Posts from Shades of Darkness

Name: "Dark Shades"
Map name: "Dark Shades"
Map type: scenario
Size: 176x176 (large)
Dungeon: yes
Number of players: 5
Main hero: Railag
Map version: 3.0
Required: game version 3.1
Map author: AstralLein
Idea author: AstralLein
Last update: 13.01.2025
Prequel: "Path of the Necromancer"
Sequel: "Doom of Grimheim"
Forbidden spells: vampirism, armageddon, astral gate, evasion, summon ship, summon reinforcements
Difficulty: high
Description:
Igg-Shail has slumbered for too long. While the world changed and new lords took hold, the dark elves led by Railag lurked in the shadows. They managed to gather strength and longed for action, but the Chieftain was still unwilling to return his people to the face of Ashan. Now a new great war has begun. Railag must decide once more to remember former greatness, and in this, only the Daughter of Malassa can help him. While the dwarves of Grimheim and Arantir's undead legions attempt to shake the colossus of the Unicorn Empire's military machine, the intervention of the children of Tuidhana may become decisive in this war.

From the author: The long-awaited sequel to the map "Path of the Necromancer". A story scenario for the Dungeon. Quite and very complex. As always, non-standard moments and additional quests are present. Including new units, objects, and artifacts. The scenario consists of three stages, each differing in gameplay. IMPORTANT! The scenario is tailored for the logistics skill. You can obtain it at the very beginning for free via a witch's hut. Be mindful of leveling logistics, especially on Hero difficulty. It is also advisable to try and tempo, as the enemies' strength grows while you wander in search of the faceless. I note that the map can be completed with different builds at different stages of the game, and all opportunities for creating a powerful hero are present.

The map is a pure mod! Install only on a clean version of the game! It conflicts with most other map-mods, especially my other maps!

Versions
v0.1 beta
— First version of the map (thoroughly tested by comrade Gerter)
v1.0
— Countless balance tweaks
— Script and bug fixes
— Several new scripts
v1.1 (21.09.2022)
— Summon Ship and Summon Reinforcements spells are forbidden
— All parts of the dragon set and Tome of Power received Relic quality level and cannot be found in red Dragon Utopias
— All creature banks, except red Dragon Utopias, do not grant artifacts
— Fixed an error with turquoise player patrols where they could stand still if a player was in their zone
— Patrols no longer attack with a delay on the player's turn if their movement range is insufficient to attack Railag within strike radius
— Improved cutscene with Frederick and Orion
— Increased reward for the dwarf quest
— Increased one of the intermediate rewards for the thief quest
— The capitals of blue and green players now have a tavern, but the corresponding AI can use it only to resurrect Orion or Frederick
— Miv, Ilfina, and Rutger received a fixed amount of Knowledge
— Changes to the skills of Vittorio, Talanar, and Miv
— Vittorio, Talanar, Rutger, Orion, and Frederick now receive fixed armies instead of time-linked ones. Nevertheless, Orion and Frederick are still resurrected with armies depending on the number of weeks, and their primary army is strengthened by capital growth
— Reduced army growth for Miv and Ilfina
— Faceless assassins lose one use of Invisibility
— Some neutrals strengthened in the final stage of the game
— Fixed earth elementals that grew in number over time
— The final boss regained randomly lost Expert Leadership
— Several typos fixed
— Several other minor changes
v2.0 (23.07.2023)
— Slightly changed the path of the first turquoise player patrol
— Paths of both turquoise player patrols are now highlighted to the player much more generously, especially the first one
— Several neutral detachments on the first stage of the map slightly strengthened
— New mana wells added to the first stage of the map
— Fixed water elemental numbers in the secret area of the first stage of the map
— The last turquoise player patrol can no longer catch the player to the left of the lake
— Final battle of the first stage slightly complicated
— Rewards for the additional dwarf quest revised
— Reward for the quest searching for faceless shelters is now fixed
— Reduced number of troops below tier 6 for Ilfina and Miv
— Obsidian giants are now considered Dungeon creatures
— Certain characteristics of all faceless slightly increased
— Adjusted grades at the outpost near the green player's capital
— Just in case, Frederick and Orion are forbidden from respawning in dark elf cities
— Several text fixes
v3.0 (13.01.2025)
— Final battle of the first stage replaced with a new one against a Warlock hero
— Orion and Frederick now respawn with fixed armies, which are much less "meaty" compared to the old version
— Slightly reduced number of t1-t5 for Miv and Ilfina
— Health pool of the final stage boss reduced to 12000. The boss also received the "Enchanted Armor" ability
— Souless model replaced with a new one from Zakhar
— Instead of Sorgall, Railag can now hire Letos in the second part of the map
— Added mushrooms around one squad of dwarves in the dungeon, which were sometimes wiped out by the first patrol in passing

Thanks to Gerter and }{0TT@6bI4 for help with particularly difficult scripts; fktifzobr@mail.ru, Denis Rakhmatullin, LordKhorne, Zakhar, Roman RRR, Frozensoull, Hannik and the NCF, NHF and NAF mod teams for the models and icons used; once again Gerter for testing the first version of the map, Remix and Flame_Haze for completing version 1.0, as well as many map makers and modders from whose works I drew inspiration .

