No moneyhats necessary.

If you're one of the few iPad owners who has yet to set sail on Harebrained-Schemes latest adventures with Crimson: Steam Pirates, here's a few more reasons to give it a go.

http://harebrained-schemes.com/post/some-more-reviews-for-the-mix/

Free Credits!

Earn some easy money this morning by linking your Xbox LIVE gamertag to a Bungie.net profile. Click here to create a profile if you don't have one already, and use your current Xbox LIVE credentials to complete the hook up.

Once you're ready to go, click here, then jump into Halo: Reach matchmaking and play some games to earn an amazingly easy 3,000 Credits.

Come on over here and sniff this packet.

It's been up for a few days already, but just in case you didn't notice, we've updated our Halo: Reach Project Page to include some information about the Network Status section you'll find in the main menu of Halo: Reach. If you're experiencing technical issues, or you just want to make sure you're rockin' the fattest pipe in the neighborhood, hit the link below to get your nerd on.

Halo: Reach - Networking 101

Don't be playin' with my emotions!

The first dance went down on Riptide and though there were a few holes shot through her hull, the vessel remains afloat. Sure, Derek said that the submerged walkways were totally confusing and didn't add much to the experience, but who the hell is he to judge? Oh, right. He's a multiplayer designer. Dammit. She's seaworthy (barely), but taking on water.

Okay, so Riptide needs a little more work. A few patches here and there. That's cool. I didn't expect the first version to be a rousing success. I'm just glad it didn't make anyone throw down their controllers in abject disgust.

Lemme set the stage.


First thing first, we only had four players for the inaugural run. This was more of an exhibition match than anything else. Just looking to ensure that the initial spawns work and that we can, indeed, get a game in. (Also confirmed: initial loadout camera from Blue Base works as advertised.)

On the Red Team, Chad and Cameron. With me on the Blues is my man Derek. Well, he's not my man. We're just friends. At least we eat lunch together from time to time. But I don't pick up the check or anything. And then we go back to our desks. Alone.

So yeah, 2v2. Manos y manos.







Only to cycle all the way back down and around to sneak in underneath their perch, armed and ready to deliver my explosive payload.

You're dead. D-E-D. Dead.

Did a little bit of work this morning on the map formerly known as Jurkout. Riptide is coming along nicely, if I don't say so myself. As you can see from the new overview, I've added some additional side routes and slapped in some spawns. Spiffy, eh?



At first, I plopped down like eight initial spawns for both teams, but Chad told me that it's not necessary as long as I crowd them with standard spawn points. When a player spawns into a match at the beginning of the game, the influence on surrounding spawns becomes super high. So, as long as you haven't placed the opposing team's spawns with direct line of sight to your first drop, you should be a-okay with a few initial spawns and a buttload of regulars.

We'll see if he's right when it comes to playtesting this sucker. I'm actually kind of hoping I run into some significant spawning issues so I can detail them out for you. If not, I hear Chad is working on something that will offer much more detail and expert advice on the subject anyway. It's probably a wood carving. That'd be awesome.



So, here's back of Red Base. Before I dropped these spawns into place, I switched back to player mode and stood in the proposed spot to make sure I had some good cover and a visible route to run from word go. Since I'm down on the water, and that water can be deadly, I needed to account for players who hold forward on the stick at spawn. Don't want my eager beavers dropping into the drink, now do I? Nope, I want them safe and sound and headed in the right direction. On Riptide's low side, that means exit, stage Blue Base.



I also added some additional spawn points along the side routes, so if a team happens to occupy both bases simultaneously, there's still some safe territory to tread along either side of the map.



And as I mentioned above, I added some additional routes heading in and out of both bases by extending the floating side platforms all the way back to Red Base.



Conversely, here's a look at Blue Team's spawns. Initially, they all start out up top, but there are ample spawns above and below to account for safe reincarnation.



See? Placing the spawns below the water line proved problematic. They're really tough to see once submerged. I opted to make these particular points fixed, so I could float them just above the surface.



Spawns taken care of, I did a little light housekeeping. I kept hitting my head on this structure when I leaped over the water.



So it's dead to me. I don't need the budget, but there's nothing worse than smacking your helmet and falling to your death during what otherwise should have been an expertly timed leap of faith. One thing I really appreciated during this delicate operation was the ability to see which object I was about to manipulate by pressing X. Forge kindly popped up the properties of the correct object, so I knew that the subsequent deletion was going to remove the exact right piece. Yay, science!



I need a weapon. Get it? Master Chief delivered that line in the blockbuster video game, Halo 2. Here, I'm slapping in a DMR at the top of the main structure at Red Base. It's got a sweet line of sight to the Blue Base's extended platforms so you can deliver super fun suppressive fire.



And you'll be able to operate a little more effectively from Red now that I've decided to glass off the central window inside the Blue Base. Just seemed a little too enticing for campers. If you want to assault Red, you'll have to move outside your comfort zone. If it turns out that this new addition is too restrictive, I'll utilize the already detailed delete function to break it back open.



The extended walkways offer little in the way of cover, but they will reward you with a longer range weapon if you dash out to the far end.



And you'll likely want somebody out on the ledge since the Red Team will be heading low to claim the partially submerged Shotgun.



And moving out into the Kiddie Pool to snag the Rocket Launcher. I tried to time the Rocket run as best as I could. By my count the mad dash from either initial spawn is right at nine seconds, with both teams needing to leave cover to get their hands on the totally tubular death dealing machine. Hopefully, it'll play out all Risk vs. Reward like. No telling until I get some games in.

