SourceForts
| SourceForts (SF) | |
|---|---|
| Game / Engine : | Half-Life 2 / Source Engine |
| Type : | Total conversion |
| Genre : | Ego shooter |
| Developer : | SourceForts Mod Team |
| Game modes: | Multiplayer |
| Current version : | 1.9.4.1 |
| First published : | February 24, 2005 |
| Project status : | in development |
| Size : | 37.45 MB |
| Language (s) : | English |
| http://www.sourceforts2.com/ | |
SourceForts embodies a new type of modification of Half-Life-2 -games. The mod is based on the Half-Life 2 Deathmatch and was enriched by game mechanics from The Settlers and Team Fortress , which makes the mod unique. The principle of the game is Capture the Flag . After the release of 1.9.3 the decision was made to develop the 1.9.4 patch due to the large number of bugs. Then one hopes to finally be able to fully concentrate on SourceForts 2.
cards
There are currently two types of maps
sf_ * Maps (playing areas) are mostly symmetrical. Each team has a spawn point and a flag area in which building is not allowed. Spawn points are usually protected by doors and force fields, which prevent opponents from entering. Nearby or in the spawn points there are rechargers, where you can recharge your health, armor and ammunition. Vending machines and warehouses where you can get components can also be found here. If there are machines, you will also find a force field where you can scrap parts to get new ones.
sfbr_ * These are attacker / defender maps . Team blue defends a capture point while team red attacks it to bring the blue flag to that point. The capture point is near the blue spawn, while the blue flag is near the red spawn. During the construction phase, team blue has to wall up the capture point. Team Red has no task in the construction phase. That is why there are games in the red area during the construction phase, with which Team Red can pass the time. In the fight phase, the red team tries to bring the flag to the capture point, which must be prevented by the blue team.
Gameplay
Team red fights against team blue. A game of Sourceforts contains two phases, the build phase and the combat phase. There is a construction phase at the beginning of each round. This is followed by the combat phase. In the following there are again construction phases, but these are a little shorter compared to the first. The fight and construction phases alternate until a team has reached the required number of points (usually 1000) to win the game. If a game time or number of rounds has been set beforehand, the team with the most points wins after the rounds / time have elapsed. A tie is also possible.
Construction phase
In the construction phase, attempts are made in settler style to expand his fortress, his fort, and to prepare it against the onslaught of opponents in the combat phase. This phase is very important for the further course of the game, as the players are otherwise defenseless against the opponent. This is where the foundation stone for defeat or victory is laid. Buildings are made with red or blue panels or boxes in a wide variety of designs. These components are (depending on the map) either in a specified number in a warehouse, or they can be produced on machines, with a maximum number of components per team being specified by the server. The aim is to protect the flag well from the enemy with the help of barriers, whereby it must be possible for the enemy to get to the flag. Without an entrance to the fort, it is not possible to bring the opposing flag into the fort. This is usually done by building narrow tunnels into the fort through which the enemy has to crawl. Another primary goal is to make the front line safer for fellow players and to prevent opponents from entering the fort. Mostly towers are also built, which u. a. to help the sniper class to kill as many opponents as possible more easily.
Combat phase
You can no longer build in the combat phase. Only the engineer can still repair the fort and steal parts from the enemy. Everyone else is focused on taking the enemy fortress and stealing the flag. The entrance built by the enemy is rarely used. Either the engineers try to steal parts of the wall or they try to destroy parts of the wall with rockets and grenades. If the flag is stolen, the team is awarded 1 point. If the team manages to bring the opposing flag into its own fort, there are 100 points and 20 team points for whoever brought the flag into the fort. There are also points for killing generic players ( Frags ), but far fewer. In this phase the strengths and weaknesses of the built fort become clear and sometimes have a drastic effect if the opponent has recognized the weakness in the system.
Classes
With the patch 1.9 the purchase system was abolished and a class system was inserted. There are a total of 5 classes: Scout, Sniper, Soldier, Rocketeer and Engineer. They have great parallels with the Team Fortress classes . All of them have their strengths, weaknesses and their special field of application.
