Gates of Heaven v1.b

[puck]

Please add a hint, I spent two minutes choosing a hero after starting, and that's when the enemy came and I couldn't choose anymore. New players don't know this.

 

[deepstrasz]

A credits list in the map description with the names of the authors whose resources you've used is mandatory. That includes models, skins, icons, custom spells, systems. Also, sounds, music and everything outside this site.
This helps you with the models, skins and icons from Hiveworkshop: Resources in use by Gates of Heaven v1.a
You can also upload your map here to generate a list: Asset scanner

Awaiting Update.

---

If you want more reviews, you should participate in the The Grand Review Exchange!

R U L E S

Site Rules
Map Submission Rules

M A P - D E S C R I P T I O N

Details

BB CODES
BB Codes | HIVE

MELEE MAPS
Description Guide - Melee Maps
Describing Your Melee Map
Melee Map Description Generator v1.3

MAPS IN GENERAL
The importance of a Description
Description Guide - Maps
Map Thread Guide
Map Description Making: Good & Bad
Map Description - Templates
Map Description Generator [1.2]

How to Add a Screenshot to your Map Description

ADDITIONAL NECESSARY INFORMATION

• A credits list in the map thread description is required where the names of the resource (models, skins, icons, spells, sound etc.) authors are mentioned along with the specific resource. It would be a luxury to have links leading to the used resources. Credits in the Quest Log would be appreciated too.
• A detailed changelog in the first post would be helpful to reviewers and notify fans about the newest implementations to your map.
• Map thread tags are important. Please use those that fit and not more or none.

M A P - C R E A T I O N - G U I D E S

Details

GENERAL MAPPING
A Beginner's Guide to Map Making
The Ultimate Beginners Terrain Tutorial
Advanced Terraining Tutorial
A Guideline to Terraining and the Hive's Terraining Section
Various Terraining Tips!
Basic Mapping Video Tutorial
WE Map Editor for Newbies!
The Path Of Proper Map Making - What to do and what should be avoided

MELEE MAPPING
How to create Melee Maps
General - Melee Maps like the Professionals
Competitive Melee Map
Melee mapping - The reasons behind common aspects of competitive 1v1 maps
Melee Do's and Dont's

PATHING
Pathing - Everything about it
[Terraining] Alternative Pathing Technique

LEAKS
Triggers - Memory Leaks and Custom Scripts

If you're not satisfied with the review and wish another opinion, contact the other reviewers or use the staff contact:
https://www.hiveworkshop.com/forums/staff-contact.692/

 

[3xKataratos]

I actually tried using the Asset Scanner, but unfortunately it didn’t work for me.
That said, I’ve manually gone through and updated the credit list in my map description to include all the resources currently in use—models, icons, spells, and other custom assets. Let me know if anything’s missing, I’ll be happy to fix it.

 

[nos10k]

I've tried the game and it's pretty fun so far but the pvp event is broken. If you kill the guy that's attacking you in that event game bugs out and you can't leave the arena. The only way to get pass that is to die.

 

[LeePark]

Do you have any tips on beating this game or unlocking secrets, I've been enjoying this game quite a bit in the last few days, bordering obsession. thank you for the enjoyable map. i ran into the same issues as nos10k. where the pvp event breaks the game, if there is more then 2 players in that event while in solo difficulty there is no way to exit that event, and the game will continue.

Thank you! hope to hear from you soon

 

[3xKataratos]

@LeePark ,@nos10k , thank you for your comments / ratings !

The NPC is only meant to spawn in solo mode, since it’s there to take the place of a missing player. Solo mode should only be selected when playing alone.

That said, after your message I took another look at the PvP event and did notice some issues—even in solo mode (when player loses he doesnt revive). Since the map's release, I’ve hosted it multiple times on Easy+ and didn’t run into bugs with the arena, but I’m currently gathering more data on some smaller issues that need to be addressed.

In a few days, I’ll be updating the map with fixes and some balance tweaks, including changes to the arena. In the meantime, please continue playing on Easy mode + thanks for the heads up!


About clearing the map :
It’s definitely a hard game with a steep learning curve—I totally get that.

