Even if you’ve only just entered New Eden, you’re probably already aware that there are six main multi-player maps to do battle in, each of them taking its inspiration from locations in CCP Games’ MMORPG EVE Online. It’s perhaps a useful and informative exercise to introduce you to each of the maps, where they're located in New Eden, add a little bit of EVE history to the mix and offer some insights in what to expect from each environment.
CATHEDRAL
Planet: Kamela VIII
Region: The Bleak Lands
This region of New Eden has a troubled history and remains a lawless and dangerous place for any traveler who happens across it. It was the Bleak Lands that became home to the cults banished from the Amarr Empire. It’s a region of incessant struggle with the balance of power constantly shifting between warring factions.
Characteristics: This cathedral in the Bleak Lands is riddled with the scars of battle. It is made up of multiple structures and there’s also the asteroid belt surrounding Kamela VIII which provides a deadly ambush point. The open nature of the map makes it particularly satisfying in Control Mode, where you can quickly travel between the different control points and structures.
FORGE
Planet: TQ - RRB VIII
Region: Outer Ring
The Outer Ring is a fascinating place. Originally just a source of relatively low value ores, the region was home to the Outer Ring Excavations mining company. They pretty much had the place to themselves until the discovery of the hugely valuable ore Nocxium, after which all manner of competitors flocked to the region to exploit its potential.
Characteristics: The Forge contains a huge automated mining facility that towers over the map. Molten rocks have been drilled down to husks, creating unconventional paths through the super-heated atmosphere. It’s a fairly open map but with some very complex structures. It’s also a functioning mining facility, so it’s quite possible to have your day ruined by an unexpected collision with one of the huge Hulk ships that are delivering ore in the area.
NECROPOLIS
Planet: Esmes III
Region: Sinq Laison
This is a cosmopolitan and economically thriving region of New Eden, as well as being the largest under the control of the Gallente Federation. However, in previous eras it was also the site of brutal wars, suffering attacks from ruthless Caldari raiding parties.
Characteristics: The broken remains of two epic fleets hang in a bleak graveyard to the lost. It is shrouded in gas and debris, the haunting wrecks marking the location of Rán Kavik's last stand.
The masses of debris offer some interesting gameplay options. Smaller pieces of wreckage provide light cover, giving players the opportunity to take part in fast cat and mouse dogfights.
The larger remnants provide hard cover where players who have taken severe damage can take refuge in order to restore their shields and plan their next move.
Surrounding the map are the vast carcasses of abandoned Titan class ships. These are merely cosmetic but provide a sense of scale and grandeur to the map.
CROSSROADS
Planet: Otakoo XI
Region: Genesis
This region of the galaxy is notable for the fact that it was the original entry point into New Eden, when a giant wormhole opened up linking our Milky Way to a new, as yet uncharted galaxy. Human explorers originating from Earth and its outposts cooperated to build a huge warp gate around the wormhole, allowing them to travel between the Milky Way and what was to become known as New Eden. However, the catastrophic collapse of the warp gate stranded a large number of travelers in New Eden where they subsequently went on to thrive and form the various factions we see in the EVE universe today.
Characteristics: This map is surrounded by a green haze, giving it an isolated and claustrophobic aspect which is further enhanced by the enormous amount of asteroids and debris floating around. A Gallente control tower dominates the central area of the map which provides a focal point for many of the battles.
SHIPYARD
Planet: Saranen
Region: Lonetrek
This is an area of New Eden that is a flourishing trade hub and somewhere where fortunes can be made and lost. With the high levels of activity come regular conflicts, so it’s not a place for the faint-hearted.
Characteristics: The heavy beam construction of the shipyard has long provided smugglers with routes away from prying eyes. The busy nature of the map can initially prove bewildering to new players, resulting in frequent collisions with the scenery. However, with experience, the map’s delights become apparent and provide lots of interesting routes and some excellent cover. It offers diverse strategic options and you can use the map’s tightly packed structure to evade missile attacks.
GATEWAY
Planet: 2X7Z-L VI
Region: Great Wildlands
As can be deduced from its name, this is a wild region of space that was at one time home largely to the nomadic Thukker Tribe, but has since become a region populated by various different tribes living in refugee camps.
Characteristics: The latest and most ambitious map to come to EVE: Valkyrie. The visually astonishing centrepiece of the map is a huge warp gate that is still under construction. It is situated near an ice planet whose ice asteroid field can be used to host some incredibly exciting dogfights. It’s that central structure that’s the real star, though. The central tube of the gate contains partly-functioning warp gates, enabling players to rapidly move large distances. Due to the unfinished nature of the structure, one half of it offers a fairly open playground but with a complex network of scaffolding to fly around and shake off pursuers. At the other, more finished end, pilots can utilize the small spaces between the outer skins of the gate to take cover or restrict the movement of an enemy.
SOLITUDE
Planet: F-MKH3
Region: Great Wildlands
This map is linked, narratively, to the Gateway map and, as such, it is also located in the Great Wildlands. This region was once home to the Thukker tribe, as was the Solitude base on planet F-MKH3. The base has since been taken over and modified by Fatal's Schism.
Characteristics: A bleak and unforgiving landscape of rock and snow. The Solitude map consists of the base itself, a network of underground tunnels and a large ravine that cuts through the environment.
Solitude is EVE: Valkyrie's first ground-based map and presents players with a unique challenge. The tunnel network is perfect for support craft to lay mines and spiderbots while the open spaces around the base play host to some spectacular dogfights.
Now that you know a little more about the maps and their location in the EVE universe, you can dive back in and experience them first-hand. If you’re a total novice, remember to first learn the layout of the maps in Scout Mode before entering into battle.
If what you’ve read here piques your interest in the story of New Eden outside of EVE: Valkyrie, check out our brief history of the EVE Universe.
Fly safe!