Krxr Simple 1v1 (all units)
Creator: kyrexar || First Published: 01/15/2015 || Players: 2 || Size: 20x20
Categories: None
Rating: 0 in 0 ratings
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Comments:
Xmo5 (01/16/2015 12:22pm | Edited: 01/16/2015 12:24pm):
Hi there! You look new to the site (no games played and only these two maps created) so:

Welcome to AWBW!

You can't tell yet, but I'm part of the AWBW map committee and you can usually tell us
apart by blue backgrounds on our map comments (instead of the usual grey). As I said, you
can't tell yet because I'm a recent recruit and I'm still waiting on my site permissions
to kick in, but I thought I'd give you some friendly feedback on how to improve on your
map and map making abilities in general!

For being your first map on the site, this is actually fairly good. I have admit that my
first attempt wasn't nearly as playable as this is and didn't look as good either. That
said, there are some things that could be changed to make this a more fair and enjoyable
map to play on. A lot of things are different on AWBW because you aren't playing against
the AI anymore; you're playing against other people. People are much smarter and won't let
you get away with things the same way the AI will. Therefore, maps have to be perfectly
balanced for two players to have a good match.

First and foremost I would say that the neutral bases in the center are too contested ("up
for grabs") and too close together. Generally speaking, you should keep production
facilities far enough apart that a unit can't be built on one and attack an enemy property
the next turn. Accounting for terrain, usually you aim for >7 spaces for bases (>8 if
recons are an issue) and >7 for airports if fighters/bombers aren't viable units. With
high enough funds, you really should make it >10 spaces so that fighters can't hit enemy
airports and >8 spaces from airport to base so bombers can't hit enemy land units.

As far as the bases being contested, that becomes both a balance issue and a game dynamic
issue. Since Orange Star (OS) always moves first, they have whats called First Turn
Advantage, or FTA. (You'll hear that a lot on this site) In other words, they will reach
the center before Blue Moon (BM) because they move first and this gives them the
opportunity to interrupt or prevent BM's capture of the central base while still capturing
theirs. Seeing as this is based on nothing other than the fact that they move first (in
other words, optimal moves on both sides still result in this outcome) makes it unfair for
the BM player.

For that reason alone the bases should be made less contested, but a second important
factor to consider is that these bases are crucial properties to capture. Whoever controls
the bases controls the whole center including the towers, silos, and even airports plus
has the additional fund advantage, greater production capacity (more units on the field)
and a shorter distance to travel to the enemy HQ. In other words, whoever captures the
bases will win the game fairly easily. Even if there were no FTA, the match would become a
rush for the center that would end very quickly when someone captures a base (or both).
Once that is decided the game might as well be over and there's no opportunity for
moderate length or long battles or variation in units etc. For example, naval battle will
never become an option and airports will probably have little or no role in determining
the outcome.

Sorry for the enormous comment! I hope I didn't hit you with too much at once but a lot of
these are concepts that have been learned over the years and aren't necessarily obvious to
new players/map makers. If you want more information on map making, there are some great
guides on our forum. Just make an account and come join us in discussions while taking
advantage of all the great resources users have put together over the years:

http://isndev.omgforum.net/f29-advance-wars-fire-emblem

Design Maps Subforum: http://isndev.omgforum.net/f5-design-maps


I also have a set of maps on my alternate account, Ninja_Weasel, that explain FTA in
various situations and why it's important to consider. The URL below will take you to my
user profile; all of the FTA guide maps are numbered 1 through 10 (start with 1) and have
names starting with "FTA Part #" The comments explain FTA using the map as a visual/example.

http://awbw.amarriner.com/profile.php?username=Ninja_Weasel


Anyway, feel free to message me with any questions and best of luck in your map-making
prospects :)



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