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My take on Fog of War

Forum Index > BW General
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next All
10dla
Profile Joined March 2018
127 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 17:58:05
May 20 2018 17:09 GMT
#1
[image loading]


The Picture is always in front. Is it still necessary to cover the entire map in FoW? There are 20 years of mapmaking. Not sure if its to be expected to know all those maps. Pretty sure all it does/did is limit the amount of maps that are played (FS). And its just another barrier.

Using NexusImage and TurboTop
[AS]Rattus
Profile Joined March 2017
428 Posts
May 20 2018 17:52 GMT
#2
had several games were a missclick cost me the game, like a missplaced DT/vulture. because i didn't know exactly were the minerals were.
i still like the complete black minimap though.
They show the map before the game starts, thats enough imo. And i don't limit myself to playing only FS either. Thats the only map i vetoed in ranked.
Alpha-NP-
Profile Blog Joined September 2008
United States1242 Posts
May 20 2018 18:02 GMT
#3
It might encourage players to play new maps because they wouldn't "have to learn the new maps". I think it is an excellent idea.
Dangermousecatdog
Profile Joined December 2010
United Kingdom7084 Posts
May 20 2018 18:18 GMT
#4
I suggested something like this serveral times in TL, and each time I was shouted down, ranging from that memorising maps isn't a problem, to that noobs should just learn the hard way like we did to maintaining the purity of the game.
BisuDagger
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Bisutopia19369 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-22 22:46:42
May 20 2018 19:19 GMT
#5
The SC2 solution is a great one imo. I play SC2 occasionally and am glad I don't have to memorize all the expansions. It gives nothing away by having the fog of war semi-transparency version.

User was warned for this post
ModeratorFormer Afreeca Starleague Caster: http://afreeca.tv/ASL2ENG2
Gorgonoth
Profile Joined August 2017
United States468 Posts
May 20 2018 19:37 GMT
#6
I actually think the SC2 FoW detracts. In BW its another skill facet of having intimate map knowledge. It is tough on new players, but I like the challenge, and the upper hand you can have when you have that lazer like precision clikcing into the black, and knowing the expansion pattern.
niteReloaded
Profile Blog Joined February 2007
Croatia5282 Posts
May 20 2018 21:06 GMT
#7
Maybe a good middle path would be for tournaments to keep the black, and ladder to use the transparent fog.
It's beginner friendly, but hardcore players still don't lose a facet of skill.
Starecat
Profile Joined August 2014
941 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 21:29:45
May 20 2018 21:28 GMT
#8
Don't know if it is confirmation bias, but isn't hard to a player to think on creating and finding a hidden expansion on a blacked out map? I saw more progames on BW where hidden expansions ended without being scouted.

There is also a mechanic aspect to that you need to see a buildable terrain to create a building right? Meaning you need more attention to a worker in order to build, right?
:3
The_Red_Viper
Profile Blog Joined August 2013
19533 Posts
May 20 2018 21:30 GMT
#9
This is by far the most annoying thing about bw for me because it doesn't really add any worthwhile skill. I don't think there is one player in the whole world who was excited he got better at clicking his unit through the fog of war.
As far as i understand you need the full black fog because you otherwise could always mineralwalk and get a scout? Though there might be another solution for this.
IU | Sohyang || There is no God and we are his prophets | For if ‘Thou mayest’—it is also true that ‘Thou mayest not.” | Ignorance is the parent of fear |
M.R. McThundercrotch
Profile Joined June 2012
United States265 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 21:52:11
May 20 2018 21:43 GMT
#10
I think it is a stretch to single that out as a "skill". A skill is more an ability to perform, while this is more akin to knowing to use patrol instead of attack with vultures. You can perform the exact same set of clicks and movements and one is going to be much more effective, but it isn't some big measure of skill to know that you need to push patrol instead of attack. Likewise, functioning through the black is just a matter of knowing the map. At the highest level, it is nothing because everyone has practiced the map countless times, while down in Scrub League it is a major help to people new to the maps or for people who have less playtime at the beginning of a new map rotation.

