Winner - Triple Play Frenzy - Congrats JaesShurrig!!

[Sir Heroscape]

Originally Posted by TREX

As a 2 player map Id agree with you on your points. As a 3 player map, sure you can bombard 1 of your opponents, then put a target on your back and die quickly from both opponents. It all depends on what format you play. In my experience, most of these kind of games are indeed a bloodbath, and Its good when a turtling army isnt rewarded. This contest is definitely very different from the average one. For instance, the raised glyph of wannok on the one map would be a sure fire no on a 1v1 or 2v2 but on a 3 player deathmatch its my favorite aspect after looking it over. There are lots of fun designs here and I look forward to getting to play on them.

I agree with TREX here, 3-player games have a way of working themselves out when it comes to what would normally be imbalance. In my experience, I'm a very aggressive player and look for blood fast and early...but in a 3-player format, it's easy to get a target on your back when you do that, so there's a balance in that quick and dirty attacks aren't always rewarded in the long game. that's the fun and craziness of 3-player. Also, the politics haha, trying to win over one of the players to gang up on the other who is "hiding" or doing better than you both collectively, seems to work it's way into the game and help balance out any imbalances in the map. It's hard, even for a 4th Mass podding army to beat 2 opponents with double the attacks.

[Dad_Scaper]

Originally Posted by lefton4ya

Add a vote for Scoria Tribunal. Also voted for Sullen Garden and Ice Pit of Kaazune. The two in the lead, although they look and sound cool, from a playability standpoint are are the WORST MAPS in the contest in my humble opinion because you can attack a figure in the start zone one your first order marker and that is a no-no in my book. It should take AT LEAST two turns with range, preferably three. Cursed Stone Table and Goxic Trepidation will just be slaughterfests and will have little strategy, as will actually most the maps submitted. But vote how you want.

This is a fair criticism, and deserves a thoughtful response.

When I look at these competitions, including this one, I am not looking for a map that will be the closest to some platonic ideal of maps-that-meet-the-criteria. When I look at these maps, my criteria all flow from how I think about this one question: "How do I feel about using this map in a tournament?"

I probably would not have voted for Toxic Trepidation at all, if my only question was "If I was trapped on a desert island, what one 3-player map would I want to have with me to be the one forever map?"*

Lefton4ya is absolutely correct that in Toxic Trepidation, the players can jump right on top of each other with both feet. That's ok for me, though, for my criteria, because this is one map among many.

There are a zillion 3 player maps out there of the "I'm going to plod my way across the plateau toward you" variety, and many of them have networks of roads in the middle. Some are suitable for competitive play; most are not.

As far as I've been able to detect, though, there are zero 3-player maps that give the feeling of a knife fight in a phone booth. I would love the opportunity to blend such a map in with the others at a multiplayer tournament, and I therefore think Toxic Trepidation looks like something the competitive metagame is missing.

I'm always looking for new ideas in mapmaking, and I rarely vote in these contests as if I'm picking a "desert island" map. If I were voting by my friend lefton4ya's criteria, though, I might have voted as he did.

________________________

* ~ The correct answer here is Sacrifice, by dignan. There is enough terrain on that beast to build a raft.

[lefton4ya]

I understand not everyone agrees, as for multi-player free-for-alls sometimes a slugfest friendly map is best as it prevents camping. I do like split maps actually and wish there was more of these maps, it is just that Toxic Trepidation will just have people run the start zone and melee armies or armies without bonding will be sitting ducks, and range and bonding armies don't need the help. But again, my and I guess the majority disagrees at it is the highest vote-getter as of now.

The Cursed Stone Table, Ice Pit of Kaazune, Sunken Outpost, & The Cirdan Garden you can attack 1st urn, but only with a couple figures so I can see these as being better - I even voted for Ice Pit of Kaazune as I thought it's strategy and theme/look was worth the slight ability to attack with one figure turn 1, making it my 2nd favorite map. I still think Scoria Tribunal is best designed map - wonder where the votes are on that map.

