No less than fourteen maps were submitted for this tournament from some of the best mapmakers around. The judging was hard, as the maps were many, and incredibly elaborate (almost too much for tournament map). Despite the maps bulging with much color and creativity, the judging was ruthless and very critical. Every judge had their own set of criteria they found important. All agreed the submissions were quite a handful.

But in the end, after averaging the four scores of Menno, Engineerd, Dafyth, and Swolte on domains such as 'Playability', 'Balance', 'Atmosphere', and 'Overall impression', the following maps made it to the top five:

1. Too much water
2. The Lion The Witch and the Warfare (By Rheno)
3. Rocky Divide (by Killkenny)
4. The Gods Arena of Magic and Power (by The Groll)
5. Desolation Domination (by Needles)

And so, big congratulations to the winner, the author of the map 'Too much Water' our very own...
TIMELORD!!

He can now proudly wear the title: '2009 1v1-mapmaking champion' (in bold yellow) in his sig (if he wants), and his map is guaranteed to be used for the upcoming pbem tournament.
Please congratulate him here.

Please check out the mappack with all 14 maps 'as submitted' here. Note that all map-authors are strongly urged to upload the maps themselves, so that you can provide them with direct feedback, and the authors can improve their maps.

Last, but not least, a big thanks to all those who have contributed to this tournament. Though I am sure some will be disappointed, I can assure you that all maps have been great, and beyond mine, and many other judge's expectations. I am sure that you will agree to this when you download the above pack.

Some of the maps will be used for an upcoming pbem tournament which is planned two months from now.

Once in while, a map comes by that contains more content than an entire campaign. The Groll has been famous (and infamous!) for maps that are rich in terms of detail. So is the amount of characters, events, and background story in his maps simply astounding and unrivaled to this date.

After more than a four years since work on this map started, The Groll has finally released his masterpiece: Marlene's Laughter.
Today!



If you enjoyed Gates of Elocin, and Secrets of Marlenia, and you thought these were epic, than this piece of work will simply blow you away. The map is XXL (using a program by PawelS), and contains over 5500 events. I don't know what else to say but to urge you to download it and wrestle yourself through the multitude of options and lock yourself up for a month, or three...
It will definitely be an experience unlike you've ever had with this game. I've had the privilege of playing a bit already and am thoroughly impressed. There will be things you probably didn't even know were possible with the editor...

Here is a large image with some more information on the map:
Preview of the story

Download the map here and enjoy!! Feedback is welcome in this thread.

~ Your Seraph

The 2009, 1v1, mapmaking tournament is slowly coming to and end. Two more weeks to go before the deadline! It's still not too late to sign up and give it your best shot -> here!

I have received a few submissions already. Keep them coming!

You've waited long enough... The maps were made a couple months ago... Our expert panel has now made their comments... And they are very interesting reads! But we need your help, we need every forum member to go Vote! That's right, read through the comments, check out the map, play it a bit and Vote! That's right... just give it a score, we need your input here.. 7 Maps were submitted in two different themes for the Winter Holiday Mapmaking Competition. Some really good maps, check them out.

And... if you're bored and want to see another exciting tournament just come down to this thread to watch 18 players go to battle in this doubles tournament. Exciting times at AoW1... What's next? Well... we'll save that for another Newspost!

The maps were finished some time ago and the judges are almost done. It's been a fun adventure as we've recorded the chat sessions with the judges. Ever wanted to know what the judges really think? How bold can they be in their comments? Did they get it right and do you agree with their analysis? Their comments will soon be made available to the public. Sample comments can be found following the link below. Stay Tuned!

Now we just need your help! That's right, it will soon be time for the community to judge the maps. Starting Mar 15th the voting booths open and you will have two weeks to call in your vote on the maps. That's right, you, the community, get to vote on the maps. Take this week to start reviewing the maps so you're ready to vote next week. It's going to be a great discussion the rest of this month so come join the fun!

The link is here .

That's right... time for another tourney... this time it will be a 2v2 tourney. Sign ups started just yesterday for this tourney and we already have 7 players with more to sign up. Haven't played AoW1 for awhile, well that's ok, the teams are going to be selected such that an experienced player gets paired up with a less experienced one. So don't be afraid if you're rusty, come join the fun. Details can be found
here.

Also, we have just started a thread where we are discussing the fun playing AoW1 online. If you want to join that discussion then come on down here. We'd love to get the online games moving forward and we can use your help.

Dear talented,

I would like to announce the start of an official Heavengames mapmaking tournament. The task is simple - to make the best 1v1 tournament map, ever...

If you think you are up for the challenge*, you better stop lurking on this front page soon and go here immediately, as you will have two months to complete this task!

~ Your Seraph

* or just have some fun trying!

I am glad to announce the divine transformation of cherub Enginerd to Angel Enginerd!

He has been a Cherub since July 2007 and he has done an outstanding job ever since. This has been demonstrated in the successful organization of multiple tournaments and his calm, yet consistent enthusiasm. He has taken over almost all responsibilities for the AoW1-part of the site, and, in the process, gained my full confidence!

His new angelic powers will grant him the power to change some of the webpages and control over the downloads sections. I am sure he will put these to good use.

Please congratulate him
here!

Happy New Year everyone and it certainly has been an eventful year for us at AoW1. Looking back we had a lot of fun... and we're still having fun. The submission deadline for the Holiday Mapmaking Competition has just ended. There were 6 maps submitted for the two different themes. Surprisingly we got 5 entries for the Historical theme, including a rookie map from a long time veteran of the game. Once again Skout77 submits multiple maps, a regular in the competition and has always scored well in them. Arctic Wolf is looking to repeat a victory from last time. Great maps, check them out. Judging will begin soon and we’ll need your help as the entire community will be participating as judges. Details here .

The 1v1 tourney that started several weeks ago is progressing well. Of the 16 players that signed up for this single elimination tourney there are only 8 players left alive, Congratulations to Thorongil for being the first player to make it to the Semi Finals. He'll face Enginerd or Zsaber before he can lay claim to being in the finals. Disenchanted and Draco are set to fight it out in the quarter finals and Eriksson stands ready to face his quarter final match against two newer players still finishing their 1st round match. Check out all the details here .

Lots happening as we will soon be announcing a 2v2 tourney that we hope to kick off soon. Come and join us at AoW1 Heaven!

On behalf of Heavengames and staff, I'd like to wish you all great holidays!

Please drop by if you need to relax from all the family obligations, snow shoveling, or tedious card-writing. The Merry Christmas thread by Naeco is the place to wish your fellow AoW-ers the best this close to the end of 2008!

If you find some time to play a game, I would highly recommend to take a look in the downloads section. Morgul666's unique project has reached completion (right on time!) and should keep you busy for the holidays (and probably the following year, judging by a small peek...). The map is based on the Dwiggs mod (currently easy to install!) but still requires a placement of additional resources.
Just get it here, its worth it!

Other reason to keep checking the site the coming days are:

- Some whispering I have received from The Groll. I have heard Santa Groll may conjure up a present for you as well the coming days (I was sworn to secrecy regarding its content).
- It may be interesting to peek at the AoW section and see what Engineerd is concocting. Exciting projects are underway.
- Old and influential forces like Draco and Fingers are slowly showing their presence again, something I find quite exciting - a testament to the ageless quality of the series!

Oh, and the unofficial patch v1.4 is nearing an unprecedented 50,000 downloads. Perhaps we'll go over before the new year!?

All the best!

~ Your Seraph