Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

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Horus2
Posts: 407
Joined: September 26th, 2010, 1:05 pm

Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Horus2 »

Dear Writer Division,

I am the spokesperson of the Ladder Council, and i am looking for your collaboration to come up with descriptions for a couple of maps. Most of these are around since years; you might already saw some of them before, and they have a good chance to end up in the mainline (plus two of my maps from the 2014 contest, which are a different case). However, one condition before giving them an approval is such a flavour text, because map authors avoid the matter entirely, considering themselves not much of a writer.
Below i post the image of the maps and their descriptions as they are. Feel free to improve them in any way you see fitting, or rewrite them entirely. The only directive i got from above is to avoid the generic "two armies clash in this particular landscape" approach if possible, and to interweave some lore elements for bonus points, so you have a big degree of freedom. The maps are really varied, respectively we have:
  • an eerie quagmire
  • a ghost town with a suspicious pit in a cavern, filled with skeletal remains
  • a battle-worn fortification system
  • a forested seasonal wetland of agricultural importance
  • a road built by a previous civilisation
  • an industrious alpine settlement built on volcanic hot spots
  • a khalifate bathing complex.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me; i can also make contact personally with most of the authors upon wish.

Thank you for your help in advance!


Swamp of Dread:
Just north of the Great River is the Swamp of Dread. It is an unhospitable area and only the most dauntless men dared to explore it, only the toughest men dared to colonize it. But most of the men were never seen again, swallowed by the dark magic of the swamp. Still some safer routes through the Swamp of Dread were discovered over the centuries. This is one of those safer routes. Controlling it is beyond beneficial. And that is enough of a reason for you. But beware, one false step and you will be gone forever. Created by Dreadnough.

Hellhole:
Welcome to our fair town; population is you.

Walls of Pyrennis:
War is upon us. They came in numbers and brought the destroyer of cities, Sabre Tooth. Only the Walls of Pyrennis could withstand the siege for the last 10 years, yet now they are breached and the city is ripe for conquest. Our cornered men are known to fight ferociously and can still turn the tide. At dawn, we will fight the final battle... Designed by Rigor.

Clearing Gushes:
N/A

Ruined Passage:
There once was a thriving nation, occupying the whole region. Its people were very prosperous, until one day, a volcano in the area erupted. The overall contentment was slowly breaking, as the weather in the southern region began to fluctuate wildly. The nation had to abandon this area, and expand to the north instead.
After many years of happiness, another group found its way in, and wanted to take over the north. It launched an invasion, making base in the convenient ruins already existing in the south. This is where the story begins. (Created by Bonobo - Great Ape)


Geothermal:
N/A

Bath of Glory:
N/A
Ben24626
Posts: 59
Joined: April 8th, 2015, 1:07 am

Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Ben24626 »

Clearing gushes: the delta of the Great River running into the Baltic Sea to the north has always been a fiercely contested piece of land. Extremely fertile, it makes for good farming land and greatly influences many important trade routes. Through the years it has seen many a battle take place.
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Gyra_Solune
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Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Gyra_Solune »

I will try my hand at this! (you can add in any gameplay clauses like 'best suited for X vs X style of play' or what have you).

Swamp of Dread

North of the Great River lies the Swamp of Dread, a vast, inhospitable mire cursed by foul magic. There exist only a few routes that aren't nearly guaranteed entrapment and death. Nonetheless, they are highly sought after as lucrative bridges between the southern flatlands and the rugged north, and intrepid explorers traverse the perilous bogs in search of profitable places to set up trading posts. The largest of these routes, Areth's Pass, is a long-disputed and well-known crossing since the first ancient wars between elves and dwarves. Despite poor land and limited resources, its great strategic value means it is fiercely contested by all with military aims in the Great Continent's heart.

Hellhole

Once, the town of Yirilel was a tranquil village at the easternmost reaches of humankind. This changed forever upon the rise of the lich warlord Mal-Ravanal, who ripped a gate of unspeakable dark sorcery in the center of town as the first gathering point for his armies of death. Though Mal-Ravanal was defeated, Myrilel remains a place made desolate and ruined, the gate an eternal scar on the land that to this day summons forth legions of wandering undead.

