coming weeks.
I also liked what you said about the financial troubles for NASA. You're absolutely right that there should be something gained from the operation. Whether that "something gained" is scientific knowledge or a products mined on the planetary surface, it better be something worth the billions of dollars that are spent for their acquisition. Perhaps the most valuable thing to try to gain from the operation is a sustainable, reusable base that can be expanded upon (sound like base-building/expanding in sc2?)
That's great, thanks BasharTeg! The WoW model import tutorial is awesome... I haven't yet had time to try it out completely, though I look forward to it. The Day/Night cycle tutorial page is also good, and I've used one of the tutorials included in that post (in particular, one). With that said, I don't know how to set up triggers with respect to those day/night cycles to get the cool night-effects on units and gameplay...
caparosmith, I'm so glad you learned something about space technology and the process of establishing a lunar base! As for your question about the hostile forces in Lunar Harvest: Base Operations, I can only say that they represent other interested parties that want to collect as much water and Helium-3 as possible for themselves - you didn't necessarily find the best landing spot first...
mnadeau1992, thanks for your insightful suggestions for upgrades to my maps. If I were better at using the map editor, I'd love to incorporate your suggestions, especially those concerning ability modifications for daily cycles. I'd also love to successfully import models, textures and animations to make the units of my maps look more like their NASA-counterparts, but that'll have to wait for future maps. I'll see what I can do as time goes by.
I appreciate all the support. I see my maps as prototypes for future NASA-inspired maps to be made by myself or other map-makers out there. I used only publicly-available information like anyone else could, and I aimed to make custom maps that feature several of the overwhelming number of parallels between space exploration science and Starcraft 2. I am only an amateur map-maker. Hopefully in time there will be great space-science related custom maps to play. For now I'll keep updating my maps according to feedback, waiting to upload to Blizzard's server.
Thanks for the helpful remarks concerning attack waves. At the moment, each difficulty level has specific attack waves associated with it, and each difficulty also has different upgrades unlocked for enemy units. I'll definitely add some more air aggression, and even an attack from what you call the "south base" outside the crater rim, but not for the easiest setting - "piece of cake" is meant to be more of a tutorial and demonstration tool than anything else.
Also, I've figured out that the problem I've been encountering when trying to re-publish maps is my internet connection...I'll have to wait until I get to school in little over a week to be able to publish any updates.
Thanks for bearing with me in this transition period - I appreciate it, caparosmith. In the meantime, please let me know if you have any other suggestions for my Lunar Harvest maps, or if you find you can pick up scientific items when you try "Base Operations" again. Hope you had a fun weekend.
Thanks, DrSuperEvil, I think it was a good use of tax dollars too :-P
Also, since I was just working at a NASA center, I can best respond to your comment, Hobrow. The plan that you're referring to, that was to build a permanent lunar base on the Moon, was officially part of the Constellation Program of Pres. Bush's administration. Recently, though, under Obama, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden scrapped the Constellation Program because of a lack of funding and instead we are now following what is called the "Flexible Path" as recommended by the Augustine Committee. This new program is much less well defined (there's no specified schedule as of yet) but it has the ultimate goal of settling the moon, Mars, and other planetary destinations in the solar system.
Regardless of what the plan for NASA is right now, human beings will soon reach the moon with either international or private space ventures and we will soon set out to establish permanent bases there. In order to be successful, any venture will need to understand the lunar environment and be able to utilize the resources there, but the venture must also have the ability to reuse old infrastructure and build upon previous missions...these are two key concepts that I hoped to convey with my map collection.
Also, Hobrow was completely right by saying that Shackleton Crater is a primary destination and that there are permanently dark regions in the crater that very likely hold vast amounts of frozen water and perhaps even other resources like the isotope Helium-3. Thanks, Hobrow, for also mentioning that water can be used for everything from drinking water to breathing air to rocket fuel. Actually, most of the necessary technology to do this has already been developed...at NASA's Desert RATS, they have an ISRU device that transforms water ice into usable breathing air, among other things.
Getting to the moon and sustaining a base there is relatively easy...convincing Congress that they should put up the money to do it is the hard part.
I see... you definitely appear to have run into a bug from the look of your screenshots (which are sweet, btw). I don't have the same problem when I try the maps out online, but I'm trying to tinker around to figure out what might be causing the problem for you. At the moment I can't upload any updates until I figure out why I suddenly started getting "Gateway_Down" errors when trying to publish :-/ That said, I can try a few things once I can publish again and see if that helps you out - I'll get to it as soon I can. Sorry for the inconvenience, buddy, and thanks for taking the time to show me the issue. Also, it looks like you were wrecking from the screenshots...what do you think of the difficulty settings?
Thanks for the responses. And thanks, Eiviyn, I've definitely been visiting TeamLiquid and plan on posting soon. Also, b0ne123, I don't know how to upload to EU servers...do you have some advice as to how I can do that? I'd appreciate that.
