Mini-Competition: Tree Mapping Created 10 years ago2014-08-30 21:35:55 UTC by zeeba-G

Mini competition 3 is here!Task: Map something in the tree. It can be anything. Eh, yea and uh, have fun.

A few rules are listed in the included readme.

Voting will be a poll based system, whoever enters can vote on someone's other than their own. Just pm me your vote. This is so that I and anyone can enter.

Thanks to Rimrook for helping fix my masked textures and play testing.

You can cut off/ add three limbs to make new space.

You can tweak basically everything including lighting and you may delete the rain if you like.
Download

Treehouse, treehouse, treehouse...
Is it just me or is it the only logical thing you can put there ?

Organic level; better brush off the tetrahedra skills..And a tree nonetheless. Just what i was trying to come up with for my tree of life wip. Not sure if i can do much for the next couple of weeks, but i'm setting that thing on fire if i will participate! Calling dibs on fire/lava theme :P.

Could we replace that tree with a different model?
I'm so stealing some ideas for my wip if entries will be good! >:)

Btw, i can chip in with ~10$ worth in steam games. Or w/e can be done with that amount from a steam wallet.

While I'm still scared, I do like it now I've run around in it.

Hopefully I'll be on better ground with this (potentially) less abstract competition. Let idea formation commence!

Is it just me or is it the only logical thing you can put there ?

So don't be so logical.

Thanks Captain and I'm sorry for jumping the gun on this one, I just had a good idea and thought I should share. Don't feel like you can't post one as well.

I'd appreciate that Kachito, I was thinking the prize should be through steam games form.

For this competition I think you should use the given tree, I admit it's not the best but it's simple enough to get the message of space across and it is the fundamental basis of the competition. So I feel that it should be concise throughout each other's entries. Remember you can add and or remove three limbs.

The tree house is a great idea actually, it's not like there is only one method of design that could be implemented in a tree house. There are infinite designs that could be implemented.

I've thought of a few genuinely awful things a person can do with a tree. Think of the cubicles project, but in a tree.

Anyway, this one is much simpler and less open ended as you don't have to make an entire map. In fact, you map 90% less than the first mini-compo even. It'll also likely run shorter than Atom and I's colors compo. Plus it gives you guys something to play with while Atom and I are judging.

I may enter, as my idea would take only a few hours to make. But I knew ahead of time so I'm immediately disqualified... FUN TIMES!

I don't think you should be disqualified, you only knew like a day in advanced. But people can take that into consideration when casting their votes.

True, the voteing will be the great equalizer.
I'll see what I can make in an evening or something. Not promising anything great though.

Map something in the tree? How big is it?

I have an idea. I may enter.
When is the deadline?

The tree is ~730 units tall, not counting leaves at the top.

We'll decide a deadline soon, it's open ended for now. How long would y'all like?

If I still mapped for goldsource I would have made the player teleport into the tree upon touching it, with the tree happening to be abnormally big on the inside, similar to the tree level in one of the Zelda games. You know, since he says map something in the tree.

Maybe "up" the tree would be better

Oooohh... I Have a cool idea - and it's not a treehouse! But will my mapping skills be up to it?

Ok then. I'm also in. Don't expect anything great though, I haven't actually mapped in or around realistic trees before! My mapping skills consist of rectangular rooms and large empty spaces of nothingness. But we'll see... mine'll get slightly sci-fi.

[EDIT] - URGENT

NEW STATUS: I'm out. Sorry! My PC can't handle it for some weird, weird unknown reason.

Unfortunately, your map is a CPU killer! My PC's CPU spiked to 100% when I tried to compile it, without any alterations! So unhappily I'll have to save my idea for another time... or a possible mod...

Good Luck anyways guys. Also, if anyone knows why my cpu went so high, and started to lag my computer, please tell me (Hammer and Half-Life have NEVER done this before to my PC)

Unless your computer is a rock (like... an actual rock), I'm not sure why this map would kill it. It's pretty, sure, but also very simple.

What I do know is that the unaltered .bsp file works, but compiling the unaltered VHE file results in the common 'not responding' and my computer lagging a hell of a lot. I'll try again but with Zoner's compile tools, see if that works. If not, maybe someone could compile for me, but there are various problems doing it that way. I'll be back in a sec.

[EDIT} It works now! (But slowly)

Ok, I swapped the bsp2 compile tool for Zoner's hlbsp.exe compile tool, and it worked, so I'm in for good (Phew!). Sorry for the bother!

3? Seriously? Of all things,a 3?
Good god...

What's with all of these competitions being made for Goldsource primarily?

@RB: Zoner's tools are kind of outdated. Do you know about VHLT?

@Dim: I think there was an agreement (or the idea at least pitched) some time back that the minicomps would be primarily GS.

I would say let's go with two weeks but don't want to drown out mc2. So maybe three would be perfect. In about three weeks from today, so around i'd say the 25'th of September. That Monday, so that we have the final weekend to work on our entries.

We'll play it by ear though and it may get cut off in two weeks which would be on the 18'th, again so we have that final weekend.

@Rolling Barrel, i'm glad you might participate. I will post in your thread about getting ideas rolling to give you my two cents.

