Tileset: Space
Size: 256x256
(180x232) + 4 Battleship zones
Players: 2-4 + Computer
Type: RTS
Screenshot:
Description:
Four players start with a command ship, called the Battleship, and must build modules on it in order to create a fleet large enough to destroy other players. However, each Battleship can be boarded by other players as they bring transports next to it, where marines can destroy the core from within instead of attacking the heavy armor and health of the battleship itself. Players must destroy their enemies Battleships either from the inside or the outside to remove that player from the game, until only one commander remains.
Resourcing:
Players must build refineries on vespene geysers that auto-generate resources. The gas left indicates the resources per minute. Refineries will be fairly cheap, paying for themselves in under a minute. Controlling enough resources is imperative to win the game against skilled opponents. Players start on a planet with 4 geysers, then must expand and eliminate computer-controlled defenses to secure more resources, until they eventually run into other players.
Ground units:
Are the only units that can remain on the battleship. They are useful for guarding the core from attack by other players as well as taking over resources areas with mostly anti-air defenses. They can also be used to attack other players' Battleships in an attempt to destroy their core. Repairing the core is both costly and slow, meaning that successive assaults can wear it down faster than it can be repaired. The most effective defense against boarding is having sufficient troops inside your own battleship to defend it.
Ground units are arranged in a rock-paper-scissors manner. Players start off building only marines, which are extremely cheap and fast to build, and can be dangerous, especially to the core, with upgrades. Marines are virtually ineffective at killing ships, but can be dangerous to smaller classes with enough of their cheap upgrades. With an academy, players can create firebats, whose high armor and relatively high health and splash damage makes them particularly effective against mass marines. They are also fairly cheap when compared with the cost of air units. With a covert ops, players can also build Ghosts. Their low health makes them suceptible to mass marine attacks, but their high damage will destroy firebats before they get close. They are also effective at killing smaller ships, even without upgrades. They are quickly killed without backup or upgrades, but can cause a lot of damage. SCVs can be built right from the start and are only useful to make more refineries and static defenses. They suck at combat.
Air units:
Once again I tried to create a weapons triangle so that massing any single kind of ship could be defeated with the proper counter. Air units in general are not effective at killing ground units, but are more effective than the ground units are at killing them. They are also vastly more expensive. Observers are extremely cheap and good at scouting, because the only things that will detect them are other observers or expensive defenses/sci vessels. Sci vessels can Defense matrix (which is very effective in a game with low damages like this one) but are expensive and hard to defend. They can also EMP for very little energy to eliminate energy or the shields on a fleet of protoss ships. Protoss shields are extremely strong (50) but thin. This makes them effective against a few powerful attacks, although not the most powerful, but easily destroyed by a mass of smaller ships. Generally, mass fighters is the best way to destroy medium-large ships, but they can be defeated quickly by the valkyrie and corsair. Those ships in turn are generally ineffective against the strong armor of capital ships. Dropships and Shuttles are well armored and difficult, although not impossible, to destroy. Air upgrades cost more than ground upgrades. In addition, ships can be "upgraded" in a unique way at the appropriate facility on the map. Fighters, for instance, become less suceptible to the valkyries low attack. The carrier doubles its interceptor count.
Moving ground units around:
The map is more or less a series of islands, some connected, some not. Ground units are first moved by the battleship, then by shuttles and dropships. The battleship has a morphable hydralisk: when in hydra form, ground units brought to the bay of the battleship will be moved to its location on the map; while in egg form, ground units at the battleships location on the map will be moved to the ship area.
Modules:
The battleship can be upgraded by building the appropriate modules. The available ones are shown at the top of each ship, and are given to the player once he builds that structure in the construction zone. The only unorthodox module is the Torpedo Tube (Shield Battery) which when used, launches a scourge that can do massive damage to the enemy battleship or capitol ships. There is a maximum of 4 torpedoes that can be stored at any one time, because 5 is enough to destroy a battleship. When the science vessel is upgraded, its irradiate attack can be used to destroy torpedos easily. Fast-attack ships such as the valkyrie are also good defense against torpedos.
Sorry for the length. I just didn't want you suggesting something already in there, and I wanted to leave you free to comment on everything. I know there are similar maps running around, but I had not seen them before I came up with the idea, and so I decided to continue with mine as it is reasonably different from everything I've seen. If you have any suggestions/comments, I would love to hear them, but please be constructive. Saying "Your map idea sucks" without saying why is worthless and will be ignored.
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