Staredit Network

I mainly play 1vs1 and 2vs2 on maps such as Lost Temple, Nostalgia, Gaema Gowon etc., and 3vs3 on the only playable map out there: The Hunters. When it comes to 2vs2 maps there is a wide variety of maps you can choose from which are pretty much balanced, but for a good 3vs3 game the only map that people play these days is The Hunters, which in my opinion isnt balanced at all. I'm kinda bored of playing the same old maps over and over again, and because there arent any decent 3vs3 maps, I decided to make a few balanced maps of my own.
In my opinion Protoss on The Hunters is the best race, and I think most of you agree. Next come Terran, and last is Zerg, mainly because without an early expo they always struggle to survive . So with that in mind I had to create a map where Protoss wouldnt be so strong, and where Zerg could get a fast expo quite easily.
On The Battalions, there are 2 expos for each starting position, one inside and one outside of the mains. The inside expo, which is on high ground (like the expos on Bifrost) has 3 mineral fields and a vespene geyser, which is what Zerg players always need, while the outside expansion has 7 mineral fields (mineral only). Zerg players can easily take their inside expo, while Protoss and Terran must choose between gas or minerals for their first expo. All mineral expos are joined together in pairs and lead to the center of the map. Also in each corner of the map there is a small ledge where Terran could place a few tanks to bombard the gas expos. Finally, each main has 9 mineral fields (instead of 10 on Hunters), so Protoss can have a hard time pumping zealots and massing cannons early on in the game. (which always happens on Hunters). Games on big maps often take too long, as distances are way to big, and because people have difficulty learning and adapting their game to very big maps, I made this map 128x128. (You can also see the map better in the minimap when playing on small maps).
I have played around 20-30 games on The Battalions, where the results were quite good. Zerg can mass troops much easier than before, without being hammered down by Protoss, as it is hard for them to create a big army (on Hunters Protoss can reach 100 population in a few minutes). Some games have even lasted 45', and have ended in the most weirdest ways . More strats can be used on this map, like lurker drops on the inside cliff attacking the main mineral line, siege tanks destroying gas expos from the ledge, even Terran players lifting their CC and moving it to an ally's inside expo when they are losing their main base .
There are lots of 1vs1, 2vs2, and money maps that are out there today, why not start creating 3vs3 maps? There are a lot of people that play team games, and I think they would appreciate a few decent maps to play on. It is much easier now for people to play new maps with the Map Preview option. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this map and please tell me what you think about it.

JPEG: [attachmentid=5219]
MAP DOWNLOAD: [attachmentid=5220]

it's a pretty good map as far as I can say. Every player starts relatively in the same position when comparing minerals, expansions and building space.

Every player's base has the same advantages and disadvantages and because of that you can say that the map in completely fair.

The only flaw that I can see is that there is nothing to fight over in the midle.

If you can fix that then I'll probably put the map in the Pro Melee section of the DLDB.

death link, is this your first map?
omg its so good, its almost perfectly balanced, i like it alot.
i think beer keg is right, you should put expansions in the middle to fight for though. if i like 8 player maps, it would be a 9.999999/10, lol
great job, make more maps please, this is great work, protect your map, you dont want anyone screwing around on it.

This isnt my first map, probably around my 10th map or something. Out of the 10 maps I think this is the only one that is worth playing on. I am currently creating 2 new maps, one 6 player on twilight and another 8 player on space.

Thanks for your comments on the map, but I don't really understand why something is missing from the middle. I think that there is already enough expos on the map, and by just placing some more in the middle would make it look a bit ridiculous. Besides, there won't be enough room for troops to move around, and I already think there isnt enough room on this map anyway. There is a reason why you would fight for the middle, even if it doesnt have minerals. If you can hold the middle then your troops can go freely from one base to another, unlike your opponents where they cant help each other easily. Its exactly like the center of Hunters, except Hunters has minerals and gas in the middle, which no-one ever takes. Its just too risky to get an expo in the middle, when there are so many other safer expos. Think about other maps, like LT, Nostalgia, Gaema, they dont have minerals in the middle, the middle is so massive that its practically impossible to control it. Its actually more fun that way, as battles can be fought all around the map, not just in the middle.

I am uploading a replay of a 3vs3 game played on The Battalions (actually a previous version of it), it is 45' long, but there are lots of fights going on all around the map, its completely crazy. Expos are changing hands all the time. There are units in this replay that you dont usually see on Hunters (Ultralisks, Defilers). I recommend you to see this replay. It is completely different from Hunters.

REPLAY: [attachmentid=5249]

Putting a small cliff on the middle would prove much more valuable than any expansion, simply because you get to control the middle easier and the troops on top of that cliff would gain more protection from terrain.

Think about it and you'll see my intent.

Yeah, if there is a small cliff in the middle (just enough for a few units), it won't be so big and it will be easier to control. But adding some highlands will be more an advantage to Terran than it will be to Zerg and Protoss, unless i add some ramps to the cliff so units can go up easily. It sounds like a good idea but I don't know if it will change the balance of the game (mainly towards Terran players). I'd like some comments on this idea.

I was thinking of having a small cliff there probably only about 4 diamond tile.
Ramps would be used at all sides for easy access. And tress would also be up there on top.

you cant put a ramp on all sides, unless yo make it an odd shape

Every time I see the big blocks of text DeathLink posts, I shudder.

Would you please remember to, next time, take the time to format your post material, so as to make it more readable?

(Sorry, I came from the Fan-Fiction Forum on Battle.net, so I'm a bit of a stickler for that kind of thing.)

i liked it...

9.2/10

OK, I added a cliff in the center of the map with 2 ramps. I tried using 4 ramps (one for each direction) but the cliff was way too big and it just didnt look good.
2 ramps is probably enough and the size of the cliff is ok, but I think the bottom players can access the ramps easier than the top players.

So I made another version where the center of the map is a bit smaller and easier to control.

I could also not put any ramps and make it completely fair.

Don't know which one is best, so tell me what you think...

Ramp version: [attachmentid=5362]

Smaller Center version: [attachmentid=5361]

better, if you only wanna put 3 units up there...

Better than I can do, at any rate. I believe that you've created a beauty.

Except for one thing--it's so symmetrical I think I'm going to go crazy.

Maybe if you want to do something unique with each base--such as a few special doodads or maybe altering the lay of the land a bit--that would perfect the map.

Overall, excellent job.

Well I tested the 2 new versions of the map, and they kinda suck. The ramp version is too unbalanced, bottom players have an advantage over the top players more than I thought, and it doesn't take much for a Terran player to take the middle with just a few tanks.

The smaller middle version is a bit better, but certain paths can be blocked with 1 rax or depot by Terran, leaving a small path for all the units to move. Again Terran can take the center with ease.

In both these versions Zerg couldn't really go for any counter-attacks, and oftenly lost many troops because of the tanks on the cliff, and mainly because there wasn't enough room to flank.

So I guess the very first version of the map is probably the best so far... I have stopped editing this map and I am currently working on another 2 maps that I will upload in a few days.

And yes the one thing I hate about this map is that it's too symmetrical. But there's not much I can do about that.

Yeh, nah i truly belive the 1st one was much better..

the only thing i see wrong with it is that the minerals for the original start locations seem to be on the edge of water or cliff, therefore leaving the base as an easy target for atm attacks (Air To Mineral - i actually made that saying up ) as the air units could rush past the few turrets and just sit on the hatchery/CC/nexus until all probes are gone.. maybe center it a bit just to get a proper d in the side..