Level Design

In a Territorial Control map each team compete to control all the command points.

How to make a beach

Tutorial 4: Door Antics...

This tutorial will show you how to do a more complex door -- a multi-polygon door with a glass pane in it.

A reference article covering a few small pointers on creating a suitably authentic real world setting. Bear in mind its a little out of date with the release of next gen games like HL2 and Farcry.

Creating switchable texture lights is now possible and very simple to do.

DoD Spawn Protection

From the title of this tutorial you will probably assume that I'm just going to tell you how get scientists to sit in a chair.

Can you turn on/off textured lights?Well you can sort of.

Detpackable walls are a very common occurance in lots of maps, especially Valve-made ones

Get rid of those boring

Textured Lighting

Making Ladders and Glass

Gamedesign theory for HLDM

Basically once you have done a bit of your map you should test it, not do the whole thing then try to compile, do it after major or even slight changes.

Trigger_setorigin can be used to sync a waterfall that is flowing into a pool of water

Compiling using batch files.

CHANGING LEVELS IN HALF-LIFE

How to create Awesome Lamps/Lights

This tutorial shows in easy steps how to create a moving door with a glass window

You want to make a single player map but overwhelmed by the thought of adding a plot, placing weapons and monsters and generally doing lots of hard work? Dont be.

how to add the Retinal Scanner in Half-Life

Part 3: building a better boulder

Detail textures in Half-Life

About Invalid Brushes

Drivable objects

A pop machine. You've all seen 'em. You've all used 'em. How do you make 'em? Lemme tell ya.

An illustrated tutorial about bots navigation meshes

with a bit of imagination you can actually fake some effects

An introduction to compiling, what it is, how it works, and the different ways it can be done.

Create a breakable, translucent glasshouse.

so in this video ill show you guys how to make it correctly and place the landmark and the trigger

Implementing multiple difficulty levels in a map with a vote in your map is easier than you think.

Want to make a window where you can see through one side, but not the other? This tutorial shows you how.

Physical Logic – Half-Life

Get those monsters talking.

This is a style guide from Dave Johnson that goes over the style and atmosphere building properties of the first lab environment.

The pop machine - not only does it dispense cans of pop, you can also smack it around with a crowbar!

Apache Delivering an APC

It is a compile tool, you must compile a map before you can play it.

Adding, removing and optimising those triangles

If you are new to HL level designing and want to know how to make trigger, read this!

This page explains how to make a ladder in a Counter-Strike map with Hammer.

Making a Custom Console Background

Holding ALT while applying texures

How to make a Rotating Light Effect in HL

This tutorial shows some basic values and sizes of Half-Life

Making and Using Clip Brushes

Editing Individual Brush faces in Quark

In this tutorial, you will be taught how to make the blue areas on textures e.g. fences, air-ducts and so on, and so fourth, invisible.

This tutorial will teach you how to use Steam with Hammer

Have a leak in your map? Read this!

Map Sizes in Worldcraft

making glass break on touch in 5 steps

This tutorial shows you how easy it is to create arbitrary sided brushes

Where to put those pesky entities so that the Ts and CTs have a place to start in your map. Short and sweet.

This tutorial will show you how to make a Quake style archway to connect 2 rooms.

Texture Application Tool inside Hammer

When you don't have a map, the server will check for a .res file to see what it should send to the client

Tutorial 2: Your first room and Worldcraft basics

Atmosphere in your map (Part 1 - Horror)

In this tutorial I'll show you how to set up a round based map as well as give you some extra info on the TFC endround keys.

I have seen a lot of people asking for how to make a waterfall, however, it seems hard to find a tutorial on google. Thus this one.

This tutorial not only shows you how to make rotating lights (like in the Uplink demo), but also how to make those 'fire doors' in the game that close when you break the glass.

func_water

Leakage

How to make a grate/fence that you can shoot through

Welcome to the Valve Hammer Editor (hammer /wc) overview and tutorial.

How to make transparant (shiny) floor in VHE

Once you've mastered VM, you can create pretty much every kind of solid possible. Learn some more uses for it here.

So I’m now going to try to teach you how to make your first map. There are already some tutorials out there, but for those who can’t find it or don’t understand it: here’s mine. Good luck on your first map!

An alternative to boring 90 degree corners

This tutorial will illustrate how to create a 'bounce pad' similar to the Xen Bounce Pads found in the original Half-Life single player game.

Common errors and problems in HL mapping

Teleports are a fun and easy thing to make.

