right, well I mean the 'tube' style map is in theory something that goes all around whatever world it is on.  I can only imagine that would have an equator of some sort.

Of course the discussion of non-square maps that might not apply, and I'd be really interested to see how that would be setup.

Hmm. Oceans of air combined with mobile shards could make for a really fun special map context. Only land masses with a Water shard would be able to generate fresh water, so stealing an enemies Water shard might be the single best way to wreck their realm, regardless of any other shards they might control.

Or, if mobile shards are not an option, maybe you'd still need a Water shard under your control before you could imbue any land with essence and get its springs flowing again. That could help 'force' players who tend to emphasize territory development to figure out how to play the early game as a high-essence channeler with a very small home turf.

Alway, your ideas make me more and more excited to hear about some stort of multiple world system MoM style.

last peep as far as I caught it is that it will be a map, not a globe. Beyond that....

Having had a good look at the UI in the currently available screenshots I can't see any obvious candidate for a button for switching between planes. With this and the fact that no dev has made any mention of extra planes at all I'm erring on the side that they're not going to be included in the game (whether they're possible to easily mod in or not I wouldn't hazard a guess). I don't wanna throw a dampner on people's hopes, but that's what I'm assuming at this point, even though I'd actually quite like them included.

well they said the UI had long ways to go.   I mean really, look at Sins of a Solar empire.  Its early development UI looks almost nothing like its final version.

All they'd have to do is add a button and something that let you put a marker on the field so you can see where a point on 1 plane exists on another plane (I say this because I think its a feature they need, though no other game of which I am aware has done it before).

I understand what you are saying, but I like being "loud" about it because I want it to be known that I want it, and I know at least some others do too.  I do think its a unique part of Master of Magic and I don't feel any game since has done it right.  I understand the risk of getting my hopes up, but I'll take it because it doesn't really hurt.    If they don't do it:   I'll cry a little, but then get over it because the rest of the game will kick ass.  If they do:  I'll be that much more excited and spend that much more time in the map editor.

That's true, but come on, if you had extra planes planned for the game at the stage those screenshots were taken why would you ever put together a UI without that facility? Surely that's a piece of core functionality too big to ever leave out, it'd be like putting together an early version of the UI with no next turn button?! You'd always know that it had to be put in at some stage, so why bother mocking up a design without it? Now I'm not saying that's definitley not what's happened, but personally it strikes me as VERY unlikely.

Another hopeful possibility that exists is that they decided to put in a multi plane system after those screenshots . If the screens were really early in development that's still conceivable so lets hope for that .. Oh yeah a third option would be that there IS a button on those shots to change plane, but it's just not graphically intuitive enough for any of us to realise that that's what it does

If something as far reaching as multiple plains isn't being tested in sync with the rest of the game at a stage where they're testing pretty much anything else in general gameplay then that sounds to me a bit like they're halfassing it. I think it's a pretty core mechanic and will have wide ramifications for the whole game so would need to be attached from very early on to come out well.

Also I still don't understand why you'd have a UI without a plane switching button? I mean what are you testing is funcitonal here with this mock up that leaves it out? Are you just checking the a button press leads to a particular feature working? If so then you could do that just as easily with more buttons? If you're talking design and looking for an intuitive, visually clean, efficient to use interface then it just strikes me there's no point testing a version of it that has no chance being in the game as it stands. Surely in that aspect you're checking that it works at the micro level, that everything is exactly in the right place and optimal for use... but why do that when you're necessarily gonna have to add in another button and shift everything around, it invalidates any testing you would have done .. but having said that I could easily be wrong, maybe there's great reasons for doing it that I don't comprehend.. I am not a game programmer

I reckon the bottom left button on the current screenshots could conceivably be a main menu button (the one that just has a crown on it) .. it's also possible that could be some sort of character page for your channeller..but I think it's generic looking enough that it could be for the menu.

Yeah if multiple planes are in they DEFINITELY need a hotkey for switching, and you're right it really does solve a lot of problems by allowing you to put your cursor somewhere and then flicking so you can see where the planes match up.. yeah that's really an elegant way of doing it. Having said that of course I wouldn't call something that relied SOLELY on a hotkey "intuitive" as to me that implies being able to figure out how to use functionality with no prior knowledge.. and unless you're blindly experiementing by mashing buttons on your keyboard that'd have to be explicitly told to you somewhere and not implied by the interface which is what we surely want. Also there is the fact that a lot of players like to play with only their mouse, so incorporating an important feature that forces them to be in reach of their keyboarrds at all time seems a bit mean

Man I can't believe I wrote so much on such a minor speculatey point.... I.. am.. an... idiot!

Yeah, how is that contrary to what I've been saying? The only real point I've been trying to make here is that I don't think it was in the game at the time of those screenshots.. otherwise they'd have a button for it on the UI, however basic and transitory that UI is. I hope it gets put in at some point, I'm just saying that I don't think it was at that point.

Going on at length is no sign of idiocy in its own right. Depending on whose attention most interests you, too much verbiage can get you ignored, but it's clear that several early regulars around here would not consider PowerPoint to be a writing tool.

More importantly, the Elemental Ideas area is supposed to be a pre-beta brainstorming process. I suspect you can type with enough speed that your thinking doesn't run too far ahead of your fingers. That means if you type freely and digress onto something really neat like Geoff the Slug, you can (perhaps even accidentally) give us more things that are really worth consideration. Keep it up.

and to generate early excitement and community for the game to ensure a better turn out when it is not pre-beta