Complex Terrain for a city map
I'm trying to put together a map for a city that I've already started on by hand. The challenge is that this city is very much designed around some rather difficult terrain. I'm using CC3 and CD2, atm, and have not the resources to expand upon that, and I'd like to know if the following is possible.
The details are as follows. Please tell me if this is too ambitious and I should perhaps just finish with my hand drawn map for this particular city.
The city is rather large, first of all, at approximately 2 miles east to west, and about 3 miles north to south. The city is in rather harsh terrain, spanning a river in high, coastal, somewhat mountainous terrain, with the southern portion amidst the mountains (mostly slums and slaves quarters serving mines) and the northern side being in high hilly land, and sporting a large, much more complex and urban population.
What I have not been able to figure out is how to created the background terrain around which to add the city objects, nor what kind of scale I should be using for the city map. Is it possible to create the background terrain using the overland map creation tools, and then build the city directly upon that? As I'm writing it, it sounds a bit farfetched. Moreover, how does one account for the shift in scale from overland to city maps? I'd love to find some creative ways to create the effect of high hills and mountains for the city map, but the symbols in the overland map don't really convey the feeling of being IN the mountains.
So, any input is appreciated, even if it's just to welcome me to the forums and tell me that I'm crazy. If this is impossible, I can always finish the map by hand, but its taking me a lot longer than I thought it would (its amazing how sharp you need to get a colored pencil to indicate a small hovel on a map this size drawn on a piece of normal sized binder paper).
Anyway...thank you in advance for any input you might have.
Peace
Michael
The details are as follows. Please tell me if this is too ambitious and I should perhaps just finish with my hand drawn map for this particular city.
The city is rather large, first of all, at approximately 2 miles east to west, and about 3 miles north to south. The city is in rather harsh terrain, spanning a river in high, coastal, somewhat mountainous terrain, with the southern portion amidst the mountains (mostly slums and slaves quarters serving mines) and the northern side being in high hilly land, and sporting a large, much more complex and urban population.
What I have not been able to figure out is how to created the background terrain around which to add the city objects, nor what kind of scale I should be using for the city map. Is it possible to create the background terrain using the overland map creation tools, and then build the city directly upon that? As I'm writing it, it sounds a bit farfetched. Moreover, how does one account for the shift in scale from overland to city maps? I'd love to find some creative ways to create the effect of high hills and mountains for the city map, but the symbols in the overland map don't really convey the feeling of being IN the mountains.
So, any input is appreciated, even if it's just to welcome me to the forums and tell me that I'm crazy. If this is impossible, I can always finish the map by hand, but its taking me a lot longer than I thought it would (its amazing how sharp you need to get a colored pencil to indicate a small hovel on a map this size drawn on a piece of normal sized binder paper).
Anyway...thank you in advance for any input you might have.
Peace
Michael
Comments
For Hills, you you can play with edge fade inner effects and then add a glow (glow effect goes above edge fade on the effect listing...the length of the glow should slightly exceed the length of the edge fade.)
see attached...they're not perfect, but its the best i've come up with thus far.
For my large cities, I draw a 'nearby area' about 30 miles wide and 20 miles tall map to show the surrounding terrain. Then I make a map closer in to just outside the gates. That is districts level mapping.
To show buildings, I make smaller maps about 1000 feet by 800 feet, or smaller, maps. I name them so you can tell what connects where.
I use bitmap fills to show contours on my maps. The below maps of Brillar, Dank Forest are CC2 maps. Not much in the way of bitmap fills I used later on. But you should be able to see the idea I mentioned above.
region:
Dank Forest B
districts:
Dank Forest C
buildings
Dank Forest D
Is it possible to crop an image from the overland and use it as the background for working in CD Pro?
@Moskva - will that tutorial be relevant for CD Pro?
@JimP - I've got CC3, but only CD Pro (same as 2 I think) - so I can do more sophisticated overland work
Right now the biggest challenge I'm finding is transposing the work I've already done on paper into CC3. The land creation tool adds a tremendous amount of crennulation which I don't always want, but my hand isn't steady enough with the pencil to re-do my hand drawn work. I'm thinking I might have to superimpose a fine grid on my hand-drawn and just go very slowly with the pencil tool. When I finish with the overland, I'll try to upload it here, and perhaps some of you can give me feedback. I won't have time to do much for the next few days, as I've got tremendous amounts of food to eat, and new board games to play...but soon.
Thank you everyone for the input. This seems to be a lovely and helpful community.
Peace
The overland "land" tool is great, but you might want to consider using the smooth line tool to create your land mass. Make a series of small lines that roughly fit your image and then, after you've finished, you can mess around with the fractilize tool on those specific lines to get it to look right. When your done, multipoly the image to make it a filled polygon.
CDPro isn't for CC3. Get the compatibility update from your registration page, download, and install that instead.
Its often a lot of trial and error and each new map is still a learning experience but ist a LOT of fun to do.
Now I need to find a decent looking bridge to span the gap, and I can begin populating the map with symbols, such as the keep on the larger of the two high points on the north side of the river.
I'm thinking about making some shoals as well, something to indicate depth of water around the coast and in the river. Anyway...would love more feedback.
Be well, and I hope you all have a great new gregorian year.