So Tikaro, do you do all that in MCEdit or do you switch to World Edit or Voxel Sniper after getting the initial shape? I like the erosion brushes you get in the latter tools more than what I have in MCEdit
MCEdit's erosion is a strange beast, I find it not very good on its own, but wonderful when paired with smoothing filters. To actually answer your question, I do all of that in MCEdit (For overworld terrain however, World Painter is a far more powerful tool, but that's a whole another can of worms. )
I'm very glad to hear that my maps have inspired you! For caverns, I prefer carving out a general shape with a semi-large brush (let's say 17x17x17). Then I go around with a smaller brush (9x9x9, maybe 5x5x5 after that) fixing things and adding smaller details, until I like the shape. And after that I erode the whole thing with an erosion brush and use a smooth filter on it. That's the general outline of it, but you really need to just experiment and keep trying to see what you like the most.
Also, I really suggest checking out the CTM Community thread and, in particular, our Discord. There are a lot of great map-makers there that will answer pretty much any questions you might have.
Thank you! I'll try and use these tips and see what I like!
Well boys and girls. I said you'd see one of these and here we are.
SP03 Pre-release Development Update (Part 1)
Phew, quite a title. The fact that you're reading this means one big thing: SP03 is aesthetically done. This, in turn, means that I can have a big celebration, and you get a bunch of new juicy info. The way I have this planned, this update will be split in two parts: this one right here, and another that I will post when beta testing of the map starts (fair warning: it might be a couple more months before that).
In this part I'll focus on giving you a general overview of the map and talk about aesthetics, and in the next one we'll jump into some more gameplay-oriented things. Also, I believe I'll have an estimate release date by the time I do the second part. C:
What do we start with? Well, it's the name of course. SP03 went through several titles, but at this point I'm adamant with my choice. The last map in Simulation Protocol series will be called Entropy.
While Entropy is a part of Simulation Protocol series, it is wildly different from SP01 and SP02 in a number of ways. First big difference is how the map is structured. In Animosity and Overload, areas were their own separate entities with unique themes and with little to no logical connections between them. SP03 goes completely against that kind of design. I dare say that the whole map is one abysmally gigantic area. There are several dominant themes that change as you progress through the map, but everything is still a part of the same world. Because of this you, of course, will not see such a wide array of themes as in Animosity or Overload. But because of that trade-off, I was able to build things of a scale much greater than layouts of the previous maps could ever allow. Also, as I've said before, the map is almost completely sky-lit. Out of 20 areas in the map, only two are truly "underground". I figured there is only so much that can be done with caves, and quite honestly I'm extremely bored of them.
Another thing about SP03's layout: it is a bit weird for a CTM. The way it turned out, it still can be classified as "Linear-Branching", but intersections aren't the key points of progress as they usually are. They also don't have numbers associated with them, because there's no consistency in their placement: you would only get to "Intersection I" after getting 4 wools! Quite frankly I don't like this. If I was able to redo the map's layout, I would get rid of them altogether in favor of more interesting connections between the areas themselves. But that would require far too much work to do, so we are sticking with this.
Jumping to the content of the areas, Entropy is a map of castles, cities and basically just overly grand and complex architecture. Throughout the whole map, only a quarter of the areas doesn't contain some sort of a big architectural piece. We'll see if this is for better or for worse, but I certainly can say that it's the niche of map-making that I enjoyed exploring a great deal.
Next, SP03 is bleak, and in that it's an awful lot like Dark Souls (and not coincidentally: Dark Souls, Bloodborne and H.P Lovecraft's works were my main inspiration). Aesthetically speaking, there are lots of washed out colors and, especially, lots of grays. This works very well with the type of story I'm telling. It's not your story as a player, but it's the story of the world. Pretty much everything you will find has a reason behind it. The castles are there because someone built them, tools and trinkets scattered around belonged to somebody. I tried my best to create not just a bunch of obstacles to traverse, but rather a complete living (or once living) world. And it's not a happy feel-good world at that. You do not play the role of a hero, saving the land from ultimate evil. There is, in fact, no great evil that must be stopped. Everything major has already happened in this world, and you are just a nameless wanderer, witnessing the results of those great happenings. You might succeed in your journey, you might fail - either way the world won't really change much. This kind of premise is not everyone's cup of tea, but it's the exact kind of story I wanted to tell.
Alright, this wraps up all that I wanted to talk about today. As the tradition was with these posts throughout the years, here are some screenshots. This time, it's SP03 monument area - The Apogee:
Don't mind the lonely little light blue wool.
