General Considerations
These days 9 mineral blocks is the standard to have at the main. Maps with more than 9 blocks are macro focused. Less mineral blocks are for maps that are narrow. For expansions, 7 is the standard amount of mineral blocks. Maps that have more mineral blocks at the natural than are at the standard encourage fast expanding. Also, having only one entrance is standard for balanced maps. If your map has cliffs, try to make sure each base has near equal vulnerability to tanks, high templars, and lurkers. Finally, temporary buildings are melee map makers' best friends. Naturals should almost always have gas.
Positional Imbalance
ºMake sure bases mine at the same rates.
ºMake sure bases are about the same size.
ºMake sure bases have similar gas income rates. Geysers above and too the left are best.
ºMake sure distances between ramps are about the same.
ºMake sure bases have about the same area to make turrets and place archons against mutalisks.
ºMake sure openings are the same size for different important places of the map.
ºTry not to use mineral lines where a player has an advantage compared to the others. Example: A player who has to send his workers above his HQ has a disadvantage. However, a player who sends them below has an advantage. Try to have all players’ mineral lines to their sides or have them all below.
ºMake sure bases have near the same tank-ability.
ºIf it is a four player map, certain bases should not be closer to each other compared to other ones. Example: 12 & 9 Start Locations on Lost Temple
ºMake sure it takes about the same time for units to leave each base. Example: 9 Start Location on Lost Temple
Terran Imbalance
ºAn easily defendable third gas is a Terran advantage. Terrans have to slowly tank push to protect expansions.
ºTank-able naturals or tank-able third bases are a Terran advantage. Normally, they are in the form of cliffs.
ºTerrans benefit from having cliff-able mineral lines.
ºTerrans have an advantage if there are no islands with a 0 to 8 mineral block restricting them to float a command center to it. Also, there may be a neutral building sprite blocking the landing. Map Example: Gorky Island
ºGenerally, open maps disfavor Terran the most.
ºSmall obstacles in the middle of the map that obstruct pathing favor Terran the most.
ºCliffable terrain above mains is a Terran advantage. An example of a map where this occurs is Jungle Story.
ºExpansions near large bodies of open ground are a Terran disadvantage.
ºA buildable middle is a Terran advantage.
ºThe ability to wall-in with one or two depots and a barracks is a Terran advantage.
ºAn easily defendable 3rd gas is a Terran advantage. Map Example: Colosseum with its ramp at third gas
ºIf a Terran's third gas is in the open this is a disadvantage. Map Example: Andromeda
ºTerran players have an advantage if they can float a factory to a cliff and make tanks to fight an enemy.
ºRandom cliffs in the middle of the map, that don't serve as an expansion, favor Terran the most. Map Examples: Othello, Plains to Hill, & R-Point
ºTerran players benefit from having mains with large areas where a barracks drop or factory drop can be hidden.
ºTerrans benefit the most from having small mains.
Protoss Imbalance
ºProtoss players benefit from having an unbuildable middle ground against Terran players. Map Example: Luna
ºAir maps generally favor Protoss.
ºUncross-able terrain can benefit Protoss players' carriers.
ºIf there are large areas to recall, this is a Protoss advantage.
ºProtoss is the worst race at defending a far away third expansion.
ºMains with nothing but open terrain around disfavors Protoss the most. Map Example: Bifrost
ºProtoss players have a disadvantage if they are far away from a Zerg player.
ºIn maps with lots of open terrain, Protoss is > than Terran.
ºWhen playing Zergs, Protoss players have the advantage if there is narrow terrain. Map Example: Bifrost
ºProtoss players need a second expansion to macro against a Terran play effectively.
ºProtoss players have an advantage when they can place cannons near the ramp when fast expanding.
Zerg Imbalance
ºZergs benefit from maps with a far away third gas for each player.
ºLong distances between players benefit Zerg the most because they are the fastest race.
ºZergs benefit the most from having lots of open terrain. They need to flank.
ºOpen maps favor Zerg over Protoss.
ºZerg players benefit from having an unbuildable middle against Terran and Protoss players.