Random events can trigger if you clear a wave quickly, before the next timer starts. They’re still random, but they can have a big impact on your run. For example, if a labyrinth is overrun in the early waves, it can be really tough to clear and may slow down your progress. Later on, though, the time you’re given is usually more than enough to handle it.

After the first wave, it's usually recommended to convert your demonic hearts (wood) into gold to build Hand of Midas or Urn of Souls, which will help you farm more efficiently.

Also, if you manage to kill Kong before the first wave, you'll get a +1 item, which is a huge help.

There are team comps that really bring out the strengths of each hero. For two players, Khepri + Kayle is an especially strong combo.

Each hero also has a special way to awaken. Once awakened, their power increases massively—so it's definitely something to aim for!

Spoiler: Awakening

Try to stay alive for 35 mins with Watchman of God

I ll spoil no more secrets

 

[Haxxor]

I got thrown out of the game I hosted after I stayed alive for 35 min with watchman btw.

 

[SerizawaSuzuran]

Gates of Heaven is a really fun and well thought out map. It mixes hero defense style gameplay with exploration, farming, and even some hidden secrets that make each game feel fresh. The mini boss fights and timed challenges add extra layers of strategy, so it’s not just about surviving waves you’ve got to plan ahead too.


If you like maps that keep you on your toes and reward curiosity, this one’s definitely worth a try. It’s still pretty new, so more feedback will help polish things up, but there’s a lot of potential here. Definitely a good pick for co-op sessions with friends!

 

[Torankasu]

There should be hints for awakening. It's quite frustrating to test out awakening requirements and not even know you are on the right track.

 

[Haxxor]

For watchman you need to stay alive for a certain time, but deaths in PvP arena will reset the timer

 

[yayfindingnemolyrics]

Gates of Heaven is a pretty fun map and I appreciate the amount of characters to choose from. IMO, spells in general and intelligence heroes feel a bit lacking from a scaling perspective.

For abilities, since most scale with ability level, they start to fall off once you get into the mid-late game, then it becomes all about auto-attacks. On both easy and normal difficulties, I won without leveling any active abilities, only passives, since the actives didn’t feel worth the investment.

What may help with this is having characters' spells scale with their primary stat (some do already which is nice) and skill levels providing more than a level multiplier. For example, buying a skill level up could also increases the multiplier of the primary stat by a small amount, an increase in the static values, or a slight reduction in cooldown.

Also, I feel that the ability damage stat is a bit lacking since only a few characters can really use it. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this only increases abilities that deal [Ability Damage] and not physical or magical. It might be worth allowing all active spells to benefit from this stat, since there are currently only 3 items in the game that give this stat.

The itemization for intelligence is also a bit lacking IMO. Out of the legendary crafts/secret items, there's only a few items that truly give +Intelligence and have passives that scale off of intelligence. For example there are items that will make you trigger a passive that deals % of strength/agility on an attack, but what I'd like to see is something for intelligence heroes as well. Something like attacking or casting a spell can trigger this other ability that does % intelligence. In my experience so far, Strength heroes are the strongest, followed by Agility, with Intelligence lagging behind.

The game’s variety of characters and overall pacing feel great, which makes the scaling issues more noticeable in contrast.

tl;dr - Game is fun, abilities and intelligence heroes feel under-powered, itemization for intelligence could be improved, other mechanics as well

 

[3xKataratos]

Hi there, thanks a lot for taking the time to leave such detailed and thoughtful feedback!

I'm really glad to hear you're enjoying my map. I wanted to take a moment to address some of the points you brought up:


You're right that many active abilities don't scale endlessly into late game the way auto-attacks or some passives might. That’s actually intentional. The idea is to create space for different hero archetypes and playstyles. They’re designed to shine in specific moments— early waves, clutch saves, CC —not necessarily as consistent damage over time. That said, I’m always evaluating ability performance. If some fall off too hard or feel too weak to invest in, I’ll absolutely keep tuning things.

