@Loopysue Thank you so much for this explanation! I did not like the planks as well and tried to adjust the fill png in gimp and then import it again. Which did not yield the desired effect, and thus I gave up on this. With this and your other suggestions it looks way better now! :)

@Ricko Hasche Thank you for your kind words! In fact this is the first rule of my design principles: Design the maps in a way that ambiguity is minimized as much as possible. I really dislike when a beautiful map is drawn, but it doesn't really align with a grid at all. So I avoid half filled hexes (and squares, but I vastly prefer hexes over squares for several reasons). That way, the work of clearing up ambiguity is done while creating the map and during the game itself we don't loose time because players have to ask how a bad alignment of the map and the grid is to be interpreted...

As you can see in the update above (now with the grid), it's hardly a problem, except when I have to cut through a hex. To remove ambiguity in those cases I place objects there, such as the cargo in the lower deck or the fittings on the main deck. that way it's either clear that this is occupied and the ambiguity is gone...

Part 2:

This time with a proper ship deckplan template from the annual 172.

the upper and lower deck are placed in the cutouts on top. So the players can decide to either enter the shipwreck where the boulder tore the hull apart or to climb to the maindeck directly. the evil symbol painted in blood of the dead crew in the crew sleeping quarter on the top right does not bode well...

Things I'm still not 100% happy with:

• I'm not sure about the choice of the border for the cutouts
• still not good with stairs, therefore just ladders.
• unsure why the symbols on the lower deck cut through the shadow overlay (the shadow is just a copy of the lower deck, fillstyle completely black, with transparency, color key and edge fade. the dead bodies and the goods are on the Symbols sheet). I like that they are "highlighted" by cutting through the shadow layer, but I don't know why it happens...