Alright, so here's the story. This summer I worked as a student intern in a NASA program called LARSS (Langley Aerospace Research Summer Scholars). My job was to make NASA-inspired maps that could include cutting-edge information about NASA concepts and technology and still keep the Starcraft 2 feel. I was not technically a NASA-employee since I was funded with a Virginia Space Grant, so I was just an intern for NASA. Also, the maps aren't officially associated with NASA because they employ only publicly-available information. The series is definitely still a work-in-progress, though I think it could be fun to play for anyone interested in manned space exploration or Starcraft 2.
Hey caparosmith, thanks for your response. I just went online and checked out the bug you mentioned. The three main items I've placed seem to work, so let me ask: did the items you're talking about have a blue "protoss beacon" under them? If so, and if this is what you're talking about when you say that the "beacons don't do anything" then I'd suggest ordering any ground unit of yours to walk around the protoss beacons until they trigger...I've set the beacons to disappear and trigger item collection when a ground unit of the player has entered within a small area around them. If you aren't talking about these protoss beacons then I don't know what to tell you, except that you should look for doodads marked by protoss beacons.
I hope this helps.
Also, thanks for the nice words. If you have any other comments about my maps, I'd love to hear them!
I am new to the SC2Mapster community, but I have been visiting the site all summer. My job these past 10 weeks was to build NASA-inspired Starcraft 2 maps at NASA's Langley Research Center, and it was a blast. Two of the four maps are classic melee maps, but I've tweaked the normal starting conditions to reflect the demands of a realistic mission to Shackleton Crater on the moon...basically, you start with limited resources, forcing you inside the crater to find the better deposits.
Search "LunarHarvest" to find and play my maps. Thanks in advance for checking it out. I'll be updating, so any feedback is much appreciated. I hope you enjoy!
Also, if you want to check out the trailer for the map series that these maps are part of, check out the Lunar Harvest !
This summer my job at NASA Langley Research Center was to build SC2 maps. I gained much insight from the SC2Mapster community as I built my maps this summer, and now I want to give you the chance to see what I've come up with. Check out the or play the maps by searching for "LunarHarvest" maps online when creating a game in SC2.
As the series is now, here are the maps available to play:
Lunar Harvest: Base Operations (1 player campaign);
0
Thanks for your nice (and insightful) response, SolidSC. I appreciate what you said about exploring new ideas and map-making concepts, but you give me too much credit. I think that we should be pushing to redefine what the role a custom map can play. So yes, I will continue to work on this, though I just moved back to school so I'll be a little slow to update or post in the coming weeks.
I also liked what you said about the financial troubles for NASA. You're absolutely right that there should be something gained from the operation. Whether that "something gained" is scientific knowledge or a products mined on the planetary surface, it better be something worth the billions of dollars that are spent for their acquisition. Perhaps the most valuable thing to try to gain from the operation is a sustainable, reusable base that can be expanded upon (sound like base-building/expanding in sc2?)
0
@BasharTeg: Go
That's great, thanks BasharTeg! The WoW model import tutorial is awesome... I haven't yet had time to try it out completely, though I look forward to it. The Day/Night cycle tutorial page is also good, and I've used one of the tutorials included in that post (in particular, one). With that said, I don't know how to set up triggers with respect to those day/night cycles to get the cool night-effects on units and gameplay...
0
Hey, thanks for all the comments.
caparosmith, I'm so glad you learned something about space technology and the process of establishing a lunar base! As for your question about the hostile forces in Lunar Harvest: Base Operations, I can only say that they represent other interested parties that want to collect as much water and Helium-3 as possible for themselves - you didn't necessarily find the best landing spot first...
mnadeau1992, thanks for your insightful suggestions for upgrades to my maps. If I were better at using the map editor, I'd love to incorporate your suggestions, especially those concerning ability modifications for daily cycles. I'd also love to successfully import models, textures and animations to make the units of my maps look more like their NASA-counterparts, but that'll have to wait for future maps. I'll see what I can do as time goes by.
And BasharTeg, I wish I could :-P
0
I appreciate all the support. I see my maps as prototypes for future NASA-inspired maps to be made by myself or other map-makers out there. I used only publicly-available information like anyone else could, and I aimed to make custom maps that feature several of the overwhelming number of parallels between space exploration science and Starcraft 2. I am only an amateur map-maker. Hopefully in time there will be great space-science related custom maps to play. For now I'll keep updating my maps according to feedback, waiting to upload to Blizzard's server.
0
Thanks for the helpful remarks concerning attack waves. At the moment, each difficulty level has specific attack waves associated with it, and each difficulty also has different upgrades unlocked for enemy units. I'll definitely add some more air aggression, and even an attack from what you call the "south base" outside the crater rim, but not for the easiest setting - "piece of cake" is meant to be more of a tutorial and demonstration tool than anything else.
Also, I've figured out that the problem I've been encountering when trying to re-publish maps is my internet connection...I'll have to wait until I get to school in little over a week to be able to publish any updates.
