| “ | Vanquish the enemy by taking control of the holy lake or send your armies around the extensive forests and cliffsides to surprise them. | ” |
| —In-game description | ||
Thickets is a hybrid random map in Age of Empires IV: The Sultans Ascend. Players, separated by the map's eponymous forests, surround a large lake with a central island.
Features[]
Thickets is reminiscent of Baltic, wherein the primary map feature is a central body of water around which players spawn. However, on this map, the lake is smaller and tends to be more circular, and also contains a central island. The lake is also located in a depression that is mostly surrounded by cliffs, leaving fewer locations to build a Dock. Players spawn around the lake in the standard circular configuration that can be seen on other maps such as Dry Arabia, and between each player is one of the patches of forest after which the map is named. The central island always contains one Sacred Site, and can also have a single Relic. The other Sacred Site can be anywhere else on the map, but is always located between two opposing players, while the other Relics are distributed randomly around the map. Two Trade Posts are located in either set of opposing corners of the map.
Resources[]
The resource distributions on Thickets are very regular, with all resources except Fish spawning in an equal amount per player and tied to the Capital Town Center. Within range of the Town Center, players will always have one medium Deer pack and one large Berry Bush patch, one small Stone Outcropping, and one small Gold Mine. Slightly further away, each player will have their second and third Gold Mine, second Stone Outcropping, Boar, and second large Berry Bush patch. Finally, farthest out, around the edge of the map, players can find their large Gold Mine, large Stone outcropping, and large Deer Pack always in close proximity to each other. Wood is plentiful around the map, with Stealth Forest and small woodlines around the map in addition to the large forests between players. The central lake contains both Shoreline Fish and Deep Water Fish in relatively large numbers, and its island will always have a neutral Boar.
Changelog[]
- Originally, Thickets had three Sacred Sites. With patch 9.1.370, it has two, and the Sacred Site not on the island will always spawn in between two opposing players.
Gallery[]