In part two, I'll make sure to show you some more interesting stuff around the map, rather than concentrating on one specific area, but for now let's hold the mystery for just a little bit longer.
That sounds great! I'd imagine you wouldn't want the entire map feeling super bleak all-around.
That aside, Entropy sounds really promising. It truly looks to be map that'll break the conventions of CTM maps in epic fashion.
I of course didn't want to go overboard with bleakness. I believe I have found a nice balance with it, but only time will tell how well it actually turns out.
I don't think this map will be a game-changer, but I am certainly pushing for high quality while also trying out some interesting ideas. C:
SP03 has been giving me a really hard time lately, so I took a little break from it and look what came into being: a minimap! Looking at it, this actually is my first miniCTM that was not made for Strawberry Jam. :0
Ligebied Length: 3 objectives Made for Minecraft 1.10.2
An old chapel stands alone, looking over the distant sea. It is said that long ago, the secret of fabled golden oaks was kept there. Perhaps it is what you seek?
Now, this a bit of an experiment. I wanted to do something relatively small, to be able to just play around with cool ideas. Main thing I wanted to try out were resource packs, and I have to say I'm now addicted to them. It's so easy to bend vanilla minecraft textures just a little bit, and it gives so much more atmosphere to the map! Definitely will be making use of them in the future.
Other than that, Ligebied also has small, but full-fledged lore, and actually is set in the same world as SP03 (you will find a couple of connections between the maps)! This is also precisely how lore in Entropy will look as well: just sitting in small portions on a bunch of items all around the map.
Overall, I'd say this turned out as a sort of "bite-sized" preview of Entropy. This basically is what my mapmaking style has turned into over the years, and it should roughly reflect how SP03 will feel as well. Also while we're on the topic, I'm very aware of how I keep talking about Entropy every time and then disappear for another couple of months, but bear with me here. We're gonna get to the release eventually, even if it is taking far too long. C:
I’d like to begin by saying one thing: this map comes with a resource pack. Now oftentimes, resource packs in minecraft maps can fill a number of functions, from being obnoxious and over-the-top with replacing Minecraft’s whole palette, to providing background music or necessary voice acting. However, the resource pack for this map only did one thing: Added a few special-looking objectives, and changed some blocks to slightly-modified versions of their current textures. Even though they were small changes, this was one of the best use of resource packs I’ve ever seen - because this map looks AMAZING. I constantly wanted to (and did) stop and stare at the beautiful environments! The entire thing gave off a Dark Souls vibe for looks, but with Minecraft’s brighter colors. Normally, I don’t devote too much time to talking about aesthetics, but this map did a truly special job, and even gave you a binocular-type item so you could take a closer look!
With that out of the way, most of the other things about the map came off as average – a very solid average. The gameplay wasn’t anything special that hadn’t been done before, but it all came off as a very polished package, with the mobs and loot being well-balanced. One thing I particularly liked was the complete removal of natural mobs from the map, allowing it to rely solely on spawners. An audacious change, but a very effective tool in the hands of the right map – which this one was! The areas and world felt alive and interconnected, with side paths containing bonus loot frequently appearing, and usually in ways that felt organic and natural.
Without getting into too many specifics – I don’t want to spoil it for those who want to play it – I had a good time playing this map, and I would recommend it without hesitation to someone looking for a shorter and simpler CTM to play.
The Meaning of Life, the Universe, and Everything.
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Just published the last episode of my Ligebied playthrough! I really enjoyed the map, it felt very well balanced and I love the style - the builds, the resourcepack. There wasn't too much (if anything) new or innovative about the gameplay, but it's a very solid iteration of the CTM genre!
Just published the last episode of my Ligebied playthrough! I really enjoyed the map, it felt very well balanced and I love the style - the builds, the resourcepack. There wasn't too much (if anything) new or innovative about the gameplay, but it's a very solid iteration of the CTM genre!
Glad you liked it! There are certainly a couple of things to improve, but I'm pleased that you had fun with it nonetheless. C:
I really enjoyed Ligebied, truly has a Dark Souls feel. I am amazed someone managed to pull that off in a game like Minecraft.
Thank you! I've been completely obsessed with Dark Souls and similar games for several years now, and had a lot of time to thing about what gives them their unique "feel". Glad to hear and see that my interpretation of it turned out well C:
when are u thinking about releasing sp3? it has been in development for so long now
To put it shortly, when it's done. It's really close to being done, but my life is taking precedent so it will take a bit more time. I do hope to get to beta this summer.