As for building and mineral-walking, you would still have two different types of fog: one darker and one lighter, with the darker one functioning just like the black does now. You just make the black slightly transparent.

If you are really looking for changes to make the game more friendly to new players without effecting the real competition, this is the first and best option.

However, is making the game more friendly to new players really a big concern? I feel like that ship has sailed. At this point, you are either in even with the pain or you are playing something else, haha.

(Full disclosure: I have two monitors and on my second monitor, I have build orders and pictures of the ladder maps. So...)
On June 30 2012 01:42 iNcontroL wrote: Fuck a lot of you. Fuck you forever.
JungleTerrain
Profile Joined January 2012
Chile799 Posts
May 20 2018 22:01 GMT
#11
It is easily doable on any map using SCMDrafts fog layer. If I remember correctly it only works in UMS settings though (which is no big deal in tournaments and events) but ladder games are classified as top vs bottom game modes I think. I might be wrong about that one.

Anyways, it’s probably a nice quality of life thing that should be implemented, but people have to realize that Starcraft was not made with an intent of the game being played competitively.
www.broodwarmaps.net
Freakling
Profile Joined October 2012
Germany1534 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 22:09:55
May 20 2018 22:05 GMT
#12
FOW free map versions are one of the main features requested by players whenever new (foreign) maps are used in a tourney. So there is definitely a demand, and on any level of play it is definitely good if players have a way to familiarize themselves with a map by just playing it and not having to worry about getting their scouts lost and not knowing where to expand.
It would be pretty easy to add it as a feature for standard melee/ladder play and a proper implementation could fix some of the issues, such as the need to keep mains blacked out to prevent initial enemy buildings and creep from being automatically revealed and giving away one's opponent's starting position, that preplaced buildings and resources can still be rightclicked, or the fact that already scouted areas cannot be distinguished from unscouted ones (by adding a darker FOW, like in SC2).
Just make the feature optional and require both players to agree on using it, and every one should be happy. Tourney hosts can then decide on their own whether they want to allow it for their games or not.
Espers
Profile Joined August 2009
United Kingdom606 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-22 07:49:37
May 20 2018 22:36 GMT
#13
should just be visible but unbuildable. it's not a skill, just a case having to spend more time learning maps
niteReloaded
Profile Blog Joined February 2007
Croatia5282 Posts
May 20 2018 22:49 GMT
#14
On May 21 2018 06:30 The_Red_Viper wrote:
This is by far the most annoying thing about bw for me because it doesn't really add any worthwhile skill. I don't think there is one player in the whole world who was excited he got better at clicking his unit through the fog of war.
As far as i understand you need the full black fog because you otherwise could always mineralwalk and get a scout? Though there might be another solution for this.

Nope, you need real vision for mineral walk.
ninazerg
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
United States7291 Posts
May 20 2018 23:06 GMT
#15
On May 21 2018 07:05 Freakling wrote:
FOW free map versions are one of the main features requested by players whenever new (foreign) maps are used in a tourney. So there is definitely a demand, and on any level of play it is definitely good if players have a way to familiarize themselves with a map by just playing it and not having to worry about getting their scouts lost and not knowing where to expand.
It would be pretty easy to add it as a feature for standard melee/ladder play and a proper implementation could fix some of the issues, such as the need to keep mains blacked out to prevent initial enemy buildings and creep from being automatically revealed and giving away one's opponent's starting position, that preplaced buildings and resources can still be rightclicked, or the fact that already scouted areas cannot be distinguished from unscouted ones (by adding a darker FOW, like in SC2).
Just make the feature optional and require both players to agree on using it, and every one should be happy. Tourney hosts can then decide on their own whether they want to allow it for their games or not.


