World Builder

World Builder – An Introduction

One of the chief allures of RTS games is map designing. Well, what a thing! Creating your own worlds, your own life, your own style. Make the missions you want, the games you want. The world is yours to build!

Map making has ever caught the eye of gamers. Over the years, it has gained so much popularity that game companies now believe scenario creation can be classed as training for later on. Game designers are doing almost exactly the same as you! Now doesn’t that feel good, huh? It is a stepping stone to a career in gaming; many talents are recognized by game companies and who knows what’s on your cards!

Map making is a dream come true. Indulge yourself in the delightful aspect of world building; play god and create your own lands and seas! Make your own Middle-Earth realms. Relive the great wars, remake Middle-Earth history by the powerful Worldbuilder tool in your favourite game, Battle for Middle-Earth II!

HeavenGames – World Builder Resources, Guides and Help

Mixing Terrain – A useful guide for painting textures and making terrains look more realistic.

Creating Water Bodies – A guide to the basics of creation of water bodies such as rivers, lakes and oceans and their associated options.

Guide to MAP.STR: Displaying Text and Objectives – This guide discusses MAP.STR and its uses, detailing the method to display text in maps, make objectives for your missions etc.

Guide to Camera Animations – A comprehensive guide to using the Camera Animations feature, exploring its various nuances and learning how to implement them in creating movies or cutscenes.

EA – World Builder Resources, Guides and Help

Basic Map Design – A basic tutorial for beginners. Learn how to make your own Skirmish Maps in just 8 steps!

Map Design and Beautification Tips – Tips and tricks that the EA map-makers follow to make maps look and play well.

World Builder Manual – The manual for BFME1 World Builder. Though the Worldbuilder has been modified for BFME2, there are still many similarities and the manual can be very useful for reference.

Advanced Features Tutorial – An extremely useful tutorial to the new features of BFME2 Worldbuilder that enable some advanced designing, including such effects as falling snow, fog, wave and ocean coastlines, terrain flammability, and much more.

Sample Map.INI – A map.ini file containing the exact code for adding in Fog, Water Reflections, Tree Detail, and most importantly, Falling Snow. (If you’d like to create a snow map, it is highly recommended you DO NOT change the Falling Snow ini code provided, but simply copy and paste it in to your map.ini file.)

Basic Scripting and Singleplayer Mission Guide – Advanced tutorial on creating your own Singleplayer mission, with great emphasis on Scripting. Also introduces map.ini and map.str files.

Rivendell Mission Tutorial – A technical step by step account on how first good mission in The Battle for Middle-earth 2, Rivendell, was created. It gives you some insight in to their basic map design practices, the concept and thought process behind scenario making, furnished with invaluable tips and tricks, and examination of the scripts involved.