This tutorial gives you an overview of the official crate prefabs.

This tutorial shows in easy steps how to connect two rooms with an hallway

This is basically a ground-up tutorial that will guide you through every step in creating a ladder.

Half-Life Map Entity Editing

Entities are what makes a map alive. Without entities, a map is just a set of walls, between which the players can bore themselves to death.

The env_sprite entity is used to place, yep you guessed it, sprites in your level. It's also very easy to use.

I will now show you how to make a defusal map. This is one of the most simplest tutorials here.

Explains how to modify the paths that bot's take to navigate your map

In this tutorial, I'm going to try to show/explain a few of the tricks that some mappers use for cliff walls.

The cylinder method!

Enemy AI

The func_wall entity is often used by mappers when they want to prevent polygon subdivision and encounter leaf warnings/errors

Get Learned! Step 7 - Finish Line

How to make a nice terrain using the triangle method

Map Overviews

To show a sky map around parts or all of your
level

This tutorial will lead you through the creation of an air strike table

The Basic's of world craft

This tutorial will teach you how to make a spiral staircase with Hammer

Scripted Sequence's for Newbies part 2

How to import Models and Textures from other Mod's

Scripted Sequence's for Newbies part 1

In this sample tutorial I will describe one of the best ways to create a cave in Terrain Generator

Rotating Light Effect

Levels with a bad framerates are the biggest problem for mappers.A level with a poor framerate often makes such a level unplayable.

Polygon Reduction Methods: A quick and dirty guide

In this tutorial I will show you how to create objects with mutiple func_breakable's, which break in the way they would in real life.

ZHLT RAD compile flag options -and the results

There are a few basic rules on naming your map.

How to make trees that line your landscape.

Learn how to randomly trigger events in your map, without any custom code!

Build a simple teleporter

A .loc file is what allows players to use %L in messages (and get a result).

Getting background sounds to loop

In this tutorial I will show you how to use vhe.

Save/load keyvalues between levels

How to keep even the simplest architecture looking good.

Explains the rendering properties available to many entities. Also includes a fence trick (allow bullets through but not monsters or the player).

Tutorial for making curves

R_SPEEDS - Part 1

When making steam, many people just pick one sprite and use that. Using the method outlined here will produce much better looking steam.

Here is an incredibly simple and often used trick to make a multi_manager fire something over and over.

How to make a door

Entities in Quark

Have you ever wondered how to make a rotating propel on an airplane or simply a fan in a ventilation system?

A Guide to better Framerates

Resetting entities at the start of every round (Counter-Strike specific method)

textures and wpoly (128, 256 or 240, which is the best?)

The VisGroup tools is for the convinience of mappers. When a lot of brushwork makes the work complex it can become difficult to maintain the big picture.

The sliding door is very complex to beginners but the more you do them the more they become amazingly simple.

Setting up Worldcraft for Opposing Force is just like setting it up for any other mod, but there seems to be confusion, hence this separate article.

Rotating door with glass pane

pilpaX sets us up the bomb - this time underwater!

LCD Display (with custom values!)

Many people simply do not know or understand how and why a Half-Life map needs to be compiled.

Rope, Water and Waterfalls

QuArK setup tutorial for Wizard Wars (part 2)

This is actually easier to make than you may think.

How to make a ladder

Before you can make a rotating door, you should know how to make a rotating object. Therefore, I'll cover this first.

Well that's all the doors that I can take so that's the last door

What is compiling?

I don't think I've ever seen a tutorial - discussion about this before, so hopefully it will be useful

Video tutorial explaining how to use the Arch tool inside Hammer

You will need the ambient_generic and the trigger_multiple entities for this tutorial.

Create your own turret-mounted weapons. In this case, a rocket-launcher.

This small tutorial explains how to make an ammo pack for a TFC map.

This article contains a quick reference for the light entity's preset appearances.

Creating a simple camera

This tutorial will cover how to make a typical respawn/re-supply room

This tutorial will show you how to display messages and play sounds fromwithin the TF entities

Making Steam

This is a continuation of my Introduction to Lighting Tutorial

Level transitions (using the trigger_changelevel) are an often misunderstood aspect of Half-Life editing.

This tutorial shows in easy steps how to create realistic looking steam

Making Your First Bomb Defusion Map With Hammer AKA WorldCraft

Mapping for Half-Life

A quick tutorial describing ladders and their various uses.

