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To be able to create maps and submaps there is a guide on the WIKI page. http://xenowiki.goldhawkinteractive.com/index.php?title=Mapping:_Creating_new_in-game_battlefields However, to use them properly you will need to unpack your tiles folder EDIT (Chris) - this can now be done more easily by following the instructions in this thread: http://www.goldhawkinteractive.com/forums/showthread.php/9670-Unpacked-Game-Tiles-Required-for-Mapping%21 Instructions 1) Use QuickBMS - click name at top of page found HERE 2) Download the play first PFPK Script (I have hosted it on dropbox to make easier) Also on thesame page. HERE 3) Once both have been downloaded, unpack and run quickbms.exe 4) Point quick BMS to where you saved the PFPK script. 5) Point it to tiles archive GC.tiles.pfp default= progam files (x86)\steam\steamapps\common\xenonauts\assets Extract files to xenonauts\assets\tiles (type in 'tiles' when it asks for location and it creates a folder called tiles in your assets directory.) Leave it for a few minutes to unpack the tiles archive. Now run GCLevelEditor or GCSubmapEditor- both in Xenonuats folder- and start developing those custom maps. I suggest you read the instructions now (Credit to Lt Parson for the original instructions and discovery)

I can't scroll to reach the bottom-most options in the Sub-map Editor, It cuts off at the options for "Command Room" and "Target Point" I find this irritating because I'm trying to make new props for some new buildings in my Building and Salaries Overhaul Mod (and maybe improve the Command Center to be a more accurate depiction. Additional Information: I'm using the smallest resolution size for the Sub-Map Editor.

EDIT - these guidelines are deprecated since Aaron took over the official mapping duties from me. He plays by different rules. If you want to make maps that fit in with the official Goldhawk maps (and possibly have a chance of being included in the game), then please follow the guidelines below. Non-compliant maps won't be included in the game for obvious reasons. If you're just mapping for fun, though, feel free to do whatever you like. Goldhawk Mapping Guidelines - Crash Sites Crash Site maps use the following tilesets: Arctic, Farm, Desert, Middle East To function in the game, they must include both a dropship spawn point (Chinook / Shrike / Valkyrie) and a UFO spawn area. Map size is defined by the UFO in the map. Do not mix UFOs from different categories in a map (so don't put a Scout and Light Scout in the same map): Light Scout - Light Scout (~60x60) Small - Scout / Corvette (~60x60) Medium - Landing Ship / Cruiser (~70x70) Large - Carrier / Battleship (as required) [*]You should only place one UFO crash position for each UFO type in each map, and one dropship spawn position for each dropship type. This allows more intelligent placement of alien spawn points, as you know where both the dropship and UFO will be. [*]UFOs at present always face to the SE, which means that they should be placed on the upper edge or sides of the map rather than on the bottom edge. UFO hulls are not destructible (and often behave a bit strangely) so the doors should be immediately accessible. [*]Where possible, maps should be divided into at least three "sections" by objects that block line of sight through them (a wall, a building, a thick forest etc). Without this, units can see their full sight range so the maps are dominated by long range sniping, and there's no chance of those X-Com moment where you walk around a corner and find yourself face-to-face with an alien. If you're unsure, look at our maps for examples of how that can be done. Goldhawk Mapping Guidelines - Terror Sites Terror Sites use the following tilesets: Town, Soviet Town The map size is defined by the UFO that spawns the terror site, but the UFO itself does not actually appear on the terror map. The following UFOs spawn terror maps, and the map size to use is as follows: Corvette (60x60) Landing Ship (60x60) Cruiser (70x70) Carrier (70x70) Battleship (70x70) You can therefore share maps between the Corvette / Landingship and the Cruiser / Carrier / Battleship. [*]These maps do not need the "sections" like the crash sites. Rather, they are more about urban warfare. [*]The buildings should mostly be around the outside of the map, with a central open area (perhaps containing one building if needed) and roads dividing the areas. [*]These maps need a lot of cover. The flowerbeds are excellent for this. [*]The lamp posts and traffic lights are excellent for visually filling up open areas beside the road without actually filling it, which makes the maps less cramped. Cars, buses and newspaper stands are good for more meaningful cover.

Hi, I'm trying to get a grip on mapping in Xenonauts. I read the wiki and have followed the sticky beginner guide. But I have a problem All ships (alien or human) and some probs and walls are flying above the ground when I place them. So my question - is this a known bug or have I made a mistake ? I will add a screenshot ! Thx in advance for your help. Sorry for the English - It's not my mother language.

now i know everyone has there preferences but i was wondering if there is a current standard for amount of cover. atm i am making levels that have a lot of cover(using "random" sub-maps ) see attachments. i honestly never played UFO Defense but i was and am still an avid TFTD(Terror from the Deep) player so i'm using those levels as examples. in TFTD there was a lot of cover. in some cases to the point where i won't be able to use my Coelacanth(similar to the Xenonauts hunter ) which is fine by me, i enjoy the Claustrophobic amount of cover. That being said i've also looked at the barron levels of GoldHawk made levels. and i thought that maybe this is the way they are wanting things to be? but i also think that maybe the barron levels are really just temp levels made specifically for testing gameplay mechanics. so what are everyones thoughts on how much cover is too much and how much is too little. in the attachments you'll see the level editor screen shots for examples of what i have done so far for testing. and i rather enjoy it so far. those 5x5 submaps and Desert_cover_5x5_75p_Random as in there is going to be something there 75% of the time 25% nothing. those 10x10 submaps are the same thing but bigger natural "Structures" ranging anywhere from Mixed cover from pathways made with mesa's to a desert abode. anyways..