[Br1an]

I have to admit I am a little sad that the poll wasn't remade to include Scoria Tribunal in the vote. It's still getting a decent amount of love for a map that you have to vote for manually but I do feel it could've done a great deal better if it was as simple as a click like the others. But I'm more than happy with the performance of the Cursed Stone Table for my first competition entry! Thanks everyone for the love!

I appreciate your feedback on the maps @lefton4ya . Until now I've pretty much only heard praise for that map so it's good to hear what someone on the other side thinks of it, because I believe all viewpoints can help me become a better map maker and account for more wants than just my own when approaching a new map!

[flameslayer93]

Maybe one good counter arguement to @lefton4ya ‘s good points would be that on a map where players have to walk 2-3 turns until they reach the enemy, is that strong ranged builds (like 4th x4) can still get that lead vs 2 weak-ish melee armies. 4 attacks of 4 in this game is just too strong in this game. Ranged units getting that first turn slaughter vs 1 player is still horrible for one player, but on a map where even melee can reach on turn one, they can take a nasty hit too. And on a split startzone map, that 4th Mass cheese player gets to get hit two turns in a row, that second time by the player they originally hit.

Best way to balance it, imo, is to make a map so that 5 move melee can reach the SZ on Turn 1 to even the odds.

[Dad_Scaper]

Originally Posted by Br1an

I have to admit I am a little sad that the poll wasn't remade to include Scoria Tribunal in the vote. It's still getting a decent amount of love for a map that you have to vote for manually but I do feel it could've done a great deal better if it was as simple as a click like the others. But I'm more than happy with the performance of the Cursed Stone Table for my first competition entry! Thanks everyone for the love!

I appreciate your feedback on the maps @lefton4ya . Until now I've pretty much only heard praise for that map so it's good to hear what someone on the other side thinks of it, because I believe all viewpoints can help me become a better map maker and account for more wants than just my own when approaching a new map!

It's a good looking map, Br1an. Thank you for sharing.

I like the layout, in that there is road and jungle in the middle to keep things moving, and there are walls around the edges but also an outer perimeter for more pathing options. It's very good; maybe my second favorite in the set. One thing that would raise its quality, to my eyes, is an easier way to get from the start zones to the road. It's a bit of a hike, the way it currently is.

Might be my second favorite overall, though. It's an excellent map with its own qualities distinguishing it from the others out there.

[Ulysses]

Originally Posted by Dad_Scaper

I'm very excited to see @Ulysses sharing his maps in this contest. Don't be shy, new people! Love it.

Thanks @Dad_Scaper ! I'm still pretty new to Heroscape. I found a RotV at Goodwill about 3 years ago and have been hooked for the last couple years, slowly building my collection. I have learned so much from this forum and used so many resources from it. Putting up a couple of maps is the least I could do! I can't wait to contribute more!

[BiggaBullfrog]

We have a winner!!

Congratulations @JaesShurrig !!!

Toxic Trepidation

It was a really close race all the way to the end, but Toxic Trepidation has emerged as the peoples' choice!! Huge congratulations to him and to everyone else who participated as well! We're happy to have had so many cool 3-player maps come through this contest, and I know I'm excited to try them out! This has been one of my favorite contests going through and I'm looking forward to trying out more interesting themes in the future!

Huge thanks to everyone who submitted maps and helps to keep new and exciting battlefields coming to the community! And a big thanks as well to everyone who helps with those maps, be it through feedback, voting, or just playing on them! We're looking forward to seeing you all at our next contest!

[Flash_19]

Congratulations @JaesShurrig ! I'm looking forward to giving it a whirl.

[Sir Heroscape]

Indeed! Congrats!! It's a very unique idea, especially because you could even make it a 6 player map :O though, with the startzone's so close that might actually not work out as well as the 3-player would...but maybe...

[TREX]

Originally Posted by Sir Heroscape

Indeed! Congrats!! It's a very unique idea, especially because you could even make it a 6 player map :O though, with the startzone's so close that might actually not work out as well as the 3-player would...but maybe...

This map could be a 2 player map, 3player, 4 player 2v2, and a very crazy 6 player. That is why I like it so much.

[Yodaking]

Congrats! It's a cool map, I voted for it myself.