River Styx

River Styx is a random map that was available as a promotional bonus in Age of Mythology but is now available in the Extended Edition. Also known as the river of hatred, it is based on the more renowned of the five rivers in the underworld.

Overview
River Styx is a hybrid of the random maps Team Migration and Erebus. It shares the premise of the former and the barrenness of the latter. Teams share a starting medium-sized island all of which surround a much larger island at the center of the map. Each starting island also provides an additional settlement for each player. Otherwise, the map offers little resources and players will be forced to ferry their units across the river to reach the central island and expand their operations. The central island supports additional relics and some cliffs for more defensive players. Recommended major gods include Ra who makes transitions to farming easier, as well as Poseidon, Odin and Shennong who have access to numerous naval technologies and myth units.

Environment
Unlike other naval maps, the murky waters of River Styx support no fish. Players will have to rely on hunting wild boars for food and will quickly need to resort to farming. The only other inhabitants are serpents and shades who will not hesitate to attack any player that comes within their territory. The forests here are made up primarily of pine trees stripped of their leaves but will sustain players for a decent period of time.

Similar Maps

 * Team Migration
 * Erebus
 * Vinlandsaga

Trivia

 * Due to a possible programming error, the AI on this random map will never attempt to transport their units to the center island. Sometimes, they may never leave their starting island at all.