So, what are you working on right now?

[Lux]

@AH - That cave look amazing to play in, a shame we can't run large open spaces like that :\

[Goldwell]

@Goldwell

 

Your screenshots make my map look like a cartoon. Maybe I should back out of this Halloween contest? You are light years ahead of me....

 

Wow I really appreciate the compliment however you definitely should not back out! For one it really surprises me to read that because I don't consider myself anywhere near the top in terms of creating TDM visuals and as others have said graphics aren't everything anyway.

 

To me sound is everything for immersion but through a lot of trial and error and help from others I have learned and developed my own visual style and you will do the same the more you keep at it.

 

Mapping to me feels a lot like learning an instrument, at the start it's very basic and you are covering/trying to duplicate others work but as time goes on and you find your way you can even get better than the people who inspired you.

 

Oh and as for the contest it's not about winning, to me it's just there to help stir the pot of slumbering mappers so we all get some more great TDM content to play

 

I look forward to playing your entry!

[Sir Taffsalot]

Mapping to me feels a lot like learning an instrument, at the start it's very basic and you are covering/trying to duplicate others work but as time goes on and you find your way you can even get better than the people who inspired you.

 

This!

 

I always show my work to my friends and work colleagues and they usually something like "I wish I could do that." I always tell them it's like learning an instrument. At first your not making music your just learning notes and scales. Stick with it and eventually your not thinking of notes and scales and your just making music.

 

At first mapping is just clicking on points of a grid but eventually you beging to make pictures but instead of using a pen and paper your doing it by clicking on points on a grid just like you would draw with a pen and paper.

 

Like most things in life it just comes down to practice.

 

Oh and as for the contest it's not about winning, to me it's just there to help stir the pot of slumbering mappers so we all get some more great TDM content to play

 

And this!

Edited October 15, 2014 by Sir Taffsalot

[Sir Taffsalot]

Some pics of the courtyard I've been working on. All the building work for The Angel's Tear is now complete.

 

 

Edited October 18, 2014 by Sir Taffsalot

[Goldwell]

Some pics of the courtyard I've been working on. All the building work for The Angel's Tear is now complete.

 

<snip>

 

Beautiful open outdoor areas with good fps in TDM? <3 awesome! Can't wait to play. Do you have a rough ETA yet?

Edited October 19, 2014 by Goldwell

[Sir Taffsalot]

According to my schedule it should be ready for beta testing in two weeks but I want to release it along with the two other installments of Vengeance for a Thief so it's a three part campaign. Before I do that I want a to fix a few bugs in the other two installments and make a few new areas so if people decide to play them again then will have something new to look forward to. I reckon this will be done by Xmas and assuming beta testing will take a few weeks then the Complete Vengeance campaign should be released early next year.

[Capela]

This my new work. Do you know a script to make the boats like they where floating..!!

 

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/1280x1024q90/538/ELdrBU.jpg

Edited October 19, 2014 by Capela

[Springheel]

Take a look at the boat in the training mission. It's bound to a func_pendulum that goes up and down.

[Moonbo]

Looks good Capella!

[Goldwell]

So here's my last update on my halloween contest entry map until release.. As it currently stands I wont make the October 30th deadline but I think it will be soon after.. at the latest my guess is mid November. I'm about 75% done with geometry and 50% done with detailing. I still have to do the readables and AI paths but I dont see that being to hard as I already have a rough idea of how things will be.

 

And finally here are some more screenshots... these aren't final but pretty close to done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 24, 2014 by Goldwell

[Bikerdude]

Your mapping skills seem to improve each time you post some wip shots, nice to see you are using lots of trim :-)

[Capela]

One more pic before i go to another area.

 

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/1280x1024q90/910/12tueW.jpg

[kyyrma]

One more pic before i go to another area.

 

http://imagizer.imag.../910/12tueW.jpg

 

Really nice. I love the yellow lights, gives it a very peculiar mood.

 

Also, if you didn't yet figure out how to make those boats float in the waves from the Training Mission, you can also check Breaking out the Fence. IIRC the boats were just doors that get constantly triggered.

 

Edit: The map with boats is Breaking Out. Thanks numbers

Edited October 26, 2014 by kyyrma

[161803398874989]

Really nice. I love the yellow lights, gives it a very peculiar mood.

 

Also, if you didn't yet figure out how to make those boats float in the waves from the Training Mission, you can also check In a Time of Need. IIRC the boats were just doors that get constantly triggered.

Are you sure it was in In a Time of Need? Because I betatested that mission and do not recall any boats.

[Obsttorte]

One more pic before i go to another area.

