[Guide] How to create the best possible CTF class idea

Hello CTF! I've been reading through the server ideas section of the CTF forums and I have seen a lot of different class ideas that have a lot of potential, but they just havent been thought out enough to become a valid possible class. This guide is intended to help you, the class designer, to create the best possible class for CTF that has the best chance at being coded into the game.

For your copying pleasure, here is the general format that your class idea should follow:

Spoiler

Name:
Command:

Free/Premium:
Intended Niche:

Intended Role:
Possible Roles:

Class Description:

Armor:
Head:
Chest:
Legs:
Feet:

Hotbar:
Slot 1:
Slot 2:
Slot 3:
Slot 4:
Slot 5:
Slot 6:
Slot 7:
Slot 8:
Slot 9:

Item Descriptions:

Class Specifics:

Changelog:

Now to business!


The general theme behind the class idea is to generate a class that you think should be created and played in the gamemode of CTF. While this is a good and necessary theme, the actual theme that needs to be in your head while creating a CTF class idea is this:

The idea that you create should not be an idea. It needs to be well thought out enough to be a feasible, balanced class, and its idea should read as a description for an actual class that you can already buy in CTF, not an idea for one. If you read it afterwards and it sounds like a class that you have actually played or played against in a CTF match, then you've done a fantastic job in your idea design.

This means if you throw a class together in 10 minutes, it probably won't be well thought out enough to be a balanced class. At minimum, the class idea should take you at least 30 minutes, if not an hour or more. This will give you time to think about everything that the class has to offer; what its strengths and weaknesses are; do the strengths and weaknesses balance the class out; what its roles are; is it fair? etc.

The more information you give in a class idea, the less the readers and administration needs to think about to fill in the gaps that you created, and the more plausible your class idea becomes. Remember! This is a class IDEA. It is not actually a class description, though you are designing it as it was one. This means that there will be changes made to your idea. People will not like everything. Be open to criticism and suggestions for your class. The readers, if they like your idea, only want to make it better so they can see it in the game as well.

I'll now go through every section in the general format, explain what it is, and why it is needed.

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Name: This is the name of the class. Every class needs a name that is simple, yet describes the general theme of the class to the player, so it makes them intrigued and want to play the class. A class with a stupid name will be played less than a class with a cool name.

Command: This is an unnecessary, yet very helpful portion of the class idea, because the command is simply /[classnamehere]. However, by adding this simple section, it makes the reader think that they have played this class already and it may make them to like the class more. Its better to be thorough than to skimp out of sections.

Free/Premium: Self explanitory. This section is what you hope the class to be. If you intend for the class to be free, write free. If you want it to be premium, write premium. This section, while it seems meaningless, can be very important. It lets the reader know if they will be able to play the class right away, or if they have to purchase it before they play. Remember. If you create a class idea with a large number of abilities, effects, etc. it most likely will end up being premium. Take this into consideration when choosing its status.

Intended Niche: This is probably the most important section of the class idea. Each class has a niche that it is intended to fill in the CTF gameplay. A class that has no niche will have a lower chance of becoming a class than an idea that fills a significant gap in the CTF gameplay. When designing your class idea, think of what is lacking in the CTF gameplay at current that you want to fill. It could be a free recovery class, or a pure defensive class. Think long and hard about what niche you want to fill, and design your idea around that niche. This will give you the best class.

Intended Role: Relatively self explanatory. This is the main role(s) that you want your class to fulfill. It can be as simple as offence and defense, or as specific as base defense, kill set-up, or offensive harassment. These are the roles that your class best fits, and the play style that you expect the users of this class to enjoy the most.

Possible Roles: Also relatively self explanatory. Each class has a primary role that it does very well, and a secondary role that it can play as well, depending on the imagination and skill of the user. For example, dwarf is primarily a defense-based class, although some go offensive with it and they can cause some serious destruction. Elf is primarily a hunter-killer class that is good for disruption. Some people are extremely good at flag defense, or capping with this class. This is where you put down the roles that, while it will be difficult to do correctly, will allow your class to shine the most outside of its intended role.

