Team Liquid Map Contest #19 - Presented by Monster Energy…

Tunnel Vision 148x128
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Corruption 164x164
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Dragon Teeth 128x124
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Cobblestone 132x132
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Mineral Mania 124x124
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(2) Crimson Court 132x140, rush
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(2) Javelin 130x140, standard
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(2) Amygdala 142x126, macro
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(2) Northern Sky 142x132, standard
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(2) High Point 140x128, standard
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CHROMATIUM DAM






Specs:
124x148 (playable)
29.7 second rush distance (ramp to ramp)
15 total bases, 2 with rich vespene and 1 with rich minerals

Description:
Welcome to Chromatium Dam, a monument to the questionable decision-making its creator brings to all his StarCraft endeavors. The grand idea behind this Freestyle Rush map is to cultivate thrilling, aggressive gameplay where poking, prodding, and sneaky maneuvers reap rewards in a way that favors chaos rather than coherent strategies.

For those inclined towards a more relaxed, macro-oriented style, fear not—the pocket base is your safe haven, though keep an eye out for those narrow paths that invite sneaky run-bys, perfect for mischief-makers but too tight for full-blown army marches.

Despite its seemingly expansive dimensions (124x148 playable), a combination of unsophisticated pathing and the haphazard acceleration zone placement results in a rush distance of just under 30 seconds, which is less time than it takes the typical Protoss to find his crayons to write “glhf”.

This quick rush timing is mitigated slightly by the natural choke, which demands only two buildings to wall off, providing a temporary shield against the chaos of zerglings chewing on your workers.

Reaper and blink-stalker aficionados will revel in the advantages this map offers, with most of the cliff line available for their use. To assist the valiant reapers in their perilous missions (because, let's face it, reaper life expectancy is short in the metal leagues), I've kindly installed a pair of ladders to make their short lives easier. (Byun’s superhuman reapers, of course, have no need for any such accommodations.)

Each player has a base with 1 rich vespene geyser, positioned far forward and susceptible to attack over the bridge. And if you dare to dream big, there's a gold base beckoning at the three-o-clock position, but holding it will be a challenge given the multiple attack routes and the adjacent elevated position complete with a watchtower.

In summary, Chromatium Dam is designed to host action-packed games. Testimonials from our enthusiastic playtesters speak volumes, with rave reviews like "Yeah, I hate this" -Sudo, Beta Playtester and "Why are my zerglings falling off the bridge?" -BabySwiss, Alpha Playtester. With such glowing endorsements, I am certain Chromatium Dam will etch itself into history as one of the StarCraft maps ever.

It will be enjoyed by StarCraft aficionados who favor a unique Dam map and fast Dam gameplay.

Rush

Gilded Veins (138x136) - (Rush Distance 33s) https://imgur.com/a/FF3KAyw
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Deadwind (136x136) - (Rush Distance 34s) https://imgur.com/a/GCdBSw9
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Macro

Twin Time Trees (136x136) - (Rush Distance 33s) https://imgur.com/a/UNvEyU7
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Anomaly Found (146x124) - (Rush Distance 34s) https://imgur.com/a/jX6WJCp
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Gridworm (140x148) - (Rush Distance Varies: 33.5 RUSH, 36s STANDARD, 38s MACRO) https://imgur.com/a/2iDyfjn
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136x136 34s R2R

128x144 34s R2R

144x144 33s R2R

148x148 33s/37s R2R

144x132 32s R2R

[144x140]
M2M: 39s
R2R: 34s
N2N: 31s

Art images:
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[136 x 138]
M2M: 40s
R2R: 33s
N2N: 29s

Art images:
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[148 x 140]
M2M: 35s
R2R: 35s
N2N: 32s

Art images:
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[140 x 140]
M2M: 43s
R2R: 37s
N2N: 34s

Art images:
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[136 x 136]
M2M: 40s
R2R: 37s
N2N: 27s (close)

Art images:
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124x148, standard, 34s
Crimson Court features a semi-island configuration where the sides of the map are blocked off by stacked destructible rocks and mineral walls. Players can choose to mine out the minerals or break the stacked rocks to expand.