Engineers are one of the most important units, as they can repair their own fort and steal components from the opponent during the combat phase. If this succeeds, the player gets points and the stolen component belongs to his team from now on. With his Gravity Gun, he can not only assemble or dismantle components, but also repair damage to components and restore health and armor to team members. Enemy or your own ignited grenades can be picked up and thrown away. Good engineers throw their own grants precisely at opponents, bunkered snipers or against opposing walls.
The Rocketeer is best suited for defense, as it can easily eliminate opponents from a ramp who are trying to penetrate the fort, or even destroy it. From the fort he also fires rockets at key points of the enemy fort in order to tear them down. In exceptional cases, he can use his sticky mines to build a "staircase" to the opposing wall, which enables penetration.
The Scout is the fastest class, but has the weakest weapons. He is the only one who can shoot during the sprint. Because of his speed, he is usually the one who manages to capture the flag.
The sniper is a slow but extremely effective class that can sometimes knock down opponents with just one shot. For other classes, the armor is weakened, allowing other units to quickly take them out. However, moving targets are difficult for him to hit because the arrow (also called a bolt) does not move as fast as other projectiles.
The soldier is the strongest and most robust, but by far the slowest unit. She is an "all-rounder".
| Engineer | Rocketeer | Scout | Sniper | Soldier | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| health | 80 | 100 | 100 | 75 | 100 |
| Protective vest | 20th | 40 | 15th | 0 | 75 |
| speed | High | High | Very high | medium | Very little |
| endurance | medium | High | Very high | low | very low |
| Firearms | Shotgun (6/30) Pistol (18/150) |
Pistol (18/150) | Submachine gun (45/225) Pistol (18/150) |
Pistol (18/150) | Pistol (18/150) Pulse Rifle * (30/210) |
| Melee weapon | Stun stick ** | Stun stick | Crowbar | Stun stick | Stun stick |
| Explosive charge | Grenades (1/4) | Rocket launchers (1/4) Grenades (1/4) / mines (1/3) |
Grenades (1/4) | Grenades (1/4) | Grenades (1/4) |
| Bolt weapons | Crossbow (1/10) | ||||
| Physics weapons | Gravity Gun | Gravity Gun only under construction | |||
* Pulse rifle
** Stun stick
The mines can either be laid down and detonated remotely, or they can be attached to walls with a laser, igniting automatically when the laser passes through them. But they can be eliminated immediately by one hit, by friends and foes. Since the patch 1.9.3 it is no longer possible to fire two shots at once with the shotgun.
Problems
When implementing the game principle on servers repeatedly problems arise.
One of the most important rules, namely that there must be a passage to the opposing flag for every team, is broken again and again. It is ignored by not building an entrance to the interior of the fort / flag or forgetting to build it. So-called "flagdroppers" are perceived as very bold. This is a small ramp that aims at a small hole in the wall. Someone who stole the flag stands on the ramp and drops the flag. She rolls through the hole, whereupon someone on the other side takes the flag and scores. So it is possible to bring the flag back, despite the fact that there is no way into the fort.
Griefer keep appearing on the servers. These griefers destroy the fort of their team (usually shortly before the end of the construction phase), whereupon the other team has an easy time stealing the opposing flag in the fighting phase. Griefer only do this for their own pleasure and are therefore not to be confused with a mole who goes to the other team during the construction phase to destroy the fort there to help his team. However, the punishment is the same, the culprit is banned from the server. However, normal game play can usually not be restored.
Server administrators occasionally use their power to give their team an edge. For example, you can give your team more components during the construction phase, or extend or shorten the construction and combat phases, depending on how it serves your team.
Awards
In a 2006 ModDB election, SourceForts won the Best Action Modification category. Overall, SF was voted 16th out of 4,000 mods. Over 80,000 users voted for it.
Future of SourceForts
1.9.4
Since the patch 1.9.3, which was actually planned to end the 1.9.x series, was unwillingly accepted by the community due to new bugs and poor balancing, it was decided to develop another patch.
SourceForts 2
SourceForts 2 was announced on February 9, 2007. With this version, SourceForts is completely split off from HL2 Deathmatch, except for the engine. Completely new models, weapons, textures and sounds were created especially for the new version. A total of 7 classes will be selectable during the game. The construction phase and machines / warehouse are to be completely eliminated. Instead, you should be able to spawn components on site and work with them during the combat phase.