MCEdit's erosion is a strange beast, I find it not very good on its own, but wonderful when paired with smoothing filters. To actually answer your question, I do all of that in MCEdit (For overworld terrain however, World Painter is a far more powerful tool, but that's a whole another can of worms.
Last one before the next dev. update.
This is what you will see when you begin your final journey.
Thank you! I'll try and use these tips and see what I like!
Well boys and girls. I said you'd see one of these and here we are.
SP03 Pre-release Development Update (Part 1)
Phew, quite a title. The fact that you're reading this means one big thing: SP03 is aesthetically done. This, in turn, means that I can have a big celebration, and you get a bunch of new juicy info. The way I have this planned, this update will be split in two parts: this one right here, and another that I will post when beta testing of the map starts (fair warning: it might be a couple more months before that).
In this part I'll focus on giving you a general overview of the map and talk about aesthetics, and in the next one we'll jump into some more gameplay-oriented things. Also, I believe I'll have an estimate release date by the time I do the second part. C:
What do we start with? Well, it's the name of course. SP03 went through several titles, but at this point I'm adamant with my choice. The last map in Simulation Protocol series will be called Entropy.
While Entropy is a part of Simulation Protocol series, it is wildly different from SP01 and SP02 in a number of ways. First big difference is how the map is structured. In Animosity and Overload, areas were their own separate entities with unique themes and with little to no logical connections between them. SP03 goes completely against that kind of design. I dare say that the whole map is one abysmally gigantic area. There are several dominant themes that change as you progress through the map, but everything is still a part of the same world. Because of this you, of course, will not see such a wide array of themes as in Animosity or Overload. But because of that trade-off, I was able to build things of a scale much greater than layouts of the previous maps could ever allow. Also, as I've said before, the map is almost completely sky-lit. Out of 20 areas in the map, only two are truly "underground". I figured there is only so much that can be done with caves, and quite honestly I'm extremely bored of them.
Another thing about SP03's layout: it is a bit weird for a CTM. The way it turned out, it still can be classified as "Linear-Branching", but intersections aren't the key points of progress as they usually are. They also don't have numbers associated with them, because there's no consistency in their placement: you would only get to "Intersection I" after getting 4 wools! Quite frankly I don't like this. If I was able to redo the map's layout, I would get rid of them altogether in favor of more interesting connections between the areas themselves. But that would require far too much work to do, so we are sticking with this.
Jumping to the content of the areas, Entropy is a map of castles, cities and basically just overly grand and complex architecture. Throughout the whole map, only a quarter of the areas doesn't contain some sort of a big architectural piece. We'll see if this is for better or for worse, but I certainly can say that it's the niche of map-making that I enjoyed exploring a great deal.
Next, SP03 is bleak, and in that it's an awful lot like Dark Souls (and not coincidentally: Dark Souls, Bloodborne and H.P Lovecraft's works were my main inspiration). Aesthetically speaking, there are lots of washed out colors and, especially, lots of grays. This works very well with the type of story I'm telling. It's not your story as a player, but it's the story of the world. Pretty much everything you will find has a reason behind it. The castles are there because someone built them, tools and trinkets scattered around belonged to somebody. I tried my best to create not just a bunch of obstacles to traverse, but rather a complete living (or once living) world. And it's not a happy feel-good world at that. You do not play the role of a hero, saving the land from ultimate evil. There is, in fact, no great evil that must be stopped. Everything major has already happened in this world, and you are just a nameless wanderer, witnessing the results of those great happenings. You might succeed in your journey, you might fail - either way the world won't really change much. This kind of premise is not everyone's cup of tea, but it's the exact kind of story I wanted to tell.
Alright, this wraps up all that I wanted to talk about today. As the tradition was with these posts throughout the years, here are some screenshots. This time, it's SP03 monument area - The Apogee:
Don't mind the lonely little light blue wool.
In part two, I'll make sure to show you some more interesting stuff around the map, rather than concentrating on one specific area, but for now let's hold the mystery for just a little bit longer.
Hype, finally there will be a new great CTM to play again.
So much hype
Looking forward to it!
I wander through CTM maps, getting lost, fighting monsters, and somehow accomplishing things. I'm never too sure how, but I do. Come join me, pets!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl1Xey2d-BFWyh6WcPbJeqQ
Since the majority of areas are sky-lit, I'm assuming the map will be in eternal night?
Yes, that is the plan. I do however want to use late evening\early morning instead of the middle of the night for the extremely nice sky color.
That sounds great! I'd imagine you wouldn't want the entire map feeling super bleak all-around.
