These are some great zoomed-in maps for your world. I definitely feel the "style" of the Vagothian Kingdoms, and I can easily imagine using the hex maps as handouts or trail-maps for players.
I really can't help you with choosing a style though! I'm a big fan of hex-based maps given my RPG roots, and I like all the different styles you present. Black and white maps with colour highlights work for me, so I will follow with interest and see how things develop as you progress.
I add a hex grid to all of my maps. I don't always show the hex grid, but when I do I just add a transparency and slight blur to the grid to take attention away from the hexes and put focus back on the map. Try it. It might work with the right settings... ?
The grid looks good now, just the first version was too dark.
I updated the map a little today. I put in a parchment background for the four icons in each corner, deleted the Mike Schley Inks and added back in the colored Mike Schley symbols.
All I have to do now is the red borders, but they are rather time consuming to do.
I notice the red in the border has been done piecmeal, and varies in shade/saturation. Can I ask, how are you coloring the border? Are you using a Blend Mode effect on a red box? I did a quick test using Blend Mode (Multiply) and it worked nicely. I'm just curious.
For what it's worth, though, I think it looks better without the colors in the border and corners, though obviously it's unfinished right now so it's hard to tell for sure. I really like that color for the water, though.
I like the colour in the corners and the cartouches in them, but not so sure about the red border. I rather like it B&W, but I guess we need to see the final product before we make a final opinion. Overall, it is great
I have not had the chance to do anything with the map lately.
Thanks for the compliments JimP, Barliman, HadrianVI, and Topdecker! :-)
Quenten and Dogtag, I sill have a BW version. I posted it on Deviant Art and the Cartography related groups on there, but it has not done well. I added the water areas but that did not help. That is one of the reasons I am looking at a little more "pop". :-)
Posted By: DogtagI notice the red in the border has been done piecmeal, and varies in shade/saturation. Can I ask, how are you coloring the border? Are you using a Blend Mode effect on a red box? I did a quick test using Blend Mode (Multiply) and it worked nicely. I'm just curious.
I will have to try the Blend Mode (Multiply)! :-)
I have been using the dark red color with Transparency with it set at 80%.
It overlaps the dark areas some so there is a variant in the shade/saturation since those portions create a darker red section.
So far, it has been real tedious and cumbersome process.
Yikes! Yeah, you may want to take a look at Blend Mode. It's one of those effects a lot of people skip because they're not entirely sure how it works. I guarantee you it's worth playing with, though. Of course, I'm not entirely sure if this is exactly what you're after, but it's still a good effect to have in your toolbox.
Here's the test I did. It took me longer to write the text on the map than it did to color the border. I think the whole shebang, text and all, took a little over 5 min. I've attached the FCW for you to look at, if you're interested.
[Image_9114]
I hope it helps. Note that the red frames in the FCW overlap the black border around the runes on each side (but, of course, do not spill into the squares at the corners).
Here is the updated "regular" map of Eastern Sutheimr and the "hex" map of Eastern Sutheimr. I want to give a shout out to Dogtag that really helped me out with the border color! :-)
Here is the revised map of Central Sutheimr. I used the Par Lindstrom BW Style to represent Vagothian maps. I also used some symbols from the Mike Schley Style and wave symbols from CC3 BW style.
The map shows Central Sutheimr and the Straits of Kaldrmarr (The Cold Sea) that separates the Northlands from the Mainland.
From east to west the mountain ranges of Central Sutheimr are: 1. Sytnrfell (The Moaning Mountains) 2. Arifjodr (The Eagle Wing) 3. Atallotti (The Terrible Dread) 4. Qasiret Saxtalari (The Mines of Doom) - The greatest of the Sellevolkian Colonies in Sutheimr that was destroyed by the Dragon's of the Mad Queen during the Chess Wars. Three Elder Dragons led their armies here and still dwell within the ruins and valley's on either side of this land. The Elder Dragons are known as Atallotti (the Terrible Dread), Leithrherr (the Hateful Destroyer), and Storrnadr (the Great Serpent).
The only city in Central Sutheimr is Heillborg (Safe Town).
Kaldrmarr, Sytnerfell, Arifjodr, Atallotti, Leithrherr, Storrnadr, and Heillborg are Vagothian while Qasiret Saxtalari is of the Dwarven tongue.
