Middle Earth (Iron Crown) Huge map

[eric_ives]

I've created a Civ IV Beyond the Sword huge map (I think maybe 120 x 80, or whatever the default is for generating a standard huge map) based on the 1982 Iron Crown Middle Earth Roleplaying map of the whole continent, of which Middle Earth is a part. A medium-sized image of this map is here, and a very large and detailed image is here. I made this map on a Macintosh, but I think since it is a standard World Builder save, it ought to work on any platform. Unfortunately, on a Macintosh, when playing Beyond the Sword Civilization IV or using the Worldbuilder I can't take a screen shot, so maybe someone on a Windows machine may be able to give us a screen capture image of the actual game map.

I am able to play this map after putting it in the Beyond The Sword folder's Saves directory's Worldbuilder subdirectory. It is available to play if you choose to play a custom scenario and pick it as your map.

I encourage people to modify and do whatever they like with this map. I scanned my Iron Crown poster of Middle Earth, consulted some other Tolkien maps, and then used photoshop to put a layer of a grid over it, and then drew the map square-by-square to approximate the map. I slightly enlarge the the northwestern part of the continent, where Eriador, Gondor, Mordor, and so forth are found. There is also the continent of Numenor out in the sea. Resources are fairly balanced. I gave some isolated civilizations a bit of a head start on technology as well.

Here is the link to the map: Middle_Earth_Iron_Crown_CivBeyondSwordWBSave.

 

[NiRv4n4]

Nice map, haven't tried out to see the balance. Oh, and you added an extra n to Valinor.

 

[eric_ives]

Thanks so much for the game picture, NiRv4n4.

Yes, and it shouldn't have been Valinor anyway, as in the second age that would have been Lindon, and it wasn't the Vanyar who lived in Lindon, it was the Noldar. Oh well.

The Zulus and Carthage are the weakest starting positions, although if you play them as human you can do well. The Persians and Ethiopians are so far away from the action, that they get behind in technology. The Numenorians are also isolated, but they have more resources and some starting advantages. Sitting Bull and the North American Indians (Easterling Tribes) always seem quite powerful. The Celts also seem to do pretty well. The Arabs and Mongols and Babylonians are better off than the Zulus or Carthage, but they can't really compete with the Malians, American Indians, the Maya, and so forth.

I tested the map and found it enjoyable to play starting as the Greeks (Elves), the Egyptians (Numenorians), the Zulus, and Carthage.