Yeah, weapon progression is the biggest problem imo.
1-3 are easily solvable. 

I'd be interested to see the jam be a thing but I wouldn't be participating myself.

But to clarify, you can use just vanilla textures if desired? The whole time allotted to creating custom textures thing seems weird to me considering how adamant you are about keeping it vanilla fresh. 

yeah, you can use vanilla textures.

The original episodes each had a unique feel about them.

The reason why I want to incorporate some additional textures is to add a point of difference.

I want it to have a "this could have been an unreleased or forgotten id map" kinda vibe to it, rather than "gee this feels like episode 2". 

No coloured lights, fog, or fancy skyboxes
All these options enhance and add to the atmosphere of a map. Not sure why you would take away the fun parts of the map creation process.

Quake map protocol
Why? Most people use modern clients and computers, we are not in 1996 anymore. Restricting protocol will not make people map faster or complete their map to higher quality.

id1 progs (next time AD jam, sorry sock)
I assume you will wanting to do something different with Chthon this time as you seem to be mirroring the style of episode 1. Also WTF no Triple Barrel Shotgun!?! Talk about shooting yourself in the foot! :P

If you want to place restrictions to help people finish stuff quicker and not create large maps or monster death marches then restrict size and monster counts. Aim for each map being 15mins of gameplay with 3-4 secrets at most.

Bear in mind that Id has made Episode 1 already, you don't want to make it again by enforcing 1996 restrictions. Let people explore the theme, create new parts and not simply repaint the E1 map source layouts!

Decide on weapon progression early (including secret stash), which monsters appear in what maps and try to agree on skill levels and what they mean for each map. 

I still would like to use my colored lights tho. 

I would like to build an Id1+ map at some point, and what a way to continue 2017 for quake, a fan-made episode :) I'll have my eyes on this thread 

Make it work like Doom? As in have every map be shotgun-started, but obviously have the shotgun-start be the harder route while the keeping weapons from the previous episode route be the "easiest". This is what I'm doing with Schlossherr (which I plan to go back once I'm done with my QUMP contribution). 

Great idea :) 

I think its important that all maps as part of an episode should be designed with a Shotgun Start in mind as a standard, regardless what weapons the previous level offers - or at the very least keep those in mind and not worry too much about bumping up the challenge whatever players choose to do.

I always start from a clean slate once the next level boots up, it keeps thing interesting and should allows mappers to tailor gameplay to their level as they see fit for those who choose to take this approach.

Sadly these details could be missed out on but find it's preferable to have that option available. Reminds me of a Doom episode still fresh on my mind, "Going Down", where some levels (ex MAP03, MAP15, MAP18, etc) can lose their unique flavour when carrying over weapons often reducing the tension or challenge.

... that's my 2 pence 

All maps should be finish-able with a shotgun start but I wouldnt delete all weapons on each map start on an episode unless you're doing a hub style start map as in AD. 

but instead how about "AD Like Id Did" and do a 'what if id had made AD'?

You could have all the cool functions of AD but try to make it still feel like those classic 90's maps?

I dunno, just a brain fart. 

I like that brain fart. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRMpNA86e8Q 

neat!

@otp, go play with your guinea pig. or sth. 

so do we have any buy-in for the jam? or am I just mapping this thing in solitude? 

I'm currently making small runic/catacomb map, trying to make it like id would have made it (when using TB). Is this episode going to a thing or not? I'm not using mods, just vanilla quake. 

yeah, I'm about to make a thread for it. 

A small/medium sized classic map with Id1+ architecture (and texture alignment :P) 

But I might cobble something together 

 

When I forced a shotgun start for each of the three maps in my last FMB, the only comments about that I remember were moans. I thought it was a good idea otherwise gameplay for the maps as stand-alone would have been skewed.

(And I though I had been so clever to bring a justifiable reason into losing the weapons: caught in a rockfall, and dropped them trying to jump across some lava - you know, they fell out of your backpack; doh! ) 

I proposed shotgun start the same way as Doom, e.g you shotgun start them only when you type in the map filename in the console, but if you're going in from the menu as usual, you keep your weapons from map to map. 

 

 

You can play each level on its own if you like and are able to collect all the weapons available up until that point. So for instance, there's a nailgun in each level even though you might have picked one up in the previous map already.
It does not mean the player is strapped of all his gear with each level change!

Of course, ideally everyone should balance their maps in a way that makes sure the player doesn't carry a huge amount of surplus ammo over to the next map.