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This item has a Codex entry: The Adriatic
"Along the Adriatic coast a fierce struggle for land and life is taking place. A rugged but fortified shore becomes the battlefield for an empire under siege. What was once a beautiful Mediterranean village by the coast is now transformed by mechanised war, where waves and dreadnought battleships pound the remains of Italy’s Great War."

— Official website description

Empire's Edge is a map featured in Battlefield 1.[1] The map takes place during the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, where the Italian army pushes back the Austro-Hungarian soldiers along the Adriatic Coast in the final Italian offensive of 1918. It features significant emphasis on naval and air combat with both vehicles and aircraft being available for both sides on this map.

Overview[]

Empire's Edge takes place at dawn around a gulf on the Adriatic coast. The map boundaries are long and thin, encompassing both land and sea, forming a varied and expansive map. Inland from the coast, the western edge of the map is bordered by high mountain ranges which are generally inaccessible except around the map center. As the land gently falls towards the sea, neatly parcelled villas appear, isolated from one another by high stone walls and open stretches of farmland, linked only by the rudimentary dirt roads that weave in between foothills and rows of cypress trees. Towards the center, a high ridgeline cuts horizontally across the belt of the map, upon which stands the mighty medieval Castello Alto (literally "High Castle") which monopolises the horizon. Moving still eastwards towards the coast are seen a number of more modern concrete enclosures and blockhouses dug into the rocky hillside, built to accommodate powerful coastal guns. The land then descends abruptly, with the steep cliffs giving way to short shingle beaches before reaching the water. Along the coast various spits of land protrude out into the littoral zone, giving the eastern shore a jagged, uneven look and creating landmasses upon which the Island Battery and imposing bastion fortress of Stella are based.

A strip of ocean running parallel to the coast allows the boats and larger ships of the map to operate and combat each other. Out of bounds, the gulf stretches far into the distance to the north and south, the great arms of the curving shore holding many remote towns and villages, some of which are under naval bombardment from a powerful fleet of battleships assembled under the blinding winter sun.

Behemoth[]

The map's Behemoth is the Dreadnought. Scattered around the map are coastal gun batteries that may be used to combat the Dreadnought. It is countered by torpedo boats which spawn in for both sides on either side of the map.

Control Points[]

show/hide


Control Point Conquest Domination Rush Operations
Italian Deployment BF1 Kingdom of Italy Icon
Villa Stefano 1A
1B
1A
Stefano Battery A 1B
Villa Martinelli 2A
2B
2A
Villa Falconi B 2B
Castello Gate C 3A
Castello Alto D BF1 Flame Trooper Icon 3A
3B
3B
Castello Battery 3C
Island Battery E BF1 Pilot Icon
Villa Benetti F 4A
4B
4A
Benetti Tower Ruin 4B
Bastion G A 5A
Stella Fortress B 5A
5B
5B
Stella Battery C
Austro-Hungarian Deployment BF1 Austro-Hungarian Empire Icon


Conquest[]

In Conquest, of the seven objectives, four are concentrated around the middle of the map, fairly close to one another around the central ridgeline housing Castello Alto and its outer fortifications. Of the three outlying objectives, one is located near to each team's spawn and the third, Island Battery, is somewhat isolated on the eastern coastline of the map. While the multitude of light and heavy vehicles provide adequate transport on land, the pair of torpedo boats allocated to each side allow the bypassing of enemy strongpoints by sea. It should be noted however that the many fortress guns along the cliffs can make short work of the small motorboats, and can be turned against land objectives if necessary.

