Star Wars mapping assets?
DaishoChikara
🖼️ 1 images Traveler
Does CC3+ have any symbol sets that work well for Star Wars? The default stuff that comes with COS3 is not quite the right theme.
Failing that, does anyone have, or know where I can get suitable assets? I'm willing to buy if necessary.
My gaming group is going to be doing some Star Wars stuff, and I'd like to be able to help the GM out with some maps.
Answers
Have you looked through the annuals? There's a number of SF entries.
Just some observations, Star wars seems to have several general sorts of environment, but one thing that is true for all of them is that they tend to all have a "fantastic" aspect to them - The structures or natural environment tend to have some grand set-piece of one sort or another.
"junker" - don't know if there is an official term for this, but think Tattooine or whatever planet Rey started on. Environment is harsh and few people want to live under the conditions they have to deal with. Technology falls here and people scavenge to make use of what they can. Life is a struggle for the simple things. Buildings and technology seem patched together from bits and pieces but can still be impressive. People themselves and worthwhile connection are the most valuable things to be found here.
"rebel" - technology is effective but humble-looking because it's trying to stay hidden. Environment can be out-of-the-way or surprising areas. Buildings and technology don't look impressive but they can work together to pull off impressive results.
"ideal futuristic" - like the futuristic city in the clouds almost appearing like heaven compared to everywhere else. The wonder and majesty of the environment could be hiding an evil deeper within, or it might be destroyed at some point for standing up against the evils of the universe.
"fully artificial" - lots of metallic or plastic looking materials. no signs of nature. The "bad guys" often embody this aesthetic, along with their space stations, battleships, or even inside the cockpit of a single TIE fighter with all the sleek glowing buttons. Things are over-engineered and over-optimized to the point of almost seeming to sacrifice humanity itself for the sake of this "perfection".
"fully natural" - like where Yoda trained Luke. It seems wild, dangerous, and is far removed from what the characters are used to. However, it is a place of life and of great growth. Struggles here are rewarded with the fruits of hard labor which are so plentiful around.
What you then end up seeing in star wars are these places where some of these extremes start to mix. A heavily populated and futuristic city at the core might also have some aspects of extreme artificial-ness on the surface, mixing the "ideal futuristic" and "fully artificial" extremes, such as what is often portrayed in the prequel movies with the Republic.
You might also see places out in the backwoods planets mixing the "fully natural" and "rebel" extremes for a place for characters to run to and hide, but also overcome natural challenges that aid in their growth.
These themes are common for Star Wars and if you can find textures that fit into those categories it might become easier. What really tends to separate a "star wars" map from a typical sci-fi map is the specific vehicles or creatures of the universe, which you may have a hard time finding if it isn't freely available from fans (licensing issue).