Two Teams of 3 players spam building that activates certain spawn of computer units. As everyone builds more buildings, computer forces that represent each team battles it out in a tug-o-war. This Concept has been orignally from warcraft 3 (i think) and has moved into SC years ago in different variations in the name of: Castle Fight, Preschool wars, sand Castle and now Desert Strike. After much dissussions with regulars players, everyone is in need of a Desert Strike that fits their preferences of playing.
New Castle Map Project
I'd like everyone to help participate in creating a new variation of this wonderful custom map playing concept. Share your Ideas here.
My ideas
Themes
I am convinced that themes help create a better imagination to the map thats being made. Here are some of the themes I've thought of putting in this Castle map.
1. Age of Empire: age of Kings
Age of Empire is a rts Computer game. Each unit will represent a unit in that game. For example, ghosts will be renamed Archers, melee like lings will be named axeman and etc.
2. Command and Conquer: Red alert. Another rts popular game. Again, ill simply change the names of units like have Archons be Tesla tanks.
3. Heavens last theme. Heavens Last is a UMS map. It has a celetial theme for which units have names like Michael, Jesus (lol), Satan, etc.
4. Lord of the Rings
5. Star Wars
Everything except Age of empire has been used a lot for UMS maps.
Terrain
My prefences is having beautiful detailed terrain without cluttering it with random irregular doodads/sprites. The Reccent Castle map, Desert Strike, is simple and effect. just a rectangle battlefield have both sides clash in a liner horizonal fashion. I"d like to be more elaborate on this, but still maintain the simplicity (if thats possible).
1. Diagonal. Intead of having the comp run in a horizonally, i suggest making it diagonally. This is really effective because then the 6 bases can have extra room to build.
2. Zigzag. Like a U, Z or N shape. In the Preschool war map, comp forces moved in a one way maze which i don't want. Sand Castle moved in a colum/row fashion which is too systematic in my opinion. A zag can really bring out dynamics of this map.
3. Swirl. One Base is smack in the middle and one is in the outside. Both are connected in a swirl.
Note that all of these ideas are symmetical so that it each side is even although it doesn't necssarily have to.
Base fortresses and general info
Lets say we have a terrain picked out. Now its time to decide how to change the current bases of each force. If were going to have a much bigger battlefield then it might be possible to add more than one base. Instead of having the bases be high health, make them low so easier to destroy (so that the units won't clutter trying to kill a base). Another thing was thinking of adding some invincible base defence structures like a cannon/bunker/spore/ with low health pylon stacked. Put them all around the field. The enemy will have to take out the pylon to complely destroy the defence structure.
Power|Money|Tech systems
Last paragraph i wrote was too long just talk about few things so ima just write down the ideas and let everyone discuss about them.
1. Hero system: In a smal square area, bunch of civs and beacons. Each beacon represent a spawning of a hero unit at the cost of minerals.
2. Mineral|Gas: Have players be able to exchange minerals for gases. Gases can be used in the cost of anything thats high end such as specials.
3: World War teching system: off to the side, an area which player controls a Nexus. and couple beacons. Players are encourage to build a probe from that nexus to yield civs. Civs are used on beacons. Beacons yield hero units.
4. LOTR system: Have some simple building like an academy or shield battery be very very expensive and long to build. That would yield in 2x amount of units that spawn for that player.
5. magic and skills: At the cost of minerals/gas, players can use special civs to execute different magic spells. Some spells ideas:
a. Bombard:flying orb will be launch toward 3 random places and will kill anything underneath it
b. Armageddon: Everyone will have access to eliminating all forces in battlefield thats somewhat expensive.
c. Yuri Control: Everyone will have access to mcing all forces in battlefield thats too expensive and not really worth to get.
d. Martydoms: Executing this will
e. Heal structure: instead of having it be a stupid Terran Special, let everyone use it very expensive. It will instantly heal defensive or base structure by 50 percent.
f. Decoyers: Players Mind Controls 1/2 of enemy forces and turns them into Hallucinations
g. Carpet bomb: kills all ground unit
h. Flak attack: Kills all air units
i. Polar Freeze: Spawns won't come for 2 turns. (combo that with armageddon would be cheap tho).
Comments/more Ideas? post here
None.