Tournament Map Feedback Thread

[gbizzy]

Originally Posted by superfrog

Hey all, I'm looking to play on some new-to-me maps in the next few weeks/months as I have a couple months until my next WoS review is due. Anybody know of a map that is a bit under-the-radar? I'd prefer if you have suggestions of maps that you didn't create yourself. I'm also hoping for maps that have been around for a bit, not particularly ones from the past 6 months or so.

Murky Waters by Robber is one such map that Flash introduced me to on our last CoV podcast episode, but I'm hoping to collect a few more.

Thanks!

Thermal Shock by Vydar_XLIII! It's about to have it's 2nd appearance at a MARS tournament this weekend, really fun to play on and aesthetically pleasing. I also like that it's built using 2x Marvel and 2x Tundra, 2 of the lesser used terrain sets for tournament maps.

[Sir Heroscape]

Soggy Bottom by Tannergx
Viper Valley by Nyys
Volcalla Rift by Nomad
Ruins of Ticalla by Nomad

[Shurrig]

Wanted to come on and say I played on Tabasco by @Sir Heroscape the other night, and man, it was one of the most hype matches I've ever played. I'll save the details on how the match went since this is a tournament feedback thread, but lets just say that zombies are terrifying. The thing I like about this map is how easy it was for me to develop out of the start zone, it plays pretty flat which is really good for those slower units. Unfortunately the lava field wasn't a huge factor in my one match since there was plenty of same level rock spaces to occupy, but useful enough if me or my opponent needed to grab height in the middle of rounds. Also, I felt like the road in the middle was hard to use to its full advantage since it was quite central on the map, though it was helpful one or two times (like when I sent my Kozuke Samurai in to assassinate Q10). Other than that, the map kind of let me do whatever I wanted with my units, and I think I'll keep this map in rotation for now since me and my friends are more on the casual side anyway. Good job, Sir H

[Sir Heroscape]

Originally Posted by Shurrig

Wanted to come on and say I played on Tabasco by @Sir Heroscape the other night, and man, it was one of the most hype matches I've ever played. I'll save the details on how the match went since this is a tournament feedback thread, but lets just say that zombies are terrifying. The thing I like about this map is how easy it was for me to develop out of the start zone, it plays pretty flat which is really good for those slower units. Unfortunately the lava field wasn't a huge factor in my one match since there was plenty of same level rock spaces to occupy, but useful enough if me or my opponent needed to grab height in the middle of rounds. Also, I felt like the road in the middle was hard to use to its full advantage since it was quite central on the map, though it was helpful one or two times (like when I sent my Kozuke Samurai in to assassinate Q10). Other than that, the map kind of let me do whatever I wanted with my units, and I think I'll keep this map in rotation for now since me and my friends are more on the casual side anyway. Good job, Sir H

Thanks for the feedback! It means a lot to hear feedback on my maps, thanks!

[Sir Heroscape]

Risky Outpost by @Dignan

Such a fun, unique build. Like...the image does not do this map justice for how it plays. It's quite fun to get a fresh feeling on a "balanced", high height map. That all said, it does have it's issues. Development was surprisingly fast for 5-move figures...but the biggest issue was really just for double-spaced figures. Unless they have flying, a double-spaced figure will have a horrible time getting to the center. Overall, it was a fresh feel...but I could see this map causing some issues for specific armies with double-hex figures. I'd play again more in a casual setting, but not necessarily in a competitive tournament.

Sabertooth by @Cleon

This one was ok. The center is interesting...but not as accessible to the edges as I'd like. For example, once you've committed to the center, you can't really get back to the edge to contest glyphs and vice versa. Other than that I think it's fine...but those hive and ice 6-hexers make it pretty tough.

Dark Fulcrum by @GameBear

LOVE. THIS. MAP. Not to be rude...just being honest...I hate the original, Fulcrum. I legit do not like playing on Fulcrum. Ever. THIS map however, is amazing. I think it improves on every issue from the original and provides a lot more options, protection and opportunity for development. It's just way more dynamic. I'd be more than willing to play on this map regularly in tournaments.

Blackberry by @superfrog

Great map. I've always liked the look of it, but now having played on it I like it even more. It's solid and provides some great development and action between heights. The only thing I noticed that was a "downside" was the lack of my use of road. It's so curvy in the middle, it's actually faster - sometimes - to just move straight over the central height. Not always relevant, but in my 1 game I just found it interesting that the development was just fine without needing to use the road. More games would determine if that holds true generally speaking.

