Aso Grasslands icon as seen from map selection menu
| โ | A great forest with a single glade funnels each player into a central confrontation. | โ |
| —Map description | ||
Aso Grasslands is a random map in Age of Mythology: Retold - Heavenly Spear, named for the low-lying grasslands around Mount Aso in western Kyushu, Japan. It is a closed land map, where players are divided from each other by a wall of forest, with only one gap connecting them at the start. The single barrier remains regardless of the number of players.
Overview[]
| โ | On these volcanic plains, a great forest with a single pass funnels each player into a central confrontation. Making use of the abundant resources in your half of this map is of equal importance to fortifying the central glade. | โ |
| —Loading screen | ||
With two players, the map is similar to other closed maps, especially Jotunheim, with the main difference that the barrier is made of trees that can be cut down, similar to Ironwood. This allows for potential surprise raids or multi-pronged attacks in the mid-to-late game as new pathways are opened by the players' workers. As it takes some time to cut through the forest wall, players can safely boom in the early-to-mid game, and focus on defending or attacking through the central pass.
Unlike many similar maps, the number of barriers does not increase the more players are added. In three-player games, one player always begins in the center, with their Town Center occupying the central glade, greatly changing the dynamics of the map, as the center player will have to deal with pressure on both sides, while also having the potential to raid other players early on. In free-for-all games with four or more players, the map turns into a sort of tournament, with opponents on the same side of the forest barrier having to battle it out early on before they can begin to deal with enemies on the other side.
In team games, the closed-map dynamic is preserved, with players of the same team beginning on the same side of the barrier. However, with odd numbers, some players will begin very close to the central pass. On King of the Hill games, the central pass will always be occupied by the Plenty Vault and its guardian Shades, even if a player has their starting point there, which results in the unfortunate player having their town and starting units assailed by the Shades as soon as the game begins.
Starting hunt consists of Chickens and Green Pheasants, with other potential huntables including Deer, Spotted Deer, Boars, Serows, and Snow Monkeys. Predators include either Black Bears or Japanese Wolves, and Goats appear as herdables.
Similar maps[]
Gallery[]
