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Author |
File Description |
nogold57 |
Posted on 08/16/04 @ 12:00 AM
File Details |
Map Size: |
200x200 (Small) |
Difficulty: |
Hard |
Minimap:
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This story is a "Horror" story of the foulest most ghoulish King that ever lived.Far to the northern wilderness of Neir...Dark even in daytime and humid fog never stirring from your face.King Mantic had his cook boil humans kidneys,then make a gravy type mutton out of it,for supper.......Mad since he was a teenager,ascended to a small realm as king,at 14 years of age.It is said he was banished by King Richard to a dark place in the under world for eating his first wife,never to return or have his head chopped off by Richard.Obviously not stupid,he left taking his people who really didn't want to go,went.But as time went by he cut down on eating the help,so to speak.Acquiring a taste for cows tongues and beef kidneys stews left people along for a time.Occasionally backsliding. |
Author | Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
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Sulis |
Posted on 03/19/07 @ 03:09 AM
Playability: 4
Wolfen Castle is an intriguing little scenario with some fairly tricky economic goals to meet. From the start, you are faced with an already established settlement and a busy, almost overwhelming feel to the map. There are plenty of events at the start, but they do tend to die off as the scenario progresses. There is major forest clearance to be done if you intend to place the required number of buildings, but I liked this idea and it works well here. Deleting the (many) 'good' and 'bad' things will release a fair amount of gold, which is another win condition which must be met. Wolves are plenty, but so are the scripted archers, their sheer numbers are sufficient to take out the wolves. You need to plan where you place buildings, especially the granary and armoury, as you will need a huge amount of food and weapons to meet the economic goals. The map plays well enough and is certainly addictive.
Balance: 3
On the hard setting, as indicated by the author of this scenario, there is a lot do do. There are also fire events present, so don't neglect the placement of wells. It might be advisable to build your settlement in blocks, and to separate the armoury from the granary, two key building areas in this game. As mentioned above, the scenario started off well but events faded to nothing. What is here is good stuff, but needs a bit more towards the latter stages of the map and maintain the high standards set by other areas of the scenaio. Bandit attacks were a little too weak, and the wolf attacks were hindered by their spawning point placed in a small area of the landscape that was inaccessible to all units, meaning a huge population of wolves sitting there doing nothing. Maybe this was intentional, but with no notes from the author it is difficult to comment otherwise.
Creativity: 3
Generally good. The map is a standard economic scenario with heavy goals to meet. What the author has done, with great effect and success, is to model a landscape which genuinely looks, and feels, quite horrific! The constant howling of the wolves blended with the squeals of the Pig and the begging of the Rat sends shivers down the spine (re wolves: maybe that is why they spawn in an inaccessible area, and therefore always guarantee the howling effect?)
Map Design: 4
A 4 score here might be a little generous, as the terrain modelling in some areas does look a little clumsy. That said, there is a lot here which is positive. To create a haunting landscape and settlement is not easy in a game that is quite 'cutesy' by default. The areas around the keep, including swamp areas, look very good, especially with the abundance of trees and shrubbery. For a small map, there is a lot going on and a lot to take in. I think that the originality deserves recognition, hence a 4 out of 5.
Story/Instructions: 3
The story that accompanies the map may be brief, but is humourous and a little disturbing, perfectly suiting the scenario! What this area lacks in content is made up for by a genuine attempt at something different. The storyline, or scenario description, could be expanded though and this would justify a higher score.
Additional Comments:
This scenario seems to have been forgotten about in the rush of invasion maps for Stronhold and skirmish maps for Crusader, but it's a bit of a gem when taken at face value. Recommended. |
HGDL v0.8.2 |
Rating |
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3.4 | Breakdown |
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Playability | 4.0 | Balance | 3.0 | Creativity | 3.0 | Map Design | 4.0 | Story/Instructions | 3.0 |
Statistics |
Downloads: | 1,143 |
Favorites: [] | 0 |
Size: | 519.97 KB |
Added: | 08/16/04 |
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