Heroes 5.5 - Eternal Essence

OBJECTIVES

In the end strategy is about the balance of power and what you can achieve with a given leverage. A lot of the fun in the game comes from playing against AI opponents, and with a fully featured and working AI, we can create maps that employ many advanced and interesting gameplay features. This is in particular true, if we have advanced content design tools that support the designer with feedback how the landscape and objects on the map affect the leverage and balance of power.

Our first task is to create a set of reference maps to demonstrate what an advanced AI can truly do and to tune the AI behaviour during development.

In the next step we can set out to reenvision the ToE campaign with a more interesting gameplay. This involves redesigning the maps, or parts of it, but keeping the campaign story intact.

Ultimately we will create our own original campaign.

Reference maps

The reference maps are meant to showcase what the AI can do and to fine-tune AI behaviour. They are also designed in detail, to provide a rich and beautiful experience to wake people up what a game we really have here. With a powerful AI and beautiful maps players can see the game in a new light.

Power of Dragons (by Markkur) — This is a huge map with extraordinary design and gameplay. It comes close to the epic feeling Heroes III maps could offer. Choose between two factions and travel across a world full of wonders to achieve your objective. Readme available.
Icy Defense rev. 3 (by Markkur) — A medium sized map with a tough challenge rating, intended for veteran players on hard difficulty. It features a beautifully designed home base to motivate the player to give the best. Nearby opponents tend to invade early. Revision 3 is more demanding with a strong necromancer rising in the east.
Dread Realms (by Markkur) — An extra large map for 2 vs. 2 players. Multiple access paths to strategic positions allow for a varied gameplay with interesting strategies and tactics. The players have plenty of time to build their bases and explore a rich land. But beware, reinforcements are scarce and you have to play to the best of your abilities to build an army efficiently and not lose too many forces in the battles ahead.
Island Hoppers rev. 3 (by Markkur) — A water map for 8 players with fast paced gameplay. The opponents are strong but your salvation might lie in the artefacts that you can acquire.
My Home Is My Castle rev. 3 (by Markkur) — A more broadly distributed huge island map for 8 players. Your castle lies a bit off the main road and thus doesn't represent such an attractive target for your opponents. Smart base building is the key here.
Hall of Decision Duel (by Markkur) — This is an impossible sized map for a duel between two factions. The underground is our Hall of Decision design that features a large derelict dwarven realm with lots of treasures to collect. Typically your opponent develops fast, but the size of the map gives you leeway to try out different tactics.

Reference map candidates

The reference map candidates still need approval to become full reference maps. Once a map is tested more extensively and has received a positive feedback, it can become a full reference map. If you have played a reference map candidate we would like to have your feedback. This way you can help to promote a good map or tell us what needs fixing.

Axis of Evil rev. 2.2a (by Hellglory) — This map has two teams with two factions each. Each faction has a secondary town to capture nearby. Because this town is accessible by a one-way-portal it presents special challenges for the AI and the player.
Icy Defense rev. 2 (by Markkur) — A medium sized map with a tough challenge rating, intended for veteran players on hard difficulty. It features a beautifully designed home base to motivate the player to give the best. Nearby opponents tend to invade early. This revision 2 is more even handed and less challenging than revision 3.
EE's Middle Earth_PRT (by Markkur) — I've taken my heavily modified Tolkien's Middle-Earth and added ideas from "Yurian Stonebow and Rama". Two important differences, of many, is that now Harad lies to the south; Minas Tirith (though having two castles) now faces three nearby enemies and now there is also some naval action. Thanks to *Fauch* for adding the loading screen. [Markkur, Jan 2014] — Added scripts for enhanced difficulty and the previously missing Orc faction. Visit the seers in week one. [Quantomas, March 2014]