Reasonable criticism and feedback are welcome.

Enjoy the game!

Link: google drive

Screenshots:

Difficulty: very high 😔
“About five” people will play, and that’s it.

There is a magical solution: the difficulty levels "Recruit" and "Warrior" are used. The difficulty ranking is maintained by map scripts.) The difficulty level indicated in the header is for the Hero and is based on the average young player. As a reminder, "The Necromancer's Path" also had a Very High difficulty level (I changed it to High with the release of Shades of Darkness), but it didn't even come close to achieving hardcore status among experienced players.

So, this is just a warning, not a hard fact. You won't find Master's level here. My map balance aims for approximately the level of RedHeavenHero.

Could you make the download link simpler? This one leads to 27 files, and it's unclear which one to download.

Added 50 minutes later
On the fourth day of the game, immediately after visiting the first altar, a certain Faceless Guardian of level 40 with stats around 30 and a huge amount of health attacks the main character, and that's the end. I wonder, did the author even test their map?

Oh my god. So many years have passed, and Antik hasn't changed at all. As for masgak, that's a minor detail.

The link leads directly to the map, lol. It just shows a preview of its contents because the pak file is read as an archive. There's only one file, and you can download it using the Google Drive button in the upper right corner. Have you never used Google Drive before?

I tested my creation, and not even alone. But whether you read the message from the script that prevents Raillag from leaving the starting corridor is a big question. It not only contains a clear hint about the essence of the Guardian but also highlights all the points where it stops.

But if it's still so unclear, the Guardian runs in circles and attacks Raillag only if he stays overnight within its aggro range. The radius is quite large for the Hero, but it's easily avoided, and there are no problems looting everything and running to another zone, leaving the Guardian behind. There was a similar mission in the original game: you had to guide Markel past patrols of mages. They were, of course, easier, but instead of an invincible army, they had a script that counted as a loss for the player if the patrol attacked.

I'll tell you more: I personally cleared that area of the map (my map) with the Hero, without the Logistics skill.

AstralLein

I couldn't even complete "The Necromancer's Path" on recruit difficulty. I guess I still don't know how to play. :)
I will definitely try to complete the new one. Thanks for the maps, keep up the good work!

AstralLein

I couldn't even complete "Path of the Necromancer" on Recruit difficulty! I guess I still don't know how to play.
Of course, I'll try to complete the new one. Thanks for the maps, keep up the good work!

I'm even curious about what went wrong for you on Recruit in the Path of the Necromancer? Troop growth, hero stats, and AI resources are minimal; the player starts with many resources and quickly gains experience. I remember I completed this map for fun on Warrior difficulty; it was like taking a walk in the park! The only thing is: the difficulty level doesn't affect the strength of the neutrals, but they don't grow over time, and the player can very quickly improve their army. I still don't understand what the problem is.

I can't believe my eyes – could it really be happening?
If I also see "Dungeon of the Mind" (I still haven't deleted the 6th installment while waiting) – I'll decide that the world has turned upside down!
Thank you, Astral!

I can't believe my eyes – could it really be happening?
If I also see "Dungeons of the Mind" (I still haven't deleted the 6th installment while waiting) – I'll decide that the world has turned upside down!
Thank you, Astral!

Everything happens eventually.

What about the link? I can’t access the disk.

Finally!!!

What about the link? I can't access the disk.

Everything is fine. I even checked: it downloads. A Google account is not required for this. The download button is in the upper right corner of the window.

Added after 36 seconds

Finally!

Everything happens eventually.

In the evening, I'll sit down to play as a hero. Let's see how it goes. I'll grab a beer from the fridge. The wait is over!

Added 1 hour 45 minutes later
Is the Mentor present on the map? Is the Necromancer's Amulet for a quest or just randomly placed? And in general, are all the artifacts lying around tied to quests, or not? And most importantly, the hero's army is a bit weak; I made a good choice with the Crystal of Secrecy. I've completed the Guardian map.

The map features two mentors. The tasks include collecting five artifacts. The amulet is not one of them. It is used to complete the Necromancer set effect, which reduces enemy speed by 1. Having an army on the hero is a good strategy, and the crystal is a powerful spell that is always useful.

Okay, that’s it! I was almost defeated right before exiting the dungeon. I had almost gathered all the resources and money, and I even got the gnome head. I relied too much on chaos magic and the crystal. I realized my mistake. I removed two black-colored warlords from my army and added 15 riders. Because of the warlords, I couldn’t get the hydras. I won’t reload; I’m starting over. Now I’ll definitely make it to the surface.

Added 50 minutes later
You need to rush past the second guard before he appears. Otherwise, it will be tough. Where will you put the unnecessary artifacts?