Velenne's Maps and Scenarios- 4/16: Slayer!

[arp12]

Great designs!

[Velenne]

Philosophy time.

Dzu-Teh Drift: There's a lot of ways to make the game more melee friendly but the best way is with your map.

• Double-spaced figures (like dragons!) can't get up to the top, but the overhang is low so they usually still fight someone up there.
• I wanted to balance some terrain on the glaciers. The bridge is very stable but prone to bumping when moving figures beneath it.
• There exists an element in games on this map whereby you forget characters hidden behind glaciers or under the bridge. As it should be!!
• Since I didn't specify, assume normal snow and ice.
• Since the glyph of Thorian is written so ... hastily? ... there certainly exists elements of potential ranged warfare on this map. But the LOS blockers and distributed starting zones still minimize this. Also, a concerted effort can still be made to dislodge your opponent from his glyph.
• The presence of this map in a tournament pool will significantly change the builds.

Obsidian Overwatch: I really want to play a map with ladder jumping at a tournament. It's such a fun feature!

• There's a lot of rules in the FotA that I think are unnecessarily limiting. But even taking them into consideration, I think this is still a fun map. Even if it does look a little goofy.
• The opening game is so important! You start so close to your opponent that to sacrifice an attack to get the nearby glyphs is to give them critical ground.
• Do you take the height of the ladder or get the bonus of the road?
• Swarm armies are still at a disadvantage here because the start zone doesn't hug the map. With much of your army so far away at the start, you're going to have to plan that critical opening game very carefully, or get very lucky.

[Velenne]

Obsidian Overwatch 2.0

Deep beneath the volcanoes of Grut lies a twisting maze of traps, ladders, and passageways. And to one of these armies: the opportunity to arise from the caves at the enemy flank.

Build Notes: Everything here should be according to Hoyle. The ladders don't touch liquid and they come all the way down. The arches don't start with doors and the castle walls all have toppers.

Terrain Requirements: 1 Marvel set, 2 lava sets, and 2 castle sets.

Special Rules: None, but feel free to enjoy the ladder jumping mayhem!

Objective: Terminate all opponents.

DOWNLOAD!

[Velenne]

I thought I could get away with using the much-maligned Marvel terrain with Obsidian Overwatch and, turns out, I can! So here's a second iteration for those of you looking to use Marvel terrain. (I've always said it looks good next to the lava.)

[dok]

Velenne, bravo on your pioneering of the hexes-resting-on-glaciers concept. I like this one, however...

• I'm not sure Thorianx2 is the only good choice here, or necessarily the best. My experience with Swamp Helix led me to Valda (to help slower melee figures reach the height) and Rannveig (to keep the map from being ridiculously flyer-friendly). You might not need Rannveig as much, since the irregular surface means Nilfheim, et al, can't reach higher than level 8. But I'm just throwing those out there.
  
• Another related glyph idea is to put a glyph under the overhang. This makes that cavern area a lot more valuable and forces players to balance their attack between areas. An attack glyph would push the balance back toward normal attackers, who get hit hard by Thorian.
  
• I think the start zones are a bit too easily hit from the height. Braxas can fly up to level 8 on turn 1 and hit four spots in the opposing start zone with Acid Breath. I'd shift things around a bit so that you at least need a range of 6 to hit most of the start zones from the platform. That still allows Zelrig or Mimring their first-turn bomb, but it keeps the real monsters of the metagame (Braxas/Nilfheim) from being too ridiculous on this map.

Originally Posted by Velenne

The second takes my idea with Sonlen's Gambit a step further. It's bi-level, uses legal ladder jumping, and your start zones are split 70/30 between the top and bottom levels respectively. You start close to each other but across a lava rock field.

I really like the concept of this one, has it reached maturity yet?

[Velenne]

Originally Posted by dok

Velenne, bravo on your pioneering of the hexes-resting-on-glaciers concept. I like this one, however...

• I'm not sure Thorianx2 is the only good choice here, or necessarily the best. My experience with Swamp Helix led me to Valda (to help slower melee figures reach the height) and Rannveig (to keep the map from being ridiculously flyer-friendly). You might not need Rannveig as much, since the irregular surface means Nilfheim, et al, can't reach higher than level 8. But I'm just throwing those out there.
• Another related glyph idea is to put a glyph under the overhang. This makes that cavern area a lot more valuable and forces players to balance their attack between areas. An attack glyph would push the balance back toward normal attackers, who get hit hard by Thorian.
• I think the start zones are a bit too easily hit from the height. Braxas can fly up to level 8 on turn 1 and hit four spots in the opposing start zone with Acid Breath. I'd shift things around a bit so that you at least need a range of 6 to hit most of the start zones from the platform. That still allows Zelrig or Mimring their first-turn bomb, but it keeps the real monsters of the metagame (Braxas/Nilfheim) from being too ridiculous on this map.

Re Glyphs: I'm not convinced a Valda glyph helps Melee more than a Thorian glyph in normal competitive gameplay. When I consider top-quality (A-ranked) common squads, they're all based on normal attacks. If I knew this map was in the mix, I'd heavily reconsider bringing a blast/glad army or 5x Stingers. If I were to add another glyph though, it would be Rannveig under the overhang for sure. Great idea!

