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| Author |
File Description |
| King David |
Posted on 03/07/04 @ 07:16 PM
| File Details |
|---|
| Ruleset: |
AoW: SM - TS Standard Rules |
| Map Size: |
M |
| Levels: |
2 |
| Single Player?: |
No |
| Co-Op vs. AI?: |
No |
| PBEM/Hotseat?: |
Yes |
| Multiplayer Online?: |
Yes |
| # of Wizards: |
4 |
| # of players: |
4 |
| Skill Level: |
Any (depends on AI difficulty setting) |
| Password Protected: |
No |
Surface Minimap:
 |
Cavern Minimap:
 |
This is a 4 player FFA map designed especially for the PBEM / MP crowd. It's all about getting down to the business of War, and its design should make it play differently each time. I think it's pretty well balanced without being too "mirrored". It makes use of City Limitations, and is meant to be played with the Wizards, Spheres and Starting Skills that have been assigned. All independent cities are set to Random, as are most resources and recruiting structures. Each player has an additional recruiting structure in the local cavern which has pre-selected units for hire. Good Luck and don't get too much blood on your hands ;-) Special thanks to Hocus Pocus and Wonder Beast for their comments.
I should add that I consider this map to be the first in what may be the "KDLite" series of maps. It meets my stringent scenery requirements but uses the standard heros and items libraries. Wizards are customized. It doesn't use a lot of events and is mostly, as I say, about getting down to War rather quickly and in a picturesque setting.
Background:
It was a quiet valley, the sort of valley where nothing of note ever really occured. The inhabitants of the valley plowed the land or wove baskets and so did the sun rise and fall in its cycle and it was said that the sun would do its ritual dance across the valley forevermore, and that this valley held mystical properties which assured long and productive lives under that sun to all those who did come to call it home.
But as all things must come to pass, so did Four Wizards come to envision the valley as their own, and so were designs created for its conquer, and these designs were Four and in and of themselves did conflict.
Two Evil Wizards, and Two driven by Higher Causes have established a presence in the valley, and it is said among the inhabitants that the plows have begun to turn blood where once lay fertile soil, and that among the weave of the baskets is now found the hair of warriors or casualties of war.
The inhabitants of the valley have determined to pledge their loyalty to Whomever of the Four Wizards establishes definitive control of the Land.
Such control would obviously include the Power to Summon a Dragon from the Depths of the Valley, and such Power would be made available to the First Wizard who would slay the Dragon which stands guard over the Magic Relay in the Chamber of Summons.
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| Author | Comments & Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
|---|
| bigben34 |
Posted on 03/08/04 @ 05:29 PM
-------------
I am glad to see a scenario in the spirit of Rise of Kings coming out. I have been anxiously looking for maps of this type to play online... So much so I gave up and began making my own, one with beautiful natural scenery, not boringly mirrored, and not horribly unbalanced as randomly generated maps can be.
Basically I am looking for maps that can be substituted for a random map game with the above elements. A good map should be playable 5-6 times before getting bored with it.
From my experience hosting Rise of Kings several times, I think 8 players is just too ambitious and unrealistic, either because of lag, unstable or incompatible connections, or the inevitable waiting for a sub when a player quit or had to leave. I think around 6 players is perfect.
I also think large numbers of troops are not necessary, and in fact can bog the game down. I also found players enthusiastic about hiring higher level heros and finding newly added treasure types (as long as not overpowering). I think to promote replayability all/most treasure should be random.
One thing I wish the Devs would refine a bit more are the starting options for scenarios, in particular the ability to allow a player to alter a race/magic spheres, without changing wizard characteristics (skills). In the scenario I am designing, I want each starting wizard/location to have a couple different race options, as well as allowing the player to choose their spheres, but not alter wizard skills. I am going to have to take 'race orders' (each starting location will have a couple of options) then quickly edit the scenario before starting the game.
See you online!
PS: What does the title you decided to give this new genre of maps stand for?
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| bigben34 |
Posted on 03/14/04 @ 09:33 PM
Strategically very nice. Plenty of options in rivers and bridges to approach your enemy.
