Posts from New or rediscovered old Forge map for WOG.

A bit of history:

When in 1999, the company 3DO announced the release of the add-on Armageddon's Blade, the press release seriously promised that the expansion would feature a new city called Forge, inhabited by cyber-zombies, pyromaniacs with flamethrowers, and Warhammer-like orcs with machine guns. It can’t be said that the idea of mixing magical and technological worlds was entirely new to the Might and Magic game, but it was planned for the first time in "Heroes." The fans raised such a fuss that the authors had to change their decision. As a result, Forge never appeared, and players are still arguing about whether this is good or bad.

This is what Forge could have looked like:

Forge - a high-tech city.

The heroes could be Cyborg and Magical Hero - Technician.

Creatures:

Level 1: Grunt and Foot Soldier - Orc with a machine gun. Just as strong as any other level 1 creature.

Level 2: Cyber-Dead and Cyber-Zombies - Zombies with rotating circular saws for hands.

Level 3: Pyros and Pyromaniacs - Humanoids armed with flamethrowers.

Level 4: Stinger and Bruiser - Ogre with a rocket launcher with self-guided missiles. Stinger would be just as powerful as any other level 4 ranged unit.

Level 5: Soldier and Jump Trooper - Flying Minotaur with a jetpack and razor claws for melee attacks.

Level 6: Tank and Heavy Tank - Semi-mechanical cyber-Naga tank. Only melee combat.

Level 7: Juggernaut and Dreadnought

Many Heroes fans at that time only talked about it: "How can you compare an arrow and a missile?" - this is exactly why Forge was closed and put in the abyss. Perhaps they were right, but the heroes were so balanced that you could play equally well with everyone. Maybe the power wasn't equal, but the construction cost and upkeep costs were fully adjusted. Regarding the concept of the game, this is partially true. Artillery is a serious change and only a slight echo from the fantasy genre, but I would like to note once again that Forge was conceived as just a "super-weapon factory." But even now, there is a very noticeable trend indicating that Forge is just a figment of the developers' imagination.

Forge would be another thread connecting the M&M universe with its global idea and Heroes Of Might And Magic.
You need to read the history of the Might and Magic Universe, and then questions like "Rocket versus bow" will immediately disappear.
These are not questions from game fans, but from strategists.

Today, two people have appeared who want to try to recreate the city of Forge. Our current goal is to find those who would like to join our team of enthusiasts in this difficult, free, and fan-made project. But the idea itself is not far off - let's remember at least 2 such projects that are moving forward (this is New City and Harbor, or something), and these are also created by fans. So, I don’t think that if we learn the recipe for including the Forge city in the game, all that will remain for us is animation, creating a plot, balancing, and the city will be ready. So, we welcome everyone who wants to participate ;)

Our FORGE-TEAM:

Geksorin
Medvaldo {plot, story}
Old God {map builder}
celt

In general, we need to know if there are such people and how they want to help. If they approach this with a clear plan and put in the effort, we can expect to see results in about six months!

Added 14 minutes later
I just browsed the internet and found an article about this city. I'm curious, so it was actually created – is there any way to find out something about it?

If there’s a new town, there’s also a new campaign. I’m a pretty good scenario writer, and I know how to create maps. And it’s interesting… :cool:

The city was created, and there were even significant results, but then the project was scrapped! I like the idea! Count me in! Although, to be honest, I can't imagine how to implement the city!

The main goal is, if we try together, we will definitely succeed. I, for one, will try to contact the developers starting today; maybe I'll get lucky!

Added 7 minutes later
http://216.109.125.130/search/cache?p=Forge+Town+heroes&prssweb=Search&ei=UTF-8&x=wrt&u=www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/&w=forge+town+heroes&d=Spjp5WP9NUYD&icp=1&.intl=us
Check it out. It seems that no one has abandoned the project.

Moreover, a preliminary list of monsters has already been created, and there are some concept arts – which is a big plus. I think if we search the internet, we can find more information that will help us. And most importantly, we need to find out from existing teams how this is done.

Hmm, guys, I don't mind, but another team is already working on this. Foreign enthusiasts. I might be able to find a link to their website. And they also adhere to the 3D concept and have made significant progress; they even have a chance to be included in the "In the Wake of Gods" 3.59 expansion.

http://216.109.125.130/search/cache?p=Forge+Town+heroes&prssweb=Search&ei=UTF-8&x=wrt&u=www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/&w=forge+town+heroes&d=Spjp5WP9NUYD&icp=1&.intl=us
There's nothing useful there, just some TURCISH and some kind of song starts playing - there aren't even any pictures.