Capture The Flag Tutorial

Looping a sequence using multi managers without the fear of a map crash. Also with an example on how to loop with multiple multi managers.

Counter-Strike Camera Views Tutorial

Tutorial How To Make A Ladder

This is quite advanced tutorial

This tutorial shows in easy steps how to make a basic camera system, with a camera and a monitor

Compiling a map can sometimes be the biggest source of problems associated with Half-Life/TFC editing.

This tutorial gives you basic information about CS mapping and how to use the new entities

This tutorial will explain how to create a spiral staircase with the 'arch' tool, eliminating the need to use the vertex manipulation tool.

Arches 101

Locks and keys are so boring so lets shoot the lock off!

I will now show how to use the vertex manipulation tool

Vertex Manipulation 4 - Realistic Cliffs

Using Complex Brushes

How to use q2beaver

How to make a basic ladder

Using the Multi_Manager

How to use the pointfile method with Valve Hammer

Making A Curved Corridor

Ever wonder how some mappers are able to bang out a regular stream of good quality maps, while you struggle along for months on the same thing? Its all about your technique...

Texture Application Tool What is it?Where is it?What's it do? Here a picture of it and it's location.

ITEM BALANCE

In this tutorial I will teach you about the most important SoHL-entities.

Newbie's Guide to Doors Part 1

This tutorial is meant only to teach the basics of QOOLE 99

Typical platform objects.

Sun light and use in maps

Respawn rooms are a feature of most TF maps, if not all.

Prefabs and Monsters

An often asked question is How do I make glass?

How to make a swinging pendulum for use in a Grandfather clock or similar object.

How to make a CTF map

This tutorial shows you how to create a Murderball style gameplay

This tutorial is made to give a starting mapper some information about compile times and ideas how to improve them.

There are 2 ways to add lighting to your map- via entities, or textures.

Elaborate Elevators, Part #2

Laser + Multi Manager + Button

This tutorial will cover how to make a typical respawn/re-supply room.

USE OF FUNC_WALL, EPOLY

So, you've got your spiffy new Environment Map....but what the hell do you do with it now???

Curved Walls - Rounded Walls

Security Cameras

BSP to MAP | BSPTwoMAP

In the last part, you learned how does vis work and how it influences your map design. This tutorial is divided in three parts to quickly show you how to optimize maps.

This is a complete guide that will get you started making maps for Counter-Strike.

Technique to create realistic and precise looking shadows

If you are keeping up with the level design news for goldsrc, you may have heard of vhlt.

Moving Controllable Train, Rail cart ... etc

TFC Entity Reference

In this tutorial, you will be taught how to clip objects, using the Clipping tool.

Adding and Loading Textures and Custom Textures

long list of Mapping Tips

This tutorial demonstrates how to make a moving cargo crate (a func_train) turn into a hollow crate containing a squad of grunts. When the crate is placed on the ground, doors at one end open revealing the grunts.

This tutorial describes how to create a camera that, when destroyed, will no longer work.

This entity is needed to allow the players of the map to spawn.

Ever wonder how to change the background sky texture in your map? Read this easy tutorial! Includes a handy list of envmap previews to show you what the different skies look like.

Explains how the Vertex Manipulation tool can be used to create advanced solids, and the various ways in which you can modify them using it.

Team Fortress Classic Survival Guide

This tutorial will show you how to make a map like 'warpath'

Simple guide to level changes, Including One Way.

A trick using projective shadows in trinity render to produce a good looking shadows

Making a symmetrical map

another possible method, using Hammer

In this article, see how Hard Duty evolved from a simple concept art on paper to a full fledged level.

Rain for Half-Life

This is an advanced tutorial on how to use and setup a Trigger_camera entity

TFC: Capture The Flag

A tutorial for add rain in your maps!

Invisible 'Use' Trigger

In this tutorial, I will show you how to make a train in cs.

Learn howto use custom textures

You can't play a map without compiling. Compiling your levels is a very intricate process, and Kabaal's in-depth tutorial helps make sense of it.

Overviews für Counter-Strike (German)

.. the easy way!

How it works, what goes wrong, and how I fixed it in question and answer format

This tutorial will show you how to change the team value of different entities by using the teamcheck goals, info_tf_teamcheck & info_tf_teamset.

This tutorial will show you how to create a map like rock2

This Half-Life: Opposing Force tutorial demonstrates how to make an engineer automatically torch open a door.

