The Renegade Wizards Map, version 1.6 by Camelotcrusade & DiosDelSol This is a 96x96 map that includes all four races. It is designed for moderately high level heroes (levels 10-20). The map includes a story, lots of fights, and challenging bosses. Story: All the races are in direct competition with one another over three ancient relics, said to be the three necessary tools for completing a ritual that will unlcok great powers. Complicating what is already all-out war, though, is that a group of wizards calling themselves the "renegade wizards" has banded together and captured the relics, vowing to keep them from mortal hands at any cost. Objective: Gather the three relics and return them to their respective altars to complete the ritual. Designers' Notes: Most encounters are balanced--they should mostly all start out reasonably challenging, and then prove easier as your troops level up. By the time most random fights begin seeming too easy, you're probably ready to start subduing the other races and doing your best to take on the 3 bosses, who are sure to give any hero a run for his money. We hope you have fun for this map--we didn't design it to be too hard, just something fun to do with your heroes after they've been through their campaign. Here are a few notes about it if you're interested in what to expect... ---- Point of the map -- beat the three bosses and get the artifacts and see what happens then. Everything else is just details. The stacks are there to give you levels, some of which are challenging. Almost all of them are "optional" fights. Level of heroes -- really just an arbitrary decision to give the AI a small chance. I expect most people import their leaders. I put the starting level at 10, because that gives the AI at least one big champion. Strong enemy stacks -- weak enemy stacks around castles aren't there because you need to use strategies and the abilities of a high level hero to defeat the stacks. Some of them you can't beat with level 1 troops, either, so you have to come back, maybe a lot later. I managed to beat nearly every ecounter on the map without somebody dying (for real), I just had to use different strategis (I didn't use the same approach to all the stacks.) The stacks are balanced for mid-high level troops, and when they become easy it's time to fight the bosses and win. You shouldn't have to return to heal much at all, if you can't beat it, don't fight it. As a small side note, The LoD has a slightly harder starting point b/c the armies are a little stronger and they have to go farther to find potions. They need the extra xp though if they plan to bring demons along. Tons of resources -- I see no reason to make lack of resources an issue on the map. It's just not something I care to do, there are enough strategic issues to worry about besides lots of resources. You can find ways to spend your money, believe me. Some events, but not many -- just a personal preference. There are a few, but no more than you would expect to find on a Strategy First map. I find lots of events annoying and personally like only maybe 5-6 per map. Special starting units -- you can use some really neat tactics with these if you choose to use them. For example, with the mountain clans I was able to have a druidess and an alchemist. For the LoD, I took the witch, the dopple, a cultist, a warrior lord and two knights. The witch is now on level 12 or something near the end of the game and has tons of hit points, the cultist became and incubus. But before we has an incubus my dopple would become whatever was better, a witch or a fire magic user. Now I have to keep the witch to get around weapon immunities and to negate armor bonuses when I want to. ;0) You see, you can use these units to a big advantage. Finally, it's not supposed to be very challenging, just fun. So don't expect to have your socks knocked off with tough fights and sit through each battle with white-knuckled terror. The bosses will be challenging, but if you have the right strategies (and we made sure they are all quite beatable) you will crush them. Keep these new things in mind when you play and relax. You don't have to beat all the stacks, just the ones you want to try and take out. Your goal is to capture the three artifacts and take them to the altars, nothing more.... ----------- Have fun, Camelotcrusade camelot_crusade@hotmail.com & DiosDelSol diosdelsol@aol.com ---------- Update 1.6 fixes several spelling errors, replaces a few redundant magical items, and fixes a major bug where the ending sequence would not play out probably for the LoD.