Features
- Two gold mineral walls featuring 5 minerals per node: one at the natural and one at the third.
- Six sets of stacked destructible rocks leading to the “islands” - rocks are stacked in groups of 3 and use separate rock models for visual clarity in-game (rocks + debris). Rocks by the high yield base are 6x6 and rocks on ramps are 4x4, which both contain the same health and armor.
- Two high yield gas bases in the center of the map (8m1HYg)
- No minerals or CC/hatch/nexus can be hit by siege tanks from behind rocks or mineral walls. Careful placement of resources prevents cannon and tank spots.

130x140, standard, 34s
Map description: Javelin features four small ramps that players naturally pass through on the rush path. There are also small ramps at the corner late-game expansions on an otherwise standard map layout. Players must move their armies carefully and make key strategic choices while weighing whether to use the fast, narrow pathways or longer open paths.

Features
- Players naturally pass through four small ramps on their way to the enemy, including two 2x ramps partially blocked by minerals. Each node is 5 minerals each, meant to be mined by the defender when expanding linearly.
- Two sets of large diagonal destructible rocks can be broken to open up important areas of the map
- Players may choose to expand aggressively or defensively, or risk the exposed high yield geyser base
- Corner expansions can only be accessed via the 1x ramp, making army positioning for attacking and defending important

150x132, standard, 35s
Moonwater features a semi-island area at the top of the map containing a gold base. To access the island, players must mine the central mineral wall or mine out their base below the natural. Each of these bases contains two extra mineral patches with 10 minerals per node for quick access to the island.

Features
Semi-island area at the top of the map with a 6m2g gold expansion
Central ramp mineral wall containing 3 rows of 5 min per node
The expansions that form mineral walls to the semi-island (below each player’s natural) have two extra nodes with 10 minerals per patch. Mining these nodes can be done with four worker trips, allowing any size unit to quickly access the island.

142x132, standard, 33s
Southern Sky features an in-base third expansion behind the natural and a backdoor path blocked half by a mineral wall and half by a stack of four destructible rocks. To access the third base, players must mine two mineral patches blocking the CC/hatch/nexus containing 20 minerals per node.

Features
- In-base third expansion blocked by two mineral patches (20min per patch), requiring 8 total worker trips
- The backdoor path is blocked on one half by four stacked 6x6 destructible rocks and three rows of gold minerals on the other half. The stack of destructible rocks uses four different models for visual clarity, and takes 12 roaches approximately 1:19 to destroy. The three rows of gold minerals contain 7 min per node, meaning three separate worker trips will create a small pathway.
- Defenders can create a full wall behind the destructible rocks with two gateways or two barracks
- The in-base CC/hatch/nexus cannot be hit by siege tanks from outside the rocks or the lowground
- Attackers may break the rocks as an additional attack path in the mid-game while defenders may break the rocks to expand linearly on the map in the late-game

142x126, macro, 39s
Amygdala features two gold bases that form mineral wall blockades to a central “island”. Players must navigate around the island until rocks are broken or a gold base is mined out.

Features
- Two gold bases facing the center, blocked by 4x4 rocks (six zerglings break the rocks in 1:27, four zealots break in 0:45)
- Gold patches are 1200 minerals per node so that all patches mine out simultaneously, creating an army path. This number also maintains the standard resource amount for gold bases (7200 minerals divided evenly, instead of three 1800 patches and three 900 patches)
- Semi-island area in the center contains multiple additional entrances blocked by rocks
- Xel’Naga Towers in the northwest and southeast corners provide valuable scouting information to avoid army and base trading while the island is closed off
- Workers and armies naturally move counter-clockwise until rocks are broken and/or a base is mined out

132x140 - Standard - Ramp to ramp 34s
The natural base is connected to a triangle third that has both gasses blocked by minerals. That same third is also walled off with a large mineral wall that can be opened. Lowground water puddles are not buildable but do provide ample splashing opportunity.

148x140 - Standard - Ramp to ramp 36s
The fastest route and gold base are blocked by low mineral fields. When traveling inside the exhaust vents, they block vision of the outside terrain acting as the inverse of line of sight blockers. There is a central Healing Shrine near the bottom center of the map off the beaten path. The map has 5 levels all consecutively going lower down the map.