Walls of Pyrennis

When the orcish hordes first began arriving in droves on the Great Continent, one intrepid ruler by the name of Iron-King Olgor set about first uniting the bickering orcish tribes. He sought to conquer the whole of the Continent under the rule of orcs, and commanded the construction of the immense fortress of Pyrennis as a monument to his power. But it was this very citadel that was his undoing - his vassals, unwilling to finish building without their destined conquest complete, turned on Olgor and slayed him, scattering the orcish hosts for centuries to come. The walls of Pyrennis have proved astoundingly indestructible both to time and war - that is, what scattered segments of it were actually completed.

Clearing Gushes

The banks of the Great River make for some of the most fertile land in all the known world. The spring and summer bring floods all along its length, making the soil rich and providing bountiful harvests each autumn. The Kingdom of Wesnoth has turned this land into the engine of their wealth and prosperity - making it the target of countless raids and attacks. The rigorous discipline and organization of Wesnoth's armies are in no small part driven by a constant need to patrol and defend these prosperous lands.

Ruined Passage

The distant west has long been fabled as the homeland of all living things before it was ruined by a deluge of disasters. Legends tell of the ingenuity of the ancients in their final hours as they struggled to fight back violent storms of fire and ash. Only recently have secretive expeditions to this land revealed the truth of these stories - most strikingly, a channel of immense enchanted walls. Between intense volcanic islands and vast seas of molten brimstone lies land kept pristine and untouched - yet mysteriously abandoned nonetheless.

Geothermal

The western reaches of the Heart Mountains make a land of striking contrasts - boiling volcanic cauldrons weaving deep blue rivers between stark, snowy mountains, dotted with fields of verdant green. This land, though sometimes perilous and unstable, is nonetheless rich thanks to numerous foundries using the heat of volcanoes and hot springs to fuel their forges.

Bath of Glory

The distant, legendary city of Malisat is famed for many great works - among its most prized being the enormous complex known as the Bath of Glory. Made to be a relaxing paradise to weary soldiers returning home, the Bath is a stunning oasis built where once was nothing but sand. In time, it has become a city unto its own, with arts and music flourishing about the wild culture centered on the baths. The complex's vastness means flared tempers between wealthy nobles can turn into veritable battlegrounds - but even this has become a form of entertainment woven into the allure of the Bath.
Ben24626
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Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Ben24626 »

Way to completely copy my clearing gushes description in more words.
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Gyra_Solune
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Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Gyra_Solune »

Ben24626 wrote:Way to completely copy my clearing gushes description in more words.
I mean, the Baltic Sea isn't a place in Wesnoth so. But rewriting things seems to be more or less what I do here these days? I meant not anything by it, I just have a particular writing style and wanted to do all of the things up to my own standards, it will be up to the mapmakers to see what they actually want.
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ForPeace
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Location: Kraków, Poland

Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by ForPeace »

Gyra_Solune wrote:
Ben24626 wrote:Way to completely copy my clearing gushes description in more words.
I mean, the Baltic Sea isn't a place in Wesnoth so. But rewriting things seems to be more or less what I do here these days? I meant not anything by it, I just have a particular writing style and wanted to do all of the things up to my own standards, it will be up to the mapmakers to see what they actually want.
The Baltic Sea? Really?

Thank you guys for writing the descriptions, I hope the maps will be included in mainline soon.
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Gyra_Solune
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Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Gyra_Solune »

No problem! I am just sad I was actually kind of late on the ball here - this thread was posted months and months ago and I only just noticed it. They probably could've used this a while back!
Ben24626
Posts: 59
Joined: April 8th, 2015, 1:07 am

Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Ben24626 »

ForPeace wrote:
The Baltic Sea? Really?

Thank you guys for writing the descriptions, I hope the maps will be included in mainline soon.
Idk the Wesnoth oceans so just used an ocean name I know that sounds good. Ofc they can change that part.
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Horus2
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Re: Descriptions for possible future mainline maps

Post by Horus2 »

Gyra_Solune wrote:No problem! I am just sad I was actually kind of late on the ball here - this thread was posted months and months ago and I only just noticed it. They probably could've used this a while back!
I am just as slow to respond, do not worry, and i am aware that you are the sole active writer in these months. These are still not late to get into 1.13 afaik.

These are all excellent work and beyond anything i could have squeezed out of myself. I will forward them to the developer in charge.

I still like the raw energies in the description of the Walls of Pyrennis which was made by the map author itself. I will let the devs decide on which one they settle.

Thank you for your help!
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