Shocking the Ichthys

How to make an Airstrike

This tutorial will give you some information about the 'sky box' and about the light_environment entity.

Style Guide #2, Lab 2

This article describes the process used for creating door that can be locked and unlocked through the use of the func_button, trigger_relay, and multisource entities

Some mapping Jargon Explained

This time we will learn how to make pipes.

Basic use of scripted_sequence's

version 3.3

I will show you how to place hostage spawn points in your map now.

How to make Realistic Steam in HL

Completly control monsters

This tutorial shows you how to make a func_vehicle and use a model for a car!

Rules for the Novice Mapper

These dimensions apply to levels created with most editors, as long as the code for the player entities has not been modified.

the two-stage pipe, as I like to call it, looks quite nice.

In this tutorial I will guide you through the layout of WorldCraft, how it is layed out and what each of the buttons do.

How to add Rain in Half-Life

Sky Positioning

The initial design phase of a level is very important

A pictorial look at the configuration of the editor

How to change views on join or team switch.

This FAQ is designed to help you get WorldCraft setup

Basic Spawn Protection for Day of Defeat Maps

Tutorial 9: The new Game_xxxx Entities

This is related to the Vertex Manipulation tool

Finding and fixing them

Making a proper sky for your map.

The 'speaker' entity creates the effect of having a public-address system in your level. It is designed to make random announcements every 3 to 10 minutes while it is active.

The Texture Application in Hammer

This is an advanced tutorial showing how you can combine buttons, beams and a multi_manager for some interesting effects!

Guy Montag writes up a great intro to setting up your first map in Worldcraft 3.3. Read on ye newbie! We won't tell if you advanced people learn somethign too

Tutorial 10: Func_tank - Making a Controllable Turret

Map-Making Basics - Part 2

Want to make arches in your map? Stuck on that pesky old vertex tool?

A func_train is a brush-based entity that you can get to move around in some interesting ways.

How to link terrain facing different directions

TEXTURE SCALE ON LARGE OBJECTS, TEXTURE SCALE ON SMALL OBJECTS, TEXTURE ALIGNMENT, MITERED BRUSH JOINTS, BRUSH CONTACT

Create a button that needs to be welded before being used

R_SPEEDS

Going a bit more advanced on brush/vertex manipulation

Tutorial 8: Controllable trams: The Func_tracktrain entity

Leafs are something that all mappers should understand as they are an important factor in making a map without problems

This tutorial shows in easy steps how to create a simple triggered elevator by using the func_door entity

func_doors

How to create a mortar

It's easier and better than the light entity!

Everyone experiences them. Everyone hates them. They're the frickin' level leak. Below are some causes and effects, and a number of ways you can deal with leaks.

This tutorial demonstrates how to create team oriented levels without resorting to TFC. Half-Life's game entities open up a new world of possibilities.

Making a ladder is no big deal when you've done it once. If you havn't made your first ladder yet, this tutorial is made special for you.

This tutorial file explains how you can easily add rain in your levels.

Somewhat Detailed Explanation of Half-Life Compiling Tools And/Or Techniques

Your First Map - Basics and Controls

This tutorial shows you how to create the effect of human grunts dropping through a skylight into a room.

Ok, I was asked to make a basic tutorial for a simple room, so here goes.

In this tutorial, I'm going to try and show you how to use these nodes to make a level more challenging without adding any more monsters.

An alternative way to find map leaks easily

Masked Textures can be highly useful in many aspects for making ladders, grates and so forth

func_tracktrain

sliding - rotating

Keypad Tutorial

A comprehensive guide to func_detail

Many new mappers often come to forums just to ask how to create brushes, entities, or a whole first room. This tutorial is designed to answer those basic questions.

This article describes the process used for creating a door that can be locked and unlocked through the use of the func_button, trigger_relay, and multisource entities.

How to Make a Simple Door

Firebinders - The Text Chanmer Experiments - Conclusions

How to layout your level for Counter Strike

I suppose all good maps featuring rivers in them have waterfalls.

A quick and simple guide on how to make glass for your maps.

Terms and tips for more succesfull mapping.

These entities are composed architecture, such as doors and laser, and point entites

Box rooms are boring. Spice them up!!!

About trains and how to use them

The Tools

This tutorial gives you basic information about the 3 different types of Counter-Strike maps.

MAP BALANCE

Some of the important things a SP map should include.

Here is a really simple guide to producing professional looking overviews for your maps.

There are a number of textures that come with Half-Life that apply special properties.

