Thanks for the submissions everyone!
Submissions are now closed, I'll be getting the poll up sometime tomorrow.
Submissions are now closed, I'll be getting the poll up sometime tomorrow.
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Welcome to the Heroscapers 2.0 site! We've still got some dust to clear and adjustments to make, including launching a new front page, but we hope you enjoy the improvements to the site. Please post your feedback and any issues you encounter in this thread.
HexiCon 3 Map Contest! Congrats to Wildflowers by Vydar_XLIII!
- Thread starter MegaSilver
- Start date
The cut off was posted as Sept 30th, but you are right I did not say a time zone, which was a mistake on my part.
You're good Ulysses. Glad to have them
Ain't no minute like the last minute.
The templates were super helpful. They make the maps look their best and the flavor text etc was fun to dive into.
I spent a little too much time doing the map keys and manually cropping the build instructions. Especially every time I had to make a change, each individual build level would need to be re-cropped from the VirtualScape pdf. Automating that might be nice, but not sure how that would be easily done. Also, I realized the portrait orientation on Neapolitan looks and fits much better than the landscape of Carnivorous' levels. I think I adjusted the margins for that.
There is no access allowed for AoV.
Thruscaper
New member
Sorry about that. Should be fixed now!
Since the Heroscapers forum polls are not functioning, I have created a Google form to submit votes.
You can find all the maps on the 2nd and 3 posts on the contest page in Spoilers:
https://www.heroscapers.com/threads/hexicon-3-map-contest.64296/
Not all maps have IRL photos yet, but I will be working on them. You may want to wait for IRL photos before voting.
Round 1 Votes will be due Friday at 11:30 PM CT. The top 2 maps from each section will move to the next round.
Map Poll: https://forms.gle/c33QfHXB9Jbb2HGn8
You can find all the maps on the 2nd and 3 posts on the contest page in Spoilers:
https://www.heroscapers.com/threads/hexicon-3-map-contest.64296/
Not all maps have IRL photos yet, but I will be working on them. You may want to wait for IRL photos before voting.
Round 1 Votes will be due Friday at 11:30 PM CT. The top 2 maps from each section will move to the next round.
Map Poll: https://forms.gle/c33QfHXB9Jbb2HGn8
Incredible pool of maps here. Really hard to narrow it down, but I picked a top 5 and made comments on about half of them. Even some of the best looking maps I left off if they felt a little flat.
1. Spring Fling by RainyDays
2. Meddler by Brian
3. Effaced by superfrog
4. Flourishing Crossroads by Robber
5. New Tortuga Isle by Shurrig
Honorable Mention: Wildflowers by Vydar XLIII and That Day by elvenwizard9
Wildflowers by Vydar XLIII
Very cool looking map with the fortress walls casting shadows. I like how decentralized the middle height is. Q9 or Raelin sitting in a shadow by the tree seems a little too cozy of a spot, but the layout of all the LoS blockers seem to offset this nicely.
Anunnaki by Brian
Great color scheme. The jungle bush seems to allow nice advancement up the map, and the lava outcrops block enough LoS for the middle of the map. Traveling across the middle of the map does seem to be necessary if 2 different sides are developed.
Carnivorous by me
The level 4 height is a tad boring, and the section in the middle is a little awkward to traverse.
New Tortuga Isle by Shurrig
Really nice map. A lot of jungle coverage for advancement and beautiful symmetry. The level 5 rock seems a bit out of place at first glance (honestly might just be the color though).
Neapolitan by me
A chokepoint on each side of the map next to the molten lava. Units with 4 move will have a hard time going up the left side of the map, especially melee. Colors are fun.
Circuitous by Thruscaper
Start zones are a little wonky. The middle of the map looks really fun.
Meddler by Brian
Amazing map. Not really much else to say here. Maybe the height around the glyph could be a little awkward.
Flourishing Crossroads
Very cool. Another map that's not focused on a middle hill and has enough LoS blockers to spread out the fight.
That Day by elvenwizard9
Solid map. Circling around the pillars on height would be fun. Seems very melee friendly.
Spring Fling by RainyDays
Looks fantastic. Stopping at level 3 really grabs so much value for this map. So much going on, yet so simple. Plenty of jungle cover with a clear path down the middle of the map. I think this is my favorite map right now.
Effaced by superfrog
Cool to see another map that doesn't have a focal point at the center. The height over the edge of the map actually seems like a really unique feature I haven't seen another map pull off yet. I can see some small figures hiding over there like they are scaling down a mountain.
1. Spring Fling by RainyDays
2. Meddler by Brian
3. Effaced by superfrog
4. Flourishing Crossroads by Robber
5. New Tortuga Isle by Shurrig
Honorable Mention: Wildflowers by Vydar XLIII and That Day by elvenwizard9
Wildflowers by Vydar XLIII
Very cool looking map with the fortress walls casting shadows. I like how decentralized the middle height is. Q9 or Raelin sitting in a shadow by the tree seems a little too cozy of a spot, but the layout of all the LoS blockers seem to offset this nicely.
Anunnaki by Brian
Great color scheme. The jungle bush seems to allow nice advancement up the map, and the lava outcrops block enough LoS for the middle of the map. Traveling across the middle of the map does seem to be necessary if 2 different sides are developed.
Carnivorous by me
The level 4 height is a tad boring, and the section in the middle is a little awkward to traverse.
New Tortuga Isle by Shurrig
Really nice map. A lot of jungle coverage for advancement and beautiful symmetry. The level 5 rock seems a bit out of place at first glance (honestly might just be the color though).
Neapolitan by me
A chokepoint on each side of the map next to the molten lava. Units with 4 move will have a hard time going up the left side of the map, especially melee. Colors are fun.
Circuitous by Thruscaper
Start zones are a little wonky. The middle of the map looks really fun.
Meddler by Brian
Amazing map. Not really much else to say here. Maybe the height around the glyph could be a little awkward.
Flourishing Crossroads
Very cool. Another map that's not focused on a middle hill and has enough LoS blockers to spread out the fight.
