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ESV The Iron Hillsv1.1Concept by: IronmanSC HotS Map by: Gfire Published on: [AM] [EU] [SEA] [KR]![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/WJ1uF0y.jpg)
This is the development of a map that Ironman was working on last year. I build the map in HotS using the basic layout he had designed.
I think he got the inspiration from the BW map Sound Barrier, which was made by Flothefreak, RaDiX and Nightmarjoo.
The name is both a shoutout to Ironman, as well as the name of what is probably my favorite Middle Earth location.
Map Details:
Map size: 120*136
Choke to Choke: 39 seconds (Natural Ramp)
Close Ups:
+ Show Spoiler [Central Rock Arrangement] +
+ Show Spoiler [Aesthetic Shot] +
Change Log:
+ Show Spoiler [1.1] +-Widened the gap between rocks at the very center of the map
-Adjusted the placement of third bases to spread them out a bit more
-Far ramp into 1/7 o clock bases has been adjusted. It is now a 4x ramp and has destructible rocks. It is a bit closer to the middle of the map.
-Unpathable high ground pods outside the nat have been enlarged slightly to reduce openness
-3/9 o clock paths (with losb lines) have been pushed outwards slightly
-Proportional adjustments to fit properly with the above changes
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United States10627 Posts
while i see where you are trying to go with this, i think that those rocks make the map unplayable. it is impossible for large armies to move through the map wihtout getting stuck up at one of those smaller choke points.
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On March 20 2013 12:03 FlaShFTW wrote:
while i see where you are trying to go with this, i think that those rocks make the map unplayable. it is impossible for large armies to move through the map wihtout getting stuck up at one of those smaller choke points.
Large armies don't get stuck on destructible rocks! Unless you're talking about the chokes he's made with highground and rock doodads.
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On March 20 2013 12:03 FlaShFTW wrote:
while i see where you are trying to go with this, i think that those rocks make the map unplayable. it is impossible for large armies to move through the map wihtout getting stuck up at one of those smaller choke points.
Where there's a large army, there's terrible terrible damage. And where there's terrible terrible damage, there's rocks being destroyed.
Point being... Even if it doesn't work out, it has to get the Dustin Browder seal of approval, right? RIGHT?
*ahem*
But seriously, if I understand you correctly, I don't think it's a problem. If you have an army that big, you should be able to clear a wider path without much trouble.
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I've been wanting to make a "make-your-own-path" map for a while now, but haven't got a layout that I like yet in my head. I think it's really, really hard. My reasoning - either it's too open and people just ignore the rocks until late game when you have time to kill and can open the path larger for your huge armies, or it's too turtley/constricted and it's heavy air play (esp. with HOTS) every game, and thus again the rocks don't matter much b/c they're circumvented.
I think the answer is something like this but with bases that are a little less turtley or maybe just farther away from each other. THis is a pretty good attempt though, I think.
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On March 20 2013 12:15 Fatam wrote:
I've been wanting to make a "make-your-own-path" map for a while now, but haven't got a layout that I like yet in my head. I think it's really, really hard. My reasoning - either you make it so the rocks don't matter if you make it too open and people will ignore them until late game, or you make it too turtley and it's heavy air play (esp. with HOTS) every game, and thus again the rocks don't matter much b/c they're circumvented.
I think the answer is something like this but with bases that are a little less turtley. THis is a pretty good attempt though, I think.
It is a little turtly, isn't it? In test games I found myself expanding instead of moving out, and never actually paying attention to the rocks until late. But I also blame that on inexperience... Given enough time, proactive players should be able to make better use of it, right?
I think it's interesting, anyway, and it feels different from other maps even when it plays the same.
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I am concerned about turtliness as well. Seems to me that taking any expansion apart from the gold only makes it marginally harder to defend compared to what you get from it. The rocky middle is cool tho. Interesting texturing.
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I'm working on an update which makes it a bit less turtly... Still working out the details but expect something. I've mostly worked on some proportioning and distancing stuff. It would be a bit more open though once the rocks are down... Which I think is fine but people complain about that sometimes. What do you guys think?
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Seems like an interesing map, I really hope that your concept works out!
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This seems almost exactly like how Ohana "1.0" was as far as main, natural and 3rd. I liked it alot that way.
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I love the middle layout. You took the main idea behind Sound Barrier and executed it very well.
I don't like the high ground piece between the natural and the third. It seems to me like you just put that there because you thought it would be a cool idea without much thought. I'm just having difficulty perceiving it's purpose on a map like this. Maybe if you blocked both ramps it could be a place to drop units but can later be opened up by the defender? Just a suggestion.
I think this map would promote more defensive gameplay. It's very easy to expand and not equally as easy to attack. I really like the overall layout though, so I would only suggest small changes, like increasing ramp width. I think that the alt. third's ramp should be at least 2x, or pointed towards the center of the map. Maybe both; whatever change you think would best complement the map. I even think you could make the natural ramp a 3x, but there's still the alternate entrance that the player would have to keep tabs on. I'd increase the ramp to a 2x and put a rock there, make the natural ramp a 3x, and then orient the ramp into the other third towards the middle.
It's nice to see high yield expansions in maps again. I think blocking them with unbuildable plates is something that we should start as a trend. I still believe that high yield expansions are too powerful to exist without some form of deterrent independent of your opponent, so I'd put some unbuildable plates down.
I'd just like to reiterate how impressed I am with how this map was created. Not only did you implement a destructible wall for the middle of the map, but you also managed to keep it at 120x136. That is a great size to get maps too; most of the current ones are larger than that by a solid margin and I think smaller maps will increase spectator value and make things more interesting to watch. After some refinement, I'd like to see some pro-level games on it.
Great job! 
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I've updated with version 1.1, here's the change log.
+ Show Spoiler [1.1] +-Widened the gap between rocks at the very center of the map
-Adjusted the placement of third bases to spread them out a bit more
-Far ramp into 1/7 o clock bases has been adjusted. It is now a 4x ramp and has destructible rocks. It is a big closer to the middle of the map.
-Unpathable high ground pods outside the nat have been enlarged slightly to reduce openness
-3/9 o clock paths (with losb lines) have been pushed outwards slightly
-Proportional adjustments to fit properly with the above changes
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so wait are those rocks just doodads or destructibles?
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I don't understand map balance much, but if you wanted to make it more aggressive couldn't you just put 2 mineral bases in the center? And just for clarification, are there rocks where there is a green outline of them?
Edit:you could also just lower the HP of some of the rocks to make some of them easier to break with early game armies, but increasing the hp of more important rocks to make it harder for late game armies to destroy them in like 2 volleys.
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On April 14 2013 06:24 LazyFailKid wrote:
I don't understand map balance much, but if you wanted to make it more aggressive couldn't you just put 2 mineral bases in the center? And just for clarification, are there rocks where there is a green outline of them?
If I understand what you mean, the greenish looking rocks are where the rock towers fall to.
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