Actually now I took a quick look at the tutorial posted above and my process is not really similar to this, so maybe something went wrong there with your model.
EDIT: Missed half of your post above xD Yes, it looked better before because of the sunlight, phong effect is very noticable when exposed to sunlight, little less when small lights are used 
Quote from PsyriusDo someone know if I can edit the .VMT file for the model, tweak the phong parameters there, save and it will work fine? Or is there something else I need to do to get it to work?
Yes, you can edit visual material properties later on. I model in Blender, but process should be similar. After you export and compile your model, you can change textures and materials and even update live while viewing the model in Hammer (not sure about model viewer). Simply edit the .vmt file, save it, compile your map (I use small map for fast compiles), see the model in-game, exit game, tweak the settings as you wish and repeat until you're happy with it.
Finally an update:
All main brush-work is pretty much done, still need to properly texture everything, add details, props, clip brushes and optimize it (hints, area portals, etc.). Generally layout hasn't changed much, though it is not as stretched out as in sketch pictures. Mid area felt too open, easy to push by the Ts and hard to defend by the CTs, so I shrinked it down. Rush timings are roughly between 9 and 12 seconds, with both sides reaching their sniping positions in mid in around 3-4 seconds. Rotation time between bomb sites through CT spawn is roughly 13 seconds (which is alright according to this topic).
Overview of the map with main rush encounter spots, timings and routes:
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/LAhiUGT.jpg]
I have spent a lot of time working on custom textures. All of them are created completely from scratch in Blender and Gimp (which allowed me to bake really nice normal maps). Here are two 1024*1024 textures used on bomb sites (metal warehouse) with partly shown normal and specular maps:
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/yicBNLK.jpg]
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/YewCyHp.jpg]
And some screenshots of B site (A is going to look similar, but chemical transport truck will be placed on bomb plant area instead of red crates). I'm partially color blind, so tell me what you think, is the red color too intense, is there too much of it? Some more details (props) will be added, but the general appearance is there:
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/54iahNa.jpg]
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/oIaHubO.jpg]
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/hksth4M.jpg]
One close-up (sun reflections are nice):
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/EcaqbL9.jpg]
Congrats! Looking forward to more content, it's lacking a bit on this currently
That addon is not developed by Valve, but whoever is developing it is doing a great job.
Btw I'm still working on this map, been busy creating and testing some custom content (textures, models). I will post some screenshots and small layout changes soon.
I had no idea it is possible to export and import brushes into a modeling program, thanks for the tip guys.
Also keep in mind that you can scale your model by adding a line of code in your .QC file before compiling a model with studiomdl; just add the following line among other lines in .QC file:
$scale 3
This will make the model three times bigger in-game that original (you can use any number that suits your needs).
Everything working perfectly since I installed Win10
Well that's an interesting theme 
Reference pictures are pretty good, that's how most old coastal towns here look like. Looking forward to further development, good luck
This is something I'm interested in as well, looking forward to your tutorial.
Yup, I'm using Blender since it's free, there are many noob-friendly tutorials around which helped me learn and I can do everything I currently need with it. But it's true what you said tchick, once you learn any of these programs such as 3ds max, Maya, Blender, etc. and the general principles in 3D modeling, switching between them shouldn't be too much of a problem.
Anyway, I'm using Blender Source Tools to export models from Blender to Source and it's been working well so far (and they seem to update regularly):
https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Blender_Source_Tools
I haven't started to work on the actual map yet in Source/Hammer, but I expect there will be some problems and things that need to be changed. It definitely is a bit stretched. I have tried to avoid spawn areas being too far away from gameplay area (like terrorist spawn on Inferno for example), that's one of the reasons it looks stretched as well.
I will adjust all timings to be reasonable, based on similar structured maps which this map was mainly inspired by: dust2, mirage and cache.
Thanks for your feedback!
Thanks for comments guys 
tchick, for these sketches I used Blender http://www.blender.org/
It's a bit tricky to learn and takes some time, but it's really useful for a lot of things. I also created custom props using it.
Map: de_section - Bomb Plant/Defuse (Work in Progress)
Hi, this is my first bomb plant/defuse map for CS:GO. I will post my progress here, comments and critiques are welcome.
Currently this is in planning stage, not a single part of the map has been made yet in Hammer (except for custom model testing). The name may be changed, just couldn't think of anything good that isn't already on Steam Workshop.
Some basic info about the map:
- Setting: Biohazard materials transport and disposal company warehouse/storage area
- Terrorist mission: destroy biohazard crates/transport trucks
- Counter-terrorist mission: protect biohazard crates/transport trucks
Main design principles:
- Relatively simple layout
- Equal win chance for both sides (obviously)
- Balance between visuals and performance (focus on optimisation)
- Avoid too much useless detail/visual clutter, but still has to be nice looking
- Avoid extremly dark/bright areas, player models should be easy to spot
- Make smart use of standard brushes, clip brushes and models to avoid player getting stuck unexpectedly
- Use custom models, but make sure hitboxes correspond to visual models and make them relatively "wallbangable"
- Each area of the map will be visually/structurally specific to help players orientate and memorize (dirty sewers, modern warehouse interior...)
Other notes:
- Open skybox as much as possible to allow for some creative smokes
- Rush encounter points, rotation times, etc. should roughly meet CS:GO standards
- Choke points should be a little wider than they mostly are in CS:GO (but smokes still need to be effective)
- Some walls will be effectively wallbangable (those which are thin in my layout preview, for example the wall between CT spawn and mid)
Everything will be adjusted, changed or even removed/added based on feedback.
Layout sketches:
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/bqXkdMI.jpg?1]
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/7O9u88F.jpg?1]
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/KClqVV9.jpg?1]
Some concept art I did to help me when I get to work on brushes, textures, etc. (not going to look exactly like this):
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/Tut5rCz.jpg?1][Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/gBgtAhg.jpg?1]
Some custom models test (biohazard crates and metal pallets):
[Blocked Image: http://i.imgur.com/DnLyhRC.jpg?1]
Looks very nice, I love the unique style.
Anyway, some ideas on why the models are looking weird:
- Did you put "VertexlitGeneric" instead of "LightmappedGeneric" in your model's .vmt file?
- Try setting the model's shading to flat instead of smooth before exporting to .smd if you haven't already, it coud help
My dream job would be concept artist (generally in entertainment industry, not necessarily games). Besides that probably environment/map artist - just like phantazm11, I enjoy detailing/texturing more than any other part of level creation.
Nice idea, I've just joined.
Hi everyone
My name is Ivan Štimac, 23 years old from Croatia. I've been obsessed with drawing and art since I was a little kid and fell in love with mapping/modding/computer graphics when I first opened C&C Generals World Builder. So I started mapping for fun for Generals/Zero Hour, later on C&C3 Tiberium Wars (worked on MidEast Crisis 2 mod for some time). Meanwhile been playing around with other engines/games (Gold Source, Source, Unreal, Unity...) Also got interested in CG in general so I've been learning modeling in Blender and digital painting.
Currenty working on a CS GO map with a plan to enter the Reddit/MapCore competition.
I just found out about this web site after reading though notes on your map's Workshop page, so thanks a lot since the forums are great
Map looks good overall, CS-like structure, enough detail to make it look nice but not overdone. Can't go more in-depth with comments since I was only running around for 2-3 minutes.