That Day by elvenwizard9
Solid map. Circling around the pillars on height would be fun. Seems very melee friendly.
Spring Fling by RainyDays
Looks fantastic. Stopping at level 3 really grabs so much value for this map. So much going on, yet so simple. Plenty of jungle cover with a clear path down the middle of the map. I think this is my favorite map right now.
Effaced by superfrog
Cool to see another map that doesn't have a focal point at the center. The height over the edge of the map actually seems like a really unique feature I haven't seen another map pull off yet. I can see some small figures hiding over there like they are scaling down a mountain.
superfrog
This is merely a joke.
Thoughts dump:
Slaughter Fountain is an admirable use of slim set requirements. I just think it struggles by having 7-hexes be the main height perches, especially the back one being backed by jungle. I think I’d also switch power glyphs for treasure and vice versa, looks hard to move through the center, which is necessary to attack that back perch.
Pine Shrine looks pretty good, just too big and flat to be super interesting.
Wildflower is one of the standouts of the contest to me, a great use of BftW terrain to bolster BftU.
War and Drought, on the other hand, is not doing it for me. Just sooooo much lava. I think gameplay on this map is going to either collapse to the side with less lava OR be really annoying for both players in a game where Wannok is on the lava side.
Fallen Viaduct has some pretty big no-nos, including water blocking the center, max height at the back of the map, and easily choked off side paths (with height in the chokepoints, no less).
Anunnaki is pretty decent, if really crippled in aesthetics due to the one-tone nature of the sets used (*shaked fist at Renegade*). Ultimately I think the jungle-backed 3-hex swamps are a bit too strong here, but I’d be willing to give this map a shot.
Carnivorous looks nice, but so long and wide that it also feels flat. Condensing this map (especially lengthwise but also a bit widthwise) while keeping the general features intact would be a great improvement imo.
Rocky Foundations is a classic Shurrig map, the height is well-placed. I’m not sure about the two-hexes on each edge but the map overall looks very solid.
New Tortuga Isle is another solid effort. I appreciate the subtle asymmetry, although again I’d have my eye on the two-hexes on the right edge.
Ronin fooled me like the first 8 times I looked at it, I kept thinking it was fully rotationally symmetrical. But it’s not, the edges are quite different. I don’t think I like either of the edges here, and you’d have to be very careful with the middle of the map to make this concept work, but I admire the originality!
Naomi’s Tears is pretty close to a traditional bilateral tournament map but too chokey and bumpy for my tastes.
Neapolitan, similar to Anunnaki, is not doing it for me in the aesthetics department. I do think the final product should play pretty well, although the bushes being asymmetrical from the trees is a bit of an odd choice. I think my main gameplay critique is that it’s very flat throughout the center of the map.
Beachheads has a cool aesthetic but looks like it would be a total disaster to play on for melee against range.
Age of Volcanism is a very solid effort from a new mapmaker, we love to see it! I don’t like the SZs and the map is very big, but I think overall it’s a decent end product.
And Circuitous also looks great! I think I’d try to get the level 3 and 4 a little more centered, maybe even connected, so the center doesn’t turn into a staring match.
Meddler is a very nice aesthetic. My two complaints are both about the road: One is that each section of it is too short to be fully useful, and the other is that it doesn’t get to any of the level 4 on the map. I think it would mostly be ignored in gameplay.
Flourishing Crossroads suffers a bit from the same problem of road not reaching adjacent to level 4, but The level 3 spots in the center are pretty strong and the road helps figures engage there. This map reminds me some of my own submission Effaced.
Amphitheater is very solid for a 1x AoA map. I don’t love the dip down into the center (although I get it thematically). Other than that this one is well-executed.
Will come back with more thoughts later.
Slaughter Fountain is an admirable use of slim set requirements. I just think it struggles by having 7-hexes be the main height perches, especially the back one being backed by jungle. I think I’d also switch power glyphs for treasure and vice versa, looks hard to move through the center, which is necessary to attack that back perch.
Pine Shrine looks pretty good, just too big and flat to be super interesting.
Wildflower is one of the standouts of the contest to me, a great use of BftW terrain to bolster BftU.
War and Drought, on the other hand, is not doing it for me. Just sooooo much lava. I think gameplay on this map is going to either collapse to the side with less lava OR be really annoying for both players in a game where Wannok is on the lava side.
Fallen Viaduct has some pretty big no-nos, including water blocking the center, max height at the back of the map, and easily choked off side paths (with height in the chokepoints, no less).
Anunnaki is pretty decent, if really crippled in aesthetics due to the one-tone nature of the sets used (*shaked fist at Renegade*). Ultimately I think the jungle-backed 3-hex swamps are a bit too strong here, but I’d be willing to give this map a shot.
Carnivorous looks nice, but so long and wide that it also feels flat. Condensing this map (especially lengthwise but also a bit widthwise) while keeping the general features intact would be a great improvement imo.
Rocky Foundations is a classic Shurrig map, the height is well-placed. I’m not sure about the two-hexes on each edge but the map overall looks very solid.
New Tortuga Isle is another solid effort. I appreciate the subtle asymmetry, although again I’d have my eye on the two-hexes on the right edge.
Ronin fooled me like the first 8 times I looked at it, I kept thinking it was fully rotationally symmetrical. But it’s not, the edges are quite different. I don’t think I like either of the edges here, and you’d have to be very careful with the middle of the map to make this concept work, but I admire the originality!
Naomi’s Tears is pretty close to a traditional bilateral tournament map but too chokey and bumpy for my tastes.
Neapolitan, similar to Anunnaki, is not doing it for me in the aesthetics department. I do think the final product should play pretty well, although the bushes being asymmetrical from the trees is a bit of an odd choice. I think my main gameplay critique is that it’s very flat throughout the center of the map.
Beachheads has a cool aesthetic but looks like it would be a total disaster to play on for melee against range.
Age of Volcanism is a very solid effort from a new mapmaker, we love to see it! I don’t like the SZs and the map is very big, but I think overall it’s a decent end product.