@Dim, I made it for goldsource because of the simplicity of the engine. It was a personal prefereance for a mini competition. Feel free to port for source and make an entry.

@Captain, i'll have to check out what you are talking about. Feel free to tweak the water to make it look better along with anything in the base map. You can even change the skybox if you like for example if you want a night map or something.

@Disco, the size of the tree was randomly created although I've worked on tree houses in about three dfferent trees, a pretty large tree, a gargantuan tree over a creek and a gargantuan pine tree. So I have some sense of scale when it comes to trees for tree houses. I'd say this tree is a good medium sized tree for a medium sized tree house.

Of the many tree houses I've designed, one I've actually built.

That looks pretty awesome and scary, Zeeba!

I will try to dig up an example of Soup's method for the pretty GS water, though I think it involved scrolling-textured brushes or conveyors like you used, except multiple layers underneath the surface of the water

What's with all of these competitions being made for Goldsource primarily?

I assume the next official MC3 and beyond will be a mixutre of GS and source, as Source Engine WAS allowed for the previous MC2...

Did anyone catch what the hell Ghost was complaining about?

I think Ghost meant "A tree", and I'm guessing Ghost ain't fond of it!

Of course I'm not fond of 3s, here's why ^

^ Triples!

... Nope, I've still no idea what this man is talking about.

Goldsource is an absolute wonder to map for.
This is coming from someone with a lot of Source experience. It's just.... damn nice to work with.
The engine limitations are there, yes, but for the most part the maps just flow easier.
I have an idea - like i said before - I may start working on it tomorrow.

Glad to hear. And I agree in Gold source's fluidity. I model a lot in numerous programs and every time I blow off the dust on Gold source it doesn't let me down.

I'm starting to get some ideas for this as well, and hope to have a WIP to show soon.

Edit
I'm very interested in the feudal Japan theme right now, so I'm gonna maybe go for that theme. Started some rough sketching:

I'm not sure how I'm going to utilize the tree exactly yet, besides being the center point of the map

Looks really good. Maybe some Japanese lanterns and make it darker?

You know what that tree needs?Drama.

Feel free to extend out the clip if any of you like. I don't know about adding extended scenery though. I guess you can if you're up to it but the primary focus is the tree itself.

Haha Rim proudly morbid! =P

Zeebs: Oh yeah, the first thing I did was remove those clips. My first instinct is to detail/extand the area around the tree, but I WILL TRY to figure out a way to tie everything into the objective

So does anyone else have interest in this mini competition?

My brain has frozen over- what to do in the tree which I can handle, but still looks cool?

Also, do you guys mind if I use one or two of the textures in my mod? I am REALLY bad at making textures look good, so things like the bark or grass could be useful. Also, thanks for the heads up on getting ideas going Zeeba- I realise it's easier to do a simple plan or sketch, concentrating on one segment of a map at a time, and going from there.

^

All I can really think of is to detail the map around the tree; this is actually a much more challenging compo than I originally thought. I considered even scaling up the entire map, and then hollowing out the main trunk for a rats map, but meh idk

Perhaps if everyone is stumped(HO HO HO), you might reboot this as a Treehouse-mapping compo instead, so everyone has a clear objective

My WIP citadel.

Very nice Dimbark. Congrats on the first in hammer wip posted.

I've said before that the main fous is the tree itself and what you put in it but don't want to force limitations.

That's a cool idea Captain Terror, let me dig up the original inspiration for this competition and take a screen of it or two. (A really old map I made and still have the bsp. fsr.

Feel free to use the textures Rolling Barrel.

I'll try to get a wip in this weekend although i'll be pretty occupied.

Edit:
Here's the old images of the map that inspired this competition.

Obey tree citadel.

May do something like this.

Such ink, very style!

Dimb***
I liek it, citadel-tower-of-babelness tree! =)

meh so much work and I want to join, but it is the same thing with the last compo, no time to finish stuff...

Good luck everyone, my idea was a flesh/brain/eyeball surreal wasp nest and bloody nightmare around the tree.

But ended up in invalid brushes and i got bored xD

Anyone else have anything besides dim[mapname]?

well whatever

Is that a hearse up in the tree Bruce?! Cheers to the horror theme =P

Tremper
A surreal wasp nest is a great idea!

Sweet Bruce, you could have probably ported the tree to source though.

What I've got so far.

I like your style zeeba. That's a convincing structure you'd expect to see in the bush or a rainforest canopy

I'm starting to move forward on mine a little. I plan on trying for a modern style home architecture I guess...

Btw as you may notice, I'm having a hell of a time aligning textures on my arches in GS, or maybe it's a Sledge thing? (Shift+cloning or rotating textures ALSO causes them to misalign)

It could just be be my brushwork, but regardless I feel like I wouldn't have this trouble in Source SDK?

Edit:Thanks. This tree house is similar to many I've designed in the past.

@ Captain: Wow great work so far, That would be fun to add sub structure to it afterwards. I'd recommend using custom wood textures though. I like the multiple levels you've included.

I had to shift some of the leaves upward to get them out of the way.

I originally made it night time and added Christmas lights to mine but it didn't look very good.