Of the Essence
"A standard conquest map. Now approved by the Xforgery certification team. 4-12"
-By Gunnergrunt

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If you haven't heard, Of the Essence was the winner of Vorpal Saint's Conquest Forgeoff a while back. Since then, OTE has been adopted into the world of Conquest. It has been played in ForgeHub's TGIF and by many fans of Conquest, but those who have played this map before will agree that it wasn't perfect. I have improved the map. It does not bear the title of "v2" because this is the final, official version of the map. Here is a link to the original Forgehub post.

Conquest Overview
Conquest is a territories gametype that is made to represent the constant push and shove of frontlines during war time. It was designed to focus ALL combat around one choke point at all times and require teamwork to progress forward. There is almost no chance to flank a team. To progress forward you must present more brute force than your opposition.

Description
Of the Essence is my entry in the ConquestForgeoff. To better understand the layout of the map, I have posted a rough pre-sketch of the map (below). The map follows a basic S pattern, with each team spawning on a different end the the S. Each side is balanced and equal. The central territory takes the shape of an elongated octogon with ramps leading up from each side. The central territory has "bulletproof" windows to allow a view of the other team and they make their way to the middle (formed by the natural, invisible barrier of the stairs). It also gives players on the outside an idea of what awaits them in the central territory. The other territores reside in depressions to obsure lines of site. The map takes on the classic reverse-tug-of-war style of gameplay. Of the Essence is best played with the Conquest v3 variant.

And here's the original map layout (without walls and such)

Several weeks ago, I met AZN FTW, the "God of Conquest." He told me about his featured library of Conquest maps and his certification team on Xforgery.com. Then he got his team together and we played Of the Essence. After several rounds, the team examined the map in Forge mode. It was no simple forge-through; it was an hour and fourty-five minute scrutiny. No detail went unobserved, and no spawn point went unchecked. (These guys know everything there is to know about Conquest. As we all know, AZN FTW invented the addicting game of Conquest.) While critiquing the map, they educated me in the ways of Conquest. They explained every aspect, from weapon placement to territory size.

As they pointed out the flaws in Of the Essence, I listened and observed. I absorbed the information so that I would be able to soon perfect my Conquest map. Here is what Of the Essence lacked:

-The territories did not touch
-Weapon placement needed adjustment
-Weapons needed to be more eye-catching
-Spike grenades were a poor choice for the map
-Spawn points were poorly placed
-The "spawn box" was disorienting and awkward
-Overall map flow was mediocre

Conquest Map Checklist
Quote:
Are all of your territories touching?
(players should always be in a territory when traversing the map... no huge gaps)
Do territories cover every inch of the flooring of your map?
(area behind and in front of cover or corners, the linear walk path, doorways, important rooms, etc.)

Are the power weapons for each team away from the center and close to the team starts?
(this is to allow players to push back if backed into their starting territories)
Are you utilizing the proper grenades for your map?
(spike for narrow hallways, plasma for wide areas, and frags for lots of twists, turns, and jumps)
Did you remove any spots in your map that you can hide in plain sight without sacrificing something important?
(places like corners near entryways or ledges above players still in a territory are good examples)
Do teams have to stick together while traversing the map?
(basically there should be no paths that split up a squad or seperate members from the group... like teleboxes)
Are all of your spawns on each team's start point set to the designated team rather than neutral?
(this prevents teams from being pushed back so far that they spawn in on the other team's side

Weapons* and Gameplay
4 plasma rifles
4 spikers
2 bruteshots (no spare clips)
4 SMG's
2 plasma pistols
2 spike grenades (20 second respawn)
*total number of weapons on map. Each side has half of the total number of weapons placed.
Of the Essence works very well with the standard conquest gameplay. It functions well with games from 2v2 to 5v5. (My personal preference is 4v4 which seems to provide the most fun). The main battles will take place fighting for the central territory, but once it is cleared out, battles shift to the second next territory. The fight does not progress to the "spawn" territory often, but if it does, players will then be forced to spawn in a double box off the side wide which gives them enough advantage to repel the attackers.
The bruteshot are placed on a higher elevation between the first and second territories which enables it to be used at full effectiveness in clearing out enemies. Spike grenades are placed just before the ramps into the central territory. If thrown onto the ceiling of the opposite ramps, the grenade will stop anyone from entering the territory. It is also useful in damaging enemies around the corner from the central territory. Spike grenades have an increased respawn time to prevent them from becoming too heavily relied on. The dual weapons are placed in the three sections of each side of the map, evenly.