Equipment[]

BF1 Kingdom of Italy Icon Kingdom of Italy
Light vehicle(s)

2 M30 Scout
1 F.T Armored Car

Main battle tank(s)

2 FT-17/Mark V/A7V/Artillery Truck/St Chamond/Putilov-Garford

Fixed-wing aircraft

2 SPAD S.XIII/Bristol F2.B/Caproni Ca.5/Ilya-Muromets

Boat(s)

2 M.A.S. Torpedo Boat

BF1 Austro-Hungarian Empire Icon Austro-Hungarian Empire
Light vehicle(s)

2 37/95 Scout
1 Romfell Armored Car

Main battle tank(s)

2 FT-17/Mark V/A7V/Artillery Truck/St Chamond/Putilov-Garford

Fixed-wing aircraft

2 Albatros D.III/Rumpler C.I/Hansa-Brandenburg G.I/Ilya-Muromets

Boat(s)

2 M.A.S. Torpedo Boat

Deployments[]

Italian Deployment[]

The Italians deploy from the meandering roadway on the southwest side of the map, atop Hill 201 and behind Villa Stefano. The road takes then north along the western map edge towards Villa Falconi, although troops can cut across the hillside and join a parallel road linking to the nearby objective of Stefano Battery. The two M.A.S. Torpedo Boats available to the team spawn in a cove at the eastern coast, roughly in line with ground vehicles' starting position.

Austro-Hungarian Deployment[]

The Austro-Hungarians start in a field amongst foothills on the northeast side of the map, near the coastline. An intersection of roads takes them either directly south to the west gate of Stella Fortress, or more inland in a southwesterly direction to the main gate of the fort and continuing on to Villa Benetti. Their own pair of Torpedo Boats spawn to the south of a spit of land close to the main spawn location.

Flags[]

Stefano Battery[]

The Stefano Battery is a coastal gun battery found in the map's southern sector. A dirt road passes over a stone bridge to the south, cutting through the gravel yard and concrete foundations of fortification, which consists of a blockhouse built into a berm with the turret of a Fortress Gun appearing on top. The controls of the artillery are located below in the blockhouse, which features lockable doorways on the south and northwest side, which lead down a flight of stairs into a main chamber packed with ammunition. Outside, access to the roof of the bunker is provided by stairwells, a scalable pile of discarded shell casings, and the slopes of the coastal berm itself that make up the eastern approach.

Aside from the Fortress Gun, a QF 1 AA gun is located outside the bunker's southern entrance. A scout car spawns on this objective, and the flag provides a forward tank spawn when held by the Italians.

Villa Falconi[]

On the southern side of the great ridgeline upon which the Castello stands is Villa Falconi. This walled-off homestead is made up of two houses, each with second stories linked to one another by an overhead passage and an attic above them, which occupy the center of the compound. To their east is an allotment and a small shed. To the west, an open courtyard and a stable building. The square capture zone adheres to the shape of the outer perimeter walls of the villa, requiring players to be inside the area to affect the taking of the objective. The outer walls can be a breach with explosives or rammed with heavy vehicles, as can the houses, which provide the majority of cover in the area. Due to its location on low ground, the villa is vulnerable to bombardment from the field guns that line the ridge at Castello Gate, as well as the machine guns at Castello Alto.

In addition to providing a scout car when captured, a QF 1 AA is set up near the eastern allotment. A Maxim MG, set upon sandbags outside the southern wall, can be used to defend the road in from Stefano Battery.

Castello Gate[]

The Castello Gate is located at the western end of the central ridgeline and is the start of the narrow road the crosses the ridge top into Castello Alto itself. It consists of two old guard towers each side of the dirt road, which are adjoined to by the crumbling remains of stone outbuildings and foundations. The capture zone encompasses this relatively small area. The location of the objective gives good sightlines over the approaches, with the guard towers able to be climbed for alternate viewpoints. Once inside the point, the towers do much to limit line of sight, with infantry having to clear the various corners of the ruins at close range.

Of note is the area directly west of the flag, which hosts the few scalable and boundary-accessible mountains on the map, the summits of which are the map's highest points. These heights can be used to direct long-range gunfire onto targets in the valley below.

Castello Gate is the location of a large number of heavy gun positions. Of the two Maxim guns located nearby, one is pointed downhill towards Villa Falconi and another towards Villa Benetti. There is a similar arrangement with a pair of FK 96 field guns, which are pointed in opposite directions along the spine of the ridge a short distance east of the capture zone.

