Halo 4 Ironclad

[A R C A S I U S]

 

Map Title: Ironclad

 

Download

 

Recommended party size: 8 - 14

 

Gametypes: Infinity Slayer, CTF, Regicide, King of the Hill, SWAT.

 

Storyline: After the glassing of Reach, this remnant is all that survived from the city of New Alexandria and has been drifting in amongst the asteroids that once made up the planet Reach, ever since. 

 

Hi Guys, A R C A S I U S here

 

Ironclad is a medium sized, symmetrical competitive map created on the impact pallet. 

I have been working on this map for a few weeks and it has undergone countless design changes to finally be what it is. I took inspiration for this map from about 7 different maps spanning the length of the Halo series not to mention countless hours researching futuristic city designs and layouts. I believe this map stands alone in regards to originality, aesthetics and overall game play flow.

 

My main focus for this map was to avoid creating a "box map" that seems to be the norm for a lot of forgers these days. Don't get me wrong most of these have terrific gameplay however I simply wanted to create something a bit more original and less repetitive. 

 

Note: There is a small frame rate drop in one spot IN FORGE but not in any custom games. The reason for this being that the spawns, kill zones, and capture plates are not visible in custom games. I have tested this extensively so please check the map out in a custom game.

Also, the kill barriers are rather unforgiving. This is due to the fact that I have played many forged community maps that are able to be exploited due to poor kill barrier placements and combinations. As you maneuver around the map just be mindful of what logic would be considered "outside the map" and as long as you don't go there, you will not die.

 

Also, I am the map creator although it says Q U A R l S M A. Q U A R l S M A  is my old acc and I created A R C A S I U S halfway through the creation of this map. As proof, the xbox profile of Q U A R l S M A is boasting A R C A S I U S's tag.

 

Enjoy!

 

A R C A S I U S

 

[KarmaPolice07]

I've only had the chance to play 1v1 on here so far but I'm definitely a fan. I can see the inspiration taken from maps of the past and everything is put together in a way that is fresh. There doesn't seem to be any one place where all the action takes place but rather multiple open and closed spaces that make for good combat at varying ranges. Looks good for an uphill struggle with decent opportunities for advancing under cover while still allowing the team with the high ground plenty of options for defense.

[A R C A S I U S]

I've only had the chance to play 1v1 on here so far but I'm definitely a fan. I can see the inspiration taken from maps of the past and everything is put together in a way that is fresh. There doesn't seem to be any one place where all the action takes place but rather multiple open and closed spaces that make for good combat at varying ranges. Looks good for an uphill struggle with decent opportunities for advancing under cover while still allowing the team with the high ground plenty of options for defense.

 

Thank you so much for your feedback. I have made some changes however to make the game play more balanced, thus I have allowed for red and blue team to now spawn in the left and right bases. I have also added some colour to the map so that orientation and call-outs are much easier. 

[10 000 people]

Hey dude, I've downloaded the map and had a good look around..... Heres my thoughts.

 

Firstly, I appreciate all the work you have put into the aesthetics of the map, your attention to detail is awesome. That large interior space is beautiful, the rock garden and screen were a nice touch, and I absolutely loved those half closed doors down the bottom. Ive never seen braces used quite in that way. The map looks great!

 

But. You have put a bit too much focus on aesthetics. Halo forge is still in some serious need of optimization, and until that day comes there has to be a compromise made between aesthetics and gameplay. Having a look around the map I noticed several areas where frame rate drop was an issue.

I know that in forge by yourself, it doesn't seem that big of a deal, its only slightly noticeable. But the more people you have playing, the more information needs to be processed, and the worse the frame rate will get.

 

8 players at once on this map will create major issues and 14 players probably won't be playable.

I've had a really good look around and I've noticed lots of places where you could cut down on how much stuff the game needs to render. For example using a large building piece or impact piece where even something as small as a railing would have done the job. 

 

There is plenty of room here to cut down on the number and size of the pieces you are using while still maintaining all the features the map has now. Sure some details might not be quite as good as they are now, but it's a compromise that you have to make if you want some good gameplay.

 

Also I think the Flood game type would play very well in this map.

 

So those are my thoughts, take them or leave them,  I don't want to upset or offend you in anyway, i'm just letting you know how I think you could improve an already very good map.

[A R C A S I U S]

Hey man thanks so much for your feedback. I don't get offended at all if its genuine constructive feedback and a clear willingness to help improve the map is shown which you have. Basically I have played quite a few 4v4s on infinity slayer on this and had no frame rate drops. Granted all the players were from here in Australia and New Zealand but that hasn't got much to do with franerate. I believe that the map needs a bit of an overhaul to minimise the piece count so as to not have a shadow of a doubt and I will be doing that over the next week and posting an update. Would you be willing to help me out with that however? Having worked on the map for weeks and weeks I have a tendency now to overlook alot of things and or refuse to change things that I think work well and to be very honest I haven't had a whole lot of feedback on the maps details and as a whole. while making it ganeplay was my main focus, i put down the basic layout ten realised it was all looking very aesthetic on its own. If you could add me on xbl and run through it with me and give me your thoughts on what could be altered then that would be great.

[Cooliest]

I downloaded this and looked at it in forge. Looks pretty cool. I'll have to play it in a game to see if it not only looks great but plays well too.