Half-castle Map Contest

[The_Necromancer0]

Greetings, companions of Edain!

To celebrate this release, we are organizing a map contest centered around one of the new features included with this patch. This contest will run for 5 weeks starting from today and will focus on this new feature called half-castles. As previously stated, half castles are a mix of castles and camps. They have the defensive capabilities of a castle whether that means the walls, the gates, the wall upgrades and other defensive plots. However, they have the same number of plots as camps, 6 for most factions, 4 for Lorien and 3 for the Misty Mountains. Most importantly, the back area of each half-castle is left completely undefended. They are not closed off by walls or defensive plots, and the citadel is exposed right on the border.

We believe that this can create interesting potential for maps. Due to how the game works, camps and castles cannot be placed closed to each other or close to natural features. They must always be placed on flat ground with space around for the unpacking process. With half castles, you can instead combine half-castles with natural features or other half castles, opening up the type of maps that you can create. This is similar to the way that many of the LotR castles were, not perfect circles but rather partially embedded in natural features such as Minas Tirith, Helm's Deep, Minas Morgul, Isengard and many more.

Rules

• You may work collaboratively on the map.
• The map should be your own creation as much as possible.
• You must only use assets from the mod, you cannot add new assets or use assets from other mods.
• You are allowed to make map.ini modifications.
• The map's height should be the standard Edain map height of 533.
• Your map should make use of the new half-castles prominently.
• You may ask for help when creating your map. A good place to ask is the #modding-workshop channel.

Registration
If you're interested, read through the rules carefully and feel free to reach out in the discord or on the forums if you have any questions about the map contest. Send the following to @officialNecro on Discord, MU or ModDB. This information is not final, you may change the map name and description freely after registration. This is just so we get a basic idea of what you plan to do and offer some feedback. Registration will not close until the date of the final submission on the 13th of December.

• Map name: Don't forget to include if this will be an Arnor, Belfalas, Horde, Mission, Exploration, etc…. Keep it to a max of 30 characters.
  
• Map description: This is mostly fluff, in the final version it should include precise information like creep lairs, starting points, size and expansion points.
  
• Map concept: Tell us what you're thinking about, so we can potentially provide a few pointers. This can include a picture of the basic layout.
  
• Map region: What region of Middle-earth is your map located in? Below is a list of map regions that would be interesting to consider.
  

Voting Process
Maps that have been finished and are similar to the quality of other Edain maps will be entered into the voting phase. There will be two winners. One winner will be voted on by the community and one winner will be voted on by the mod team. If the winners are the same, then the second place from the community vote will be declared the community winner. The mod team will judge the maps based on the following loose set of criteria and based on how much they like each map:

• Layout: How interesting the layout is. Consider the symmetry or asymmetry of the design and how it impacts gameplay.
• Texturing: The diversity of the texturing and the quality (no rough edges, no obvious repeating).
• Concept: How good the map is at fulfilling its concept:
  • If it’s a Horde map, are the enemies varied and the difficulty increasing?
  • If it’s a Mission map, is the story interesting and does it flow well?
  • If it’s a skirmish map, is it balanced with equivalent amount of creeps, plots and expansions?
  • If it’s any other type of map, we will endeavor to evaluate based on uniqueness and how well the gameplay flows
• Props: Are props used in an interesting way to give the map more life?
• Atmosphere: How well does the map match with the area of Middle-earth you selected?

Reward
Both the winner of the community vote and the winner of the team vote will be included in the Edain Mod once the map is in a finished state. We reserve the right to make changes to the map to ensure this. The name and description may be altered slightly to fit in with the rest of the mod. A line in the description will give credit to the creator and their name will be added to the Edain Mod credits file. The maps will get individual showcases on the Edain YouTube channel.

Disclaimer! The two maps will be kept in the Edain mod unless they break due to future patches of Edain. If they break, the mod team will attempt a simple fix. If a simple fix is not enough, we will reach out to the map creator to give them an opportunity to send a fixed version. If no new version is sent, the map will be removed in the next version of the map with the possibility of being re-added once fixed.