The Xforgery Certification Team told me how to fix every single problem and gave me in-forge examples. AZN taught me about the details of spawn points and weapons, etc. I saved the film and prepared to fix Of the Essence. A week later, I made a few tests, and I invited AZN back to view the improvements. He made more suggestions and I went back to the Forge. A few days later, the map was nearly complete. After another forge-through by the certification team, the map was almost ready. I made the final adjustments and got the team back for testing. Several tests were made. The new Of the Essence was a huge success! (And I was also made a member of the Conquest certification team! I now have the knowledge and skill to help others perfect their maps, so that we might add them to Xforgery's Featured Conquest Library.) The new map was very smooth and played Conquest like the pros.

Now, I will point out the improvements along with the pictures.

-Weapon placement perfected
-Weapons are eye-catching
-Territories are the correct size and shape
-Spawn points and areas adjusted

First off, the weapon placement has been adjusted. The bruteshot is placed closer to the starting area, held by a fancy set of bars, and the plasma rifles are now in a pair on the elevated segment of the map. The SMG, now in the main path, are floating in a pair just above the first ramp. A battle rifle has been added to the map. It can also be found on the elevated portion of the main path, near a barrel and street cone to attract attention. A frag grenade is now located in the starting area, on the left side.

This is the new starting/respawn area. The annoying double box has been removed. To compensate for the lack of extra spawn room, an additional dented portion of the wall has been forged.

The spikers are now placed along the main path, on a overturned barrier. This contrast in colors between the weapon and the barrier attract attention, making it easy to locate and use the weapons. Also, the spike grenade has been replaced by a plasma grenade, which can be found floating the corner of the hallway, just before the ramp.

Here are the new spawn points. In order to follow the rules of "smooth spawning," each spawn point is placed in the exact direction the player will go upon spawning. Also upon spawning, each spawn point allows for three seconds of uninterrupted forward movement. Weapons and elevation change are located just outside the three second period. Players will no longer bump any walls or objects, which eliminates frustration. At spawn, players will make the choice of either the bruteshot (on right) or the frag grenade (on left).

Now I will explain the new territory size. In Conquest, each territory must be touching, with no gaps or overlaps. If there are points on the map that give players a slight advantage, they should not be able to contest the territory while on that point. The new territories follow those rules quite well. The first, starting territory has been extended to cover both the starting area and the first elevated segment. But to avoid players contesting that territory from the center, the height remains the same. Now players can contest the first territory from the higher elevation, but it is low enough that jumping will cost them to cease contesting it.
The second territory has been expanded to fill the entire corner. It now covers the hallway ramp into the middle territory and can be contested from within the hallway.

The central territory on Of the Essence remains unchanged. It fills maximum middle space without overlapping into other areas of the map. Advantage points (such as the one out of view from the hallway) are not within the territory.

Yep, showin' off!

I owe a special thanks to...

the Xforgery.com Certification Team (AZN FTW, Ell3ment,
Coyote1023)

All my testers!

The gamers in my screenshots (vortex422, samsternator, IBI Chewbaca, A Badger Ferret, R0FLninja, Black Theorm, phychoactive THC, Iv Zatoo vI, Black Koncept, MaaaaaaaaaaaaaaD (14 a's?), PELGORE, and breynoldsI22)

And to the members of Forgehub who commented and played the original map

Also, I am looking for someone with a capture card who would be willing to help me make a video for the map. PM please. Thanks!

Download links:
Of the Essence
Conquest