Some useful instances I made, that can serve two purposes:

Quickly add nice things to your map

Deconstruct, use bits, make new bits, gain UNDERSTANDING


My plan is to expand this as I make more stuff.

Each instance has an accompanying screenshot of all 4 Hammer views, so you can see what it looks like without launchiing any tools.

Click 'show' below for a full list of contents:
*** ApSigns (1 instance)

aperture_1970s_gantry
-----------------------------------
1970s style Aperture logo, suspended from solid metal beams, with ambient spotlamps





Destroyed (2 instances)

DestroyedWall
-----------------------------------
Off-grid deformed black tiled wall


DestroyedWall2
-----------------------------------
Black tiled wall with missing pieces and bts back panels





Dynamic (2 instances)

glass_platform
-----------------------------------
template for a telescopic moveable plat. supports players, turrets, cubes, etc


Huge_Fan
-----------------------------------
complete wall assembly that casts epic shadows. Starts on at map spawn.



Factory (6 instances)

dlc1_RoobotArms
-----------------------------------
very small lab section with arms on a shelf, from dlc1


Freight_Boxes
-----------------------------------
Motorized railed transport filled with metal containers


glass_partition_01
-----------------------------------
A 3x3 detailed glass-panel wall section


glass_partition_withDoor
-----------------------------------
As above, with a doorway


tubular_elevator
-----------------------------------
Quick and dirty elevator. Scenery only but easily converted to a func_movelinear


turret_storage
-----------------------------------
Very tall storage area for turrets, with accompanying machinery.





Gameplay (2 instances)

RampArms_static
-----------------------------------
Ramp made from panel arms. Some destroyed or missing.


RampArms_static_collision
-----------------------------------
Clip brush to exactly fit the above



Lighting (6 instances)

old_wall_light_300
-----------------------------------
underground-style lamp with sitably coloured light entity (300br)


trussbox_curvedLights
-----------------------------------
many very-wide underground-style floodlights, angled towards a central point


underground_array_tower
-----------------------------------
Used extensively throughout underground maps


underground_array_towerLightArm
-----------------------------------
Extra arms for the above


underground_array_tower_leaning
-----------------------------------
Alternative underground_array_tower with no arms


*** Office (8 instances)

big_empty_office_1970s
-----------------------------------
complete 1970s style office building with one doorway. Just add furniture!


chair_and_desk_1980s_XX
-----------------------------------
1980s style desk, chair, desk lamp, telephone, computer - 4 variations


lab_furniture_01
-----------------------------------
Block of machines and a whiteboard


observation_office
-----------------------------------
Small 'control room' with glass windows, houseplant


office_cube_3sided
-----------------------------------
Template for making custom-sized offices/control rooms



Spawns (1 instance)

PlayerSpawn_in_DropTube
-----------------------------------
Player spawn, with full portalgun-- falling intro, with a tube that auto-opens.




*** Underground (8 instances)

45_angled_paint_sprayer
-----------------------------------
Paint-pipe gusher, angled 45 degrees - as seen in a4_portal_intro map


1940s_reception
-----------------------------------
Complete relaxation area in a 1940s style.


1970s_welcome_area
-----------------------------------
underground-style elevator reception


DuctSystem
-----------------------------------
Miscellaneous hanging system of ducts



platform_with_legs
-----------------------------------
metal scaffolding with chipboard panels


precarious_platform
-----------------------------------
Hanging underground cube_dropper with suspended platform.


underground_WallSection_01
-----------------------------------
Various brushes & models, stuck together to make an interesting underground wall

Feedback is welcome, please rate this and post your comments. I'll post when I update.

---------------------------------------
New in r2:
---------------------------------------

Huge Fan that casts epic moving shadows
Tons of bts office stuff
Underground lighting
Factory stuff!

File Name: Moth_instances_r2.rar
File Size: 6.39?MiB
Moth's Useful Instances

File Name: Moth_instances_r2.rar
File Size: 6.39 MiB
Click here to download Moth's Useful Instances

How useful! Thanks!

There are some really nice instances, thanks for that!
But maybe it's useful to put them in your description as well?

~Lp

Good idea! - Updated main thread with a collapsible list

You should be a Community Contributor after uploading all of THAT. 36 instances, that's impressive. I could only stand doing the Disc and Disk Player set I made and that took about week. You must have a lot of motivation to create 36 instances.

My only motivation is the desire to be a better mapper. I came to Hammer from Radiant - the transition between editors was an absolute nightmare. I didn't know about instances then, and wished more than anything for there to be prefabs, to increase my efficiency and help me to learn.

I've been working on these since P2 Authoring Tools was released. My ultimate goal is to go through all the campaign maps (sp, coop and dlc maps) and isolate sections in a similar manner to these. Rather than blatantly copy and paste Valve's work, I will be re-creating as much as possible, which will improve my skill, and help contribute to this community, which I owe everything to.

.. oh, and there's more than 36 - There's also a 'unique' folder - got to leave SOMETHING as an easter-egg

Moth wrote:
.. oh, and there's more than 36 - There's also a 'unique' folder - got to leave SOMETHING as an easter-egg

Of course.

When you rotate the fan, the axis of the rotation stays

I dont think that he will fix that after 3 years ...

l1zardr0ckets wrote:
When you rotate the fan, the axis of the rotation stays

That's not something that can be fixed, because it uses a func_rotating.

Rotate the map around the fan.

iWork925 wrote:
Rotate the map around the fan.

I would like to download this it looks amazing but where's the download? I would like to know, if you don't mind

At the bottom of the first post there is a link that says "Click here to download Moth's Useful Instances." Click that, and then click the button that says "Download" on the right side of the page, directly under the thumbnail image.

Unrelated note to the problem above from 2014: You can make ubiquitous fan instances/prefabs by using a prop_physics and a phys_motor, as the phys_motor's axis of rotation is based on an entity origin instead of a flag. I believe this is done in Portal 1, although I could be wrong - I just know I've seen it done that way and it wasn't my own idea.