MAP15: Frozen Maiden (32in24-5)

MAP15: Frozen Maiden is the fifteenth map of 32in24-5, a deathmatch megawad. It was designed by Andrew Apted (andrewj) and Sarah Mancuso (esselfortium), and uses the music track "Void," originally composed by Kevin Schilder for Hexen.

Frozen Maiden later appeared in MAP01 of 32in24-14, as part of a rule for that session allowing the reuse of architecture from previous 32in24 maps.

Map layout
Frozen Maiden is a small-to-moderately sized map carrying a snow and ice theme. The map's layout is circular, and can be divided into three layers. The outer layer is cavernous and is essentially a staircase that begins in the north-east, where players can find a shotgun, and gradually ascends, travelling clockwise around the map. The super shotgun can be found at the western side, as can the exit room, which branches off just to the north. At the north of the map, the outer rim reaches its highest point, where players can find the rocket launcher. This is followed by a steep drop back to the bottom.

The middle layer serves less of a purpose other than to travel between the other two layers. Starting from the north-east and travelling counterclockwise, it first descends, passing the chaingun, to reach its lowest elevation at the south-west before ascending again to reach its highest point at the east, after which there is again a drop to the starting point. Two-way travel between the middle and outer layers is possible only in the north-east corner, whilst travelling from the middle layer to the outer layer can be done at the eastern side, and moving from the outer layer to the middle layer can be done in the west.

The inner layer is accessed only from the highest point of the middle layer in the north-east, and is essentially just a small cave with a clockwise staircase leading up to the plasma gun at the centre. In addition to the entrance, players can exit the inner layer by dropping out of the openings to the north-west and south.

Player spawns
This level contains five spawn points:
 * 1) Near the lowest elevation of the middle layer, facing south-east. This is the closest spawn to the chaingun. (thing 7)
 * 2) On the south-east side of the middle layer, facing east. This is the best placed spawn for the inner layer and hence the plasma gun. (thing 8)
 * 3) Near the bottom of the outer layer, facing north-west. Closest weapon is the shotgun, approximately 700 units to the north-west. (thing 9)
 * 4) In the south-east of the outer layer, facing east. This spawn has no nearby weapons, so the player will have to choose between running for the super shotgun and/or rocket launcher, the shotgun, or the plasma gun, all of which may involve meeting other players before even collecting a weapon. (thing 10)
 * 5) In the south-west of the outer layer, facing west. This is the best placed spawn for the super shotgun and rocket launcher, and may even be able to make the journey unchallenged. (thing 11)