Maybe its to early to ask but its already been stated that a editor of some sort will be coming with the final game. What kind of editor will this be exactly ? I ask because im trying to change the layout of the base on the battle scape. Some of the facility's seem a little cluttered.

The mapping information should be available in the wiki. I have put together a page explaining the basics of how to create and modify battlefield maps in Xenonauts here: http://xenowiki.goldhawkinteractive.com/index.php?title=Mapping:_Creating_new_in-game_battlefields

Just a quick heads-up so everyone is aware - the current issues with the level editor are caused by the file compression in the archives. We're doing this to reduce the total number of files in the game down to a reasonable level; the latest versions of the game have about 40,000 files in them instead of 130,000 as the tiles and some of the sprites have been put inside archive files from which the game can read. Unfortunately, the level / sub-map editor cannot read or manipulate these files when they are sealed inside the archive, so at the moment the level / sub-map editor isn't working properly. Therefore I've put together all the tiles in the game in a 270mb zip for mappers to use here: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/26290309/tiles.zip Simply unzip the contents into the /tiles/ directory in your /assets/ folder (you may have to create this) and the game should use them without any issues, as it will load files from the /tiles/ directory before it loads them from the /tiles/ directory in its archive files. It's great to see the community producing maps now, and I plan to sit down and give them a proper play at some point and see if more can be incorporated into the full game (Moxar already has a few in there now).

@Chris The game needs a lot more variety of maps, as stated by you before that means a lot more work. To this end, I think you should host the Goldhawk version of the Unreal map competition. Set out the rules, Give say 4 weeks to complete. 1 entry per person. All maps once submitted can be freely used by Goldhawk Pick a tile set or range for the compo- to help fluff out the emptiest areas. Set criteria, such as where you want the drop ships located etc, size. How to upload the map and where to save it. I would recommend having 2 thread. 1 st is the compo thread, second is the map submission thread where mods delete all non map posts to help yourself stay organised. There can be 3 stages of rewards. Top 5/10 maps are gifted 1 free copy of Xenonauts Top 3 maps get a chosen name in the game. Winner gets to put the chosen name to a portrait in the game. You could do it as a kickstarter announcement as well to push more interest. I know you like to have a certain look/aesthetic, however maps are an area where a range is often better than the vision. This is because one person can become very repetitive in their motions and 5 very different maps can end up feeling very similar. Andrew

I have a question about door tiles in the sub-map editor. I'll be placing walls around for my building. When I get around to the back of the building and I go to place another door (or add a door later) the door tile aligns halfway on the grid. I have created a new sub-map, set the layer to 1, placed a wall, and then place a door. Sometimes the door aligns to the tile grid and other times it aligns halfway into the wall If I realign the door using using pivot and save, the pivot changes are not saved. The file always opens with all my doors aligned 1/2 on the grid. Same as when I load up a map with the building, all the doors are 1/2 off the grid. Do I have to save out each door as unique Spectre if I mess around with the pivot? I must be missing something here.

Hi there, what about a mapping contest? Maybe every creator do 5 maps. At the ende the best maps go into the final version of xenonauts Good idea? is that possible? ty

I stumbled upon Xenonauts recently, and tried the build that was released on the Kickstarter page. Needless to say, I am now very eager for it to be released; I absolutely love games of this sort. There is one thing I love more, however, and it's making maps for games of this sort, even if they're mediocre and never draw much attention. Due to financial reasons, It's going to be a while before I can spare the money to pre-order. My question is: could I still make maps with the version of the game and map editor provided on the Kickstarter page? Will anything break drastically if and when I finally purchase the game and jump a dozen or more builds forward? At the least, I could probably get some ideas worked out and have some fun doing so.

For those who have tried out the ground combat map creation tool with the recent builds. If anyone has any tips for making a good map or changes to the tool that may make map making easier please join in My personal experience is limited but I have only found one real problem so far and one thing I would like to add. - Tiles cannot go of the edge of the screen. This causes problems with things like roads. If you need to make and place a separate road section at 1, 2, 3, and 4 tile thicknesses for each direction it is going to slow down map creation and make people give up. My suggestion is to allow certain tiles to clip off the edge of the map, this could be a flag in the tile xml. It is annoying when you get to the end of creating a masterpiece only to realise you are going to have a road that ends four tiles from the screen edge. - No preview of what you are placing. This is a little more difficult to do but it would be nice if you could get a rough image of the object you have selected. May not happen but would be a nice touch.