Castello Alto[]

The roadway from Castello Gate crosses a stone bridge into the Castello bailey itself. Set upon tall stone foundations, Castello Alto dominates most of the surrounding countryside and coastline from its prominent hilltop bearing. Despite this, the ancient castle is in a poor state of repair. On the west side, the four guard towers protecting the road are accessible still but with walls full of cracks or missing completely. The main tower, further in on the southeast side of the hill, has had one of its walls and all of its upper floors removed through decay, and the inner bailey at the hill summit is little more than a vague jigsaw of half-standing walls buried under moss and boulders. This central bailey is the main focus of the capture radius, which is even smaller than that at Castello Gate. The rough square ruins in the middle of the Castello can provide some directional cover, with the summit itself being somewhat difficult to reach due to its elevated position, sheer cliff faces, and impassible outer foundations preventing approach from some directions. Tanks will have trouble maneuvering on the hilltop as the shredded surviving walls are generally impervious to crushing and can trap large vehicles.

The commanding position of Castello Alto allows troops to project fire onto the low-lying objectives of the surrounding area and have a number of heavy machine guns, concentrated mostly on the west side, to assist in doing this. A QF 1 AA gun found near the northern guard tower can defend the hill from air attack. A Flame Trooper kit spawns in the ruins of the central bailey.

Outside the eastern perimeter of the castle, the hill descends steeply as winding pathways connect to a roadway the circles the base of the castle hill. Around this road are two underground bunkers that each house a Fortress Gun behind a locking steel door, useful for attacking boats as the positions command views over the final ~50m of cliff before the coastline. Each position, located off from the northeast and southeast corners of the castle also have a variety of static emplacements built up around them above ground, including a field gun and QF 1 AA gun around the southeast battery and two field guns and another AA gun close to the northeast battery.

Island Battery[]

The Island Battery is located off the eastern coast of the map center, with an archway bridge connecting the area to a hairpin road winding down from the castle perimeter. The island has very little beach around its base, instead consisting mostly of steep rocky cliffs and patches of grass strewn with boulders that rise sharply up from the shoreline. Staircases around the northeast and southwest waters can assist players getting onto the island from the surf. Atop the island is the ruined foundations of some sort of castle keep. A crumbling guard towers looks out onto the west bridge, with the surrounding flat area of the hilltop being flanked by short chunks of disembodied walls, as well as more modern fortifications that include sandbag gun positions and barbed wire. The capture zone around the island is large and circular, expanding out to sea over 100m to the east, permitting boats to influence the objective capture rate from some distance away. The narrow channel beneath the bridge onto the island can also be used to bypass this objective, with the capture zone stopping before the western end of the bridge. The significant gun emplacements on the cliffs above, including the twin Fortress Guns, can be used to great effect against the island and the surrounding seas.

The Island itself houses an array of artillery pieces, including two FK 96 guns and a QF 1 AA gun on the summit. An additional field gun is emplaced in a separate position closer to the northeastern coastline.

Capturing this objective provides an additional plane spawn to the team.

Villa Benetti[]

In the north side of the valley lies Villa Benetti. Similar is layout to Villa Falconi, the homestead consists of two conjoined three-storey houses (and a shed) situated in the middle of a compound. The courtyard is only partially walled off, with tall brick walls along the adjacent south road. Lower walls of dry stone form the other three sides of the perimeter, granting better sight lines into the objective from afar, although unlike Falconi the villa sits raised foundations the slightly obscure the inner areas when on approach. Once again, the structures form the majority of the cover, and can be similarly reduced with explosives.

The villa has been converted into a command post of sorts, and as a result features more robust fortifications that other villas. The windows on the upper floors have been boarded up, outer walls reinforced with sandbag barricades, and the outer courtyard is defended by an increased number of static weaponry. A QF 1 AA gun is found on the northeast side by the shed. On the northwest side, an FK 96 and a carriage-mounted Maxim protect the driveway and the hillside between the villa and Castello Gate. The flag also spawns as Scout Car.

Bastion[]

The large coastal citadel known as the Stella Fortress is located on the northeastern edge of the map. A quadrilateral star fort with three bastions jut out around the outer perimeter, and protect an inner bailey inside of which is a large fortress garrison, known as the redoubt. There are two gates into the fort. The main gate is at the end of an arrow-shaped raised foundation bastion that forms a bridge outside the south wall, and the secondary gate is around the west side. The capture zone is concentrated around the elevated defences and bastions around the main gate and the north wall. The gate houses lockable steel doors, which can be blasted open with shellfire or battered inwards using tanks. The inner courtyard is fairly open, with the adjacent battlements looking down onto the area from atop stone staircases. The isolated and defensible fortress can be infiltrated from the sea, with gaps in the wall around the north and east sides providing access points into the central bailey.