Added 4 minutes later


STORY OF THE FORGE

The story behind the Forge closely follows the conclusion to Might and Magic VII, more in particularly the ending to those heroes who succeeded on the Path of Darkness. Archibald's former advisors regroup, discovering a mysterious and powerful ancient artifact known only as the Heavenly Forge. Armed with this power, the advisors can create an entirely new base of operations, known as the Forge, a futuristic wonder world of cogs, wheels, and factories capable of creating fierce robot warriors that wield powerful hi-tech weaponry. Archibald's advisors pitch their camp at their new base of operations and begin to build. Their object is nothing less than the conquest of Erathia.

A little more insight on how powerful this mighty creation is (was), is the history behind the weaponry which was manufactured in Forge factories. As you can see, Might and Magic VII opened up a lot of references to the Heavenly Forges. Examples of these weapons are below:

Sublime Spear - A smithy symbol and date stamp indicate this spear was made in the magical forges of Governor Padish 12 years before the Silence.

Golden Chain Mail - A very rare suit of armor turned out by the Heavenly Forges of Governor Padish before the Silence. The armor was originally worn strictly by the Governor's highest military officers as a badge of office. It is not just for show; this chain mail is lighter, stronger, and more supple than any other chain in the world.

Governor's Armor - Owned by Colonial Governor Padish at the Time of Silence, this fantastic armor has resurfaced in many of the great treasure hoards throughout history. Like most creations turned out by the Heavenly Forge, it is nearly indestructible, and its like can no longer be made by any forge in the land.

Majestic Shield - The dark, golden color of these shields is actually a flaw. About 50 of these sheidls were turned out by the Heavenly Forge as it began to fail. Although imperfect they are second only to shields built by the Forge in its prime.

Believe me when I say this, that all of these weapons and armor are state of the art as well as being beautifully manufactured. This is also straight evidence that the Forge is not just about creating cybornetic monstrosities, that is Archibald's dream.

So why was this dreamed creation of power pulled from the Might and Magic universe? Proceed onto the Fate of the Forge for more info.


FATE OF THE FORGE

Not to sound bias, but the typical Heroes fan aware of the implement of the Forge, was totally against the idea. The Forge represented a clash of fantasy and science fiction. Something the Might and Magic universe has had a long time. It is practically tradition. Heroes of Might and Magic lacked on the sci-fi portion of this universe, which was one of the main reasons NWC considered adding this town into the series.

As I stated before, the typical majority of heroes fans had opposed the Forge, were outraged with it, and some even took drastic action. Early reviews of Armageddon's Blade featured only artwork of the units and a few sketches of Forge buildings. Despite having no screen shots of anything sci-fi at this particular moment, fans around the world began posting their honest thoughts at the Heroes of Might and Magic 3 Board. Most of which desperately begged NWC to reconsider their actions, and the immediate removal of the Forge. Others threatened that they would boycott the game if the Forge were implemented, and still others found some of the sketchs so obscene that they argued that the Forge was 'untasteful' (see the Naga tank).

Only weeks after the sketches and artwork were released by Gamespot, an article by Michael Mullen was spotted on the very site that had first distributed the images (see Links for the full story.). Mullen had stated that through sources at 3do, NWC, and Greg Fulton, that the Forge was basically history. Removed due to the uprising against the Forge.

The following week, Greg Fulton posted a FAQ on the Heroes of Might and Magic 3 Board. The FAQ pertained to questions Greg asked himself with completely honest answers. In the post itself, Greg basically explained why the Forge was removed and where NWC was going with Armageddon's Blade. He let us know about the e-mails he had received from many fans. He also made note that some had concerns implied politely, while others reacted foolishly; some with death threats. We have to understand how much Greg and his team sacrificed in the removal of the Forge. Besides losing en entire town, heroes, units, a story, and other such of that nature, the team had lost a lot of time and work which is now considered 'unnecessary.'

I do admit that the Forge could have been legendary if given the chance to see the light of day. Will we ever know for sure? Looking at these past events, I doubt we will see the Forge or any science fiction for that matter in the Heroes series for awhile, if not ever.