And Circuitous also looks great! I think I’d try to get the level 3 and 4 a little more centered, maybe even connected, so the center doesn’t turn into a staring match.
Meddler is a very nice aesthetic. My two complaints are both about the road: One is that each section of it is too short to be fully useful, and the other is that it doesn’t get to any of the level 4 on the map. I think it would mostly be ignored in gameplay.
Flourishing Crossroads suffers a bit from the same problem of road not reaching adjacent to level 4, but The level 3 spots in the center are pretty strong and the road helps figures engage there. This map reminds me some of my own submission Effaced.
Amphitheater is very solid for a 1x AoA map. I don’t love the dip down into the center (although I get it thematically). Other than that this one is well-executed.
Will come back with more thoughts later.
Initial reactions, just shooting from the hip after a minute of analysis, so don't take any of my critiques with too much weight.
Slaughter Fountain
The up-and-down elevation shifts here make this map look rough for melee vs range.
Pine Shrine
I really like the use of road in this one, and it is very pretty and evocatie. I don't like how many choke points there are.
Wildflower
I like this map! It looks like it should offer really solid gameplay. The set combinations feel novel and it is aesthetically pleasing. Aside from the pallette and set combinations I feel like there's a level of novelty missing on this one that keeps it from being a favorite for me. Playing on it might change my mind.
War & Drought
This is very fresh! I like the use of LoS blockers, I like the pallette, I like how this should challenge gameplay... I wonder if a small pod army can dominate the lava-light side of the map, though.
Fallen Viaduct
This map looks like a nightmare for a melee army playing against range, which unfortunately cancels out any points for originality IMO.
Anunnaki
I really like what you did with this set combination. Very appealing. It feels a little two-hilly, and the 3-hex to the left of the start-zone seems like a little too good of pod-spot, since it protected from non-lava height. That keeps this one from rising to the top for me.
Carnivorous
A number of maps have shown that the 7-hexer-between-two-hills pattern can work when there's a jungle tree in the center, and neither of the hills are super high. But although there's nothing about this map that concerns me, there's also nothing that really excites me. I'd probably want to use the LoS blockers to obstruct lateral vision, and pull the jungle in to cover more useful hexes.
Rocky Foundations
The water usage here looks like it could make leaving the start zone a little painful. I'm not sure anything else really stands out to me here. The two hills are close enough that you can cross from one to the other in a single turn, so that's probably not an issue.
New Tortuga Isle
Is the map in this image built correctly? It looks assymetrical to me... the left side has a level-4 rock hex that Raelin can reach in 1 OM to cover the left-side glyph. But the other player cannot do the same thing with their Raelin to cover the other glyph.
Ronin
This map looks tricky to navigate, particularly for melee. I also don't love how easy it is for range to get to the highest elevation near their SZ.
Naomi's Tears
This is a map I want to like. It's pretty, the LoS blockers are well blaced, most of the jungle is well-used, I like the glyph placements (not sure about the centeral one). But it looks like one side has a level 4 perch right outside the SZ and the other does not??? Surely that's a mistake... that keeps this one from getting a vote from me.
Neapolitan
I really like the palette on this one. And I want to like the design. But the assymmetry is kind of breaking my brain in terms of being able to evaluate this map. And that's how I would feel when sitting down to play it, also. For that reason, I won't be voting for it.
Beachheads
This one is a cool concept for a casual map, but it doesn't belong in a tournament.
Age of Volcanism
This map feels too big. I'm not necessarily opposed to a map with this footprint, but this one doesn't seem to justify the footprint it consumes.
Circuitous
This map has some real potential!
Meddler
I really like this one; it checks a lot of boxes for me.
Flourishing Crossroads
Gorgeous, and looks really interesting to play on. No notes.
Amphitheater
I have played on an earlier version of this map! This one looks like an improvement. I like this one. I wonder if lateral movement could be punishing for a melee army trying to shift from the low side to the high side against range, but it looks to me like there are good development choices to make here.
Cold Brew
Gorgeous! And the gameplay looks interesting too.
That Day
I like this one. I don't love the road bump in the center, but not enough to detract from the map.
The Blasted Lands
I really like this one! Feels novel and gameplay should be interesting.
Effaced
This may seem strange but this one kind of reminds me of Turmoil, which I think is a pretty good map. This one doesn't stun me aesthetically but I suspect the gameplay is pretty interesting.
Feverglade
Looks solid for gameplay, and striking on the table. No notes!
Spring Fling
This one looks promising, and I really like this set combo.
Arcanist
This map feels a little too big... too much uninteresting level 1. Also, getting from one hill to the other doesn't feel great here; too easy to get stuck without any shadow to cover the approach.
Nature Wins
Hard to tell from this angle, but it looks potentially hard for 4-move ground-pounders to navigate. Lots of lumpy elevation changes and very high hexes.
Enduring Colonnade
I'm not sure about the streak of water running down the middle of the map... but other than that I really like this one. It looks nice and the gameplay should be solid.
Pitch
I'm not sure what to make of this one. I don't like the level 3 hexes right next to the start zone though.
Nunatak
I like the palette on this one. The 3-wide dungeon road-bump on the way to the center is an interesting choice... it could work in gameplay or it could be a problem. Hard to tell without trying it.
Slaughter Fountain
The up-and-down elevation shifts here make this map look rough for melee vs range.
Pine Shrine
I really like the use of road in this one, and it is very pretty and evocatie. I don't like how many choke points there are.
Wildflower
I like this map! It looks like it should offer really solid gameplay. The set combinations feel novel and it is aesthetically pleasing. Aside from the pallette and set combinations I feel like there's a level of novelty missing on this one that keeps it from being a favorite for me. Playing on it might change my mind.
War & Drought
This is very fresh! I like the use of LoS blockers, I like the pallette, I like how this should challenge gameplay... I wonder if a small pod army can dominate the lava-light side of the map, though.
Fallen Viaduct
This map looks like a nightmare for a melee army playing against range, which unfortunately cancels out any points for originality IMO.