A multitude of gun position adorn the ramparts of the fortress's outer walls, which include an FK 96 near the main gate, a QF 1 AA gun on the eastern bastion, and two Fortress Guns pointing seaward on the east and north side. Another QF 1 AA is emplaced at the tip of the outer arrow-shaped bastion leading out from the main gate, next to which a scout car spawns. When held by the Austro-Hungarians, tanks may deploy forward of their headquarters at this base.


Operations[]

Empire's Edge is the second and last map in Iron Walls in Operations. It, like the preceding Monte Grappa, follows an Italian offensive, this time along the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Air, armor, naval and cavalry support are present but their availability is dependent on the faction and sector.

If the Dreadnought is present at any stage, the team opposing it receive Torpedo Boats to attack it.

Sector 1[]

The first line of Austro-Hungarian defense is Hill 201. Hill 201 has two objectives: (A) Villa Stefano, a fortified Italian villa located inland, and (B) the Stefano Battery, a coastal artillery bunker equipped with a Fortress Gun. The Italians spawn very close to the Villa, which consists of two parallel stables surrounded by a ring of trenches.

The Italians begin their assault with two tanks, two planes and two cavalrymen, while the Austro-Hungarians receive no additional support.

Sector 2[]

When the Italians break through the Hill 201 defenses, there will be a soft valley containing Villa Martinelli and Villa Falconi, Objectives A and B respectively. Neither are heavily fortified, unlike the previous sector's Villa Stefano. However, the Austro-Hungarians do receive their first tank and air support at this sector.

Sector 3[]

After breaking through the villa defenses, the Italians then must assault il Castello, which is broken into three parts: (A) The Castello Gate, (B) The Castello Alto, and (C) The Castello Battery. The Castello Gate and the Castello Alto are linked by a long stone bridge over a shallow depression on the ridge, allowing easy access between the two points. The Castello Alto, with its high towers, overlooks a majority of the map and gives the Austro-Hungarian defenders a commanding view of this sector and the previous sector as well. The Castello Battery is a heavily fortified small island to the south connected by a similar stone bridge. The Battery's capture zone extends out into the water allowing M.A.S. Torpedo Boats to capture the point, and most of the structures and other cover on the island are destructible, making it not a very defensible position. Additionally, there is another Fortress gun bunker to the southwest of the Castello Alto but it is not associated with an objective.

The Austro-Hungarian defenders get an additional plane at this sector, bringing the number to two, and both sides receive a Torpedo boat.

Sector 4[]

After storming the Castello, there's one more villa to capture, the (A) Villa Benetti. A small ruined building, the (B) Benetti Tower Ruins, serves as the second objective for this sector. Both points suffer from a lack of defensible positions and are very visible from the new Italian positions at the Castello.

Once the Castello is secure, the Italians will lose their Cavalry support.

Sector 5[]

The final sector of this map, and of the operation, is the Coastal Fortress. It comprises the (B) Stella Fortress, an 18th-century star fort apparently modernized with fortress guns, and the outlying (A) Bastion serving as the guard point and main point of access to the fortress. In addition to the direct route through the Bastion, there are multiple ways for the Italians to flank the fortress. The overland route to the north gate avoids most of the fortress' kill zones, but is vulnerable to flanking from the Austro-Hungarian spawn point. The fortress can also be flanked from the south, either along the coast or by using M.A.S. Torpedo Boats. The Stella Fortress capture point includes most of the northern part of the courtyard as well as the central two-story redoubt. Atop the redoubt are a number of QF 1 AA guns to defend against air attack.

Once the fortress falls, the Italians are declared the victors. The capitulation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the end of the war itself, is mere days away.