 

http://imagizer.imag.../910/12tueW.jpg

Looking good. But the sewer grates placed on the bottom should be lower then the surroundings, as their intention is to let rain water flow into it. This wouldn't hapen if they are placed higher as in your shots.

[Capela]

Looking good. But the sewer grates placed on the bottom should be lower then the surroundings, as their intention is to let rain water flow into it. This wouldn't hapen if they are placed higher as in your shots.

 

yes you right. :-)

[Moonbo]

Hey guys,

 

So I'm still working on the second wing of the manor. There's a long way to go (need to put in gameplay, loot, etc), but it's shaping up pretty nicely so I thought I'd share. Crits/places where I can improve are always welcome!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Tels]

Hey guys,

 

So I'm still working on the second wing of the manor. There's a long way to go (need to put in gameplay, loot, etc), but it's shaping up pretty nicely so I thought I'd share. Crits/places where I can improve are always welcome!

 

Lush, rich, filthy-rich, luxorious in-door scenes, that's what TDM is good at, and what you show to almost perfection here. Congrats! Looking forward to this mission!

[Bikerdude]

@Moonbo, no one manages to use our textures like you can, bravo! My only crit is the marble/stone ceiling/wall trim needs adjusting, the wood beams are partly obscuring it.

[Moonbo]

@Tels, thanks for the encouragement :-).

 

@Biker, yeah that's just bad planning on my part. I put up the plaster trims and then realized that the ceiling braces just didn't look good without wood trim around them. I think at this point it's just too much work to fix though (unless other people think it's worth the effort of course).

[Capela]

Just another exterior image from the map...alot of work need to be done. The interiors of Moonbo are outstanding....- but i think i will never do something like that whit so many details has he put it.....Well i think its a just a question of style. I always like something more rustic and dark. Hope you enjoy and remember its just a WIP. Comments are always welcome, even some times the bad ones makes one give up the work... - ha..i managed to make the boat float with the pendular function..ty for the help

 

 

Edited November 3, 2014 by Capela

[Airship Ballet]

even some times the bad ones makes one give up the work...

I think the trick is to be self-critical enough that you give bad feedback to yourself. Being your own devil's advocate means you get to act on harsh criticism of the self and end up succeeding in the long-run. Besides, remember that it doesn't have to be about visuals: everything looks crap when you get really up-close, so being happy with the way it looks as a whole is enough.

 

Anyway, if you ask me I'll tell you that the First City Bank and Trust is easily the crowning glory of the Thief franchise. Since I decided my first map would be absolutely huge (and I don't regret it; no problems other than being sick of the sight of it) I've gone back to a side project that I'm starting to work on in earnest. In the end it's going to be a 4-mission campaign consisted purely of incrementally larger bank heists. I imagine I'll finish this, finish my first map and then finish this campaign. I'll release each heist on its own and bundle them into one campaign when it's finished. I really feel like the fairly unique aesthetic TDM has was made for complicated yet ironically rudimentary security solutions, and I've had tons of fun making a couple so far.

 

Here's a couple!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqw0Z33QB14&feature=youtu.be

 

The combo lock prefab was taken apart and split into two because with this being the first heist it's only about 1.5k units² and 4 floors high, and needs something like a combination split into two to contrive some longer gameplay. I'm pretty happy with it, and can't wait to build and fill a vault on the other side.

 

Also coming with this mission is a little system I've come up with inspired by PAYDAY 2. It almost made it into Exhumed but ended up cut since it felt like it didn't quite fit there. Anyway, the idea is that instead of buying equipment with hundreds of gold, you start with maybe 10 pieces of gold that represent favors. You spend favors to buy mission assets like keys, hints, codes and changes to the map itself. As it stands I've implemented a favor in my first map that marks all secret passages and their respective buttons with a black feather as well as drugging some food to knock out a couple of the trickier guards. You can also currently buy a few maps of varying quality for varying prices, and can have quivers of water or gas arrows hidden in select locations for you. In addition to that--this time inspired by the additional mask objective you can buy in TDP's Lost City--there are a number of free items in the shop that let you essentially buy objectives. They'll give you more money to carry on to the next heist and also just let you choose how much effort you want to go to. Here's an example, though the options are somewhat limited as I've only got one floor and half the basement built.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHG_bT0DG7E&feature=youtu.be

[esme]

Buying objectives, now that's an interesting idea, looks good too

[Bikerdude]

@AB, very impressive.

[Capela]

One of the thing i realy like it in TDS was the shop´s system, were Garrett could sell and buy objects and information, if i remember could even add more objectives in that mission. Can we do that in TDM or what @AB is showing in the post is him trying to do something like that?