Class Description:
This is the TL;DR section of your class idea. In a small paragraph, this is where you write the overall theme, abilities, and role of the class idea to hook your readers into wanting to play the class. It shouldn't be more than a few sentences long, as you have the rest of the class idea to expound on the contents of this section.

Armor: This is where you state the specific armor that the class wears. If it is leather armor, include any dyes on the armor, and include any enchantments on the armor here as well.
Head:
Chest:
Legs:
Feet:

Hotbar: This is where you state the specific items that the class will have access to. Only state the item name, quantity, and what the item is represented by here. Do not describe what the item does here. That is reserved for the item description section followed. Here are some examples Heavy Sword x1 - Diamond Sword and Assassinate x1 - Redstone Dust
Slot 1:
Slot 2:
Slot 3:
Slot 4:
Slot 5:
Slot 6:
Slot 7:
Slot 8:
Slot 9:

Item Descriptions: This is the section where you give the descriptions of the special items in your class idea. Go item by item down the hot bar. State its name, and what it does, and include any relevant information you can think of about it. If its a structure, how is it destroyed. If it is a consumable, how does it recharge, and what is its cooldown? If your idea does not have any special items that need describing, you may skip this section.

Class Specifics: This is where you write any passive abilities that your class may possess, or anything that you think the reader should know about the class that doesn't fit into any of the previous sections. You may include anything that you want in this section, such as notes on how you think it should be played outside of its roles, etc.

Changelog: This is the changelog for your idea. Begin the first item with the date and time you posted the original idea. Any time you make a change to the class itself (not grammar within the description), that alters the gameplay, damage, armor, health, etc. of the class, record the original values, the new values, and date and time that your made the change. This allows coders to see the original values of the class and allows them to use those values if they prefer.


The title of your class idea thread should be [Class Idea] Class name. This gives readers a bit of vital information. First off, it tells them that this is a class idea, and two tells them the name of the idea, giving them a semblance of what they class may be, and if they might like it.

You can begin your class idea with any notes about why you are creating the class, or a greeting, or whatever you want. You can also end with a farewell or any additional notes that you may have forgotten anywhere else. Remember to finish the idea with a welcome for comments, suggestions, and criticisms so people feel welcome to help make your class idea the best it can be.

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Class Concepts vs Class Ideas

While this topic is focused on creating the most in-depth and feasible class idea that one can design, there are also key differences between class 'concepts' and 'ideas' if you will.

While definition wise, the two terms are extremely similar and may even be used as synonyms in certain situations, in CTF there is a clear distinction between a class concept and a class idea.

A class idea is one that is taken up in the previous sections of this article. It is a fully developed, well-thought out class idea that is in its near final or final stage of presentation. Its abilities have been thoroughly flushed out, different aspects of how the abilities work have been explained, and the class idea feels like a complete class that has already been implemented in the game. This does not mean that the class idea is perfect, as class ideas are often modified for balancing reasons, or for additional clarification. It simply means that a class idea is a working, functional class that is open to slight modification.

A class concept is a general thought or concept behind the complete class idea. It is not meant to be fully complete, nor does it even have to contain fully flushed out or functional abilities. Class concepts are to be primarily used for general feedback for class ideas. If you are looking to create a class idea, but you do not know how the community will receive it, you can start by posting a class concept of the idea to solicit feedback. If the feedback to your overview of the general direction that you would like the idea to take is positive, then you can consider taking your concept and flushing it out into a fully developed idea. If the feedback is overwhelmingly negative, then you can determine that your potential idea won't make much headway, and you should focus your efforts on other things, rather than fully flushing out a concept into an idea that most likely won't be well received.

To summarize, a class idea is a fully flushed out, complete class that reads like one already in the game of CTF. The proposal is meant to fill a role, and should contain all the necessary information pertaining to that class. A class concept is the general thought or theme behind a class idea. Concepts are used to gain feedback to confirm that a potential idea is viable, saving the designer potentially hours of work creating an idea that would not be received well.

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Hope this guide helps you create the best possible class! Happy designing!

 

A section to the guide pertaining to the differences between Class Ideas and Class Concepts, and the uses of a Class Concept has been added in order to continue to help members of the CTF community maximize their creative knowledge and ideas into functional class ideas that may one day be implemented into the game of CTF.