WHAT IS THE FORGE

FORGE is a futuristic, high-tech town.
Might hero is Cyborg and Magic Hero is Technician.

FORGE creatures:

Level 1: Grunt and Foot Soldier - Goblis with guns - ranged attacker. Will be as strong as any other level 1 creature.

Level 2: Cyber-Dead and Cyber-Zombies - Zombies with rotating chainsaws for hands.

Level 3: Pyros and Pyromaniacs - Humanoids armed with backpack flamethrowers.

Level 4: Stinger and Bruiser - Ogre with a rocket launcher - ranged attacker. Damage as strong as any other level 4 shooter would do.

Level 5: Jump Soldier and Jump Trooper - Flying Minotaur with a jet pack and a razor claws for hand-to-hand attack.

Level 6: Tank and Heavy Tank - Half-mechanical-cyber-Naga-tank, hand-to-hand only.

Level 7: Juggernaut and Dreadnought - Purely
mechanical creatures with some serious firepower, hand-to-hand.

FORGE creatures were planned to be stronger compared to other towns, but more expensive and perhaps lower in population. Also, given that the Forge was an evil alignment town, it would unbalance the game: 4 evil towns, 3 good and 2 neutral.

When it was announced that the Forge was pulled out of the game to be replaced with an elemental town, one of the 3DO editors posted the following:

WHY DID YOU PULL THE FORGE?
Reason One: As much as I thought the actions of many fans showed a lack of vision and an inherent distrust for a company who have given them hundreds of hours of quality gameplay, I still didn't want to fight our fans. Reason Two: There wasn't enough pro-Forge activity.

HOW FAR ALONG WAS THE FORGE TOWN?
A first draft of the town screen was finished and awaiting revision. We also had a first draft of each creature and its upgrade and were proceeding with revisions. All but one map for the campaign was finished.


MORE ARTWORK

The following shot of the Forge town screen was taken with an unsteadied digital camera at an expo. There's also a sketch of the (Naga) Tank unit.





IS FORGE LOST FOREVER?!

Only some artwork remains, such as what you saw on this page, the rest is either gone or sitting in the game manufacturers' archives. But there is a fan project dedicated to reproducing the Forge town with all of its units and heroes!

The Forge Town Project is hosted right here at Age of Heroes and is well underway to making the Forge town a playable addition to Heroes of Might and Magic 3!

Sure, why not? It’s interesting to think about what if. I, for one, wouldn’t mind coming up with a new town!

Come on, we're interested, what if? I personally wouldn't mind coming up with a new town!

Besides, what I posted in English is basically the same as what KAHT wrote... but the project's website is supposedly empty.

And here's another long discussion in English about Forge - I'm still reading it: http://heroescommunity.com/viewthread.php3?TID=14628

Here is a link to their website, it seems to be a Polish site: www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/
I saw their work somewhere else, maybe on the Heroes portal... Anyway, no one has announced the disbandment of the Forge team, and if you want to revive the Forge, this work is already being done for you. Maybe you could try joining the Forge team? If you really want to participate in creating the city of the future.
Wow, the site has been broken by some Turks! Don't go there for now.

Could someone please explain this to me clearly:
1) So, is someone already working on developing a new town?
2) Why has so much time passed, and I still haven't seen a single new town in WOG?
3) If anyone is interested in joining, please send me a private message, and we'll discuss it.

1) Some players are actively developing them. 2) New maps are being created in the hope of being included in the Heroes of Might and Magic III½ map pack before the release of the new map pack.

Here is a link to their website, it seems to be Polish: www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/
I saw their work somewhere else, maybe on the Heroes portal... In general, no one has announced the disbandment of the Forge team, and if you decided to recreate Forge, this work is already being done for you. Maybe you should try joining the Forge team? If you really want to participate in creating the city of the future.
Wow, the site was broken by some Turks! Don't go there for now.

You are right - the guys from that topic I gave below are indeed working on Forge, and the site was probably hacked.

Here are a couple of pictures I managed to extract:
http://www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/gfx/1.jpg
http://www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/gfx/2.jpg
http://www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/gfx/3.jpg
http://www.heroesofmightandmagic.com/forgetown/gfx/4.jpg

This one is especially interesting:


Added 8 minutes ago
Here are some more screenshots I found:

So, now the question is, why do we even need Warlords of the North? What can't we do without it? There's no balance there at all, and what if we were to add a new town, as originally planned for Armageddon's Blade?