The regions of Western Sutheimr: 1. Qasiret Saxtalari (The Mines of Doom) Dwarven 2. Kul Men Qabirler (The Island of Ashes and Tombs) Dwarven 3. Drakondar (The Land of the Dragons) Dwarven 4. Vingulmork (The Forest of Fools) Vagothian 5. Muspellsheimr (The Realm of Muspell - The Fire Giants) Vagothian 6. Smidrfjord (The Fjord of the Smiths) Vagothian 7. Grendelkjarr (The Fen of Grendel - God of Trolls) Vagothian 8. Gnaefa Mountains (The Towering Mountains) Vagothian 9. Munara Angar (The Valley of Towers) Dwarven 10. Bergriser (Stone Giants) Vagothian 11. Allhardrland (A Most Dangerous Land) Vagothian 12. Batiskakna (Stone Gate) Dwarven 13. Marrforad (The Sea of Monsters) Vagothian 14. Perinusa (Isle of the Fairies) Elvin 15. Skjaldborg Elyands (The Shield Wall Islands) Vagothian
The above map of Western Sutheimr is based off of the less detailed world map. I am thinking about making a second version of this map using the detailed version that I originally made when I was trying to go from the "bottom" up instead of "top" down in world design. When I first started, I just did not appreciate how much it bogs the computer down when it comes to large highly detailed maps. I was also not confident in my ability to do a "top" down approach. Thanks to the help from everyone here, I believe that I now have the skills to do this. It started top down, but I thing that all the maps will be modified over and over as I develop them. The large regional maps like the ones above are such an example. They will be done originally based off of the world map, but will in all likelihood be modified once the small detail maps are done. There will also be various styles. There will be a Mike Schley style (with other bits thrown in) that will unify the whole world and there will be "local" styles that reflect the individual cultures (Especially for player maps). I may change my mind later though - LoL! - there is a whole lot of experimenting going on as part of this process. :-)
Below is the detailed map in the Mike Schley style (Although some of it will be modified). Note: The Valley of Qasiret Saxtalari and the Skjaldborg Eylands are not finished in the detailed map.
I will do the same thing with the Niflheimr/Thrace detailed map which is also below.
I am partially done with the new mountain style. I adjusted scale for mountains, foothills, regular hills, and trees. I closed in the spacing on the mountains as well. For Muspellsheimr, used the cave symbol for the source of each of the lava flows (Fire Giants!) :-) I dropped the symbol for the city of Smidrfjord and just left the name in place. The mountain background obscured the symbol too much. I also added the bay that Smidrfjord is located at. I added an inner glow for the text.
The areas with the upgraded mountains are on the right side of the map. 1. Gnaela 2. Smidrfjord 3. Halogaland 4. Muspellsheimr 5. Vingulmork 6. Ranrike 7. Qasiret Saxtalari 8. Kul Men Qadirler 9. Drakondar
Comments
These are some great zoomed-in maps for your world. I definitely feel the "style" of the Vagothian Kingdoms, and I can easily imagine using the hex maps as handouts or trail-maps for players.
I really can't help you with choosing a style though! I'm a big fan of hex-based maps given my RPG roots, and I like all the different styles you present. Black and white maps with colour highlights work for me, so I will follow with interest and see how things develop as you progress.
DMG
My first hex map had the hexes too dark, but the second attempt came out a lot better I think. The hex maps are especially useful for Dungeon Masters.
I add a hex grid to all of my maps. I don't always show the hex grid, but when I do I just add a transparency and slight blur to the grid to take attention away from the hexes and put focus back on the map. Try it. It might work with the right settings... ?
DMG
I updated the map a little today. I put in a parchment background for the four icons in each corner, deleted the Mike Schley Inks and added back in the colored Mike Schley symbols.
All I have to do now is the red borders, but they are rather time consuming to do.
I have the hexes "hidden" on this one. :-)
For what it's worth, though, I think it looks better without the colors in the border and corners, though obviously it's unfinished right now so it's hard to tell for sure. I really like that color for the water, though.