ºMinerals hugging obstacles is an advantage for Zerg. Mutalisks can easily harass.
ºHaving terrain on the opposite side of a mineral line is a Zerg disadvantage. Terran and Protoss can put units there to defend against mutalisk harassing.
ºExpansions that can be protected with lurkers on top of ramps are a Zerg advantage. Map Example: Colosseum
ºZergs benefit the most from having a lot of gas geysers.
ºFar away second gases disfavor Zergs the most.
ºNaturals with the same amount as minerals at the main, or more minerals than the main, benefit Zerg players. They are encouraged to fast expand.
ºZergs are at a disadvantage if they are close to a Protoss player.
ºZerg players benefit the most from having small back doors at mains. They can sneak in zerglings. Map Example: Blue Storm
ºOn maps with long distances between players, longer distances than python, Zerg has the advantage.
ºZerg players benefit the most on maps that have dark swarm sprites.
ºZerg players are the only ones to benefit from sunken colony sprites. They can be placed in strategical positions or where they would prevent a terran or protoss player from taking an expansion.
ºZergs need a fast expansion located where they can also put sunkens to block their ramp in addition to the fast expansion. Look at BladeStorm.
ºZergs benefit a lot more than the other races when there is a gas only expansion.
ºZergs benefit the most from mains on low ground that lead up to high ground. Example: Reverse Lost Temple
P and T>Z on Island Maps
Try to make races balanced so they can play fairly equally on unique maps. In Starcraft, island maps have not made it to the professional scene and ladders because Starcraft is too imbalanced to play these. Zerg players get @#%!d on island maps because their unit/tech combos are too expensive. A lair costs 150/150, drop upgrade costs 200/200, speed upgrade costs 150/150, then you need fully upgraded hydralisks which is 100/100 and 150/150. Additionally, zerg cannot expand on island maps as fast as other races because they have to research the necessary upgrades. Finally, zerg cannot tech to more than one thing because they don't have enough gas too. Also, zerg players can very easily lose their overlords on island maps by corsairs and wraiths. After a certain period of time their map control is limited until overlord speed.
T>P on Island Maps
Terrans can make turrets on their small islands which can make protoss drops really difficult to accomplish. Terrans have faster and more effective drops. Terrans can fly buildings for map control. Terran can fast expand after 14 scvs while protoss has to wait for a shuttle. This gives terrans a huge advantage in the early game which protoss players may not be able to catch up to. Terran build orders are normally barracks, factory+/-addon, starport+/- addon, +/- armory. However, protoss will have to go out of a linear tech tree to get counters. Protoss have to make the two buildings for reavers, a templars archive for hts or dts, and observers for mines or wraiths. Terrans benefit from having less room, while protoss needs open room for attacks. Turrets, wraiths, and goliaths make it extremely easy for them to defend against drops especially with goliath range. Shuttles cost more than dropships by 200 compared to 100. Also, protoss players would need their 200/200 speed upgrade for shuttles a lot of times. Dropships are faster than shuttles which are a big advantage. Dropships can fit better units than shuttles. An example is 4 goliaths vs. 2 dragoons. Another example is 4 goliaths > 4 zealots. Another example is 4 vultures > 4 zealots. Siege tanks can make protoss player’s life even more miserable when they have to counter them. Goliaths have better range than dragoons have against air. Their rate of fire and attack makes them better. Protoss players have to waste alot of much needed gas in the early game stages of an island map. Terran players can prevent drops by using their turrets which are half the cost of cannons. Any good drop spots could quickly be exploited by a terran player by a protoss player's base. The first ten minutes are a killer for a protoss player. If there are good positions for it, a terran player can nuke without risking much in the late game. Protoss players map control from observers is limited by turrets and terran players scanning to kill the spotted cloaked units. In comparison, terran players can use scans and buildings to scout much easier. A terran player can make one wraith as fast as they can to stop any protoss shuttle drops with attack and move micro.