Timeline

• Today -> Announcement
• 3 weeks -> First draft phase.  At the end of the 2 weeks, participants will be asked to send a first draft. This is to gauge progress and provide feedback.
• 6 weeks -> Final submissions. During that time you may request feedback by posting about your map.
• 9 days -> Voting phase
• Winners announced

Mapping Resources
Mapping in Edain can be a challenge if you aren't familiar with it. Below, we have gathered a list of tutorials that should help you get started. As always, if you have questions or run into issues, we recommend opening a thread in #modding-workshop on discord or on the forums where people can help you.

• Edain Mapping guide with links to tutorials on how to create a map
• How to adjust Maps to Edain (and how to exactly place half-castles for Teamcastles)
  
• List of props
  

Below listed the name of the new half castle objects. They are all available in the worldbuilder under the Flags > MISC_MAN_MADE tab:

• HalfCastlePlotFlag
• HalfCastlePlotFlagS
• HalfCastlePlotFlagW
• HalfCastlePlotFlagN
• HalfCastlePlotFlagE
• HalfCastlePlotFlagSE
• HalfCastlePlotFlagSW
• HalfCastlePlotFlagNW
• HalfCastlePlotFlagNE

These object offer multiple orientations to avoid having to rotate them as much as possible.

Additionally, it is important to know that if you plan to place two castles against each other the gap between the two must be exactly 200 units. This ensures that the end pieces of each wall connect perfectly.

Selecting a Region
We want the map to be located in Middle Earth. To show you that there are still lots of places in Middle Earth not yet used, we’ve created a list of unused places from Rohan and Mordor. You can of course use a place from another region.
The places are divided into 3 categories:
1) Place and name as described by Tolkien; can be enriched with Edain canon in the info texts.
2) Place as described by Tolkien, the name was invented; can be enriched with Edain canon in the info texts.
3) Place created in order to enrich the Edain canon

Unused Places in Rohan

Rivers and Streams:
Entwash¹ - The river Entwash or Onodló rises in several springs on the Methedras and flows through the Fangorn Forest, through Rohan and finally flows into the Anduin at the mouths of the Entwash.
Mering Stream¹ - The Mering Stream, or Glanhír, is a small stream that flows from the Ered Nimrais down through the Firienholt and into the Mouths of the Entwash, marking the border between Rohan and Gondor.
Isen¹ - The river Isen or Sîr Angren rises on the Methedras, flows past Isengard, through the Gap of Rohan and finally westwards, where it meets the Adorn, with which it forms the western borders of Rohan.
Limlight¹ - The Limlight or Limhír is a river that rises in the Misty Mountains, runs through the Fangorn Forest and flows into the Anduin. It forms the natural border of the northernmost region of Rohan, the Wold.


Lakes, Seas, Coasts, Shores and Islands:
Three-island Corner³ - Where the Snowbourn flows into the River Entwash, there are three small moss-covered islands in the middle of the river. According to Rohirrim legend, in ancient times small gardens of the Entwives were to be found here, but after their disappearance they became overgrown with moss.
Road-island³ - A small island in the Anduin above the Emyn Muil serves as a crossing over the river. A wooden bridge leads from the Wold to the island and another from there to the later abandoned region of Barannor in Gondor. However, the width and stability of the bridge only allows a small number of troops to cross it at once.


Hills, Mountains and Mountain Ranges:
Starkhorn¹ - The Starkhorn was a mighty mountain in the Ered Nimrais, its jagged peak covered in eternal snow. It rose to the south, over the head of the Harrowdale of Rohan, and on a cliff of the mountain lay the fortress of Dunharg.
East Wall of Rohan¹ - East Wall was the name the Rohirrim gave to the western part of the Emyn Muil, as it formed the border to Gondor. This was unusual, as all other borders of Rohan were defined by rivers.


Forests:
Firienholt¹ - The Firienholt  or Eryn Fuin is the forest along the Mering Stream on the slopes of Halifirien, on the borders of Anórien and Rohan. The Great Western Road ran through the forest. From there, a path led to the top of the mountain. It was also called Everholt because of its large population of wild boar.
Dimholt¹ - The Dimholt or Tawar-i-Nollas was a small and dark forest on the edge of Harrowdale before the Dark Door, the entrance to the Paths of the Dead beneath Dwimorberg.


Roads:
Deeping-road¹ - The Deeping-road runs from the Hornburg in Helm's Deep parallel to the Deeping-stream to the Westfold valley, where it meets the Great West Road.
Three-Village-Cross³ - The Three-Village-Cross is a wayside cross that connects the three settlements of Éofled, Hod and Little Wolding in the East-mark.


