Campaign Creations

Karune wrote: Going along with out monthly discussion topic about map making requests, we've sought to get more answers to help direct these upcoming discussions.

Chat with Devs: Brett Woods is back with us to answer our community map making questions. We cant stress enough that StarCraft II is going to have immense potential in the UMS (User Map Settings) area, where we hope to seriously empower the community with the tools you need, to create some awesome gaming additions to StarCraft II.

As always, feel free to give the Devs and I a w00t if you are enjoying these batches!

---StarCraft II Q&A Batch 30: Map Maker Series 3---

1. Will it be possible to code the game so map makers can make maps where people can stop incoming spell/missile?

This should be possible through customized ability data and/or triggers.

2. Will we have selectable male/female of every unit?

No, we don't have plans to include male and female versions of each unit.

3. Will we have the option to give players the option to change weapons in-game?

While we don't have any plans for a specialized interface for this, it would be possible using the highly flexible ability system.

4. Will you guys link multiplayer maps, so mapmakers can make multiplayer campaigns?

Yes, we do plan to support multiplayer campaigns and linked maps.

5. Will all buildings stand alone and also can we have the ability to disable tech trees?

The tech tree will be fully configurable through customized data and/or triggers.

6. Will research or firing a skill in a certain location be part of the tech tree enabling, for example Stim Packs could be researched to enable a Factory?

Yes, the tech tree and upgrade system will be fully configurable from the editor.


7. Will it be possible for AI to be commanded to research a skill, perform an upgrade, build a building at a location, build a unit at a location, retreat from a location?

Yes, there will be extensive AI scripting support.

8. Will mapmakers have the ability to set weather that can change the terrain and interrupt gameplay for players? Is this for anywhere or in a specific location?

Weather effect technology has not yet been finalized. However, even if weather effects do not affect gameplay normally, it would be possible to drive both the desired weather effects and associated gameplay effects through triggers. --- (Source)

---End of Transmission---

Karune - RTS Community Manager
Blizzard Entertainment

Doctor Doack wrote: Half the questions could have been answered by glancing at wc3, as usual.

Desler wrote: I guess if it was me I'd probably ask questions about editing the briefing rooms, since that is the aspect of editing the game that would be new to me.  How many different units would be available in the briefing rooms?  Could you import units into the briefing rooms, custom units, custom animations?  Without knowing the technical limitations of these new 'briefing rooms', the few of us who actually are writing our campaigns before the game comes out are just forced to guess at the limitations based on what little we've seen.  It's a trivial concern though, and one that probably wouldn't be of interest to the mainstream crowd.

Meta wrote:
I also recall seeing somewhere(in a Blizzcon article, I think) that Protoss and Zerg campaigns will feature completely different "briefing rooms", as in, they'll not feature "starship concourse areas" at all. No, not just different graphics for their briefing rooms: from what I read back then, Protoss and Zerg will feature completely different methods of interacting with campaigns/maps at all. So far, we have no clue at all as to what methods they have in mind.

I bet your questions will be of mainstream interest once Blizzard unveils more campaign-related material.

Taeradun wrote: I'd be incredibly surprised if there wasn't an option to bypass briefings altogether. There are a lot of cases where it may be appropriate to just have a Warcraft III-style cutscene briefing; and the advanced options apparently available in the mission briefing thing (buy upgrades/units, or even choose between different missions to play suggesting it doesn't have to be so tied down to the one map) wouldn't be necessary for certain single-map scenarios.

Then again the stuff available in the briefings would be pretty cool for a lot of maps, including multiplayer stuff - for example have an interface to select your player class before the game starts, etc. I'm assuming it'll be customisable enough that you can use a wide range of 3d models or layouts in the briefings, so you could even have something as simple as just have a row of buttons overlayed on a 2D backdrop image to choose your player class before the mission starts. Or have something that resembles an oldskool StarCraft briefing.

But yeah even doing Warcraft III-style briefings works in other instances - the Dark Reign II sprawler campaign had a cutscene map between each playable mission, that operated more or less like a StarCraft briefing, with 4 faction leaders in a meeting sitting around some sort of view screen or something as the camera panned around in 3D.