Rush[]

Rush on Empire's Edge sees the Italian army attack the Austro-Hungarian telegraph network on the Adriatic coast. The gamemode features radically different positions for emplacements, which are in abundance for the defending team, and is one of the few Rush maps in Battlefield 1 to feature aircraft.

Sector 1[]

The first sector takes place against the fortified Villa Stefano, with the Italians launching the assault from the hill road that is their Conquest spawn. Objective A is on the ground floor of the villa itself, to the north of the area. Objective B is closer to the trench network on the south side, and is inside the east stable building.

The Italians bring with them a single tank and cavalry unit, as well as an M30 Scout Car and a Sentry. The Austro-Hungarians have two field guns emplaced about the villa - one between the stable courtyard and the house compound, and another outside the compound watching the west road.

Sector 2[]

The next set of objectives are at the nearby Villa Martinelli. As before, the first objective is inside the villa building itself on the high ground to the north, while objective B is in the outbuilding at the foot of the hill directly south.

The attackers gain a single plane at this point as well as a Sentry SMG. The Austro-Hungarians have more formidable material support at his objective, which includes two field guns, an AA cannon, and a heavy machine gun.

Sector 3[]

The third phase is made against the Castello Alto and its coastal defenses. Objective A is atop the hill, in the foundations of the tall tower on the northeast side of the summit. Objective B is inside the bunker that houses the southernmost fortress gun (absent in this gamemode). Both positions can be troublesome to attack, the former for its position on high ground, the latter for being inside an otherwise unbreachable underground bunker with only two entrances.

The Austro-Hungarians receive one of each of the following; a tank, a plane and a Tank Hunter elite kit. Atop the Castello heights overlooking Villa Martinelli are several FK 96s and Maxim guns. The QF 1 AA gun found on the hill in Conquest has also been relocated to project fire into the valley.

Sector 4[]

At this sector, the battlelines jump suddenly to the opposite side of the central ridgeline, with the new telegraphs emplaced around Villa Benetti. This time, objective A is outside the property, inside a shed on the edge of a field to the northwest. Objective B is inside the villa house.

As usual, the area is defended heavily with field guns.

Sector 5[]

The final blow falls on the Stella Fortress. Both objectives are located inside the central redoubt, with Objective A located in the main chamber of the ground floor, and objective B at the top of the spiral staircase leading up to the roof.

While the fortress guns do not appear, the battlements around the perimeter of the fortress bristle with artillery. No less than four field guns, two machine guns and a QF 1 AA defend the main gate, with another AA gun located far back near the Stella Battery.


Domination[]

Domination takes place around the Stella Fortress, with two of the three objectives concentrated inside the walls. The map boundaries allow transit around the exterior walls of the fortress, permitting flanking and allowing the bypassing of the open inner courtyard.

Bastion[]

Empire's Edge Domination Bastion

The Bastion objective is centered around the main gate into the fortress, at the end of the arrow-shaped bastion on the south end of the fort. The capture zone does not permeate the outer walls, forcing players to leave the inner bailey in order to capture the flag, which can be done from on top of or below the arched bridge into the fortification.


Stella Fortress[]

Empire's Edge Domination Stella Fortress

The Stella Fortress objective is contained inside the redoubt in the middle of the Stella Fortress. The flag is located on the ground floor, secured with steel double doors, which can be locked or blown up depending on the team's intentions for the objective.


Stella Battery[]

Empire's Edge Domination Stella Battery

Stella Battery is found on the northeast side of the fort, situated on a lower level to the surrounding fortifications. The location houses a battery of three artillery guns encircled by low sandbag walls. Beside the guns are piles of artillery shells that can clear out the position when detonated. Outside the capture zone, the high platforms of the bastion battlements can be used to cover the position from above.


Team Deathmatch[]

Team Deathmatch takes place in the same area as Domination.


War Pigeons[]

War Pigeons uses an identical boundary layout as Domination and Team Deathmatch.


Gallery[]


Trivia[]

  • The map appears to be partially inspired by the area in and around the town of Grignano on the Adriatic Coast, also indicated by its position on the Operations map.
  • In the game files, this map is named MP_ItalianCoast.

References[]

  1. Maps of Battlefield 1 - Battlefield.com - Retrieved June 12, 2016
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