Settlements, Towns and Fortresses
Upbourn¹ - Upbourn was a hamlet located in Rohan, south of Edoras on the banks of the Snowbourn in the valley of Harrowdale.
Underharrow¹ - Underharrow was a hamlet on the banks of the Snowbourn river beneath the cliff of Dunharrow in the valley of Harrowdale in Rohan.
Grimslade¹ - Grimslade is the de facto capital of the Westfold and home to Lord Grimbold.
Bold³ - Bold is the de facto capital of the Wold close to the Fangorn Forest and home to Lord Sigbold.
Hof³ - Hof is the de facto capital of the Eastemnet at the slopes of the Emyn Muil and home to Lord Elfred.
Wested³ -  Wested is the de facto capital of the West-march at the slopes of the Ered Nimrais, that was later occupied by Dunlendings during the War of the Ring.
Colburg³ - Colburg is the de facto capital of the Gap of Rohan near the river Isen, that was later occupied by Dunledings during the War of the Ring.
Stonefleet³ - Stonefleet is the de facto capital of the Westemnet and home to Lord Stánbrand.
Ethelslade³ - Ethelslade is the de facto capital of the Eastfold and home to Lord Ethelwinë.
Marchtun³ - Marchtun is the de facto capital of the Fenmarch and home to Lord Wulfric.
Éofled³ - Éofleet is the de facto capital of the East-mark and home to Lord Gálred.


Regions:
Fenmarch¹ - The Fenmarch, is the easternmost and smallest region of Rohan as well as the border area to Gondor, is one of four administrative regions of the East-mark. The region lies between the rivers Entwash and Mering Stream and the Firienholt. In the Third Age, Hróthlác was Lord of the Fenmarch.
Folde¹ - The Folde, is the central region of Rohan and one of two administrative regions of the King’s Land. The region lies below the river Snowbourn and borders the Eastfold to the east and the Harrowdale to the south. In the Third Age, Éomer was Lord of the Folde.
Harrowdale¹ - Harrowdale is one of two administrative regions of the King's Land and is located in a large valley of the White Mountains. In addition to the Snowbourn, other smaller streams flow through the valley. Dunharg and other small villages were located in the valley. Dúnherë was Lord of Harrowdale in the Third Age.

Unused Places in Mordor

Rivers and Streams:
Nargil¹ - The Nargil is one of the four rivers that feed the great Lake Núrnen in southern Mordor. It springs from the Ephel Dúath in the mountain pass of the same name. The reddish-brown color of the water is due to the sediments it carries, giving the river its name.
Gurthrant² - The Gurthrant River springs in the southwestern Ephel Dúath and flows into Lake Núrnen. On the three small islands in the river, the orcs pile up dead slaves to burn, which gives the river its name.
Cúlduin² - The river Cúlduin flows from a spur of the Ered Lithui through Núrn into the lake Núrnen in the south of Mordor. Its raging and difficult to cross currents gave it its name.
Sírlith² - The longest river in Mordor, the Sírlith flows from its source near the orc fortress of Turag Orchoth and forms the natural border of the Núrn region in the east, before finally making a detour west and flowing into Lake Núrnen. It owes its name to the Ash Mountains, where it springs.
Morgulduin¹ - The Morgulduin was a river in Gondor that began in the Morgul Valley in Ephel Dúath. It flowed westwards past Minas Morgul until it reached the crossroads in Ithilien.


Lakes, Seas, Coasts, Shores and Islands:
Núrnen¹ - The great lake Núrnen lies in the south of Mordor and is fed by four rivers, two of which spring from Ered Lithui and two from Ephel Dúath. The forest of Eryn Núras stretches along its southern shores.
Tol Droeg³ - The island in the river Sírlith was known for its warg population, which is why it was given the name Island of Wolves.
Caer Daen³ - The three small islands in the river Gurthrant were used by orcs to pile up dead slaves and burn them.