You know those maps with the checkboard-style fog-of-war? That seems like a good compromise because you can see the map, but can't place buildings in spots you haven't explored.
"If two pregnant women get into a fist fight, it's like a mecha-battle between two unborn babies." - Fyodor Dostoevsky
Uldridge
Profile Blog Joined January 2011
Belgium5194 Posts
May 20 2018 23:20 GMT
#16
1. Maps are symmetrical (broadly speaking), so you should know the general vicinity of where to click to scout
2. You frequently revisit your scout while you're scouting in order to know what's up with your scout
3. Why is it such an issue anyway? Both players have incomplete knowledge, it's not a one way street.

I really don't understand why this is an issue anyway. What does it actually gain you when knowing the exact terrain set? Are you going to cheese the first (few) time(s) you're playing the game without scouting?
As a previous poster said: lost game because he didn't know exactly where the minerals were (but don't you check up on your unit you want to harass with?). Sure, certain stuff of the game will be demanding (like harassing at a semi-safe part of the map and guiding the harasser there + fending off an attack + macro), but that's the brutal nature of the game: you need to fully rely on yourself in order to win.
Taxes are for Terrans
Gorgonoth
Profile Joined August 2017
United States468 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 23:24:54
May 20 2018 23:23 GMT
#17
How is extremely intimate map memorization not a skill? This is the dictionary definition of skill: The ability to use one's knowledge effectively and readily in execution or performance If player A knows Fighting Spirit so well that he basically has a map in his head without even having to look at the minimap, down to the trees and small doo-dads, then he has a skill. Removing the black fog of war means that it is easier for people to memorize maps and think about bases their opponents has. I'm not saying that knowing a map is a crucial or even really impressive skill, but to blanketly say it isn't a skill is preposterous.

I also totally agree with starecat, seeing the minimap is a visual aid that keeps people thinking about hidden expansions and whatnot.

Also placing buildings in places you can't see is actually quite a big deal.

I would not want these things go away, because removing skils is one of the primary reasons I dislike SC2 in comparison with BW.
Connor56201
Profile Joined May 2018
25 Posts
May 20 2018 23:28 GMT
#18
people want everything handed to them on a silver platter these days people want everything so damn easy all the time
and plus with sc:r you get a few of the map before the game starts both in ranked and in melee. its not a lot of time but you should be able to pick out something by looking at it for a few seconds especially if it lags for a few more seconds
Twinkle Toes
Profile Joined May 2012
United States3605 Posts
May 20 2018 23:29 GMT
#19
FOW is part of the strategic element of the game
Bisu - INnoVation - Dark - Rogue - Stats
10dla
Profile Joined March 2018
127 Posts
Last Edited: 2018-05-20 23:53:23
May 20 2018 23:36 GMT
#20
On May 21 2018 08:23 Gorgonoth wrote:
How is extremely intimate map memorization not a skill? This is the dictionary definition of skill: The ability to use one's knowledge effectively and readily in execution or performance If player A knows Fighting Spirit so well that he basically has a map in his head without even having to look at the minimap, down to the trees and small doo-dads, then he has a skill. Removing the black fog of war means that it is easier for people to memorize maps and think about bases their opponents has. I'm not saying that knowing a map is a crucial or even really impressive skill, but to blanketly say it isn't a skill is preposterous.

I also totally agree with starecat, seeing the minimap is a visual aid that keeps people thinking about hidden expansions and whatnot.

Also placing buildings in places you can't see is actually quite a big deal.

I would not want these things go away, because removing skils is one of the primary reasons I dislike SC2 in comparison with BW.


What exactly is your plan against the third party minimap? And what kind of 100% accuracy pinpoint clicks are you talking about? Cant you adjust commands? Pretty sure high level player have that kind of apm
On May 21 2018 08:29 Twinkle Toes wrote:
FOW is part of the strategic element of the game

No its not, you can easily circumvent it

On May 21 2018 08:28 Connor56201 wrote:
people want everything handed to them on a silver platter these days people want everything so damn easy all the time
and plus with sc:r you get a few of the map before the game starts both in ranked and in melee. its not a lot of time but you should be able to pick out something by looking at it for a few seconds especially if it lags for a few more seconds

What do people get on a silver plate? What do you got from being so incredible oldschool?
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