Invasion on The Hushed Apprentice

*Map Links Updated to Refit Edition - Thread Update Coming Soon*

"The weathered coasts of Installation 02 offer its visitors a bitter reverie of conflicts long past."

The Hushed Apprentice is an asymmetric, linear-style map, built from the ground up to specifically support Invasion. Designed to support competitive, frenzied gameplay as well as offer striking aesthetics, The Husked Apprentice features both intense infantry combat and explosive vehicle engagements.

As the attackers, Spartans spawn beach-side on the far end of the island. Flanking around the island and toward the Control Tower, their mission is to steal the valuable data core. Elites are tasked with holding their ground as long as possible, eventually receiving mechanized and aerial support.

Obviously, The Hushed Apprentice is meant to be a spiritual successor to the infamous "Silent Cartographer" of Halo: Combat Evolved. I strove to create a fun, visceral experience faithful in architecture and gameplay to one of my favorite campaign missions.

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Phase 1:Attackers:
1 x Sniper Rifle
2 x DMR

Defenders:
2 x Needle Rifle
Phase 2:Attackers:
1 x Sniper Rifle
1 x Rocket Launcher
1 x Warthog, Standard
2 x Mongoose

Defenders:
2 x Ghost
Phase 3:Attackers:
1 x Rocket Launcher
1 x Spartan Laser

Defenders:
1 x Focus Rifle
1 x Fuel Rod Cannon
2 x Ghost (from Phase 2)
2 x Banshee
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When designing The Hushed Apprentice, I tried to focus on crafting each individual phase into a separate gameplay experience. The first phase highlights heavy infantry combat in a fairly enclosed area, with respawning opponents quickly getting back into the thick of the action. The second phase features longer travel times and highlights medium-to-long range combat. The addition of light vehicles comes into play, striking a mixed balance of infantry/vehicle gameplay. The third phase involves both medium-ranged and close-quarters infantry fighting mixed with heavy vehicle action in the form of Covenant ground and aerial vehicles.

What differentiates The Hushed Apprentice from other Invasion maps is the subtle design choices I made to tip gameplay in one direction or the other. Throughout the entire match, the Spartans are given a slight advantage - be it a weapon or strategic position - to tilt the balance of favor on their side. The reason for this is to slightly balance the advantages of facing a defending Elite force as a "weaker" Spartan, as well as avoid matches ending in the first or second phase. In my opinion, no player really likes getting skunked - and I did my best to design scenarios that discouraged that between evenly matched teams.

While I wanted to give the Spartans a good fighting chance, I also wanted to create an interesting team dynamic when playing as an Elite - the concept of the "wingman". The vehicle sections feature two Covenant vehicles a piece: two Ghosts during the second phase and two Banshees during the third phase (along with the ghosts from the previous). This allows the Elite players to execute exciting 2-Man maneuvers and attacks, but is balanced out by the heavy Spartan firepower and staggered spawn times.

I really enjoyed designing and crafting this map, and I hope the ForgeHub community enjoys playing it. Thanks for reading and I look forward to any comments/feedback.

>> North side of the Island, showcasing the Comms. Bridge jutting from the clifface and micro-beam towers littering the landscape:

>> West face of the Island, looking toward the "Hunter Dish" generator and hillside leading up to the Tower.

>> Overview of the Control Tower, inspired by the cartographer entrance from Halo: CE. The Tower holds the core on it's second story during the last phase.

>> Interior of Control Tower, showing the architecture and layout of the Tower's design.