Hills, Mountains and Mountain Ranges:
Ephel Dúath¹ - The Mountains of Shadow or Ephel Dúath form the western and southern borders of the land of Mordor. With the exception of a few mountain passes, the mountains are practically impassable.
Ered Lithui¹ - The Ash Mountains or Ered Lithui form the northern border of the land of Mordor. A shorter southern spur within the Amlad Gorgoroth ended at the hill on top of which towered Sauron's stronghold Barad-dûr. The mountain range takes its name from the ashen gray color of its rocks.
Ered Melaid³ - The Golden Mountains, or Ered Melaid, in the far east of Mordor formed a border with the lands of Rhûn. At the foot of the mountain stretched the Imlad Malad, above which stands the mining fortress of Felamindon, whose tunnels and shafts go deep into the mountain, where slaves are forced to mine ore for the Dark Lord.


Forests:
Eryn Núras² - The Eryn Núras is the only greater forest in Mordor and lies south of the lake Núrnen. It once stretched over large areas around the lake, but most of it has been cut down. The river Nargil flows through the forest, as well as two smaller unnamed streams that connect Lake Núrnen with a smaller lake within the forest on whose shore stands the fortress Bolband.


Roads:
Morgul-road¹ - The Morgul-road led from the Cross-roads in Ithilen about 10 miles through the Shadow Mountains and then ran from the Tower of Cirith Ungol to the Plain of Gorgoroth. It was not particularly well developed and very narrow.
Sauron's Road¹ - Sauron's Road leads from Barad-dûr over a large iron bridge and across the Plateau of Gorgoroth to Mount Doom.
Lamentation Route³ - The Lamentation Route refers to several paths that lead from the Plateau of Gorgoroth through the Pass of Núrlang to Núrn. In the millennia of Middle-earth's history, many slaves, herded by hordes of orcs, passed along this route to the slave fields.
Amartharbad³ - The so-called Doom Cross is located in the north-west of Mordor and forms the crossroads between the most important roads in Mordor. To the east you reach the fortress of Barad-dûr, to the south the lamentation route, to the west the pass of Cirith Ungol and the Morgul Valley, to the north Durthang and the Black Gate and to the north-west Mount Doom.
Malbad³ - The Golden Road is the only continuous route through the wastelands of Rhudarchos and leads eastwards from Múlbar. The road got its name because the gold mining fortress of Felamindon was located at its eastern end.


Settlements, Towns and Fortresses:
Durthang¹ - Durthang was a fortress built by the people of Gondor in the early Third Age, until it was taken over by Sauron's forces. It stood on a mountain ridge on the western side of Udûn in the interior of Mordor. It was connected to the other fortresses of the realm, Barad-dûr, the Morannon and the tower of Cirith Ungol, by a system of roads.
Bolband³ - Bolband is a fortress in southern Mordor, in the Núrn region, located on a small lake in the forest of Eryn Núras. In the Third Age, it served as a torture chamber and prison for slaves who resisted or were too old and weak for physical labor.
Minas Núrn³ - Minas Núrn was one of the twin fortresses built to guard the pass of Núrlang. It was also a center for the distribution of slaves. The physically strong were sent to work in the slave fields or in the slave mines, while the weakened were sent to the prison fortress of Bolband or executed on the spot. The Shadow Lord, one of the Nazgûl, was based there during the War of the Ring.
Núrnost³ - Núrnost was one of the twin fortresses built to guard the pass from Núrlang. It was also a center for the distribution of slaves. The physically strong were sent to work in the slave fields or in the slave mines, while the weakened were sent to the prison fortress of Bolband or executed on the spot. The Dark Marshall, one of the Nazgûl, was based there during the War of the Ring.
Turag Orchoth³ - Turag Orchoth is the largest orc fortress in Mordor. It was only built in the Third Age. At the time of the War of the Ring, the orc Darzkár was the captain of the fortress.
Múlbar³ - Múlbar was the name of the settlement in Núrn where the slaves who toiled in the fields for the troops of Mordor were housed.
Barad Thang³ - Barad Thang was a guard post at the foot of the mountain range of the Ered Lithui in the region of Lithlad.
Felamindon³ - Felamindon was a tower in Mordor that stood in the Imlad Malad and served as a sentry post for the enslaved miners in the Ered Melaid. It was also the Mordor’s easternmost and only settlement east of the great impassable and beast-filled plains of Rhudarchos.