P>T on Semi-Island Maps and Big Islands
Protoss players benefit the most from large spaces on the islands. Protoss players normally have to play for the late game on island maps because it takes them longer to tech. If protoss can tech arbiters they will own with recalls and statis. Also, statis will have a large effect on the late game. Protoss players can send their scouts before their shuttles before dropping. Late game mind control can prevent drops from occurring. This is so the scouts act as meat shields and tank the damage. Testie had a 104-0 winning streak on Neo Forbidden Zone in WCG. Protoss players can send their observers around the map for better map control. Protoss gateways cost significantly less than factories when you combine the costs of minerals and gas. This contributes to a protoss advantage in PvT on semi-islands.
T< P on Semi-Island Maps
On semi-island maps, like Neo Forbidden Zone, Terran has difficulty holding a second expansion. In most Semi-Island Maps, where the only islands are mains, third expansions are generally far away from the first expansion. Terran has trouble defending three bases from carriers, especially when they are far away from each other. Also, Terran is at a disadvantage because he has to defend so many locations from drops. Terrans do not have a mobile anti air unit. On maps where the fighting is done on the ground, Terrans are forced to get tanks and goliaths incase protoss gets carrier or drops, instead of tanks and vultures. Tanks and Vultures is a far better combo than Tanks and Goliaths when battling ground troops.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are most of the maps in professional ladders not two player maps?
Players cannot do cheese strategies as easily on three or four player maps because they have to scout.
Why don't people make more reverse maps? Reverse LT was really fun.
Reverse maps are very difficult to make and require a long time to do so. Also, they are almost entirely the same map. Imagine a reverse Python in your head. The only thing that would majorly be changed would be the fact that you can put units above your opponents' ramps.
What are the most played professional maps?
Python, Andromeda, and Peaks of Beakdu.
Python is an improved version of the famous map Lost Temple. Python has plenty of mineral/gas expansions as well as islands and mineral only expansions. Andromeda is a large macro map that requires a lot of skill. Peaks of Beakdu has peaks in it.
What race benefits the most from having resource only expansions?
Protoss
Geometry looks like a neat map, why isn't it in professional ladders?
It is impossible to flank Terrans in this map.
What are some interesting archetypal maps I can look at to get ideas from?
Iron Curtain, Python, Andromeda, Peaks of Beakdu, Blue Storm, Gaema Gowon, Destination, Luna, Lost Temple, Colloseum, and Nostalgia are maps I highly recommend for you to at least look at. (I like Gaema Gowon
) By playing them, you can tell how big things appear in games, and you can tell how many minerals are in the blocks.Is it okay to put a lot of critters in my map?
Don't put too many because they show up as blue on the mini-map, and therefore can be the same color as an opponent.
Why don't map makers make expansions in the main base, like Evolution Predator 2?
Terran and Protoss players can too easily take their expansions. Also, Zerg players have to make an additional hatchery if they want to place sunkens above their ramp.
What is the purpose of expansions near the middle of the map?
It is a good place for players to fight in the end game, after most of the expansions have been mined out. Map Example: Andromeda
Are hidden expansions in my map's main, where they are protected by the ramp, a bad idea?
If a player can turtle and expand in his base, while being protected by a ramp, it would cause a very boring game. It would be unfair if the expansion was not near a ramp, where zergs could put up sunkens to block it. Map Example: Evolution Predator 2
What race benefits the most from 815 ramps? Map Example: 815
P>Z on maps on maps with 815 ramps. Protoss players can block their ramp with one zealot. T>Z & P with maps that have this feature.
Why should I make maps with peaks, like Peaks of Beakdu?
It is different than most types of maps played. This type of map requires high ground strategies. (70% Chance to hit.)
Where is a good community for melee maps?
Broodwarmaps.net
What are some things people have tried to do to make island maps balanced?
People have tried to add a second gas expo on the first main island. This would give zerg a slight advantage because they already need the second hatchery for a production building. Another thing map makers have done is to place a full mineral and gas expansion at the main. This does not make anything better for zergs and just turns the map into a BGH style of a map. Map Example: Paradoxx You can also put spider mines and dark templars in the form of sprites next to an expansion to give zerg an advantage. If you place spider mines sprites you can see the spider mines being placed at the start of a game. Zerg have early detection, so they can expand to where the dts and mines are earlier.
None.
