16 replies to this topic

[Phoenix Rising]

One of the most rewarding aspects of modding is being able to bring never-before-seen places to life, especially those places deemed too obscure to the mainstream to likely make it in a retail game. Some of the most memorable places in the galaxy - Borleias, Duro, Hapes, Ithor, Sluis Van, and Yaga Minor, just to name a few - have thus far existed only in our imaginations or through fleeting glances. One of our objectives with Phoenix Rising is to change that.

Over the past few weeks, jdk002 has been working on the maps for a number of planets that have little more to go off of than a description. In such a short timespan, he's managed to complete ten more professional-quality maps - two for each planet - that will be included in the upcoming release in addition to Metellos. These have, at best, previously appeared only in a comic pane; at worst, never. So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce for the first time:

Da Soocha 5



This obscure moon is home to a primitive, but intelligent species of chiropter known as the Ixlls, who nest upon the curiously-massive stone pinnacles that formed from volcanic activity in low gravity. In the time following the loss of Coruscant to the reborn Emperor, it also briefly served as a staging ground for the New Republic government-in-exile at Pinnacle Base, until the entire moon was destroyed by the Galaxy Gun.

Dolomar



A frigid world and sector capitol in the Core, Dolomar was settled for its abundance of rare ores and gemstones, but is also known for its wineries. The local human population has adapted to the climate by building their cities in underground caverns, which makes them near-impervious to orbital bombardments. As a gateway to Coruscant, the planet is of strategic importance and was a flashpoint of the Thrawn Campaign, where New Republic and Dolomari forces repulsed Imperial ground troops in one of Thrawn's few commitments to land battle.

Generis



Like Yavin 4, Generis is a jungle planet that was host to a now-extinct civilization that left behind numerous ruins. By the time of the Galactic Civil War, the planet was uninhabited and used by Rebels formerly of the Atrivis Resistance Group as a major communications center due to the presence of hiridiu crystals.

Obroa-skai



As home to one of the most complete information archives in the galaxy, Obroa-skai was a valuable target for many factions, although the native Obroans remained staunchly neutral during the Galactic Civil War. It was once raided by Thrawn and later captured by the Yuuzhan Vong, who destroyed much of the data stored there.

Qat Chrystac



This relatively worthless world is notable only for being the site of a standoff between Imperial and Rebel special forces. The planetary crust of Qat Chrystac is entirely molten, with landmasses consisting of glass mesas and plateaus that have cooled solid, yet still float tenaciously upon the magma sea. The atmosphere is swamped in radioactivity, rendering it lethal to anyone without proper protection.

According to jdk002, this is only a taste of what is to come, so be sure to stick around to see what we realize next! Happy Holidays!

[EduardPais]

Awesome work, can't wait to see what other surprises are out there!

Edited by EduardPais, 26 December 2007 - 03:11 PM.

[Decay]

wow. Excellent work jdk, the maps look amazing! Can't wait to play them

[Dr-Ludvig]

oh my god! those maps are awesome!! cant wait to play them, great work jdk02

[JediKnight]

Sweetness, great job jdk02

[Valter]

Looks incredible jdk02! Can't wait to test them out for myself.

By the way, how big are these maps in comparison to the ones that were included in Vanilla EAW?

[Phoenix Rising]

By the way, how big are these maps in comparison to the ones that were included in Vanilla EAW?

Well, the vanilla maps are somehow optimized more than what the editor is capable of. For some reason, if you resave one of them, it adds all sorts of useless data to the file. So any custom maps we do will be plagued by the same problem. They are around 1 to 2 MB.

[Valter]

So the new maps will be slightly smaller than the Vanilla maps?

[Pred the Penguin]

I barely even remember these planets. O_o

Anyways, awesome work!

[Phoenix Rising]

So the new maps will be slightly smaller than the Vanilla maps?

Oh, LOL. You can tell I've been talking with jdk002 because I thought you meant file size. Never mind that. The maps are larger than the ones that came with EaW, but generally smaller than some of the monstrous ones from FoC like Hypori.

I barely even remember these planets. O_o

Like I said, we've struggled with props in this short timespan since I'm too busy to divert my attention right now, so we've had to pick planets that have less of an established look or architecture. Think of trying to do Felucia without all the exotic plants; you couldn't pull it off. But if you think these maps are good, the ones that we plan on producing will define the standard for EaW.

[EduardPais]

but generally smaller than some of the monstrous ones from FoC like Hypori.

This is good, 'cause I hate those big land maps, especially Muunilinst.

[ShadowCrow]

This is good, 'cause I hate those big land maps, especially Muunilist

I love big maps, especially Muunilist.

I've made an edited land map for Muunilist so that you can have 20 ground structures, 15 shield generators (all hidden in buildings) and 30+ turbolaser towers throughout the map. Unfortunately the AI doesn't have the guts to attack me lol so I've never actually played the map yet.

[Valter]

Oh, LOL. You can tell I've been talking with jdk002 because I thought you meant file size. Never mind that. The maps are larger than the ones that came with EaW, but generally smaller than some of the monstrous ones from FoC like Hypori.

Yeah, I don't really care about the file size. LOL

Well, in that case, great news. I always thought the generic maps in EAW had way too much of a claustrophobic feel to them, and the FOC maps were just way too massive. Sometimes it will only take a matter of seconds before being attacked on the EAW maps, like on Bothawui. Conversly, on the FOC maps, it sometime takes more than 15 minutes just to find the enemy; this is partially due to the ridiculously small pop. cap. on land battles.

Anyway, my point is that a happy-medium between the 2 Vanilla game maps should be a perfect size.

[Dr-Ludvig]

I agree with Valter, mid between EaW and FoC maps is a good size keep it up

[Pred the Penguin]

The maps are pretty good quality for EaW maps.

I especially like Obroa-skai and Qat Chrystac.

[jdk002]

Thanks!

Back to mapping.