First time modder, looking for starting advice.
I've been browsing many sites on getting started on Portal 2 modding and had a few questions before I have to start asking 'how does i maek puzzle?' As far as work-flow, is it better to have an idea for a puzzle, make a great level design, and make the puzzle idea fit the level layout, or make the level design fit the puzzle design and hope it doesn't look boring? Another related question I have is if a beginning mapper should focus on making creative puzzles, or making great environments first. As someone who is new to both, I won't be able to do either great right off the bat, so knowing if focusing on one will make the other stronger will help. Any other first time advice is appreciated. Thanks.
Well, an article I read recently, can't remember where, proposed that there are two types of level design; emergent and architectural. In the former, you just play around with things, seeing what sticks, until you get a great idea. In the latter, you come up with an idea and build the level around it, in a much more structured fashion. It is akin to sculpting clay; in emergent design, you simply poke and prod the clay until it looks good, and go with that, and in architectural design you envision what you want the clay to look like and try and make it a reality. For a new mapper, I'd recommend emergent design; get a feel for what feels right, what looks pretty, which lights invoke the right feel, what testing elements you like to use, et cetera. Then, as you get better, try moving onto architectural design; this will probably be the first project you finish (as much as I hate to say it, it is very rare for your very first map to even get finished, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; as I said, you have to experiment, and fond out what fails). That kind of answers your first question, though I get the feeling I rambled on a bit.
As for your second question, I'd definitely recommend working on the puzzles first. Puzzles are the core gameplay mechanic of the Portal series, so as pretty as you may make it, a map with a cube, a button and an exit isn't fun. Start out mapping on large grid scales, and don't pay much attention to which textures you use, just what's portal able and what's not. Then, when the puzzles done, you can add in finer details, rough things up a little - though I'd recommend not doing any overgrown or Wheatley-exams chambers yet, it's easier to start off with the basic, Clean ones.
Anyway, as I said, I think I went on a bit there, but I believe my points are valid. One other things is; there's a topic somewhere about the dos and don'ts of designing a map. Read through that, it's good advice. Enjoy mapping! I hope to see a puzzle from you soon. 
Thank you very much for your replay. I have a few idea mulling around in my head. Not great, maybe not even possible to do. But I'll see what happens when I get hands on Hammer.
Something I found helps with fleshing out map ideas is to draw them out on paper. This will help you when you copy it over to Hammer and also to figure out any gaping holes with your idea. I agree with the previous post as far as choosing between a pretty or fun map, and I'll also add that I usually make the first version of my maps out of dev textures.
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Laser Cube Quest
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I've tried drawing some basic puzzles out on paper. I'm running into trouble when it comes to trying to try a room with 6 walls of puzzle space minimum on paper in a way that makes sense. Also, what do you mean by dev textures, just to be clear, as in just basic filler textures?
Well said. I don't know how anyone could just start a project without drawing a sketch, brainstorming or creating a WIP first.
Decide what you are going to do, then do it. That's so you don't spend endless amounts of time pondering what to do next. Also it sets a goal, so then you don't give up halfway through making it.
The dev textures are practically orange and grey grid textures plus a couple of orange 'measured' textures for ideas on how to scale and texture your map. You can find these in the hammer texture browser by putting 'dev/' into filters.
If you ever did tech drawing at school you would do a bit of 3D work. I always draw in 2 point perspective, it might sound difficult but it is fairly easy.
If you find that you cannot do this, try drawing from the top view.
Also it's good to draw quickly and precise rather than beautifully. Use a ruler and make your own symbols for the different elements in your map. E.g. Have 2 B's connected by lines to indicate a fizzler.
when I draw out map ideas on paper, I do it on graph paper (one square is usually 8 or 16 hammer units) and use little crude symbols for different things like a laser catcher, with writing saying what activates what, etc. For every 128 units of vertical distance, I make a new sketch so I can plot out everything in my puzzle all the way up. Lately i've been drawing side views, but I feel that leads to very straight, 2 dimensional puzzles.
[spoiler][SP] Alternate[/spoiler]
Excel is surprisingly useful to me for making designs. I resize the columns to make square cells and then indicate walls and floor heights with different colours, and puzzle elements with some ASCII art.
For example:
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[] = button
--<>-- = door
)---( = fizzler
etc.
You can also make different sheets for cross-sections on multiple heights if your design is complex in the vertical direction, and even use formulas to make puzzle elements react to each other and 'test play' the whole thing before drawing a single brush in Hammer!
Other Portal 2 maps: Medusa Glare
Portal 1 maps: Try Anything Twice | Manic Mechanic
Thanks for the replies guys. Like I said, I've started drawing some sketches of levels, I'm just don't think 2-point perspective is letting me explore all 3 dimensions of the space since it will always leave at least one wall out, and top down alone makes it hard to create puzzles under a space and the ceiling. Also, it seems that so far, most of you do the make a level to fit a puzzle design since you draw it out first, at least that's what it sounds like.
I tend to get carried away with puzzle ideas, when I draw them on paper, and then when I try to make them in hammer it is very hard to get what I had on paper to work. I think the better puzzles come from doing it that way, but on my last map I was just really bored and felt like making a random building, and then when I was done, I just started to divide the building into different puzzles, and it is much easier for me trying to fit puzzles into a room, rather then design a puzzle and turn it into a room.
Mapping Since May 21, 2011