Thanks for bearing with me in this transition period - I appreciate it, caparosmith. In the meantime, please let me know if you have any other suggestions for my Lunar Harvest maps, or if you find you can pick up scientific items when you try "Base Operations" again. Hope you had a fun weekend.
0
:-) Thanks dude
0
Thanks, DrSuperEvil, I think it was a good use of tax dollars too :-P
Also, since I was just working at a NASA center, I can best respond to your comment, Hobrow. The plan that you're referring to, that was to build a permanent lunar base on the Moon, was officially part of the Constellation Program of Pres. Bush's administration. Recently, though, under Obama, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden scrapped the Constellation Program because of a lack of funding and instead we are now following what is called the "Flexible Path" as recommended by the Augustine Committee. This new program is much less well defined (there's no specified schedule as of yet) but it has the ultimate goal of settling the moon, Mars, and other planetary destinations in the solar system.
Regardless of what the plan for NASA is right now, human beings will soon reach the moon with either international or private space ventures and we will soon set out to establish permanent bases there. In order to be successful, any venture will need to understand the lunar environment and be able to utilize the resources there, but the venture must also have the ability to reuse old infrastructure and build upon previous missions...these are two key concepts that I hoped to convey with my map collection.
Also, Hobrow was completely right by saying that Shackleton Crater is a primary destination and that there are permanently dark regions in the crater that very likely hold vast amounts of frozen water and perhaps even other resources like the isotope Helium-3. Thanks, Hobrow, for also mentioning that water can be used for everything from drinking water to breathing air to rocket fuel. Actually, most of the necessary technology to do this has already been developed...at NASA's Desert RATS, they have an ISRU device that transforms water ice into usable breathing air, among other things.
Getting to the moon and sustaining a base there is relatively easy...convincing Congress that they should put up the money to do it is the hard part.
0
I see... you definitely appear to have run into a bug from the look of your screenshots (which are sweet, btw). I don't have the same problem when I try the maps out online, but I'm trying to tinker around to figure out what might be causing the problem for you. At the moment I can't upload any updates until I figure out why I suddenly started getting "Gateway_Down" errors when trying to publish :-/ That said, I can try a few things once I can publish again and see if that helps you out - I'll get to it as soon I can. Sorry for the inconvenience, buddy, and thanks for taking the time to show me the issue. Also, it looks like you were wrecking from the screenshots...what do you think of the difficulty settings?
0
Thanks for the responses. And thanks, Eiviyn, I've definitely been visiting TeamLiquid and plan on posting soon. Also, b0ne123, I don't know how to upload to EU servers...do you have some advice as to how I can do that? I'd appreciate that.
Alright, so here's the story. This summer I worked as a student intern in a NASA program called LARSS (Langley Aerospace Research Summer Scholars). My job was to make NASA-inspired maps that could include cutting-edge information about NASA concepts and technology and still keep the Starcraft 2 feel. I was not technically a NASA-employee since I was funded with a Virginia Space Grant, so I was just an intern for NASA. Also, the maps aren't officially associated with NASA because they employ only publicly-available information. The series is definitely still a work-in-progress, though I think it could be fun to play for anyone interested in manned space exploration or Starcraft 2.
Does this make things clearer?
0
@caparosmith: Go
Hey caparosmith, thanks for your response. I just went online and checked out the bug you mentioned. The three main items I've placed seem to work, so let me ask: did the items you're talking about have a blue "protoss beacon" under them? If so, and if this is what you're talking about when you say that the "beacons don't do anything" then I'd suggest ordering any ground unit of yours to walk around the protoss beacons until they trigger...I've set the beacons to disappear and trigger item collection when a ground unit of the player has entered within a small area around them. If you aren't talking about these protoss beacons then I don't know what to tell you, except that you should look for doodads marked by protoss beacons.
I hope this helps.
Also, thanks for the nice words. If you have any other comments about my maps, I'd love to hear them!
0
Hi All,
I am new to the SC2Mapster community, but I have been visiting the site all summer. My job these past 10 weeks was to build NASA-inspired Starcraft 2 maps at NASA's Langley Research Center, and it was a blast. Two of the four maps are classic melee maps, but I've tweaked the normal starting conditions to reflect the demands of a realistic mission to Shackleton Crater on the moon...basically, you start with limited resources, forcing you inside the crater to find the better deposits.
Search "LunarHarvest" to find and play my maps. Thanks in advance for checking it out. I'll be updating, so any feedback is much appreciated. I hope you enjoy!
Also, if you want to check out the trailer for the map series that these maps are part of, check out the Lunar Harvest !
0
Hey All,
This summer my job at NASA Langley Research Center was to build SC2 maps. I gained much insight from the SC2Mapster community as I built my maps this summer, and now I want to give you the chance to see what I've come up with. Check out the or play the maps by searching for "LunarHarvest" maps online when creating a game in SC2.
As the series is now, here are the maps available to play:
I'm planning on updating these maps, so any feedback would be awesome.
Thanks! And I hope you enjoy...