Valor by @Sheep

Quite happy with my games on this map in testing and in the tournament. I felt like the development was good, there were good uses of LOS blockers and still good speed options using the road through the middle. I felt like it played well overall.

Vulcan Ridge @Chris Perkins

My only loss was on this map, so clearly it's broken

Overall, I felt like it played fine. I'd have to get more games in on it to be totally sure...but my impression was that it felt just too bare, and a bit lopsided. the map pulls a hard right to develop out of the SZ...and not necessarily in a good way. With the strong glyph on my left...contesting that side was much more difficult as I didn't have many lvl2 landings out of the startzone AND there is no shadow on the left side. So, as soon as I lost the control of the glyph on the left side, I had to start moving troops to the right hill platform and trying to maintain position and control there. It didn't work very well, and I lost pretty bad. Again, maps not broken cause i lost, I'd need more games to tell...but my initial impressions with the development seemed to indicate a strong glyph on either side will give advantage to the player with the strong glyph on the right of their startzone.

[Foudzing]

Originally Posted by Sir Heroscape

Dark Fulcrum by @GameBear

LOVE. THIS. MAP. Not to be rude...just being honest...I hate the original, Fulcrum. I legit do not like playing on Fulcrum. Ever. THIS map however, is amazing. I think it improves on every issue from the original and provides a lot more options, protection and opportunity for development. It's just way more dynamic. I'd be more than willing to play on this map regularly in tournaments.

1000% agree with you SirH, I'm not a fan of the OG (even aestetically-wise) and I find this redo to be be much more interesting and balanced.

Thank you for all this feedbacks! Very interesting to read!

[Dignan]

Thanks for the feedback on Risky Outpost. I think you nailed it with the observations. It can be a ton of fun to play on, but the cost is that double base walking figures just hate to play it.

[Grey Waves]

Wanted to give my thoughts on a couple of maps I've played a bit of recently.

Yngvild Pass by @Sheep

This is a good map. I'm not convinced that the level 2 potholes (specifically the ones in between the 3 snow and rock tiles) add to the gameplay that much, and the back 3-hex runs do seem like a strong camping spot for range + screen armies. However, I do like the height distribution in general, and the split starting zones do a good job in spreading the action all around the map. I also quite like the glyph areas. On many maps, the glyphs often don't feel worth taking due to the disadvantageous position the figure on the glyph is put in, but the ruins on Yngvild Pass do an excellent job in protecting the glyph holders from figures on the level 3 snow runs, with the level 3 height adjacent to the glyph stopping that position from feeling too strong. (Although I will say, having an extra level 2 tile on either side so there isn't a chokepoint between the level 1 ice and the ruin would be really nice). The map also looks great aesthetically. It was disappointing to see this map's WoS nomination withdrawn, and I hope that it'll be resubmitted again in the future. (With or without the minor tweaks I've suggested).

Desolate Courtyard by @RainyDays

For a map that only uses 2x Marvel and 1x FotA, this is an impressive build. The height distribution in the centre is very good - it feels like control over the asphalt tiles is always in flux, and it feels good to be able to go from either of the outside level 3/4 heights to the middle one (or vice versa) in just a single turn. The one major complaint I do have s that development on this map feels way worse than it needs to be. There are no level 2 hexes within 5 move of the start zone that don't give up height to an adjacent level 3 tile. What this means is that you either have to choose between leaving your figures on the level 1 space outside the SZ or just accepting that your opponent is going to get a height attack on you the following turn. (This is exacerbated by the map's overall smallness). If I could suggest a change to fix this, it would be to raise the 3 level 1 hexes that lie in a straight line between the level 2 concrete tiles. This would create 3 safe spaces that a 5 move figure could get to turn 1 without having to worry about being attacked from height. (At least not by melee units). I'm not exactly sure how feasible this is terrain-wise considering how little 2x Marvel, 1x FotA gives you to work with, but if this could be done, it would largely solve the current biggest problem I have with this map. (Although I still like it overall).

Odin Wept by @Typhon2222

This map feels very unique compared to most of the maps I've played on in tournaments, thanks in part to the unconventional terrain combo. I love the jump from level 0 to level 2 straight out of the start zone and how the glacier kind of forces you to pick one side or the other (but figures can still move smoothly from one side to the other if they need to). The shadow tiles are placed very well, and the glyphs are just out of the way enough that you need to put in effort to grab them, but not to the point where they feel unreachable. I haven't got to play as many games on this one so far, but I'm definitely looking forward to playing on it again in the future.

