The deadly fight for the keys — SoD

The Deadly Fight for the Keys is a medium-sized Shadow of Death map measuring 72 by 72 tiles, with an underground level included. It is built for eight players, all of them human-capable, with no teams and no computer-only colors. Each seat starts with a different town type: Fortress, Castle, Inferno, Tower, Necropolis, Stronghold, Dungeon, and Rampart. Water covers about 42 percent of the surface, with grass, dirt, and rough ground making up most of the rest. Victory requires defeating every enemy, and a player loses once all towns and heroes are gone. The author's note says that a rival can only be conquered after first obtaining its key, which makes the game a race for keys as well as battles. The map holds eight towns, 56 mines, 16 monoliths and portals, and the Grail, along with 32 placed artifacts and 40 random monster stacks.