Anunnaki
I really like what you did with this set combination. Very appealing. It feels a little two-hilly, and the 3-hex to the left of the start-zone seems like a little too good of pod-spot, since it protected from non-lava height. That keeps this one from rising to the top for me.
Carnivorous
A number of maps have shown that the 7-hexer-between-two-hills pattern can work when there's a jungle tree in the center, and neither of the hills are super high. But although there's nothing about this map that concerns me, there's also nothing that really excites me. I'd probably want to use the LoS blockers to obstruct lateral vision, and pull the jungle in to cover more useful hexes.
Rocky Foundations
The water usage here looks like it could make leaving the start zone a little painful. I'm not sure anything else really stands out to me here. The two hills are close enough that you can cross from one to the other in a single turn, so that's probably not an issue.
New Tortuga Isle
Is the map in this image built correctly? It looks assymetrical to me... the left side has a level-4 rock hex that Raelin can reach in 1 OM to cover the left-side glyph. But the other player cannot do the same thing with their Raelin to cover the other glyph.
Ronin
This map looks tricky to navigate, particularly for melee. I also don't love how easy it is for range to get to the highest elevation near their SZ.
Naomi's Tears
This is a map I want to like. It's pretty, the LoS blockers are well blaced, most of the jungle is well-used, I like the glyph placements (not sure about the centeral one). But it looks like one side has a level 4 perch right outside the SZ and the other does not??? Surely that's a mistake... that keeps this one from getting a vote from me.
Neapolitan
I really like the palette on this one. And I want to like the design. But the assymmetry is kind of breaking my brain in terms of being able to evaluate this map. And that's how I would feel when sitting down to play it, also. For that reason, I won't be voting for it.
Beachheads
This one is a cool concept for a casual map, but it doesn't belong in a tournament.
Age of Volcanism
This map feels too big. I'm not necessarily opposed to a map with this footprint, but this one doesn't seem to justify the footprint it consumes.
Circuitous
This map has some real potential!
Meddler
I really like this one; it checks a lot of boxes for me.
Flourishing Crossroads
Gorgeous, and looks really interesting to play on. No notes.
Amphitheater
I have played on an earlier version of this map! This one looks like an improvement. I like this one. I wonder if lateral movement could be punishing for a melee army trying to shift from the low side to the high side against range, but it looks to me like there are good development choices to make here.
Cold Brew
Gorgeous! And the gameplay looks interesting too.
That Day
I like this one. I don't love the road bump in the center, but not enough to detract from the map.
The Blasted Lands
I really like this one! Feels novel and gameplay should be interesting.
Effaced
This may seem strange but this one kind of reminds me of Turmoil, which I think is a pretty good map. This one doesn't stun me aesthetically but I suspect the gameplay is pretty interesting.
Feverglade
Looks solid for gameplay, and striking on the table. No notes!
Spring Fling
This one looks promising, and I really like this set combo.
Arcanist
This map feels a little too big... too much uninteresting level 1. Also, getting from one hill to the other doesn't feel great here; too easy to get stuck without any shadow to cover the approach.
Nature Wins
Hard to tell from this angle, but it looks potentially hard for 4-move ground-pounders to navigate. Lots of lumpy elevation changes and very high hexes.
Enduring Colonnade
I'm not sure about the streak of water running down the middle of the map... but other than that I really like this one. It looks nice and the gameplay should be solid.
Pitch
I'm not sure what to make of this one. I don't like the level 3 hexes right next to the start zone though.
Nunatak
I like the palette on this one. The 3-wide dungeon road-bump on the way to the center is an interesting choice... it could work in gameplay or it could be a problem. Hard to tell without trying it.
I appreciate both of your commentaries on Pine Shrine, but I feel the need to push just little against these. The glyph of Nifl (or Thorian) ends up being essential on this map for melee vs. range. The former neuters range generally, and the latter at least elimites height advantage for ranged attacks. And unfortunately that means it needs to be center. (Unless you maybe use both in the current Treasure locations?)
I understand that I'm using the glyph as a crutch here, but I crippled myself with the set choice. I just wanted to be sure that it is included in the critique.
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superfrog
This is merely a joke.
Fair point. I do not very much enjoy the glyph of Nifl (or Thorian for that matter), but that would certainly address the range-friendliness to some extent.
In general I like glyphs (and special powers) that open up options rather than preventing a player from playing the game.
In general I like glyphs (and special powers) that open up options rather than preventing a player from playing the game.
Regarding the level 4 perch, I'm not seeing that in my blueprint. It's a level 3 but each side has it. Unless perhaps mega made an error while building it, I haven't really looked at all the actual pics yet.thanks for the feedback however @frog @caps
For Ronin, there's level 4 with the Laur Pillars on them.
superfrog
This is merely a joke.
Cold Brew looks good, some notes of YP and some of Desolation and a tiny bit of Alta. I will say I don’t love the level 4 single perches inside the ruin opening.
That Day is a nice looking map! AoAeon, as I think I saw you call it on discord. I think the level 3 edges suffer from the 2 hexes of LoS blocking on them, dropping one of those would go a long way towards making the side heights play better, imo.
The Blasted Lands turned out just about as well as I could have wanted. I think there’s a small danger here that a ranged army holding the rock side would have an advantage, but Wannok on the sand side should help.
Effaced was a speed build the day of the deadline and then went through a major revision after I first posted it. My main remaining question on this map is whether the level 3 sand perches are good enough, not worth taking, or too good.
Feverglade is a clever name! I don’t love the grass-on-swamp look but you gotta make do sometimes. I wish the level 3 was connected around the center obstacles, if you could find a spare hex to make that happen.
Spring Fling is a nice looking map, with the snow broken up decently well, but the glyphs aren’t accessible to double-spaced figures… I do like the placement of the 3-hexes.
Arcanist feels a little confused aesthetically, but other than that looks good. I would be very curious to see how much of the shadow sees use during gameplay.
