AoA Map Contest Poll Round 2B

[MegaSilver]

AoA Map Contest Poll Round 2B

Here is the link to the original contest thread: AoA Map Contest

It's time to vote for what you believe are the best AoA maps from the pool!

Rounds 1 and 2 you will be able to vote for multiple maps, but only 2 from each poll move on to the next round! For the 3rd and Final Round, you will only get to vote for 1 map to determine the winner!

Please leave some feedback and your thoughts on each map for the polls. So even if the map doesn't make it to the next round, perhaps it'll see some improvements before the official release of Age of Annihilation!

Thank you to @SkyWhale for providing photos for all the maps except 2, so we have a more accurate look for every map! The ice tiles represent the upcoming wellspring water tiles.

The maps are randomly split into the different polls.

Verdant Vigil
Requires: 1 AoA and 2 JaLE

Spoiler Alert!

Lost Wonder
Set requirements: AoA, BftW, LJ

Spoiler Alert!

Invested:
Requires 1x AoA, 1x BftW (BB1), 1x TJ (TGaLE)

Spoiler Alert!

Ritual
1x AoA, 1x Laur Jungle

Spoiler Alert!

[Flash_19]

Haven't seen too many comments on maps this time around!

Verdant Vigil by Ulysses
This one is interesting for sure. I think my biggest worry is the choppiness around the glyph areas. I don't love the way the height is distributed around that outermost single pillar by the sand in particular. Obviously terrain limitations led to a slightly wonky feeling start zone, but I think the map is well done overall. Got my vote.

Lost Wonder by Shurrig
I really liked the look of this one initially, and I think it’s close to being really solid. Having said that, I don’t know that I totally love the way LoS blockers have been used particularly considering the middle. I really like that Shurrig tried to incorporate Wellspring water, though I don’t love unbounded water to be honest. And I worry that how it’s used here will serve as a detriment to the map rather than an asset. More specifically, I worry that it will facilitate podding on the level 3 plateaus behind it rather than driving action forward through the center. It might not be that big of a deal, but it was enough to narrowly take my vote away from the map. I hope I’m wrong because the map does look cool.

Invested by Me
Insert some blathering bias here. Fwiw though, I like it more than Eltania. But so far that doesn’t seem to be the popular consensus, which is totally cool.

Ritual by Vydar_XLIII
Terrain limitations are definitely the culprit behind my criticisms for this map. It does look cool, and I applaud the mirror symmetry. I just wish the height distribution was a little more dynamic. Jungle placement will probably help create some dynamics to the way the map plays, but I wish it had just a little more height creating interest through the map. Also, I feel like the glyph on grass feels really exposed, particularly considering the way height is set up on opposite sides of the wall through the middle. It does look good, I just feel like there’s not enough substance to create interesting games on repeated plays due to terrain limitations. With just a little more depth, I could see this map being really solid.