[Typhon2222]

@Grey Waves , it's very thoughtful of you to leave such detailed and helpful feedback on three (!) different maps. It does cartographers, and our community, a great service.

[Shurrig]

Hey all! I'm looking for some feedback on a couple of my maps. @OEAO did an awesome job reworking one of my maps and it inspired me to take a look at some other maps of mine that weren't quite as good as they could be. I don't know how many I'll get to, but I got a few I'm working on currently. If you are running a tournament, consider adding one of these into your map pool I'm also down to run some games online with these maps, but I'd need help uploading images as my experience with OHS is very limited. With that said, here are those first two maps:

Stechavan


Stechavan is one of my favorite personal maps aesthetically speaking. From the feedback I received on the first version, the main complaints were lava and glyph placement. I think this version solves both problems. I really like how the lava works here, and from the games I've played the high points of the map feel balanced and dynamic.

Viney Pines


This map's update was largely inspired by the OEAO edition of Hydra. the original version of Viney Pines is very similar to Hydra, as they both use the same terrain requirements (SotM, RttFF x2), and the original version had a couple of potentially problematic perches. In this version, I've changed up the middle quite a bit, reworked LOS blockers, and brought all the level 3 height to the center. I think the changes here have distinguished it from Hydra and has something interesting to offer.

[vegietarian18]

Here's my feedback on the maps in the ScapeCon 2023 pool, after playing forty games on them over the past weekend and a few more over the past months.

Nightfall by Typhon_2222



Really solid map. Possibly my favorite use of Marvel, in terms of how it uses the Marvel for visuals and how it plays. I had fun playing both the melee and the range sides of matchups on this board, and think the road vs. height interactions are really well done. The glyphs sometimes feel a little far apart but I wouldn't change anything about this board.

Ascension by Flash_19



Tough board to play on, but maybe not in a bad way. Very often I saw and played in games where Raelin was dropped behind the giant glacier to cover troops as they developed up on either side, which is so difficult for an enemy to counter. Range can struggle on this board because of how tight the sight lines are in the middle, and I think range wants to force the game to be played on one of half the board to avoid that. This one I think is a less slam-dunk win, but it's a good board.

Dark Fulcrum by Gamebear



This board has sorted of soured me on the potential for any sort of shadow/jungle combination working in WoS. Stacking those two tiles makes for such an easy time for melee, especially when they're on level 2 like this, and especially when some of the shadow doesn't even give up height. I saw many games where I think melee meaningfully increased its odds of winning by 20%+ by drawing this board, and maybe that's okay for a map pool but I don't think this is a great double blind map for one single great game of Heroscape which is what I look for in a great board. One small note is I do like how this board makes the center height of Fulcrum more accessible, and think there's some cool potential for minor fixes to classic Fulcrum to help that.

Healing Waters OEAO Edition by OEAO and GameBear



Probably my favorite map in the pool. Loved the mirror symmetry, loved the use of the bridge walls in such a central place on the board, loved the interplay of the height and the hill. Some games can snowball because of the hill but I think that's fine. I would make no changes to this board.

August 2nd by BiggaBullfrog



I thought this board was really good. Had some really interesting games on it. The only slight hesitation I have is that I think the level 3 two-hex perches right outside the startzone in the middle are clearly the best hexes on the board; they're not lava, and they contest the road really well, and they're somewhat safe from the higher lava height. I think if they could be switched to lava, with maybe the middle of the board becoming safe ground, the map would be a little more dynamic. Just an idea though, because this would change the board a ton. It's nice to have a lava board where lava is present but not a major threat.

April 9th by BiggaBullfrog



Really cool map. I honestly can't think of another board that has this sort of gulch feel to it. I never saw it devolve into two hills games, despite having two hills, because the hills aren't super tall or hard to assault, but the shape of it was nice and I had good games on it. The once-per-turn attack glyph was a great choice for this board, but that's ScapeCon feedback, not map feedback.

Hydra OEAO Edition by OEAO and Shurrig



Not sure how I feel about this one. In some ways it feels like a better Highways and Dieways that cuts the boring first round where you're just channeling your figures out of your startzone around the water. But the height on this board just feels weird to me. I had some bizarre games where I abused how little height variation this board has to make certain figures feel randomly near-unkillable. But I also had some great and super tactical games on it.

[Dysole]

April 9th, Nightfall, and Healing Waters were my favorite maps of the con. I think I agree with a lot of what vegie posted.

~Dysole, iteratively