Cowerhouse

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Cowerhouse
Screenshot needed.png
Basic Information
Map type: Control Point
File name: cp_cowerhouse
Released: October 9, 2025 Patch
(Scream Fortress XVII)
Variants: Powerhouse
Developer(s): CanadianBill
Alex "FGD5" Stewart
Patrick "Zeus" Hennessy
Liam "Diva Dan" Moffitt
PearForceOne
Map Info
Environment: Halloween Castle & Bavarian Town
Setting: Night
Deep Water: Yes
Bot support: Yes
Map Items
Healthico.png Health Kits: Smallhealth.png ×9  •  Mediumhealth.png ×9  •  
Largehealth.png ×2
Ammoico.png Ammo Boxes: Smallammo.png ×3   •   Mediumammo.png ×12   •  
Largeammo.png ×2
TF2 crosshair.png Special: Pumpkin.png
Map Photos
Loading screen photos.
Map overview
Cowerhouse overview.png
Map Stamp
Item icon Map Stamp - Cowerhouse.png
Supporters Leaderboard
An asymmetrically-themed, from-scratch remake of Powerhouse bringing back its unreleased original design with a twist--featuring a RED village vs. a BLU castle!
Cowerhouse publicity blurb

Cowerhouse is a community-created Control Point Halloween map released during the Scream Fortress 2025 update. It is set in a European mountainous region featuring two warring thematically-different sides--the BLU team in a Gothic castle estate and the RED team in a Bavarian village reminescent of Rottenburg.

The map is littered with some of the estate's creations (read: "Robots"), which the villagers have now protested against by way of incinerating one at the stake in the town square. Unfortunately for the villagers they may be out of their depth, as the BLU castle hides a gargantuan nefarious plot (also read: "gargantuan robot") which may have its inaugural debut rescuing the on-the-way-to-well-done hostage.

Upon capture of the final control point, each side has a special event which plays out. When RED wins, the gantry over the gargantuan robot Heavy opens upward, then as the robot Heavy rises a large overhead raygun energizes the Heavy and converts him to RED. When BLU wins, a giant robot Heavy bursts up through the well grate the control point sits upon, extinguishing the pyre with the captive regularly-sized robot Heavy, who then jumps down and thanks his saviors.

Cowerhouse was contributed to the Steam Workshop.

Features

Like several other Halloween maps, this map features a timed opening to another area, except it differs from the common approach (which teleport the player to an Underworld-like domain) by instead being an uninterrupted underground flank route.

The route connects each team's final control point to each other and a one-way waterfall slide exit to the map's middle control point. There are two entrances to the underground chasm on each side: a forward one-way waterfall slide route which only opens for the team who has captured the middle control point and a (two-way) entryway behind the team's final control point.

There is a custom HUD element to display the timing (until opening/closing) of the route. Large ghostly green padlock-and-chains are visible at the entrances when closed, and floating arrows direct players to entrances when they are open.

Locations

BLU Castle

  • BLU Spawnroom Workshop: Thematically in a smaller workshop offshoot of the main lab, the BLU spawnroom has two exits: one in the rear to the rear of the BLU final control point and one towards a small hallway that connects to the front of the BLU final control point and the castle's main hall.
  • Control Point: The control point is within a huge Frankenstein's Lab-esque cavern, with the playable space primarily on a gantry over a gargantuan robot Heavy (which the control point is attached to). The BLU spawnroom is attached to the side, with the timed connection to the underground chasm in the rear and passageways to the rest of the castle in the front. There is 1 medium & 1 small Health kit and 2 medium Ammo kits.
  • Attic: The attic is a room overlooking the control point cavern. The room provides access to one route that leads to the control point. There are doorways through on the top, and on the bottom. Inside are a max Health and Ammo kit.
  • Main Hall: The BLU main hall is a large space which connects the attic, BLU final control point, BLU spawn, and middle control point. There is a medium Health and Ammo kit on the floor and one small Health kit on the stairs outside the battlements. There is a timed one-way entrance to the underground chasm in the connection between the main hall and BLU final control point which opens only when BLU controls the middle control point.
  • Battlements (& Garage): The BLU battlements has three windows (1 open, 2 closed) which overlook the middle control point and directly faces the opposing RED battlements. In addition to the window there are two connections: one to the BLU castle's main hall and one to stairs leading down towards the middle control point (through a side garage-like space). Inside are a small Health and Ammo kit.

