I prefer Vanilla. I do not like AAs in Grifball. Evade would be better if it wasn't so unnatural with the distance and zigzagging you are allowed to maneuver around the court. Anyway, Halo 3 is why I do not like AAs. Halo 3 had Grifball Up-there or whatever it was called that had very low gravity, instead of jetpacks in Reach. Launching was also much more effective.

As for maps, my own map did have a full perimeter wall hop but I got rid of it because of the advantages it could give to the ball runner. My walls are similar to Bloody Grifball now. I'm starting to prefer walls only on team sides because there's more tug of war and staying on the court like in Halo 3, rather sticking to the sides and running on ledges. Full-perimeter wall hops are ok though, especially for ball carriers .

Also, banshee-ball should most definitely be added into Grifball Matchmaking as a secondary gametype - only appearing in the second round of voting with some comparable percentage to other game/map combinations.

Banshee-ball is by far one of the best radical variants of Grifball. It works really well too.

i would really like vanilla if i wasnt so bored with it, but its always shown and always at the top so its almost always picked

It most likely has a 100% chance of appearing. Especially for the first slot. With more variants, then maybe Vanilla could get something like 90-95% chance of appearing.

it actually does have a 100% chance of being top and it always shows up. though not because of ny statistics the playlist is programmed like that

Yup. First slot is always Vanilla. Second slot is always Evolved/Zealot Blargball. Third slot is always Jetpack/Jump Pack/Blargball. It doesn't necessarily have to be that way in the future, but that's how it's set up now.

On suggested topic:

Hot Bikini Guys court made MM? Don't get me wrong here, I like HBG, but seriously? This gets on my EXACT point i was trying to make. This map is the visually striking, but for the completely wrong reasons. The pieces on the side walls aren't even flat... usually not that big of a deal, but when there is a striking, defining blue line that breaks in between forge pieces, it fails to adhere to simple cohesion. Simply going into forge, defining a "snap-to" angle, and touching the piece would fix the walls, but it hasn't been done. The map feels so... "forgey" and really lacks an intransigent flow. Pieces seem to be put into locations where it would "fill the spaces" rather than where it "would flow well with the design".

There is a strange frame rate drop.. everywhere. The biggest offender is the bridge-small triangle decor on both sides of the map. There is a distinct shadowing issue literally littered around the map, worst- actually changing the color from one side to another. Despite all of this though, my biggest issue is the lack of being able to hammer jump off-host. For god sake, its a vanilla map. Flowering/hammer jumping is a critical NEED for a vanilla map. This bleeds from style into functionality flaws. Simply should not be allowed, and NEEDS to be fixed.

...and don't even get me started with the bikini guy...

I'm not going to get into the rest of your post. I just want to point out that I'm almost 100% sure this has nothing to do with the map design whatsoever. And are you sure you have the latest version? Did you download it from the Matchmaking fileset, or do you have an older version?

I have all the same problems. When I go into a corner and look around, my xbox implodes. Removing the lights slightly helped, but it's still unplayable. Also, some of the items don't render properly across the court (mainly the small bridges above the health packs). The most annoying parts to me are all the shadows and how the stunt bridges on the walls "flash" when you look at them from the other side. It's very distracting.

On the other hand, I really do enjoy the new blargball map. Any chance of putting Alembic Gold in? That's probably my favorite Vanilla map.

My apologies, I made the error calling it a vanilla map. Regardless, hammer-jumping is still pretty important in evolved/dash no? My rant was blinded by the other issues, and I failed to notice the larger size.

The map was put in because it is the home court of a championship winning team. Period.

Championship home courts are not held to the usual MM aesthetics/frame rate guidelines as their inclusion is temporary. I do work with the builder to improve their court (replaced the entire ceiling and floor of the present court) and help bring it to a reasonable spec, but i try to keep it as original as possible.

No, you can't fix the Stunt Ramp pieces by snapping them to 90 degrees as they shift back out of snap after reloading.

This.



I vaguely remember someone (I thought of admin status) saying that a map in MM was a possible prize for champions, not a guaranteed one. I once understood that as "If a team has a map, and it is acceptable***, then it might be a prize."

*** defined as not flawed functionally or aesthetically.

I understand they won the championship, and this is their prize, good for them! But quite honestly, how can major flaws be so easily overlooked? It's like my Erora argument all over again... :/



So, how long is Red Ray's "Prize" going to remain?

Decided to go diving into the map submissions. Downloaded a few, played/forged on them. With some fixes on a few of them- being size changes, or adding/removing (un)necessary features, I found a few that should really be considered for further consideration, editing, finalizing, and finally- Matchmaking.

Straight-Edge Arena
Radiant
Alembic Gold
REX-84
Sangheili Stadium
Hemisphere
Grifball High Energy
Methodical

It's not up to you to supply us with a definition of "acceptable". Part of the charm of home courts is that they are NOT built by forge pros. They are home made courts and should look the part. As long as a fair game of Grifball can be played (AGLA minimum standard of approval) then the court fits within our definition of acceptable.

Ammy champs do not have a home court, Pro champs were in the process of building one but i believe they have stalled. If we don't have a suitable AGLA replacement by the next update Red Ray will stand.

Some good selections in there (other than Grifball High Energy which is not suitable). Remember to nominate them when we put the thread up.

Can I vote for Straight-Edge Arena?

You may nominate and vote for your own courts (i do it, you should be able to as well). Just be prepared for the giant microscope, and criticism which may seem harsh.

WARNING: Remove K I L L B A L L S and visual FX from your map if you want it to be taken seriously.