That aside, Entropy sounds really promising. It truly looks to be a map that'll break the conventions of CTM maps in epic fashion.
YouTube Channel: Chronicler
Includes Minecraft play-throughs and video game discussion videos!
I of course didn't want to go overboard with bleakness. I believe I have found a nice balance with it, but only time will tell how well it actually turns out.
I don't think this map will be a game-changer, but I am certainly pushing for high quality while also trying out some interesting ideas. C:
Oh wow, I can't wait to play this, I played SP01 and SP02 and I absolutely loved those maps!
Hey guys! I'm not dead, I swear!
SP03 has been giving me a really hard time lately, so I took a little break from it and look what came into being: a minimap! Looking at it, this actually is my first miniCTM that was not made for Strawberry Jam. :0
Ligebied
Length: 3 objectives
Made for Minecraft 1.10.2
[Download]
An old chapel stands alone, looking over the distant sea. It is said that long ago, the secret of fabled golden oaks was kept there. Perhaps it is what you seek?
Now, this a bit of an experiment. I wanted to do something relatively small, to be able to just play around with cool ideas. Main thing I wanted to try out were resource packs, and I have to say I'm now addicted to them. It's so easy to bend vanilla minecraft textures just a little bit, and it gives so much more atmosphere to the map! Definitely will be making use of them in the future.
Other than that, Ligebied also has small, but full-fledged lore, and actually is set in the same world as SP03 (you will find a couple of connections between the maps)! This is also precisely how lore in Entropy will look as well: just sitting in small portions on a bunch of items all around the map.
Overall, I'd say this turned out as a sort of "bite-sized" preview of Entropy. This basically is what my mapmaking style has turned into over the years, and it should roughly reflect how SP03 will feel as well. Also while we're on the topic, I'm very aware of how I keep talking about Entropy every time and then disappear for another couple of months, but bear with me here. We're gonna get to the release eventually, even if it is taking far too long. C:
Nice!
x-post from review thread:
Ligebied[/b]
5/8/17
By Tikaro
1.10.2
Link - Look in the minimaps section
Style: Map-based
I’d like to begin by saying one thing: this map comes with a resource pack. Now oftentimes, resource packs in minecraft maps can fill a number of functions, from being obnoxious and over-the-top with replacing Minecraft’s whole palette, to providing background music or necessary voice acting. However, the resource pack for this map only did one thing: Added a few special-looking objectives, and changed some blocks to slightly-modified versions of their current textures. Even though they were small changes, this was one of the best use of resource packs I’ve ever seen - because this map looks AMAZING. I constantly wanted to (and did) stop and stare at the beautiful environments! The entire thing gave off a Dark Souls vibe for looks, but with Minecraft’s brighter colors. Normally, I don’t devote too much time to talking about aesthetics, but this map did a truly special job, and even gave you a binocular-type item so you could take a closer look!
With that out of the way, most of the other things about the map came off as average – a very solid average. The gameplay wasn’t anything special that hadn’t been done before, but it all came off as a very polished package, with the mobs and loot being well-balanced. One thing I particularly liked was the complete removal of natural mobs from the map, allowing it to rely solely on spawners. An audacious change, but a very effective tool in the hands of the right map – which this one was! The areas and world felt alive and interconnected, with side paths containing bonus loot frequently appearing, and usually in ways that felt organic and natural.
Without getting into too many specifics – I don’t want to spoil it for those who want to play it – I had a good time playing this map, and I would recommend it without hesitation to someone looking for a shorter and simpler CTM to play.
Final Rating:
Gameplay: +++++++--- 7/10
Aesthetics: ++++++++++ 10/10
Functionality: ++++++++++ 10/10
Story: N/A
Verdict: 9/10
Check out my bad CTM map reviews here.
Just published the last episode of my Ligebied playthrough! I really enjoyed the map, it felt very well balanced and I love the style - the builds, the resourcepack. There wasn't too much (if anything) new or innovative about the gameplay, but it's a very solid iteration of the CTM genre!
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Glad you liked it! There are certainly a couple of things to improve, but I'm pleased that you had fun with it nonetheless. C:
Sweet! Gonna be checking this out as well.
Thank you! I've been completely obsessed with Dark Souls and similar games for several years now, and had a lot of time to thing about what gives them their unique "feel". Glad to hear and see that my interpretation of it turned out well C:
To put it shortly, when it's done. It's really close to being done, but my life is taking precedent so it will take a bit more time. I do hope to get to beta this summer.
RIP SP03 ;(