Steamy Pond

[Zucth]

So I think I will do a basic review then...
-Asymmetrical map: by player position like blue player have the back of the gm open up while red have a tree line protect.
-creep spot leveling are different which make it Asymmetrical. FOM and FOH middle with very easy camp... but I guess that's how a small map are. , fountain of power might fix the unbalance neutral building position here. but having both for 1v1 is a no go tbh.
-doodad spam (in this term its a flower field). This is not really an issues but most people would say that it's a problem.
-player properties, you forgot to add the second player...
-gaps between doodad like trees... leave no space next time!
-no critter(like animals stuff) in this size of map it wont be a problem but later on, don't forget to put them on.
-this one surprise me a bit, there are no item drop in this map? Will that be a problem for a small map? I have no idea on this...
-lastly not enough space for expanding a base and move around the map, especially the middle.

I guess that's all, sorry if I miss anything but yes I'm a bit drunk xD

 

[MichaelWilson]

So I think I will do a basic review then...
-Asymmetrical map: by player position like blue player have the back of the gm open up while red have a tree line protect.
-creep spot leveling are different which make it Asymmetrical. FOM and FOH middle with very easy camp... but I guess that's how a small map are. , fountain of power might fix the unbalance neutral building position here. but having both for 1v1 is a no go tbh.
-doodad spam (in this term its a flower field). This is not really an issues but most people would say that it's a problem.
-player properties, you forgot to add the second player...
-gaps between doodad like trees... leave no space next time!
-no critter(like animals stuff) in this size of map it wont be a problem but later on, don't forget to put them on.
-this one surprise me a bit, there are no item drop in this map? Will that be a problem for a small map? I have no idea on this...
-lastly not enough space for expanding a base and move around the map, especially the middle

I guess that's all, sorry if I miss anything but yes I'm a bit drunk xD

I'd like to address some of your concerns

Expansion: this I guess could be addressed by closing off two of the pomd entrances and making a pair of clearings

Item drops: next version will have an item drop table of just mana and health potions/scrolls + pendants for general creeps, as well as a couple "secret" drops in each base

Symmetry: this is already fixed in the latest version, read the one I have open in the editor right now.

Player properties: see above

I thank you for your constructive response and not just saying map bad without saying why.

MAP UPDATED 7:26 3/31/22

 

[MichaelWilson]

So I think I will do a basic review then...

Changes implemented.

 

[mafe]

Hello new melee mapper!
Sorry for the long wait until you get an official review.

Unfortunately, when making a melee map, there are many tempting features that lure new mappers into traps, and you have fallen for several of them:
1. The point of melee maps is usually to offer unaltered default wc3 gameplay. So you should basically never change gameplay constants (or unit data etc). If you do, you must set the game data to "melee (latest patch)", otherwise the map uses patch 1.07 data, as is the case here.
2. It seems you had trouble with creeps, so you adjusted the gameplay data. The correct way to reduce creep aggro range is to set the target acquisition range to "camp" in the Unit Poperties (the menu that opens when doubleclicking a creep). This should normally be done for all creeps except those guarding gold mines (even though for such a small map, it should be done for gold mine creeps too).
3. Just use standard item drops, i.e. use only "100% level X class Y" patterns. Everything is complicated for players to remember and probably leads to imbalanced/too much luck factor. Look at ladder maps to find out which item level is appropriate for what kind of camps.
4. Dont have creeps/doodads drop items. Players will just for it immediately every game, which is boring.
5. Keep creeps away from paths where units will walk. Players usually rally unit production buildings to their hero and it is annoying when a units is attacked by creeps when walking from the base to the hero.
6. Make bases (and more generally, the map) as symmetric as possible. For example, the blue player will gather lumber much faster, despite the fence, which leads to....
7. Do not have any doodads in main base areas. The needlessly obstruct building placement or are otherwise annoying.
8. Try to have as few gaps between doodads. Such gaps make units walk weird/unexpected paths. Check pathing with "P" and "CTRL+D". Unwalkable pink patches should be continuous. To achieve this, place trees with the size 2 circular tool only, and use only precise individual clicks. Dont hold the mouse button and drag.

To make your map more in line with what players expect, you should address the majority of these purely technical issues. Even after fixing those, I'm afraid the creeps, the small size and expansion location are still far from optimal.

On some positive notes, the layout with the central pond is nice and easy to understand. In terms of visuals, the map is fine as it is, even though no map ever reaches the point where one could not visually improve it further. Also I've definitely seen way more abstruse first maps.
Nevertheless, it needs to be improved to be interesting for other people. Map set to Awaiting Update.