Balance: 4
(Very well balanced, actually, considering you don't start with a wizards tower, but if you're unlucky the players on either side of you can cut you off from your future tower and resources, but this is mostly a part of the strategy.)
Creativity: 5
(Insert Creativity analysis here)
Map Design: 5
As beautiful a scenery as you'll like to ever see.
Story/Instructions: 5
(Insert Story/Instructions analysis here)
Additional Comments:Please see my other comments in the comments section.
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| Webusver |
Posted on 04/12/04 @ 09:10 AM [Edited on 08/23/04 @ 01:49 AM]
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| hiranu |
Posted on 08/04/05 @ 09:54 AM
(Insert Playability analysis here)
Balance: 5
(Insert Balance analysis here)
Creativity: 5
(Insert Creativity analysis here)
Map Design: 5
(Insert Map Design analysis here)
Story/Instructions: 5
(Insert Story/Instructions analysis here)
Additional Comments:
Very nice map, well put together with good balance, good for reasonably paced 4 player pbem games. |
| Google_Berry |
Posted on 03/14/08 @ 11:39 AM
(Insert Playability analysis here)
Balance: 4
(Insert Balance analysis here)
Creativity: 4
(Insert Creativity analysis here)
Map Design: 4
(Insert Map Design analysis here)
Story/Instructions: 4
(Insert Story/Instructions analysis here)
Additional Comments:
|
| albinscott |
Posted on 12/20/10 @ 10:57 PM
Without going into deep analysis, I only wish to add that putting Elves (+ Archons) against Goblins and Orcs is quite unbalanced, in my opinion: Nymphs will simply raise more and more troops from the independents guards and when they finally clash with the enemy, they will surely have plenty of available victims. Add cheap Glade Runners, race bonus mana vs growth+production and Peace Keeper to the Archons allowing their future Nymphs to hold the evil seduced units...
The balance is not truly an issue, if players know what to expect ahead. But the map notes by the author sustain exactly the opposite: a well balanced map.
Anyway, just my 2 cents.
Other than that, congratulations KingDavid, for another magnificent paint! |
| Belix |
Posted on 01/10/17 @ 11:03 PM
-Few caves (mostly dead-ends), no Shadow World
-No Teleporters
-No Independents set to anything like Area Guards or Raiders
-Custom wizard names, descriptions and dialogue
-Standard heroes and items
Playability: 5
It's fun. Not much else that can be said.
Balance: 5
The map is slightly asymmetrical, but nothing stood out as a balance concern.
Creativity: 4
No comment.
Map Design: 4
This is a highly detailed map with very few tiles that appear empty; this might make it look a little busy for some people's tastes, but there is always something interesting capture or explore within sight of almost any location.
This map loses 1 point here due to the city limitations; without having prior experience with the map, you cannot know what cities allow you to build which structures. In particular only a few cities support the presence of a Wizard Tower, and each of them straddles the border between you and a rival. This becomes a non-issue if you intend to play the map regularly, though.
Story/Instructions: 4
As a standard Multiplayer Scenario, this map offers a little extra than a description and adds some renamed wizards with custom descriptions and dialogue. The modified text is not terrible, but it is punctuated with a couple typing errors, and some messages fit the original game content less so than others. Personally I felt these changes added nothing to my experience, and I would be indifferent if the author had merely stuck with the stock wizards. I understand the author's desire to add at least a little personal touch to his own work however and am happy he chose something harmless like the game text and not adding anything that would impact the gameplay, like super items.
Additional Comments:
Overall fun to play and I will certainly be playing it again sometime. Thanks! |
 
HGDL v0.8.2 |
| Rating |
|---|
| 4.5 | | Breakdown |
|---|
| Playability | 4.5 | | Balance | 4.5 | | Creativity | 4.5 | | Map Design | 4.5 | | Story/Instructions | 4.5 |
| Statistics |
| Downloads: | 2,115 |
| Favorites: [] | 0 |
| Size: | 148.86 KB |
| Added: | 03/07/04 |
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