Tim
Thanks for the compliments JimP, Barliman, HadrianVI, and Topdecker! :-)
Quenten and Dogtag, I sill have a BW version. I posted it on Deviant Art and the Cartography related groups on there, but it has not done well. I added the water areas but that did not help. That is one of the reasons I am looking at a little more "pop". :-)
I have been using the dark red color with Transparency with it set at 80%.
It overlaps the dark areas some so there is a variant in the shade/saturation since those portions create a darker red section.
So far, it has been real tedious and cumbersome process.
Here's the test I did. It took me longer to write the text on the map than it did to color the border. I think the whole shebang, text and all, took a little over 5 min.
[Image_9114]
I hope it helps. Note that the red frames in the FCW overlap the black border around the runes on each side (but, of course, do not spill into the squares at the corners).
Cheers,
~Dogtag
I used the Par Lindstrom BW Style to represent Vagothian maps.
I also used some symbols from the Mike Schley Style and wave symbols from CC3 BW style.
The map shows Central Sutheimr and the Straits of Kaldrmarr (The Cold Sea) that separates the Northlands from the Mainland.
From east to west the mountain ranges of Central Sutheimr are:
1. Sytnrfell (The Moaning Mountains)
2. Arifjodr (The Eagle Wing)
3. Atallotti (The Terrible Dread)
4. Qasiret Saxtalari (The Mines of Doom) - The greatest of the Sellevolkian Colonies in Sutheimr that was destroyed by the Dragon's of the Mad Queen during the Chess Wars. Three Elder Dragons led their armies here and still dwell within the ruins and valley's on either side of this land. The Elder Dragons are known as Atallotti (the Terrible Dread), Leithrherr (the Hateful Destroyer), and Storrnadr (the Great Serpent).
The only city in Central Sutheimr is Heillborg (Safe Town).
Kaldrmarr, Sytnerfell, Arifjodr, Atallotti, Leithrherr, Storrnadr, and Heillborg are Vagothian while Qasiret Saxtalari is of the Dwarven tongue.
The regions of Western Sutheimr:
1. Qasiret Saxtalari (The Mines of Doom) Dwarven
2. Kul Men Qabirler (The Island of Ashes and Tombs) Dwarven
3. Drakondar (The Land of the Dragons) Dwarven
4. Vingulmork (The Forest of Fools) Vagothian
5. Muspellsheimr (The Realm of Muspell - The Fire Giants) Vagothian
6. Smidrfjord (The Fjord of the Smiths) Vagothian
7. Grendelkjarr (The Fen of Grendel - God of Trolls) Vagothian
8. Gnaefa Mountains (The Towering Mountains) Vagothian
9. Munara Angar (The Valley of Towers) Dwarven
10. Bergriser (Stone Giants) Vagothian
11. Allhardrland (A Most Dangerous Land) Vagothian
12. Batiskakna (Stone Gate) Dwarven
13. Marrforad (The Sea of Monsters) Vagothian
14. Perinusa (Isle of the Fairies) Elvin
15. Skjaldborg Elyands (The Shield Wall Islands) Vagothian
I think the border and cartouches are particularly effective now you've nailed them. Well done! I follow with interest.
DMG
Below is the detailed map in the Mike Schley style (Although some of it will be modified). Note: The Valley of Qasiret Saxtalari and the Skjaldborg Eylands are not finished in the detailed map.
I will do the same thing with the Niflheimr/Thrace detailed map which is also below.
1. Vagoth (Homeland of Vagothians)
2. Vangar
3. Hardrada
4. Ingvaeon
5. Halogaland
6. Ranrike
I am not sure about the mountains though. I am going to take another stab at them. :-)
I am partially done with the new mountain style.
I adjusted scale for mountains, foothills, regular hills, and trees.
I closed in the spacing on the mountains as well.
For Muspellsheimr, used the cave symbol for the source of each of the lava flows (Fire Giants!) :-)
I dropped the symbol for the city of Smidrfjord and just left the name in place. The mountain background obscured the symbol too much.
I also added the bay that Smidrfjord is located at.
I added an inner glow for the text.
The areas with the upgraded mountains are on the right side of the map.
1. Gnaela
2. Smidrfjord
3. Halogaland
4. Muspellsheimr
5. Vingulmork
6. Ranrike
7. Qasiret Saxtalari
8. Kul Men Qadirler
9. Drakondar