Nature Wins has level 5! Wow! I unfortunately don’t really like it here, although I’ve recently become a level 5 enjoyer/practitioner. In this application it breaks up the level 4 into three consecutive single hex spaces which is tough for double-spacers. Actually, it continues another hex down the line, 5/4/3 single hexes with no adjacent same-level spaces. My dividers are offended.
Enduring Colonnade looks solid as well, although I’d be interested to see whether ranged armies going left would be too obvious/strong, especially singe the road doesn’t reach adjacent to the level 4 3-hex.
Pitch has a couple too many early one-hex perches for my liking. I do quite like the look of the height feature by the glyph, though.
Nunatak feels like some of the shadow could be deployed more to the center, but looks well-designed overall.
That Day is a nice looking map! AoAeon, as I think I saw you call it on discord. I think the level 3 edges suffer from the 2 hexes of LoS blocking on them, dropping one of those would go a long way towards making the side heights play better, imo.
The Blasted Lands turned out just about as well as I could have wanted. I think there’s a small danger here that a ranged army holding the rock side would have an advantage, but Wannok on the sand side should help.
Effaced was a speed build the day of the deadline and then went through a major revision after I first posted it. My main remaining question on this map is whether the level 3 sand perches are good enough, not worth taking, or too good.
Feverglade is a clever name! I don’t love the grass-on-swamp look but you gotta make do sometimes. I wish the level 3 was connected around the center obstacles, if you could find a spare hex to make that happen.
Spring Fling is a nice looking map, with the snow broken up decently well, but the glyphs aren’t accessible to double-spaced figures… I do like the placement of the 3-hexes.
Arcanist feels a little confused aesthetically, but other than that looks good. I would be very curious to see how much of the shadow sees use during gameplay.
Nature Wins has level 5! Wow! I unfortunately don’t really like it here, although I’ve recently become a level 5 enjoyer/practitioner. In this application it breaks up the level 4 into three consecutive single hex spaces which is tough for double-spacers. Actually, it continues another hex down the line, 5/4/3 single hexes with no adjacent same-level spaces. My dividers are offended.
Enduring Colonnade looks solid as well, although I’d be interested to see whether ranged armies going left would be too obvious/strong, especially singe the road doesn’t reach adjacent to the level 4 3-hex.
Pitch has a couple too many early one-hex perches for my liking. I do quite like the look of the height feature by the glyph, though.
Nunatak feels like some of the shadow could be deployed more to the center, but looks well-designed overall.
In the order they appear on the poll, here's my initial thoughts on each:
Flourishing Crossroads: I'm not sold on the jungle trees next to level 3, and navigating with 2-hex units in the middle might be a pain.
Age of Volcanism: Why the awkward forward start space? Could you snag a single hex per side to turn the back row into 4 hexes instead of 3? Maybe the single-hex sand touching the edge of the 24-hex rock? LoS is a bit to open for me. I'm curious what you could build if you tried this same concept with the greater hex quantity in Lavafields of Valhalla instead of VW.
Pitch: A map in italics. The left side of each start zone ends looks quite far away from everything, and the right side is very close to the middle. Have you tried it with the start zones being the left, mostly flat, part of the 24-hexes?
Effaced: Interesting road direction. It looks fun.
Anunnaki: Lava looks good on everything, especially with swamp. The drudge don't like the few 0-height swamp water spaces, you can't tunnel into the fray from there! I'm slightly concerned with the jungle brush covering two of the height 3 spaces, but the 7-hex lava field is still higher. Looks 2-hex-unit accessible. Otherwise, I like the placements of the obstacles.
Carnivorous: Straightforward, looks nice. I can't see where they would go, but I wish the two brush on the very edge of the map could be a bit more inland.
Fallen Viaduct: I don't really like how it ramps up to the middle, but then there's no reason to be in the middle. It seems like you just want ranged figures on the two opposing high points.
That Day: Slight asymmetry from the trees, but it doesn't seem too significant. Simple road running through it. I like it.
Wildflowers
Mirror Symmetry. A bit crunch in the middle, shadow is a neat idea. Road runs through the middle, navigating Xenithrax seems tricky. Road only makes one half accessible. Feels kind of busy. Only one hex at height 4, so there's three focal points to this map when playing with glyphs. It looks like ~9-10 move for a ground unit to leave one hill and reach the other, which is a bit much.
Cold Brew: It looks fun, minus concrete/snow being so similar in appearance, given that some units benefit from the latter. I know it meets the parameters of the contest, but given the relative scarcity of Marvel sets, having a bunch of these set up at Hexicon seems unlikely.
Amphitheater: Just by the 'Rev5' in the filename, I can tell this took a while to get right. I really like the aesthetic, it truly evokes a curved, crumbled building.
Ronin: An asymmetric jungle map, with a nice little beach. Seeing it built, I think I would like a bit more color in the middle. Would it work with a 24-hex rock on level 2 instead of the grass to look like more of a foundation for the pillars?
Rocky Foundations: The water in the start zones immediately splits the map into a few routes. Four in fact. I'm not sure whether I like that. I do like the sand adjacent to water, and the rock being where it is. (Maybe swap the 2-hex rock on the edge with the grass 2-hex on the other side of the glyph? Excellent use of a single AoA.
Nunatak: I certainly like it more than Pitch, it could be good fun. Nothing else to say here.
Neapolitan: Asymmetry again! (Just make sure you aren't playing with heavy snow or that start zone...). I'm concerned by the benefits Nerak/Ice Troll can reap from starting on the snowy side, and with (swamp) water units being heavily preferred on the other. Because of that I don't think it works competitively.
Meddler: The flocked trees in your pictures look good. I feel like there's little reason to go near the center of the map by the big tree.
Beachheads: The water in the middle is too much of an obstacle, even with the sand bar idea.
Circuitous: A posterchild of VS renders of Jungle looking barren, and the actual build being quite pretty. Exiting from a start zone, the left side feels more interesting, the right being just a large, flat area.
Arcanist: It gets kind of wide early on without too reason for it, and it is flat, oh so flat, with kind of weird start zone shape. I don't know.
