The Box
Creator: thebranch16 || First Published: 02/01/2011 || Players: 8 || Size: 8x8
Categories: None
Rating: 3.86 in 14 ratings
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Comments:
LuckyOverload (02/01/2011 04:26pm):
This map is so imbalanced.
Just doesn't look that strategic... or fun for that matter...
thebranch16 (02/01/2011 04:38pm):
Actually, it's perfectly balanced. You may have meant that everyone starts in a poor position
or that there is very little to the map, but balance is clearly not what you intended.

And if you think it's not strategic, you must not understand strategy very well.
LuckyOverload (02/01/2011 05:01pm | Edited: 02/01/2011 05:21pm):
-_-"

Just because everyone starts with an infantry and in poor position does not mean the map is
balanced. Please, go to the forums and research FTA. Orange Star has almost instant win
conditions. All he needs to do is Silo into BM and GE. Not only does he inflict damage, he
also moves out of range of anyone else who would attempt to employ a similar strategy.

The fundamental flaw of this map is that whoever goes first, be it overall or in their "pairing"
will inevitably overcome their adversary. That cuts out 1/2 of the competition in the first
round, and gives OS a huge advantage, as they can easily silo first after the first "bracket" of
eliminations. If you truly believe that this map deserves the tens you so often herald, then
please create a game with this map and see who shares your opinion.

And lastly, if you do not believe I'm capable of understanding strategy, I would be glad to
duel for the sake of my honor on a even map neither of us have made. Please do not make
assertions you cannot back up.
SpiralingInfinity (02/01/2011 05:14pm):
Lucky wins
Broadside (02/01/2011 06:13pm):
instead of saying that this map is sucky, perhaps give tips on improving it. Here are mine:
Make it bigger. Being able to take a silo on the first turn is always a bad idea. ALWAYS.
I really like the idea that players can choose to take the factories or silos or even the
HQs early on. I also like the fact that everything is a forest. you can make slight
adjustments to this map to make it fair. I would suggest making it take 3+ turns to get
to a silo which means you would have to leave your HQ open and all chances of getting a
factory. Have FoW on for every game. This means you dont know who is going towards the
silos or the factories.
If people are smart when making the game, they could do teams and balance out FTA that way
(ABCDDCBA team order) cool concept but until fixes I wont rate.
Tsubodai (02/03/2011 01:29pm):
If you are last (as I am in my one) you are in trouble.
thebranch16 (02/03/2011 04:07pm):
Thank you, Broadside. That's actually a good comment, although I disagree how many
turns it should take to fire a missile. Two is plenty (and two to get to an HQ or base as
well). As long as it is very difficult to return to your HQ in time to kill someone taking it, I
think it fixes the problem of size.
FoW is definitely a must.
As far as FTA, there is none. Going first only means that everyone else knows where you
are and is bent on payback when their turn comes around. Firing at BM and GE first turn is
just a great way to start turn 2 with 4 hp on your only unit.
Teams is a great idea on this map, but not necessary. It's meant to be a quick free-for-all
where no one can really see what's going on and the only way to win is bide your time until
a few of the others kill each other off and then jump in to take a factory.
I'm working on making it a little more spread out.
And LuckyOverload, you really need to learn not be so abrasive.
LuckyOverload (02/03/2011 05:11pm | Edited: 02/03/2011 07:52pm):
Perhaps critiquing the map as not fun was a bit much, but I believe all of my previous
comments were valid. There are several fundamental flaws with this map, whether you
realize it or not, and pointing them out is the entire purpose of these comment boxes. Simply
because I commented negatively on your maps does not mean you
have the validated right to deface every single one of mine. I am merely here to critique and
to comment so that both editor and reader may learn.

So whether I need to be less abrasive or not, you need to not take things personally and
STOP SCREWING MY MAPS! If you truly believe that all my maps deserve the 1's you've
been arbitrarily, childishly rating them, then please, at least leave me a comment so as to let
me know what I can do to improve. Also, recognize that I am not rating your maps low
because I dislike you personally (which I am starting to after all of your trolling and inability to
recognize criticism), I rate them low because I believe they deserve the rating.

/rant

Let me summarize what I see to be wrong with this map.

1) FTA exists. Period. Ask any other member within the community, and FTA will always,
always, always exist, especially on small free for all maps such as this. As for OS dropping
to 4 hp on day 2, this is most unlikely. While BM will most likely silo into OS on his day 1, GE
cannot afford to silo into OS, as YC can attack him while at silo. GE must concentrate on out
playing YC, and even that is nigh impossible at 7 health. He is most likely to silo into
YC and the South-East nation, or retreat into the woods to hide. If GE silos into OC, then GE
is dead, and any competent player would recognize that attempting to get revenge on the
first silo will simply get them killed.

2) Terrain Dispersion. There are too many places to hide. By end game, it is most likely that
two players with very low hp will exist somewhere in the woods surrounding the center of the
map. In this case, it hardly makes sense to return to the center and attempt to capture a
base, as a 10-20 turn
capture time does not make sense. Likewise, returning to the center to recover at one's HQ
is akin to walking into a trap, as coming into
the open would simply spell death. At this point in time, a player may either hide indefinitely
within the woods and kill off players who blunder into them (as units stopped in woods by
ambushes cannot retreat nor retaliate), or you could get lucky with the center and hope to
heal up or cap. Simply put, endgame is less strategic and more luck based. Simply
because you must choose between two bad options does not make a map any more
strategic.

This map would make more sense with 3 infantry apiece and no silos, but that is simply my
take. If my opinions are ill-informed, or if I simply do not see the grand design, then please
elaborate on what strategies could realistically be employed, and why they could be.

And my challenge for a duel of honor still stands. I do not like having aspersions cast around
my character.
BlueHyuu (02/13/2011 01:18pm):
You have to have honor in order to duel for it, Lucky. Far as I can tell, you're just being a
bully, and I've seen ya around.

FTA I think is over-hyped, and I think people forget that humans are angry and hold grudges.
OS nukes you first turn? Expect 3-4 nukes right back.

If anything, Blue Moon has the advantage here.



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