Passes and Vallleys:
Cirith Nargil¹ - Cirith Nargil was a narrow pass through the Ephel Dúath that led from Khand to the south-east of Mordor. It was named after the Nargil river that flows through it and was used by the Variags and Haradrim to enter Mordor from the south. However, numerous landslides have made the pass difficult to traverse and impassable for large numbers of troops.
Cirith Morgul¹ - The Cirith Morgul was a pass in a large gorge at the head of the Imlad Morgul. A steep staircase carved into the mountain leads to the high pass of Cirith Ungol.
Imlad Morgul¹ - The Imlad Morgul is the valley through which the river Morgulduin flows from the western end of the Ered Lithui, finally flowing into the Anduin in Ithilien. In the valley stands the fortress of Minas Morgul, defiant stronghold of the Witch-king of Angmar during the War of the Ring.
Cirith Gorgor¹ - The haunted pass of Cirith Gorgor is the pass between the mountain ranges of the Ered Lithui and the Ephel Dúath in the far north of Mordor. It is sealed by the Black Gate and guarded by the two Towers of the Teeth Narchost and Carchost.
Núrlang³ - The Núrlang is the pass that runs between the mountain branches of the Ered Lithui and the Ephel Dúath and connects the high plateau of Gorgoroth and the region Núrn. The pass got its name from the fact that the slaves and prisoners had to pass through it and from there were sent on to labor camps to work under most difficult conditions for the Dark Lord.
Hargiloth³ - Hargiloth refers to the large gaps between the mountain ranges of Ephel Dúath and Ered Melaid in southeastern Mordor.
Forgiloth³ - Forgiloth refers to the large gaps between the mountain ranges of Ered Lithui and Ered Melaid in northeastern Mordor.
Imlad Malad³ - Imlad Malad is the valley formed by the two branches of the Ered Melaid in eastern Mordor. In the valley stands the mining fortress of Felamindon, whose tunnels and shafts go deep into the mountain, where slaves are forced to mine ore for the Dark Lord.


Regions:
Rhudarchos³ - The wastelands of Rhudarchos lie to the east of the river Sírlith and form the easternmost region of Mordor up to the Ered Malad. Mostly impassable terrain inhabited by beasts, there are only few unpaved roads through the region to the valley of Imlad Malad and a few branches through the northern and southern gaps to Rhûn and Harad.
Múlbel³ - The slave fields of Múlbel lie near the Sea of Núrn. It is here that Sauron's servants force slaves to grow food and raw materials for the war effort.
Roglad³ - The northern portion of the wastelands of Rhudarchos is often referred to as the “Demon Plains”. This name stems from the misconception that the deaths, which are actually due to the treacherous flora and fauna, were caused by devilish demons.
Rhevennyr³ - The southern portion of the wastelands of Rhudarchos is often referred to as the “Beast Lands”. This name stems from the treacherous fauna in the region.

[Halbarad]

Greetings, Companions of Edain!

Following the first announcement, we’d like to share some additional information:
1. We have extended the deadline for submitting the final version of the map to December 13, which corresponds to a total of 9 weeks for mapping.
2. We have updated the files in the All-in-One Launcher. The Worldbuilder now automatically includes the 4GB patch, which makes it more crash-resistant. If your Worldbuilder still causes issues, we recommend checking the Wiki for entries on tips, common problems, and their solutions — or contacting us directly.
3. Information on how to build half-castles near mountains and rivers, and how to design the beautiful team fortresses, summarized in two images:

4. Blueprint Map
To make it easier to get started with mapping, we have prepared a template map that can be used so that you can focus directly on the map design. The teams are already set up here, and relevant objects such as settlements, outposts, creeps, and waypoints for Gollum are already placed and just need to be copied and moved to the right position. Starting Half-Castles and associated waypoints for players 1 to 8 are also already named and just need to be moved into the borders of the map (or deleted if you don't need them). As always: Don't rotate the Half-Castle, replace them with other orientations if nessecary. In the map scripts, you will also find a template for a script that ensures that the player or AI starts directly with a double half-fortress. The additional files contain the map.ini files for generic maps and maps with Belafals or Arnor. The readme.txt file contains further explanations.

Download the Blueprint Map here

The Paths are used for Spells like "Reinforcements of Harad")

(Soundflags are markers for sound that will be played ingame if the player gets close to the spot where the flag is)

The FarmTemplate on the left side of the map is a marker for AI-Farms in Freebuild-Mode. The size of the map can of course be adjusted in the Worldbuilder through "File/Resize...".