Feverglade: Mostly open and nearly rectangular. You're using structural 0-height piece stacks? I don't mind that technique, and may use it at some point. I appreciate that Drudge and Water Elemental can tunnel from the height 2 swamp water to the swamp water (or wellspring water for the elemental) space adjacent to the glyph.
Enduring Colonnade: It's kind of big and flat, but that's okay sometimes. I prefer it to Flourishing Crossroads.
War & Drought
Certainly a prettier map than Wildflowers. Lots of loS blcokers, Level 4 is only lava field for balance, neat. Six move (or two activations) are necessary to reach safety from the 'hot' side of the start zones, not necessarily a bad thing. Very visually appealing.
The Blasted Lands: Another one that looks better IRL than the render for sure. No major complaints from me, merely that I think the tallest part of the 3-hex rock outcrop should be on the symmetry line.
Slaughter Fountain: I accomplished what I intended here with the limited sets. I may try it on a larger scale with a full SotM+Waters of Valhalla (just for the wellspring water theme)+TJ+Something else at some point, such that the reliance on range-limiting glyphs isn't needed for a good time.
Nature Wins: 2-hex units do not like this map, they're restricted from much of levels 3 and 4, and fitting Xeni anywhere between the warehouses looks like a real struggle.
Naomi's Tears: I like this more than Ronin. The mirror symmetry looks really good. It doesn't look Xenithrax-accessible toward the middle, but I really like the appearance.
Pine Shrine: I'm very pleased with the current version, especially the large rectangular building outline. I'm thinking about a version utilizing RotV's larger quantity of smaller hexes, the Laur Ruins set, and 2x RttFF.
New Tortuga Isle: That's certainly a jungle map: An asymmetric jungle map no less! It looks pretty for sure. If I nitpick the asymmetries, I think that both (start zone) sides of the map should have a little bit of water access. Right now (as viewed in the build instructions), the left has all 6 water hexes much more easily available. Since water is the most synergized terrain, I think the right should have approximately equal access. Otherwise, I like it.
Spring Fling: It just looks nice and fun to play. I would need to see it in person, but the areas around the pines (that is, the map center) do not seem very Xenithrax accessible.
Flourishing Crossroads: I'm not sold on the jungle trees next to level 3, and navigating with 2-hex units in the middle might be a pain.
Age of Volcanism: Why the awkward forward start space? Could you snag a single hex per side to turn the back row into 4 hexes instead of 3? Maybe the single-hex sand touching the edge of the 24-hex rock? LoS is a bit to open for me. I'm curious what you could build if you tried this same concept with the greater hex quantity in Lavafields of Valhalla instead of VW.
Pitch: A map in italics. The left side of each start zone ends looks quite far away from everything, and the right side is very close to the middle. Have you tried it with the start zones being the left, mostly flat, part of the 24-hexes?
Effaced: Interesting road direction. It looks fun.
Anunnaki: Lava looks good on everything, especially with swamp. The drudge don't like the few 0-height swamp water spaces, you can't tunnel into the fray from there! I'm slightly concerned with the jungle brush covering two of the height 3 spaces, but the 7-hex lava field is still higher. Looks 2-hex-unit accessible. Otherwise, I like the placements of the obstacles.
Carnivorous: Straightforward, looks nice. I can't see where they would go, but I wish the two brush on the very edge of the map could be a bit more inland.
Fallen Viaduct: I don't really like how it ramps up to the middle, but then there's no reason to be in the middle. It seems like you just want ranged figures on the two opposing high points.
That Day: Slight asymmetry from the trees, but it doesn't seem too significant. Simple road running through it. I like it.
Wildflowers
Mirror Symmetry. A bit crunch in the middle, shadow is a neat idea. Road runs through the middle, navigating Xenithrax seems tricky. Road only makes one half accessible. Feels kind of busy. Only one hex at height 4, so there's three focal points to this map when playing with glyphs. It looks like ~9-10 move for a ground unit to leave one hill and reach the other, which is a bit much.
Cold Brew: It looks fun, minus concrete/snow being so similar in appearance, given that some units benefit from the latter. I know it meets the parameters of the contest, but given the relative scarcity of Marvel sets, having a bunch of these set up at Hexicon seems unlikely.
Amphitheater: Just by the 'Rev5' in the filename, I can tell this took a while to get right. I really like the aesthetic, it truly evokes a curved, crumbled building.
Ronin: An asymmetric jungle map, with a nice little beach. Seeing it built, I think I would like a bit more color in the middle. Would it work with a 24-hex rock on level 2 instead of the grass to look like more of a foundation for the pillars?
Rocky Foundations: The water in the start zones immediately splits the map into a few routes. Four in fact. I'm not sure whether I like that. I do like the sand adjacent to water, and the rock being where it is. (Maybe swap the 2-hex rock on the edge with the grass 2-hex on the other side of the glyph? Excellent use of a single AoA.
Nunatak: I certainly like it more than Pitch, it could be good fun. Nothing else to say here.
Neapolitan: Asymmetry again! (Just make sure you aren't playing with heavy snow or that start zone...). I'm concerned by the benefits Nerak/Ice Troll can reap from starting on the snowy side, and with (swamp) water units being heavily preferred on the other. Because of that I don't think it works competitively.
Meddler: The flocked trees in your pictures look good. I feel like there's little reason to go near the center of the map by the big tree.
Beachheads: The water in the middle is too much of an obstacle, even with the sand bar idea.
Circuitous: A posterchild of VS renders of Jungle looking barren, and the actual build being quite pretty. Exiting from a start zone, the left side feels more interesting, the right being just a large, flat area.
Arcanist: It gets kind of wide early on without too reason for it, and it is flat, oh so flat, with kind of weird start zone shape. I don't know.
Feverglade: Mostly open and nearly rectangular. You're using structural 0-height piece stacks? I don't mind that technique, and may use it at some point. I appreciate that Drudge and Water Elemental can tunnel from the height 2 swamp water to the swamp water (or wellspring water for the elemental) space adjacent to the glyph.