How to simulate cloudy weather, that is, how to make the shadows blurry

Resetting entities at the start of every round (Counter-Strike specific method)

This guide will show you how to make custom skybox textures for use in your map.

How to put background sound into your map

An introduction to the env_global and how to use it to do cool inter-level stuff.

All you ever needed to know.

Tutorial 6: 'I have seen the light!!'

How to make Caves

How to make a switch to turn lights on and off.

Teleporters with sprite and sound effects are quite easy to construct

Small collection of Mapping Hints

10 most common Counter-Strike mapping pitfalls

Teleporters with sprite and sound effects are quite easy to construct.

How to make simple sliding and rotating doors.

A tutorial in using the Clipping tool

How to make out door sky areas for Half-life

A beginners guide to mapping: Part 2

Making simple, controllable force fields

This entsystem lets you have a 'pressure pad' which toggles a light ON and OFF

Introduction to Hammer Editor and Mapping

Advanced Terrain Creation

I will now show you what is vis leafs and how it will influence your map design.

The BSP Process and Visibility

Doors and windows

How to create a motion blur effect in half-life. Note: blur does not show if in software mode or if gl_clear 1 is set.

Tentacles!

Welcome to the wonderful world that is Titles.txt.

How to make Usable Camera

Making glass brushes

In this tutorial i will show you about glass

Mapping help Tutorials for Half-Life & Mods

Making an active tank turret that can be destroyed with explosive weapons.

Customizing the lights.rad File

Part 2 of Barney's great tutorial in the basics (and not so basics) of Counter-Strike mapping

Covers usage of the trigger_changetarget.

back with another video in this video i will show you how change target in hammer

In the Half-Life: Uplink demo, at one point you see a group of grunts cut open a steel door. Here's how it was done.

This tutorial shows you how to fit textures

This article goes over the sort of attitude you should adopt if you want to enjoy mapping and become good at it.

Adding Models to action hl and other mods

To help you better understand the goal states

But I dont have hands...

What is HLDM?

A guide for setting up Hammer editor.

How to make a curve

The Skybox is the Image around your map

Phil Daniels tries to clarify the issue of making level changes in Half-Life.

Making a fire is actually very simple

There are simple ways to make your levels look more attractive and interesting with just texturing.

Open the texture selection tool. Noticed the different options?

This is a very basic tutorial telling you how to set-up your basic WorldCraft 3.3 options

Here you will learn how to make a door that open for real, rather than just sliding.

Moving doors with transparent glass

In this tutorial you learn how to create a proper looking curve for a cylindric brush object

TWHL's great collection of Entity Guides

A great introduction to vertex manipulation, including how to not get into trouble with bad brushes.

A trick that allows you to skew textures in Hammer instead of just rotating them

This tutorials shows how to create a simple rock wall by using different kinds of vertex manipulation

Introduction to QERadiant

an introduction

Many people ask how to go about reading and finding the coordinates given when certain errors occur with ZHLT. Fortunately its not too complicated.

How to Jump Over a Building In 3 Easy Steps

This is just a small tutorial explaining how to quickly and perfectly align textures at an angle.

in this video i will cover up how to make a func_tank for the one who you can manually controll it and the one who will be controlled by the engine.

This tutorial shows you how to set up the entities for an attack-defend map where the teams swap after each round.

Well You have to start somewhere and in my opinion its best to start simple, so my first tutorial is a simple reference on how to find Leaks in your level.

Style Guide #1, Lab 1

Using angles to make better looking cities and towns

crane can be moved incrementally as button is held down

Most brush-based and model-based (monsters, etc) point entities allow you to set their rendering properties

Read the Help inside Hammer! It's surprisingly helpful. Don't forget to use the Index and Search tabs.

Rotating Door

Cover any area you wish in some complex looking yet easy to make terrain

This tutorial assumes you are well versed in Worldcraft editing and have some basic knowledge about entities - especially func_illusionary and func_conveyor.

Furniture: Add some furniture prefabs to enhance realism.

Find those annoying leaks the easy way!

What are detail textures?

There are 2 ways around this, one for SP maps and one for DM maps.

How to make ladders

Entities

Barney covers the basics of mapping for Counter-Strike. Newbie or experienced user, this is a must-read tutorial.

This is our first tutorial. We'll show everyone who wants to do a Map for HL2 or a different Mod, how to start the Hammer Editor.

Using prop models in SC

In this article I will explain how to achieve a glowing sprite effect.