Middle

  • Control Point: The control point is located on a wooden bridge spanning a sunken river that continues through waterwheels out-of-bounds into a forest. It is accessible from the team-oriented ramps, and from the water. Slightly to the side and above the control point is a narrow path additionally connecting each side.
  • Team Sides: On both sides of the river are cobblestone paths with barriers for cover. The above battlements also lead to a narrow external ledge. On both sides there are medium Health and Ammo kits.
  • Water: There is a small river that is deep enough to drown in. The only way back up if the player falls in is through the control point.
  • Tunnel: There is a flank tunnel crossing the centerline on the opposite side from the middle control point with rooms containing 1 Health kit and 1 Ammo kit. One of the few departures from the otherwise meticulously-kept structure of Powerhouse is the addition of an object next to the raised platform in each room to enable crouch-jumping to get on top which was previously only accessible by means such as explosive jumping, Scout's double jump, or |Engineers Sentry Gun-jumping or using their Dispenser like a stepstool.

RED Village

  • RED Spawnroom Tavern: In the town hall, the RED spawnroom has two exits: one in the rear to the rear of the RED final control point and one towards a small alleyway that connects to the front of the RED final control point and the village courtyard.
  • Control Point: The control point is outdoors in the village's main square. The town hall which houses the RED spawnroom is attached to the side, with the timed connection to the underground chasm in the rear and rest of the village in the front. There is 1 medium & 1 small Health kit and 2 medium Ammo kits.
  • (Tavern) Attic: The attic is upstairs in a tavern overlooking the village square. The room provides access to one route that leads to the control point. There are doorways through on the top, and on the bottom. Inside are a max Health and Ammo kit.
  • Courtyard: The RED village courtyard is a medium open space which connects the (tavern) attic, RED final control point, RED spawn, and middle control point. There is a medium Health and Ammo kit on the floor and one small Health kit on the stairs outside the battlements. There is a timed one-way entrance to the underground chasm in the connection between the courtyard and RED final control point which opens only when RED controls the middle control point.
  • Battlements (& Stable): The RED battlements has three windows (1 open, 2 closed) which overlook the middle control point and directly faces the opposing BLU battlements. In addition to the window there are two connections: one to the RED village's courtyard and one to stairs leading down towards the middle control point (through a side stables space). Inside are a small Health and Ammo kit.

Underground Chasm

  • Exit Waterfall: At the bottom-center portion of the U-shaped space is a river which can be ridden as a one-way exit to the middle control point.
  • Forward Entryway Waterfalls: Near the exit waterfall are two waterfalls, one on each side, which is a forward one-way entry into the underground chasm when the door is open (timed entry, and open only on the side which has the middle control point captured).
  • Path: At either end of the path are stairs leading to the rear of each team's final control point with a small Health and medium Ammo kit.
  • Chasm: The middle section of the U-shaped space is a chasm with a Pitfall and one medium Health kit on a stalagmite which must be perilously jumped to reach from either side.

Helpful overview

Cowerhouse's locations
Bottom half: Number references for named locations, top half: lines denoting area joining, X marks: Control points
1.Spawn
2.Control point
3.Spawn hallway
4.Tavern (RED) / Attic (BLU)
5.Courtyard (RED) / Hall (BLU)
6.Battlements
7.Connection to middle
8.Stable (RED) / Garage (BLU)
9.Middle control point
10.Middle flank tunnel route
11.Underground chasm flank route (timed)

Strategy

Main article: Community Cowerhouse strategy

Control Point timing

Control Point Multiplier Seconds
Control Point 1 and 3 ×1
12 .000
×2
8 .000
×3
6 .545
×4
5 .760
Control Point 2 ×1
20 .000
×2
13 .333
×3
10 .909
×4
9 .600


Update history

October 9, 2025 Patch (Scream Fortress 2025)

  • Added Cowerhouse to the game.

Trivia

  • The underground chasm flank route is a re-imagining of a cut area from the original map, Powerhouse.
  • Referencing the map's name, knocking down each cow wood standee in the stable (near the RED side middle point Health & Ammo kit) results in them returning as ghost cows.
  • Shooting at the creatures' glowing eyes at the end of the rear boarded-up large passageway behind the BLU final control point results in the appearance of a much larger, roaring, glowing-eyes creature.
  • There is a small inset cavern hidden near the bottom of the underground chasm, home of two fashionable Jack-o-lanterns and a large frog, accessible from a well-aimed fall with no exit or way back up (except perhaps skillful explosive jumps).
  • In the BLU attic (near the large Health kit) there is a recursive painting of itself next to a sofa and pumpkin on a table.
  • There are several self-referential paintings throughout the map, including:
    • In the BLU battlements, the RED village ablaze from the perspective of where the painting is
    • A nighttime green farmland landscape with ghost cows
    • Other map features like the RED spawn tower, underground chasm waterfalls, and the mountain in the skybox enveloped in a large lightning storm
  • A small wood crate slightly out-of-bounds in each spawn, when broken, reveals a fashionable Jack-o-lanterns.