Enduring Colonnade: It's kind of big and flat, but that's okay sometimes. I prefer it to Flourishing Crossroads.
War & Drought
Certainly a prettier map than Wildflowers. Lots of loS blcokers, Level 4 is only lava field for balance, neat. Six move (or two activations) are necessary to reach safety from the 'hot' side of the start zones, not necessarily a bad thing. Very visually appealing.
The Blasted Lands: Another one that looks better IRL than the render for sure. No major complaints from me, merely that I think the tallest part of the 3-hex rock outcrop should be on the symmetry line.
Slaughter Fountain: I accomplished what I intended here with the limited sets. I may try it on a larger scale with a full SotM+Waters of Valhalla (just for the wellspring water theme)+TJ+Something else at some point, such that the reliance on range-limiting glyphs isn't needed for a good time.
Nature Wins: 2-hex units do not like this map, they're restricted from much of levels 3 and 4, and fitting Xeni anywhere between the warehouses looks like a real struggle.
Naomi's Tears: I like this more than Ronin. The mirror symmetry looks really good. It doesn't look Xenithrax-accessible toward the middle, but I really like the appearance.
Pine Shrine: I'm very pleased with the current version, especially the large rectangular building outline. I'm thinking about a version utilizing RotV's larger quantity of smaller hexes, the Laur Ruins set, and 2x RttFF.
New Tortuga Isle: That's certainly a jungle map: An asymmetric jungle map no less! It looks pretty for sure. If I nitpick the asymmetries, I think that both (start zone) sides of the map should have a little bit of water access. Right now (as viewed in the build instructions), the left has all 6 water hexes much more easily available. Since water is the most synergized terrain, I think the right should have approximately equal access. Otherwise, I like it.
Spring Fling: It just looks nice and fun to play. I would need to see it in person, but the areas around the pines (that is, the map center) do not seem very Xenithrax accessible.
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Owlman
Active member
My top standouts having gone back and looked at em all again are New Tortuga, Flourishing Crossroads, Meddler, and Pitch in that order. I can easily see all those seeing tournament play. Pitch and Meddler both are more unique looking to me, and I'm the kinda guy who finds most competitive maps boring and repetitive designwise in general, but these stand out aesthetically and playabilitywise. I'm prob gonna test these 4 out myself soon! I would add I think Tortuga could use a few AoA walls here and there to aid in more LoS blocking, but other than that, perfect IMO.
New Torguta uses the Lands set not AoA set, so it doesn't have the Laur Ruins available.
Shurrig
Active member
The map is indeed asymmetrical, ever so slightly. and Raelin can reach level 4 to protect the glyph from the SZ on either side, are you referring to the level 5?
Hope to have my thoughts up for all the maps soon. I've already voted but man, there are a ton of great submissions. Gonna be hard to pick a winner here!
Shurrig
Active member
Initial thoughts on the maps:
Slaughter Fountain- I have a personal aesthetic issue and this will come up multiple times in this contest, but I really am not a fan of normal grass with swamp terrain. The map also just looks difficult to traverse without much incentive to move forward.
Pine Shrine- This one came a long way from its original version, but the size of the map and those pinch points in the center worry me.
Wildflowers- The only map in this competition I've played on outside of my own maps, and it's pretty good. It's quite fast and has a lot of things going for melee, which often means range wont play the map until the melee is thinned out, but I've had fun playing both melee and range on here.
War & Drought- It's quite big, an I could probably see armies pushing over to the non-lava side, but man does it look good built.
Fallen Viaduct- There are several issues here and others have done a good job pointing those out, I don't have much else to add.
Anunnaki- You can definitely see the effects these terrain packs will have on map building here, and while I think it's a pretty looking map, the lack of color variation unfortunately hurts it. Other than that, the only real critique I have is that 3-hex next to the jungle, I'd probably change those to lava hexes if possible.
Carnivorous- Same issue as Slaughter Fountain. It's also a very big map with level 2 that is so far away from the SZ.
Rocky Foundations- Surprise surprise but I quite like my map. I think the development issues are a bit overblown, though I can understand how it reads from the picture.
New Tortuga Isle- New Tortuga is indeed an asymmetric map, though it's fairly subtle. I wanted to dip my toes into the world of asymmetry and am pretty happy with where it ended up.
Ronin- Very intriguing. I like the look of it a lot, although some things like height right out of the SZ, ground in the middle not covered by jungle, and some slight choke points worry me slightly.
Naomi's Tears- Maybe it's the fact that it's mirror symmetry and uses the same sets as Ritual, but I like how you can see the influences Vydar had on this map. It's very solid, there are quite a few perch spots but I'm quite impressed by these two Owlman submissions.
Neapolitan- I don't mind the swamp/lava/snow combination as much as others (coughs in French), but the slight asymmetry with the bushes despite the map being rotationally symmetric otherwise leads me to believe that the snow side is just the better side to start on. I also noticed that the tree on the swamp side does not reflect the bush on the snow side, curious if that's a mistake or not.
Beachheads- It's just not a map suited for tournament play, The range advantage is too strong and most TO's will overlook the scenario rules.
Age of Volcanism- Looks fine, I wish the start zones were a bit clearer and that the glyphs weren't so far away from the SZ's.
Circuitous- The pathways to the glyphs seem pretty tight, but it looks like an alright map.
Meddler- I really like the looks of Meddler, the roads seem limited in their use but I'm fine with them being there if only for aesthetics. a good map to have a snowball fight on!
Flourishing Crossroads- Another very pretty map. Decent looking options for melee, maybe too many good options but I am okay with that.
Amphitheater- Visual asymmetry is cool when done well, but I think I would have liked to have seen more balance with the terrain distribution. The height on the far end looks good for range, I like that it brings them into the map.
Cold Brew- A solid Sheep map. It's got a lot of good things going for it, hard to find something I dislike here.
That Day- I like this map, it's sort of a combination of Aeon and Ceremony, but it does some things that are different.
The Blasted Lands- So much sand! I'll be honest, I didn't like the Virtualscape image, but seeing the IRL photo really does it wonders. Looks to be a very strong map.