152x134 - Macro - Ramp to ramp 35s
A cluster of gold minerals in the mines at the bottom center of the map is on unbuildable ground. Long distance mine the gold for extra income and/or create an alternate attack path to the enemy. Gain control of the center vision tower to hold strategic positioning.

136x140 - Macro - Ramp to ramp 35s
Start the game with a choice of a forward natural or a pocket natural with a mineral wall that can be opened up. A gold base sits on the sides of the map rocked off with an inhibitor zone making it harder to defend.

128x120 - Rush - Ramp to ramp 33s
A close rich gas is blocked off by a mineral field. Have fun in this one of a kind retro landscape. Collab project with Zuratu

1.Crimson Court by Monitor
2.Amygdala by Monitor
3.Moonwater by Monitor
4.Twilight Imperium by Nyarla
5.Antimatter by Music
6.Gilded Veins by Omniskeptic
7.Coral Ruins by Skypirinha
8.Killswitch by Volumin
9.Ashenguard by MayOnFire
10.Torches by Killersmile
11.Silverflame by Killersmile
12.Cold Steel by HyperOne
13.Sugoma by HyperOne
14.Old Magannatha by HyperOne
15.Corruption by me
16.Cobblestone also by me

Honorable mention:
Last Fantasy if Timmay resubmitted it again, I would probably knock something else off this list for it

1. Northern Sky by monitor. Sometimes, you just gotta go back to the classics. Northern Sky delivers for fans both old and new with an inventive twist on the Cloud Kingdom theme.
2. Genos by KillerSmile. ZvZ play has gotten really passive nowadays, so it's good that we have a submission that guarantees the only viable playstyle is 20 drone ling flood.
3. Space Temple 20XX by Zuratu. After staring 24/7 at Mar Sara textures since 2016, it's wonderful that we now have some variation in aesthetics with this unique Aiur Temple-themed map.
4. Castle Adventure by the_music246. Retro Castle Adventure is an amazing map with gorgeous decorations. I especially like the clever use of the gold base to break split map situations in ZvT.
5. Helix by Volumin. I really enjoy when a map has a cohesive theme. Volumin demonstrates his exemplary mapmaking skills by putting together a solid layout with a whimsical flair. The helical shapes strewn throughout the layout tie it all together.
6. Gold Dust by MayOnFire. Good to see this layout is being submitted again.
7. Sacred Isle by Patches. This map features Patches' own signature center, which allows Zerg players to better defend both corners by offering a more direct path across the middle while simultaneously denying any vertical movement from their opponent.
8. Magma Mines by the_music246. The 4 gold bases present on Magma Mines serve to provide a much-needed source of extra income for Zerg players, who will sorely need additional Zerglings to break the 5-base defensive setup behind 1 ramp.
9. Heartbound by Plecto. Plecto has been iterating this layout for a couple TLMCs now, and I'm glad to see it return, because it looks like a very strong contender for finalist in the Standard category.
10. sugomA by HyperONE. Map names have really gotten hard to pronounce these days. This name is an easy one that I am sure the casters will enjoy repeating.
11. El Dorado by Eclipse. Golden Wall was a nearly-perfect ladder map, with the one downside that it didn't have enough gold bases for a map with the word "Gold" in its name. El Dorado improves upon the original by adding an additional gold base in a contestable location.
12. Cobblestone by CharactR. Modern computer screens really do a number on my eyes, so it's wonderful that mapmakers like CharactR know how to create maps with soft, moody lighting to soothe my eyes.
13. Pacific Rim by Patches. This should be a strong map now that Patches has managed to eliminate the kaiju infestation.
14. Tidehunter by KillerSmile. This classic layout from TLMC15 returns, I think it has a good shot at being the first map in TLMC history to become a finalist twice.
15. Infestation Station by Skypirinha. Through careful and deliberate use of neutral Zerg buildings, this map intricately balances the plethora of aggressive options which threaten to end the game by the 3-minute mark.
16. Lush Green Bush by Skypirinha. I cannot believe my ex-girlfriend made it into TLMC19!

Honorable mention:
2f0rt Tetr0n if SidianTheBard resubmitted it again, I would probably knock something else off this list for it