You are Correct ! The [Ability Power] stat applies only to abilities explicitly tagged with Ability Damage. However, that playstyle isn’t exclusive to Intelligence heroes. In fact, Malthael and Tianlong are perfect examples of non-Intelligence heroes who scale extremely well with Ability Power . Also, Ability Power stacks ! (type -ap to see your current Ability Power)

Just to be clear—Intelligence heroes are my personal favorites, and I would never let them fall behind the curve. Yes, they don’t scale into late game the same way Agility or Strength heroes might—they won’t match a crit-carry or out-sustain a tank. But they are early-game monsters, and they excel at deleting priority targets with high burst damage.

Lets take Ra's Sun bolt for example:

At Level 5: 75 × 5 = 375 base damage + AP
If you have the 2 great AP items you ll get a Total AP of 155 + 220 = 375 [750 Aoe Dmg so far ]
Plus the effects of those two weapons wihich is 375 x 2 AoE with each one proc once [750+750=1500 Aoe DMG Final]

1500 Aoe Dmg every 6 sec not taking into account the rest of his kit or his Awakening Bonuses. While the DMG you get by Leveling Up this spell seems insignificant at this calculation [300 extra dmg ] it will give you the extra damage you need to clear waves before you are able to build the end game AP items.

Finaly as for itemization for intelligence if you include secret items, there’s actually a solid pool of options for Intelligence heroes. (The Majiorlin legendary craft gives +50 Intelligence, compared to +40 in similar items for other stats.)

Thanks again for taking the time to share your insights—I truly appreciate your detailed feedback. Rest assured, I'll be taking your points into consideration for future updates, because there's no way I'm letting my Intelligence heroes fall behind!

 

[Torankasu]

Volcanos feel really oppressive, I understand the need for area denial, but it feels too much and the ability in base War3 was channeling for a reason. Can they have another looking at?

 

[SerizawaSuzuran]

Volcanos feel really oppressive, I understand the need for area denial, but it feels too much and the ability in base War3 was channeling for a reason. Can they have another looking at?

I think the volcano is okay, sure its tough but even if it does get replaced with something else its gonna have to be as intense as the volcano. Without the area denial the late is gonna be too easy.
Every character has enough mobilty to avoid the giant red circle that screams danger especially when you know its coming.

 

[deepstrasz]

A very nice hero defense map with PvP and some AoS/Arena like elements (creeps and mini quests; item combinations). I'm a bit dissatisfied with the small patch of land the heroes can go on. It gets monotonous fairly fast.

Approved.

---

If you want more reviews, you should participate in the The Grand Review Exchange!

R U L E S

Site Rules
Map Submission Rules

M A P - D E S C R I P T I O N

Details

BB CODES
BB Codes | HIVE

MELEE MAPS
Description Guide - Melee Maps
Describing Your Melee Map
Melee Map Description Generator v1.3

MAPS IN GENERAL
The importance of a Description
Description Guide - Maps
Map Thread Guide
Map Description Making: Good & Bad
Map Description - Templates
Map Description Generator [1.2]

How to Add a Screenshot to your Map Description

ADDITIONAL NECESSARY INFORMATION

• A credits list in the map thread description is required where the names of the resource (models, skins, icons, spells, sound etc.) authors are mentioned along with the specific resource. It would be a luxury to have links leading to the used resources. Credits in the Quest Log would be appreciated too.
• A detailed changelog in the first post would be helpful to reviewers and notify fans about the newest implementations to your map.
• Map thread tags are important. Please use those that fit and not more or none.

M A P - C R E A T I O N - G U I D E S

Details

GENERAL MAPPING
A Beginner's Guide to Map Making
The Ultimate Beginners Terrain Tutorial
Advanced Terraining Tutorial
A Guideline to Terraining and the Hive's Terraining Section
Various Terraining Tips!
Basic Mapping Video Tutorial
WE Map Editor for Newbies!
The Path Of Proper Map Making - What to do and what should be avoided

MELEE MAPPING
How to create Melee Maps
General - Melee Maps like the Professionals
Competitive Melee Map
Melee mapping - The reasons behind common aspects of competitive 1v1 maps
Melee Do's and Dont's

PATHING
Pathing - Everything about it
[Terraining] Alternative Pathing Technique

LEAKS
Triggers - Memory Leaks and Custom Scripts

If you're not satisfied with the review and wish another opinion, contact the other reviewers or use the staff contact:
https://www.hiveworkshop.com/forums/staff-contact.692/