HYPE (?)

Cue epic evil laugh.

I got a working proof of concept for a Minecraft Adventure Map. I am happy.

(Anistuffs, I am going to need your help with ideas for this one.)

-R30

#Gerald

Cobwebs, Minecraft Maps, and Writer's Block

Huh. Nearly forgot about this thing.

So. Some thoughts as I do some cleanup.

I have been doing some Minecaft 60 minute adventure maps. I love the concept, but as always, I got too ambitious in my designs. So, here's the two maps I've cobbled together:

Balloon Discotheque
http://www.mediafire.com/download/m5n2fzpqimeyxeb/Balloon_Discotheque.zip

Oresome!
http://www.mediafire.com/download/dm303qluym93n93/R60_Minute_Map%282%29.zip


It's interesting that, while I have plenty of ideas, I never really got them working. I have made a lot of "maps", but usually they come from limitations given in competitions. So, that brings me up to quite a few maps I have made:

4-bit maze:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec0E6Swvjhc

An entry in rsmalec's Toybox:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYpq9s_DyHM

An entry in Jigarbov's Adventure Multiplex 2:
http://www.jigarbov.net/the-adventure-multiplex-2-the-village-map-release/

A CTM thingy on the old LavaFall Server:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRdVxSvt1sM (Link to rsmalec solving it)
https://youtu.be/2IGFEpTxAIk?t=55m30s (Link to Thadiwyn solving it)

The two 60 minute maps listed above


Quite an interesting compilation spanning a number of Minecraft patches. And yet, I haven't made a full fledged, playable adventure map. Why?

Well, I blame writer's block. Ironic, given the subject matter. (Blocks! Get it? Ha. ha. uh... why isn't anyone laughing?)

I have, over the last bit of time, came up with three ideas for maps, one a simplification and modernization of a previous idea I have rambled about (http://r30hedron.blogspot.com/2013/03/fantasy-map-concept.html), one an idea I've always wanted to do when I first saw this texture pack: (http://www.minecraftforum.net/forums/mapping-and-modding/resource-packs/1242344-16x-1-4-6-smps-2263-a-sci-fi-texture-pack-01-05), and one an idea that might be the first one I try and do, but have no story to go with.


So, in summary, that means I have two halves of story, two halves of mechanics, and only two halves match, and sort of haphazardly. There's my dilemma. So... uh... I need someone to bounce stuff off of, but is okay with spoilers for the map.

-R30

Hmm...

Hmm...
...
...
Hmm... I may or may not have the time or the patience to get this map done. My interest is waning a bit, and I am on a time crunch with an unspecified deadline... I might have to work on other projects for the time being. A program I'm writing right now will be my main interest for now. (Plus some videos... eventually...

Two years...

This Sunday (June 23rd) will mark two years since I've purchased Minecraft (Roughly a week or two before Beta 1.7).

I'm trying to think of what I could do to mark that occasion... I do not have my first world anymore, mainly since that computer has since died...

Hmm...

I'll figure something out, but I'm open to suggestions.

New Concepts

First off, special thanks to @Anistuffs for helping me hammer out the storyline for my map.

And now back to the irregularly scheduled update...

The original idea was to use the classical elements as a framework, something to draw inspiration from for equipment, mobs, and areas. (For example, I had the idea to have equipment that didn't quite work right based on elements, boots with respiration for example. "You can breathe through your feet!")

But looking on this page on the classical elements, which led to this page on ancient Chinese elements, I thought, "Hey, perhaps I could use these instead of the typical trope! That'd be unique, right?"

It provides a framework for the areas that the player will go through, and since Chinese elements describe processes instead of pieces of a whole, it will be like the player is going through a journey through the realm of my map.

Element	Season	Area
Wood	Spring	Forest
Fire	Summer	Desert
Earth		Mountains
Metal	Fall	Village
Water	Winter	Swamp
???	???	???

Just a thought as I actually start building this thing...

Update

Using this concept instead of bottles o' enchanting from here on out.

That is all.

Fantasy Map -- Building a Story

I think I have the main mechanic figured out for my map; as I said last post, I'll be using books to change the "spells" that the player has access to at any given moment. At the moment, I'm thinking of having books being the main theme of the storyline as well, but I need to give it a bit more thought.

I plan to divide the books into three categories

Story

These books will be vital to the storyline... somehow...

At the moment, I'm thinking of having old books that have to be translated to display part of the story. I intend to retain the magic/medieval theme, but with an emphasis on books and a library of lost spells. (I'll continue to work on it...)

Sorcery

These books will be used to enchant weaponry, items, and other equipment, but not by using levels. I intend to use villager trading (does changing the lore/name of an item influence if it will trade or not?) to create items with enchants similar to what Anistuffs suggested in his blogpost a while back. I'd likely use the "enchanting" as a way for the player to get better weaponry, armor, and consumables.

Spells

Using the Bottle o' Enchanting as a "wand" of sorts, and by switching spells using a similar mechanic as I described in the last post, this will allow the player to alter his abilities to match the environment, or to influence the environment to match his abilities.

• Environment (These are similar to the "Teleport" ideas from a few posts back)
• "Flood Room" - Floods the room.
• "Shatter World" - Turn one large floating island into many.
• "Mirror" - Swaps the X and Z Coordinates (Left becomes Right and vis-versa).
• "Temporal Shift" - Move forwards or backwards in time.
• "Shift Gravity" - Up is now down.
• ...
• Ability (Potion effects, but without the potions)
• "Mind Trick" - This video.
• "Power Bounce" - A very brief, but more powerful jump.
• "Gill (?)" - Allows player to breath underwater. (might be better as an enchanted consumable)
• "Focused Search" - Night vision, show points of interest, but reduce strength.
• ...

Leave me some feedback, and hopefully I'll have the first few areas figured out sooner rather than later.