Not sure how well this will go.. but seeing Tab's map progress gave me the inspiration I needed to start up and try my hand at mapping again. I was trying to think of ideas and maps.. and I think I came up with a pretty good one for the ol' DM5 map from Q1 (The Cistern).

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Main Entry: cis?tern
Pronunciation: 'sis-t&rn
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin cisterna, from cista box, chest
1 : an artificial reservoir (as an underground tank) for storing liquids and especially water
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I never knew what 'cistern' meant to tell the truth, so the definition of the word helped with inspiration as well. I might run into problems later due to Q3's limited selection of textures and shaders (mostly these).. but I'll deal with those when I come across them.

I also plan on going slow.. which is probably a given since I'm not an overly skilled mapper. The detail may or may not be limited, depending on the direction I take.. which will be area to area. I am hoping there will at least be enough to make things seem less bland. But ideas keep popping into my head, which is a good thing.

I have one room done, after a lot of testing with different textures (q3 default).. trying to find a decent combination.. and tweaking the details a bit, adding minor things as they come to mind, etc. Doing so provided me with some ideas for the rest of the map.

I'm optimistic as to how it will turn out when compared to the original map.. but I wouldn't keep my hopes up. My last attempt at mapping might be a good indicator as to what will happen with this one.

The Bad Place came out pretty good, so I'm confident you'll do a good job on The Cistern.  We could use some more classic DM maps and it would be a welcome addition.  DISCHARGE TIME!!! 

The original 'The Bad Place' was my overall favorite DM map from all the FPS games I've played up to that point (and it still ranks up there). That being said.. I wanted it to come out 'perfect' when I was making it. I even went so far as to upgrade and slightly alter the map as time went on.. I'm sure some of you remember that horrendous first version. I've said it before, but it's probably a good thing that Radiant decided to stop loading the .map file after a while.. otherwise I'd probably still alter and change it in places..

And Lord knows I want to.. watching demos and looking at screenshots taken at certain angles irk me at times. When I was making that map, I didn't know about the 'find/replace' feature for changing textures. So when I updated the textures from the first version.. I did them ALL manually.. every visible face of every brush.. except for the few I missed. It was a very long and annoying process, and it turns out that it wasn't too efficient either.

Gameplay wise, I think I accomplished my goal.. and lighting.. I like the lighting. But if I could still alter the map.. I'd fix the textures.. and I'd add clip brushes to the all the holes and dips in the floor (ever notice how the bots either run down the middle, or keep to the edges?). But.. learn and move on, I guess.

As for The Cistern.. progress is slow.. very slow actually. But progress is progress. A lot of trial and error with a stairway mostly.. making a basic and temporary hallway.. and some trial and error with a small archway. Due to the design of the map, screenshots might be a ways off yet to be of any use.. if they even come at all.

Despite my lack of any major work, I have done a few things as far as detail goes (in the teleporter room).

I've also found that screenshots are possible if I avoid the big picture and focus on the smaller things (room to room, pretty much). Guess it also helps that I started in a section of the map where it's a bit more possible.

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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v246/V...ladven/Quake3/The%20Cistern/shot0007.jpg
The MegaHealth and Rocket Launcher room in the original map. I've found that windows are somewhat hard to accomplish.. unless I'm missing something (which is likely). The one on the ceiling looks up to show that that section of the map happens to be under water. Instead of ugly ceiling supports, I turned them into pipes (pretty much the idea I got after reading the definition of cistern).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v246/V...ladven/Quake3/The%20Cistern/shot0006.jpg
A basic and kind of ugly doorway with nothing fancy around it. It kind of disturbs me because of that..

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v246/V...ladven/Quake3/The%20Cistern/shot0009.jpg
Basic stairway that was actually annoying to make because of the angled floor.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v246/V...ladven/Quake3/The%20Cistern/shot0010.jpg
Pretty much where I am now. I need to dig up my teleporter texture and plop it into the frame seen in the center.. tho that whole teleporter bugs me, even in the original map. It's just kind of floating there without any real reason. Need to think of an idea to make it more logical.
(EDIT: After fixing the texture misalignment seen in this picture, the skull texture looks a bit better.. tho it still might change if I find something better)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v246/V...ladven/Quake3/The%20Cistern/shot0011.jpg
Another perspective of the same room. Another window showing water above. The pipes need some more work because, as they are now, they're just sitting there. I need to add some support for them and kind of make them seem more like part of the design. If I can't get them to look right, the ones running along the floor will get removed. The skull texture going around the room will also likely change because it just bugs me.. mostly because it doesn't end perfectly.
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The brown brick texture is something I'm a bit pessimistic about.. but.. we'll see how it goes. The texture used for the pipes is a bit basic, but it's ok for what it's used for. The water.. I wish was a bit more.. 'dirty', I guess you could say.. like the ugly looking q1 water. Right now it's clean and clear.

Progress will likely keep to the snail's pace I'm going at now.. but, like I said before.. at least it's progress.

Anyway.. questions, comments, critiques, and suggestions are welcome. Flames will be ignored. If you see something I should be doing that I'm not.. better to tell me now.

More correctly there is no lightmap at all so of cuz the map looks bright
Well the basics of the maps is shaped, but its rly hard to say anything about it in the current stage until you've started to add abit more details. However im not sure about the brick texture, maybe if you use it as a trim texture.

I tend to do lights once im somewhat done with the details, its easier to light something when most brushes are placed where they should be

Lop: I royally hate the ceiling texture, myself. I forgot to list it when I was talking about textures. Good q3 ceiling textures are pretty much nonexistent tho.. and every texture seen is default q3. And Reb was correct about the lighting not even being started yet.. so the whole map is fullbright and washed out.

Reb: I'm still skeptical of the brick texture myself.. but the original map was all brick, albeit yellow. I personally hate yellow, so I went with brown. I wanted to use something different than the basic textures I used on my previous maps (the first version of q1dm4v2 and q1e3m7v2). You know.. the cathedral block texture or whatever. Finding good textures, and a good combo of them, isn't really a strong point of mine.. probably my weakest actually. I'll roll with the bricks until I decide they suck and have to go through hell changing it later.

Tab: I was thinking about that myself.. but curves alone won't help the doorway. Or.. I could be wrong. I'll add them in later and see what happens.

Pho: Good lighting can help any map look better. With my previous mapping attempts, I did the lighting room by room. With this one, I plan on waiting until I finish the overall geometry and detail because it's really my first attempt at mapping that's going to incorporate at least a few details.. not just flat walls (still mostly flat tho.. lawlz).. and they might change or more get added in. Altho the screenshots of the areas now don't suggest that. The floor of the one does tho. The torches are in place where they were in the original map.. tho I'm not sure if I like them. I might replace them with wall lamps.

Tab & Reb: A couple years ago, I wouldn't have agreed.. but I do now. Lighting will probably come near the end.

Well imo that "egyptian" texture pack someone whom i dont rember the nick on created whould work quite well in this map. and no i have no links to it :S