Re Start Zones: I'm not sure there's much I can really do about that. And anyway if I flew my dragon right up to my enemy's start zone, I'd anticipate losing my dragon very quickly. I wish I could have made the bridge access 3 spaces wide, but I ran out of pieces and the architecture is tricky enough. I could back try to move the start zones back a bit, but that starts to defeat the purpose of having them so close to each other to create quick combat. It's a conundrum!

When I consider top-quality (A-ranked) unique heroes, most of the really scary ones are double-spaced and based on special attacks. So I purposely made it very difficult for them to get the best heights on the map, but kept the overhang low enough for them have access to it in melee or to see over.

Originally Posted by dok

I really like the concept of this one, has it reached maturity yet?

Not really. I'm not sure if the two starting zones so close to each other isn't an insurmountable balance issue. It's got a fun look to it doesn' it?

I hugely appreciate your feedback so far, dok. Cartographers working together is a beautiful thing.

[dok]

Originally Posted by Velenne

Re Glyphs: I'm not convinced a Valda glyph helps Melee more than a Thorian glyph in normal competitive gameplay. When I consider top-quality (A-ranked) common squads, they're all based on normal attacks. If I knew this map was in the mix, I'd heavily reconsider bringing a blast/glad army or 5x Stingers.

Sure. I don't think Valda helps melee more than Thorian, unless you're facing an army that relies very heavily on ranged specials. My point was more that Valda can serve a similar purpose, if you want to place a glyph somewhere in the middle of the map.

Originally Posted by Velenne

Re Start Zones: I'm not sure there's much I can really do about that. And anyway if I flew my dragon right up to my enemy's start zone, I'd anticipate losing my dragon very quickly.

Sure, but my point is that Nilfheim/Braxas can land on the two ice hexes at the edge of the platform at height of 7, and immediately direct attacks at the opposing start zone. If they do this, they can't be attacked in return very easily, particularly with Thorian reducing your options to melee or ranged specials.

Originally Posted by Velenne

I wish I could have made the bridge access 3 spaces wide, but I ran out of pieces and the architecture is tricky enough.

The issue, I guess, is that there are those two two-hex landings on the edge of the platform. Any non-flying double-hexer has to be able to climb from level 2 to level 7 in one move, with one intervening hex. This requires 8 move, so the only ranged double-hexed non-flyer who can manage this is Me-Burq-Sa. That's not a major concern. But Braxas and Nilfheim, in my opinion, are - particularly when the Thorian glyph already puts a premium on their acid/ice breath.

Perhaps the best solution is just to modify those landings, so that there isn't any spot on the platform where a double-hexer can stand. That's simple enough. Combine that with Thorian, and the only dominant platform figure is Kaemon, who at least has to climb up. I guess the elves and the Deathwalkers would like the platform, too, but they need all the help they can get.

Originally Posted by Velenne

I could back try to move the start zones back a bit, but that starts to defeat the purpose of having them so close to each other to create quick combat. It's a conundrum!

Yeah, and I think the close start zones serve a clear purpose on this map. Which segues nicely to...

Originally Posted by Velenne

Not really. I'm not sure if the two starting zones so close to each other isn't an insurmountable balance issue. It's got a fun look to it doesn' it?

It sure does. I guess it's a fair question whether it's an insurmountable issue. But I don't think it is.

At several NHSD events (including ours in Colorado), you have to play both regular games and "Heat of the Battle" games with similar (or, in our case, exactly the same) armies. I like this element of having to prepare for distant startzones, or immediate contact with the enemy, using a single set of figures.

With that in mind, one could look at a map like this one as a bit of a hybrid of HotB rules and standard rules. "Can't see the Jungle" and "Common Ground" also have elements of this armies-right-on-top-of-one-another dynamic.

Originally Posted by Velenne

I hugely appreciate your feedback so far, dok. Cartographers working together is a beautiful thing.

Thanks. I'm glad you appreciate it. I generally only comment on maps that interest me, so my feedback can hopefully be seen as a compliment.

Every good idea I've ever had for a map has been inspired by looking at someone else's map or by comments I've read. Interchange of ideas is pretty crucial for getting the best maps.

[Velenne]

Scenes from a recent game night. A few things common to Scape Night pictures are present here:

• Beer
• Large overambitious maps
• Crotch shots
• Blurry pics (mostly due to the beer)

But when you get a chance to break out of the common tournament builds and armies, it's always worth it!

The gist of this scenario was 'Rescue the Princess'. Kyntela was placed at the top of the long ladder descending into the lava. Each turn she dropped a rung. The attacking players raced to send a hero up to get adjacent to Kyntela to save her. The defending player had 2 sets of OM's to make the turns fair. Fun times!

[rym]

Wow, Velenne. I saw the ladder in the lava in that last shot and thought, "WTF?" until I read the scenario.

Very cool idea, amigo. I like it.

[Jexik]

That scenario reminds me a lot of a level in Vandal Hearts.

[nyys]

Now that is purdy...

[S1R_ART0R1US]

Wow, that Marvel terrain with the lava surrounded by the towering cliffs looks awesome! It's giving me the itch to play some Heroscape!