This is the map that won Sword and Pistol Tavern's "Siege That! Map Contest" a while back. It's been upgraded even farther since then.
I believe that with the 1.2 patch (making it impossible to simply take out everybody with archers or crossbowmen) that this Siege That! map may be unbeatable (I can't even come close, but I'm not the best at staging attacks)
It utilizes a freak chance of tree growth to place the keep in the NE sector- across the river and up the hill. Attackers must cross a SINGLE ford, guarded by a wall and three ballistas. After crossing the ford, you must take down a wall that is at least 6 sections thick in places, and is only assailable from one initial point. After that wall is finished, 5 more remain to be breached. The whole time you are under blistering fire from ballistas and archers. Good luck! I'd love to hear from anybody who beats it how they did it :) (FantasiaWHT@hotmail.com)
Great fun! A strange and yet appealing Siege That map that kept me coming back time and time again. It's surprisingly addictive, having such a small castle to attack. One of the better Siege That maps available for download IMO.
Balance: 4/5
This is a tasty little effort from Fantasia, and it took a few attempts and numerous troop combinations before I managed to work out how to beat it. In the end, I opted for brute force, with all the available gold used for pikemen. Using repeated placement of units against towers and walls (sometimes 30-40 pikemen hacking away all at once), I managed to win. Taking down the ballista towers is probably the key to winning, as they can do the most damage. Tough but beatable, and therefore balance is scored highly.
Creativity: 4/5
I usually find it difficult to score creativity in these maps, given that there are so many limitations to the designer (pre-built landscape, for example). Whatever the author has done in order to place the keep works for me though, and it's good to see something other than a standard-looking castle to attack.
Map Design: 3/5
It's fair to say that the castle and defences in general are functional rather than something that is visually appealing. In this example, functionality works a treat. A small, clustered fortification to beat. Good for what it is.
Story/Instructions: 3/5
I usuallt prefer to see some of the author's thoughts and notes to accompany a map, no matter what category it may fall into, and this is no exception. No story as such, but interesting reading nonetheless.
IN SUMMARY
Very good, a recommended download from the Siege That category.
demipomme
Posted on 12/28/04 @ 12:00 AM
Rating
3.6
Breakdown
Playability
4.0
Balance
3.0
Creativity
5.0
Map Design
3.0
Story/Instructions
3.0
Good castle. I beat it first time on normal. My army was 200 pikemen, 47 of which didn't see action. The castle scored 1755, pretty high, but remember it was a first attempt.
Weaknesses:
-Clustering of ballistas led to one of your ballistas being taken out by another.
-Walls were angled such that there were a few hideaways away from arrow fire
-Archers aren't as powerful as crossbowmen