Amansul Weilink Geographical Map

I was asked to create this map by a friend who has spent decades creating his world, called "Amansul" in his D&D campaign.  We used to play his campaign back in the '80s.  Yep. 
The map was worked from a rough-sketched drawing and then edited.  It was built using the Annual Herwin Weilink style, but I felt the need to go to Mike Schley for the towns and cities because I needed a variety of them to represent what my friend was describing to me (in great detail).   Although the map size is 400x300 miles, the symbol sizes are around four times larger than normal. 

Original Drawing

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Amansul - High Resolution Image

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Comments

  • taustinoctaustinoc Surveyor
    I think some of the labels might be more readable with a slight white glow around them (though I might well be wrong), but that is a gorgeous map.
  • Your're right, Taustinoc, they are hard to read, especially the smaller ones. I had a small black glow, but it might not be enough for the font. Maybe I was working at too high of a resolution. :)
  • taustinoctaustinoc Surveyor
    I see a black outline, but with darker overall colors like that map has, my personal experience is that a slight white glow around the black outline is better.
  • Taustinoc, if you see this, can you please tell me what your specifications are for your Glows on the text? I've been trying different variations, but nothing seems to look right. Thanks for the help.
  • LoopysueLoopysue ProFantasy 🖼️ 39 images Cartographer
    I don't have a problem with the labels, but my eyesight is relatively good.

    It's the way the thinnest bits of the letters are so very thin. It's a handsome font, but that doesn't mean it is automatically ideal when visibility is the primary concern.

    If you don't want to change it for something with more sturdy thin bits, you could try using bold instead of regular. Be careful, though, that by turning it bold you don't end up with the letter touching each other, or it will look even worse.
  • edited May 2020
    I really like this map. But the text is distracting me for some reason. I've been sitting here trying to figure it out and i think its the font.....it looks like you may have a couple of mountain labels in Bold and some not? that is distracting my eye. Also they are all different sizes. I know your mountain ranges vary in sizes, but varying the size of the font labeling them to match the size of the mountain rather than keep the labeling consistent is really distracting me from how much i like this map. Personally, i need to keep my labeling consistent. Also...why are labels such as the name of the desert, I am assuming The Red Sands, in a bigger size than the empire (phajeen?) it is in? Unless there is a campaign or mapping reason for it, again I, personally, would increase the size, or perhaps change the color of the font that labels the realm/kingdom/empire to make that stand out some. Although, that's likely my crazy OCD :)

    All in all, i really do like this map alot and I hope you take my suggestions as constructive and not critical, in any way. You've laid out, or should i say the creator of this world, a really sweet place to adventure in!
  • Thank you, Lorelei. That's something I didn't consider. It shouldn't take me long to fix. Would it be OK to make larger regional areas (like a kingdom) bigger than a city? Or should I just keep them all the same size? Thanks so much for the observation.

    Then font I used, Loopysue, was Tolkien. It was the first time I've used it on a map. It looks SO much better up close, but, you're right, maybe something else that's easier to read. Thank you!
  • If the letters do touch with bold, I have changed the spacing from 1.0 to 1.5.

    A couple of maps I made this year required me to up that to 2.0 due the the font. Sorry, I don't remember which map it was or if I even submitted to the Atlas or not.
  • Posted By: arcwynd Would it be OK to make larger regional areas (like a kingdom) bigger than a city? Or should I just keep them all the same size? Thanks so much for the observation.
    Absolutely! I normally would make the Region/Kingdom/Realm name quite large, then the largest cities in the area share the same size font, then the smaller cities and landmarks share the same font size before going down to the village size. Often i'll then make the mountain, river/lakes, etc. the same sizes as one of the font sizes i've chosen, giving myself about 5 or 6 font sizes for the map and none other. But again...that's just nutty me ;)
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