First time posting, please be gentle! I used to be a map maker back in the day but mostly for melee maps. I've worked with PGTour, ICCup, BWMN, GG.net's Carrier Ladder System and TLnet back in the day!

I am looking for testers for a set of maps I made. This is the first of four maps in a small campaign I made that I am converting into multiplayer maps.



Back-story: Valerian Industrial has made advancements in their weapons processing which could turn the tide of power in the Koprulu sector. Valerian whistleblowers have contacted your mercenary group in attempt to leave the company and expose them. Use a squad with your team leader (Raynor unit) to rescue the whistleblower base (North Beacon) and escort at least one Whistleblower (Civilian unit) to the extraction point (South Beacon)!

May need help with trigger conditions/actions for more organic transitions and scenes. I am still having trouble using switches properly (LOL). How do I post pictures btw?

Feedback/Criticism appreciated!

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I can, check my tests topic.
I need a image for the video.


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(assuming AI matters in this map) Zerg campaign medium etc. scripts are terrible and won't work correctly(they don't correctly build lairs, have insane priorities on weird stuff, use wrong opcodes for getting casters etc...); starting a Zerg custom level script on top of that will break them even more, since both are main town scripts - I'd recommend using scripts from campaign missions instead

Start locations create resource areas around themselves - you shouldn't place two in the same spot, since it breaks the resarea in half at best, and at worst makes it unminable for AI

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Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Aug 29 2021, 10:51 am by Nekron.

Hello and welcome to these boards NastyMarine!

Hi! Thanks for the feedback. How do I get my hands on the original/expansion campaign scripts? I didn't know anyhting about the Zerg Medium script. Is there any other nuances about the scripts you can tell me about?

I'm not sure I follow exactly about the Start Locations. Are you saying the AI scripts divide the area in half or make it unminable? They create resource areas?

THanks again ya'll!

Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Aug 29 2021, 11:10 pm by NastyMarine.

If you are using SCMDraft2, they are already there for you to use. If you are using good old StarEdit, you can still do it, even though it's a bit more tricky: first you need to extract the map containing the desired script by using a tool named MPQ Viewer (the maps are stored in .CHK format, just rename them as .SCM or .SCX). Then open the extracted map with StarEdit, search for the trigger containing the AI script, and delete all the other triggers except for it. Save the trigger containing the AI script, and then load it into your own map: you will have successfully imported the script! At this point you will need to do some manual adjustments, such as redefining the player to which the trigger belongs and the relative location. Also, the player setup in your map should mimic the one found in the map from which you have extracted the script (as a rough example, if it is expected to start with two Science Facilities with attached Covert Ops and Physics Lab, then do the same in your map). I used this technique in my campaigns before I started using SCMDraft2.



To circumvent the problems with Zerg Campaign Medium, just give them a Hive by default, along with a Hatchery and/or Lair. These default scripts usually don't build any structure by themselves (or build very few of them), they are designed to work with pre-placed bases, so give them everything they need to work (Spawning Pool, Evolution Chamber, Hyralisk Den, Spire, etc.). The same general rule applies to the other races. If you want an AI that builds a base from scratch and also expands, then you need to use Insane scripts, though they could make your map too hard for many players unless you can balance it properly.



Nekron will further elaborate on this concept, but basically Start Locations create spots where the AI expects to find resources. So if you need extra Start Locations for rescuable players or non-AI-driven players, place them as far as you can from regular resource nodes.

Post has been edited 2 time(s), last time on Aug 30 2021, 5:58 pm by Andrea Rosa.

Where cawn I find the mpq files? In the starcraft folder? I cant seem to find anything other than broodat.mpq and stardat.mpq

To read / check scripts you'll need to download PyMS, open up PyAI and open default scripts. PyMS requires Python 2.7.12 and can be found here https://github.com/poiuyqwert/PyMS

I think the SCMD method will just be easier if you have problems finding MPQs (they're inside of CASC in Remastered, which is yet another archive format), you can get SCMD here officially on SC1 forums https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/starcraft/t/scmdraft-2-alternative-starcraft-map-editor/153

And Andrea already explained everything, but just wanted to reiterate the last point - Start Locations are invisible units that you need to place for the Player to appear in the map, that much you know. But they also do one more thing - they "snap" nearby minerals to a base location that the AI (and player automining workers) will use. Sometimes if you place two of them in one place, this results in a situation where, for example, AI workers/player workers will only mine one mineral, since all the others are in another town location and the AI just decided to not use it. To avoid this, just place 1 start location per base, and then if you want you can verify that the area looks OK in SCMDraft as well.

How do I get draws to work properly for a player that doesnt reach the beacon before another? I only want defeat(s) for players that lose their heroes. Seems like sometimes players will all get a draw or all win?

I think having allied victory set might make it so all players on a force have to have the same victory/draw state. Not sure about that, but I know AV affects victory behavior for a force.

If I remember correctly, if no player has been or is being defeated when the remaining players achieve victory, it'll end in a draw. Otherwise both Draw and Victory do the same thing; all players set to end in a Draw or Victory on the same trigger cycle will end the game as such, and all other players will end in defeat.

Allied Victory only matters for the "Opponents" condition and the Neutral/Allies/Non Allied Victory Player groups. Players who run a Draw/Victory trigger on the same cycle will win together, and all others will be defeated, regardless of alliance status.