Chechnya map (WIP/demo)

[CCIP-subsim]

ORIGINAL: Veitikka

I don't recommend making city blocks that are surrounded by buildings, with plain terrain or such in the center. Those can be traps for vehicles, especially for the AI side.

Long lines of buildings should be avoided, because they too can become traps for moving vehicles. It looks like you've followed this convention quite well.

It's looking very impressive.

Thank you, much appreciated [:)]

Yeah, I'll be careful to ensure there's passages - I'll probably do some passes on the map once I'm done to try and make sure I don't leave those "vehicle traps" around, and declutter things generally.
I think in general, it's important to stick to the principle of playability being the #1 priority, with everything else coming after.

Got those "microdistricts" from yesterday detailed out - used a historical topo map for the layout, but then satellite imagery for reference on the details...

Result:

[exsonic01]

Looks great CCIP !! You need to write your own map making manual in the future if you have some time [:D]

Speaking of tank trap, then what design of urban map should we need to consider?

[Veitikka]

ORIGINAL: exsonic01

Speaking of tank trap, then what design of urban map should we need to consider?

See the official maps. It's possible that they don't follow the guidelines 100%, but should be a good reference.

[exsonic01]

ORIGINAL: Veitikka
See the official maps. It's possible that they don't follow the guidelines 100%, but should be a good reference.

Thanks, I was mostly following the satellite map, but now I need to fix some urban design Thanks to let us know. Hope your team finish map manual soon [:D]

[CCIP-subsim]

Been a research kind of day today mostly; lots of little details fixed and corrected based on information I've managed to dig up.

The labels are probably way too detailed for a game at this scale, but hey, they can always be turned off and you might actually learn a thing or two about Grozny in the process [:)] (all the more poignant seeing that the city was essentially destroyed in the war and most of the landmarks on the map are long gone in the real world).

City center:



Train station:

[Phoenix100]

Incredible job. Beautiful map. Many thanks! Hope you can get to release something we can test soon, but don't rush to release it - worth the time and care if you get outstanding results like this. Fantastic cityscapes.

[CCIP-subsim]

Cheers, thank you! [:)]

I'm hoping I can get the 15x15km Grozny map completed in time for New Years', which would of course e the 24th anniversary of the most infamous assault on Grozny. Already starting to think of how I may want to set up the historical scenarios I'll want!

Weekend's progress: both detailsand large new areas added...



Soon I'll be able to start testing battles on much larger chunks of the map!



And a possible loading screen for the Grozny 'mini' map...



On the DB side I've also rebuilt the Russian faction from scratch for the particular needs of this scenario - a bit of subtle tweaking and rebalancing, plus adding some of the needed units and capabilities, such as RPO-A thermobaric 'flamethrowers' (as they are referred to in Russian terminology) which saw extensive use in Grozny, or reworking the 2S1 SPG for direct-fire use in urban combat (which it was pressed into here).

[exsonic01]

This is amazing CCIP, can't wait for your mod.

[CCIP-subsim]

Today's progress: got my least favourite part of the map so far done!

Least favourite because it's in that bend of the river and doesn't quite work out in a neat grid (as it ought to be in real life) - so, after bouncing between good looks and accuracy, I ended up settling on neither and focused on roughly how well it would play.



High-rise buildings along Lenin Prospekt, the city's main thoroughfare, dominate the lines of sight here, while off to the sides are some of the older low-rise areas.



Off in the lower right corner, Minutka Square - one of Grozny's great battlegrounds - is beginning to take shape. With its underground passages and towering apartment blocks, and a key bottleneck for movement, it was heavily fought over and practically flattened during the wars.
For comparison, here's a satellite shot of the same area in 2002 (after the war, with much of the city still destroyed):

With placing things diagonnaly taking up a lot more space, there was no way I could preserve the grid alignment, so I chose to "save" the main lines of movement through the district instead.


Overall state of the map as of now.

[CCIP-subsim]

For those who might be interested - I posted an AAR of one of my test runs of the new area today!

tm.asp?m=4568109

[Hghx-0]

It looks like a huge amount of work, thank you and good luck to finish it! I am very interested in this war.

[JiminyJickers]

Very impressive. I'm going to look at making my own map over the holidays. A very ahistorical recreation of the fictional battle of my hometown in New Zealand, haha.

[CCIP-subsim]

Cheers, thank you! And backyard maps are always fun [:)]


Meanwhile, I've got some new friends to introduce today - had another go at the Russian OOB, where I've managed to 'kitbash' a number of real Russian vehicles from existing sprites. These are mostly support vehicles and HQs - which I totally understand AB not including by default (most of them are not designed for fighting, mostly for shadowing the force), but as a number of them did indeed get caught up in early fighting in Grozny, I thought it'd be important to include them for use in scenarios - and found use for them in-game too, especially with the HQ role (and the ability to load a dismountable command HQ team on them, too). Further tweaks and rule adjustments are continuing in the meantime!


R-145BM Chaika, and R-149BMR Kushetka - command vehicle versions of the BTR-60PB and BTR-80 respectively.






1B15 Mashina-S artillery HQ vehicle, and 2K21 SP Mortar - derived from the MT-LBu and MT-LB respectively



BREM-1 and BREM-Ch armor repair and recover vehicles - derived from the T-72 and BMP-1 respectively



BTR-D (with AGS-17 grenade MG) and MT-LBM - the former a close APC cousin of the BMD-1 IFV, and the latter is an MT-LB with the same grenade launcher up front, and a BTR-80 turret in the center. Both are used as scouting vehicles and combat transports for Spetsnaz teams.

[CCIP-subsim]

Some big progress on the map today - I think this picture speaks for itself! [:)]



That is the entire 15x15km Grozny map, with the preliminary road layout now completed for virtually the entire map, and pretty much all of the low-rise housing placed. What's left now are a number of high-rise areas, the massive industrial district (which at one time held the USSR's largest oil refinery), and lots and lots of details! But I'm definitely starting to see an end in sight with this one.

[kevinkins]

The mod was mentioned in the recent POD cast (Three Moves Ahead).

Kevin

[CCIP-subsim]

Still cracking away on Grozny - not many shortcuts I can take when it comes to large parts of the city! Nearly every neighbourhood seems to require its own unique look and layout. On the plus side, I'm pretty happy with the resulting look [:)]

Here's a snapshot of the center of the city, which is 95% finalized:

[dox44]

great job!

[exsonic01]

He should be awarded from devs. Bravo!

[CCIP-subsim]

Not until I actually finish and release something [:D]

Finally got a start on the city's massive oil refinery - this is only about 1/6th of it here.
(It did not survive the war, and much of this area remains in ruins even today)



One general conclusion for anyone making maps - avoid diagonal layouts of anything if you can, at all cost! It's a pain to work on [:)]
Luckily, aside from a couple more small pieces, I managed to line up the rest of the refinery on a more normal square grid.

[exsonic01]

ORIGINAL: CCIP-subsim
One general conclusion for anyone making maps - avoid diagonal layouts of anything if you can, at all cost! It's a pain to work on [:)]

Couldn't agree more, I'm already trying to rectangularize any triangular or diamond shape streets as much as possible, especially small ones. That is the way to save time and escape from headaches.