Ichneumon is a remix of my first proper map, Wasp's Nest, which centered around Ghosts dodging in and out of big structures, whilst players were able to navigate higher on foot. However, it was way too cramped for flowy gameplay, so I decided to spread the original idea out and turn it into a BTB map. At the moment, it's best suited to 4-8 player ffas, although this is subject to change with the next iteration. BTB also works well if you can put up with some spawning issues.

As you could have guessed, Ichneumon remains a largely symmetrical map, with a few assymetric flaws to help add variety to each team. After testing, I've found that the map works better with smaller games than big ones, with ffas remaining as balanced as team games. Whilst it was designed with symmetric gametypes in mind, the flaws in each side help to make attacking and defending bases more distinguishable.

To summarise, both teams get access to Ghosts, Snipers and Rockets straight away. They can use these to control the three straight lines of sight down the middle of the map, whilst other players can weave around and use the grav lifts to outmanoeuvre enemies attempting the same. As they fight over the Spartan Laser and overshield, air support in the form of Banshees will drop in a few minutes into the game, which you can use to wreak havok depending on your map control. Whilst the bases are fairly open to aerial attack, the middle area is much more protected from air raids, and will become more fiercely contested as the game goes on. Here's a weapons/equipment/shopping list for a general overview, I'll include specific locations later.

Weapon ----> Respawn Time ----> Clips

10 x BR - 10 seconds - 2 clips (sym)
3 x Carbines - 30 seconds - 2 clips (2 sym, 1 asym)
2 x Plasma Rifles - 30 seconds (asym)
2 x Machine Gun Turrets - 60 seconds (sym)
2 x Needlers - 60 seconds - 2 clips (sym)
2 x Brute Shots - 60 seconds - 2 clips (sym)
2 x Shotguns - 90 seconds - 2 clips (sym)
2 x Rocket Launchers - 120 seconds - 1 clip (sym)
2 x Sniper Rifles - 120 seconds - 2 clips (sym)
1 x Spartan Laser - 150 seconds (asym)

Equipment ----> Respawn Time

8 x Plasma Grenades - 30 seconds (sym)
4 x Spike Grenades - 60 seconds (sym)
4 x Grav Lifts - 60 seconds (sym)
2 x Bubble Shields - 90 seconds (sym)
1 x Overshield - 120 seconds (asym)

Vehicles ----> Respawn Time

2 x Ghosts - 90 seconds (sym)
2 x Banshees - 150 seconds (sym, no start)

If you can't be bothered to read further...

DOWNLOAD ICHNEUMON HERE

Otherwise, here's a tour around the map, marking weapon locations, jump ups and such. Since the weapon layouts are the same at each base (unless otherwise stated), I'll only provide weapon positions for one team.

Here's just a general overview of what you'll find at each base. I left the spawns on for reference; because most of them are tucked away, it's surprisingly hard to spawn camp with a banshee without facing the other end of a rocket/grenade/brute shot. Plnety of cover from poeple to duck into, despite the lack of a roof. Banshee and Rockets are on the right hand side, whilst the Ghost and Sniper are to the left. The objective stands on top of a double block with ramps leading up, which makes it a challenging site to attack during assault and ctf games. Thankfully, the ramps on each side provide access for a skilled Ghost pilot, amongst other routes...

It's also worth noting that the shotgun spawns directly beneath the flag, on the floor below the block, and you can pick up a carbine on the way to the flag, bomb. The symmetrical bomb spawns are also located next to the shotgun spawns.

To the left of your initial spawn, you'll find the aforementioned Ghost and Sniper Rifle. It's worth noting that there's a ramp directly in front of the ghost, which can use either as a ramp for getting your Ghost into the middle quickly, or as a perch to snipe people rushing for Rockets with. There's also an obelisk for cover from marauding Ghosts and Banshees.

There's also an alley down the side of the map at this point, with a Brute Shot and some Spike Grenades, which can help to cut down enemy vehicles. You can also take the sniper down here and get straight to the middle without risk of attack. Whilst the blues get access to the plasma rifles and neutral objective from here...

... the reds get access to the central carbine pillar, and have more cover from this side of the map, due to the geometry.

And before you say, yes, I know that the map is off-center slightly. Whilst I'd like to say this is intentional... it isn't. I'm just a moron :P I'll address this with the V2 later.

On the right hand half of each base, you get the banshee and rockets. The banshee's location is fairly obvious by the massive great gap, so I'll just show the rockets. As you can see, the location is fairly open, so once you've got the goods, don't hang around for too long. Make a push across the middle or head back to base. You can also access a grav lift and two plasma nades by going up a ramp just obscured by that pesky column. Use the grav lift to make access to the top middle easier for your team.

This area is much smaller for blue team than red's, and as such it provides a weak spot for attackers to penetrate the defender's, erm, defenses. However, they get some obelisks to hide behind to compensate, so be warned.

The other grav lift can be found on the sniper perch above the ramp, which I guess I should have mentioned. The needler's here also, and is an excellent weapon to help defend the three lines of sight with, provided you can get close.

Oh, and each base also gets a bubble shield, which spawns just... here. Let me know if I'm adding too many anti vehicle measures.

INTERMISSION!

Alright, who's still with me? Let's go! It's a long trek, but it'll be worth it. I've talked a lot about the bases, but the real centrepiece of the map is the middle, oddly enough. Here's some overviews of the top section. It's all hollow underneath the pillars, so have fun exploring both levels.

I really couldn't escape the rewards for complex jumps that you found in the original Waps Nest, so I kept that element here, by providing jump ups for quick access to the middle, piers, turrets, etc. To avoid any confusion before we move onto this, however, I'll tell you that the laser's in the direct centre of the map. Have fun!

Right, the main difference between each team's geometry is the jump ups, and how these affect cover and moving around. While each team gets a liberal amount of grav lifts to help them, if you don't have any at hand, then you can use these to get the jump on your opponent. EH?! I really can't be bothered to explain each jump, so I'll just title them.

NOTE: To access Red Turret, just jump off of Red pier. It's not collapsed, so make the most of it. Also, you can hide under it during oddball games. Just sayin'. No screenshot.

That's about it. I couldn't post any more walkthrough if I had fingers of steel. o_O However, I will provide some action screenshots! Here's a brief reminder...

DOWNLOAD ICHNEUMON HERE

Thanks for reading this far. Let me know if I should change anything for the V2, I'm going to tweak it to be more applicable to ffa and multi team, have easier access to the top via geometry, and move it back into the center. I'm looking forward to some good criticism on this, and I hope you're now looking forward to a good custom map.