Effaced- I'm not a huge fan of the aesthetics here, the two perfect rows of trees and straight lines of snow are not very appealing. It probably plays well though, nothing really sticks out as problematic here.
Feverglade- Another swamp map with regular grass
Feverglade probably does it the best out of the 3 maps in this contest though, it's all contiguous and well contrasted by the lava and other terrain features. A pretty fun looking map!
Spring Fling- I don't know what it is, but it's hard to get a read on the map. Nothing negative stands out save for the fact the glyphs are inaccessible to double spaced figures, but not much else to add.
Arcanist- The level 2 feels pretty far away here, and I wish the terrain was just a bit more congruous. Fine map overall.
Nature Wins- I like this map, it sort of feels like a stripped back version of Apocalypse Now but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The center looks fun to play, no notes there.
Enduring Colonnade- The map looks like it plays well, but that clump of trees on the opposite end of the map just feels like a bit of a missed opportunity to use those trees elsewhere.
Pitch- Yeah, the level 3 perches do concern me a bit here, otherwise looks like a good map.
Nunatak- Hard to pin down what I like about this map, it just stands out visually against the other maps in this contest. The Raelin perch covering that run of level 3 dungeon looks like it could be a problem though, I'd keep an eye on that in future games.
Slaughter Fountain- I have a personal aesthetic issue and this will come up multiple times in this contest, but I really am not a fan of normal grass with swamp terrain. The map also just looks difficult to traverse without much incentive to move forward.
Pine Shrine- This one came a long way from its original version, but the size of the map and those pinch points in the center worry me.
Wildflowers- The only map in this competition I've played on outside of my own maps, and it's pretty good. It's quite fast and has a lot of things going for melee, which often means range wont play the map until the melee is thinned out, but I've had fun playing both melee and range on here.
War & Drought- It's quite big, an I could probably see armies pushing over to the non-lava side, but man does it look good built.
Fallen Viaduct- There are several issues here and others have done a good job pointing those out, I don't have much else to add.
Anunnaki- You can definitely see the effects these terrain packs will have on map building here, and while I think it's a pretty looking map, the lack of color variation unfortunately hurts it. Other than that, the only real critique I have is that 3-hex next to the jungle, I'd probably change those to lava hexes if possible.
Carnivorous- Same issue as Slaughter Fountain. It's also a very big map with level 2 that is so far away from the SZ.
Rocky Foundations- Surprise surprise but I quite like my map. I think the development issues are a bit overblown, though I can understand how it reads from the picture.
New Tortuga Isle- New Tortuga is indeed an asymmetric map, though it's fairly subtle. I wanted to dip my toes into the world of asymmetry and am pretty happy with where it ended up.
Ronin- Very intriguing. I like the look of it a lot, although some things like height right out of the SZ, ground in the middle not covered by jungle, and some slight choke points worry me slightly.
Naomi's Tears- Maybe it's the fact that it's mirror symmetry and uses the same sets as Ritual, but I like how you can see the influences Vydar had on this map. It's very solid, there are quite a few perch spots but I'm quite impressed by these two Owlman submissions.
Neapolitan- I don't mind the swamp/lava/snow combination as much as others (coughs in French), but the slight asymmetry with the bushes despite the map being rotationally symmetric otherwise leads me to believe that the snow side is just the better side to start on. I also noticed that the tree on the swamp side does not reflect the bush on the snow side, curious if that's a mistake or not.
Beachheads- It's just not a map suited for tournament play, The range advantage is too strong and most TO's will overlook the scenario rules.
Age of Volcanism- Looks fine, I wish the start zones were a bit clearer and that the glyphs weren't so far away from the SZ's.
Circuitous- The pathways to the glyphs seem pretty tight, but it looks like an alright map.
Meddler- I really like the looks of Meddler, the roads seem limited in their use but I'm fine with them being there if only for aesthetics. a good map to have a snowball fight on!
Flourishing Crossroads- Another very pretty map. Decent looking options for melee, maybe too many good options but I am okay with that.
Amphitheater- Visual asymmetry is cool when done well, but I think I would have liked to have seen more balance with the terrain distribution. The height on the far end looks good for range, I like that it brings them into the map.
Cold Brew- A solid Sheep map. It's got a lot of good things going for it, hard to find something I dislike here.
That Day- I like this map, it's sort of a combination of Aeon and Ceremony, but it does some things that are different.
The Blasted Lands- So much sand! I'll be honest, I didn't like the Virtualscape image, but seeing the IRL photo really does it wonders. Looks to be a very strong map.
Effaced- I'm not a huge fan of the aesthetics here, the two perfect rows of trees and straight lines of snow are not very appealing. It probably plays well though, nothing really sticks out as problematic here.
Feverglade- Another swamp map with regular grass
Feverglade probably does it the best out of the 3 maps in this contest though, it's all contiguous and well contrasted by the lava and other terrain features. A pretty fun looking map!Spring Fling- I don't know what it is, but it's hard to get a read on the map. Nothing negative stands out save for the fact the glyphs are inaccessible to double spaced figures, but not much else to add.
Arcanist- The level 2 feels pretty far away here, and I wish the terrain was just a bit more congruous. Fine map overall.
Nature Wins- I like this map, it sort of feels like a stripped back version of Apocalypse Now but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The center looks fun to play, no notes there.
Enduring Colonnade- The map looks like it plays well, but that clump of trees on the opposite end of the map just feels like a bit of a missed opportunity to use those trees elsewhere.
Pitch- Yeah, the level 3 perches do concern me a bit here, otherwise looks like a good map.
Nunatak- Hard to pin down what I like about this map, it just stands out visually against the other maps in this contest. The Raelin perch covering that run of level 3 dungeon looks like it could be a problem though, I'd keep an eye on that in future games.
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This is what I mean. One player can perch Raelin on the highest level of the map, covering the glyph, in a single OM. The other player cannot reach that spot, and putting their Raelin on the "semi-mirrored" high-ground they can reach in one OM does not allow them to cover the glyph.