Which is my next stop. Riptide was submitted to our official internal playtest group this morning. If all goes to plan, I should be seeing some feedback (and tons of sarcastic remarks) pretty soon.

Stay Tuned.

License to Kill.

I thought I'd be slapping in spawns today, but I caught Cotton checking out someone other lucky employee's Forge creation, got jealous, and asked him to come over and inspect my work. His diagnosis was far from positive, but it's all good. I'll take all the advice I can get.

"People are going to get murdered at spawn down here."

Well, I haven't added Carney's recommended columns yet! But crap, he's right. My low base is wide open (that's what she said!) and I need to add in some cover. Forge to the rescue.

Time to dance!

Lars is busy cranking away at project "Bakken Crick," and here I am, still stuck in Jurkout. I took Chad's advice from yesterday and added some more flat real estate to the back half of shadow base, using some bridges and floating landing pads that connect back to the central, lower structure. Hopefully, the additional square footage will make the process of creating the myriad of spawns I'll need that much easier.

To tell the truth, I'm not looking forward to it. While there are a whole host of Forge improvements designed to aid in general construction, spawning is and always will be a thinking man's game. Basically, I'm screwed. But it's not all doom and gloom. Chad's promised to give me a few pointers here and there. Hopefully, when we get to that point in the process, his pointers will help you out, too.

But we're not there yet. Carney told me I should add more cover to the lower routes. He suggested I use columns and noted that they've been properly man sized. I only had a brief encounter with Jurkout today, so I didn't get a chance to add them into the mix, but as you can see, I did drop in a pair of man cannons to create a second route up into the back base. From inside, you can drop back down and head through the water up the gut, branch around to the platforms on either side, or ride the central gravity lift back up. Seems like it could play out okay and provide a cool cat and mouse experience. Of course, more likely it'll just be janky and totally suck.

After my first foray into map making, I was asked to drop a Spartan into the mix so people could get a better sense of Jurkout's overall size. See that white blip on the top of the central tower in the image above? That's an initial spawn point, properly Spartan sized. And for that matter, the tower itself is straight out of Lockout. Hopefully, that gives you better grip on the map's scale.











So, there you go. Day 2. (Not that I'm going to be able to update you each and every day.) Next time, I'm going to incorporate some additional cover, play with the movement between the lower routes so people don't accidentally hit the drink thinking they're on solid ground (thanks for the tip, Chad!), and start figuring out where I'm going to put spawns and weapons.

Wish me luck! I'm gonna need it.

All the world's a stage.

A caveat: I am not a map designer. I don’t pretend to have a good (or even pedestrian) grasp of player movement, neutral space, or balance. I’m just a guy who makes jokes on the internet. But even I can make a sweet Forge map.

Welcome to Incompetent Cartographer.

I’m not doing this for personal glory. In fact, I fully expect whatever I build to suck. Tremendously. I am not a patient man. I spent a grand total of about three hours with Halo 3’s Forge before throwing my hands up and tossing my controller down. But while I might not have what it takes to make an amazing map destined for our official matchmaking playlists, I can show you the basic steps. I can walk the path. Over the course of the next seven or so weeks, I’m gonna do just that. I’m going to load up Forge World, I’m going to use Forge and attempt to build a multiplayer map, and I’m going to bug Chad and Carney to give me insider tips to help me through the tough times. When I'm finished, I’m going to submit my creation through some of the same channels and mechanisms you’ll be using post-launch so you can see what the process might be like in Reach. Ready?

Let’s begin.


First things first, before you make a kick ass map on Forge World, you need to scout out some suitable terrain. It’s no small task, Ponce, there’s plenty of geography to explore.

Yup, I went with the Lagoon. The water here is deep enough to be deadly and I figured I could do something interesting by submerging some walkways knee deep in the gentle, crystal blue waves. Plus, it’s an awesome looking sea cave with waterfalls spilling down from high above. Even if my map sucks butts, at least the surrounding space will look downright beautiful. Thanks, Cotton!

Let's get down to business.


Bye, bye random spawns. With this deadly water ensconcing my map, I figure I’ll be meeting my watery maker on a regular basis as I twist and turn the pieces into place. Can’t be spawning up in the Coliseum, now can I?




Before I get too deep, let’s save this sucker, give it a name, and provide a description. As you can see, I got all 80's with it. Catch the reference? Yeah, you're probably not old enough.


Now that we’re working in a safe environment, it’s time to get on the grid. Just like in Sandbox, this grid will act as a physical barrier, so any objects I set on it will be perfectly placed at the right height. Unlike Sandbox, I can slap this grid wherever I want. And now I'm ready to start building. I'd call it the mass out phase, but let's get real -- that's way too official sounding for what I'm about to do. It's gonna get ugly.


Bring your waterwings, chumps! It's gonna get wet and wild.



Back down to business. Shadow Base needs some more love.


And some Gadgets. Does two teleporters and two man cannons seem a bit much?


What about a ginormous base?


Yeah, I think I'm gonna stop for now, but that's not bad for my first few hours, eh? Before I could get too confident, Miller spotted me working in Jurkout yesterday and asked me if I did it all by myself. Like I was a toddler.

“Really? You didn’t have any help?”

Yes, Dan…really. Fortunately for me, Chad stopped by early this morning to offer up a more helpful tip.

“There are a lot of narrow paths and not much dance floor.”

That’s because I haven’t built out the arms or added the Falcons in yet, Chad! (Dammit, he’s right.) Looks like I have a lot more work to do. Stay tuned.