E-mail from Kees Marcelissen (c.marcelissen@chello.nl)
I have just played your campaign. And I would like to let you know it's far the most interesting and enjoyable campaign I have ever played. Thank you very much for all your efforts and the time to create this campaign. It's was also a very entertaining story. I have had a lot of very nice evenings.
Heroes of M&M is the only game I am playing nowadays. Playing it from the first day that Heroes 1 was available.
So I am constantly looking for nice adventures. And really, it was very, very nice. I especially like, that there's also a good story worked into the maps. You have done an excellent job. I do hope, I will see more of you in the future.
Of course I will go and have a look at your homepage now, and will start playing Ralkor.
E-mail from Fenrisulven (justus007@hotmail.com)
I just wanted to say that I really liked your campaign to HoMM 3, A Trilogy
of Shadows. The most campaigns I found on the net have looked more or less
unfinished. They are total symmetric and it seems as the authors have a big
lack of fantasy. They have nothing that even looks as a story and to call
them boring would be an understatement. I really wonder how the authors of
these maps thinks. Because if they really believe someone want to play their
junk I feel sorry for them. But your campaign is like a light in the
darkness. Like a saviour in the time of evil. Err... well... I think you
understand what I mean. Your campaign is well composed and your story is
really nice. And all little events, quests and such are very fine. A
high-quality campaign! Nice work!
E-mail from Leeta Bell (4litabelle@home.com)
Your storytelling and mapmaking are great. I have to say, I think your maps have been the best from Astral wizard's site that I've ever played--and I've played quite a few! Thanks again for the good work.
Review by Matthew Charlap, the Qurqirish Dragon (quill@yahoogroups.com)
Warning: mild spoilers!
COMMENTS : This campaign is actually a series of three maps telling an ongoing story. There are no carry-over items between scenarios, so each map could technically be considered on its own. The story follows the life, and undeath, of the main hero- though I will not say too much, so as to not give away the ending to the first map. In the first map, you are trying to right wrongs committed against you, and claim your birthright- though you don't know what that is in the beginning. The next map focuses on cleaning up the mess that events leading up to the first map created, and the final map has you returning from the dead for a final showdown with the Forces of Evil (TM :-) Many timed and placed events tell a very rich story that I found very enjoyable. As for the gameplay itself, the first map ran very smoothly, and with the care that I normally take, I found it to be a lengthy, if not overly challenging map. A feature that is seen throughout the trilogy is that the maps are well segmented, with seer quests and quest guards used to further the story and allow access to the succeeding areas. Sometimes this resulted in clearing the majority of the map and then playing a game of "follow the seer" as each one gives a reward that the next requires. The second map was a bit more freeform than the others, but that is a mixed blessing, as it is rough going until you can eliminate a couple colors. I found this map to be the hardest of the campaign. Coincidentally, this is also the only map where you can hire heroes. The third map, you have choices for various magic skills- the elements, plus intelligence and sorcery- set up so that you will fill all skill slots before any battles, ensuring that your death-knight hero does NOT learn necromancy, which would make several things easier (see "the editor says" for more on this). Overall it is a very enjoyable set of maps, with the final map being much more interesting than the others, which are more or less standard maps.
SOME TIPS : Pay attention to the text in events. Many give critical information (such as the grail location in the third map, which has no obelisks). Check carefully for items and sites that are obscured by terrain and volcanic ash clouds. Check your heroes specialties- I missed a very useful thing in one map, until I accidentally upgraded an elf to sharpshooter (when I was intending on grand elf).
SCORE : On my first try, I completed map 1 on day 147 (month 6, week 1, day 7), map 2 on day 153 (month 6, week 2, day 6), and map 3 on day 231 (month 9, week 3, day 3)- although I ran out of time without a town on day 7 on my first try at map 3- for a total time of 531 days (18 months, 3 weeks, and 6 days) for a score of 751 and stone golem rating.
PROS : Very good story. Nice use of all features, including hero biographies.
CON : Scenarios are unlinked except by story- campaign setting basically allows a framework for prologues and epilogues
THE EDITOR SAYS: After about 4 months in map 3, a deity of fire is built in one of the enemy infernos, and so each month causes many stacks of imps to litter the map. Obviously, a necromancer can build a large army of skeletons in a short time, but this would be a detriment as there are no necropolis towns that you can obtain. Of course, since one of the heroes you find in prison has advanced diplomacy to start, you can still gather the imps (I had over 4000 of them by the time I finished the map, although that hero was simply recruiting rust dragons for much of that time). Also, careful use of static heroes and alliances allows a timed release of enemy heroes based on your accomplishment, not on the literal date. In all maps, most events are placed at choke-points, so you don't have to worry about missing anything (and not every choke-point has an event, so you can't anticipate a happening all the time)
THE BOTTOM LINE: As this is a campaign, I am going to give an aggregate rating over the three maps. The campaign earns 9/10 for utilization and 7/10 for rating, to earn **** on description. It gets 9/10 on appearance, 10/10 on Story, 10/10 on Flavor, and 9/10 on style, to earn ****1/2 on entertainment. It gets 17/20 for balance, and 18/20 for placement, to earn ****1/2 on design, for an overall rating of ****1/2 (89 out of 100). The third map earns the Qurqirish Dragon's Gold Sphere of Excellence, while the other maps are very good, but not quite up to the same level.
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